[x]

Some people grow accustomed to falling asleep to soft music; others require complete silence or the night is ruined; and some people can sleep through tornados, earthquakes, typhoons, or a drawer of silverware clashing to the ground. It's been one whole year and Jongin's pretty sure he's been ruined for life, because what is going to sleep now without the comfortable sounds of Kyungsoo typing away? He very nearly wakes up when the sounds stop, let alone if they're not there to lull him into dreamland. It's an alternate universe all on its own, a spin-off to Kyungsoo's written fantasies. Jongin sleeps and dreams of a world where Kyungsoo is telling him he loves him, all the while Kyungsoo writes scene after scene of people falling in love. 

Maybe one of these days he'll write to Jongin and tell him that they are soul mates?

Maybe one of these days Jongin will wake up inside a story where Kyungsoo is all his?

Or maybe one of these days Kyungsoo will quit talking to himself while he writes. 

“Okay if I put Xiumin with Luhan, that leaves Tao, Chen, and Lay... should I make this one a side-Taochen? Or Chenlay... But that leaves one member out... damnit Kris, you ruined the OT6... maybe a ? Or unrequited love... nah, let's just make Tao straight for a change... even if that doesn't make sense... Yeah, a straight Tao is definitely unique...”

Jongin was so traumatized that night he dreamed of a three-way relationship with himself and Kyungsoo and Chen, and Sehun left out in the cold, and that is definitely not what Jongin had in mind before he went to sleep. The typing he can deal with, but the out loud, one-sided conversations Kyungsoo tends to have around two in the morning are a different matter entirely.

Sehun and Baekhyun were kind enough to visit Jongin one morning while Kyungsoo was out, bearing a cheat-sheet from Baekhyun about all the kinds of fanfiction that were possible within the Exo-M fandom. It would go along nicely with the e-mail link Chanyeol had sent him a few days before listing all possible OTPs.

“Don't you guys like them for the music?”

“Yes,” said Baekhyun simply.

“Then how come all I ever hear about is fiction, ships, fiction, and OTPs?”  Jongin complained. It took a few weeks, but at least someone had gotten around to explaining the 'one true pairing'. It made sense now, since all Kyungsoo ever talked about was Xiuhan, and even when he was working on some other pairing, he always managed to squeeze some Xiuhan into the story.

Baekhyun chuckled. “Of course the music is good. But where you can really connect with other fans is through the fanfiction community! I mean, unless you're one of those people who stalks them down in real life. Seriously! Those people need to learn how to chill out and sit in front of their computer screens more often like us normal people!”

Jongin sent Sehun a pleading look, one that said, Please explain the inner workings of the fanboy, but Sehun offered up no help. He smirked instead with a face that said, Sorry pal, you're on your own here.

“Do you write then?” Jongin asked Baekhyun.

“Nah. We can't all be as good as Kyungsoo. But the world always needs more readers. I mean, what's the point of writing if you don't have an audience? See, writers provide a free service, and they need love to sustain them. And me? I'm a lover, not a fighter!” 

“Uhmm,” said Jongin.

“Mixed metaphors, Baekhyun,” said Sehun.

Baekhyun meanwhile just smiled and shrugged. “Hey, I don't sweat anything too much. Here, just study. If you're going to become Kyungsoo's beta, then you'll need to know your stuff!”

“His what?” 

“You'll see!” said Baekhyun in a sing-song voice. Jongin definitely didn't like the sound of that.

“Wait, Baekhyun, I don't get it. What am I becoming?”

“You'll see!” Baekhyun repeated, and whistled as he went out the door. That just left Sehun behind. Jongin sat on his bed with his mouth hanging open, but even Sehun abandoned his friend with the final parting directive: have fun, and study.

“Hey, Jongin. Go out with me this afternoon, please?”

Jongin nearly spit out his soda hearing those words right from Kyungsoo's mouth. Mild panic attack and heart failure, more like, until he realized the tone and the words 'this afternoon’ didn’t quite turn the request into a date. 

“Okay? Why, what do you need?”

Kyungsoo actually had a habit with things like this. He didn't like going places by himself, although he never seemed to ask someone other than Jongin to accompany him on all his little errands. Jongin took that as a major plus in their relationship, and obliged him whenever possible. Anything for his precious Kyungsoo, after all.

“Record store. The new album's out today!” He looked so hopeful and excited, like a kitten expecting a treat that hadn't quite made it to his mouth yet. 

