unversed (gwangchul/injoon)

[jaedragon]

unversed
gwangchul/injoon; pg13; 6854 words
for hobutt, yeonga, and envoler



Injoon looks up at the towering building in front of him, a surreal feeling washing over him as he traces every inch with his eyes. He watches the flags sway in the wind and forgets to watch the path in front of him. He walks into a pole, knocking the suitcase he was carrying, and himself, to the ground. He hears a few laughs and is suddenly thankful he showed up late to school today. He sighs, rubbing at his arm.

"Need some help?" Injoon blinks, looking up to see a boy with wide eyes and dark, feathered hair. He says nothing, only blinks again and scratches his head. The boy smirks and kneels down, extending a hand. "Gwangchul." he sighs.

"Injoon." Injoon shakes his hand, a slight wrinkle in his brow.

Gwangchul bites his lip. "You're new. Where's your room?"

Injoon sifts through his coat pocket, pulling out a crumpled piece of paper and handing it off.

Gwangchul examines it, glancing back at Injoon as he clicks his tongue. "Looks like you're my new roommate." He pulls Injoon up by the sleeve of his jacket, dragging him along as he tows his suitcase behind him.

"You don't talk much," Gwangchul says after a minute. "Are you mute?"

Injoon is confused himself, he's never been this tongue-tied. It baffles him a little, in good ways and bad. He shakes his head, clearing his throat and his mind.

"No. No, I'm not, I just...I don't know." he chokes.

Gwangchul raises an eyebrow and smirks. "Well you better start talking or you'll get eaten alive here.

Injoon swallows hard. This isn't exactly what he expected. But he follows close behind Gwangchul, because he's not sure what else he should do.

Their room is large, almost too large, and Injoon is suddenly more aware of the fact that he's going to a rich kid school.

Gwangchul tosses Injoon's bag onto an empty bed, sighing as he turns to him, arms crossed and eyes narrow.

"You don't look like someone who would go to a school like this." he says. Injoon doesn't know how to respond because he hadn't expected himself to end up in this position either.

"Yeah. I don't think so either."

Gwangchul eyes him, as if he's sizing him up, getting his full first impression. "You play an instrument or something?"

Injoon swallows hard. "I sing. I guess."

Gwangchul nods, biting his lip. "You must be pretty good if you got in here." And Injoon blushes just the slightest bit because he's not used to compliments.

"Gwangchul-ah." Injoon turns around and there is a tall, spectacle-clad boy with reddish hair and a loose tie around his neck standing in the doorway. "Lunch." He sighs as he traces Injoon from top to bottom with his eyes.

Gwangchul throws off the jacket he was wearing and follows the boy out the door.

Injoon collapses on his new bed. He doesn't fit right. Not yet.

"Joon, you coming?" he hears, and it takes him a moment to process the fact that this voice is talking to him. He glances up and sees Gwangchul standing in the doorway, eyebrows raised. Injoon points a questioning finger at himself and Gwangchul chuckles as he nods. The taller boy stands behind him, looking at Injoon like he is an imbecile. Injoon starts to feel like one.

He nearly falls off his bed scrambling to follow after them. Gwangchul laughs a little as he stares at him incredulously, like he's still trying to figure him out but is amused nonetheless. He gives brief introductions when Injoon is close behind.

"Injoon, Hyunmin. Hyunmin, Injoon. Joon." He nods at Injoon once before continuing on ahead of them.

Hyunmin clicks his tongue. "He gave you a nickname." he sneers. "He must like you." And the look on his face finishes the sentence for him. ("-though I can't see why.") and Injoon feels his insides churn.

"Joon." He tests out his new nickname, lets it roll off his tongue a few times.

Somehow by knocking two letters off his name, he feels like he's been given a brand new identity.

Things start to piece together fairly quickly. Being the new kid, Injoon expected to be treated like a new kid. But he isn't. He is ignored it seems, but gets waves and smiles as he passes through the halls - mostly because everyone is waving at Gwangchul and Hyunmin and so he is acknowledged by default. He soon realizes where he's ended up.

He wants so compare it to high school - Gwangchul is the popular kid, the cool guy on campus, and Injoon is the new kid, the nerd that the popular kid, for whatever reason takes under his wing.

He wants to compare but he doesn't have to. Because that's exactly what this is.

