my boyfriend's back (and you're gonna be in trouble) (1/1)
pairing: chanyeol/kai
rating: PG
wordcount: 2.4k
warnings: [click to open]an ex-boyf being a creep, hinted-at mild abuse (nothing explicit tho), also i made moonkyu out to be a huge douche so if u like him a lot maybe skip this one
summary: To get Jongin's ex off his back, Chanyeol pretends to be his new boyfriend. It goes better than either of them expect it to.
notes: based on this tweet. i've been home sick for 3 days and life is a party
It’s not until the third time Jongin’s phone rings and goes ignored that Chanyeol thinks something might be up. Granted, they’re in the middle of an intense co-op mission, but the pause button on his controller is within easy reach if he wanted to take a call - which makes Chanyeol think that maybe he doesn’t want to take it. That, and the way Jongin grips his controller a little tighter after every ring, eventually just holding down the trigger. Chanyeol watches him mow down all the enemies in the room, then keep firing until his machine gun runs out of ammo.
Then he presses pause.
“I have to take this,” Jongin says, voice tight. He tosses his controller down less-than-gently and digs his phone out of his pocket as he stands up from the couch. His expression is unreadable as he leaves the room, putting the phone to his ear as he enters the kitchen.
Wanting to give Jongin some privacy, Chanyeol sits by himself with the pause screen for a few minutes before the sound of Jongin’s raised voice reaches him even through the walls separating them. He looks over the back of the couch at the doorway Jongin left through, biting his lip for a moment of deliberation before quietly standing up and going after him.
He doesn’t want to eavesdrop, but it’s hard not to when Jongin sounds so upset - from the hallway, Chanyeol can hear his voice wobbling a little, though his tone still sounds harsh. Eventually he hears what he thinks is a goodbye - Jongin growling ‘alright, fine, just-- ugh’, followed by the clatter of a cellphone dropped on the table - but he makes himself give Jongin another few moments alone.
Until, that is, he hears sniffling. Chanyeol steps around the corner into the kitchen, and finds Jongin leaning back against the counter with his head bowed and his shoulders trembling.
“Jongin?” He takes a cautious step forward, and Jongin glances up for a split second before ducking his head again. “Hey, you okay?”
Jongin nods, scrubbing a hand over his eyes. “Y-yeah, I’m…” He trails off with a sniffle, then breathes out a shaky laugh. “Not really.”
Chanyeol just barely holds himself back from wrapping Jongin in a hug. He stands beside him at the counter instead. “Who called you?” he asks gently.
“It’s my--” Jongin starts, then pauses, mouth twisting like he doesn’t want to say it. He takes a deep breath and tries again. “My ex. Moonkyu.”
The name is familiar to Chanyeol - he’s heard about Moonkyu in passing, but never actually met him, even when Jongin was still dating him. He remembers Jongin telling him about the break-up - because he remembers buying ice cream and showing up at Jongin’s door with a stack of feel-good movies - but they never really talked about it in depth. Chanyeol used to wonder why, but the way Jongin is shifting uncomfortably just saying Moonkyu’s name is probably telling enough.
“We broke up a while ago, but I left some things at his place, like clothes and stuff for when I… stayed over.” Jongin blushes a little, glancing up at Chanyeol and away again. “He said he wanted to give them back, so I told him we could meet up. And we did, last week, but…” He swallows hard and crosses his arms, curling in on himself. “Now he wants to talk all the time, and he keeps asking about coming over, or trying to get me to go to his place, and he won’t stop calling me even when I don’t pick up, and--”
His voice breaks and he cuts off, letting out a shaky breath. “Sorry.”
Chanyeol feels his hands twitch with the need to pull Jongin to him - or at least go find this guy and give him a bruise. “It’s alright,” he says gently, and Jongin sniffles again.
“He’s, um. He’s coming by my apartment tomorrow to drop something off, and I’m… I don’t know.” He looks away, running a hand through his hair. “Stressed.”
“Well, it’s your apartment. He wouldn’t try anything,” Chanyeol assures him, but Jongin doesn’t look convinced. “...Would he?”
