Chapter Text
December had officially started and with it came the negative temperatures and the heavy snowstorms that Seungmin had a love/hate relationship with. It was only natural like any other human being for Seungmin to like the snow, how majestic it looked falling from the sky and covering everything in a veil of white, but also hated how he had to walk for 20 minutes in the cold to go to his classes, out of all places.
At least he had his favorite coffee shop halfway through the walk to offer him some comfort and a warm cup of black tea with honey or his regular latte. Seungmin liked that coffee shop, 7 minutes from his house and another 9 from campus, with the books lining the walls, the smell of coffee and the soft jazz music filling the space and the extremely attractive barista, going by the name of Minho, working there.
(Not that Seungmin would ever admit that)
The student's mind wen't unintetionally back to the man behind the bar, imagining how his arms flexed under his shirt while purring the foamed milk over the coffee that same morning, and how his hand's veins showed softly on his hand as he handed Seungmin his latte with a soft smile. He looked absent-mindedly out the window watching the snowstorm unfold slowly before his eyes. He wondered if he'd manage to get home in time.
"Mr. Kim! My class seems to bore you, doesn't it?" his teacher's cocky as hell voice forced him to look at him with a bored expression.
Seungmin smirked, rolling his eyes and supporting his head with the heel of his right palm. "I already know the cardiovascular system though, sir. I studied it before we even started osteology."
"Well then, since you've already studied it," the man smirked, crossing his arms over his chest and looking Seungmin straight in the eye, "Tell me, what's the paradox of the two blood circulations?"
Pathetic, that's the worst he can do? "In comparison to the systematic's circulation's ones, the respiratory's circulation's arteries actually carry non-oxygenated blood and the veins do oxygenated blood, while in the systematic circulation the arteries carry oxygenated blood and the veins non-oxygenated blood. Furthermore,-"
"Enough!" the teacher's voice was loud, his hand slamming on the desk and his eyes glaring at Seungmin who kept on looking at him, his smirk unwavering. "You think you know everything?!"
Another eye roll from Seungmin, "If you wanted me to get it wrong you should've asked a harder question, not that. It was as if you were specifically asking for me to get it right, sir."
And it was that moment that Seungmin had been awaiting for. The teacher's face was red, a vein popping in his temple but Seungmin was, fortunately (or maybe not), saved by the bell as he stood up and left the class before the teacher even had the chance to realise it.
"Dude you're so savage!" Han commented in amazement as he hugged Seungmin from his shoulders and messing the younger's fluffy hair. Seungmin lets out a laugh and fixes his hair as his best friend falls in step next to him.
"I'll go to the cafe to study, wanna come?" he proposed as they walked down the stairs and towards the main exit of the building.
"Sorry bro, I'm going to Hyunjin's to study," Han answers with a fake apologetic tone, his eyes giving away what they'll be doing instead of studying. Seungmin fake gaggs and Han laughs as they part ways, Seungmin going straight and Han turning left.
Now that he was outside the snow seemed to fall faster than he initially imagined from the confinments of his class, a thick layer of snow already covering the ground and reaching up to Seungmin's calf. He sighed and wrapped his jacket even tighter around him to stay warm as he walked as quick as possible to the cafe.
He reached the place in record time and the snow was falling even faster as he opened the door, the distinct 'ding!' of the bell, along with the familiar smell of freshly brewed coffee welcoming him.
Along with Minho too. "Welcome!~" he called from behind the counter and looked up to see Seungmin standing there, trembling and covered in snow that was slowly melting and leaving him wet. Minho's eyes widened as he quickly ran to the back and then came back, not a minute later, with a blanket that he practically drapped over Seungmin. "Are you okay? Come on, sit next to the fireplace!" his voice was slightly worried as he didn't even give the student time to react, practically dragging him and sitting him on a tall chair covered in velvet right next to the fireplace.
Seungmin felt.. flustered, to say the least. And if his cheeks turned slightly red, then he blamed it to the heat slowly spreading through his body. "I- um, thanks a lot." he nodded his head and looked at Minho with a soft smile. The barista returned it with a nod then turned around when the bell rang again to see an orderly lady walk into the shop.