They sit down at what Injoon can assume will be his lunch table for the next few months. He sits to Gwangchul's left, with Hyunmin on Gwangchul's right. There are four sets of eyes glancing at him from across the table and he begins to feel like he's on display. He waits for someone else to break the ice, for fear of saying something stupid and killing his chances of making a good first impression.

But Gwangchul says nothing, and they all sit in an awkward silence for what seems like hours. Injoon takes the time to look at each of them, memorizing them even though he hasn't learned their names.

The boy across from him has shining eyes and hair that resembles a bowl cut. Next to him is a boy with big teeth and long nails. The third is a boy that could be considered and uljjang, with shaggy hair like a dog. The boy on the end is obviously the youngest, going off appearance alone, and appears to have a cap attached to his head. Injoon recognizes him right away.

"Hey. You're Jihwan, aren't you?" All eyes shoot to him and he suddenly wants to hide again.

The boy sighs and blinks. "Yeah."

"I think you lost this?" Injoon smiles and pulls a small notebook out of his pocket, tossing it across the table into Jihwan's hands.

Jihwan smiles but tries not to let it show. "Thanks."

Gwangchul turns to Injoon with a perplexed look, and Injoon shrugs his shoulders. "What?"

"You got him to talk. Jihwan never talks." Injoon gazes back at Jihwan, who has returned to poking at his food.

Gwangchul turns to face forward and crosses his arms. "This is Jisang, Suhoon, Hyunchul, and I guess you already know Jihwan." Each of them nods at Injoon and a weight is lifted off his shoulders.

The first time they go drinking, it's for an impromptu initiation. Everyone from their school is there, but Injoon doesn't care much because he knows so few of them anyway. He's never had a drink before, so he's not sure how he's going to fit in, especially since he's among several upperclassmen and he's been known to give into peer pressure.

So when a filled shot glass is thrown in front of him, all he can do is stare at it for a moment before picking it up slowly and taking a small sip. The second the alcohol hits the back of his tongue, he nearly chokes, spitting it out onto the table. He chugs from the bottle of water next to him and wipes his mouth.

Gwangchul laughs from his chair (You're cute, he says) and downs his shot.

Injoon momentarily forgets to breathe, and decides this place isn't bad at all.

He doesn't go to class as much as he thought he would, and Gwangchul explains that this is because by getting into this school, Injoon has proven himself to be somewhat superior, and therefore does not have to take as many trivial classes as the rest of the world. Injoon isn't sure if it's a complete lie, an embellishment, or some twisted version of the truth, but he doesn't really care because he never liked Chemistry anyway.

He does however, start to get the feel that he goes to a musical academy because he sees people playing instruments everywhere, kids breaking out into dance in the hallways - Hyunchul is especially notorious for this - and bundles of sheet music that always seem to be floating around. It's a nice atmosphere he thinks. Gwangchul seems to think so too, because he smiles every time Injoon makes a comment about it.

Despite the supposed friends he's made, he can't help but feel alone in his first class, mostly because neither Gwangchul nor Jihwan are there with him. He assumes they don't have singing as their major or specialty or whatever it is they call it here. He has Hyunmin and Suhoon, who sit on each side of him, slumped in their chairs feigning interest most of the time, but they spend more time talking to each other than they do to him.

And normally he wouldn't mind, but when they get too loud, attention is brought to them and suddenly the instructor realizes he has a new pupil as he so-endearingly calls him. Injoon hates being the new pupil.

Their instructor's name is Mr. Kim, and Injoon hates it because he probably knows about thirty Mr. Kims. But he's tall and lanky, possibly elderly and Injoon wonders where in the world his powerful singing voice comes from.

But he tells Injoon to sing, so he can get an idea of where his range is and all that jazz that Injoon has never cared about. In general, he doesn't mind singing in public either, but he suddenly feels like he's been put up for judgment, like if he utters one incorrect note he'll be shipped out of this place.

But Mr. Kim taps his conduction baton on his music stand and their pianist plays a scale. Injoon swallows and licks his lips, wishing he had a water bottle to amend his now-dried-up throat. He hums a few notes but ultimately bores even himself, and Mr. Kim tells him to simply sing a song that he feels confident about. Injoon tries to think of one, but Mr. Kim promptly tells him to hurry and sing before he gets frustrated. Injoon breaks into an a capella rendition of Brown Eyes' Kajima and Mr. Kim's baton (and his jaw) nearly drops to the floor.

