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“You’re an idiot, you know that right?”
“I do.” Johnny responds with a casual shrug before taking the last sip of his drink, ready to slip into tipsiness now that his beautiful stranger had left the party. The last thing he wanted was for the alcohol to give him enough courage to make his way over to the beauty. He was content with never finding out his name and leaving him forever as the one that got away.
“As long as you know.” Ten says clearly not getting why thee Johnny Suh did not make his move, but being self aware enough to recognise that pushing further would make him a hypocrite.
“Kun Gē.” In an instant the flirty looks that Kun had been sending Ten’s way all night was set ablaze with an intensity that Johnny was surprised that he was capable of, and by the looks of it Ten was too, but certainly not displeased. Instead of verbally answering, Kun just raises an eyebrow in question and shifts his gaze into something more appropriate, but it was too late. Ten had discovered his weakness and there was no going back.
“Yangyang told me that you’re in love with me.” Ten states bluntly making Kun choke on air and look to Johnny for help, not that he was going to get any. Johnny has known Ten long enough not to be surprised at his antics but even then he doesn’t know what to make of this situation.
“And uh… what did you say?” Kun asks nervously, probably trying to think of the best way out of this.
“Everyone is in love with me.” Ten says with a perfectly crafted air of nonchalance that Johnny can see right through but can Kun?
“I’m not just everyone.” Looks like he can.
“Seems like you are from where I’m standing.”
Kun pulls Ten a few steps closer to him, until they are a hair’s breadth apart.
“How about now?”
“You’ve been watching too many dramas.” Ten says with a roll of his eyes, leaving his embrace and ready to call an Uber home.
“And you’ve been refilling your secret sweet stash more often lately.” Kun’s words make Ten pause in his tracks at those words.
“You come to the studio with a smile every morning and you dance hours on end without missing a beat and for most part everything is all normal. But does everyone know that your teeth are particularly sweet when you’re sad? Has everyone noticed that you never have your sketchbook around anymore? Does everyone know that even though you love summer, it always makes you sad because the heat makes you miss home?”
“Kun…”
“I know why you think that I’m just like all the others - for a while I was… And it was easier for me to have you believe I was just another fool with a case of limerence, calling it love because who was I to…”
“Shut up. Shut up. Shut up!” Ten interrupts once he’s heard enough.
“รักพี่นะครับ” (I love you)
“哥哥也爱你” (I love you too)
Johnny has never been so disgusted in his life. Not only did Ten instigate a confession scene straight out of a bad 90s teen romcom for the pure purpose of being able to call Johnny an idiot guilt free, but now he’s going to have to deal with what’s sure to be the most sickening honeymoon phase to ever exist. Fuck his life.
9 Months Later
“How are those two this stupid?” Taeil asks in disbelief as he watches Mark make a fool of himself in response to Yuta’s flirty advances. Jaehyun, spares a glance to the pair who are practically frolicking in the ocean together and is reminded of a random scene in The Notebook, where the girl makes the guy call them birds and he says something incredibly cheesy in response but Jaehyun figured that it was meant to be romantic.
“They’re not stupid. Mark is just insecure and thinks that Yuta is like that with everyone, and Yuta is too busy with his own obsession with Mark to realise that it’s mutual.” Taeyong clarifies in their defence without actually making them look any better. Jungwoo snorts in disbelief and shakes his head in disgust.
“Why you so mad? Jealous?” Haechan teases in amusement at Jungwoo’s sour mood.
“Try living with them. I’m so tired of third wheeling” Jungwoo moans, dramatically flopping down onto his beach towel in despair.
“Well imagine what it would be like if they actually got their shit together. You guys don’t know how shameless Mark can get when he’s confident in a relationship. You’ll pray for these days.” Haechan, who’s known the golden boy the longest, says with an all knowing smirk.
“I’ll take my chances.” Jungwoo declares before making a move to get up, probably to start their intervention, but is stopped by Doyoung’s hand on his bicep.
“Leave them be.” Jaehyun says not looking up from the book that he’s been reading for the past hour.
“Hyung!” Mark’s loud excited voice is suddenly heard. Closer than Jaehyun remembered him being when he last saw him with Yuta, Mark is rushing over to a man that Jaehyun finds vaguely familiar, with a stoic faced Yuta trailing behind him.
“Since when was Mark on a “hyung” basis with thee Kai???!” Taeyong gasps, itching to go over and embarrass himself in front of his idol.
“What’s he do again?” Jaehyun asks, knowing full well but just wanting to get a rise out of Taeyong, having long grown bored of the book.
“What doesn’t he do?! He’s a singer, dancer, actor, model and fashion icon!”
“All that and he’s still so behind on the rent for all that time he spends in your mind? Sounds lik…”
“I dare you to finish that sentence Lee Donghyuck!”
“Oooh your government name! You’re in trouble!” Mark sings as he and Yuta reach them not even knowing what Haechan did to earn Taeyong’s ire.
“You gonna introduce us to your friends Mark?” Taeil asks, stopping Haechan’s response before things start to spiral.
