Just as Sungmin promised, they spent the entire day together.
Every couple of hours, they would check fan-sites and see photos of themselves, “This is better than taking photos ourselves to remember this. Look how high-quality this is. We could print these out and make a scrapbook.” Jongwoon was saying, “Look, this is professional quality stuff.”

“Too professional.” Sungmin sighed, “I can see every pore in my face, oh my god.”
“Shut it, your face is perfect.”
“Perfectly messed up! I had no idea I had so many wrinkles… were my teeth always that huge?”
“Shut uuuup.”
“Is that food in my teeth?”

Jongwoon laughed and pulled the phone away, “Okay, enough of that.”

The two sat in the park under the shade of a tree, catching their breath.
Just as Jongwoon had suggested, they had rented bikes and took a little tour of Seoul.

The day was cool but they had worked themselves into a sweat and had relished a chance to take a break and check their progress.

“I knew we could be great friends.” Jongwoon spoke up, “Sungmin…”

Sungmin glanced at his hyung.
“Why were we so awkward before?”

Sungmin smiled then and Jongwoon couldn’t help but think that it looked a little… worn.

“We weren’t.” Sungmin finally said, “I was.”

“… huh?”

“I was the awkward one, hyung. You… well, you’re awkward… but you get along well with everyone. People tend to find me a little hard to get along with though.” Sungmin explained.
“I don’t believe that. You’re so close with Shindong, Hyukkie, Wookie- really, ah, you’re close with a lot of people. A lot of people really like you, too. You have so many fans-“

Sungmin laughed brightly, “Aigo… I wasn’t fishing for compliments, hyung. Look… it’s not due to you that we have… had such a weird relationship. I promise. It was my own feelings getting the best of me.”

“Your feelings? Did… you not like me?”

“That’s not it.” Sungmin shook his head, “That’s not it at all.”
“Then what do you mean?”
“Sometimes… I think it was the complete opposite.”

“You thought maybe that I didn’t like you?”
“No-“ Sungmin laughed again, “C’mon, hyung, the day is still too nice to sit around talking about depressing things.”
He stood and brushed off his pants, “Let’s go. What do you want to do next? Let’s visit an amusement park and ride every ride.”
“Sungmin-“
“Twice!”

Sungmin went to his bike and glanced backwards, “C’mon, Woon-ah, let’s go, let’s go!”

Jongwoon stood, following the younger man, “Wait for me!”

--

It was late by the time the two returned to the dorms. They were both tired and yawning but happy.
Their last stop had been a bar where they had shared a few bottles of soju, cautiously.
As a result both were more than slightly tipsy and warm.
Fingers loosely linked, they made their way, stumbling only sometimes on the brightly lit streets of Seoul.

“We’re ho-oome~” Sungmin sang after they managed to unlock the door and stumble inside.

The dorm was quiet but the two didn’t seem to notice.
Jongwoon giggled and shushed Sungmin who nodded in agreement before knocking into a lamp.
As the lamp tumbled to the floor, they both froze.
Then broke out into peels of laughter.
“Sorry, sorry!” Sungmin reached for the lamp, glancing at Jongwoon who started doing the dance for the song.

This resulted in louder laughter, both forced to find something to hold onto.

When they finally calmed down, they found themselves on the floor, grinning and pink-faced.
“My head is swimming.” Jongwoon said, “Drinking was a bad idea.”

“Yes, yes it was.”

They giggled again before Sungmin pushed himself up onto his hands and knees, “Where- Wookie said he was going to make dinner for us.”

He crawled to the kitchen, Jongwoon watching curiously.
“Oh… oh that’s right.” The older of the two pushed himself up onto his feet and took a step towards the kitchen before tumbling over the back of the couch.

“He- he did!” Sungmin called from the kitchen.
“He made us-“ he glanced out, “Jongwoon, where are you?”

“Floor.” Jongwoon called, “I- I think I tripped over the couch.”
Sungmin snorted.

“Crawl, Woon- you… crawl to the kitchen.”
“Minnie-“
“Ah?”
“I think we’re drunk.”
“I’m inclined to agree.”

Sungmin heard a shuffling noise and after a few moments, Jongwoon crawled out from under the couch.
“It’s really dark over there.” Jongwoon explained, “And also there was… some money under the couch.”

Sungmin nodded, this explanation making perfect sense, “How much?”
“Like, 200 won!”
“You’re rich!”

Finally Sungmin and Jongwoon managed to pull themselves into chairs and sit down.
Jongwoon put his face on the cool wood of the table, “Minnie, feed me. My head’s too heavy to lift.”

“You do have a big head.”
Sungmin lifted a piece of food, “Open wide… or I’ll miss.”
Jongwoon did as he was told and Sungmin only missed once, smearing the food across Jongwoon’s cheek.

They dissolved into laughter as Sungmin made a second, successful attempt.
“Hyung, you’re drooling.”
Jongwoon lifted his head to find a napkin.

Sungmin watched him, fondly.

“Ah, really, you’re so clueless.”
Jongwoon wiped his face, “Did I get the wrong side?”
“No. I mean about me. I mean you’re clueless about me.”