Hyunmin starts a slow clap, mockingly it seems, but others seem to follow and Injoon feels his cheeks heat up and he wants to crawl in a hole. He's never been one to take the spotlight willingly.

Hyunmin drags him out of class in a headlock, nuzzling the top of his head with his fist. Injoon shoves him off because it reminds him of the noogies his brother used to give him and those are memories he'd not rather remember. "So." he sneers. "You're good. Even better than this guy over here." He gestures toward Suhoon who was trailing at his feet.

"Hey! What about you then?"

Hyunmin smiles back at him. "Oh me? Well no one is better than me."

Suhoon scoffs and pretends not agree because really, it's true, but he doesn't want to let Hyunmin win. And Injoon just laughs because he doesn't do well with confrontation.

Gwangchul taps his pen, avoiding looking anyone in the eye as they sit around their lunch table. It's only him, Hyunmin and Injoon, and he feels a tension in the air that he's sure neither of them feel. "So...Joon-ah." he chokes. "How do you and Jihwan know each other?"

Injoon coughs, scribbling something in his notebook. "Well. We don't. It was a couple of years ago but...I saw these kids messing with him, so I helped him out. He dropped his notebook and it had his name in it...that's it I guess."

Gwangchul nods, biting the inside of his cheek, and Hyunmin quickly interjects. "So...how did you end up here?"

Injoon copies down another note from his textbook and clears his throat. "Ah. There was a brochure for the school in Jihwan's notebook. I took it and found myself reading it a lot, and I've wanted to go here since."

Hyunmin glances at Gwangchul, whose face is altogether unreadable. "Looks like we can thank Jihwan for being a wimp when he was a kid. We might not've met Joon otherwise."

Gwangchul and Injoon lock eyes briefly, and something inside Gwangchul causes him to smile for no reason.

An awkward silence begins to fill the space and, like always, Hyunmin tries to be the one to fix it. "You know Joon...he doesn't talk about it but Gwangchul here is pretty talented too." He ignores Gwangchul's eye rolls and pats him on the shoulder. "This guy plays piano.

Injoon's eyes widen slightly and the corners of his mouth curve up. "Seriously?" Gwangchul can't help but notice that Injoon's smile is more than genuine. "You should play for me."

Gwangchul's stomach churns a little and he cringes. "I don't play in front of people." he says, just like he always does.

Injoon awkwardly nods and rocks back in his chair. He silently vows to change that.

Gwangchul loves the time he has alone. The time he has to be with his music, without the distractions Hyunmin and the others cause for him. The old piano room is practically his, as no one else ever uses it anymore.

Like always, he makes sure to lock the door - he likes his privacy after all - and pulls the dusty tarp off the Grand Piano, tossing it to the floor and blowing a bit of dust off the surface. He runs his hand along all 88 keys, plucking each one with his middle finger and letting the sound reverberate through the floor.

He sits and begins to play, Mozart's Rondo alla Turca. His eyes are closed, mostly because it's just become habit. It's a long piece, but it's over quickly. He finishes softly, holding the last note until the sound is inaudible. His heart nearly stops when he hears a sudden noise behind him - a cymbal crash. He spins around on the bench to find Injoon standing behind him, with a nod that's almost condescending.

He clears his throat, shoving his hands in his pockets and glancing at his feet. "You're...you're really good."

Gwangchul turns back to the piano, taking a deep breath and letting his fingers dance across the keys, soft enough that it doesn't make a sound.

Injoon slowly slides onto the seat next to him, watching his fingers intently. "Teach me."

Gwangchul turns to him with a raised brow. "What?"

Injoon smiles and laughs, leaning his head towards the piano. "Teach me."

Gwangchul stutters a bit, scratching his head and looking back and forth between Injoon and the wood. He plays a simple string of five notes and gestures for Injoon to follow. He repeats, twice as slowly, a small proud smile on his face when he finishes. Gwangchul immediately starts again, this time playing a ten-note tune. Injoon repeats his five notes, attempting to add on the new, and his fingers cross and stumble over the keys. He groans and Gwangchul grins bemusedly.

He gives him a few pointers (use your thumb here, your index finger here) and Injoon tries again. He continues to mess up, nearly smashing his head against the side of the piano in frustration. Gwangchul laughs, hitting him lightly on the shoulder.

