(Daehyun's Perspective)

Daehyun stared blankly at the purple sticky note on the fridge, thoughts swimming around with his eyes trained on the monetary figure that had lessened over the months but was still quite high. A figure that loomed over him and dictated a good portion of how Daehyun lived his life.

Youngjae's idea to seek out trained help was a good one. Therapists went through schooling to help people be able to work through their problems in a healthy way which was something Daehyun thought he could really benefit from! It was also an idea that calmed down the anxiety that came from his inability to think about opening up more to Youngjae without his brain switching into panic mode.

Youngjae had proved to him constantly that he'd listen whenever Daehyun was ready to talk. It was just the process of opening himself up to the pain he'd endured and putting it into words that Daehyun couldn't handle without breaking down. Going to a trained professional to sort out the jumbled up mess of the abuses he'd suffered through was less daunting than going through multiple breakdowns trying to get it out to Youngjae.

It would certainly be easier on the both of them that way!

Sure, that would require Daehyun to confront the verbal abuse, the manipulation, and the more forceful things head on, but therapists were trained to coach people through those things. Once they'd helped figure out how to work through all that best, then they'd certainly be able to help Daehyun figure out how to best talk about it with his partner.

But researching the cost of it had Daehyun at a standstill. He'd spent a good portion of the previous night after work trying to work out the math where he could budget in therapy costs alongside everything else. In the end, he couldn't work all the figures around to where his parents were placated and he still had enough to live at the bare minimum.

Daehyun peeled the sticky note from the fridge and fumbled with the bottom edge in his fingers. 'It would be so easy to just rip it up and throw it away,' he mused. 'I could ignore their calls and pretend like they don't exist.' His fingers tensed, and he was an ounce of effort away from pulling it apart-

We can do this the easy way or the hard way. Which way will you choose? Because I will not hesitate to go hard.

With a sigh, Daehyun set the slip of paper onto the counter, only having managed the tiniest of tears. He really didn't want to know what the hard way entailed. They were tenacious in the things they went after, so cutting off contact with them wouldn't do anything but annoy them further and lead into whatever the hard way was once they found him.

At least they didn't know where he lived or worked currently, and Daehyun would much rather keep it that way!

'Maybe I could negotiate them down? Or at least negotiate the payments down so I can fit in money for therapy appointments?' Daehyun's brows furrowed at the thought, then he shook his head dejectedly. 'No, it's always been their way or no way.'

Lying to them that rent had gone up or his hours had gone down was a viable option, but their response to the January payment was proof that it didn't matter how much Daehyun made and needed for himself. If it wasn't up to their standards, it wasn't enough!

Rampant knocking on the door brought Daehyun out of his thoughts and made him nearly jump out of his skin. But it allowed him to bring his focus elsewhere for the time being. He could figure out how proceed with his debt to his parents at a later time.

Daehyun answered the door just a crack to be met with Zelo, who was fuming in spot. “Um, Zelo? What's wrong?”

“Can I come in?”

He wasn't keen on his best friend seeing the lack of furniture in his house. Which was why Daehyun always chose to go up to Zelo's apartment to hang out rather than invite him down, but with the feeling Zelo was radiating, Daehyun's number one concern was making sure his best friend was okay!

He opened the door to allow him access, and Zelo stomped his way in... with a giant suitcase? He looked around, probably trying to find a place to sit, but Daehyun only had the stool he kept at the counter.

“Zelo? Is... everything okay?” Daehyun ran over the possibilities in his head that could equal to Zelo angrily knocking on his door with a giant suitcase in tow. The only one that came to mind was that he and Jongup had gotten into an argument so bad that he'd been kicked out and needed a place to stay. Which would be odd because Zelo and Jongup no longer got into those arguments that resulted in one of them leaving for a while until things cooled down...

Zelo stared at him confusedly from the center of the room. “You... you don't have a couch? How am I supposed to flop dramatically if you don't have a couch?”

“I'm... not often in my apartment? So I uh... haven't found it necessary to get one.” There was no way Daehyun was getting into the money situation with Zelo, so that explanation would have to do. “What's bothering you?”

“Chicken ,” he seethed, his fingers clenching tighter around the handle to his suitcase to the point that his knuckles went white.

