Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

It’s Jongho’s birthday which means the youngest of them can finally drink, and they can all go out to the bars around campus together. So that’s what they do to celebrate the day after Jongho’s birthday since it’s the weekend, Mingi and Yunho always pressing a shot glass or beer into his hands, never letting him be empty handed while Seonghwa made sure he had a glass of water available at all times. Honjoong mostly laughs at their antics while nursing the one and only beer he’s going to have tonight, but he makes sure to check in on Jongho from time to time to make sure he doesn’t feel too sick. 

San giggles at them as he works on his second cocktail. They’re loud, and the blond can’t help but laugh when Mingi confidently proclaims that he’ll drink Jongho under the table despite the fact that not only can he barely handle more alcohol than Hongjoong, he’s hardly even had half the amount of alcohol Jongho’s already consumed. 

His baseless confidence is enough to draw Wooyoung’s ire, though, and he finally turns away from Yeosang to berate Mingi’s bravado. “Stop fucking lying, Song Mingi!” He yells at the redhead. “You’re ready to pass out after one beer. You’re lucky if you don’t throw up on the way home after two!” 

San raises his eyebrows and silently agrees with Wooyoung since he was typically the one who had to make sure his roommate got home in one piece after a night of drinking. They had to stop on more than one occasion so Mingi could empty his stomach in a public bathroom and, on one particularly horrific night, in innocent people’s yards while San drunkenly laughed at his expense. 

If Mingi were a smart man he would quietly and gracefully accept defeat, but San has never described his roommate as graceful. No, he was much more of a flailing chronic liar. 

“What are you talking about?” He sputters. Pounding his fist against his chest, Minghi recklessly declares, “I’m, like, one of the heaviest drinkers here!”

Yunho lifts a hand up to grab the bartender’s attention from the other side of the bar before he steps back from the bar to make his way down to him. San looks back and forth between Mingi and Wooyoung, still arguing about Mingi’s alcohol tolerance when Wooyoung reaches across San to smack Mingi on the arm. San startles at the action, flinching backwards and struggling to keep his balance on the bar stool in his tipsy state.

Large hands on his shoulders help steady him, and when San tilts his head back to look at who helped him he sees Yunho smiling down at him. San shoots him back a grateful smile before returning to observing Mingi and Wooyoung’s argument from the sidelines while Yunho heads for the bartender. 

It’s fun. It also takes way too long for Jongho to really feel the effects of alcohol despite the fact that it’s his first time drinking, and San is definitely wasted by the time they call it a night. He leans heavily against his roommate and giggles at practically everything that’s said because apparently discussing the best ways to get home is hilarious

“I told you Mingi can’t hold his liquor,” Wooyoung insists as he points at the roommates. “Hyung, you better call a taxi for them. I don’t think they even know what train to take to get home. Hey, Song Mingi, Choi San, what line should you take to get home?” 

Mingi blearily blinks at him and stumbles on thin air. It jostles San and makes him laugh again while clinging to the redhead. Wooyoung crosses his arms over his chest and shakes his head with a sigh at least feeling vindicated that he handedly won the argument that Mingi is the lightest drinker. 

Seonghwa flags down a taxi for them as Yunho and Hongjoong bid their farewell to everyone. Their apartment is close enough that they can walk. Seonghwa herds them into the taxi he flagged down, and Yeosang hands San a plastic bag he managed to convince the bartender to give him. He shoots the driver a furtive glance before whispering, “In case Mingi needs it.” 

San giggles but nods his head. “Don’t worry,” he whispers back like they’re exchanging horrible secrets. “I’ll make sure he doesn’t make a mess.” 

Wooyoung yells at him to text as soon as they get home so they know they made it alive before Yeosang shuts the door and they’re off. Their apartment isn’t actually that far away, maybe only a twenty minute drive, but it feels like an eternity with the way Mingi begins to pale. He attempts to roll down the window to get some fresh air, but it’s too cool and the blast of wind in his face only disorients him. So he rolls it back up and immediately begins to sweat a little. 

San points at his face and laughs again before nudging the bag into Mingi’s hands in case he needs it. Their driver keeps casting worried glances towards them in the rearview mirror although he seems appeased by the plastic bag they’re holding. 

In the end they make it back without Mingi throwing up in the car. They actually make it all the way into the apartment before he trips and stumbles his way into the bathroom and vomits. San tells him to drink a glass of water before he goes to bed and then he shuffles into his own room. He doesn’t even have the willpower to change his clothes before he collapses into his messy sheets and falls asleep.  

When San wakes up he’s noticeably warmer and more comfortable than he had been when he fell asleep. He also doesn’t wake up with that morning after breath of death that typically comes with a night of drinking. That dryness in his mouth and acrid aftertaste always lingering on the back of his tongue is absent. Blinking his eyes open slowly, he pulls his arms out of the comforter and stretches them high above his head. 

The sun is already hanging in the sky, but that’s no real surprise. San is already a late riser on a good day and prone to waking up in the afternoon after a night of drinking. It doesn’t look as if it’s the late afternoon, but San assumes it’s probably almost noon solely based on how bright the sun is. 

San rolls onto his side with a groan and looks across the room to where his desk is. Or where it should be because it isn’t there. It’s next to the bed.  

He furrows his eyebrows in confusion. Had he rearranged his room while drunk? He couldn’t remember anything past falling onto the bed and passing out. 

An alarm clock on the desk that San knows he doesn’t own informs him that it’s actually only a little past 9:30 in the morning. He throws off the comforter as he sits up only to gasp and tense up when his lower back throbs with pain. It takes a few seconds for the pain to subside and then a few more seconds for him to realize his bare skin is rubbing against the bed sheets. Lifting up the blanket, San peers down at himself and confirms that he is indeed naked. He lowers the blanket back down and glances around the unfamiliar room. 

What happened last night? 

Abruptly, he throws off the blanket and swings his legs off the bed, taking a moment to squeeze his eyes shut when the pain in his lower back returns. “Mingi!” He calls for his roommate while gingerly standing to his feet. 

When Mingi doesn’t respond, San yells for him again while scouring the room for something to wear. There’s a black hoodie lying abandoned on the floor which he snatches up and quickly slips into. It’s too big for him and definitely not his, so San assumes that it must be Mingi’s. 

Did they fuck each other last night? 

San can’t remember doing that. 

At least somewhat decent now, San steps out of the bedroom in search of his roommate, but the apartment is still entirely unfamiliar to him. It’s bigger and more modern looking and, oh God, had they ended up in the wrong apartment somehow? 

“Mingi,” he hisses this time, worried that the two of them may have inadvertently distubed a couple of unsuspecting neighbors. 

He rounds a corner with his head turned the other way to peer into the empty living room. Then he turns his head and nearly jumps out of his skin when he sees Yunho leaning against the kitchen island with a mug of coffee raised to his lips and eyebrows arched up all while he watches San hawkishly. 

“Shit,” San curses, hands reaching down to tug at the hem of his hoodie. He’s all covered with the exception of his bare legs but he feels oddly naked and exposed under Yunho’s stare. “Fuck, you scared me,” he whines. 

He relaxes a little bit now that he recognizes someone but San is completely blank over how he ended up at Yunho’s place. He’s never been before, and San still distinctly remembers getting in a taxi with Mingi. He also vaguely remembers Yunho and Hongjoong leaving first. “I scared you?” Yunho asks. His disbelief is clear in his tone. 

“Uh, yeah?” San rubs at his shoulder with a sweater paw and shuffles closer to Yunho. “Where’s Mingi?” 

Frowning, Yunho sets his cup of coffee down on the island and folds his arms on top of the marbled surface. He leans in towards San and then his lips turn up into a sweet smile that makes San’s breath hitch. “Should I be jealous that you keep searching for Mingi?” He asks in a low, husky voice. 

San swallows thickly and wonders why there’s blood rushing through his ears and down to his dick. He licks at his chapped lips and flounders amidst Yunho’s unexpected, albeit confident, flirting. “Um, no?” His voice pitches and makes it sound as if he’s asking his own question rather than answering Yunho’s question. 

“Then why’ve you been calling for him all morning? Won’t lie, it kinda makes me jealous.” 

San blinks at the confession. Jealous? Why would Yunho be jealous? Everyone knew they were roommates. “I’m just pretty sure we got home together last night,” he explains. “I thought we went back to our place.” 

It’s Yunho’s turn to blink before his eyebrows furrow in confusion. “Your place?” He repeats slowly. 

“Yeah, you know my and Mingi’s place,” San elaborates. “Since we’re roommates.” 

Yunho raises his eyebrows in surprise and he pulls his hands away from his cup of coffee and walks around the island to approach San. “Oh, baby,” he coos. San shivers both at the pet name and the way Yunho says it in a low and husky voice. His expression is bewildered when Yunho reaches up to cup his cheek and his body unexpectedly heats up. 

Yunho leans down into his personal space, and San momentarily forgets how to breathe. “When I said I would fuck your brains out last night, I didn’t think it’d be quite so literal. You and Mingi haven’t been roommates for a few years now, remember?” 

San stares back at Yunho as a couple of realizations suddenly hit him. It wasn’t Mingi he might have fucked last night. It was Yunho. And now that he’s looking up at Yunho like this he can tell that Yunho looks different than he remembers, and it’s definitely not because he’s hungover because San has never felt more sober after a night of drinking in his life. 

Yunho looks older. Not horribly older, maybe a few years older, but the hint of stubble on his chin and the slight wrinkles on his forehead make him look noticeably older than the twenty-two year old San knows. He stares at Yunho with furrowed eyebrows while trying to think through what the hell is going on. He’s in Yunho’s apartment, apparently he and Mingi haven’t been roommates in years, and Yunho looks noticeably aged. Is he dreaming? 

San can’t actually think about it too much because Yunho leans down and kisses him, and any and all thoughts immediately leave him because Yunho is kissing him. Since when did they have the kind of relationship where they kissed? 

San and Yunho were part of the same friend group, but he wouldn’t say that they were particularly close. Yunho was better friends with Hongjoong and even Mingi while San was definitely closest with Wooyoung. They all get along well, and San is plenty friendly with Yunho, but they’ve never been this friendly. Definitely not the kind of friendly where you just suck each other’s faces. 

But then Yunho places his hands on his waist and pulls him against his body, and San melts into his hold. He stops thinking about why none of this makes sense and just enjoys the feeling as his eyes slip shut. The kiss only lasts a few short seconds before he pulls back. 