"Oh my God, Himari! How many times have I told you to not go out in the cold?! Your bones are gonna hurt even worse!" he scolded the woman as he walked towards her and escorted her towards the fireplace.
"Be quiet, Minho. I survived the bombarding of Hiroshima, do you think a snowstorm will kill me?!" she scolded as she sat down on the chair opposite of Seungmin with a satisfied sigh. "Go get me my tea." she shooed him off dismissively. The bartender sighed then looked at Seungmin.
"Would you like a cup of tea too? It's on the house, because of the cold outside." he suggested, looking at Seungmin with an expression that Seungmin was pretty sure was putting a spell on him, but he nonetheless nodded his head.
"That would be wonderful." he answered with a nod of his head and Minho smiled as he walked towards the bar to prepare the tea. Seungmin looked around, only now noticing the few people in the cafe. Three elderly couples, a group of girls in clothes way too short for the temperatures going on outside, a woman with what Seungmin supposed were her grand-children and of course him with this Himari lady. He dared to look at her to see a book in her hands. It'd be rude for me to interrupt her.
"What do you want boy? I can feel your stare on me, just ask already." she spoke up without even looking at Seungmin. Seungmin tensed then gulped. Well, better put those japanese lessons to use.
"I.. happened to overhear your conversation with the barista and I'd just like to say how brave you must have been to survive that bombarding." he said in japanese and the woman's eyes widened as she looked up at him.
"You speak japanese?" she asked in her mother language too.
Seungmin chuckled awkwardly and scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "I took a few classes back when I was 15. Can't believe I actually remember it after all this time."
The woman laughs in aknowlegment. "Ah, I see. But to answer what you had first told me, I wasn't brave, I was just lucky." she answered in korean and Seungmin was silently thankful for that, because he highly doubted he'd understand any of that in japanese.
"Okay, enough talk of the past! Your teas have arrived." Minho interrupted, waltzing on the space between the two and placing their teas. "I didn't ask you what tea you liked, so I just made you some black tea with pomegranate extract, is that okay?" he asked Seungmin. The student shook his head and Minho nodded with a soft smile, keeping the eye contact for a second too long to be considered friendly and then stepped back. "Well then, I'm gonna be taking my leave."
Seungmin sighed a breath he didn't know was holding until then and slumped in his chair. He closed his eyes for a second to massage them, then opened them again to the woman opposite of him looking at Seungmin with an unreadable expression. He quirked an eyebrow, "Is something the matter?"
"Go for it, he likes you too," she nodded her head with a pointed look and returned to her book,not even sparing another glance to the young man sitting there dumbfounded. "Drink your tea boy, it's getting cold." she finished off and that seemed to bring Seungmin back to reality as he did as he was told mechanically. His mind raced back to the man behind the bar and he sighed defeatedly, deciding that dwelling over Minho would not help him get his degree, so he excused himself and took his bag and tea and walked to his usual table, big enough to accomodate his laptop and books.
Halfway through the genetic system he felt a light tap on his shoulder and he looked up to see Minho standing there with a coffee in his hand and looking at him. "Mind if I sit here?" he points at the seat opposite of Seungmin's and the latter nods, closing his book. Minho sits down and looks at Seungmin with a smile as he takes a sip of his espresso.
"Sorry to.. interrupt your studying, but it was either you, the group of girls who are practically eye-fucking me or myself so, yeah.." Minho explained why he had sat with Seungmin.
"Ah, I see, well it's fine, I needed a break anyways." Seungmin tried to keep his voice composed and not stutter, mentally patting himself in the back and smiling as he took a sip of his tea. "By the way, this tea is really nice, i like the pomegranate extract you added."
"Well, to be honest I didn't know if you'd like it, I was literally playing with my luck over there!" Minho confessed with a soft laugh and Seungmin's brain seemed to froze at the sound. Fucking hell Seungmin get your shit together! he scholded himself in his mind and was brought back to reality.
"Seems like it's your lucky day then." Seungmin answered with a smirk and placed his elbows on the table to support his face with the heels of his palms. They fell into a casual conversation until night time, talking from Seungmin's favourite book (which just so happened to be Minho's favourite too) to how Minho decided to open this coffee shop and bickering over whether dogs or cats are the superior pet.