It’s then that Jaehyun sees that Mark and Yuta did not come back unaccompanied.
“Guys this is Jongin Hyung! We’ve been working on a song for his next album together. He and his friend, Johnny Hyung just got here and I told them that they could join us while they wait for the rest of their friends to arrive. Is that cool?” Mark asks, the eager puppy that he is is always excited for his different friends to meet. The rest of the group gives their assurances but Jaehyun is too busy staring at Kai’s friend, Johnny.
Over the past nine months Jaehyun had managed to convince himself that he dreamt that night and the man that did not talk to him; the man that he did not talk to back. But here he is out of his head in his sights and he cannot help but feel like this was just a mirage, just a trick of the blazing California sun.
“Jaehyun Hyung?”
“Mm” Jaehyun answers Mark, who would have definitely let Jaehyun veto everyone if he had not let the newcomers stay. Jaehyun turns back to his book as Mark introduces everyone, clear to him that none of his friends recognise Johnny from that night. It’s for the best really. The last thing he needs is for Doyoung to make a scene in his honour, especially when it looks like Johnny does not remember him at all.
Johnny and Kai did not stay with them long, it being barely 10 minutes before the friends that they were waiting for arrived. It was only about an hour later, once the sun was close to setting, that Jaehyun’s friends decided to call it a day. They were invited to the bonfire night that Johnny and his friends were having but everyone had other plans, and Jaehyun figured that the fact that he was thinking of them as Johnny’s friends instead of Kai’s meant that spending even more time around the man he had not said one word to meant trouble.
Now it was 5 in the morning, and Jaehyun had been up for almost an hour after having his most vivid dream about
his stranger
Johnny to date. It was still another two hours before his alarm would go off and the sandman apparently was not paying him another visit any time soon. With an annoyed huff, Jaehyun got out of bed and got ready to get a workout session in before he properly starts his day.
Ordinarily, if he wakes up this early then he would go for a run on the beach and catch the sunrise, but he did not want to risk bumping into Johnny so soon after going almost a year and then before that, his whole life without seeing him, so he decided to utilise his apartment building’s private gym.
Jaehyun has never given much thought to the existence of fate, but as he swipes the access card given to all residents, and sees none other than the very man that he was trying to avoid, he cannot help but mentally curse out Destiny for not giving a fuck about his feelings.
Jaehyun is about to turn back and run away, but Johnny spots him first and the punching bag that he was doing a number on swings back and knocks Johnny to the ground. He cannot help but snort in amusement before swallowing his pride and walking over to give him a helping hand.
“Don’t hurt yourself.”
“A bit late for that.” Johnny responds, embarrassed and accepts his hand.
“You alright?” Jaehyun asks in concern, offering Johnny some of his water. Johnny declines the water with a soft shake of his head before reaching for his own and taking a sip.
“Just a bruised ego. Jaehyun, right?”
“Right. And you’re John.” Jaehyun says not bothering to pretend that he was not sure, and too busy reeling at the sounds of his name on Johnny’s lips to notice Johnny light up for the same reason.
“Johnny is cool.”
“Okay… Johnny.” Jaehyun took special care in saying his name, willing the man to make the first move.
“I love you.” Johnny suddenly says. Sudden in that Jaehyun had not seen it coming, but the way he said it coupled with the earnest conviction in his eyes, gives Jaehyun the feeling that somehow to Johnny those 3 words were anything but sudden, as if he had been waiting all 9 of the months since that night to say them.
Maybe it’s the confidence that Johnny has maintained during this whole exchange as if he did not confess expecting a response, that makes Jaehyun burst out laughing without any worry to hurting Johnny’s feelings.
“You’re insane Johnny Suh.” Jaehyun says between chuckles, and Johnny’s raised eyebrow at Jaehyun’s slip up, goes unnoticed by the younger man.
“Probably.” Johnny says with a shrug and a smile, mesmerised by Jaehyun’s beauty. Never has Jaehyun felt so relieved, and he probably should be concerned at the fact that he believes that the man whose music he had secretly been listening to for months confessed to him after one conversation. Especially when early declarations of love have always been a red flag in the past. Haechan is still not over the time Jaehyun was almost sighted as a reason for someone’s divorce. That was one time and everyone knows it was not Jaehyun’s fault, but Haechan does not let details get in the way of his amusement apparently. But that story is ancient history and not what is important right now. What is important is how Jaehyun should respond to the insane man in front of him.
“Enjoy your workout Johnny.” Jaehyun decides on before making his way to the opposite side of the gym, and this time he does catch the way Johnny lights up at the sound of his name.
‘5, 4, 3…’
“Let me spot you!” Johnny calls out before Jaehyun can even finish his mental countdown. The gym security cameras catch Jaehyun’s brief smirk when his back is turned to Johnny before it shifts into a gentle smile and he turns to nod to accept the man’s help. And Jaehyun cannot help but think to himself, ‘Doyoung Hyung would be so proud.’