San licks his lips when Yunho pulls away before opening his eyes only to quickly shut them again when Yunho leans in again. He only kisses San on the forehead though, murmuring that San looks cute before he turns and heads back to his cup of coffee. 

“Sorry,” San apologizes. “I don’t know—I’m just kinda confused right now.” 

“Yeah?” Yunho picks up his coffee and turns to look at San with a look of concern. “Are you feeling okay? Do you want—do you need to go to the hospital or something?” 

“No! No. Uh, I don’t think it’s that serious or anything,” San denies. “I’m just…I need a moment. I’ll be right back.” 

Yunho frowns and watches as San tentatively steps back a few steps before turning to dart out of the kitchen. “Do you want me to make you a cup of coffee?” He calls before San can disappear. 

“Uh, sure!” San replies. He slips back into the hallway he originally came from, peering behind different doors until he finds the bathroom. Slipping inside, he closes the door quietly behind him and leans against it. There’s a beat of silence before he hears the faint sound of the coffee machine whirring to life. San takes a deep breath and reluctantly steps away from the door. It’s not like Yunho followed him here, and he doesn’t seem like he’s going to. He could clearly tell San needed some space. 

Making sure the door is locked, San scrubs his hands over his face before reaching out to turn on the faucet. He cups his hands together under the water and leans down to splash the cold water on his face. It definitely helps wake him up more but does little to help him actually get a grip of his current situation. 

He just woke up in Yunho’s apartment after apparently sleeping together last night, and Yunho just casually kissed him like that’s just a thing they do now. According to Yunho, he hasn’t been rooming with Mingi for quite a while now which begs the question who he has been living with because he definitely can’t afford an apartment on his own in this city, and what about Hongjoong? Isn’t he still Yunho’s roommate? San hasn’t seen or heard anyone else in the apartment so far though. 

Also they slept together last night. 

San splashes some more water on his face when he feels his skin heat up at the thought, and suddenly that dull pain in his lower back makes sense. Yunho must have fucked him last night. Holy shit, they had sex. San is absolutely sure that his cheeks are flushed red with a blush as he stares resolutely at the water rushing down the drain before he finally reaches out to turn off the faucet. The fact that he slept with Jung Yunho still bounces around in the forefront of his brain despite San’s best attempts to think of something else. Anything else. 

He wasn’t—they weren’t even close like that. Yeah, they were friends, and Yunho was objectively, pretty damn handsome, but San can’t even imagine what scenario could have led to this outcome. He’s not even sure he’s ever hung out with Yunho alone, and they’ve never even flirted playfully or otherwise. Well, maybe San has once or twice, but Yunho hardly reciprocated outside of a smile and quiet thank you. 

They hardly even spoke to each other last night with Mingi and Jongho in between them. Yunho spent most of his time speaking to Hongjoong and Seonghwa and egging Jongho on to drink more and more, but that’s the problem. San has a faint feeling that his last night is not the same one that his clearly fucked out body experienced last night. 

He cups his cheeks with his hands and is able to feel just how warm his skin is despite the cool water he splashed on himself. He lifts his gaze up to look at himself in the mirror with the intention of giving himself a small pep talk about what is either a very bizarre and inexplicable scenario or an alarming gap in his memory, but he only stares open-mouthed at his reflection. 

His blond hair is gone. His blond hair that he knows he has because he just went to the salon last weekend to fix it after Wooyoung had made one too many jokes about how San looked silly with his roots growing in. He’d gone and re-bleached it, but now he’s back to his natural black? He reaches up to run his fingers through his hair, pushing it back to study his healthy, happy roots before he pulls at his bangs hanging in his eyes. Quickly determining that this isn’t some kind of illusion, he plants his hands on the counter and leans in to study his reflection more closely. 

Aside from the obvious change of hair, San looks fine. The bags under his eyes are maybe a little more pronounced than usual, and he thinks maybe he’s lost a little bit of the fullness in his cheeks, but other than that there’s nothing else about his appearance that alarms him. 

A knock on the door startles him, and San jumps away from the sink and immediately looks down at the door. It’s clearly locked, and Yunho doesn’t make any moves to open the door. “Are you feeling okay?” Yunho speaks through the door. “I made your coffee for you.” 

Yeah, San can smell the fragrant scent of coffee through the door. 

“I’m fine!” San answers. Then, after a moment of hesitation, he reaches out, unlocks the door, and pulls it open. Yunho is on the other side, holding a cup of coffee in one hand which he offers out to San with a smile. He peers up at Yunho before cautiously accepting the coffee. “I have a question,” San announces and then takes a small sip of coffee. It’s heavenly, and his shoulders relax from the taste alone.

Humming, Yunho leans against the doorway and folds his arms over his chest. “What is it?” He asks attentively.

San takes another sip of coffee, giving himself a moment to decide how to word this  question. “When was the last time I was blond? Do you remember?” He asks innocently. 

Yunho rolls his eyes up to the ceiling thoughtfully and blows his bangs from his eyes. “I don’t know. Maybe seven or eight years ago?” He reaches out to run his fingers through San’s dark hair, and San has to duck his head down into his cup of coffee to hide his response to both Yunho’s answer and the feel of his fingers in his hair. 

Seven or eight years ago? But San just bleached his hair last weekend, but damn is it hard to panic when Yunho keeps running his fingers through his hair like that. It feels nice. 

“You were still blond when we first started dating, but you dyed it back after graduation if I remember correctly. Yeah, you were so worried no one would ever hire you if you walked into an interview with blond hair.” Yunho laughs to himself. “Why? Are you thinking about bleaching it again?” 

San has neither the ability to laugh alongside Yunho nor answer his question because his mind blanked out after some of the tidbits of information Yunho dropped fully sank into his brain. Yunho said when they first started dating. That means that they’re dating and they hadn’t just slept together out of nowhere. They fucked because they’re dating. But that also means that they started dating years ago. But they’re not dating as far as San can recall. They hardly even flirt or just talk to each other in general.  

“San? San, are you feeling okay?” Yunho asks as he waves his hand in front of his boyfriend’s face. 

“I’m fine,” San squeaks out. He’s really not okay though. He’s been left in a daze after coming to the only conclusion that he can think of which is that he’s experiencing some kind of future vision. A future where he’s dating Yunho and has been for years. Does that mean they start dating sometime this year? Or whatever year San is supposed to exist in. He’s confused by all this. 

Yunho hums sympathetically and ruffles San’s hair affectionately. “You wanna skip our morning walk then?” 

San licks his dry lips. Their morning walk? San can’t be bothered to leave his room most days unless he has classes or other plans. “Is it that day of the week already?” He asks. 

“Every Saturday and Sunday,” Yunho chirps. 

San smiles tightly. “Honestly, I’m not even sure how I’m standing. My back is killing me,” he exaggerates the state of his pain and discomfort on purpose, and he makes a great show of pressing his hand against his lower back and wincing. 

“Hm, I suppose I might’ve been a bit too rough last night,” Yunho admits apologetically. 

San’s heart skips a beat at the reminder that they slept together last night even as he has no recollection of it  and with the only real proof being that slight pain in his lower back. He takes another sip of coffee to hide his blush because despite having no memory of sleeping with Yunho—didn’t experience it personally—just the thought alone is enough to have blood rushing to his face. 

“It’s okay,” San murmurs quietly. 

Yunho gently pulls the coffee from San’s hands, setting it down on the bathroom counter, and then he wraps his arms around San’s waist and lifts him up. San squeals when Yunho unexpectedly and effortlessly picks him up, instinctively wrapping his arms and legs around him. Yunho laughs at his reaction, turning to pick up San’s coffee from the counter. 

Holding both his boyfriend and his boyfriend’s coffee, Yunho carries them out into the living room. He sets San carefully down on the couch without spilling a drop of coffee which he presses into San’s hands. San wraps his fingers around the mug and blinks up at Yunho as he reaches behind San to pull down a fluffy throw blanket from the back of the couch. He carefully unfolds it and lays it out over San’s lap, making sure he’s as comfortable as possible, and San’s chest tightens at the amount of care Yunho shows him. 

“Um—” 

Yunho places one hand on the back of San’s head, pulling him forward as Yunho leans down and presses a sweet kiss to San’s forehead. Whatever San wants to say goes unspoken as his breath hitches. It doesn’t really matter though because Yunho fills in the silence for him. 

“I’m going to go ahead and get some errands done early then,” Yunho tells him while pushing San’s bangs from his eyes. “You just stay here and rest, okay?” 

San sinks down into the couch and cradles his coffee in his hands. It’s still plenty warm. “Where do you need to go?” 

“Just to the bank and the store. We have almost no food left in the apartment,” Yunho answers. “Shouldn’t take me too long. Do you want me to pick up anything from the store?” 

“Something sweet,” San murmurs into his coffee. 

Yunho rolls his eyes but the slight smile on his lips betrays his affection. “Okay, I’ll be back in a bit,” Yunho calls as he walks to the front door. He slips into a heavy coat and stuffs his wallet into his pocket. Then he opens the door and steps out into the hall. The door shuts with a click, leaving San alone in the apartment. 

The apartment is almost unnervingly quiet after Yunho leaves, perhaps because San feels out of place and uncomfortable in the apartment alone. The clock hanging above the TV ticks loudly as San anxiously bounces his legs. After Yunho leaves, San is immediately tempted to jump up from the couch and start nosing around the apartment, but his self-control keeps him in place until he at least finishes his coffee.

He finishes downing the last of this coffee before leaning forward to set the coffee mug on the small coffee table in front of him. He sits back on the couch, mentally counting to ten before his gaze flicks to the door as if Yunho might just come back.

The door remains closed though, and San throws the blanket that Yunho had draped over him with care and jumps to his feet. He looks around the living room before quickly determining that he should start in the bedroom for now. 

Again, despite clearly being alone in the apartment, San still creeps around like he expects someone to come out of nowhere and demand to know what he’s doing snooping around. The bedroom door is still open, and San cautiously pokes his head into the room and scopes out the empty room before slipping inside. 

It’s still a little messy and unfamiliar to San. The bed is unmade, and there’s clothes strewn across the floor. San thinks he recognizes his jeans on the floor now. He tiptoes around the abandoned articles of clothing to make his way over to the desk. There’s a laptop and tablet on the desk neither of which San recognizes, so he assumes they meet be Yunho’s. He sifts through some of the other miscellaneous items on the desk, none of which are necessarily recognizable. There are pens, a couple of pieces of loose paper, a bottle of San’s favorite lotion brand, and a stick of chapstick. 