Jongin shrugs. “Who knows,” he says with a weak laugh, wiping his eyes again. “He seems to think that we’re just on a break, or something? Like I’m still available to him, or that I’m still… his.”
Chanyeol feels a curl of something unpleasant start to tighten in his gut. “But you’re not.”
“I’m not,” Jongin agrees with a sigh. “But I don’t know how to make him understand that, beyond… getting a new boyfriend, or something.”
He says the last part like it’s beyond possibility, and Chanyeol furrows his brow. “Well, it’s not like you’d have a hard time, I mean,” he pauses to clear his throat. “You’re attractive, and sweet, and good at like, a million things, including kicking my ass at Black Ops 3.”
Jongin laughs a little, but shakes his head. “Thanks, but… twenty-four hours isn’t enough time to meet someone new and start a real relationship with them.”
Chanyeol thinks for a moment, scratching his head. “What if-- what if it wasn’t… someone new.”
Jongin raises an eyebrow at him. “What do you mean?”
“You’re right that there isn’t time to make a real relationship,” Chanyeol says slowly, a plan unfolding in his mind. “But what about a fake one?” He looks up at Jongin with a wide grin. “I could pretend to be your new boyfriend. Then, when Moonkyu comes over and sees me, he’ll leave you alone!”
“Come on, that’s...” Jongin laughs, then trails off, thinking about it seriously.
“It’s good, right?” Chanyeol urges, nudging him in the side. Jongin bats his hand away, but looks back at him with a tentative smile.
“It’s just-- are you sure?” he asks quietly, meeting his eyes for only a second. “You’d do that for me?”
“Of course,” Chanyeol says easily, wrapping his arm around Jongin’s shoulders and tugging him closer. “I’ll be the best fake-boyfriend you’ve ever had.”
Jongin laughs, relaxing against him. “I trust you,” he says, light-hearted, but Chanyeol can feel the seriousness behind the words, and tightens his grip.
--
Chanyeol arrives at Jongin’s apartment the next day feeling confident. He’d decided to go for a casual-slash-intimidating look, sweeping his hair back off his forehead and bringing his favourite leather jacket - although the apartment has central heating, so he took it off at the door. He tells himself it’s the thought that counts.
He even brings his strongest cologne along, planning to spray a little on Jongin as to strengthen the illusion, as it were. He doesn’t get much of a chance, however, because Jongin sets about pacing the living room as soon as he arrives.
“I’m a little anxious,” he says, only slightly sounding like he’s about to go into hysterics.
Chanyeol isn’t sure how to go about calming him down. On one hand, he’s playing The New Boyfriend - but on the other, he doesn’t know if he’s supposed to start acting it now, or wait until Moonkyu arrives.
It’s when this thought is crossing his mind, of course, that there’s a knock on the door. Jongin jumps at the sound, then visibly steels himself and goes to answer it. Chanyeol hangs back, watching him from the doorway.
“Hey,” an unfamiliar voice greets, and Jongin steps back to let Moonkyu inside - he doesn’t exactly look the part of the douchey ex-boyfriend, Chanyeol thinks. Then Moonkyu wraps Jongin in a one-armed hug, pressing their faces close, and Chanyeol doesn’t have to look hard to catch the way Jongin shies away from him. “Been a while, huh?”
“I guess,” Jongin says, giving him a strained smile. He reaches for the box under Moonkyu’s arm, but Moonkyu angles his body away with a playful grin.
“You’re so impatient,” he laughs, then, quieter, “I missed you, you know.”
Chanyeol clears his throat, stepping out from the doorway. Ten seconds in, he’s already decided he hates the way this dude looks at Jongin - almost as much as he hates the way Jongin folds himself up under his gaze.
“Chanyeol,” Jongin says, sounding relieved. He steps back from Moonkyu to gesture between them. “This is Moonkyu. A friend of mine.”
Moonkyu snorts, looking up at Chanyeol with an eyebrow raised. “And who’s he?”
