"It's going to be too loud" Junmyeon complains when Jongdae informs them that his friends are coming over.

"Kyungsoo's not loud" Jongdae points out as he rummages in the pantry for chips.  

"You know I'm not talking about Kyungsoo"  Junmyeon glares.  "Baekhyun and Chanyeol are loud enough for all of us combined."

"Well" Minseok muses.  "It is the first day of summer break.  Give the kids a chance."

Junmyeon rolls his eyes, finishing up the last of his avocado toast.  "Whatever, I'm staying in my room."

Jongdae watches with a pout as his second oldest brother closes his bedroom door behind him.  "So cold" Jongdae murmurs. 

Taking out a bowl for the chips, Minseok chuckles.  "Don't worry.  You know he'll come crawling once the party gets started."

Jongdae shrugs as he turns his attention to the cabinet in the living room.  "Where are my games?" he asks Minseok.

Minseok turns off the sink's faucet, wiping his hands on the kitchen towel before coming up behind Jongdae.  He pulls out a box from the shelf and hands it to Jongdae who grimaces at the sight of the old game.

"Not Jenga, hyung" Jongdae whines.  "That's such a boring game.  I mean, where are my video games."

Minseok scrunches his nose, holding the box of Jenga blocks protectively to his chest.  "Try Jongin's room" he suggests.

When Jongdae disappears down the hall, Minseok looks down at the blocks.  At least, he liked this game - old or not.

After washing the rest of the carrot sticks, Minseok arranges the veggies in a circle and places the dip right in the center of the platter.  He surveys his work with a proud little grin before the doorbell rings.  There's a loud clatter as Jongdae races from Jongin's room with an arm full of games for their video game console.

"I'll get it!" Jongdae shouts, already hyper at the thought of hanging out with his friends.

The front door opens and suddenly, there's a cacophony of chatter.  From the kitchen, Minseok lets out a little sigh.  'So it begins.'

 

 

Surprisingly, after they polish off the vegetables at Minseok's insistence, no one goes for the video games.  Instead, Kyungsoo starts to set up the Jenga blocks with Baekhyun on the low wooden table in front of their television set.  They start to play something called Girl Group Jenga when Jongin emerges from his room, hair sticking up every which way and eyes droopy with sleep.

"Have a nice nap?" Minseok asks, patting Jongin's bottom.  "Did the noise wake you?"

Jongin nods, but doesn't seem to mind much.  He grabs a stray carrot stick and munches on it as he surveys the situation in the living room.  

"Hyung" Jongin calls Minseok.

"Hmm?"

"I want some chocolate milk."

Minseok is still washing the platter and bowl, so he tells Jongin to go sit by Jongdae and his friends.  "I'll bring it to you.  Ask the other hyungs if they want anything to drink too."

Jongin nods and Minseok smiles soflty.

Once everything is placed on the drying rack, Minseok gets the milk and chocolate powder from the fridge.

"Hyung!" Jongdae shouts.  "I want an orange fizzy drink!"

"Me too!" yells Baekhyun, pausing from extracting a Jenga block.

Minseok's too distracted by the loud voices to hear Jongin pad up behind him again.

"Minseok-ee hyung, Kyungsoo hyung wants water and Chanyeol hyung wants chocolate milk too, but warm."  Jongin comes up behind Minseok, grabbing his waist and clinging, still unable to shake the sleep from his system.

"Alright" Minseok says aloud.  "Go take some water to Kyungsoo for me, will you?" he asks Jongin.  "And Kim Jongdae, you come over here and get the soda yourself!"

There's a loud whining noise with Jongdae complaining about how he's trying to connect the video game console because no one is helping.  But in a few minutes, he comes to the kitchen anyway with a pouty face.  Procuring two clear glasses for Baekhyun and himself, he looks at the concoction Minseok is making and crumples his face in disgust.

"Hyung, are you adding powdered vitamins in there?" Jongdae asks in a scandalized voice.  "Vitamins and chocolate?  Gross!"

Minseok gives him a look, shushing him.  "It's good for the body.  Besides, they won't be able to taste it anyway."  He screws the top back on the vitamin powder jar and hurriedly puts it back into the cupboard.

As Jongdae takes the orange soda bottle back into the living room, he calls out to Jongin.  "Yah, your chocolate milk is ready!"

There's a snickering sound that follows and Minseok shoots Jongdae a warning look that Jongin, luckily, doesn't notice.  Coming back into the kitchen, Jongin sits down at the small round kitchen table, sipping his chocolate milk through a plastic bendy straw.  He watches as Minseok warms the milk for Chanyeol's drink and smacks his lips after the first sip of his drink.