Abandoning the desk, San makes his way over to the closet instead. There’s a short dresser stuffed into the closet with some shirts and jackets hanging above it. San sifts through the articles of clothing, noticing the difference in sizes of some of the sweaters. San can tell which ones obviously belong to Yunho and then some smaller ones that San isn’t sure who they belong to. 

Him? 

He swallows nervously at the thought that the reason he hasn’t seen or heard any one else in the apartment despite clear indications that Yunho lives with someone else is not because Hongjoong has been sexiled from his apartment but because San is the one who lives with him right now. 

His theory only crystallizes further when he comes across a very familiar piece of clothing that San yanks off the hanger to hold up and study. 

The grey cardigan is instantly recognizable to him. San had brought it a few years ago and it has been well-loved and well-worn since, and San knows it’s the same one. He loved this thing too much and it’s definitely too small for Yunho. Even still, San can tell that this thing is too old now. The sleeves are fraying with loose threads hanging from the cuffs, and there are a number of noticeable holes around the shoulders. 

San neatly folds the cardigan up and places it on top of the dresser with a mental note to throw it out. Clearly it’s been through a lot and San thinks it’s probably time to let it go. It’s been seven or eight years at least. 

He runs his fingers over the folded cardigan in a daze. He forces himself to step away from the closet to continue snooping around the bedroom, but everywhere he looks he just finds more evidence that he is the other resident that lives here. San finds a few plushies that he definitely recognizes decorating a shelf otherwise filled with books amongst some clearly new plushies. And either way San knows that’s his touch. There’s no one else in their friend group that likes to collect plushies and other cute dolls. Seonghwa liked to collect figurines but they were distinct from things that San liked to collect. 

And the more San looks around the apartment, the more evidence and clues he finds of his own presence which is confusing because, again, they’re not dating as far as San recalls. 

Yet, his brain supplies unhelpfully. 

San eventually crawls back onto the couch once he’s sure he’s thoroughly gone through the apartment and he can confidently say that no one will be barging in on him any time soon because this is his apartment. He pulls the throw blanket back over himself and lays down on his side, working hard to blank his mind. It’s a difficult task to accomplish, but as soon as he manages to clear his head of most thoughts, he’s able to stop thinking about this totally unreal experience. 

That’s how Yunho eventually finds him when he finally comes home a couple hours later with a handful of grocery bags in hand. He shoots San a concerned look as he slips out of his shoes. San’s eyes snap to him too, and he feels a little guilty when he sees how Yunho is weighed down with the grocery bags in hand. He sits up to watch as Yunho quickly shuffles into the kitchen to set the groceries down on the kitchen island. 

He comes back out from the kitchen after that, eyebrows raised as he unzips and shrugs off his jacket. “Feeling any better?” Yunho asks as he carefully hangs up his coat. 

San’s mouth dries. It’s a perfectly innocent question, and San knows that Yunho doesn’t mean anything by it, but it feels like a super loaded question. Is he fine? Is he feeling better? Well, he’s confused as hell, perhaps experiencing a fever dream, otherwise he’s experiencing what feels like a very odd future where he’s dating Yunho because he really can’t see how they become a thing. So is he feeling better? No, not really, but he smiles and tells Yunho that he’s feeling okay. 

Yunho walks over to him and picks up the empty mug San abandoned on the coffee table. He cocks his head towards the kitchen and asks, “Wanna help me put away these groceries then?” 

San contemplates the offer for a moment. It sounds less like Yunho suggests it for the sake of having San complete the task and more just to make sure he’s okay. Cautiously, San slips out from beneath the blanket and stands up. Grinning, Yunho holds a hand out to San who hesitates because he doesn’t expect it and still isn’t sure how to respond. He reaches out to take Yunho’s hand, heart stuttering in his chest when Yunho wraps his big hand around San’s and leads him into the kitchen. 

There are a bunch of grocery bags piled onto the island that Yunho leads him to before dropping his hold on San’s hand. It’s a tragedy, and San misses his touch already. He digs through the first bag in front of him, pulling out a carton of eggs and some bagged fruit which San doesn’t mind. He sets each item down on the counter while Yunho takes them and puts them away properly. The two of them work like that until all the groceries are put away, and San stuffs all the plastic bags together under the sink. 

When he stands and turns away from the sink, Yunho is right in front of him and quickly crowds him against the sink. San squeaks when he backs up, the edge of the counter pressed into his back as Yunho places his hands on either side of his waist, effectively pinning him in. “Thanks for helping, baby,” Yunho tells him. 

When San opens his mouth to tell him that it wasn’t a problem—San barely even helped anyway because he didn’t know where anything went—Yunho leans down to kiss him. It’s not the first time Yunho’s kissed him today, but it’s the first time Yunho has kissed him like this. It’s gentle but heated, their lips smacking together as Yunho repeatedly catches his lips in a kiss before barely pulling back enough that they’re not touching anymore. 

Then he presses in harder, tongue easily slipping past San’s parted lips and doing things to him that have San arching up into the kiss. San wouldn’t exactly say he was a novice when it comes to kissing or making out. Wooyoung has dragged him to a fair number of parties on campus before where San quickly learned that he was liable to make out with anyone cute if he’s tipsy enough. But drunk make outs are much more sloppy and messy and, honestly, a little bit gross now that San thinks about it. It’s nothing like what Yunho is doing to him right now. His body heats up, and he arches under Yunho’s touch when he slides one hand down San’s back. 

Yunho pulls back, presses one last chaste kiss on San’s lips and then pulls away completely. San slumps down against the counter and struggles to catch his breath from what was, perhaps, the best kiss San had ever received. “Is that the new way to thank me for helping with the groceries?” San asks. 

Grinning, Yunho places two fingers underneath San’s chin and pushes his head up. “It’s to reward you for helping me with any chore around the apartment,” Yunho teases him. “Seeing as you hate them so much.” 

San flushes in embarrassment. There’s no way he’s like that, right? San isn’t the cleanest person he knows, he’s not Seonghwa, but he’s definitely better than Mingi! San literally has to bribe him or otherwise bet doing the dishes in a game to get his roommate to do the dishes in a timely manner, and Mingi would wait until his laundry was outright overflowing from his basket to actually do his laundry. San isn’t exactly proactive about cleaning, but he generally helped keep their apartment tidy. 

Oh, God. Is he a slob compared to Yunho? He always looks so neat and put together. San would bet he’s pretty tidy. How could he like a messy slob like him? How did San manage to pull someone like Yunho? That’s the real question. 

“I’m not actually that bad, am I?” He asks self-consciously. 

Yunho laughs at him, big hands on San’s narrow waist as he pulls him away from the counter. “No,” he assures San, “you’re not that bad, and I still love you anyway.” 

San’s mind momentarily blanks when he hears those words. He loves him. Yunho loves him. His heart is beating so hard he thinks it’s trying to beat its way out of his chest or find a way to kill him. Red-faced and overwhelmed, San presses his face into Yunho’s chest to hide from him, but that only makes his boyfriend laugh again. 

“Aren’t you going to say it back?” Yunho exclaims. He slows down and takes more measured steps to make it easier for San to blindly follow his steps. 

San whines and presses his face harder into Yunho’s chest and briefly wonders if it’s possible for his heart to burst in his chest. He can’t respond. He’s never even thought of Yunho in such a light before now. He doesn’t know if he loves Yunho yet, but it’s becoming more and more obvious that one day he would. 

“Alright, alright. I’ll stop teasing,” Yunho tells him. When he tires of his slow pace, he uses his grip around San’s waist to pick him up just enough that his feet barely dangle above the floor. 

San doesn’t protest as he wraps his arms around Yunho’s neck. He keeps his face buried into Yunho’s chest. 

Yunho carries him back to the living room and sets him down on the couch. Without somewhere to hide his face, Yunho gets a good look at his red cheeks, and his lips pull up into a sly smile. San whines again, lifting his arms up to try and shield his face behind his arms. Yunho laughs at his antics. 

“What’s got you so embarrassed today?” Yunho asks. He sits down on the other side of the couch, resting his elbow down on the arm of the couch and leans his cheek against his fist. 

San’s cheeks only heat up further. What does Yunho mean what’s got him so embarrassed today? He woke up naked, found out he slept with Yunho, discovered Yunho is his boyfriend, was kissed senseless by said boyfriend, and he still isn’t really sure what the hell is going on with this weird future vision. San isn’t really sure what to call it. So, yeah. Basically everything is causing him embarrassment. 

Cautiously, San lowers his arms and peeks at Yunho only to realize that Yunho is staring at him. Cheeks still red and warm, San looks away again although his ears perk up when he hears a smacking sound. Curiously, he turns his head to stare at Yunho again, mouth going dry when he realizes that Yunho is patting his lap in invitation. San quickly turns away, breath caught in his throat. 

Clenching his hands into fists against his chest, San hesitates before slowly leaning down to accept Yunho’s invitation. His body is stiff as he lowers himself down to lie on the couch. His hands are still clenched into tight fists although he places them down on the couch as he rests his head on Yunho’s lap. He’s still tense though. 

Yunho seems oblivious to how tense he is. He lifts his hand up to make room for San to lay his head down on his lap before he lowers it back down to thread his fingers through San’s dark hair. The reaction he elicits from San is almost instantaneous. 

San shivers at the touch and the tension melts from his shoulders when Yunho’s nails gently scrape against his scalp. San presses his cheek into Yunho’s lap and a sigh escapes his lips. 

Yunho briefly pauses his ministrations to lean forward and grab the remote from the coffee table. San watches enviously as Yunho effortlessly reaches for it with his long arms, but then he starts massaging his fingers into San’s scalp again, and San slips his eyes shut with a happy hum. 

They spend the rest of the afternoon like that, a lazy weekend as Yunho flicks through different channels to watch dramas and anything else that catches his eye. San doesn’t care either way what Yunho puts the TV on. He doesn’t really pay attention, eyes half-lidded as Yunho continues to card his fingers through San’s hair. 

Yunho only gets up once to make them something to eat. It’s nothing fancy, mostly frozen and prepared food, but San is grateful that he doesn’t ask him to contribute, and, after eating, San is quick to return to his spot on the couch. Yunho cleans up first before he rejoins San who smiles apologetically at him. 

“Sorry, I should have helped you clean up,” San tells him. 