'That explains the anger.' The most likely scenario then became that Hyunsik had dropped by and had brought Sunhwa with him. Zelo had told him that whenever that happened, he tried to eject himself from the situation to keep from doing 'stupid ' as he put it.

While his presence was explained, it didn't explain the presence of the suitcase. “And... that?” Daehyun gestured towards the rolling suitcase his best friend had brought down with him.

“Oh! Um...” He stared at it for a few moments before bringing his attention back to Daehyun. He must've had a look on his face because Zelo said, “Calm down, Jongup and I are fine. I just packed some of my tools for today.”

“Your... tools.”

“Yeah, I was hoping we could maybe do a mode? I brought all sorts of ing things for it, and I even have a new wig for you! I ordered it back in January hoping we could get back into it, but it took a while to get here and you have a busy work schedule and I'm also normally busy on your days off...” He plopped both himself and the suitcase down onto the floor and began rummaging through the bag. “It's not exactly the same as the one you used to wear, but it's the same type of longer style with the bangs and pretty close in colour.” The wig he pulled out was still in the bag it came in, and he stared at in his hands for a bit before looking up at Daehyun. “Can we?”

Daehyun didn't want to deny the hopeful look in his best friend's eyes. Besides, he'd always enjoyed himself during modes, taking on that alias he was given and pretending for a while that he had no cares and wouldn't let anybody walk over him! This was a golden opportunity to get back into it, but this time following Zelo's for fun approach rather than Daehyun's escapism approach. After all, he was no longer in a situation he needed to escape from.

Physically, at least. He was still mentally stuck every so often, and Daehyun decided that partaking in a mode with Zelo would help unstuck his brain a bit.

Daehyun took the wig from his hands while Zelo continued to fiddle around in his hastily packed suitcase. “I don't know if I'll be able to fit your clothes anymore, Zelo.” Daehyun was a bit twiggier in his school days so he could fit Zelo's clothes just fine back then. But now his job had him in a bit more built in both his legs and his arms!

There was no way the muscle mass he'd gained from that would fit in Zelo's thinner clothing...

He excitedly began tossing clothes out onto the floor with no care. “I packed all sorts of , hyung! There's bound to be something that'll fit you!” Zelo carefully set the few makeup palettes he brought to the side before sorting through the thrown about clothing.

They ended up in the bathroom not too much later, both in their underwear because Zelo's routine of getting ready meant he did his makeup in his underwear to prevent makeup drop off from getting on the clothes he planned on wearing. Despite their being room for both of them in front of the bathroom mirror, Zelo decided to lounge in the tub with a hand mirror to do his makeup while Daehyun fumbled around in front of the bathroom mirror.

“That can't be comfortable,” Daehyun said.

“It's really not so bad,” Zelo mumbled. A glance at him through the bathroom mirror showed his focus was intense on the mirror in his hand. “This gives me a good angle and decent lighting.”

“You'll get makeup all over your chest from the drop off.”

“Only if I'm a slob about it, and I'm not a ing slob.”

After Daehyun prepped his face, he dipped into the palette Zelo had specifically given him. Given that the palette he was handed was basically a palette, Daehyun went for the more natural look he preferred. If Daehyun did do colours, he preferred going for softer pastels. But Zelo was all about vivid colour match ups, so Daehyun was done with his makeup much quicker than Zelo.

With how intense Zelo's focus was, Daehyun didn't want to interrupt him. But it had to be done so he could figure out what to do next. “Should I go ahead and gear up or wait on you?”

He blinked his focus away and looked up at Daehyun. “Um... It'll be best if I help you put on the wig. There's a lot more to it than flopping them on like we did back in the day. How about you look through the clothes I sorted into your pile and find something you're comfortable wearing?”

Daehyun left the bathroom and tried to mix and match through the pile of clothing set aside for him. He contemplated a skirt, but he wasn't sure how adventurous he was feeling today. So he tugged on the largest pair of jeans in the pile.

Or he tried to, at least. They got caught on his thighs, and on one particularly tough heave to get them up, the distinct sound of fabric tearing stopped Daehyun in his tracks.

Daehyun pulled them off and assessed the damage. One large rip on each inner thigh where the fabric was ripped from the seams. 'Okay, so pants are a no go. Guess I have to be adventurous enough for a skirt today.' He grabbed one that looked the largest and slipped it on.