Jongin inclined his head. Hadn't he just watched Kyungsoo download the digital version a few days ago? His roommate had been hyped up forever waiting for it to come online. Jongin knew the signs. New releases were always the worst, because they meant days of being ignored while Kyungsoo smiled and giggled and bounced on his bed, headset on, and it took forever to get his attention if Jongin wanted to say something to him.

“Sure we can go.”

“Awesome. Thanks! Okay, then as soon as I get out of class and get back here we can go. Actually, can you wait for me at the bus stop? We can get out faster that way.”

“Yep. I can do that.”

Kyungsoo preened around, gathering the things he would need for his next class, and some extra snacks and a water bottle because he wouldn't be coming back directly after. Jongin kept an eye on the clock for him, just in case he got so carried away he forgot the time. Kyungsoo did that periodically. 

He had his shoulder bag on, and hand on the door when Kyungsoo swung around and rushed back to his computer, cursing and muttering under his breath. His bag hit the floor as the chair came out and he sat down, pulling up a window and typing furiously away.

“What's the matter?” Jongin asked, more than mildly curious.

“Ugh. Nothing much. Just forgot to respond to this person... she's been pestering me all day about when I'm going to start that Layhan circus!au. But I've been so busy! And now the new album is out, I need to make scans and edits and...ahhh!” He took his hands away from the keyboard long enough to scruff up his hair in frustration. Dark tufts of it stood in every direction, and despite his cool outward expression Jongin was thrumming inside. How could a man help but want to run his hands through it? Mess it up some more. Work it into shapes. Was it long enough for pig-tails? Woah, Jongin, settle down...

He missed some of Kyungsoo's rant. Perhaps that wasn't a bad thing though. Kyungsoo looked rather like he was wrestling with himself. It wasn't pretty. Except it was. Pretty. Kyungsoo was pretty. Hot.

“So many things to do, there's just not enough time! And really, I need to write that Taochen first since I promised that other person...” He sighed heavily, but continued to rant in between bursts of typing. “But, ugh! She's already mad at me for not finishing the Krislayhan Jurrassic Park!au. I just... I couldn't finish it. Not after... all that. 'Hiatus' It's on hiatus. What part of hiatus do people not understand? Maybe I should just delete it... No! But I can't do that. So many good scenes...”

He paused and looked for a second like he was going to cry. 

“Uhm, Kyungsoo?” 

At least he turned around to look at Jongin promptly. Little victories. 

“Hmm?”

“You should probably get to class soon...”

“Oh, right!”

Half an hour after he was gone, Jongin pulled out the fanfiction cheat-sheet he'd been ignoring for over a week. 

It is time! Jongin urged himself on, feeling a little bit proud. It's kind of like homework, he persuaded himself. Homework and a roadmap to obtaining Kyungsoo and all Jongin's dreams come true!

The list was in alphabetical order, English-style, and halfway through the description of ABO verse, Jongin felt like he'd already had enough. 

Bonus Scene "Jurrassic Exo"

SooTheMan posts:

The two of them darted around the hill as quick as they dared. It was wise not to move too quickly and make known their presence. After all, those little dinosaurs were easy to alert, and after what happened to their manager-hyung earlier, Lay and Luhan weren’t willing to make a single error ever again.

“Luhan,” the younger whispered frantically. “Hurry up. I think if we can make it to the fence line we’ll be safe for a while.”

“And how exactly is a fence going to stop them?” Luhan replied, breathlessly.

“It’s electric. They can’t get past it!”

“If it’s electric, then how are we going to get past it?”

Lay grabbed his arm and they bent over underneath some brush, a palm tree frond swiping Luhan’s head and he jumped a little bit in fright.

“Shhh,” Lay warned him. “We can get through. There’s a small door meant for humans to get through safely.”

“Is that was Kris told you earlier?” Luhan sniffed. It had been the last word they had from the rest of their team members before the radio equipment went dead and they’d lost all communication.

“Yes, and he said if we could all make it there safely we should be able to stay there and wait for help to arrive.”

“I don’t believe them,” Luhan whined. He wanted to go home. He wanted to see the rest of his team. He missed Kris especially, and not knowing what had happened to the rest of them made his heart skip a beat and his body want to stop functioning altogether. Except, Lay was right. They had to try.

The fence was in sight, finally. Luhan could hear it buzzing, and the gate itself was visible and fortunately intact.