“Hm, you should’ve,” Yunho agrees although he hardly sounds upset. He places his knee on the couch next to San’s hip and leans down over his boyfriend. “I’ll let you off this time since you aren’t feeling well today,” Yunho tells him. 

San licks his lips nervously and his heart rate picks up again—as it always seems to—when Yunho leans down and kisses him. He’s got his arms planted on the couch on either side of San’s head, caging him in. When he leans down to kiss San, San arches up underneath him and sighs at the warm press of lips against his own. As new and foreign as the feeling of kissing Yunho still is to him, he doesn’t see himself growing tired of this any time soon. 

Yunho kisses him softly, like he’s savoring the taste of San’s lips against his. San responds in kind albeit tentatively, still unsure of how to kiss Yunho back. Yunho doesn’t seem to mind either way, one hand trailing down San’s side to his hips. He grips him there firmly until San whimpers and holds onto Yunho’s biceps. 

His hand moves down further, over San’s bare thigh because he still hasn’t bothered to change into anything beyond Yunho’s oversized hoodie, and he breaks away from the kiss with a gasp and rosy cheeks. Yunho doesn’t miss a beat, lips finding San’s sharp jawline and trailing kisses down the side of his face. 

“Yunho,” San gasps while squirming beneath him. 

“Sensitive today, aren’t you?” Yunho murmurs into his jawline. 

San squirms again. It’s more like he’s sensitive every day, all the time, because he isn’t used to Yunho’s touch, but he still feels the blood rushing south as he cock hardens in response to Yunho’s touch. His cheeks are so warm San is sure that the light-headedness he feels is attributed at least in part to the flush of his cheeks and the heat radiating from his head. 

There’s no way Yunho doesn’t feel his erection either. Not when their hips are practically flush against each other, and San is helplessly grinding against Yunho’s clothed thigh. With a whimper, he reaches down to fist his fingers into the hoodie, tugging it up to uncover his aching cock. 

Yunho whispers encouraging filth into his ear, teasing San for rutting against him like this while egging him on to get himself off. San bites into the sleeve of the hoodie to muffle his whines, hips working desperately at this point as he rubs himself against Yunho’s jeans. The friction is both immensely pleasurable but also a little uncomfortable, but that’s easy enough to ignore when Yunho is whispering in his ear. 

A thought seems to occur to Yunho suddenly because he stops whispering encouragement into San’s ear and presses his hips into the couch with his hands, lifting his own away from San. San cries out, hips desperately straining against Yunho’s hold as he tries to find that addicting friction again, but Yunho looks down at him with a concerned expression. 

“Are you sure?” Yunho asks. “I know you weren’t feeling good today. We don’t—” He glances down and momentarily feels guilty for how worked up he’s already got San. “I can just get you off,” he offers kindly. 

San pants, hips no longer fighting against Yunho’s restraint as he registers the fact that Yunho is offering him a way out almost. San should take it. His heart still beats quickly at the thought of sleeping with Yunho, but he could just take a quick handjob and, hopefully, when he wakes up tomorrow, it’s in a world where he’s still pathetically single, barely has a friendship with Yunho, and the only other person he lives with his Mingi. 

Instead he begs, “I’m fine. I’m fine. Please. Please, fuck me.”

Yunho’s expression darkens when he hears San’s pleas. When he slides off the couch, San reaches out for him with a whine. No, that isn’t what he wanted. But then Yunho wraps his arms underneath San’s body and, with strength San never knew Yunho possessed, he hauls him up from the couch. San yelps when he’s suddenly in Yunho’s arms, and he clings to Yunho as he’s once again carried around the apartment. 

“Yunho,” he whines, hips moving ever so slightly and rubbing his cock against Yunho’s abdomen. 

Yunho laughs at him. “As hot as that is, I’d rather not defile the couch,” he tells San. He kicks open the door to their bedroom and walks them over to the bed which he unceremoniously drops San on top of before stepping back to pull his shirt off. 

San licks his lips at the sight, and his cock twitches with interest. Yunho’s grin is predatory as he perches himself on the bed before pulling San down into the sheets with a promise that he’ll be more gentle tonight. 

San has only slept with one person in his life. He and Wooyoung messed around a couple of times in high school when they were still experimental with each other before Wooyoung became exclusive with Yeosang just before college. San slept with someone who’s name he honestly can’t even remember. He was at another party Wooyoung had invited him too, and he hadn’t exactly been drunk but definitely tipsy enough to think sleeping with the cute boy he was making out with was a good idea. 

It hadn’t exactly been bad. Well, no that was a lie. It was terrible, but not in a way that turned San off from the idea of sex. It was terrible in the way San learned that he should probably be a little bit more choosy about who he had sex with. His first experience had been quick and anything but pleasurable. The foreplay was minimal, and the guy had cummed almost as soon as he was inside San. Worst part had been the fact that he pretty much passed out after that, drunk and high off his orgasm and leaving San lying awkwardly in his bed with his dick still hard. It hadn’t felt comfortable to even rub one out, so San had carefully pulled his pants back over his erection and took a walk of shame home. 

He hadn’t really felt much of a desire to sleep with someone again. 

Yunho is nothing like that guy who’s name San still can’t remember. He pins San down to the bed and lifts the hem of the hoodie up to San’s mouth, and he bites down on it to help hold it out of the way. Once it’s out of the way Yunho gets to work, lips moving across San’s chest as he rubs his thumbs against San’s nipples. They perk up under his touch, and San bites down harder on the cloth in his mouth to muffle his whimpers. His back arches off the bed to meet Yunho’s touch. 

If he weren’t already hard from their heavy makeout session before, he definitely would be now. Precum leaks from the head of his cock when Yunho replaces his thumbs with his mouth. He licks and sucks at San’s nipples until they’re wet and puffy, and a bit of drool leaks from the corner of his mouth. 

“Stop.” San’s whimpers are muffled around the hoodie in his mouth. “I’ll come if you keep—keep doing that.” 

Yunho licks over his nipple one last time before pulling off with an obscenely wet pop. “Very sensitive tonight,” he notes in a low, gravelly voice. 

San wiggles around on the bed. He’s a young twenty-something year old with a fairly inactive sex life. Yeah, he’s sensitive. 

Yunho places his hands underneath San’s knees and pushes them up to his chest, spreading his legs and exposing his hole, still red and abused from the previous night. When Yunho rubs a finger over the puckered and sensitive skin, San keens and tenses up his hole clenching around nothing.    

“Aw, sensitive baby,” Yunho coos at his response. Mercifully, he removes his finger from San’s hole to press his fingers into the soft skin of San’s inner thigh. With his other hand he reaches over San for the desk drawer, and San stops breathing when Yunho looms over him. It’s hot. It’s really fucking hot. 

San reaches up to fist his fingers into Yunho’s shirt and tugs on it insistently as Yunho pulls back with a well used bottle of lube in hand. San blushes at just the sight of it, fingers still twisted into his shirt. 

Yunho blinks at the fingers grappling at his shirt, and then his lips curl up into a slight smile. He drops the bottle of lube by San’s hip and gently pries San’s hand from his shirt so he can pull it over his head. San openly ogles him. It’s not like he has much to compare it to, but Yunho’s physique is to die for. His drool soaks further into the hoodie in his mouth. He squirms on top of the bed again. He needs this man’s cock in him now. Like right now. 

Yunho grins down at him, taking in the way his chest heaves and more drool escapes past his lips. Leaning down, he presses a kiss into San’s thigh, licking and biting into the skin there until a pretty bruise forms and San drops the piece of hoodie in his mouth to pant more freely. When it falls down, covering part of his chest again, he reaches down with his hands to pull it back up, choking on a moan when Yunho calls him a good boy for that. 

While San is still trying to process the way he reacted to that praise, Yunho reaches out for the bottle of lube and pops the cap open. He gasps when he feels cool and wet fingers against his entrance, and it barely takes any pressure before a single digit slips inside. 

San arches when Yunho works his one long finger into him, twisting his wrist around as he fucks it into San. It leaves San a panting mess, pulling his knees up to his chest and staring down the length of his body to where Yunho’s hand moves between his legs. He just barely gets used to the feeling when Yunho adds another. San drops his head back down to the pillow, hips rolling back down onto Yunho’s fingers.      

“Feel good?” Yunho teases him. 

“So good,” San whimpers. 

Yunho stuffs a third finger into him without warning, and San keens. Yunho fucks his fingers into San relentlessly after that, the room filled with obscene wet, squelching noises. San curls his toes at the feel of Yunho’s fingers, and more precum leaks from the head of his cock at the filthy sounds filling the room. 

“Still so wet and open from last night, huh?” Yunho asks, slowing his movements. He presses his fingers in deep, grinning when San tenses up, wet eyes wide, and his lips parted in a soundless gasp as Yunho rubs his fingers against his prostate. Then he pulls them back before pressing in slowly again. 

“Yunho, please,” San pants out 

With a small chuckle, Yunho pulls his fingers out and watches the way San’s hole desperately clenches around nothing, rim shining with lube. Without further preamble, Yunho reaches down to undo his jeans, pushing them down his hips and struggling to kick them off. San is kind of glad though because it gives him a small moment of reprieve from this. All this. 

His thoughts are completely scattered. His cock aches, he feels so unsatisfyingly empty, and he just wants to cum. 

When he feels the head of Yunho’s blunt, wet cock press against his hole he sucks in a breath and holds it until Yunho pushes himself inside, and it’s like he punches the air from San’s lung with the motion. “Fuck,” San curses, eyes focusing in on Yunho’s face when he leans over San, caging him in between his arms. His eyebrows are furrowed together, and he’s biting down on his bottom lip, eyes fluttering as he pushes deeper into San. 

San yelps after he bottoms out, hands reaching up to grab onto Yunho’s shoulders. Yunho opens his eyes and looks down at him, the corner of his lips turning up into a smirk when he takes in the blissed out expression on San’s face. He waits until San noticeably focuses on him before deliberately moving his hips, pulling out and then fucking back in. The pace he sets is slow and intimate, burning San from the inside out, but San still arches up and moans as if Yunho is fucking him hard and fast.  

He fucks San like that stubbornly, ignoring the way the man beneath him squirms and tightens up on his cock or begs for it harder, faster, please. He keeps this slow pace, rolling his hips into San’s gently as he fucks him nice and slow. 

“I thought you said you would be nicer this time,” San grits out, digging his fingers into Yunho’s shoulders. In all honesty, he has no idea what they did last night, but if this is Yunho being nice then he can only imagine the havoc  he wrecked on his body last night. 