Jongin shrinks back a little bit. “H-he’s my--”
“Boyfriend,” Chanyeol supplies for him, sliding his arm around Jongin’s waist. “You’re just dropping something off, right?”
“Yeah, yeah,” Moonkyu sighs, dropping the box on the floor and crossing his arms. “Nothing wrong with a friendly chat, though.” He grins as he looks back and forth between the two of them, then settles his gaze on Jongin again. “How have you been, Jonginnie? It’s only been a couple months, and you’ve already found someone else?”
“So what if I have?” Jongin answers, biting back frustration. Moonkyu looks surprised for a moment, then frowns.
“I thought you missed me more than that,” he says, pouting a little. Jongin doesn’t respond, clenching his fingers in the fabric of Chanyeol’s shirt. Moonkyu watches his hands, then gives Chanyeol a sly smile. “Seriously, is this a real thing? Or just some friends-with-benefits deal? I mean, honestly, I wouldn’t blame you.”
He leans a little closer, whispering loudly behind his hand. “Don’t let the timid act fool you - he’s great in bed.”
Something sparks inside Chanyeol, and he feels a surge of real anger and protectiveness that has nothing to do with the boyfriend act. He takes a step forward, moving Jongin behind himself as he glares down at Moonkyu. “Who do you think you are?” he growls, and Moonkyu’s smug expression slips a bit.
“What do you mean, I’m--”
“You’re leaving,” Chanyeol says over him. “Now. Get the fuck out.”
For a moment Moonkyu looks like he has something else to say, but one more look at Chanyeol has him turning around and heading for the door. He tries to look cocky as he leaves, hands casually in his pockets, but Chanyeol doesn’t miss the tremble in his speedy steps. He slams the door after him, and turns to look at Jongin.
“What a dick,” he says, with feeling, and Jongin bursts into relieved laughter.
--
He stays for dinner afterwards, when Jongin asks him to. They dodge around each other in his tiny kitchen unit, making stirfry out of leftovers. Jongin still seems a little wound up about the whole thing - and even though the boyfriend act is over, Chanyeol can’t help the feeling of protectiveness that lingers.
At least, he thinks it’s protectiveness, until he catches himself watching Jongin from across the kitchen for the fifth time. It’s a little annoying when he’s trying to chop vegetables but can’t stop thinking about how it must feel to be Jongin’s real boyfriend - to be allowed to touch him, or kiss him.
But most annoying of all is when he finds himself feeling jealous of Moonkyu, douchiness and all, for having that privilege once.
He decides to get going after dinner, and Jongin watches as he shrugs his jacket back on. “Call me if he shows up again, I’m serious,” Chanyeol tells him, one hand on the doorknob.
“I don’t think he will,” Jongin says, giving him a small smile. “You scared him pretty good.”
“Yeah, well,” Chanyeol huffs, throwing his chest out. “That’s what he gets for messing with my boyfriend.”
He forgets to add ‘fake’ to the end. Jongin doesn’t seem to notice.
“Honestly, Chanyeol, I think I just needed someone to prove to me that it’s possible to talk him down,” Jongin tells him. “If he comes back, I can handle it myself.”
He steps forward and wraps Chanyeol in a hug, resting his head on his shoulder. “Thanks, though. For today.”
Chanyeol hugs him back, squeezing tight before they let go. “Well, if something like this happens again, I’m... available.”
Jongin raises an eyebrow at him. “For what?”
“To be your-- fake boyfriend, again. You know, just in case.” Chanyeol knows he’s rambling, waving his arms everywhere, but the words just keep falling out of his mouth. “If you ever need an alibi, or something, or you just want to go out, you know? We could go on, like, a fake date.”
Jongin - amazingly - looks like he’s actually considering it. “A fake date,” he repeats.
“Yeah.”
“Hm.”
Chanyeol watches him carefully. Maybe he shouldn’t have said anything, maybe he should’ve just let it go--
“What about a real date?” Jongin asks, tapping his chin as he looks up at him.
Chanyeol sputters. “A real-- Well, I mean, if that’s what you-- if you want to.” He feels himself turning very red, and watches a smile spread across Jongin’s face.
