[Personal/Fic]Birthdays! <3
Happy Birthday milena_1980! I hope you're feeling better *hugs* and that you can enjoy your day ^^ (on a random note, is it cumpleaños feliz when you sing it because it flows better instead of feliz cumpleaños? Or maybe my teacher's just weird and taught it to us that way ^^;;)
I actually just finished this vignette last night and felt it tied in well with the theme of birthdays. I know it's uber late and somewhat... fluffy? In either case, want to work on getting more writing out. My brain is frying at work right now, so I needed to take a quick break.
成人
Rating: G
Pairing: None. Changmin focus. OT5 if you squint real hard.
Despite what some might think, Changmin's obsession is to eat grapefruit like an orange, carefully breaking apart each cloudy pink section. He then proceeds to careful peel the outer white husk, taking off the white pith lines with it until he's left with a glistening red jewel, juicy and plump, ready to be devoured. Normally, he's not so fastidious about foods. But there's something intensely satisfying for Min to extract each ripe section cleanly until nothing remains except discarded skin, strewn about like abused insect wings. He's always liked to pick and prod at things, like the scabs he would get when he was younger or the sheep's heart he once had to dissect in Biology class. He chalks it up to his natural curiosity, something that's never really gone away even as a 19 year-old.
Jaejoong once teased him if he treated pomegranates similarly, but Min just shook his head. Even going seed by seed for pomegranates was too much for Min.
In either case, he's currently going through this process when Junsu plops a bunch of envelopes and papers on the table. He glares slightly (the envelopes are close to invading his space of peels and seeds and might get wet), but it's more at Junsu's messiness than at the actual letters. Min looks on a little bit, but he quickly returns to his grapefruit peeling.
"More letters! It's that time of year again, with birthdays and Valentine's Day," Junsu says.
Despite the initial sprawl of papers, Junsu carefully goes through each letter, sorting them into neat piles. Though he might not make his bed or put his dirty clothes in the hamper, this is the one thing that Junsu takes the time to organize and file cleanly. He'll smile and grin when he finds a letter specifically addressed to him and hums slightly as he makes five piles.
Changmin learned long ago to not look at the piles, to not compare his stack with his hyungs as he often has the lowest amount. Perhaps he was too quiet when they debuted, perhaps he's too nerdy at times, too gawky. But it doesn't really matter as much now. He's happy with the image he has, the strong, more silent type with the acerbic wit and dry humor. But he'll have his moments of silly too, especially when Jaejoong or Yoochun's around.
Min's just about finished peeling his grapefruit when Junsu pushes towards him his pile of letters.
"Looks like you're getting more admirers," Junsu winks.
Changmin looks towards the pile and notes the insane amount of red and pink, with bits of lace and wrappers sticking out from the middle. He grimaces slightly, wishing sometimes his birthday wasn't so close to Valentine's Day. Not that he doesn't appreciate the letters, the words, the sweets, and the chocolates... but there are times he wishes that he wasn't reminded every year of how he doesn't have a significant other, that he still hasn't had his first real kiss, and that he is already turning 20 this year. Changmin sighs. Slightly depressing that he's turning 20, an adult now, yet with no experience in romantic matters whatsoever. He doesn't really count the crushes he's harbored or the one time a girl in kindergarten pecked his cheek, though he's somewhat sad that those are the only moments he can really think of at present.
He sometimes wonders how much these girls (and perhaps the occasional boy) really see him and how they'd really be in real life. Some of them appeal to his hard-working, studious image while others appeal to his physical appearances, his tallness and his strong arms. It doesn't really matter though - he won't really have the chance to meet someone, to talk to them for long hours, to really trust them and to find some connection. He also tends to be the shy type around people he doesn't know, so it's always taken him longer to open up to people in general.
"Changminnie's going to be an adult tomorrow~! Times goes by way too quickly," Jaejoong suddenly exclaims in Changmin's ear, having sneaked up behind a few minutes before.
"Hyung! Don't scare me like that. Sheesh." Jaejoong just grins and heads to the kitchen, preparing food for dinner. Junsu's gone to place the piles on each of the member's workspace -- Yoochun, Yunho and Jaejoong.
"Doesn't really matter anyway, I'm only an adult in name only," Changmin mumbles, thinking outloud. "Just because I'm reaching age 20…"
"Hmm? Did you say something Minnie?" Yoochun's in the hallway, heading towards the kitchen for a snack. He looks over Jaejoong's shoulder and steals a piece of raw carrot that Jae's just finished chopping. Jaejoong tries to look at him sternly, but Yoochun just laughs.