“Oh, baby.” Yunho coos at him, never stopping the smooth rocking of his hips as he leans down to whisper, “I said I’d be gentle. Not nice.” 

San’s breath hitches at the feel of his hot breath against his ear, barely registering Yunho’s words. Gentle. Not nice. Those were too different things. San learns that very quickly. 

When San wakes up again the next morning it’s with the memory of Yunho fucking him slow and soft into the mattress although all he’s got are those memories. There’s no soreness in his back nor does he wake up naked despite passing out shortly after Yunho came inside him. In other words, San has no real proof that it was anything but a dream. It certainly hadn’t seemed like a dream though. Everything about it felt too real. And if it’d really been nothing but a random and awkward wet dream about one of his friends, where was his morning wood? Why was his underwear still dry? 

He glances around a much more familiar bedroom—his bedroom—before reluctantly rolling out of bed. He’s still in the jeans and sweater he went out in last night, too drunk and tired to change into something more comfortable. Everything is as he remembers. He’s even got that terrible night-after drinking dry mouth and stench he knew he was missing before although his hangover is arguably less severe than he expected. 

Running his fingers through his messy bed-head, San makes his way out of his room in desperate need of his toothbrush and some mouthwash. He steps into his shared bathroom just as Mingi stumbles out of his own room with a curse after stubbing his toe against the door frame. 

San leans back out to peer at his roommate, both relieved and disappointed to see Mingig hopping around on one foot while clutching his other, injured one in his hands. Everything seems to be back to normal then. 

“You okay?” San asks. 

“Fine,” his roommate whimpers back. “Aw, fuck. That hurts.” 

“Your foot or your head?” 

Mingi gingerly sets his foot down and glares at San. “Both,” he admits reluctantly. “I got so wasted last night.” 

“You shouldn’t have challenged Jongho shot for shot,” San chides him as he picks up his toothbrush and their bottle of toothpaste. 

Mingi whines again. “I didn’t even match him shot for shot—Oh, God. My stomach doesn’t feel too good.” He presses both hands against his abdomen and leans against the bathroom door frame. 

San can’t exactly comfort or scold him while brushing his teeth so he makes a show of slipping past Mingi to stand in the hallway. His roommate is welcome to get sick in the bathroom if he needs to. San can just rinse his mouth at the kitchen sink if he has to. 

Mingi’s complexion is pale, but he doesn’t move from where he’s leaning against the bathroom door. San eyes his roommate cautiously, standing by in case Mingi needs him. His roommate takes in slow, deep breaths for a few moments until the sickness appears to pass. He holds one thumb up to San to indicate that he’s fine, but San still hesitates for a second before he ducks back into the bathroom. 

Although the wave of nausea passes, Mingi still looks a little pallid, and he sticks by the door in the off chance that the nausea returns with a sudden vengeance. When he’s sure it passes San is rinsing the toothpaste from his mouth. Standing up straight, Mingi stares down at his roommate thoughtfully before he says, “Yunho is coming over. We’re gonna go get soondaeguk for the hangover. You wanna come?” 

San turns off the water and freezes at the mention of Yunho’s name. A day ago, San wouldn’t have even batted an eyelash at the mention of Yunho’s name. He would have smiled at Mingi, thanked him for the invite, and then turned him down. Now all San thinks about is Yunho’s large hand on his slim waist, his lips on San’s skin, and his cock stuffing him full, and his cheeks heat up. They would—they were supposed to start dating soon. 

“Yeah, I’ll come,” San replies. “Soondaeguk sounds amazing right now.” 

Mingi blinks at him, surprised that San agreed perhaps, before smiling in excitement. “Okay, sweet! Let me brush my teeth and change my clothes. Yunho should be here soon, so you should make sure you’re ready too.” 

San steps out of the bathroom to let Mingi have his turn in the bathroom. Deciding to take Mingi’s advice, he heads back to his room to find fresh, clean clothes to change into. 

By the time San is dressed and semi-presentable, their doorbell rings, and San stops contemplating whether or not he looks better with his hair bleached. Mingi calls his name from the living room and he tears himself away from his full length mirror to meet his roommate and his future boyfriend. Or Yunho. He just means Yunho. 

Yunho’s gaze moves from Mingi to San when the blond steps out into the living room to meet them, and San pauses briefly to just stare at him. He looks nothing like Mingi or San in their recovery states—dressing for warmth and comfort. No, Yunho looks very boyfriend in his black turtleneck and long overcoat. God, San would walk into his arms and cuddle if it wouldn’t be so weird. Instead he clings to the memory of Yunho picking him up repeatedly. He kind of misses that. 

“Hey,” Yunho greets him. “Heard you’re coming with us.” 

“Yeah.” San moves over to the closet to pull out a jacket. As he slips it on he says, “I could really go for some hangover soup right now.” 

“That bad, huh?” Yunho teases him. 

“It’s been worse but…” San shrugs it off. 

In fact, it’s not even all that bad. Aside from the terrible morning breath that he mostly washed away, San didn’t feel particularly hung over. He wonders if he just hadn’t drank as much as he thought last night. Or maybe it was because an older Yunho had thoroughly fucked his brains out and that cleared his mind. 

“Ugh. Lucky you. I still feel like the world is spinning,” Mingi complains. 

“You’re not gonna throw up between here and the restaurant, are you?” San asks nervously. 

“I’ll be fine if we walk,” Mingi insists. 

San makes a face that causes Yunho to burst out into laughter, hiding it behind a fist when Mingi whines and punches his friend’s arms. San’s cheeks warm at Yunho’s response to him. He hadn’t meant to make Yunho laugh, but his heart beats a little faster knowing that he did. 

There’s a restaurant that serves soondaeguk only a few blocks away from San and Mingi’s apartment that Mingi and Yunho must be regulars at because the man who owns the restaurant gives them a knowing look as soon as they walk through the door. He ushers them to a corner of the restaurant away from the clatter and hustle in the kitchen and looks over the three of them. 

“Overdid it again last night, huh?” The owner asks when he returns with three cups of warm barley tea which he passes out to each of them. Yunho returns his knowing smile as he thanks the man. The owner glances at San when he passes the last cup to him, and his eyes crinkle up with a smile. “And you’ve even brought in a third for your bad drinking habits,” he tsks with a shake of his head as Yunho laughs at the teasing. “So, what will it be? Three orders of soondaeguk?” He specifically looks at San who smiles and nods his head. 

“Yeah. One for me too, please,” he answers. 

“Okay.” The owner nods his head before disappearing into the kitchen. 

San cups his hands around the cup of tea and looks back and forth between Yunho and Mingi before he remarks, “Sounds like you guys are regulars here.” 

Yunho glances at Mingi who blows on his tea a couple of times before taking an experimental sip of the tea. It’s too hot, and Mingi yelps when it burns his tongue. “It’s basically a tradition now,” Yunho admits. “We come everytime after drinking the night before.” 

“That’s so nice of you,” San tells him. “Coming all the way out here to take care of Mingi’s hungover ass.” It’s not something San thinks he would normally fixate on, but he swoons at Yunho’s kindness. 

“Someone has to,” Yunho jokes. 

“Yeah, because my own roommate can’t be bothered to help me with my hangover,” Mingi gripes. 

San squeals and shies away when Mingi digs his elbow into San’s side. “Hey, hey,” the blond protests after fighting off Mingi’s bony elbow. “Let the evidence show that I’m the one who always makes sure you get home safe. You can’t expect me to also take care of the morning after when I’m suffering too.” 

Mingi narrows his eyes at his roommate and looks him up and down suspiciously. “You don’t look like you’re suffering all that much today,” he notes. 

“Yeah, today isn’t so bad. How do you think I managed to get out of bed?” San scoffs. His gaze moves from Mingi to Yunho who’s still smiling, clearly amused by San. Good. That’s good, right? That means he likes San. Does he like him enough to fuck him yet though? 

The owner returns with a tray carrying three bowls of soondaeguk which he carefully sets down in front of each of them along with a few side dishes. “Call if you need anything else,” the man says as a round of thank yous pass over the table. 

San picks up his spoon and dips it into the bone broth for a quick sip, and he groans in approval at the taste. This is definitely one of the best foods for a hangover. 

The three of them eat and talk, mostly recalling funny events from last night and mostly at Mingi’s expense. San’s roommate just smiles and bears it as Yunho and San alternately poke fun at the confident showboating Mingi had done last night, most of which he can’t even remember although he’s embarrassed to be reminded all the same. 

It goes on like this until San is interrupted mid-story by the sound of a ringtone. He pauses to stare at Yunho where the ringtone is clearly originating from. For his part, Yunho seems embarrassed, cheeks flushed as he fumbles for his phone in his coat pocket, although San can’t fathom why. 

“Who is it?” Mingi asks when Yunho glances at the screen. Yunho looks back up and minutely shakes his head without saying a word. He must communicate something with his body language though because Mingi scowls and tells him not to pick up. 

“I have to,” Yunho replies before smiling apologetically at San. “Sorry. I’ll be right back. I just have to take this call really quick.” 

“Yeah, sure,” San answers faintly as he watches Yunho stand up from his seat and step away from the table as he holds his phone up to his ear. San vaguely hears him greet whoever’s on the other end of the line before he turns to Mingi. He’s completely forgotten about the story he was telling in favor of his growing interest in curiosity in Yunho and this phone call. “Who is it?” He asks his roommate curiously. 

With a heavy sigh, Mingi takes a sip of his barely tea and replies, “Yoojin. It’s his ex. Or his girlfriend. I dunno what stage they’re on right now.” 

San blinks, his mind momentarily screeching to a halt when he hears the word girlfriend. “I’m sorry, what? Yunho has a girlfriend?” He can’t have a girlfriend. That’s against the rules or something. San doesn’t know, but Yunho can’t have a girlfriend. He just can’t. 

“I mean,” Mingi shrugs and makes a pained face, “can you really say she’s his girlfriend when she constantly breaks it off because she ‘needs to focus on her career’ and then simps her way back into his life whenever she inevitably feels lonely? They’re so on and off it drives me nuts. I don’t know why Yunho still likes her.” 

Okay, well that was slightly better. Well, not better because that sounded like a pretty shitty situation, but better for San, you know?  

San sits back in his seat and quietly digests all this new information while Mingi drones on and on about how annoying Yunho’s girlfriend is and how he thinks Yunho should seriously just break it off or ghost her or something other than constantly being at her beck and call, but most of that is just hazy noise in San’s mind. Mingi is in the middle of telling San about the last time they broke up when San blurts out, “So, is Yunho straight?” 

