Kyuhyun eyed Sungmin out of the corner of his eye as they pushed the beds together, feeling a building heat in his cheekbones, prickling at his skin.

He didn’t know exactly why he was feeling this embarrassed—it was not as if he’d never slept next to another male before. Hell, he’d probably slept next to each of his hyung’s at some point in time, so it didn’t make sense for him to be blushing like a high school girl sleeping next to her favourite oppa.

Kyuhyun thought maybe all the fan service on and off stage was going to his head. Or maybe it was because Heechul was staring at them both, arms folded and mouth slid up in a taunting grin. Kyuhyun thought he looked like one of those evil clowns seen in horror movies.

Gulping, Kyuhyun gave one final push and the beds slammed together. Kyuhyun felt like sitting in the corner of the bathroom and hyperventilating. He had a bad feeling about this. A bad, bad feeling. He wanted to mop the sweat off his brow but didn’t want to look suspicious. He was supposed to be totally cool with this. After all, he and Sungmin had supposedly spent many nights together this way.

Right.

This was just acting, he told himself. There was nothing to be ashamed of. He could one hundred percent pull this off without making Heechul raise an eyebrow.

Kyuhyun recalled an old trick he was taught when he needed to calm down. Cho Kyuhyun. You are a tree. Feel your tap roots dig into the soil. Utilize your inner chakra, and feel the calming waves move down your roots.

Yes, Kyuhyun thought, I am a tree.

“S-Sungmin hyung,” Kyuhyun said, making sure to tap into his inner chakra. “We should go to bed now, it’s getting late.” Kyuhyun realised that maybe his visualisation of a tree had gone too far, because he was standing completely stiff, not even moving a muscle.

“Yes. Indeed,” Sungmin replied, sounding equally as stiff, eyeing Heechul as if it would make him leave faster.

But, no. Heechul had others plans. He was going to see this arrangement out until the end. “You two just hop into bed. Don’t mind me.”

Heechul had to force himself not to burst out into laughter. It was just so damn hilarious watching the two dance around each other.  

Kyuhyun shifted his eyes from side to side, feeling incredibly awkward. He pulled the sheets back and slid into bed, laying as straight as a plank. Sungmin followed suit, but they kept a safe distance between each other.

“Oh, don’t be so shy!” Heechul tutted, putting it on himself to push Sungmin into Kyuhyun’s arms.

Kyuhyun didn’t know it was possible to be this rigid. Heechul manoeuvred Kyuhyun’s robotic arms so that they were cradling Sungmin. Kyuhyun knew his face was burning up by now, and from the pink tinge on Sungmin’s ear, he could the situation was having the same effect on his older friend.

“Much better,” Heechul commented, taking a few steps back and admiring his art work.

“Well, I’ll just slip out of here, and turn the lights off for you two – no need to move. Have fun and don’t bite!”

As soon as the door clicked shut, Kyuhyun switched on his ninja mode and detached himself from Sungmin in a matter of seconds, then barrel rolled straight off the bed, smacking his head on the bedside table as he went. He gurgled out in pain, face planted right on the carpet. Sungmin shuffled and poked his head over the side of the bed, checking out the maknae for any fatal wounds.

“Uh, you okay?”

“… Quite.”

It was quiet between the two for a moment, before Sungmin spoke out. “Kyuhyun?”

“Yeah?”

“You know you’re an idiot, right?”

Kyuhyun lifted his head and glared at the shorter, fire in his eyes. “Shut up.”

Sungmin shook his head and rolled his eyes, holding out an arm to help Kyuhyun back up. Kyuhyun took the proffered hand and hauled himself back onto the squishy mattress, grumbling under his breath. Kyuhyun snuggled back into his bed, but this time kept a safe distance between Sungmin and himself.

However, Sungmin was less than pleased at this arrangement. As the minutes ticked by, Sungmin imagined Heechul barging in at some ungodly hour and finding them sleeping apart, and he would never, repeat, never let them hear the end of it. Heechul would probably end up forcing them to kiss in front of him while he laughed manically in the background. Shuddering, Sungmin rolled onto his side and poked Kyuhyun who was still half asleep.

“Kyuhyun, Kyu-ah, wake up.”

Kyuhyun stirred and half opened his eyes, wiping away his drool. “Mrmmaapph?”

Sungmin hesitated before speaking. “I-I think we should, uh, sleep together.”

Kyuhyun shot up in bed, disoriented, and stared at Sungmin in shock. “We should what? Who and when and what’re sleeping together?”

Sungmin smacked his forehead. “I mean, like we were before.”

Kyuhyun narrowed his eyes into slits, then asked slowly, enunciating each syllable, “And why is that?”

“Because,” Sungmin said, exasperated at Kyuhyun’s reluctance to just shut up and do what he’s told, “Imagine if Heechul barges back in and catches us sleeping separately.”

Kyuhyun considered this for a moment, his chin thoughtfully before gasping in horror. “Oh dear God.”

“Exactly.”

Kyuhyun shuffled closer to Sungmin, then stopped, unsure. “Um, how are we going to like, uh you know?”

Sungmin sighed at Kyuhyun’s stupidity, grabbed his shoulder, and pulled him down so he was laying on the gap between the beds.

Sungmin snuck Kyuhyun’s arm around his waist and settled into his chest, getting comfortable.

Kyuhyun felt his entire neck and face turn bright red – the position they were in was very intimate. Kyuhyun could feel the rise and fall of Sungmin’s chest, and because of that, couldn’t relax properly. His heart was beating like crazy, and he couldn’t slow it down no matter how hard he tried. There was intimacy, then there was intimacy. And this definitely fell into the latter category. Kyuhyun kept his arm around Sungmin’s warm body and cried mentally.

Damn it, Kim Heechul.