"Here." He puts his hand over Injoon's, gently guiding his fingers across the keys with his own. Injoon's back stiffens, and he continues paying attention as seriously as before. Gwangchul finds himself watching Injoon's face instead of his hands.

Injoon glances up when he realizes that Gwangchul's hand has stopped moving. "What?"

Gwangchul opens his mouth and closes it, unable to form a sentence. The door creaks and he quickly pulls away, standing up and walking towards the doorway.

Jisang sticks his head in with wide eyes. "Am I interrupting something?" Gwangchul rapidly shakes his head and he continues, a puzzled look forming on his face. "Well, Injoon has a phone call."

He can't be in trouble, Injoon thinks, because he hasn't done anything. Then again, there's a lot of things about this school he doesn't understand and it's entirely possible he broke a rule he didn't know existed.

He glances at Gwangchul, because he seems to assume now that he'll always have an answer. But Gwangchul does no more than shrug. Injoon bites his lip and follows Gwangchul to the main school building, but stops short when Gwangchul doesn't go inside.

"What's wrong?" he asks. Gwangchul clears his throat with a laugh and shakes his head.

"The superintendent and I don't exactly see eye-to-eye...you just go in by yourself."

Injoon looks to his feet as he pushes the wide door open, a rush of warm air overtaking him as he steps inside. Figures the superintendent would be the only one with heat in this place. Injoon has learned something about him already.

The man sits with his hands folded, fingers laced through each other, and head down. He doesn't move.

"You must be Injoon." he drawls in this deep voice that almost rumbles. Injoon wonders how this man could be the superintendent of a school, because he seems like he would scare small children every time he opens his mouth. But he nods, hoping to comply. The man smiles a little, somewhat solemnly, his forehead wrinkling. Injoon thinks he can see the tip of his toupee sticking up. The superintendent tilts his head in the direction of a small table. "The phone is right there. Your mother is on hold, waiting for you."

Injoon walks to it slowly, picking up the receiver and speaking softly so only the woman on the other end can hear. His mother is crying, and Injoon feel his heart sink.

He barely feels the cold air over his numbness when it hits him as he leaves the building. Gwangchul is still waiting outside, shivering with his hands in his pockets. "What's wrong?" he asks when he sees Injoon with a forlorn look in his eyes.

Injoon feels like choking when he tries to answer. "My dad died."

It's so simple and straightforward that Gwangchul almost thinks he's joking. But when Injoon starts to let the tears fall, Gwangchul feels his heart wrench for him. He's not sure what to do in this situation, because he's never had to deal with something like this before. And when he finally works up the guts to put a comforting arm around around Injoon's shoulders, Hyunmin is skipping towards them, singing some ridiculous song. He jumps in between them, and halts his tune as soon as he sees their faces.

"Yikes. What happened, did somebody die?"

Gwangchul glares at him and silently punches him in the stomach, trying to explain without words.

"Oh man, someone did." Gwangchul rolls his eyes and tries to silently mouth an explanation. Hyunmin understands, and traps Injoon in a headlock. "Don't worry Injoon-ah. I know what'll make you feel better."

The second time they go drinking, it's for distraction.

Hyunmin sighs and shoves Injoon down into a chair in the back room of the bar, setting a bottle of whiskey in front of him. "Drink up."

Injoon sighs and swallows hard before grabbing the bottle and downing half of it in one chug. Hyunmin laughs and slaps him on the back, taking a large swig of his own drink.

"A few more of these," he says as he plops into the seat across from Injoon. "You won't feel a thing."

A few hours later, most of the boys have trickled out and Injoon is hammered, singing from his stage on top of the table.

Hyunmin watches, amused, as he drinks his third beer, Gwangchul has barely sipped at his second, and Jihwan sits staring at his still-untouched first drink. Injoon points his invisible microphone in Jihwan's face and waits. But Jihwan doesn't sing along, so Injoon spins around twice, stumbling a bit, and starts a new song.

Gwangchul rolls his eyes, tapping his feet against the wood of his chair. Hyunmin throws a few peanuts at him from across the table and winks when he looks.

Injoon yells the last note of his song at the top of his lungs, ending his performance by taking a bow and jumping to the ground. He flops back down in his chair, slinging an arm around Jihwan and laughing onto his shoulder.

"You've had too much to drink." he laughs.

