Chapter Text
Ever since Wooyoung was young he’s had a passion for dance.
At age five he discovered the world of ballet. He begged his grandmother for months before she finally signed him up for lessons. At age twelve, he discovered the art of contemporary and hip-hop, immediately joining a dance club at his middle school.
Throughout all of his schooling, he did recitals, formed dance teams, did anything that gave him a chance to dance. It wasn't a surprise to anyone when he decided to pack up his life in Busan and move to study dance at the academy of arts in Seoul. His dream was to become a choreographer for artists all over the world.
He was currently a sophomore, sharing an apartment with his childhood best friend San, who was attending the same college for music.
They always joke that San will be the one making music and Wooyoung will be the one choreographing for it. They have been attached at the hip since they were young; ever since that day on the playground.
Wooyoung had found San crying all alone, hiding underneath the Monkey bars after a few kids were bullying him for bringing a stuffed puppy to school. Wooyoung vividly remembers seeing two kids standing over the small weeping boy.
“Hey! Leave him alone!” Wooyoung had yelled, waving a fist in the air. He marched over to the scene, looking as intimidating as a seven-year-old could.
The two boys quickly looked at each other before running away, leaving the crying boy huddled against the ladder.
Wooyoung crouched down to his eye level. “Hi. I’m Wooyoung.”
Two tear-filled eyes peeked out from under worn-down sweatshirt sleeves, meeting his.
“Hi” He whispered, clutching the small stuffed animal to his chest.
“What’s your name?” Wooyoung asked, sitting down next to him
“San.” He answered, eyes welling with tears. One slipped out, streaking down his puffy face.
“Don’t cry Sannie,” Wooyoung said, smiling while wiping the tear off his cheek.
San’s lips trembled. He hiccuped and looked at his torn sneakers.
“I’m going to be your best friend and I won’t let anyone hurt you,” Wooyoung declared.
San looked up at him, bangs falling into his hopeful eyes.
“I promise” Wooyoung giggled, extending his pinky finger.
San slowly reached out, grabbing Wooyoung’s pinky with his.
They both giggled softly.
Wooyoung wrapped his arm around San, bringing him closer.
“Who’s that?” he asked, pointing to the pink stuffed animal in San’s arms
“This is Poppy” San uttered quietly.
“Poppy!” Wooyoung exclaimed, “That’s such a cute name! Can I hold him?”
San squeezed Poppy closer to his chest. “You have to be gentle with him...” He whispered.
“Wooyoung fixed San with a serious look and nodded. “I’ll be extra careful with him, San.”
Smiling, San handed Poppy to Wooyoung. He occupied his hands immediately, sleeves going to wipe his runny nose.
Wooyoung examined the doll, noticing that the left ear was ripped; hanging off the toy by a few threads.
San sniffed. “They said he would look better with no ears.”
Wooyoung frowned. “You can come over to my place after school and my grandmother can sew it back if you want?”
“Really?” San asked, eyes full of hope.
“Yeah! She does it all of the time with my clothes! And she makes the best cookies, and I have a big backyard that we can play in!”
“Okay...” San had answered, smiling shyly.
Ever since that day they have been attached at the hip.
Middle school. High school. Now college. They were the dynamic duo. Anything San needed help with, Wooyoung was there and vice versa. Wooyoung was a social butterfly; he was in charge of getting San out of his shell: introducing him to new things and new people. This was their friendship.
Before, Wooyoung was always dragging San to parties, making him attend friend hang-outs, and convincing him to do anything in the social realm. Without Wooyoung, San would just be in his room playing video games and snuggling with his collection of stuffed animals.
That was until San met Yunho.
Yunho was in San’s stats class freshman year. He had made quite the impression on his friend. Wooyoung remembers how excited he was after class, barging into their shared apartment and practically jumping into his lap.
“You’re not going to believe what happened today!” San said between giggles.
“Sannie, stop moving! Your bony ass is hurting me!” Wooyoung wheezed, laughing at the mess that was his best friend.
“I met someone!” San chirped, smiling brightly
“You met someone?” Wooyoung asked, suspicious of his friend’s good mood. “Or did you meet someone ?” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.
San slapped his shoulder. “No! He’s just a friend. But I invited him over tonight for movie night! I think you two will get along well.”
Wooyoung puffed out a laugh. “I get along with everyone Sannie, it’s you who has the difficulty.”
San pouted and slapped his shoulder again.
