{exo} Drown me (in you)
title: Drown me (in you)
pairing: Luhan/Xiumin
word count: 3883w
rating: PG-13
summary: Minseok has finally come to realize that it probably wasn’t a good idea to live in a share house with six other men, but it’s probably an even worse idea to share a drink with his housemates.
warning: pointless jokes
a/n: written for theluminations, just like this one
Kim Minseok is a firm believer that evenings after final exams are evenings that are supposed to be spent in the comfort of his room alone, without having anyone around to disturb his peace.
What breaks him out of this normal pattern is Byun Baekhyun.
Being the person that he is who doesn’t know what physical boundaries and personal space means, he barges into Minseok’s room, getting a good view of the other’s ass from where he’s lying face-down on his bed. “Hyung-oh, oh god. God, no.” he covers his eyes with both hands, as if the sight affronted him. “I would rather talk to you than to your ass, so please take your butt off my face, this is important.”
“God Baekhyun, stop saying things that way.” Minseok groans, pushing his body off the bed with one arm. He turns around to face Baekhyun and crosses his legs in a sitting position. “You make it sound like I shoved my ass up your face.”
“It might have been that way since nobody can resist this face anyway, but that’s not important,” he waves Minseok’s protests away with a dismissive hand. “What’s important here is that we should all gather around tonight. Like, all of us.”
“You mean all of the people living in this share house?” Minseok’s facial expression readily tells Baekhyun that he’s not going to take any of that shit, but of course, he has his ways. He’s Byun Baekhyun, after all.
“Yeah hyung, of course.” He leans his body against the doorframe, looking at Minseok through his eyelashes like he always does when he wants to convince someone into doing something that isn’t exactly a good idea. Just like he did that one time he coaxed his boyfriend, Chanyeol into joining a freestyle dance competition just because everyone who joins the contest gets a free shirt whether they placed or not. Cutting the whole story short, the whole auditorium almost ended up in flames, but at least Baekhyun got the shirt that he wanted anyway.
“Finals week is over for all of us today, isn’t it? Obviously, we’re all stressed out after that. Don’t we all need to just relax and celebrate?” Minseok looks away. Did he just seriously think about considering Baekhyun’s offer?
Simply put, even though Baekhyun is supposedly a ray of sunshine as most people see it, sometimes, he’s just a strong gust of wind that sways everyone with his words. “Luhan hyung would be there too, of course. Because his presentation would be finished by then. Not that you don’t know that, of course.”
Minseok is surprised at the mention of Luhan’s name, but he manages to school his expression so it won’t show on his face. “And?” he asks, leaning back. He’s feigning innocence, and it’s quite obvious since he isn’t much of an actor.
“Well, that means you guys can make kissy faces at each other again.” Baekhyun states as-a-matter-of-factly. “And do all the sweet couple shit that you guys always do.”
“We don’t make kissy faces at each other.” Minseok gives him a sour-faced look. “And we aren’t even a couple.”
“And love bullets.” Baekhyun adds as if he didn’t hear Minseok at all. “Ooh, and wasn’t there a time when he slept over in your room even when his room is just like, opposite of yours because he wasn’t feeling well.”
“What the fuck,” Minseok’s hand involuntarily jerks in surprise. “Your room is in the first floor, how did you know that?” he asks before he could stop himself.
Baekhyun clicks his tongue against the roof of his mouth, clearly expressing his disappointment at his hyung. “The floors have ears, hyung. You can’t exactly hide a lot of things in this share house, can you?”
“Baekhyun, you don’t-“He begins, ready to defend himself, but Baekhyun cuts it to the chase.
“Cut the crap hyung, you obviously like each other.”
“Those things don’t mean anything-“ Minseok sighs, knowing that this seems to be a lost cause already. Even if those things do mean something to me, it doesn’t matter, he almost blurts out. He doesn’t feel the same, anyway. But he doesn’t want to go on a confession spree with Baekhyun. “We aren’t even together.” He mumbles in a low voice, but somehow, Baekhyun still hears him.
“But you want to be, right?” Baekhyun asks him, a cheeky grin on his face. “It’s like, what. You’re fuck buddies, but you still haven’t commenced the fucking.”
“No Baekhyun, shut up,” he says, hiding his face in his hands, but there is no real bite to his words.
“I know you guys haven’t been getting to do your smooching as often as before-“he puts up a hand when Minseok begins to protest further, not wanting to have any of it, and like this, he seems to act as more of the bossy diva that Minseok’s first impression of him dictated. “But you don’t need to be hostile towards me for it.”
“Why did I even let you into my life,” Minseok mumbles, his voice still loud enough for Baekhyun to hear. “I should have chosen to live in that rundown apartment alone instead of this place.”
“Aw come on now hyung,” Baekhyun moves with familiarity to sit beside Minseok. The bed dips where his weight pushes the mattress down, and Minseok has half the mind to kick him off the bed. “Junmyeon hyung would be sad if you leave.”