Mingi pauses mid-sentence to stare at his roommate who blinks back at him owlishly. “Why are you asking me that like it’s scandalous?” Mingi returns. 

“I’m not! I’m just curious,” San defends. It does seem like a kind of stupid question in retrospect, but San already put it out there and he’s still kind of confused because of the whole “spending a day with his boyfriend Yunho in the future” part that he’s still pretty sure happened. 

“I don’t—I dunno. I guess?” Mingi answers unhelpfully. “I mean, he had a boyfriend, like, once when she went six months without contacting him, but then they got back together so…He’s bi, I guess? We don’t really talk about it, and Yunho doesn’t really put a label on himself like that.” Mingi suddenly grows suspicious as he squints at his roommate. “Why are you suddenly so curious about Yunho’s dating life?” He demands.

“Because you told me his on-again, off-again girlfriend just called,” San replies. It’s believable enough and appears to placate Mingi. His roommate doesn’t need to know the real reason at any rate. “Yunho and I don’t really know each other like that, you know. I didn’t even know he had a girlfriend at all. He never brings her around.”

“Ah, yeah, well, I don’t think he likes to talk about it much.” Mingi looks up when Yunho walks back into the restaurant before shooting San a quick warning look. “You don’t know anything, okay?” 

San holds his hands up in surrender. “Know what?” He replies.  

Mingi nods his head, satisfied with San’s response. 

When Yunho slips back into his seat it’s with a smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes the way it had before. Something about him is off, but San can’t quite put his finger on why. He glances at Mingi who’s staring at Yunho with a concerned expression. “Yunho, don’t tell me she—” He stops himself when Yunho glances at San, and the blond holds his hand up in surrender. 

“Please,” he says slowly, “don’t let me stop your conversation.” It’s just meant to sound ignorantly polite although San kind of hopes it’s enough of an invitation for them to feel comfortable enough to continue the conversation in his presence because he really wants to be privy to whatever is clearly up with Yunho’s girlfriend. Or ex. Or whoever the fuck she is. 

Mingi and Yunho exchange a look but don’t carry on their conversation even though San ducks down over his bowl of soondaeguk and very much tries to be a fly on the wall. The most he hears from Yunho is a murmured, “She did it again.” 

Mingi sighs with a shake of his head. “Unbelievable,” he mutters before scooping a spoonful of soup into his mouth. 

Yunho smiles tightly and glances at San again. “We can talk about it later,” he promises Mingi. The subtext implies that they can discuss it when San isn’t around or is at least out of ear shot. 

That time turns out to be when they return to San and Mingi’s apartment. Yunho asks if Mingi minds going back out for a coffee so they can talk about that phone call, but Mingi grimaces at the thought of caffeine while still suffering from a hangover. San loudly announces that he’s going to retire to his room for now, hopefully for the rest of the day, and thanks Mingi for inviting him out. 

He rushes over to the hallway to their bedrooms and catches sight of the two of them as he turns the corner down the hallway. Mingi looks at Yunho and motions to their shabby couch, inviting Yunho to stay over and talk about it here. 

San ducks into his room without closing his door and holds his breath as he tries to listen for Yunho’s next move. It’s pretty quiet in the living room, but San doesn’t hear the sound of the front door opening which means that Yunho hasn’t left yet. He hears some quiet murmuring, nothing of which San can make out. Part of him feels bad for desperately trying to eavesdrop on their conversation about Yunho’s love life like this. He feels a particularly vicious stab of guilt when Mingi’s voice inevitably picks up in volume and he hears his roommate proclaim, “It’s fine. San probably can’t hear us, and do you really think he’d care? He doesn’t even know about Yoojin, does he?” 

Yunho says something in response, but his voice is much quieter and difficult to make out while trying to clamp down on his own guilt because, oh, how wrong Mingi is. San is very interested and very invested in Yunho’s love life right now. He needs to know more about this Yoojin chick like a man in the desert needs access to water. It’s a life or death scenario for him right now. 

Mingi, bless him and his loud voice that could only be rivaled by Wooyoung, opens the conversation quite clearly. “So, she broke up with you again?” 

There's a quiet sigh from Yunho, and San has to hold his breath and strain his ears to really make out his response. “It’s her last year of school. She’s stressed out. You know her parents are pressuring her to go to med school, so her work load is just insane right now and having a relationship is just too much added stress, so she just wants a break for now. Until she can get things under control.” 

“Yunho, she wants to go to med school. She’s never going to have shit under control.” 

“I’m just trying to help support her,” Yunho replies meekly. “I don’t want to add to her stress.” 

“Aw, you know that was really cute the first few times you said it, but it’s been three years of this now, dude. You’re the sole source of all my stress,” Mingi complains. 

“Mingi, I love her.” 

“Do you though?” Mingi asks skeptically. “Do you really? Because let me remind you what’s going to happen in the next couple of months.” 

Yunho sighs, but Mingi doesn’t let him off so easily. “No, ‘cause here’s what’s going to happen. You’re gonna get over this in the next few weeks, like you always do because this happens all the time, and then when the holidays come around and Yoojin remembers how nice it is to have a boyfriend to hang off of during get togethers and family gatherings, she’ll come back to you, like she always does, and, I swear to God, if you take her back again I’ll fucking riot.” 

“Mingi…” Yunho says, but he doesn’t sound particularly stressed or upset. In fact, he sounds like he’s trying to hold back a laugh. 

San makes a face. Didn’t his girlfriend just break up with him? Shouldn’t he be maybe a little bit more torn up about this? He’s not the only one who thinks so either because Mingi quickly pounces on Yunho’s response as well. 

“See? See! You’re not even that upset,” Mingi shouts. “This happens too often, clearly.” A comfortable silence passes over them after that until Mingi remarks, “You should just move on. Find someone who won’t drag you into a push and pull relationship.” 

Like me, San thinks to himself. Eight years. They’ll have a steady relationship for at least eight years. 

“I don’t like anyone else though.”

“What about that one guy you dated for, like, six months. You seemed really happy with him,” Mingi points out. “Well, until you fell into the Yoojin trap again and broke up with him.” 

“Minho? Yeah, he was…he was great,” Yunho admits quietly. 

San wracks his brain for any Minho that he might know, but he can’t think of anyone. Fuck. It would have been nice to have a reference for Yunho’s type. 

“Why don’t you reconnect with him?” Mingi suggests. “He’s way better than Yoojin at any rate.” 

“He’s got a new boyfriend,” Yunho tells him. “I’ve met him. He’s sweet. Matches Minho well.” 

“Well, damn.” Mingi clicks his tongue in disappointment. “Guess we’ll have to find you someone else.” 

“Mingi,” Yunho warns. 

“What? Just keep yourself open,” Mingi insists. “I promise almost anyone is better than Yoojin.” 

Yes, San thinks to himself as Yunho sighs. He sounds less than optimistic. Just keep his options open. San could show him who else was available. 

Despite San’s internal confidence, it translates fairly poorly into his outward confidence, and he has absolutely no idea where to even begin. How the hell is he supposed to catch Yunho’s attention let alone ask him out? He should have asked older Yunho how they’d started dating. How did Yunho even begin to like him when it seems clear that he’s totally uninterested right now? 

Should he text? Maybe invite Yunho to get coffee sometime. He has Yunho’s number, but they’re only in group chats together. He would have to start a brand new chain of messages with just Yunho to do that, and San immediately vetoes the idea on that basis alone. He can’t. He definitely can’t. It would look so weird and suspicious. 

The little bit of reason and logic that exists in his mind reasons that it’s not weird at all. He just has to invite Yunho out under the pretext of a thank you. Thank him for taking San out for soondaeguk with a coffee date. It seems perfectly reasonable until two weeks pass and the excuse seems much too out of date to use. 

It doesn’t help that they also largely spend time on opposite ends of the campus. Yunho spends most of his time in and around the business school while San spent most of his time in the communication and information school. They don’t exactly see each other on a regular basis which really puts a wrench in San’s whole plan to date Yunho in the future. It was really quite difficult to flirt with someone you basically never saw. 

It’s exasperating, and San rushes to one of his favorite coffee shops on campus after finishing a morning midterm for one of his classes. He still had two more tests this week and one paper due, and finals would be starting a few weeks later. He’s tired and exhausted and still hasn’t found an excuse to talk to Yunho in any context. Truly, everything is going poorly for him right now, and he really needs a coffee. 

He reaches for the door handle to the coffee shop only to quickly pull his hand back when a gloved hand reaches for it at the same time. “Sorry,” San apologizes unnecessarily while motioning to the door. He glances up at the person beside him and blinks when he recognizes Yunho. 

“San!” Yunho greets him warmly. 

“Yunho,” San returns, lips parted slightly in shock. 

The two of them hesitate awkwardly in front of the coffee shop until a girl pushes the door open, raises her eyebrows at the two guys blocking her way, and then ducks around San to skirt past them. San finally snaps out of it first and motions to the cafe. 

“You wanna get coffee?” He offers. 

“Oh.” Yunho steps forward to grab the door handle, pulling it open for San. 

They step inside, and San immediately relaxes when he feels the warmth of the coffee shop seen into his shivering bones. 

“Cold?” Yunho teases him when he notices San’s reaction. 

“I feel like it’s gotten colder over the day,” San complains. 

Yunho laughs at him as they shuffle forward to stand at the back of the line. San risks a glance at Yunho while they’re in line. Despite laughing at San for being cold, his cheeks are a nice rosy color from the weather outside which makes sense, San supposes, seeing as this coffee shop is much closer to his side of campus than Yunho’s. 

“Isn’t this a little out of the way for you?” San asks him. 

“Hm, a little,” Yunho agrees with a slight shrug. “The coffee here is so worth it though. There’s only one coffee shop in the business school and it’s absolutely terrible. The coffee always tastes burnt, and I swear every drink lowkey tastes the same.” 

“Really?” San sounds genuinely surprised. “I would have thought they’d have the fanciest coffee shop given how much they invest into themselves.” 

“Into themselves,” Yunho emphasizes, “not their students. I think that coffee shop runs solely off the business students’ tears. And they only get business because most of us are too stressed and tired to go anywhere else.” 

“Not you, apparently,” San jokes, stepping forward as the line moves forward. 

Yunho laughs, and San feels a warmth bloom in his chest as his cheeks heat up. God, he’s really growing fond of that sound. 