Jongwoon blinked at the other man, “Wha?”

“Do- hyung, do you remember… when we went on that show?”
Jongwoon’s brow furrowed, “We… have been on a lot of shows, Minnie.”
“Yes. This is true. The show… with just you and me.”

“Hong Gil…?”
“No-“ Sungmin laughed, “No… interview… the one… defenders. Difference-“
“Defenseless Talk.”
“Defenseless Talk!” Sungmin clapped his hands, “Do you remember that?”
“Yes?”

“Do you… ah, hyung, that’s when it started. That’s when I got awkward… around you. You… you said those things.”
“What-“
Sungmin sighed and put his head down, “You said those things and I- I never forgot. How could I? How could I act like nothing… when I always remember… and my heart pounds so much…”

The two lapsed into silence.

After a long silence, Jongwoon felt that perhaps he was growing more sober.
“Sungmin-ah…”
Sungmin took a deep breath and rubbed his face against his arm.
“You’re asleep, aren’t you, Minnie?”

Jongwoon smiled, “I don’t remember everything I said that day, Minnie-ah. Did I say something wrong? Why would your heart pound like that? I wish you would tell me.”
He stood then and pulled Sungmin up, wrapping an arm beneath the younger’s shoulders, “C’mon, Minnie… let’s go to sleep.”
Sungmin buried his face into Jongwoon’s neck, “Sleeping already, hyung.”

“I know, I know. It’s not so comfortable here at the table.” He half carried, half dragged Sungmin to the other room, carefully laying him on the couch.
As he went to stand, Sungmin caught his arm, “Stay.”

Jongwoon dropped beside him, “Yeah, okay.”
He laid beside the younger, ignoring how he seemed to fit against his side.
Sungmin shifted to get comfortable. One arm beneath Jongwoon, the other encircling him. He moved and shifted until Jongwoon threw a leg around Sungmin’s hips to anchor him.

Tightly bound together, the two drifted off into a deep sleep.

--

Jongwoon woke to the sound of a camera snapping photos.
“Is that a real camera or your phone?” he asked, eyes still closed.
“My phone.” Kyuhyun answered.
The camera snap sounded a few more times.

“Why are you taking photos?”

“Blackmail material.” Kyuhyun replied, “Why are you sleeping with Sungmin?”

“Sleepy.” Jongwoon answered, “Bed far. Couch right here.”

“Sure, makes sense. Why are you two hugging?”

“Warm.”

“Mm.” Kyuhyun stuffed his phone into his pocket, “I should call you two CuteSungs. Twosung. That’s what the fangirls call you on the websites. Twosung. Yemin.”
Sungmin made a noise of protest at this, “Why am I always second?” His voice rough  from sleep.

“Would you prefer Sungsung? Minye? Minsung?”
Sungmin opened one eye and peered up at the maknae, “Twosung is good. Minwoon. Good, too.”

“You two are rather unembarrassed at this situation, you know. Blackmail material isn’t very good if you two don’t care about me spreading it around.”
Jongwoon laughed, “At least we’re not .”

Sungmin chuckled, “Yeah, fans have already seen photos of me sleeping with Teukie… Kangin… Shindong… no big deal.”
“Ugh.” Kyuhyun sighed, “You two are no fun at all.”
He spun on his heel and headed for the kitchen, “Wookie, Twosung ! They aren’t embarrassed at all, they made me all depressed now, I need snacks. I’m going to go play Starcraft, Wookieeee.”

“What time is it?” Sungmin asked softly.
“Time to go back to sleep.”
“Wish… got schedule today.”
“Cancel. Sleep.”

“Bad Woon. Bad. Schedule.” Sungmin made an attempt to push himself up, groaning with exertion, “We must never drink again.”
“You are an idol. You never drink.” Jongwoon said, “See? I remember some stuff from Defenseless Talk.”

“Defenseless talk…?” Sungmin managed to push himself over Jongwoon and roll ungracefully onto the floor.

Jongwoon lifted his head to glance over the couch, “You alive?”
“Yes. I regret this course of action.” Sungmin sat up, “Shower. Toothbrush. My mouth tastes like .”
“Won’t ask how you know what tastes like.”
Sungmin leaned over and breathed onto Jongwoon.
Jongwoon opened his eyes then, his eyebrows knit together angrily, nose wrinkling, “That was worse than the time you farted on me.”

“You two are all kinds of shameless.” Kyuhyun said from the doorway.
Sungmin pushed himself to his feet, laughing, “I feel better now.” He smacked Jongwoon’s and, swaying slightly, made his way towards the bathroom.

“Terrible. Just terrible.”
Jongwoon sat up, squinting at Kyuhyun, “Where do you think I could find a copy of an episode of a show me and Sungmin were on? Manager-hyung?”
“Yeah, probably but it’d be much easier to go on YouTube and find it.”

“Oh… good idea.”
“What’re you looking for?”
“Nevermind that. Help me up, I think my bladder is about to burst.”
“I might’ve helped you up if you hadn’t added that last part.”
Jongwoon snorted, “Don’t even lie, Kyuhyun.”

“Yeah, you’re right. You’re on your own, hyung. Good luck!”

--

TBC