He glances over Baekhyun, and seeing that grin on the younger man’s face makes him still consider the thought. He doesn’t look the part of a murderous hyung anyway and he could probably get away with it, but he owes Junmyeon a favor for letting him stay in their family’s old house and he doesn’t want to piss the guy off with a dead body right after he’s just finished with stressing out for finals.
He misses the times when it was just him and Junmyeon living in the house, both absorbed in their own academic work but still making it a point to talk to each other. The house had been peaceful then.
But then Junmyeon’s other friends came into the picture, needing a cheap place to stay, and frankly, Minseok has made it part of his will to not let the man suffer from even more stress because of the other people in the share house, because the guy could definitely use a break.
“What is your ulterior motive?” he deadpans.
Baekhyun fakes a hurt expression, even putting a hand to his chest to support his antics. “Hyung, do I look like someone who will have ulterior motives?”
“As a matter of fact, you do. Especially right now.” He turns to try to go back to sleeping, flopping all over the mattress, the springs bouncing under his weight.
Baekhyun pouts. Not that Minseok would see it, anyway. “I’m hurt, you know.”
“Go make Chanyeol kiss your boo-boo away.” Minseok’s reply is muffled by the pillow he buried his face in. “And stop bothering me, I need to sleep.”
“It’s only 7PM, hyung.” Baekhyun shakes his shoulder lightly, having had learned it the hard way that Minseok does know how to land a punch even though he looks like he wouldn’t even dare hurt a fly, especially when he’s being bothered when he’s about to sleep.
“There’s lots of booze. And cake.” He tries to elicit a response, but to no avail.
“Hyung, we’re going to drink a lot and make a huge mess, you know. Junmyeon hyung’s not going to come back until tomorrow since it’s so blatantly obvious he’s going to spend the night with his boyfriend-“ Baekhyun pauses, squinting hard as he tries to remember the name, but gives up in an instant. “Whatever that guy’s name is. He has too many I can’t remember.”
“Anyway, we’ll need supervision.” Baekhyun sees Minseok’s head jerk back a bit, and he knows he’s got this round in the bag. “Like, full-on adult supervision. Parental guidance and shit.Junmyeon hyung wouldn’t be too happy if his living room turns out to be a mess tomorrow, right?”
“But all of you are already adults.” he says, as if that would help him.
Baekhyun could just so easily con people into believing him that they don’t even notice it until it’s there, but Minseok is usually a special case. This time, however, he knows he’s struck a nerve. “And Sehun’s finals would be finished in a few, and you know that kid. He would never back down from any of it. The poor kid might end up puking all over the coffee table again.” Minseok winces, the memory of trying to scrub away all of the mess from that time before Junmyeon could arrive a distinct memory in his mind from a time that hadn’t been that far away.
Even Minseok, who is proud of his track record of not being conned by any of his friends into doing something that he knows he will regret for his entire life is swayed into believing that yes, drinking with his housemates would be the best idea this time around. He’s tired and he needs to de-stress, not to mention that they all need someone who’s still sober to watch over them. It sounds appealing enough….
Minseok hasn’t even completely said his answer out loud before Baekhyun is already whooping, skipping on his way out of Minseok’s room. “We’ll wait for you, hyung!”
Minseok is the type of hyung who makes sure that his housemates don’t get too wasted that they’ll end up puking on the new rug that Junmyeon has just brought from his family’s trip to India during the holiday break, but the idea of getting too drunk to remember seems too appealing to him at the moment, wanting to take his mind off of his class requirements and final exams for the moment.
Kyungsoo tries to talk him out of it right around his fifth shot, being the concerned dongsaeng that he is, but Baekhyun and Jongdae, always the ever-considerate housemates tell him to “chill the fuck out”, because it’s not like Minseok is going to start getting too drunk to not be able to distinguish the floor from the ceiling.
Kyungsoo gives Baekhyun his usual murderous look, but before a moment could pass, it’s gone. “Okay, well. Here, have some Gatorade then.” He hands Baekhyun a bottle of suspicious-looking blue-colored liquid that he dug up from his bag, and Minseok, though partly inebriated, notices his lips momentarily twitch into a twisted smile before disappearing completely.
“Thanks-“ Baekhyun begins to say, but Jongdae cuts him off.
“Wait,” he says, taking the bottle from Baekhyun’s hands. Baekhyun whines, cheeks red from the alcohol that he’s already consumed. He’s only a few shots in so his mind isn’t hazy, but his actions are something that he would still probably do even when he isn’t drunk, so even if other people would already see him as tipsy, it’s really mostly just on his normal behavior . “This doesn’t look like Gatorade. It’s too light-colored, and there’s this accumulation of yellow stuff at the side, if you look close enough.”
Jongdae twists the bottle cap open, sniffing inside. “And it doesn’t have that smell too.” Kyungsoo pointedly looks in a different direction as Jongdae takes note of his observations. “This smells like rust.”
“Dude, this is copper sulfate.” He puts the bottle aside. “Did you take this from our lab experiment last week?” Kyungsoo only shrugs in response, taking a swig from his own cup. “It’s not enough to kill someone, you know.”