“Yeah. And maybe afterwards, if it goes well, you could be--” He cuts off, suddenly shy, and looks down at his feet.
Chanyeol lets himself raise his hopes for just a second, and reaches out to take Jongin’s hands. “Be what?”
“My real boyfriend,” Jongin mumbles, blushing hard. He glances up at Chanyeol, who blinks at him for a dumbfounded moment before he grins and hugs him again. It’s kind of tough to spin around in the hallway, but Chanyeol manages it, spurred on by the way Jongin laughs into his neck.
“Tomorrow night,” Chanyeol says, a little breathless when he sets Jongin down. “Seven o’clock. I’ll buy dinner.”
Jongin nods, his face still flushed. “I’ll, um, look forward to it.”
Chanyeol stares at him a few seconds longer, until the smile on his face starts to make his jaw ache. “Can I kiss you?”
For a moment, Jongin looks unimpressed. “Usually not until the second date,” he says, “but I’ll make an exception.”
While Chanyeol is still gathering his bearings, Jongin leans up and kisses him. Chanyeol has never been so happy to have the smile wiped off his mouth, and tries his best to convey as much.
Eventually they break apart, and Jongin uncurls his fingers from where they were fisted in Chanyeol’s jacket. He seems reluctant to let go, but Chanyeol knows that if he stays any longer, he’ll never leave.
“See you tomorrow,” he says, opening the door and stepping out into the hall.
Jongin follows him to the door, ready to close it behind him. “Just don’t be late, okay?”
Chanyeol leans in and brushes their lips together again, feeling Jongin shiver against him before he pulls back. “I won’t be.”
Jongin smiles at him from the other side of the doorway, his cheeks still tinged pink. “I trust you,” he says, waving him off, and Chanyeol gets all the way to the end of the hall before he hears the door click shut.
> anyway. sorry moonkyu
> actually moonkyu is a good dude he was just in a bad place and in a few days he'll call jongin to apologize and they stay friends afterwards
> may fake dating au light your way in the darkness, amen
rating: PG
wordcount: 2.4k
warnings: [click to open]an ex-boyf being a creep, hinted-at mild abuse (nothing explicit tho), also i made moonkyu out to be a huge douche so if u like him a lot maybe skip this one
summary: To get Jongin's ex off his back, Chanyeol pretends to be his new boyfriend. It goes better than either of them expect it to.
notes: based on this tweet. i've been home sick for 3 days and life is a party
It’s not until the third time Jongin’s phone rings and goes ignored that Chanyeol thinks something might be up. Granted, they’re in the middle of an intense co-op mission, but the pause button on his controller is within easy reach if he wanted to take a call - which makes Chanyeol think that maybe he doesn’t want to take it. That, and the way Jongin grips his controller a little tighter after every ring, eventually just holding down the trigger. Chanyeol watches him mow down all the enemies in the room, then keep firing until his machine gun runs out of ammo.
Then he presses pause.
“I have to take this,” Jongin says, voice tight. He tosses his controller down less-than-gently and digs his phone out of his pocket as he stands up from the couch. His expression is unreadable as he leaves the room, putting the phone to his ear as he enters the kitchen.
Wanting to give Jongin some privacy, Chanyeol sits by himself with the pause screen for a few minutes before the sound of Jongin’s raised voice reaches him even through the walls separating them. He looks over the back of the couch at the doorway Jongin left through, biting his lip for a moment of deliberation before quietly standing up and going after him.
He doesn’t want to eavesdrop, but it’s hard not to when Jongin sounds so upset - from the hallway, Chanyeol can hear his voice wobbling a little, though his tone still sounds harsh. Eventually he hears what he thinks is a goodbye - Jongin growling ‘alright, fine, just-- ugh’, followed by the clatter of a cellphone dropped on the table - but he makes himself give Jongin another few moments alone.
Until, that is, he hears sniffling. Chanyeol steps around the corner into the kitchen, and finds Jongin leaning back against the counter with his head bowed and his shoulders trembling.