"Cats are evil! They shed everywhere and scratch you every chance they get!" Seungmin argued, palms down on the table as he stood up and looked Minho in the eye.
"Dogs require energy and games and they shed too, so that wasn't even a valid argument!" the barista argued back, standing up and glaring at Seungmin too. Seungmin laughed, ready to defend his favourite animal's honour but his phone screen lighting up simultaneously with Minho's caught the two men's attention.
"Civil protection? What?" Minho's eye brows forrowed as he opened his phone and read the message. "Due to severe weather conditions, all citizens are adviced to stay inside until further notice. Thank you." he finished the message and looked up at Seungmin with wide eyes.
"Oh my God, this is so fucked up" Minho laughed lowly, voice full of sarcasm as he looked up and ran his tongue over his bottom lip then biting it in frustration.
Seungmin's froze at that, the way the older's tongue darted out of his lips and the way his teeth bit at his bottom lip should be an illegal view for the poor man's heart. He imagined what it would feel like to be his lip being by Minho's teeth, what kind of things that tongue- KIM SEUNGMIN FOCUS!
He was brought back to reality by Minho shaking him by his shoulders a little too violently and looking at him with a worried expression. "Are you okay?! Oh my God I thought you'd faint with how you froze!" Minho's voice was panicked and Seungmin felt a warmth spread in his chest and up his face. Oh my God he got worried for me.
"Uh, I'm sorry, I'm fine." he answered timidly and took a step back to give them some distance, only then realising how close they really were. Close enough for him to kiss- no. He sat down again and sighed, placing his book along with his laptop inside his bag and closed it. "So, how am I supposed to go home now?" he wondered loudly.
"May I.. propose something?" Minho asked reluctantly. Seungmin raised his eyebrow in question. "See, I'm stuck here too you could stay for the night, if you'd like of course." he finished off hurriedly, not wanting to come off as creepy. Seungmin seemed to think about it and he finally nodded his head with a smile.
"That would be highly appreciated hyung!" he answered softly then continued. "But I'm gonna pay the tea and I won't take no for an answer!" he concluded while pointing at Minho an accusatory finger and pulling out his wallet to take the 3000 won out and place them on the table.
Minho turned around. "I don't accept them, I told you it was on the house!"
"Take them"
"No"
"Take them"
"No"
"Minho-hyung!"
"Seungmin!"
They were face to face as they yelled at each other's faces, noses touching and eyes intense with the golden lights on the wall reflecting on them. They were close enough that if Seungmin tilted his head just the tiniest bit they would be kissing, and a part of his brain wanted to do just that, but his rational part of his brain snapped him out of it at the final moment and he ended up pulling away and fixing his posture on his chair.
"Very well then, be like that. I give up." he raised his hands in defeat and let his head fall on the table with a rather loud thud. Minho glared at him then walked away to get their blankets. Seungmin is pretty sure he just wanted to stay as far away from Seungmin as possible. The student took this moment to compose himself, his eyes turning towards the window and watching the snowstorm rage outside. It was only now that Seungmin was realising how much the wind was howling, if the rattling of the locked door and windows were any indicators. His mind wen't back to his (almost) kiss with Minho and he wanted to slap himself.
Which he did.
The sound of his hand meeting his cheek echoed softly around the shop and he was thankful that Minho wasn't there to witness that. He smiled at the sting and rubbed his cheek softly to remove the redness. The barista's footsteps echoing through the empty shop brought Seungmin back to reality from his (way too masochistic) thoughts to see the barista walking in a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt carrying 4 blankets in one hand, topped with what Seungmin guessed was a pair of pajamas and two pillows under his right armpit.
"Sorry, my pajamas are still drying so sweatpants and a sweatshirt will do for the night." he announced, letting out a grunt as he lowered the blankets on the couch next to them and handed Seungmin the clothes. The student took them with a nod of his head and walked towards the bathroom. The pajamas were.. big to say the least on Seungmin's small frame, sweatpants reaching the floor and sweatshirt big enough to give him sweater paws and his collarbones to peek from the sides of the hole for the head. It looked almost.. revealing, in a non-sexual way. He sighed and picked up his own clothes from the sink and walked back to the main space of the cafe.