“Well, luckily I’m privileged enough to know Hongjoong. He showed me this spot after he realized the kinda shit I was drinking before,” Yunho explains. 

San is so distracted by his new found love for Yunho’s laugh that he totally misses the first half of his explanation, just knows that someone introduced him to this coffee shop. “I’m sorry, who?” He asks. His first thought, completely unprovoked, is Yunho’s ex-boyfriend. Minho or whatever his name is. San furtively glances around the coffee shop, convinced that this guy might just pop out of nowhere and snatch Yunho back before San ever even has a chance! 

“Hongjoong,” Yunho repeats. 

“Oh.” 

Hongjoong. Of course it was Hongjoong, their resident coffee connoisseur who honestly probably knew the bare minimum about coffee although he certainly acted like he was some kind of certified expert. 

“Thank God for Hongjoong, right?” San jokes as they reach the front of the line. 

He’s saved me on more than just one occasion,” Yunho returns playfully while rummaging throug his coat pocket for his wallet. “What do you want?” He asks as the cashier motion them forward. 

San grabs his hand when he realizes that Yunho is offering to pay for his drink. “Oh, no . Please,” the blond exclaims, “let me pay. As thanks for before. The whole soondaeguk thing, I mean.” He flashes the cashier a smile as they approach, swatting Yunho’s wallet away when he pulls it out anyway. He fumbles for his own wallet as he requests a medium mocha, quickly shoving one of his cards into the cashier’s face. “Um, that and whatever he wants on that card, please,” San requests as he motions to Yunho who sheepishly puts his wallet away with a request for a medium cappuccino. 

The cashier hides her laugh behind the back of her hand as she keys in their orders before running San’s card. “Sorry,” she apologizes for laughing before handing the blond his card back. “It’s always cute to watch couples fight over the bill.” 

San’s lips part in shock while Yunho waves his hand back and forth in denial. 

“Oh, no—” 

“We’re not, like…” 

“A couple. We’re not a couple.” 

“Yet.” 

San ducks his head down and swipes his card back from the cashier as humiliation burns through him. Why the hell did he add that last part? It slipped out before San even realized. Now he’s got two sets of eyes boring holes into his head as he hastily stuffs his card back into his wallet. 

The cashier’s gaze briefly flicks back and forth between them, looking for all the world like she’s trying to hold back another fit of laughter. “Your drinks will be out shortly,” she tells them with a smile. 

San manages to lift his head up to smile politely at her while Yunho thanks her and shuffles to the side. THe blond moves to follow after him and nearly trips over himself when she whispers, “Hope your date goes well.” 

San’s fingers curl into a tight fist under the counter and he plasters a smile on his face before scurrying away from her. “Not a date,” he grumbles to himself before he sidles up next to Yunho. 

Yunho glances down at him before looking over to the seating area. “You wanna find a table? I’ll wait for the drinks,” Yunho suggests. 

“Oh.” San blinks in surprise. “You’ve got time?” San figured Yunho just came to grab a cup of coffee before heading off to the business school again. If nothing else, he would have thought Yunho would pretend he had to leave right away after his embarrassing blunder earlier. 

Shrugging, Yunho replies, “I’m actually done with classes for today.” 

“Lucky,” San glowers at him. He still had two more afternoon classes today, but he had a few hours to kill before then. Yunho grins at him and motions for him to go find them a spot. 

San turns on his heels and quickly scans the little dining area of the cafe. It’s busy, many students sitting at a table with their laptops pulled out, but San finds an unoccupied table easily enough. He slides into one of the empty seats and then glances in Yunho’s direction, but he’s still waiting for their drinks. His back is turned to San, and the blond is hit with another wave of humiliation. 

Yet. 

Why did he say that? That was so stupid. That was so embarrassing, and about the only saving grace is the fact that Yunho seemed to have just brushed it off aside from the awkward silence. He covers his face with hands and releases a loud groan. If it weren’t so uncouth, he’d honestly just slip onto the floor and start rolling around in a temper tantrum. 

He only looks up when he hears the dull thud of a paper cup. Yunho slips into the seat across from him after setting down San’s mocha. He smiles at San, but it’s arguably more muted than usual. That’s definitely San’s fault, right? Because he couldn’t just be normal? Yunho doesn’t say anything at first though, just testing the temperature of his cappuccino before taking a deeper sip. 

“So—” 

“Look, I am so sorry,” San apologizes. “About before. I didn’t mean to make it weird or anything. It just sorta slipped out.” 

Yunho blinks at him uncomprehendingly for a second before it dawns on him what San is referring to. “Oh, that? Don’t even worry about it, San,” he laughs at him. “Your flirting is cute.” 

San smiles tightly at his response. Yunho thought he was joking. Ouch. “Yeah, you know me,” he laughs awkwardly. “Adorable.” 

“Well, I am single so it’s cute.” Yunho smiles at him. 

San smiles back at him. “Is it not cute when you’re taken?” He jokes. 

Yunho’s smile never leaves his face even as he takes a sip of his coffee. “I don’t know,” he replies. “I’ll get back to you on that one.” San looks down at the table and wonders if he’s referring to his girlfriend. Ex-girlfriend. 

Friday afternoon coffee becomes something of a routine for them, and it happens sort of by accident. San will claim it’s on purpose because he’s trying to flirt his way into a relationship with Yunho, but in reality it’s Yunho who actually initiates this tradition when he texts San the next week to ask if he wants to meet up at that coffee shop again. He even offers to pay this time as an extra incentive that San doesn’t actually need. 

It’s nice. They go out to have coffee and talk for a few hours before San eventually has to leave for classes. It turned into a weekly occurrence always with the excuse that it was someone else’s turn to pay, but it works to San’s advantage anyway, so he keeps it up the third week. It’s the most time he’s spent alone with Yunho ever, really, and he’s honestly surprised that Yunho entertains him like that before remembering that Yunho is just a nice person. 

They talk about mostly random things. San complains about his classes and Wooyoung if his best friend has been particularly annoying that week. He also shares an unhealthy number of pictures of his family cat, Byeol, because she’s just too cute and funny. Despite being a self-professed dog lover, Yunho doesn’t seem to mind, always smiling fondly when San shares another picture of his beloved cat. He admits that he hadn’t even known San had a cat. 

“Well, she stays back home with my parents,” San points out. Of all their friends, San moved the furthest away from school, coming from a small, seaside town Yunho had never even heard of before. Under his breath, San adds, “Plus Wooyoung says I’m super annoying when I talk about her.” There’s no real malice in his complaint though, just a sulky pout. 

Yunho laughs at him, covering his mouth with one hand, before he replies, “No offense, but don’t you think Wooyoung just thinks it’s annoying when anyone else besides him is speaking?” 

San pauses for a moment to consider his point before laughing because Yunho is right. Wooyoung loved the sound of his own voice almost as much as he loved his own boyfriend, and San routinely joked that the only reason Wooyoung dated Yeosang was because Yeosang was really quiet and soft-spoken. He had a sharp tongue when it mattered, but generally he seemed content to just let Wooyoung drone on for hours. 

“I think you’re right,” San agrees. “That’s why he and Yeosang are perfect together.” 

Yunho smiles warmly at his comment and adds, “They are very cute together though.” 

San blinks at Yunho’s remark before his lips stretch out into a grin. “Yeah,” he affirms, “they really are.” 

Yunho doesn’t talk a lot about his classes, mostly because classes seem to be going much more smoothly for him, although San does learn Yunho has an ongoing feud with one of his finance instructors. She had gone off on a tangent during class about how to present yourself for future success while sneering at Yunho’s sweatpants. Yunho has hated her ever since. 

“But you usually dress nice!” San exclaims while laughing about how ridiculous this whole thing was. He eyes Yunho pointedly up and down, dressed nice as he always is. It makes sense. His girlfriend wants to be a doctor, and he wants to go into business. They both probably always dress to impress, and San swallows back the bitter image of Yunho standing beside a pretty, slim, well-dressed woman. 

He doesn’t even know what she looks like! He tried stalking her through Yunho’s social media accounts but couldn’t find anything that was clearly her. She’s probably really pretty though. She has to be. Narrowing his eyes to glare at the table, San takes another sip of his coffee. 

For the most part, Yunho avoids mentioning her although it’s unclear to San if he’s just being extremely careful to avoid mentioning her or if there’s just no reason to. It’s probably the latter, but San is still paranoid that Yunho is just very carefully avoiding the subject altogether. In all their hours long conversation, he mentions her only once in passing. 

November brings more frigid air than October did, and with the bitter cold comes the need to bundle up more. When Yunho comes to the coffee shop late Friday morning, he has a pretty, tan cashmere scarf wrapped around his neck and tucked inside his coat. It draws San’s attention, and he compliments Yunho on his scarf. 

Rather than having the desired effect, Yunho’s smile actually falters as he reaches up to run his hands along the soft wool. Eventually the smile returns albeit weaker than it originally was, and San’s smile drops along with his. Shit. Had he said the wrong thing? 

“Thanks,” Yunho says with that faint little smile of his. “It was a present from someone.” 

It doesn’t even cross his mind, in that moment, that Yunho could possibly be referring to his ex-girlfriend, so he doesn’t think twice before he jokes, “Gee, can’t tell if you hate the gift or the person who gave it to you.” 

Yunho’s smile drops completely from his face after that, and an awkward silence settles over them. Immediately, San attempts to backtrack on that mistimed joke. “Sorry. I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean anything by it,” San blurts out. “It was a bad joke. I’m sorry.” 

“Oh. It’s—don’t worry about it,” Yunho assures him with a weak smile. “It’s not really your fault or anything. Just brought up a memory about my ex and you couldn’t have known that.” 

San blinks, feigning his surprise. “Oh. I—I didn’t even realize you had an ex.” 

He must have done a convincing job because Yunho ducks his head apologetically and awkwardly scratches behind his ear. “Like I said, not your fault. I don’t really talk about her much, so I can’t blame you.” 

San seizes on the opportunity to try and fish a little. “Messy breakup?” He asks sympathetically. 

Yunho scoffs, “The whole relationship was messy. Doesn’t really matter though. Let’s talk about something else.” He shuts it down as quickly as San manages to bring it up.

Their little coffee meeting ends just before two so San can get to his next class in time. They typically part at the entrance of the shop, and San shivers and whines about how cold it is outside. He waves goodbye to Yunho and turns to head back towards his end of campus. Yunho grabs hold of his wrist to stop him before he can. 