“Jongin?” He takes a cautious step forward, and Jongin glances up for a split second before ducking his head again. “Hey, you okay?”
Jongin nods, scrubbing a hand over his eyes. “Y-yeah, I’m…” He trails off with a sniffle, then breathes out a shaky laugh. “Not really.”
Chanyeol just barely holds himself back from wrapping Jongin in a hug. He stands beside him at the counter instead. “Who called you?” he asks gently.
“It’s my--” Jongin starts, then pauses, mouth twisting like he doesn’t want to say it. He takes a deep breath and tries again. “My ex. Moonkyu.”
The name is familiar to Chanyeol - he’s heard about Moonkyu in passing, but never actually met him, even when Jongin was still dating him. He remembers Jongin telling him about the break-up - because he remembers buying ice cream and showing up at Jongin’s door with a stack of feel-good movies - but they never really talked about it in depth. Chanyeol used to wonder why, but the way Jongin is shifting uncomfortably just saying Moonkyu’s name is probably telling enough.
“We broke up a while ago, but I left some things at his place, like clothes and stuff for when I… stayed over.” Jongin blushes a little, glancing up at Chanyeol and away again. “He said he wanted to give them back, so I told him we could meet up. And we did, last week, but…” He swallows hard and crosses his arms, curling in on himself. “Now he wants to talk all the time, and he keeps asking about coming over, or trying to get me to go to his place, and he won’t stop calling me even when I don’t pick up, and--”
His voice breaks and he cuts off, letting out a shaky breath. “Sorry.”
Chanyeol feels his hands twitch with the need to pull Jongin to him - or at least go find this guy and give him a bruise. “It’s alright,” he says gently, and Jongin sniffles again.
“He’s, um. He’s coming by my apartment tomorrow to drop something off, and I’m… I don’t know.” He looks away, running a hand through his hair. “Stressed.”
“Well, it’s your apartment. He wouldn’t try anything,” Chanyeol assures him, but Jongin doesn’t look convinced. “...Would he?”
Jongin shrugs. “Who knows,” he says with a weak laugh, wiping his eyes again. “He seems to think that we’re just on a break, or something? Like I’m still available to him, or that I’m still… his.”
Chanyeol feels a curl of something unpleasant start to tighten in his gut. “But you’re not.”
“I’m not,” Jongin agrees with a sigh. “But I don’t know how to make him understand that, beyond… getting a new boyfriend, or something.”
He says the last part like it’s beyond possibility, and Chanyeol furrows his brow. “Well, it’s not like you’d have a hard time, I mean,” he pauses to clear his throat. “You’re attractive, and sweet, and good at like, a million things, including kicking my ass at Black Ops 3.”
Jongin laughs a little, but shakes his head. “Thanks, but… twenty-four hours isn’t enough time to meet someone new and start a real relationship with them.”
Chanyeol thinks for a moment, scratching his head. “What if-- what if it wasn’t… someone new.”
Jongin raises an eyebrow at him. “What do you mean?”
“You’re right that there isn’t time to make a real relationship,” Chanyeol says slowly, a plan unfolding in his mind. “But what about a fake one?” He looks up at Jongin with a wide grin. “I could pretend to be your new boyfriend. Then, when Moonkyu comes over and sees me, he’ll leave you alone!”
“Come on, that’s...” Jongin laughs, then trails off, thinking about it seriously.
“It’s good, right?” Chanyeol urges, nudging him in the side. Jongin bats his hand away, but looks back at him with a tentative smile.
“It’s just-- are you sure?” he asks quietly, meeting his eyes for only a second. “You’d do that for me?”
“Of course,” Chanyeol says easily, wrapping his arm around Jongin’s shoulders and tugging him closer. “I’ll be the best fake-boyfriend you’ve ever had.”
Jongin laughs, relaxing against him. “I trust you,” he says, light-hearted, but Chanyeol can feel the seriousness behind the words, and tightens his grip.