Or he would've if that hadn't also turned into a catastrophe! It took copious amounts of effort to get the waistband over his thighs. Daehyun actually managed it, but he broke the zipper when he tried to zip it back up.

He sighed dejectedly at the pile of clothing Zelo had set to the side. Daehyun had picked the largest clothes he could find and still destroyed them. He gently took the two destroyed garments and stepped back to his bathroom, hiding both the pants and skirt behind him because Daehyun wasn't sure how Zelo would respond to his clothing being torn.

Zelo had gotten a considerable amount done in Daehyun's absence and was still lounged in the tub despite the bathroom mirror being free. “Welcome back, did you-” Zelo furrowed his brows when he looked up and saw Daehyun still in his underwear. “Um, what's with that look on your face, hyung?”

“So...” Daehyun nervously bit the inside of his cheek and pulled the pants out from behind him and held them out. “I ripped your pants, Zelo.”

He stared blankly at them before bursting into giggles. “Alright, thunder thighs! I hear you! Did you try any of the skirts?”

Daehyun pouted and held out the skirt he also brought along. “I uh... broke the zipper?”

“Oh , hyung,” he gasped. “Those two were the largest I had.”

Daehyun winced. “I'm sorry, Zelo...”

“No no, it's fine,” Zelo insisted. “I'm honestly kind of jealous? I've got ing chicken legs! If I had your thunder thighs, I could intimidate my enemies so hardcore.”

“How do thick thighs equate to intimidation?” Daehyun was right on the border between wanting to know the answer and thinking he may be better off not knowing.

“It'd be the biggest ing power move to crush a damn watermelon between your thighs, and you gotta have thick thighs for that!”

While Daehyun didn't understand how that could be a practical form of intimidation, thinking about a scenario where someone came up to him, crushed a watermelon with their thighs, and left without a word would be an oddly effective way of displaying dominance.

He tried not to linger on that thought.

“So uh... I'm just going to um, put on some of my clothes? I'd rather not stand around in my underwear until you're done.”

“Got it, but like... I know what we're going to go do today. And that's going thrifting for you some clothes, Daena!” Zelo declared.

Daehyun wasn't going to argue with that. So after he'd put on some of his simpler clothes and offered his opinion on what Zelo should wear when prompted, they wigged up. It was a much longer process than it had been back in the day with innumerable amounts of bobby pins, glue, and lots of combing to make the wig look as natural as possible. Then waiting for the glue to dry...

Of course, Zelo brought out his hand fans to expedite the drying process. They sat in the bathroom for a good half hour while they fanned themselves, going over the game plan for when they left.

Looking at himself in the mirror was odd, to say the least. Some type of feeling beyond words and heavy enough to impact the soul. Was it longing? Nostalgia? Was it that the person looking back at him in the mirror was a side of him that wanted to see the light of day for so long and now finally had the freedom to do so? Maybe it was the mental shift of Choi Daena's lack of care and worries coming to the forefront and bringing out an inner defiance against the things holding him back?

“Shall we be off then, Daena? We've gotta get you some clothes that'll suit you better, girl!” Zelo exclaimed, with a flick of his fan to close it.

Daehyun hummed his affirmation and slowly closed his fan. He wasn't as accustomed to using them as he used to be, and he didn't want to risk flinging it across the bathroom and potentially breaking something.

With one last look in the mirror, Daehyun smiled and followed after his best friend.

--

The first phase of the game plan had been simple. Go to a thrift store with Zelo and find Daehyun appropriate feminine clothing. Zelo insisted he was buying and that there was no monetary limit to worry about. That didn't seem very money conscious though, so Daehyun set his own limit. In order for ease of trying on garments, he'd made sure to wear clothes that were easier to take off.

He ended up getting five separate outfits that could be easily mixed and matched around. All with stretchier fabrics and waistbands so he wouldn't have to worry about tearing the fabric. Although, worst case scenario with that was he got back into mending clothing like he'd done with Umma Choi when he or Zelo would unintentionally tear their clothes.

Zelo requested Daehyun pick something to wear for the rest of the day, and Daehyun changed into that before they went back to Zelo's car to discuss how to proceed.