"N-nothing, nothing," and Changmin focuses back on his fruit at hand. He's at his favorite part, where he splits the sphere in half, the pop and release sound intensely satisfying to his ears. He can then pick the middle white vein and pull the string to release the white pith fibers, leaving him with what looks like an umbrella skeleton.
He's about to pull down the second white umbrella when he glances over towards Jaejoong and Yoochun. They're in their own world, talking animatedly about the newest variety show they watched, and Changmin just watches. He remembers the first time he met Yoochun - calm and collected, the guy from America who actually was Korean. He almost laughs outloud when he remembers Yunho and Junsu's look of disappointment at the time for not seeing a blond-haired, blue-eyed white male. At that time, Jaejoong was reserved and simply gave a quick hello to Yoochun.
But they've become intimately close, roommates at one point, and conversations deep into the night. There's an unexpectedness with the both of them, an easy improvisational flow they have with their conversation that Changmin envies. Yes, he's just as quick, if not more sarcastic when he wants to be in his comebacks. But it's usually at the expense at someone, instead of the slightly self-deprecating yet humorous comments that Yoochun and Jaejoong manage to come up with.
His eyes unfocus slightly as he loses himself in his thoughts. He will be 20, a supposed landmark point in his life. Has he grown that much older? Has he become more mature, more learned? Perhaps he's better at feeling more at ease in front of the camera, better at protecting his deepest, inner thoughts. Less sensitive and more mysterious. But he hasn't really changed all too much; just become more comfortable with the people that are always near him.
"Your precious grapefruit is feeling neglected, Changminnie. Who is your sly mistress? What thoughts tempt you so far away from eating?"
Changmin rolls his eyes slightly at Yoochun's flowery language. He wonders if he should say what's on his mind, be honest to Yoochun. But usually, he tends to talk to Yunho more about his concerns, about his worries.
"It's nothing hyung, just thinking about our schedule tomorrow," Changmin brushes away Yoochun's concern.
"If you say so," Yoochun says, his expression showing he doesn't quite believe Changmin.
Yoochun grabs his book and lies across the couch, immersing himself in the world of Dan Brown.
"Hey guys, we had a schedule change. Manager just told me that the meetup event has been canceled due to snow so we'll have the morning free. We have afternoon dance practice at the studio 1pm sharp though, so no sleeping in for too long." Yunho's coming in through the front doorway, cell phone in one hand and the other hand trying to undo his shoes. He balances precariously before catching himself and removing a shoe.
Changmin smiles, because that means he can sleep in and maybe fit in a longer shower.
"Good news, huh Changmin? A small treat for your birthday," Yunho says, patting his shoulder.
Changmin nods and goes back to his dissection. Despite focusing on his task at hand, Changmin's fully aware of his hyungs, of how their mere presence give him a sense of comfort, a sense of ease. They're there, if he needs them, to answer questions, to watch movies, to play games, to joke around, to listen. Maybe he doesn't show it all the time, but he still depends on them even if he doesn't say it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
He's actually insanely sleepy for some reason, and finds himself crawling into bed at the relatively early hour of midnight. Yawning, he snuggles into his covers, shifting and moving until he falls asleep.
When he wakes up, it's still early in the morning. He wonders if he should try going back to sleep or taking that long shower he's been wanting for a while. He stretches slightly and stares at the ceiling.
A pillow suddenly smacks him in the face, and he struggles not to cough. Hacking slightly, he sits up to see Jae in the doorway, black apron covered with flour and spoon in hand. Changmin grabs a pillow and throws it towards Jae, but his arms are still waking up and the lump falls in front of Jae's feet. He curses.
"Any reason for the morning greeting, hyung?" Changmin's expression is fierce and he's trying to go for the scary angry look that Junsu always cowers at.
But Jae's not afraid at all.
"Thought you might want some food before I feed the YooSuHo trio since it is your special day. But hey, if you just want some scraps, I don't mind," Jae says, swishing out towards the kitchen.
Changmin then smells it, the sweet distinct scent of Japanese style hotcakes wafting through the room. He's never been a huge fan of sweet breakfasts, but hotcakes were something else. Those fluffy, soft, light cakes soaked in sweet syrup with a touch of butter made Changmin absolutely giddy. He stumbles, tripping towards the kitchen, where he sees a huge stack with strawberries all on top and even a lit candle.
But what surprises him more is that all of them are there: Yoochun looking sleepy and trying not to crash on the table, Junsu looking enviously at the stack but smiling nonetheless, and Yunho, whose hair has seen better days but grinning bright at him.