--
Chanyeol arrives at Jongin’s apartment the next day feeling confident. He’d decided to go for a casual-slash-intimidating look, sweeping his hair back off his forehead and bringing his favourite leather jacket - although the apartment has central heating, so he took it off at the door. He tells himself it’s the thought that counts.
He even brings his strongest cologne along, planning to spray a little on Jongin as to strengthen the illusion, as it were. He doesn’t get much of a chance, however, because Jongin sets about pacing the living room as soon as he arrives.
“I’m a little anxious,” he says, only slightly sounding like he’s about to go into hysterics.
Chanyeol isn’t sure how to go about calming him down. On one hand, he’s playing The New Boyfriend - but on the other, he doesn’t know if he’s supposed to start acting it now, or wait until Moonkyu arrives.
It’s when this thought is crossing his mind, of course, that there’s a knock on the door. Jongin jumps at the sound, then visibly steels himself and goes to answer it. Chanyeol hangs back, watching him from the doorway.
“Hey,” an unfamiliar voice greets, and Jongin steps back to let Moonkyu inside - he doesn’t exactly look the part of the douchey ex-boyfriend, Chanyeol thinks. Then Moonkyu wraps Jongin in a one-armed hug, pressing their faces close, and Chanyeol doesn’t have to look hard to catch the way Jongin shies away from him. “Been a while, huh?”
“I guess,” Jongin says, giving him a strained smile. He reaches for the box under Moonkyu’s arm, but Moonkyu angles his body away with a playful grin.
“You’re so impatient,” he laughs, then, quieter, “I missed you, you know.”
Chanyeol clears his throat, stepping out from the doorway. Ten seconds in, he’s already decided he hates the way this dude looks at Jongin - almost as much as he hates the way Jongin folds himself up under his gaze.
“Chanyeol,” Jongin says, sounding relieved. He steps back from Moonkyu to gesture between them. “This is Moonkyu. A friend of mine.”
Moonkyu snorts, looking up at Chanyeol with an eyebrow raised. “And who’s he?”
Jongin shrinks back a little bit. “H-he’s my--”
“Boyfriend,” Chanyeol supplies for him, sliding his arm around Jongin’s waist. “You’re just dropping something off, right?”
“Yeah, yeah,” Moonkyu sighs, dropping the box on the floor and crossing his arms. “Nothing wrong with a friendly chat, though.” He grins as he looks back and forth between the two of them, then settles his gaze on Jongin again. “How have you been, Jonginnie? It’s only been a couple months, and you’ve already found someone else?”
“So what if I have?” Jongin answers, biting back frustration. Moonkyu looks surprised for a moment, then frowns.
“I thought you missed me more than that,” he says, pouting a little. Jongin doesn’t respond, clenching his fingers in the fabric of Chanyeol’s shirt. Moonkyu watches his hands, then gives Chanyeol a sly smile. “Seriously, is this a real thing? Or just some friends-with-benefits deal? I mean, honestly, I wouldn’t blame you.”
He leans a little closer, whispering loudly behind his hand. “Don’t let the timid act fool you - he’s great in bed.”
Something sparks inside Chanyeol, and he feels a surge of real anger and protectiveness that has nothing to do with the boyfriend act. He takes a step forward, moving Jongin behind himself as he glares down at Moonkyu. “Who do you think you are?” he growls, and Moonkyu’s smug expression slips a bit.
“What do you mean, I’m--”
“You’re leaving,” Chanyeol says over him. “Now. Get the fuck out.”
For a moment Moonkyu looks like he has something else to say, but one more look at Chanyeol has him turning around and heading for the door. He tries to look cocky as he leaves, hands casually in his pockets, but Chanyeol doesn’t miss the tremble in his speedy steps. He slams the door after him, and turns to look at Jongin.
“What a dick,” he says, with feeling, and Jongin bursts into relieved laughter.
--
He stays for dinner afterwards, when Jongin asks him to. They dodge around each other in his tiny kitchen unit, making stirfry out of leftovers. Jongin still seems a little wound up about the whole thing - and even though the boyfriend act is over, Chanyeol can’t help the feeling of protectiveness that lingers.