Again, Kyungsoo shrugs. “I try.”
“Are you trying to kill me?” Baekhyun asks, voice rising in mortification. “Wait, let me rephrase that: Are you still trying to kill me?”
“Well, wasn’t that obvious from the very beginning?” Kyungsoo says, pouring himself a cup of soju.
“Couldn’t you be nice to me for at least this day?”
“I would if I could,” Kyungsoo answers, the sound of his words slightly muffled from behind his cup. “but life isn’t a wish-granting factory.”
“I can’t believe you’re using that line on me.” Baekhyun crosses his arms over his chest like a child throwing a tantrum. “Right now. In the context that you almost killed me.”
“Kids,” Minseok interrupts their banter. He has his hands on another soju bottle again, and Kyungsoo knits his eyebrows together, not remembering seeing a third bottle on their table a while earlier. He doesn’t say anything about it though, and tries to get a slice of cake for himself instead. “Quit whining, start drinking.”
“I can’t believe this is coming from Minseok hyung.” Jongdae laughs. “This is probably some sort of life advice.”
It’s more than ten shots in before interesting things start happening.
Baekhyun, as he usually is when he is drunk starts whining, shaking Jongdae’s arm. Jongdae, on the other hand, not wanting to take part in it decides that moving away from Baekhyun would be the best option, but he ends up stumbling on the floor. But he doesn’t get up, rolling on the rug instead. “Mmmm feels nice.” He says, his back on the rug, limbs moving back and forth as if he’s making snow angels.
By the time Jongdae started doing swimming strokes, Kyungsoo is already giving him a judging look, but it appeals to him that it’s probably better to attempt doing butterfly strokes while lying on the rug instead of having Baekhyun shake his shoulders, whining about how no one wants to play with him anymore.
“Baekhyun, I need to confess something.” Minseok says, looking dazed. Of course this gets Baekhyun’s attention and he stops annoying Kyungsoo, opting to come near Minseok instead. When Baekhyun leans in, excitement clear in his eyes, Minseok whispers in his ear, “You’re a little bitch.”
“Hyung! I’m not a little bitch!” Baekhyun protests, moving away. “Jongdae, Minseok hyung just called me a little bitch!” he whines again, and instead of receiving a comforting pat on the back from Jongdae, all he hears is obnoxious laughter being thrown back at him.
“Kyungsoo!” he turns his attention to the younger one, as if he could save him. “Do something.”
“Well,” Kyungsoo tilts his cup towards Baekhyun. “Can’t do anything about that since it’s the truth.”
“Why are you guys all so mean?” Baekhyun says, and he really looks close to tears now.
“I would say I’m offended, but where is the lie.” Kyungsoo retorts, tossing his head back to drink the liquor in one shot.
“Oh, and Jongdae.Jongdae.”Minseok calls, and Jongdae tries to sit up and subdue his laughter, but he’s still giggling. “You’re really noisy and annoying, but it’s nice sometimes. It blocks out Baekhyun’s inner bitch.”
Jongdae bursts into fits of laughter again, he’s gasping for air when he speaks. “I think I’m supposed to be offended, but-“ he doesn’t get to continue saying what he was about to say because he starts laughing again, tears forming at the edge of his eyes, and now he’s rolling on the floor again.
“Kyungsoo, dude. You’re the only sane one here aside from Junmyeon and I would really like to give you a toast but I don’t think a shot glass is enough.” Minseok takes a peek at the glass he’s holding, tilting it towards him to get a better view of the contents, but since it’s still filled, the contents manage to spill their way to his shirt. “Oh yeah, not really enough.” He laughs. “Anyway, I love you man. God bless you for existing.” He says inching forward with his arms open to give Kyungsoo a hug, but the younger pushes him away, nose scrunched in revolt.
“Hyung, I still respect you, and I still want you to keep your dignity intact. So please keep your hands to yourself and stop doing embarrassing things that you will regret tomorrow.”
“Jongdae!Baekhyun!” he averts his attention to the other two instead, and they both jump in surprise at the loudness of Minseok’s voice. “You guys are both annoying pieces of shit, but I love you both!” he says, managing to grab a hold on them both and giving them one-armed hugs.
“You’re mean!” Baekhyun complains, and breaks away from the hug to go back to drinking away. Jongdae just continues laughing, until Minseok eventually lets him go. His body lands on the floor with a thud, unable to keep himself up at all from too much laughing, but he doesn’t yelp in surprise when he falls, too far gone to care.
And of course-of course, it’s right when Luhan comes into the scene, ending up looking down the space near his feet, where Jongdae is sprawled on the floor laughing. Baekhyun looks so effectively disappointed, chugging down shot after shot of liquor, and Luhan thinks that maybe it doesn’t have anything to do with Kyungsoo this time, who, despite having that smug look on his face doesn’t look triumphant.
Maybe it has something to do with Minseok who’s matching Baekhyun’s shot in his own pace, his face almost a blaring shade of pink, the blush creeping up to his ears.