"Happy Birthday Changminnie!"
And maybe it doesn't really matter who he is or what he's becoming or any of that at all, because he's here now with the people he wants to be with the most. And that's all that matters.
I actually just finished this vignette last night and felt it tied in well with the theme of birthdays. I know it's uber late and somewhat... fluffy? In either case, want to work on getting more writing out. My brain is frying at work right now, so I needed to take a quick break.
成人
Rating: G
Pairing: None. Changmin focus. OT5 if you squint real hard.
Despite what some might think, Changmin's obsession is to eat grapefruit like an orange, carefully breaking apart each cloudy pink section. He then proceeds to careful peel the outer white husk, taking off the white pith lines with it until he's left with a glistening red jewel, juicy and plump, ready to be devoured. Normally, he's not so fastidious about foods. But there's something intensely satisfying for Min to extract each ripe section cleanly until nothing remains except discarded skin, strewn about like abused insect wings. He's always liked to pick and prod at things, like the scabs he would get when he was younger or the sheep's heart he once had to dissect in Biology class. He chalks it up to his natural curiosity, something that's never really gone away even as a 19 year-old.
Jaejoong once teased him if he treated pomegranates similarly, but Min just shook his head. Even going seed by seed for pomegranates was too much for Min.
In either case, he's currently going through this process when Junsu plops a bunch of envelopes and papers on the table. He glares slightly (the envelopes are close to invading his space of peels and seeds and might get wet), but it's more at Junsu's messiness than at the actual letters. Min looks on a little bit, but he quickly returns to his grapefruit peeling.
"More letters! It's that time of year again, with birthdays and Valentine's Day," Junsu says.
Despite the initial sprawl of papers, Junsu carefully goes through each letter, sorting them into neat piles. Though he might not make his bed or put his dirty clothes in the hamper, this is the one thing that Junsu takes the time to organize and file cleanly. He'll smile and grin when he finds a letter specifically addressed to him and hums slightly as he makes five piles.
Changmin learned long ago to not look at the piles, to not compare his stack with his hyungs as he often has the lowest amount. Perhaps he was too quiet when they debuted, perhaps he's too nerdy at times, too gawky. But it doesn't really matter as much now. He's happy with the image he has, the strong, more silent type with the acerbic wit and dry humor. But he'll have his moments of silly too, especially when Jaejoong or Yoochun's around.
Min's just about finished peeling his grapefruit when Junsu pushes towards him his pile of letters.
"Looks like you're getting more admirers," Junsu winks.
Changmin looks towards the pile and notes the insane amount of red and pink, with bits of lace and wrappers sticking out from the middle. He grimaces slightly, wishing sometimes his birthday wasn't so close to Valentine's Day. Not that he doesn't appreciate the letters, the words, the sweets, and the chocolates... but there are times he wishes that he wasn't reminded every year of how he doesn't have a significant other, that he still hasn't had his first real kiss, and that he is already turning 20 this year. Changmin sighs. Slightly depressing that he's turning 20, an adult now, yet with no experience in romantic matters whatsoever. He doesn't really count the crushes he's harbored or the one time a girl in kindergarten pecked his cheek, though he's somewhat sad that those are the only moments he can really think of at present.
He sometimes wonders how much these girls (and perhaps the occasional boy) really see him and how they'd really be in real life. Some of them appeal to his hard-working, studious image while others appeal to his physical appearances, his tallness and his strong arms. It doesn't really matter though - he won't really have the chance to meet someone, to talk to them for long hours, to really trust them and to find some connection. He also tends to be the shy type around people he doesn't know, so it's always taken him longer to open up to people in general.
"Changminnie's going to be an adult tomorrow~! Times goes by way too quickly," Jaejoong suddenly exclaims in Changmin's ear, having sneaked up behind a few minutes before.
"Hyung! Don't scare me like that. Sheesh." Jaejoong just grins and heads to the kitchen, preparing food for dinner. Junsu's gone to place the piles on each of the member's workspace -- Yoochun, Yunho and Jaejoong.
"Doesn't really matter anyway, I'm only an adult in name only," Changmin mumbles, thinking outloud. "Just because I'm reaching age 20…"
"Hmm? Did you say something Minnie?" Yoochun's in the hallway, heading towards the kitchen for a snack. He looks over Jaejoong's shoulder and steals a piece of raw carrot that Jae's just finished chopping. Jaejoong tries to look at him sternly, but Yoochun just laughs.
"N-nothing, nothing," and Changmin focuses back on his fruit at hand. He's at his favorite part, where he splits the sphere in half, the pop and release sound intensely satisfying to his ears. He can then pick the middle white vein and pull the string to release the white pith fibers, leaving him with what looks like an umbrella skeleton.