The only problem was it was separated from him and Lay by a long open stretch of grass. They’d done well to plan their route to keep upwind of the reptiles, but on open territory, if they tried to make a run for it, would they be seen? Could they do it fast enough? The gate had a mean looking handle bar on it that could require some effort to pry open.

Lay tried to figure it out while Luhan looked around carefully. They had to time this just right if they wanted to make it out alive.

Lay squinted his eyes in concentration. “I think… I know how it will open. Okay, are you ready?”

“What do you mean, you think? Do you know? 100 percent, do you know?”

“90 percent, and that’s a better chance than what we have right now sitting in the bushes,” Lay said.

“Fine.”

“Alright, on 3…”

Something rustled in the bushes behind them.

“2…”

Something else pounded off into the distance, but coming ever closer.

“We don’t have time for 2. Run!” Luhan shrieked.

Across the greenery they darted as if their lives depended on it. They lives did depend on it after all. But of course as soon as they started moving, whatever had followed them moved too.

“Velociraptors!” Luhan cried, as he and Lay ran faster. The stretch to the gate wasn’t far, and they had a head start but that didn’t make it any easier. Not when they both clattered to the chain-link gate and Lay started frantically messing with the bar across the door.

“Hurry!”

“I am!”

The pounding of something larger echoed even closer, and Luhan frantically found a fallen tree branch. It wouldn’t help against a tyrannosaurus, but he might buy them a few vital seconds while Lay worked on the gate. The first of the little creatures was already halfway across the green.

“Luhan! Lay!”

The voice wasn’t theirs. It came from behind them. Behind the gate, in the safe zone. Was it Kris? It had to be!

He couldn’t turn around to find out though. With all his might he swung his tree branch across the face of the first velociraptor. It didn’t do much, but just then he heard the gate creak open and Lay was shouting at him to run through.

“Luhan! Hurry!”

Again it wasn’t Lay’s voice. It was Kris! It just had to be!

The velociraptor was already returning for strike two. Luhan couldn’t run without it following them through. The rest of the pack had scattered when the tyrannosaurus appeared, but this one refused to budge…

Luhan dodged it, but a layer of teeth had pierced his arm through, and the blood flowed freely. The dinosaur veered in again, and Luhan raised his arm for the final swing. One more and he could back in through the open gate in time to get it closed… He held his breath and waited for the attack….

To be continued.

A/N – sorry but I’m putting this on hiatus :'(

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Luhanlover298671: OMG please update!

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Fanfictionftw134: What? You can’t not finish this!! What happens to Luhan?!? Please tell us!

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Iamthebestcommenteralive: This chapter was so good! You could really feel Luhan’s despair, especially since he wasn’t sure if Kris was alive, and if it was even worth living anymore. Thank God Lay was here this whole time to get him through but will they be reunited? After all this time will Luhan give Lay any credit for keeping him alive and love him in return?

Please I hope you change your hiatus status and update this so we will know what happens next. Thank you!

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Myship_isnt_in_thisau: I hate you. I hate you so much for writing this in the first place, but now? Now you don’t even finish it!?

(1) reply to Myship_isnt_in_thisau by SooTheMan: Sorry! I really do apologize, but please look forward to my real Layhan fic I’m planning next. I won’t abandon that one, I promise! Omg the new album’s coming out today and Jongin is going with me to get it! *squeals!*

(1) reply to SooTheMan’s reply: Cool for you!! I hope you can convert him to Exo-M soon and then you’ll have more things in common! Good luck!

But I still hate you! <3

2,433 words

Lmao. That was fun. xD

Well, more of Jongin being traumatized - fanfiction is such a scary world, isn't it. Not that I would know anything about that.... ehehehe

So here's important news for everyone.

Please keep giving me some au! choices. I've seriously enjoyed some of the requests I've gotten so far (if you couldn't tell from the ones mentioned in this chapter alone hehehe). Not all the ideas will make it into the fic like this one. So I may mention or only refer to. Others I may write snippets or scenes out of, and at least one so far I have decided to turn into a oneshot:

Three Years to Wait, a Taochen request by aLiaLovella, of which I've already posted the forward, and I hope you will look forward to it. :)

By the way, the upcoming Layhan Circus!au AND the Jurrasic Park Krislayhan were both requests of Byberry. I think she meant the Jurrasic Park one as a joke, but well... you should know me by now. I enjoy life too much ;)

<3 Rosie