“Hey! I’m going to bruise if you keep that up!”
“Well, maybe someone should be a little nicer.”
Wooyoung scoffed. “I am nice. I’m extremely nice! I took out the trash two times in a row.”
“Wooyoung.” San deadpanned. “That was last year.”
Wooyoung just shrugged. “Yeah and so ?”
“That was at your parents’ house? We weren't even living together yet!” San shouted, rolling in Wooyoung’s lap, limbs jabbing him uncomfortably.
Wooyoung shifted to avoid getting elbowed. “I still did it.” He said with a faux-pout, unable to stop the smile tugging at his lips.
“Okay, sure. Well, when you do it for our apartment,” San lectured, poking Wooyoung in the chest for emphasis, “ Then we can talk.” He chuckled, leaning back into the couch.
Wooyoung answered by sticking out his tongue.
San reached for it, attempting to grab the offensive muscle from his best friend’s mouth. Wooyoung grabbed his arms and wrestled back, resulting in both of them falling off the couch and onto the floor.
After about 10 minutes of tickling, they reached a truce. Wooyoung heaved himself back onto the couch, helping his panting friend regain his seat.
“So, what time is he coming over?” Wooyoung asked, smoothing his mussed up hair
San checked his phone. “I told him seven so we can attempt to clean up the place.”
Wooyoung pushed himself off the couch. “Smart. I’ll go get groceries while you’re doing that.”
“Wooyoung!” San whined. He slumped over the arm of the couch, fixing Wooyoung with his most pitiful, puppy dog eyes.
“What? He’s your friend.” Wooyoung said, shrugging as he walked backwards towards the door. “And we need snacks for tonight!”
He spun around, grabbing his keys from where they were hanging on the wall.
“ Ugh, okay! Make sure to grab my ice cream!”
“I got you. Be back soon! “ He called back, delivering one of his signature winks as he strutted out of the apartment.
That night was the start of a long friendship.
After their first movie night together it soon turned into another, and then another, and then another after that. Eventually, it became a tradition for all three of them to watch movies every Thursday.
At first, Wooyoung thought it was great adding another person to their group. Wooyoung, unlike San, had numerous friends, so seeing San finally have someone besides himself was great! Wooyoung wanted nothing but happiness for San.
That is, until Yunho and San started dating.
It shouldn’t have been a surprise to him. San and Yunho always had a certain chemistry to them. But San had never had a boyfriend before, so Wooyoung couldn’t help but feel a little blindsided. He didn’t know what to expect, but he certainly didn’t expect to become the third wheel in their relationship.
And he didn’t like it at all.
Especially now, because the pair were constantly going off alone, whispering to each other, doing things without him.
He used to be San’s whole world, but now Wooyoung found himself fighting for his attention. He felt like he was constantly being left behind, put on hold, replaced...
One day he finally snapped.
The three of them were on the couch for their Thursday tradition, rewatching one of Wooyoung’s favorites. Yunho and San were cuddling, as usual, but then they started whispering.
Wooyoung grimaced and tried to ignore it, but what he couldn’t ignore was the pair suddenly standing and walking towards the door.
“Where are you two going?! It’s movie night!” He yelled indignantly.
Leaving him here while they go on dates is one thing, but it’s Thursday. It’s their night! They can’t just abandon him like this, it’s tradition!
Pausing, the couple looked back and forth from one another.
“We are just heading to Yunho's place to change and then heading out to a club.” San replied smoothly.
“But it’s movie night! And you two have canceled the past two Thursdays in a row! If you want to go to a club you should at least invite me!” Wooyoung’s pout grew bigger as he made puppy eyes at the two.
Yunho and San look at each other, concern marring their faces.
“Uhhhh...” Yunho starts. “Well… well it’s a--”
“It’s a BDSM club.” San quickly inserts. He nervously plays with his fingers, hoping that his friend does not judge him.
Wooyoung raised a brow.
“A what? ”
“It’s like a sex club?” Yunho adds. Biting the inside of his cheek as he realizes how awkward this conversation is.
What.
A sex-
What?
Wooyoung's brain blanks as he tries to control his face. What the hell is a sex club?? And why is his sweet, innocent San bringing it up? He’s the adventures one. He’s the one who should-
Wait, what the fuck, what the fuck. What even is that? Wooyoung didn’t even realize they were having sex, let alone going to a club for it? Is that even legal? Are they actually having sex there?. In a club? A club for sex. A place where people have sex. Sex. Sannie. Sex. Sex and Sannie. Sannie and Sex.