He'd chosen one of the skirts, a floral print one that just brushed his knees with a stretchy waistband, some black leggings because his legs were hairy and Daehyun didn't want people to see that, and a reddish-pink blouse that matched the colour of the flowers on the skirt. Daehyun hadn't bought a different type of shoes, though, so it was just his regular sneakers he kept on.

“So... what to do now,” Zelo mumbled, turning on his car for the sole purpose of making sure there was air flow.

Daehyun would've offered a suggestion if his phone hadn't rang at that moment. He had to retrieve it from the pocket of the pants he'd been wearing prior that had been put in the bag with the other articles of clothing he hadn't chosen to wear. 'Maybe I should've gotten a purse, too...'

At first, Daehyun's heartbeat quickened like it did whenever he saw it was Youngjae contacting him. Then there was this odd fear that blanketed over him, and he couldn't wrap his head around why he was dreading speaking to his boyfriend. Sure he was scared of speaking up about his troubles, but that was different than this!

Daehyun didn't realize he'd blanked out until Zelo cleared his throat. “You gonna answer that?”

'Right. I can figure out why I'm feeling this way later.'

“Hello?”

“Daehyun! Hello!” He couldn't help but smile at how chipper Youngjae sounded. “Did I interrupt something?”

“Um, no. You didn't,” he assured. “I just got done shopping with Zelo...”

“Hey, Jae hyung!”

“Zelo said hello.”

“Yeah, I heard him,” he chuckled. “He's pretty loud. Should I let you go?”

“Um-”

“We should ask Jae hyung if he wants to join us!” Zelo exclaimed. Then without skipping a beat, he shouted out, “Jae hyung! Do you wanna join us?”

Daehyun's eardrum felt like it'd been blasted out, but he still heard Youngjae's response of, “I'm not opposed to it. That is, if you don't mind?”

“If you're okay with it, then I don't see why not?”

“Hell yeah!” Zelo exclaimed, starting up the car completely so they could get on their way. “We'll meet you at your place, hyung!”

“See you in a bit, then?”

“Yeah, see you.”

When the call clicked to end, that dread hit as Daehyun realized something drastic. He hadn't told his incredibly gay boyfriend about his crossdressing tendencies. 'So that's why I feared picking up the phone for him. I was scared of what he'd think of me crossdressing with Zelo.' Daehyun fidgeted with the hem of his shirt nervously. It wasn't like he could back out now. They were too far in for that!

He pulled out bits and pieces from his brain to reassure him in this moment. Youngjae had said he thought Daehyun looked attractive with makeup on before. Youngjae had also worn makeup himself. And if he had a problem with a man crossdressing, then he wouldn't be friends with Zelo at all. But that didn't mean he'd be okay with dating a man who liked to crossdress, though...

The only way to find out how Youngjae would respond now was to just confront him. Daehyun wrestled down the worry that had managed to creep up as Zelo knocked on Youngjae's apartment door with the exclamation of, “Your es have arrived!”

The piano sounds came to an abrupt halt, and Daehyun gave himself one more mental pep talk to just act naturally before the door was swung open. “I was wondering when you two were going to get here. Come on in.” Youngjae moved out of the way after ushering them in, closing the door behind them.

Daehyun wasn't sure whether the way Youngjae's eyes lingered on him was a good thing. With his eyes on him like that, all Daehyun could do was fiddle with his fingers nervously while Zelo and Youngjae spoke. He tried to focus on the words rather than trying to dissect what Youngjae's various expressions meant.

“With the two of you all dressed up, I'm sure you want to do more than just hang out in my apartment.”

“Obviously, but I got an idea and I need to ing run it by you first before we decide what to do!” Zelo declared. Youngjae's brow raise was apparently enough to spur on the rest of Zelo's thought. “Wanna mode with us, Jae hyung?”

“Eh?”

“By that, I mean get all dolled up with us, of course! With the makeup and the clothes and the wig... The whole ing shabang!”

This idea of his was not something he'd discussed with Daehyun prior, but Zelo was practically vibrating in place at the idea of being able to not only have his best friend dressed up, but to have Youngjae join in. And if he did join in, then it would settle Daehyun's nerves a bit at him having any sort of negative response to this...

“Only if you want to, that is?” Daehyun chipped in. Then their attention was on him, and Daehyun began to mess with the hem of his blouse under their combined gazes. “It's... an invitation, not an obligation.” He mustered up the best smile he could through his nerves.

