Sehun’s fascination with his leader’s strange condition is endless. Now more often than not, Junmyeon wakes up with arms looped around his waist and a lean chest pressed against his back, not that he’s complaining, but sometimes Sehun rolls onto him (a dead arm for Junmyeon) or kicks (a dead leg for Junmyeon) and recently he’s pulled at a feather or two during the night (ouchies).

“Sehunnie, when was the last time you slept in your own bed?” he asks tentatively. He tugs his sweatpants on.

“Dunno.” Sehun inspects his face in the mirror and gives his hair a quick run-through with the comb. He turns around and fixes the elder with a somewhat puzzled face. “Why?”

Junmyeon focuses on the carpet. “I’m just asking,” he says. “You’re spending an awful amount of time, well, in my bed…” He hopes Sehun doesn’t take it the wrong way.

“But you’re more fun,” the maknae whines.

His leader looks up - and knows he’s lost this game. Sehun’s pout is making his stomach do guilty flip-flops as the boy carries on, “You’re nice and warm and squishy– ”

"I am not squishy," Junmyeon objects. “You’re too obsessed with my wings, Sehunnie. Would you be like this if I didn’t have them?”

He immediately knows he's stuck his foot in his mouth as Sehun’s expression goes from hurt to its default grumpy state in the blink of an eye.

“Okay,” is all Sehun says quietly. “Fine.”

“No, w-wait, that’s not what I meant – ”

But Sehun has already vacated their room, leaving Junmyeon to sit on the bed and groan at himself. He imagines even his wings are drooping in despair.

~

Junmyeon takes a shower that night and returns to his room to find Chanyeol on Sehun’s bed, listening to music and occasionally bobbing his head to the beats.

“Chanyeol? Why are you in here?”

Chanyeol takes his headphones off. “Hi, hyung,” he greets in his deep rumble. “Sorry. said he wanted to swap rooms tonight.”

Junmyeon’s heart twists. He swears that boy was born to send him on guilt trips. He towels his wet hair and it sticks up in all directions. “Oh. Why?” he asks, as if he doesn't know.

Chanyeol holds up his hands in the universal gesture of uncertainty. “Didn’t say,” he replies. “He won’t even talk to Baek and he’s being really sulky. He said he’d give me this if I swapped with him though, so I did.” He holds up a jar stuffed with sweets and grins like he’s won the lottery.

Junmyeon wails miserably inside and throws his towel in some corner of the room. He does a quick calculation; if Sehun has already progressed to sulking, he suspects the following days are going to be rather unpleasant. “Never mind, Chanyeol.”

Since the emergence of his wings Junmyeon usually sleeps in the shirt Sehun had nicely cut holes into for him but tonight with Chanyeol in the room he decides to forgo it and just sleep in whatever he came out of the shower wearing. He ruffles his wet hair with one hand and opens Sehun’s drawer with the other to find the hairdryer missing.

“It’s with Baek,” says Chanyeol unhelpfully.

Ugh. Junmyeon’s not going in there. “I wasn’t looking for the hairdryer,” he lies.

“I didn’t say you were.” The taller boy squints his eyes. “Hyung, are you sulking too?”

“No. Just a long day.” Junmyeon gives up and crawls into bed, wet hair and all. “I’m just tired. Night.”

His slightly damp wings feel alien against his back, with nobody to dry (or play with) them but he tries to ignore the feeling and go to sleep. Even when Chanyeol’s foghorn snoring keeps him up in the middle of the night he doesn’t have the heart to curse Oh Sehun.

~

Chanyeol’s up and gone by the time Kyungsoo yells, “Breakfast!”

Junmyeon lazes around in bed for a bit before getting up. He locks the door in case Chanyeol comes back, and gets changed.

When he comes into the kitchen Sehun coincidentally finishes his breakfast at the same time and slinks away after dumping his bowl in the sink.

“Sehun, please wash your dishes,” Kyungsoo calls after him. No response.

“What’s wrong with him?” Baekhyun inquires. “He slept in my room last night.”

Everyone looks at Sehun’s usual roommate.

Junmyeon fidgets uncomfortably. “We had a little disagreement,” he admits. They all go back to their food. Disagreements in the dorm involving Sehun are frequent.

~

Over the next two days Sehun doesn’t make any attempt to interact with him. The group is swamped with more comeback preparations so spare time is precious.

Baekhyun and Sehun are still sharing a room so he has to put up with Chanyeol for a little longer. But tonight the rapper is out with the vocalists and the maknae line are probably doing heaven knows what in the dorm.

Junmyeon stands alone in his room, wondering why all his problems seem to occur after a shower. He’s mopping his dripping hair when he catches sight of his wings in the mirror. He steps closer for a further inspection and shrieks, dropping his towel.

Kim Junmyeon can say without a doubt that he is proud of his wings. Even if nobody else (except for bratty maknae) knows about it.

His silver plumage is dull and unkempt; the crooked feathers ragged and tousled. It’s like the avian form of bedhead, he thinks wryly.

“Oh god.” The last few days have been busy and while he hadn’t checked his wings on a regular basis, he didn’t expect them to require so much care. He reaches over his shoulder and runs his fingers experimentally through the feathers a couple of times. They straighten out a bit and look marginally better but he can't get to the feathers on the other side and –  

“Hyung?” a small voice pipes up from the other side of the door.

Junmyeon freezes. “Sehun?” he gasps in disbelief. 

“What did you sprout this time?”

…Brat.

Junmyeon can hear Jongin spitting expletives at his videogame in the lounge so he unlocks the door for Sehun who steps inside, takes in the dishevelled state of his leader and doubles up with laughter.

“Did you go for a spin cycle?” he cackles.

Junmyeon sags with relief and pulls the boy in for a hug, which he ducks out from. “Sehunnie, I’m sorry,” he says anyway. “I didn’t mean what I said. Can you stop ignoring me now?”

Sehun stops guffawing his head off and eyes his bandmate seriously before nodding his head. “Okay.” Then he disappears and comes back with Baekhyun’s hairdryer and a small book, which he s into the elder’s hands and sits him down on the bed. Soon the room is filled with the low hum of the hairdryer and Junmyeon relaxes while Sehun’s fingers do for an hour what they do every night, drifting through the span of his wings repeatedly until the feathers are reorganized and glossy again.

“What’s this for?” Junmyeon asks, holding up the little book. Pocket Guide to Birds, is the title on the front cover.

“For you to read,” Sehun replies shortly. He massages along the bone and Junmyeon involuntarily flutters the wing under the touch. It feels really nice. He focuses on the book and flicks to a page marked by a folded corner.

“Preening is the process by which birds groom and care for their feathers… when a bird is preening… removes debris and arranges out-of-place feathers…” he trails off, staring at the wall. “What. I’m not a bird!”

“Same thing, hyung.” Sehun rubs his face in the now-super-fluffy feathers and ignores Junmyeon's indignant cry. “Can I sleep in your bed tonight?”

Urghg short chapter. I think im gonna give myself diabetes lol