“Luhan, Luhan! Come here, we were just waiting for you!” he says patting down the space on the floor beside him, laughing in the middle of hiccups.
“Hyung!”Sehun says, following close behind Luhan. He shuts the door close and takes the hood of his jacket off. “You guys started without us? And I was the one who told Baekhyun hyung this idea.”
“Not really our fault if your exam schedule is that way, kid.” Baekhyun pouts, looking more of a kid than Sehun even when it’s the younger guy he’s calling with the nickname.
“At least leave some for me,” Sehun says, sitting next to Baekhyun without taking off his bag. He takes the cup that was once Jongdae’s and pours himself a drink before anyone could even protest, and Luhan just lets them be, choosing to sit beside Minseok as he was offered.
“Hey, give me some,” Luhan protests when he tries to take a drink right out of the bottle but fails to when Minseok snatches it away, cackling.
It’s then that Jongdae manages to sit up successfully with much struggle, and he yells in victory that it catches everyone’s attention. “Hey, hey, hey hyung.” he says, now finally able to get a grip on himself. He’s still smiling, but at least he’s stopped giggling. “Tell them what you told us too.”
“What?” Sehun asks, nose now turning a bright shade of pink from the alcohol he’s consumed. The bowl of popcorn is left untouched, and he takes it upon himself to finish it all, since no one seems to take interest in eating it, all too consumed with the alcohol.
“He told each of us that he loves us.” Jongdae says, and he’s starting another fit of giggles. Luhan stops struggling to get the bottle from Minseok and gives him a confused look, as if to ask if what Jongdae had said was really true. Minseok isn’t the type of person to say his feelings out loud, after all.
“Oh yeah, Sehun!”Minseok says on cue, like what Jongdae said triggered his memory and he really did plan on telling each of them some sappy message with an I love you along the lines of it. “Child,” he says, standing up. He almost tumbles down, unable to keep his balance, but Luhan helps steady him. “You’re like my little duckling. My cute little duckling.” He says pointing to Sehun and then laughing. “I love you.”
And Sehun is embarrassed at being cooed at, but at the same time he’s touched; this is the first time that his hyung is saying this, and even though he is under the influence of alcohol, it still counts, right? But then Minseok chooses to add, “I just hope you stop using that rubber duck during bath time because you’re scared of the monster in the tub.”
“Hyung!” he shrieks, and everyone else just laughs it off. Hopefully Minseok would stop talking and not say any of his other secrets out loud, because it would be embarrassing.
But thankfully, Minseok has shifted his attention to Luhan, who’s still holding him up even though he’s not wobbling anymore. “Ah, and Luhan!” he says, slapping both of his hands on the side of Luhan’s face and squishing his cheeks together.
“Please don’t say something embarrassing.” Luhan says, words not clear from having his face mushed between Minseok’s hands.
“Luhan, Lu-ge! Did you know, did you know?” he says, accumulating the habit of repeating his words.
“What is it hyung? What dirty secret of Luhan hyung’s do you have to spill?” Baekhyun says, a manic gleam in his eyes as he has developed interest in the progression of things.
His face is so near Luhan’s that the latter could smell the alcohol on his breath, see the cake icing on the top of his lip. “I loved you the first time you came inside my room without being invited and asked me to go watch your classmate’s football match with you.” He says with a grin, pink gums showing. Luhan visibly freezes in his position.
“Oh my god. Is this a confession?” Baekhyun cackles, breaking the silence.
Minseok blinks, unable to register the gravity of his words. “It is?” his hold on Luhan’s face loosens.
“Is it, Minseok?” he says quietly. “Because I want you to know that even if it isn’t, it wouldn’t change the fact that I like you.”
Minseok blinks again, as if seeing the world for the first time in ages. “You do?”
Luhan laughs. “I’m quite positive.”
“Hold on to your seats folks, the sap fest is about to begin.” Jongdae announces, imitating the voice of a radio announcer. But neither Luhan nor Minseok quite hear it.
It isn’t sure who initiated it first, but soon enough, their lips meet, tasting each other for the first time. It’s slow and sweet, like how magazines tell you how your first kiss is supposed to be. But they don’t think of that-they just want to make this moment last.
“Oh my god, it’s a live show of porn! The announcement was wrong!” Baekhyun yelps. “Quick, this is not for little ducklings!” he says, covering Sehun’s eyes with his hands, much to the younger’s protests, but he moves away to make his own tribute to the new couple.
“Let us make a toast for these two. You may now commence the fucking!” Baekhyun hollers, and Jongdae and Sehun answer with cheers, clinking their cups together. Kyungsoo gives Baekhyun the usual annoyed look, but when he glances back at the two, Baekhyun sees a hint of a smile forming at the corners of his lips.
And this isn’t how Luhan and Minseok typically spend their days together, but like this, with their hands around each other and their lips connected, Minseok can taste both heaven and sins from the tip of Luhan’s tongue.