“I'll... give it a try,” Youngjae responded slowly.

“Really?” Zelo practically jumped in his excitement when Youngjae nodded his affirmation with a small grin. “Oh hell yeah! You're going to be so ing gorgeous, Jae hyung! Daena! Can I hold the key to your apartment so I can get my bag?”

“Um, yeah. It's in the bag with my clothes that's still in your car,” Daehyun said.

“Great, got it! I'll go ahead and bring your clothes up to your place, too!”

As Zelo made the move to leave, Daehyun requested, “Just... leave the bag on the counter? I'll deal with it whenever we're done for the day.”

With an enthusiastic nod to signify his understanding, he barreled out the door with the mutterings of needing to come up with a female code name for Youngjae. He didn't even close the door behind him, leaving that for Youngjae to do.

“This isn't the first time he's been too excited to close my door,” Youngjae sighed as he clicked it closed.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Daehyun asked.

“I'm sure!” Youngjae flashed a thumbs up and a grin. “I'm willing to try most things once, and I've never been completely dressed up as a girl before. Why not now, right?”

“That's fair.” Daehyun's nerves dissipated a bit, but not entirely. After all, what they were doing at this point was just awkwardly glancing towards each other. Or Daehyun was, and that was something that kept that anxious feeling in his shoulders. 'I guess some worries can still make it through when I'm like this... Maybe because it's something I've never confronted when dressed up before?'

“You okay over here?” Daehyun hadn't even noticed Youngjae move from where he'd been standing to join him, and before he could respond, Youngjae grabbed Daehyun's hands in his. “You kind of seem like you're on edge. Is there something bothering you?”

Daehyun felt weak in the knees at how sincere Youngjae sounded and looked, but he kept himself standing and decided it was best to be out with it. He'd only worry more if he didn't confront it now. A straightforwardness that was definitely a Choi Daena side effect. “I'm... worried what you think about me.”

“What I think about you?”

“I mean, with you being very gay and me being... dressed like this.”

“So that's what it is,” he said, realization flashing through his features. “Zelo's told me you used to crossdress with him a lot, so it's not like I didn't know you were into it before you walked in.”

Daehyun wasn't too surprised to hear that. At least Youngjae'd had some forewarning, but that wasn't an indication on how he felt about it. “Is it a problem for you? You're not exactly attracted to women... And here I am, your boyfriend who likes to dress up as a woman sometimes.”

A soft smile graced Youngjae's face as he assured, “It's not a problem for me, Daehyun.” Before he could respond, Youngjae pulled him closer and settled his hands on Daehyun's hips while Daehyun rested his on Youngjae's shoulders. The proximity did well to numb Daehyun's mind and focus only on Youngjae. “You are more than a gender to me. It's who you are in here-” He brought a hand up and tapped above Daehyun's heart. “-that I care about and love. I like to see you happy and smiling, and if putting on a wig and wearing a skirt is what makes you happy, then why would I take that joy from you? It's not something that will make me love you any less.”

'Love...? Youngjae... loves... me...?' Daehyun's mind scrambled to try and think of what he'd done to deserve such a feeling from Youngjae, but his heart settled on the idea that he didn't have to do anything to deserve Youngjae's love. Daehyun existed in Youngjae's life as his chosen partner, and that was enough to allow feelings to form and grow and be nurtured into something beautiful.

If it was like that for Youngjae, there was no doubt in Daehyun's heart that he loved Youngjae back! With all the patience, care, and support Youngjae gave him with no thought of anything in return, how could he not? Youngjae had given more to him in their few months together than Daehyun ever had in the years he spent with Sunhwa, a thought that only solidified this type of attachment to Youngjae.

Daehyun's face heated up, but not to the point where the warmth he was feeling was painful, and he spread into a smile that wasn't forced through the nerves. Because his brain decided words weren't happening, Daehyun instead pressed their lips together in an intimate sort of kiss that only Youngjae had initiated before.

An action that, while it clearly took Youngjae off guard, was appreciated in the way he reciprocated. Gently brushing wig strands behind Daehyun's ear and resting his fingers on the back of his neck, letting out a happy hum as he deepened the dance of their lips-

“Alright lovebirds, I see ya!”