"Ah... so refreshing!" he exclaims, smiling.

Minseok chuckles, glad that his secret hasn't been exposed to the maknae just yet.  

"Ah why!" a cry comes from the living room.  "I said Super Junior, didn't I?" Baekhyun shouts indignantly.

"That's not a girl group" comes Kyungsoo serene voice.  "Come here.  Punishment time."

There's a loud smack! and Baekhyun pouts as a spot on his forehead turns bright red.  Jongin chuckles from the kitchen table, watching the game from afar.  Jongdae too is cackling and Chanyeol is rolling on the floor clutching his stomach.

"Ah!" Baekhyun shouts.  "I'm not playing!"

"You lost anyway, idiot" Kyungsoo tells him, gathering the scattered blocks.  "Chanyeol-ah, you wanna play again?"

 

"Why don't you go play with them?" Minseok asks Jongin.  "Or why don't you call your friends too?"

"Is that alright?" Jongin asks, eyes wide and sparkling at the idea.  "Won't it be too loud?"

Minseok laughs.  "Might as well" he shrugs.  "I suspect we're going to have a loud day anyway."

Jongin finishes the last of his drink and jumps up, hugging Minseok lightly.  "Thanks hyung!  I'm gonna go call Sehun-ee."

Disappearing back into his room to look for his phone, Jongin leaves the kitchen.  Chanyeol's milk is warmed now, so Minseok carefully pours it into a mug and mixes in the powdered chocolate and vitamin mixture.  Just as he's about to bring it to Chanyeol in the living room, Minseok sees Junmyeon's door fly open.  Junmyeon walks out, scowl on his face and earphones danging from his neck.  

"You.  Guys.  Are.  So.  Loud!!" Junmyeon screams.  There's a thick hard cover book in his hand and he raises it over his head as if he's going to throw it in his frustration, but the tome never leaves his hands.

The boys look stricken for a split second, before they go back to their respective antics.  They're used to this; they've been here before.  Minseok snickers under a hand and looks up at Junmyeon after placing Chanyeol's drink carefully in front of him.

"Junmyeon-ah, you want me to make you some chocolate milk too?"

 

About a half hour later, Sehun comes in bearing a bag of oranges.

"From my mom" Sehun says solemnly, bowing to Junmyeon and Minseok.  "She says it's not polite to go to someone's house without a gift."

Junmyeon looks pointedly at Jongdae's friends, but no one bats an eyelash.  Instead, they're all too immersed in the Jenga game.  Minseok has joined in now and though Junmyeon's still pretending to read his book, he hasn't left the vicinity of the living room since emerging from his bedroom.

Jongdae and Jongin are battling it out through the video game console.  And when Jongin raises a long leg to distract Jongdae from making a particularly tough leap, Sehun lets out a low guffaw.

"Hurry up and die!" Jongin yells, still pushing at Jongdae's leg with his own.  "I wanna play with Sehun-ee."

"You brat!" Jongdae shouts back.  "How dare you abandon your own brother for a friend!"

"Best friend!" Sehun screams.

Jongin bursts into a gale of laughter, leaning back and letting his head fall against Minseok's thigh.  Minseok doesn't notice because it's his turn on the Jenga blocks.  The tiny tip of his tongue pokes out as he concentrates.

"Bolivia" Minseok says as he slides a block out and places it on top.  

They're playing Around the World Jenga now with everyone having to call out a country before placing a block on top.  Baekhyun's already spinning the globe on the book shelf, trying to find some obscure countries to stump everyone.

"Chile" Kyungsoo recites.

"Stop encroaching on my continent" Minseok jokes, making Kyungsoo grin.

Chanyeol's pouting because he had run out after naming all the Asian countries, calling "Texas!" as a last resort.

"Texas should be it's own country" he keeps mumbling.  "And I didn't know cheating was allowed" he says, staring accusingly at Baekhyun from above his glasses.

"Yah" Baekhyun snorts.  "Is it my fault that you don't know how to use your environment as a resource?  I saw this globe the first time we visited Jongdae's house."

 

In the end, Baekhyun ends up losing by shouting, "Yugoslavia!" while Kyungsoo lets out a belly laugh  and pushes him aside.

"You're living in the past!" Chanyeol chortles.

"Move and let the big boys play now" Kyungsoo commands, the concentration in his eyes intensifying. 