There’s whistling, there are catcalls, and there are things most definitely thrown at them (like the leftover bits of popcorn, for instance. Or Jongdae’s Piglet socks), but neither of them minds.
pairing: Luhan/Xiumin
word count: 3883w
rating: PG-13
summary: Minseok has finally come to realize that it probably wasn’t a good idea to live in a share house with six other men, but it’s probably an even worse idea to share a drink with his housemates.
warning: pointless jokes
a/n: written for theluminations, just like this one
Kim Minseok is a firm believer that evenings after final exams are evenings that are supposed to be spent in the comfort of his room alone, without having anyone around to disturb his peace.
What breaks him out of this normal pattern is Byun Baekhyun.
Being the person that he is who doesn’t know what physical boundaries and personal space means, he barges into Minseok’s room, getting a good view of the other’s ass from where he’s lying face-down on his bed. “Hyung-oh, oh god. God, no.” he covers his eyes with both hands, as if the sight affronted him. “I would rather talk to you than to your ass, so please take your butt off my face, this is important.”
“God Baekhyun, stop saying things that way.” Minseok groans, pushing his body off the bed with one arm. He turns around to face Baekhyun and crosses his legs in a sitting position. “You make it sound like I shoved my ass up your face.”
“It might have been that way since nobody can resist this face anyway, but that’s not important,” he waves Minseok’s protests away with a dismissive hand. “What’s important here is that we should all gather around tonight. Like, all of us.”
“You mean all of the people living in this share house?” Minseok’s facial expression readily tells Baekhyun that he’s not going to take any of that shit, but of course, he has his ways. He’s Byun Baekhyun, after all.
“Yeah hyung, of course.” He leans his body against the doorframe, looking at Minseok through his eyelashes like he always does when he wants to convince someone into doing something that isn’t exactly a good idea. Just like he did that one time he coaxed his boyfriend, Chanyeol into joining a freestyle dance competition just because everyone who joins the contest gets a free shirt whether they placed or not. Cutting the whole story short, the whole auditorium almost ended up in flames, but at least Baekhyun got the shirt that he wanted anyway.
“Finals week is over for all of us today, isn’t it? Obviously, we’re all stressed out after that. Don’t we all need to just relax and celebrate?” Minseok looks away. Did he just seriously think about considering Baekhyun’s offer?
Simply put, even though Baekhyun is supposedly a ray of sunshine as most people see it, sometimes, he’s just a strong gust of wind that sways everyone with his words. “Luhan hyung would be there too, of course. Because his presentation would be finished by then. Not that you don’t know that, of course.”
Minseok is surprised at the mention of Luhan’s name, but he manages to school his expression so it won’t show on his face. “And?” he asks, leaning back. He’s feigning innocence, and it’s quite obvious since he isn’t much of an actor.
“Well, that means you guys can make kissy faces at each other again.” Baekhyun states as-a-matter-of-factly. “And do all the sweet couple shit that you guys always do.”
“We don’t make kissy faces at each other.” Minseok gives him a sour-faced look. “And we aren’t even a couple.”
“And love bullets.” Baekhyun adds as if he didn’t hear Minseok at all. “Ooh, and wasn’t there a time when he slept over in your room even when his room is just like, opposite of yours because he wasn’t feeling well.”
“What the fuck,” Minseok’s hand involuntarily jerks in surprise. “Your room is in the first floor, how did you know that?” he asks before he could stop himself.
Baekhyun clicks his tongue against the roof of his mouth, clearly expressing his disappointment at his hyung. “The floors have ears, hyung. You can’t exactly hide a lot of things in this share house, can you?”
“Baekhyun, you don’t-“He begins, ready to defend himself, but Baekhyun cuts it to the chase.
“Cut the crap hyung, you obviously like each other.”
“Those things don’t mean anything-“ Minseok sighs, knowing that this seems to be a lost cause already. Even if those things do mean something to me, it doesn’t matter, he almost blurts out. He doesn’t feel the same, anyway. But he doesn’t want to go on a confession spree with Baekhyun. “We aren’t even together.” He mumbles in a low voice, but somehow, Baekhyun still hears him.
“But you want to be, right?” Baekhyun asks him, a cheeky grin on his face. “It’s like, what. You’re fuck buddies, but you still haven’t commenced the fucking.”
“No Baekhyun, shut up,” he says, hiding his face in his hands, but there is no real bite to his words.
“I know you guys haven’t been getting to do your smooching as often as before-“he puts up a hand when Minseok begins to protest further, not wanting to have any of it, and like this, he seems to act as more of the bossy diva that Minseok’s first impression of him dictated. “But you don’t need to be hostile towards me for it.”
“Why did I even let you into my life,” Minseok mumbles, his voice still loud enough for Baekhyun to hear. “I should have chosen to live in that rundown apartment alone instead of this place.”
“Aw come on now hyung,” Baekhyun moves with familiarity to sit beside Minseok. The bed dips where his weight pushes the mattress down, and Minseok has half the mind to kick him off the bed. “Junmyeon hyung would be sad if you leave.”