They pulled away from each other at Zelo's sudden intrusion, Daehyun with a little squeak in panic and Youngjae with an annoyed sigh.

“Wow, you two look like ripe tomatoes right now,” Zelo continued. Youngjae only let out an awkward chuckle as he rubbed the back of his head, taking a step back and looking anywhere but at Zelo.

But Daehyun glared at his best friend in the door way. Said best friend was grinning from ear to ear and flashing two thumbs up. “Please tell me you haven't been here for long,” Daehyun groaned, suppressing the urge to hide his face behind his hands.

“Nah, I just got here.” That grin of his didn't falter as he fully entered the apartment with his giant suitcase in tow, kicking the door closed behind him. “Now, are we ready to get this show on the road?”

Youngjae gave Daehyun one last look, surprisingly shy in nature, before finally bringing his attention to Zelo. “Ready as I'll ever be.”

“Get seated on the couch and we will set you the up, my friend!” Once Youngjae was seated on the couch, Zelo plopped himself and the suitcase down on the floor while Daehyun leaned against the arm of the couch. “We shouldn't have a problem fitting you into my clothes, Jae hyung,” Zelo said as he rummaged through his bag. Then he sent a teasing look Daehyun's way. “Unlike Daena over here with her thunder thighs.”

“What was that spiel you went on earlier about being jealous because you want to crush watermelons with your thighs?” Daehyun questioned, fanning himself due to his face still feeling very heated.

“I meant every damn word!” He pointed a finger wildly in Daehyun's direction without even looking.

“That... that sounds like a waste of a perfectly good watermelon,” Youngjae said.

“Crushing a watermelon between my thighs to intimidate my enemies is a practical use of a watermelon,” Zelo huffed with a flip of his wig to get the hair out from in front of his face. “At least it's not something ing senseless like, I don't know, shoving a damn pumpkin into a makeshift cannon and shooting it into space or some .”

There were a few beats of silence as both Youngjae and Daehyun tried to visualize just what Zelo was talking about. “Zelo, what did you do with your free time before you started crossdressing?” Youngjae asked.

“Uh, not that,” Daehyun assured.

“Yeah, I saw that on TV one time when I was bored as flipping through the channels,” he admitted and set the things he'd grabbed on the coffee table. One of his colourful palettes, a different bag that was similar to the one Daehyun's wig had been in, and the bag he had his miscellaneous wig materials in. “Weird watch. Anyways, let's get started!”

With Zelo and Daehyun working together, it didn't take long to get Youngjae ready. The wig Youngjae was blonde in colour like Zelo's but the same length as Daehyun's brunette one. For clothing, he decided upon one of Zelo's longer dress shirts and some tight pants that definitely would've ripped if Daehyun even thought about putting them on.

Their end goal was decided as dinner at the Chartreuse Yard. One, because Zelo and Daehyun realized they hadn't actually eaten since breakfast before they'd gotten started today. Two, because Daehyun shot down the Shortstub's idea with the declaration that he wasn't ready for his coworkers to see him like this.

He had no idea how they'd respond, and he didn't want to take today to find that out!

Not too much later, they were seated in a booth at the Chartreue Yard, Zelo hardly being able to contain his excitement. “ yeah, unlimited breadsticks!” Zelo trying to keep his voice down since they were in public was funny in a way. “There's no ing way I'm not taking advantage of that. An abundance of carbs will be sure to bless me with thicker thighs.”

“I'm not sure that's how it works, Zelo,” Daehyun informed him.

“It's more likely the carbs will settle in your gut or your cheeks,” Youngjae explained. He stopped twirling the ends of his wig, something he'd been doing excessively after he'd admitted in the car that all he wanted to do was twirl his hair in his fingers, and focused his attention on the menu.

“A girl can dream, Jaeda,” Zelo pouted. Jaeda being the female code name Zelo had shouted out in the middle of getting Youngjae ready earlier.

As they looked over the menu, their waiter finally made their way to us. “Hello, I'm Jaebeom and I'll be your waiter today,” he introduced cheerily, setting down a basket of breadsticks that Zelo immediately tore into with an excited gasp. Youngjae nearly spluttered, and Daehyun recalled that Youngjae had mentioned Jaebeom multiple times. Childhood best friend turned lover then back to best friend. Daehyun looked him over, and it was clear to tell that he was aware that it was Youngjae here and was incredibly curious about it. “What can I get you to drink today?”