“Here,” Yunho says when San turns back to face him with a confused little noise. 

He watches in confusion as Yunho unwinds the scarf from his neck. He pulls it off before looping it around San’s neck, carefully winding around his neck tight enough to keep San warm but loose enough that he doesn’t choke him. 

“There.” Yunho admires his handiwork with a smile and takes a step back from San. He pats the blond on the shoulder and tells him to keep warm. 

San smiles at him, a small thank you falling from his lips. The scarf is soft and warm around his neck as he waves goodbye to Yunho. He keeps the smile until he turns around and starts to walk away. Then his expression quickly morphs into a scowl as he glares down at the scarf around his neck. There’s a distinct scent that lingers on it and fills San’s nose that is distinctly Yunho, but he’s still stuck on the fact that Yunho gave him a scarf that his ex-girlfriend gifted him. 

It was insulting. 

“Stupid fucking scarf,” San grumbles to himself. “Stupid fucking Yunho.” 

San has had plans with Wooyoung for over a week and a half now to visit a new, cute looking dessert cafe that’s only a few stations away from his apartment. San’s seen advertisements for this thing for months now, and coffee and nice desserts sounds like the best way to deal with this cool, fall weather. So he invites Wooyoung to come with him to their grand opening which, again, they had planned for over a week, so San is understandably a bit miffed and really disappointed when Wooyoung calls him the night before to bail on him. 

“Look, I dunno what to tell you,” Wooyoung sighs into the phone. “Honestly, if I had to choose I’d rather go with you than this theater thing, but it happened last minute and Yeosang said he would die if he had to go with just his family so…I figured at least you would live without me.”

“What even are you seeing again?” San asks. 

“I don’t know. A ballet thing. His sister is really into it or something.” 

“What about me though?” San whines. “What am I supposed to do now?” 

“Ask someone else out?” Wooyoung snaps impatiently. “You’ve got a roommate? Who does almost nothing every weekend? Or you could just go by yourself and cry over a slice of cake about how you have no friends. Or you could just not go.” 

“You’re really unhelpful,” San complains. 

Wooyoung sputters in disbelief, “Unhelpful? I’ve given you three separate suggestions, you ungrateful dick.” 

“I don’t like any of these suggestions,” San sniffs. 

“Well, that sounds like a you problem,” Wooyoung retorts. There’s a pause after that, and San huffs and whines before Wooyoung comes up with another idea. “Hey, why don’t you ask Yunho to go with you?” His friend suggests. 

San chokes on his own spit and stammers, “What? Yunho? Why would I—I can’t. I can’t ask him to go with me.” 

“Why not? Don’t you like him or something?” 

San goes rigid at the accusation. “What—what are you talking about?” But the defensiveness is suspicious. He can practically feel the arch of Wooyoung’s eyebrow over the phone. “I mean, I like him—we’re friends—but we’re not that close. It’d be weird to ask him.” 

“Oh, yeah?” San can hear the challenge in Wooyoung’s voice and he braces himself for whatever his friend is about to say. “Because I heard from Seonghwa who heard from Hongjoong who heard from Yunho himself that you guys hang out together at least once a week. By yourself.” 

“Well, that’s—” 

“And let me clarify, you don’t like him. You have a massive fucking crush on him and I can only imagine the disgusting heart eyes you make at him on these weekly dates or whatever.” 

“I do not! And they’re not dates,” San denies, but the silence that follows that outburst is telling. He fidgets, afraid of just how much Wooyoung actually knows. “How—how did you know?” 

Wooyoung sighs heavily. “Because I’m your best friend in the entire fucking world, and I know you better than anybody so of course I noticed when you started mentioning Yunho everywhere, all the time. San, you went from almost never talking about him to mentioning him at least once every conversation. Without fail. Don’t lie and say you don’t have a crush or I’ll be extra pissed,” Wooyoung threatens. “I’m already mad that you didn’t want to talk to me, your best friend, about how fucking cute you think he is or whatever.” 

“I…” 

“Just invite him to come with you!” Wooyoung yells at him. “He’ll probably say yes, and it’s definitely better than going with Mingi.” 

San chews his lip apprehensively as he thinks of all the reasons why Wooyoung’s idea is the absolute worst. “You know he has an ex-girlfriend, right?” He blurts out because it’s honestly the one thing that has remained at the forefront of his mind. 

Wooyoung is quiet on the other end of the line for a beat before he replies, “Do you know what an ex-girlfriend is? It means he doesn’t have one anymore.” 

“Yeah, but you know what I mean, right?” 

“Yeah, that he’s single, hot, and willing to spend time with your stupid twink ass.” 

San actually pulls his phone away from his ear to glare at it like Wooyoung might feel his wrath through the line. He doesn’t. Even if he did, San knows his friend would be less than bothered. “I hate you, you know that?” He says after bringing the phone back to his ear. 

“You love me and wouldn’t be able to live without me,” Wooyoung corrects. He blows a loud kiss into the receiver and laughs. “Anyway, I gotta go. Yeosang is complaining that he’s hungry and if I don’t get started on dinner soon he’s gonna order takeout while I’m in the middle of cooking.” 

San faintly hears Yeosang protest, “That was one time.” 

Wooyoung laughs at him. “Anyway, just ask Yunho, mkay? We can go together another time. Bye!” 

“Okay—” But Wooyoung already hung up on him. “...Fine” 

San pulls his phone away and tosses it onto his bed with a sigh. This sucked. He was really looking forward to this, but a ticketed event did seem more pressing than the grand opening of a cafe. He thinks about calling for Mingi right now but thinks better of it. Collapsing on his bed, the blond blindly grapples for his abandoned phone, bringing it up to squint at as he pulls up his messages with Yunho.

It couldn’t hurt to just ask and see, right? Plus it wasn’t like he’s asking Yunho out on a date. It’s just coffee and dessert, and Wooyoung was the first one he originally invited. It was only a days notice though. Maybe Yunho is busy tomorrow or already has plans. 

San purses his lips together as he keeps typing out a message before immediately deleting it. Just ask, he encourages himself silently. If Yunho says no then he’ll just ask Mingi who will never turn down dessert. 

Taking a deep breath, San types out a message to Yunho, inviting him out tomorrow and hits send before he has enough time for self-doubt. He belatedly realizes he forgot to mention the whole issue with Wooyoung and worries that it sounds too much like he’s asking Yunho out. Before he can send a clarifying text, Yunho replies to him. 

Sure. Sounds fun. Just text me the address and I’ll meet you there?  

San stares at his response for a long time before he rolls himself over, buries his face into his pillow, and screams. 

San meets Yunho the next day at the subway station nearest to the cafe and plasters a smile on his face when the blond spots him waiting just past the exit gates. As if Yunho can feel his stare, he lifts his eyes from his phone and immediately finds San. A smile graces his lips as he lifts a hand up to wave at San, and the blond feels his own smile relax into something more natural in response. 

“Sorry. Hope you weren’t waiting too long,” San apologizes. 

“No. My train just came by less than 10 minutes ago.” 

Good. That was good. 

San glances down at the plastic bag in his hand before holding it out to Yunho. “Here,” he announces, passing it off to Yunho. “I wanted to give you your scarf back. Thanks for lending it to me. It was warm.” It also smelled really nice, but that was a little bit too weird to just say aloud. 

“Oh, yeah.” Yunho takes the bag back. “No problem.” Then he angles his body and gestures to the street exit with a murmured, “Shall we?” 

The cafe is deep into a shopping district but easy to find given the number of people all heading to the same place. San probably should have expected it, but his jaw still slackens and his lips part in shock at the line leading out of the cafe. 

He must announce his surprise vocally as well because Yunho laughs at his reaction before pulling him into line before it can get any longer than it already is. “You said it was their grand opening. Were you expecting them to flop or something?” 

“Well, no, but I didn’t expect it would be this bad either,” San whines. “Who knows how long this’ll take.” 

Yunho tilts his head towards him and asks, “Do you not have time to wait?” 

“Oh, no.” San shakes his head. He could wait for hours in this line by himself. He wanted some damn cake that stubbornly, but he didn’t know about Yunho. “I have zero plans on the weekends, like, ever unless Wooyoung makes some for me. I don’t know about you though. You probably weren’t expecting this to be an all day thing,” the blond explains. 

“Oh. Well.” Yunho shrugs his shoulders as he glances down the line of people to the cafe entrance. They’d surely be waiting for awhile although Yunho didn’t think they would be waiting all day. Plus, looking at the number of people exiting the shop with cute, little to-go boxes, it seemed like there were plenty of people content to just take their items and leave. “I didn’t really have any other plans today either,” he tells San as he turns back to the blond. 

“So, you don’t mind waiting then?” San asks cautiously. 

“Not at all,” Yunho assures. “Or I would have turned down your offer although I have to say that I’m surprised you asked me.” 

“Ah, yeah, sorry about it being such a last minute thing,” San apologizes, squinting through a particularly rough breeze of icy wind. “I, uh, thought we were limited to our weekly coffee dates.” He laughs, high pitched and awkward when he realized he called them dates, and this is his sad attempt to show he meant it as a joke even though he totally did not mean it as a joke. He took those weekly dates as one of the only times he could flirt with Yunho, and he took that precious time very seriously by mostly just talking to him about normal things and occasionally blurting out something really dumb about how nice Yunho looked that day. You know, flirting. 

Yunho looks down at San with a smile. “We don’t have to be,” he suggests. “I like hanging out with you. You’re surprisingly easy to talk to.” 

His words make San freeze, the cold temperature helping him hold the posture while his brain struggles to catch up to him. Yeah, Wooyoung tells him the same thing all the time. It was one of the reasons they got along so well. San can’t get any of those words out though. He’s still stuck on the admission that Yunho enjoys spending time with him. 

Another icy breeze blows by them, and San shivers, hunching down in an attempt to keep warm and rubbing at his undoubtedly bright red nose. Yunho makes a little “tsking” noise, lifting up the plastic bag hanging off his arm to dig through. He pulls out that cashmere scarf, and San doesn’t even flinch when Yunho places the scarf around his neck and meticulously bundles him up to keep the blond warm. 

San doesn’t even hesitate to bury his mouth and nose into the scarf’s warmth. The fact that it still smells like Yunho is just a bonus. 

“You should make sure to dress warm,” Yunho scolds him. “It’s getting colder every week.” 

San wonders if his cheeks are still red from the cold or from his own blush.