He glances over Baekhyun, and seeing that grin on the younger man’s face makes him still consider the thought. He doesn’t look the part of a murderous hyung anyway and he could probably get away with it, but he owes Junmyeon a favor for letting him stay in their family’s old house and he doesn’t want to piss the guy off with a dead body right after he’s just finished with stressing out for finals.
He misses the times when it was just him and Junmyeon living in the house, both absorbed in their own academic work but still making it a point to talk to each other. The house had been peaceful then.
But then Junmyeon’s other friends came into the picture, needing a cheap place to stay, and frankly, Minseok has made it part of his will to not let the man suffer from even more stress because of the other people in the share house, because the guy could definitely use a break.
“What is your ulterior motive?” he deadpans.
Baekhyun fakes a hurt expression, even putting a hand to his chest to support his antics. “Hyung, do I look like someone who will have ulterior motives?”
“As a matter of fact, you do. Especially right now.” He turns to try to go back to sleeping, flopping all over the mattress, the springs bouncing under his weight.
Baekhyun pouts. Not that Minseok would see it, anyway. “I’m hurt, you know.”
“Go make Chanyeol kiss your boo-boo away.” Minseok’s reply is muffled by the pillow he buried his face in. “And stop bothering me, I need to sleep.”
“It’s only 7PM, hyung.” Baekhyun shakes his shoulder lightly, having had learned it the hard way that Minseok does know how to land a punch even though he looks like he wouldn’t even dare hurt a fly, especially when he’s being bothered when he’s about to sleep.
“There’s lots of booze. And cake.” He tries to elicit a response, but to no avail.
“Hyung, we’re going to drink a lot and make a huge mess, you know. Junmyeon hyung’s not going to come back until tomorrow since it’s so blatantly obvious he’s going to spend the night with his boyfriend-“ Baekhyun pauses, squinting hard as he tries to remember the name, but gives up in an instant. “Whatever that guy’s name is. He has too many I can’t remember.”
“Anyway, we’ll need supervision.” Baekhyun sees Minseok’s head jerk back a bit, and he knows he’s got this round in the bag. “Like, full-on adult supervision. Parental guidance and shit.Junmyeon hyung wouldn’t be too happy if his living room turns out to be a mess tomorrow, right?”
“But all of you are already adults.” he says, as if that would help him.
Baekhyun could just so easily con people into believing him that they don’t even notice it until it’s there, but Minseok is usually a special case. This time, however, he knows he’s struck a nerve. “And Sehun’s finals would be finished in a few, and you know that kid. He would never back down from any of it. The poor kid might end up puking all over the coffee table again.” Minseok winces, the memory of trying to scrub away all of the mess from that time before Junmyeon could arrive a distinct memory in his mind from a time that hadn’t been that far away.
Even Minseok, who is proud of his track record of not being conned by any of his friends into doing something that he knows he will regret for his entire life is swayed into believing that yes, drinking with his housemates would be the best idea this time around. He’s tired and he needs to de-stress, not to mention that they all need someone who’s still sober to watch over them. It sounds appealing enough….
Minseok hasn’t even completely said his answer out loud before Baekhyun is already whooping, skipping on his way out of Minseok’s room. “We’ll wait for you, hyung!”
Minseok is the type of hyung who makes sure that his housemates don’t get too wasted that they’ll end up puking on the new rug that Junmyeon has just brought from his family’s trip to India during the holiday break, but the idea of getting too drunk to remember seems too appealing to him at the moment, wanting to take his mind off of his class requirements and final exams for the moment.
Kyungsoo tries to talk him out of it right around his fifth shot, being the concerned dongsaeng that he is, but Baekhyun and Jongdae, always the ever-considerate housemates tell him to “chill the fuck out”, because it’s not like Minseok is going to start getting too drunk to not be able to distinguish the floor from the ceiling.
Kyungsoo gives Baekhyun his usual murderous look, but before a moment could pass, it’s gone. “Okay, well. Here, have some Gatorade then.” He hands Baekhyun a bottle of suspicious-looking blue-colored liquid that he dug up from his bag, and Minseok, though partly inebriated, notices his lips momentarily twitch into a twisted smile before disappearing completely.
“Thanks-“ Baekhyun begins to say, but Jongdae cuts him off.
“Wait,” he says, taking the bottle from Baekhyun’s hands. Baekhyun whines, cheeks red from the alcohol that he’s already consumed. He’s only a few shots in so his mind isn’t hazy, but his actions are something that he would still probably do even when he isn’t drunk, so even if other people would already see him as tipsy, it’s really mostly just on his normal behavior . “This doesn’t look like Gatorade. It’s too light-colored, and there’s this accumulation of yellow stuff at the side, if you look close enough.”
Jongdae twists the bottle cap open, sniffing inside. “And it doesn’t have that smell too.” Kyungsoo pointedly looks in a different direction as Jongdae takes note of his observations. “This smells like rust.”
“Dude, this is copper sulfate.” He puts the bottle aside. “Did you take this from our lab experiment last week?” Kyungsoo only shrugs in response, taking a swig from his own cup. “It’s not enough to kill someone, you know.”
