v-day
pairing: kai/fem!sehun, side!chanyeol/fem!d.o, side!baekhyun/chen
rating: pg
word count: 2.8k words
genre: fluff, romance, college!au
warnings: none, unless you're highly allergic to cheese and sap. in that case it might be better to shut this tab.
author's notes: as requested by junxouji ages ago, here it comes in the form of a valentine's day themed fic.
Valentine’s Day is a holiday for lovers, meaning Jongin should be spending it with Sehee, but it seems like he won’t be able to do that this year. Being in a band with his childhood friends Baekhyun, Jongdae and Chanyeol, Jongin knows how important it is for them to be invited to play on a holiday like that in one of the hotspots in Hongdae, a bar named Rumor. And rumor says a lot of top artists have been discovered there since scouts from big labels like to pay a visit there from time to time. Actually, it’s not a rumor. It’s a well-known fact amongst Hongik University’s students, so having the honor to perform there, Jongin has no choice but to follow his friends and join them.
To Jongin, it doesn’t matter if he is scouted or not. Music is just his hobby, a thing he has gotten into because of his highly talented friends. If it weren’t for them, he wouldn’t have learned to play the guitar and later bass guitar, and he surely wouldn’t have joined a band. To the rest of the band though, it’s a whole different matter. All three of them are dreaming of entering showbiz - all three of them want to stand on stage and perform in front of thousands and ten thousands of fans.
Of course, Jongin could have backed out, telling them he would pass this time. It’s not like he’s forced to do this because his friends have asked him for his opinion of course. It’s just that he feels obliged to help them purchase their dreams, not only because he is a good friend, but also because he owes Chanyeol a lot. Without Chanyeol, he wouldn’t have ever befriended Sehee in middle school and they wouldn’t have dated throughout high school and today, too. Because Jongin has fallen in love with the transfer student in his second year of high school, so Chanyeol, being Sehee’s neighbor and one of the first people to talk to her, has easily waved the girl over to join their table during lunch time once, twice, thrice, and after that she naturally joined their little group.
“We wouldn’t want you to cancel any plans,” Jongdae says. “I mean, we could always ask Kyungmi to take over Jongin’s place in case of emergency.“
“Wouldn’t that be difficult for you? Kyungmi’s not familiar with all your songs,” Sehee points out.
“True,” Baekhyun says with a little smile. “So you’re okay with it, right? Jongin says it’s up to you, but knowing you, you might not even want to celebrate Valentine’s Day. It’s just a stupid commercial thing, right?”
“Right,” Sehee agrees, and at her response, the whole band except for Jongin sighs in relief. Because Jongin knows that Sehee isn’t too happy about missing Valentine’s Day. She might be on the tomboyish side at times, her clothing more comfy than pretty and feminine, and her behavior and words rougher, too, but deep inside, she’s no different from other girls and Jongin is happy that he is the only one she shows her soft, weaker side, though that also means there will be misunderstandings such as this one, where Sehee wants a thing but can’t say it because it doesn’t match the strong image she has created of herself.
“Are you sure?” Jongin whispers to her when the topic is changed. While their friends break out into a heated debate on musical qualities and who’s the most promising candidate in this round’s Superstar K, Jongin leans in to kiss Sehee’s cheek.
“Very sure,” Sehee replies equally quietly, but the way she’s squeezing his hand tells him otherwise.
“We can still go somewhere else afterwards together,” Jongin promises. He’s not sure if that is enough to cheer her up, but he thinks he’s seen a faint smile on her lips.
It's V-Day. Two weeks mainly spent with preparations for their big performance, Jongin is now standing backstage with his friends. Earlier, Sehee has been there with them, helping with make-up and styling their hair, too, along with Kyungmi, but both girls must be standing at the front of the stage now. At least that is what Jongin hopes. He can pretty well imagine Sehee sulking somewhere because Valentine’s Day might be a stupid commercial holiday but it’s still a holiday for couples. She might just be back later so they can go have a drink - hot chocolate, not alcohol - somewhere before he will walk her home. At least that is the plan they have agreed on together.
“Nervous?” Chanyeol asks and Jongin chuckles.
“Shouldn’t I be the one asking that? Tonight’s performance is important. I overheard the bar owner talking to a man saying he’s searching for new talents for SM Entertainment.”
“Oh, really?” Chanyeol replies, looking clearly impressed, but he chuckles, too. “I think it’s gonna be more important for you. Tonight’s gonna be a turning point in your life, too, more than for us actually.”