Three of the four blankets were laid down and two pillows were placed next to each other and another folded blanket on the "feet" of the others. Minho was behind the bar (again) and the smell of wine was filling the space.
"What are you doing?" Seungmin asked as he peeked over the counter. Minho flinched with a gasp and turned around to see Seungmin staring at him with a smile.
"Don't ever scare me like that again!" he scolded and turned around. "As for your question, I'm making some mulled wine to calm my nerves down. Want some?" he offered as he looked over his shoulder. Seungmin shrugged and nodded his head while walking behind the bar and towards Minho to observe him.
"What did you add in?" Seungmin asked in a curious voice.
"Just some cinnamon sticks, anise and orange slices. I was taught this when I was in the Netherlands." he answered as he turned around to look at his clock. "And now we're waiting for exactly 42 minutes! I think I have enough time to make some waffles.. or maybe cookies! Seungmin, waffles or cookies?!" he asked as he turned around again to look at Seungmin with a smile.
"Neither."
"Both it is then!" Minho turned around with a smirk, knowing damn well that he had already achieved his goal.
"No wait! Ugh, fine, cookies I guess. But I'm gonna help you with them!" Seungmin ended up falling into Minho's trap and finally answered. They gathered the ingredients and quickly got to work, making quite the mess on the counter but who cared? Definitely not them. 45 minutes later, 2 broken eggs on the floor, flour covering half the surfaces and cookies shockingly edible, the two men were settling down on the makeshift bed with their wines and cookies while discussing the plot of their favourite book.
"Listen, I'm just saying, it was too big of a cliffhanger to not get a continuation!" Seungmin explained while sitting down and Minho followed him.
"I've read many books from them though and they tend to finish their books at a cliffhanger or give an open end for each reader to interpret however they want. But we'll see." he finished his argument on why they wouldn't be getting a sequel and bit one of his cookies.
A moan left his lips and Seungmin's eyes practically bulged out of their sockets at the sound. Holy hell, even his moan is hot, fuck me.
"Glad to know you find my moan sexy," Minho's comment made Seungmin's eyes snap up at him to see the man looking at him with a smirk, then continued. "If I may add, you're quite sexy too."
"Wait wait wait wait wait- this can't be happening, this-" Seungmin's rant was cut off with an annoyed groan from Minho.
"Would me kissing you shut you up?" and without giving Seungmin the time to answer, react or even process the question, Minho was leaning in and grabbing Seungmin by the neck to kiss him hard. The air was knocked out of his lungs at the feeling, eyes still open wide and body slack. Another groan from Minho and the older pulled back. "Relax, will you?" he asked with hooded eyes and voice an octave lower than usual as he leaned in again just as Seungmin closed his eyes to kiss him softly.
Seungmin practically melted into the kiss, the taste of citrusy wine and chocolate overloading his senses in the best way possible. He moved his arms instictively to wrap around Minho's neck, the latter's going to Seungmin's petite waist and lift him up to sit Seungmin right on his lap.
This kiss was the most intense Seungmin had ever experienced (not that he had any experience at all to compare), tongues pressing and sliding against each other, teeth clashing, hair pulling. It was all too much for Seungmin, and in combination with how breathless he felt as he pulled back, Seungmin knew just how deep he had fallen for Minho.
Minho didn't stop just at the kiss though, his lips pressing open-mouthed kisses from Seungmin's mouth to his jaw and down his neck, sucking and kissing and biting down on multiple spots till he reached Seungmin's collarbone. "Fucking damnit, do you know just how much I've been wanting to leave a hickey on these collarbones of yours?! This shirt really did wonders on you." Minho growled as he pulled the shirt to the side, revealing smooth skin and like a hungry vampire in need of blood, Minho bit down harshly, emiting a broken moan from Seungmin as he sucked and licked the bruise in an apologetic manner.
He kept on leaving marks all over Seungmin's collarbones, the younger's moans slowly getting higher in pitch until he was a crying mess, tears drying on his cheeks, hair disheveled, lips swollen and neck full of bruises and hickeys. Minho laughed darkly, "You look fucked out just from me leaving a few hickeys, I wonder what you'll look like when I actually fuck you." he teases while looking at Seungmin with a smirk on his face.
Seungmin laughed, "Stay tuned to find out."