Again, Kyungsoo shrugs. “I try.”
“Are you trying to kill me?” Baekhyun asks, voice rising in mortification. “Wait, let me rephrase that: Are you still trying to kill me?”
“Well, wasn’t that obvious from the very beginning?” Kyungsoo says, pouring himself a cup of soju.
“Couldn’t you be nice to me for at least this day?”
“I would if I could,” Kyungsoo answers, the sound of his words slightly muffled from behind his cup. “but life isn’t a wish-granting factory.”
“I can’t believe you’re using that line on me.” Baekhyun crosses his arms over his chest like a child throwing a tantrum. “Right now. In the context that you almost killed me.”
“Kids,” Minseok interrupts their banter. He has his hands on another soju bottle again, and Kyungsoo knits his eyebrows together, not remembering seeing a third bottle on their table a while earlier. He doesn’t say anything about it though, and tries to get a slice of cake for himself instead. “Quit whining, start drinking.”
“I can’t believe this is coming from Minseok hyung.” Jongdae laughs. “This is probably some sort of life advice.”
It’s more than ten shots in before interesting things start happening.
Baekhyun, as he usually is when he is drunk starts whining, shaking Jongdae’s arm. Jongdae, on the other hand, not wanting to take part in it decides that moving away from Baekhyun would be the best option, but he ends up stumbling on the floor. But he doesn’t get up, rolling on the rug instead. “Mmmm feels nice.” He says, his back on the rug, limbs moving back and forth as if he’s making snow angels.
By the time Jongdae started doing swimming strokes, Kyungsoo is already giving him a judging look, but it appeals to him that it’s probably better to attempt doing butterfly strokes while lying on the rug instead of having Baekhyun shake his shoulders, whining about how no one wants to play with him anymore.
“Baekhyun, I need to confess something.” Minseok says, looking dazed. Of course this gets Baekhyun’s attention and he stops annoying Kyungsoo, opting to come near Minseok instead. When Baekhyun leans in, excitement clear in his eyes, Minseok whispers in his ear, “You’re a little bitch.”
“Hyung! I’m not a little bitch!” Baekhyun protests, moving away. “Jongdae, Minseok hyung just called me a little bitch!” he whines again, and instead of receiving a comforting pat on the back from Jongdae, all he hears is obnoxious laughter being thrown back at him.
“Kyungsoo!” he turns his attention to the younger one, as if he could save him. “Do something.”
“Well,” Kyungsoo tilts his cup towards Baekhyun. “Can’t do anything about that since it’s the truth.”
“Why are you guys all so mean?” Baekhyun says, and he really looks close to tears now.
“I would say I’m offended, but where is the lie.” Kyungsoo retorts, tossing his head back to drink the liquor in one shot.
“Oh, and Jongdae.Jongdae.”Minseok calls, and Jongdae tries to sit up and subdue his laughter, but he’s still giggling. “You’re really noisy and annoying, but it’s nice sometimes. It blocks out Baekhyun’s inner bitch.”
Jongdae bursts into fits of laughter again, he’s gasping for air when he speaks. “I think I’m supposed to be offended, but-“ he doesn’t get to continue saying what he was about to say because he starts laughing again, tears forming at the edge of his eyes, and now he’s rolling on the floor again.
“Kyungsoo, dude. You’re the only sane one here aside from Junmyeon and I would really like to give you a toast but I don’t think a shot glass is enough.” Minseok takes a peek at the glass he’s holding, tilting it towards him to get a better view of the contents, but since it’s still filled, the contents manage to spill their way to his shirt. “Oh yeah, not really enough.” He laughs. “Anyway, I love you man. God bless you for existing.” He says inching forward with his arms open to give Kyungsoo a hug, but the younger pushes him away, nose scrunched in revolt.
“Hyung, I still respect you, and I still want you to keep your dignity intact. So please keep your hands to yourself and stop doing embarrassing things that you will regret tomorrow.”
“Jongdae!Baekhyun!” he averts his attention to the other two instead, and they both jump in surprise at the loudness of Minseok’s voice. “You guys are both annoying pieces of shit, but I love you both!” he says, managing to grab a hold on them both and giving them one-armed hugs.
“You’re mean!” Baekhyun complains, and breaks away from the hug to go back to drinking away. Jongdae just continues laughing, until Minseok eventually lets him go. His body lands on the floor with a thud, unable to keep himself up at all from too much laughing, but he doesn’t yelp in surprise when he falls, too far gone to care.
And of course-of course, it’s right when Luhan comes into the scene, ending up looking down the space near his feet, where Jongdae is sprawled on the floor laughing. Baekhyun looks so effectively disappointed, chugging down shot after shot of liquor, and Luhan thinks that maybe it doesn’t have anything to do with Kyungsoo this time, who, despite having that smug look on his face doesn’t look triumphant.
Maybe it has something to do with Minseok who’s matching Baekhyun’s shot in his own pace, his face almost a blaring shade of pink, the blush creeping up to his ears.