Breathing. Wooyoung needed to breathe.
“So…. like, prostitutes?” He asked slowly.
“No, no, no. It’s just a place where people who might have… certain needs…” Yunho attempts to explain politely.
“What kind of needs?” Wooyoung asks, eyes large.
“I’m a sub.” San finally says putting Yunho out of his misery.
Like, a sandwich?
Wooyoung blinked. “A what?? ”
San sighed. He knows no matter what he says Wooyoung will want the full picture and is not going to let him drop the subject. He just hopes he will understand. “A sub. It means I give myself to Yunho in all ways and he takes care of me.”
Wooyoung barks out a laugh.
“Okay gross, if you like sucking dick you can just say that Sannie”
San shoves wooyoung playfully. “Shut up! That's not what I’m saying, it’s just a deeper emotional connection that allows you to trust and communicate with your partner better. And at the club it allows like-minded people to meet, hang out, and share their interests.”
“So… you just talk about sex?”.
San seemed to falter. He looked at Yunho, who sighed and stepped forward. “Not exactly… some people...” He gave San a knowing look. “Enjoy having others watch.
“YOU HAVE SEX IN FRONT OF PEOPLE?!” Wooyoung shouted, jaw-dropping to the floor.
San rushed over and covered his mouth.
“Will you be quiet?! We have neighbors, you know! But to answer your question, sometimes, yes. But not always. Sometimes we just watch others, or we have play above the clothes or without penetration.”
Wooyoung’s brain stalled.
Penetration? No... Not my San.
He couldn’t even imagine what play could mean.
Yunho coughed into his fist. “Like spanking...” He mumbled, blush blooming across his face.
Wooyoung's jaw remained open. He looked at San incredulously. “Y-you get spanked?”
San looked him directly in the eyes. “Yes.”
“And… that’s fun for you?”
“Very.” They both say in unison.
Oh. Wow.
Wooyoung went back to the couch, easing himself down slowly. He shook his head in disbelief.
“Wow. okay.”
They’ve been leaving him behind to have sex in a club.
He can’t let this continue. But, he can’t let himself be left behind.
He needed to breathe. It’s just sex, right? It’s just sex. He can handle that. He has to. . San needs him.
He steeled his resolve, looking up at the two of them with a determined smile.
“Okay.” He said, clapping his hands together. “So when are we going?”
San bristled. “ We? ”
“Well, of course. As your best friend, it’s my job to come with you to these types of things! Also, you have to make up for not inviting me in the first place.” Wooyoung smiled wide, showing all his teeth.
“We would have invited you, but we didn't think it would be something you’re interested in...” San mumbled.
“Me?” Wooyoung scoffs. “I was born to be admired by others.”
He pushed down his nervous thoughts, continuing. “I’ll fit in perfectly.”
San and Yunho exchange a look.“Well…. Okay.”
Wooyoung smirked. “I’m not watching you two have sex though! So don’t get your hopes up!”
San laughs at that.
“As if we want you to watch!”
Wooyoung shrugs his shoulder with a sly smile. “Of course you do. Have you seen me?” He places a dramatic hand to his chest. “I’m gorgeous! Who wouldn’t want my attention?”
San rolled his eyes, shaking his head as he took Yunho's hand and pulled him towards the door.
“Okay, well, we’ll text you the address and you can meet us outside the club at seven.”
“Okay. See you then, try not to have sex before I get there!” Wooyoung jokes as they disappear down the hall.
The door clicks as it swings shut, and Wooyoung is finally alone.
“What… what did I just do?” Wooyoung says aloud, the only sound in the quiet apartment. I can’t go to a sex club. I can’t -” He rakes his fingers through his hair, gripping for purchase.
“ No. Stop it, Wooyoung. Get a grip.” He chided.
“It’s just sex. This is for you and Sannie. If Sannie can do this, so can you.”
He took a deep breath, relaxing as he exhaled.
“I will.” He whispered.
“I am going to the club, no matter what!”
“So what if I’m a virgin? Nobody will know. I got this.”
Wooyoung slapped himself in the face. “I don’t got this..!” He whined, slumping down into the couch.
He exhaled loudly, staring off into space.
“What did I get myself into...” He grumbled. “Always me and my big ass mouth...”