“I know,” Jongin mumbles. He forces a smile when Chanyeol pats his shoulder, trying to look less tense than before. His best friend’s words aren’t of any help as they only prove to Jongin how important this year’s Valentine’s Day is, not only for his friends, but for himself, too, and since it’s his life he is most concerned about, the insecurity he feels, not knowing what tonight’s performance will bring him, he feels almost nauseous from the pressure. He just hopes that everything will go alright for everyone - for his friends, for Sehee, for himself.
The Beagles, as they call themselves, play a wide range of genres, versatile as they are, but for today they have chosen cheerful melodies depicting young love, as well as a few emotional ballads promising eternal love. There’s a special song Jongin will perform for his girlfriend, too, which has been initially Chanyeol’s suggestion. Jongin wasn’t all too enthusiastic, knowing his singing is subpar when compared to any of his friends’ abilities, but the longer Baekhyun, Jongdae and Chanyeol kept talking, the more Jongin was convinced, especially, since he had been waiting for a good opportunity to proclaim his love for Sehee in a way that was on K-drama level.
“Don’t worry too much,” Chanyeol says, squeezing his shoulder a bit as they watch the band before them put away their instruments and equipment to make room for The Beagles to get ready. There’s not much time now to ponder. Baekhyun is patting his butt, a signal to get going, and within a few minutes Jongin sets up his bass and plugs it in, quickly adjusting the instrument before he goes into standby mode to turn around and watch Chanyeol assembling his drums. It’s only a few more minutes until they are all settled. The bar’s staff holds up a tablet, signaling there’s only one more minute before the curtains will be drawn again to reveal them to their already cheering audience. Jongin can hear people screaming for each member’s name, although everyone knows they’re all taken already - Jongin has Sehee, Chanyeol is dating Kyungmi, and Baekhyun and Jongdae, well, they’re dating each other.
The curtains are drawn then, spotlight turning onto them, and Jongin will probably never really get used to it. He blinks a bit, eyes searching for his girlfriend while he waits for Chanyeol to start their first piece. Almost automatically, once Chanyeol has finished counting down, Jongin starts playing along, letting muscle memory guide him. A moment ago he might have been nervous, so nervous he could have thrown up, but the adrenaline pumping through his veins enables him, and when his eyes meet Sehee’s smiling once, he feels empowered and capable to pull through this again. He strums a bit harder and focuses a bit more, trying his best to show a polished performance that could woo his girlfriend. He knows he doesn’t need to impress, but he loves to. He loves to see the proud glint in Sehee’s eyes and he loves it when she comes jumping at him to kiss him all over the face and tell him how amazing he was, even if Baekhyun and Jongdae are both far better singers.
He almost feels bad because his eyes often linger in Sehee’s general direction, staying there to try making out Sehee’s expression in the dark. Kyungmi is standing beside her, she must have made sure that Sehee would be there and watch until the end, and the both of them are holding hands as they sing along to the music.
It’s an explosive start with a rock song, written by Chanyeol himself, before the band shortly introduces themselves to their audience. It’s probably not necessary, Jongin recognizes a lot of the faces in the crowd of people who have been to their other shows before, but there might be still people who have never heard of them. Especially those scouts might be interested in their skills as entertainers, too, since speech is important for every idol and pop artist out there, and luckily, all three of them - Baekhyun, Jongdae, Chanyeol - are not only talkative but fun to talk to and listen to as well. They keep the crowd in a good mood meanwhile Jongin is just smiling and sending little waves and winks into the crowd, but mainly towards Sehee who might or might not be rolling her eyes at him. It only makes Jongin grin more, and he uses both his hands to form a heart, throwing it Sehee’s way. Sehee is mouthing something at him, but he is not too sure what. Was that too cheesy? Too embarrassing?
There’s no time to think about that when the next song starts, a ballad with elements of Jazz that gives off a happy, cheerful feeling. It’s another creation of Chanyeol, but not the one he is most proud of. That would be the song that follows after, an emotional ballad that seems a bit too serious, a bit too emotional for a couple holiday, but Jongin deems it fit since it’s the first time for the band to perform it. More importantly, the lyrics are directed towards Kyungmi and judging by her expression, he thinks Kyungmi knows it’s a present for her, although no one has specifically mentioned that.
As time goes by, Jongin relaxes more. He starts to have more fun, too, moving across the stage to make a show together with Baekhyun, vocalist and guitarist, and sometimes he would move to Jongdae who’s bound to stay at a place with his keyboard, too. It’s almost too much fun to end, but as their last song draws nearer, Jongin can feel the nervousness returning as well. At some point he has hoped for them to be too late in time for the special stage so he can sing to Sehee in private, but his friends aren’t sparing him. Baekhyun announces the last songs, skipping one of the band’s songs in favor of Jongin’s special performance that of course garners a lot of interest. A solo? By Jongin? The bassist who does only some back-up vocals at most? His eyes wander to Sehee and he sees the curiosity written all over her face. Jongin is curious, too. He wants to know what Sehee will say about his performance, his Valentine’s Day gift, though if he’s honest, it might be an even bigger gift to himself than to her.