At least, he thinks it’s protectiveness, until he catches himself watching Jongin from across the kitchen for the fifth time. It’s a little annoying when he’s trying to chop vegetables but can’t stop thinking about how it must feel to be Jongin’s real boyfriend - to be allowed to touch him, or kiss him.
But most annoying of all is when he finds himself feeling jealous of Moonkyu, douchiness and all, for having that privilege once.
He decides to get going after dinner, and Jongin watches as he shrugs his jacket back on. “Call me if he shows up again, I’m serious,” Chanyeol tells him, one hand on the doorknob.
“I don’t think he will,” Jongin says, giving him a small smile. “You scared him pretty good.”
“Yeah, well,” Chanyeol huffs, throwing his chest out. “That’s what he gets for messing with my boyfriend.”
He forgets to add ‘fake’ to the end. Jongin doesn’t seem to notice.
“Honestly, Chanyeol, I think I just needed someone to prove to me that it’s possible to talk him down,” Jongin tells him. “If he comes back, I can handle it myself.”
He steps forward and wraps Chanyeol in a hug, resting his head on his shoulder. “Thanks, though. For today.”
Chanyeol hugs him back, squeezing tight before they let go. “Well, if something like this happens again, I’m... available.”
Jongin raises an eyebrow at him. “For what?”
“To be your-- fake boyfriend, again. You know, just in case.” Chanyeol knows he’s rambling, waving his arms everywhere, but the words just keep falling out of his mouth. “If you ever need an alibi, or something, or you just want to go out, you know? We could go on, like, a fake date.”
Jongin - amazingly - looks like he’s actually considering it. “A fake date,” he repeats.
“Yeah.”
“Hm.”
Chanyeol watches him carefully. Maybe he shouldn’t have said anything, maybe he should’ve just let it go--
“What about a real date?” Jongin asks, tapping his chin as he looks up at him.
Chanyeol sputters. “A real-- Well, I mean, if that’s what you-- if you want to.” He feels himself turning very red, and watches a smile spread across Jongin’s face.
“Yeah. And maybe afterwards, if it goes well, you could be--” He cuts off, suddenly shy, and looks down at his feet.
Chanyeol lets himself raise his hopes for just a second, and reaches out to take Jongin’s hands. “Be what?”
“My real boyfriend,” Jongin mumbles, blushing hard. He glances up at Chanyeol, who blinks at him for a dumbfounded moment before he grins and hugs him again. It’s kind of tough to spin around in the hallway, but Chanyeol manages it, spurred on by the way Jongin laughs into his neck.
“Tomorrow night,” Chanyeol says, a little breathless when he sets Jongin down. “Seven o’clock. I’ll buy dinner.”
Jongin nods, his face still flushed. “I’ll, um, look forward to it.”
Chanyeol stares at him a few seconds longer, until the smile on his face starts to make his jaw ache. “Can I kiss you?”
For a moment, Jongin looks unimpressed. “Usually not until the second date,” he says, “but I’ll make an exception.”
While Chanyeol is still gathering his bearings, Jongin leans up and kisses him. Chanyeol has never been so happy to have the smile wiped off his mouth, and tries his best to convey as much.
Eventually they break apart, and Jongin uncurls his fingers from where they were fisted in Chanyeol’s jacket. He seems reluctant to let go, but Chanyeol knows that if he stays any longer, he’ll never leave.
“See you tomorrow,” he says, opening the door and stepping out into the hall.
Jongin follows him to the door, ready to close it behind him. “Just don’t be late, okay?”
Chanyeol leans in and brushes their lips together again, feeling Jongin shiver against him before he pulls back. “I won’t be.”
Jongin smiles at him from the other side of the doorway, his cheeks still tinged pink. “I trust you,” he says, waving him off, and Chanyeol gets all the way to the end of the hall before he hears the door click shut.
> anyway. sorry moonkyu
> actually moonkyu is a good dude he was just in a bad place and in a few days he'll call jongin to apologize and they stay friends afterwards
> may fake dating au light your way in the darkness, amen