“I'd like some water, please,” Daehyun requested.

Zelo had to speak through covered chews. “A coke.”

“I'll take some tea.”

It was either the tea that solidified it for Jaebeom or the fact that he'd been able to hear Youngjae speak and recognized his voice. “Got it. One more quick thing,” he declared. “Youngjae, what are you doing?”

“Don't you judge me, nerd,” Youngjae huffed. “I'm in mode!” Then he tried to flip out the fan he'd been given for the evening for dramatic effect, but he ended up flinging it under the table. “Oh.” He reached under the table to get it, Zelo masked his laughter by chomping into what was definitely not his first breadstick, and Daehyun glanced at Jaebeom to see that Youngjae's best friend didn't seem weirded out by this at all.

'I guess when you're best friends for long enough, you don't get weirded out by the things your friend does. There isn't really anything Zelo could do that would weird me out, and it's probably vice versa.'

“Oh, I see,” he chuckled. “I'll go get your drinks then, ladies.”

It was a nice dinner! Zelo, Youngjae, and Daehyun chatted about anything and everything, all while Zelo gorged himself on more breadsticks than a human should be able to consume. No harm to Daehyun, they smelled too flavourful for him. Youngjae on the other hand definitely had a time trying to get at least one.

Whenever Jaebeom appeared for various waiter reasons, he rolled with the punches and joked along with them. He'd even been considerate enough to pack an entire thing of breadsticks for Zelo to take home, alongside the to go box he'd had to get because he was too full from all the breadsticks he'd eaten to take more than a few bites of what he'd ordered for dinner.

They spent longer than they thought there. It was already dark by the time they were exiting the restaurant. Because of that, they decided to just convene back at Youngjae's and call it done for the day. A decision they reached when they all realized they had things to do tomorrow.

After they returned and Zelo had carefully removed Daehyun's and Youngjae's wigs with the specific instructions to just give him all the bobby pins back another day, as well as the added note that Youngjae could return the outfit he'd worn after he washed it. With his things in tow, Zelo made his way back upstairs to his apartment.

Daehyun wasn't too much longer. It was going to take a long time to get all these bobby pins out as well as wash the makeup off his face. “Thank you for dressing up with us today.”

Youngjae had already begun to remove the bobby pins from his hair and put them on the coffee table, lips pouted out as he slowly took out each one. “I might pass on the wig next time,” he sighed. “It was fun to twirl my hair like that, but it is not worth this amount of effort.”

“That's fair,” Daehyun chuckled. He wasn't looking forward to getting out all the bobby pins either, but it was something he was willing to get used to. “I'm glad you decided to give it a try though.”

Youngjae paused and glanced over, his dark hair half flopped over his forehead and half still pulled back from the bobby pins. “As I said earlier, I'm willing to try most things once,” he reminded. “I take it you're about to go up to your place to wash up?” Daehyun nodded, and they shared a quick kiss. “I guess this is goodnight then. Have a good rest of your night, Daehyun.”

“You too.”

After Daehyun made it back to his apartment, he got to work with the things he needed to do before bed. The bag with his clothes was set in the bedroom, and he washed his face before taking out the bobby pins since his hair was already conveniently out of the way. Zelo had decided to leave the palette he'd let Daehyun use here, something he said was intentional when Daehyun messaged to ask about it.

To make sure he didn't accidentally drop any of Zelo's bobby pins down the drain, Daehyun took them out at the island counter while seated on the stool. As they piled up, Daehyun's eyes fell to the sticky note he'd set by the counter next to the fridge. He frowned as he worked, his mind back to scrambling what to do about the debt.

With the last bobby pin out, Daehyun found himself holding that sticky note again, fiddling at the place where he'd slightly tore it earlier. A rush of emotion jolted through him, and in an act of defiance towards the ones holding him back, Daehyun shredded it completely and tossed the pieces into the trash can. Before he could question himself on what he'd done, he marched to the bathroom so he could shower and wash away his worries.

'I'll figure out how to handle the repercussions later. But for now, I'm done breaking my back for people who aren't worth the time!'

--

A/N:

Punkin Chunkin' was a weird show, y'all.