Their last song performed as a band has ended, and as planned, Jongin puts down his bass and sits down on a stool in the middle of the stage. There’s a microphone in his hands now and he’s fiddling with it. He doesn’t feel quite ready yet, but then the lights turn off and he knows he can’t wait too long, though he’s getting anxious, too. There’s a lot of pressure on his shoulders, not only because he’s now Jongin, Kim Jongin and not The Beagles’ Jongin. So many people are waiting for him to start singing, and despite the room being filled with hundreds of people, it is rather quiet, except for the soft whisper of his girlfriend’s voice. You can do it, Jongin, I believe in you. And just like that, Jongin starts to sing.
♫Will you marry me?
Will you live with me together forever?♫
His voice is soft at first and shaky, but he gains confidence as there’s a soft hum starting in the background. It’s Jongdae, whose voice carries he melody, making it simpler for Jongin to sing louder, though his eyes are still closed, partly in fear of facing the crowd, now that there is some light shed on him.
♫Loving each other sweetly,
Having a baby that looks like me,
Having a baby that looks like you,
Living without falling sick ever,
I want to live like that.♫
By now the crowd is humming along, softly, an ocean of voices that further rises Jongin’s confidence level. He feels like floating, the ocean water underneath and the blue, blue sky above his head, and next to him, there is Sehee. Of course, in reality, Sehee is standing in front of him. She is still there in the crowd and as he peeks at her, his cheeks flushing red, he can see both her hands pressed on her mouth, her eyes blinking rapidly.
♫If I’m honest, I love you more.
In a relationship between man and woman,
They say that way it’s best.♫
As the chorus starts, his friends and bandmates join in, not as vocals, but providing the instrumental. A second spotlight is turned on, searching in the front rows of the crowd, until a girl is pushed forward to stand there. In that moment, Jongin sees only her.
He keeps singing, meaning every word that leaves his lips. He sings from the depths of his heart, not loudly, but the microphone and the technique amplifying his voice in volume. He keeps looking at her, the girl of his dreams, the only girl he has ever looked at with love in his eyes, the only girl he’s ever wanted to keep by his side, to protect and to cherish, and just like the words of the song he has chosen to sing, though not originally his own, he means them with all his being, hoping that Sehee can hear it, that he is conveying his feelings good enough.
♫I’ll love you more, I’ll cherish you more
When tears fall and when life gets hard,
When you’re hurt, let’s be hurt together.
I’ll love you forever
I’ll protect you forever
Meeting a person as wonderful as you, I feel grateful
Everyday, I want to love only you.♫
Sehee is crying by the end. There’s an endless stream of tears, but she looks happy nonetheless, her eyes twinkling in a way he knows too well, and that is enough to help him asking his initial question.
The music has stopped after that one last line, so Jongin takes jumps down from the stage to kneel in front of his girlfriend, presenting her the little box he has kept hidden for almost a year now.
“We have been dating for so long and I have been thinking about this since forever. Maybe I should have manned up and ask you earlier, but this is a good time, too, right? We’ll graduate in a few months, so right after that, if you accept, I would like to have the wedding. Oh Sehee, will you marry me?”
There is no way Sehee would turn him down, he tells himself, and yet there is this tiny bit of insecurity within him. He’s vulnerable like that, proposing to her in front of a crowd of hundreds, most of them people he doesn’t even know, but he hopes that Sehee isn’t too afraid to take this one important step together with him.
“Of course I will,” Sehee says, throwing herself against his body when he gets up with the biggest and probably most stupid grin. She almost knocks the rings away with, but Jongin’s grip is tight.
“You’re such an idiot,” Sehee whispers into his ear and then they kiss, long and sweet, before the cheering around them brings them back to reality. It’s not only Jongin and Sehee right now, but there’s other people, too, there’s Baekhyun, Jongdae, Chanyeol and Kyungmi, and next to them so, so many other people.
“The rings!” Kyungmi shouts, and that is when they both break out in laughter. Jongin takes Sehee’s shaky hand into his after he has slipped on the engagement ring, proudly holding up their hands, even though Sehee is hitting his chest, clearly embarrassed, but Jongin sees through her every action. She loves this, actually, and Jongin loves it, too. Because he loves Sehee with all her sweet and lovely and tsundere little quirks.
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additional note: obviously inspired by lee seung gi - marry me.