He's about to pull down the second white umbrella when he glances over towards Jaejoong and Yoochun. They're in their own world, talking animatedly about the newest variety show they watched, and Changmin just watches. He remembers the first time he met Yoochun - calm and collected, the guy from America who actually was Korean. He almost laughs outloud when he remembers Yunho and Junsu's look of disappointment at the time for not seeing a blond-haired, blue-eyed white male. At that time, Jaejoong was reserved and simply gave a quick hello to Yoochun.
But they've become intimately close, roommates at one point, and conversations deep into the night. There's an unexpectedness with the both of them, an easy improvisational flow they have with their conversation that Changmin envies. Yes, he's just as quick, if not more sarcastic when he wants to be in his comebacks. But it's usually at the expense at someone, instead of the slightly self-deprecating yet humorous comments that Yoochun and Jaejoong manage to come up with.
His eyes unfocus slightly as he loses himself in his thoughts. He will be 20, a supposed landmark point in his life. Has he grown that much older? Has he become more mature, more learned? Perhaps he's better at feeling more at ease in front of the camera, better at protecting his deepest, inner thoughts. Less sensitive and more mysterious. But he hasn't really changed all too much; just become more comfortable with the people that are always near him.
"Your precious grapefruit is feeling neglected, Changminnie. Who is your sly mistress? What thoughts tempt you so far away from eating?"
Changmin rolls his eyes slightly at Yoochun's flowery language. He wonders if he should say what's on his mind, be honest to Yoochun. But usually, he tends to talk to Yunho more about his concerns, about his worries.
"It's nothing hyung, just thinking about our schedule tomorrow," Changmin brushes away Yoochun's concern.
"If you say so," Yoochun says, his expression showing he doesn't quite believe Changmin.
Yoochun grabs his book and lies across the couch, immersing himself in the world of Dan Brown.
"Hey guys, we had a schedule change. Manager just told me that the meetup event has been canceled due to snow so we'll have the morning free. We have afternoon dance practice at the studio 1pm sharp though, so no sleeping in for too long." Yunho's coming in through the front doorway, cell phone in one hand and the other hand trying to undo his shoes. He balances precariously before catching himself and removing a shoe.
Changmin smiles, because that means he can sleep in and maybe fit in a longer shower.
"Good news, huh Changmin? A small treat for your birthday," Yunho says, patting his shoulder.
Changmin nods and goes back to his dissection. Despite focusing on his task at hand, Changmin's fully aware of his hyungs, of how their mere presence give him a sense of comfort, a sense of ease. They're there, if he needs them, to answer questions, to watch movies, to play games, to joke around, to listen. Maybe he doesn't show it all the time, but he still depends on them even if he doesn't say it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
He's actually insanely sleepy for some reason, and finds himself crawling into bed at the relatively early hour of midnight. Yawning, he snuggles into his covers, shifting and moving until he falls asleep.
When he wakes up, it's still early in the morning. He wonders if he should try going back to sleep or taking that long shower he's been wanting for a while. He stretches slightly and stares at the ceiling.
A pillow suddenly smacks him in the face, and he struggles not to cough. Hacking slightly, he sits up to see Jae in the doorway, black apron covered with flour and spoon in hand. Changmin grabs a pillow and throws it towards Jae, but his arms are still waking up and the lump falls in front of Jae's feet. He curses.
"Any reason for the morning greeting, hyung?" Changmin's expression is fierce and he's trying to go for the scary angry look that Junsu always cowers at.
But Jae's not afraid at all.
"Thought you might want some food before I feed the YooSuHo trio since it is your special day. But hey, if you just want some scraps, I don't mind," Jae says, swishing out towards the kitchen.
Changmin then smells it, the sweet distinct scent of Japanese style hotcakes wafting through the room. He's never been a huge fan of sweet breakfasts, but hotcakes were something else. Those fluffy, soft, light cakes soaked in sweet syrup with a touch of butter made Changmin absolutely giddy. He stumbles, tripping towards the kitchen, where he sees a huge stack with strawberries all on top and even a lit candle.
But what surprises him more is that all of them are there: Yoochun looking sleepy and trying not to crash on the table, Junsu looking enviously at the stack but smiling nonetheless, and Yunho, whose hair has seen better days but grinning bright at him.
"Happy Birthday Changminnie!"
And maybe it doesn't really matter who he is or what he's becoming or any of that at all, because he's here now with the people he wants to be with the most. And that's all that matters.