“Luhan, Luhan! Come here, we were just waiting for you!” he says patting down the space on the floor beside him, laughing in the middle of hiccups.
“Hyung!”Sehun says, following close behind Luhan. He shuts the door close and takes the hood of his jacket off. “You guys started without us? And I was the one who told Baekhyun hyung this idea.”
“Not really our fault if your exam schedule is that way, kid.” Baekhyun pouts, looking more of a kid than Sehun even when it’s the younger guy he’s calling with the nickname.
“At least leave some for me,” Sehun says, sitting next to Baekhyun without taking off his bag. He takes the cup that was once Jongdae’s and pours himself a drink before anyone could even protest, and Luhan just lets them be, choosing to sit beside Minseok as he was offered.
“Hey, give me some,” Luhan protests when he tries to take a drink right out of the bottle but fails to when Minseok snatches it away, cackling.
It’s then that Jongdae manages to sit up successfully with much struggle, and he yells in victory that it catches everyone’s attention. “Hey, hey, hey hyung.” he says, now finally able to get a grip on himself. He’s still smiling, but at least he’s stopped giggling. “Tell them what you told us too.”
“What?” Sehun asks, nose now turning a bright shade of pink from the alcohol he’s consumed. The bowl of popcorn is left untouched, and he takes it upon himself to finish it all, since no one seems to take interest in eating it, all too consumed with the alcohol.
“He told each of us that he loves us.” Jongdae says, and he’s starting another fit of giggles. Luhan stops struggling to get the bottle from Minseok and gives him a confused look, as if to ask if what Jongdae had said was really true. Minseok isn’t the type of person to say his feelings out loud, after all.
“Oh yeah, Sehun!”Minseok says on cue, like what Jongdae said triggered his memory and he really did plan on telling each of them some sappy message with an I love you along the lines of it. “Child,” he says, standing up. He almost tumbles down, unable to keep his balance, but Luhan helps steady him. “You’re like my little duckling. My cute little duckling.” He says pointing to Sehun and then laughing. “I love you.”
And Sehun is embarrassed at being cooed at, but at the same time he’s touched; this is the first time that his hyung is saying this, and even though he is under the influence of alcohol, it still counts, right? But then Minseok chooses to add, “I just hope you stop using that rubber duck during bath time because you’re scared of the monster in the tub.”
“Hyung!” he shrieks, and everyone else just laughs it off. Hopefully Minseok would stop talking and not say any of his other secrets out loud, because it would be embarrassing.
But thankfully, Minseok has shifted his attention to Luhan, who’s still holding him up even though he’s not wobbling anymore. “Ah, and Luhan!” he says, slapping both of his hands on the side of Luhan’s face and squishing his cheeks together.
“Please don’t say something embarrassing.” Luhan says, words not clear from having his face mushed between Minseok’s hands.
“Luhan, Lu-ge! Did you know, did you know?” he says, accumulating the habit of repeating his words.
“What is it hyung? What dirty secret of Luhan hyung’s do you have to spill?” Baekhyun says, a manic gleam in his eyes as he has developed interest in the progression of things.
His face is so near Luhan’s that the latter could smell the alcohol on his breath, see the cake icing on the top of his lip. “I loved you the first time you came inside my room without being invited and asked me to go watch your classmate’s football match with you.” He says with a grin, pink gums showing. Luhan visibly freezes in his position.
“Oh my god. Is this a confession?” Baekhyun cackles, breaking the silence.
Minseok blinks, unable to register the gravity of his words. “It is?” his hold on Luhan’s face loosens.
“Is it, Minseok?” he says quietly. “Because I want you to know that even if it isn’t, it wouldn’t change the fact that I like you.”
Minseok blinks again, as if seeing the world for the first time in ages. “You do?”
Luhan laughs. “I’m quite positive.”
“Hold on to your seats folks, the sap fest is about to begin.” Jongdae announces, imitating the voice of a radio announcer. But neither Luhan nor Minseok quite hear it.
It isn’t sure who initiated it first, but soon enough, their lips meet, tasting each other for the first time. It’s slow and sweet, like how magazines tell you how your first kiss is supposed to be. But they don’t think of that-they just want to make this moment last.
“Oh my god, it’s a live show of porn! The announcement was wrong!” Baekhyun yelps. “Quick, this is not for little ducklings!” he says, covering Sehun’s eyes with his hands, much to the younger’s protests, but he moves away to make his own tribute to the new couple.
“Let us make a toast for these two. You may now commence the fucking!” Baekhyun hollers, and Jongdae and Sehun answer with cheers, clinking their cups together. Kyungsoo gives Baekhyun the usual annoyed look, but when he glances back at the two, Baekhyun sees a hint of a smile forming at the corners of his lips.
And this isn’t how Luhan and Minseok typically spend their days together, but like this, with their hands around each other and their lips connected, Minseok can taste both heaven and sins from the tip of Luhan’s tongue.
There’s whistling, there are catcalls, and there are things most definitely thrown at them (like the leftover bits of popcorn, for instance. Or Jongdae’s Piglet socks), but neither of them minds.