Minseok smirks, but pats Baekhyun on the hand.  

"Minseok hyung still likes me" Baekhyun sniffs.

But Jongdae, having been beaten by Jongin and replaced by Sehun at the controller, scoffs.  "Our Minseok hyung only likes smart people!  Get out of here!"

Baekhyun sulks and pointedly goes over to Sehun, watching the video game's progress over his shoulder.  "Good job, Sehun-ah!" he yells loudly.  "You're so good at this!  Kill him!  Kill Jongin-ee!"

Chanyeol finishes his warm chocolate milk and stands to put the mug into the sink.  Minseok looks up, telling him to just let it soak in the sink.  Suddenly, Baekhyun gets a glint in his eye and tells Sehun and Jongin that the loser has to do the night's dishes.  The game gets a bit more heated then and they keep going up the levels as even Junmyeon sits down to watch.

 

Kyungsoo and Minseok call it a draw when they run out of blocks, just in time to see Jongin lose at one of the last stages in the game.

"Ohhh!" Chanyeol yells in chagrin.  "So close!"

Baekhyun, who had been rooting for Sehun, jumps in the air, shouting as if it's his win and not Sehun's.  Jongin however, still smiles only pausing to let out a little whine into Minseok's lap.  He throws an arm around Sehun's shoulder, pressing his forehead to Sehun's ear.

"You've been practicing without me, haven't you?" he jokes.

"Hyung..."  Jongdae's voice cuts through the noise and Minseok turns to look at Jongdae who's making a crying face and rubbing his stomach.  "I'm hungry."

Kyungsoo nods, patting his own belly with a faraway look.  "I'm hungry too."

After that, everyone starts chiming in and Minseok realizes that he too is hungry.

"Wanna order something?" Minseok asks.  "Pizza?  Chicken?"

"Can we have both?"  Jongdae does this thing where it seems like his eyebrows elongate and slide downward.  It's a face Minseok finds it hard to resist.

"Why not" Minseok says, throwing his arms up.  "Let's have a feast!"

They all shout a little hurrah while Junmyeon quickly pulls out his phone to pick the menu.  It takes all of fifteen minutes to finally decide on what they're going to order.  And while they're waiting for the delivery, Sehun looks through the DVD collection with Jongin.

"Let's watch 'The Princess Bride'" Sehun suggests.

"No, we already watched that last week" Jongin complains.

"How about 'The Shining'?" Baekhyun suggests, brows waggling as he teases.

Sehun throws a sofa cushion at Baekhyun's face.

Minseok gets up after putting the Jenga blocks back into the box.  He starts going toward the kitchen, but Chanyeol grabs his arm.

"Where are you going, hyung?" he asks, wide-eyed.

"I was just-"

"Kim Jongin has to do the dishes, remember?"

"Ah..." Minseok snorts and looks at his youngest brother.  "I almost forgot."

"Can't I do it after-"  Jongin's speaking when the door bell rings, causing his face to break out into a grin.  "Chicken!" he yells, racing toward the door.

"Pizza!" Baekhyun shouts, scrambling up from the floor where he's been doing foot wrestling with Jongdae.

"Saved by the bell" Minseok remarks, amused.

Jongin, Baekhyun, and Jongdae fetch all the boxes of food, bringing them inside.  The boys work together setting the table in front of the television while Sehun turns on 'The Matrix' all on his own. 

"I didn't know this was a dictatorship" Baekhyun complains.

But Sehun shrugs.  "For the greater good" he replies.  "And Keanu."

"So we're pretending to be utilitarian then?" Baekhyun deadpans, but no one else complains as they start eating.

Minseok's the last one remaining at the front door, paying the delivery man, bowing, then locking the door behind him.  But before he turns back into the living room, something catches his eye.  There are four plump backpacks of various shapes and sizes lined up along the wall near the foyer.

"What are these bags?" Minseok asks aloud.  "When did these get here?"

"Ah..." Jongdae says with his mouthful of pizza.  "Those are-"

"Sleepover bags!" Baekhyun yells, just as Chanyeol also says, "For the sleepover!"

"What?!" Junmyeon shrieks, shocked and confused.  "What do you mean sleepover?"

"I brought my overnight bag as well" Sehun replies calmly.  "My mom said to tell you thank you for having me over."

When Minseok just stares, blinking through the shock, there are four cheshire cat like smiles beaming up at him.  'Ah...' Minseok finally realizes.  'It's going to be a long summer break.'  After all, summer has just started.