“Hey, Jinyoungie,” Jaebum says, breaking the comfortable silence the two of them have been sitting in.

“Yeah?” Jinyoung doesn’t look up from where he’s busy scribbling in his journal - writing things down whenever inspiration strikes for lyrics is a habit he picked up from Jaebum somewhere in the years they’ve spent together. For several moments, Jaebum forgets what he was going to say in favor of watching in mute fascination as Jinyoung’s eyes furrow in concentration and his tongue peeks out from between his lips as he writes intently. After a stretch of silence, Jinyoung finally pauses to look at Jaebum curiously. “What is it, hyung?”

“Nothing,” Jaebum says, smiling at the puzzlement in Jinyoung’s eyes. “I just had a weird thought, that’s all.”

Jinyoung raises an eyebrow, the beginnings of a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Well, now you have to tell me.”

“Where do you feel safest?” Jaebum asks, instead of directly telling Jinyoung what he’s thinking.

“What?” Jinyoung his head, surveying Jaebum’s face like he’s trying to read his mind. “What do you mean?”

Jaebum lets out a soft laugh. Jinyoung is cute, well, all the time, actually, but particularly when he’s confused. “I mean, is there a place where you feel like no matter what happens, you won’t be harmed? Like you’re protected from anything the world can throw at you?”

Jinyoung is quiet for a few moments, apparently deep in thought. “I - Do you have somewhere like that?” he finally says.

“That’s what I was thinking about,” Jaebum says, smiling gently. “I feel safest next to you, Jinyoungie.”

“You -” Jinyoung looks caught off-guard for a fleeting moment before his whole face softens. “You sap,” he says, his smile wide and genuine.

“Just thought you should know,” Jaebum returns cheekily. “My protector.”

Jinyoung just shoves his shoulder playfully in retaliation before going back to writing, and silence settles over them again.

(”I feel safest next to you too, for the record,” Jinyoung tells him later that night, his voice uncharacteristically shy as he whispers into the darkness of the bedroom. “Because I know you’ll always be there for me.”

“Of course I will,” Jaebum says without hesitation. “For as long as you’ll let me.”

“Forever, then,” Jinyoung says, with so much conviction that Jaebum could never doubt him.

He smiles and finds Jinyoung’s hand with his own, lacing their fingers together. “Okay,” he agrees. “Forever.”)