Injoon scoffs and leans against his arm, falling off his chair as he reaches for another shot glass. He hits the floor with a thud. Gwangchul takes a sigh and stands, walking out the door and up the stairs. Jihwan glances as Hyunmin, begging for help with his eyes. Hyunmin nods at him, mouthing a go home as he follows Gwangchul to the roof.

Gwangchul sighs, leaning against the railing and biting the inside of his mouth. With his mind racing, he almost doesn't notice when Hyunmin comes up behind him, leaning against a pole with an overly-smug grin plastered across his face.

"Thank you." he says. "You made things interesting for me." He strides forward with his hands in his pockets, leaning his elbows back on the railing. "You should get jealous more often, it's highly entertaining."

Gwangchul scoffs. "I don't know what you're talking about."

He awkwardly kicks at the ground and Hyunmin laughs. "Not only are you green, you're also a horrible liar."

Gwangchul glares, still silent as he looks over the edge, glancing at the street below.

"There's one thing I haven't figured out yet though." Hyunmin sneers. "Are you jealous because there's suddenly someone else who can get Jihwan to talk? Or are you jealous of Jihwan for getting so much of Joon's attention now?"

Gwangchul bites his lip - hard, too hard, but he's unable to feel it - and kicks at the pole once before turning away and running back down the stairs.

Hyunmin smirks and shakes his head, ignoring the cell phone vibrating in his pocket.

Gwangchul finds Injoon in the bathroom, vomiting up the excess amounts of whiskey he's downed in the last few hours.

"Joon." He whispers from outside the door. "You okay?"

Injoon coughs an inaudible response. Gwangchul swallows a little pride and goes in, kneeling down beside Injoon and helping him up. Injoon lets his head drowsily fall against his shoulder and Gwangchul gets a whiff of his atrocious breath. He pretends not to notice.

He walks Injoon back to the dorm and drops him on his bed, and Injoon sighs the second his head hits the pillow. "Gwangchul-ah." he whispers. "My dad's dead."

The reality begins to weigh down on him as his sobriety starts to return, and Gwangchul can feel it even from his side of the room.

"I know Joon." He clicks his tongue. "You know...you can talk to me about it if you want. You know, whenever." He turns his head and sees Injoon passed out, drooling off the edge of his bed.

He spends most of the night staring at the ceiling.

Injoon wakes to the sun burning his eyelids and a stereo from a few doors down blasting in his ears - probably Hyunchul dancing at whatever ungodly hour it may be. His head is pounding, and every sound and movement makes it throb harder.

He slowly sits up, putting his weight on his elbows, and Gwangchul walks out of the bathroom, fully dressed and brushing his teeth. Injoon is suddenly aware of the awful taste in his mouth.

"Morning, sunshine." he chuckles. "I bet you feel fantastic."

Injoon tries to roll his eyes but pain immediately rushes through him. "My head hurts."

Gwangchul smirks. "That's what you get for drinking half your weight in alcohol." Injoon groans. "Don't worry about class, okay? Just...sleep."

Memories of the previous night start to piece together in Injoon's head. Images of beer bottles, invisible microphones, his head in the toilet, the walk back.

Gwangchul pulls on his jacket, ready to walk out the door.

"Gwangchul." he stops, hand on the doorknob. "Thanks."

He smiles to himself before turning back with a straight face. "No big deal." Injoon sighs back into his slumber and with a click of the lock, Gwangchul is gone.

"Joon's not coming?" Hyunmin asks when he meets him outside the door.

Gwangchul barely looks him in the eye. "No."

"He really that hungover?" He questions, and Gwangchul sends him a what-do-you-think? look.

Hyunmin chuckles, throwing an arm around Gwangchul's shoulders. "Who knew he'd be such a fun drunk, huh?"

Gwangchul scoffs. "Yeah well, cherish the fun you had because I'm not letting him do that again."

Hyunmin widens his eyes and slides his arm away. "Letting him? What, are you his mother or his girlfriend?"

Gwangchul grabs the collar of Hyunmin's coat, lightly shoving him into an innocent passerby. "Shut up."

Hyunmin straightens his collar and clicks his tongue. "Touchy."

Hyunmin can't help but notice when Gwangchul is only half-paying attention in pre-calc, occasionally jotting done some numbers every time the teacher looks at him. He throws a pencil at his head - which isn't necessary because they sit next to each other - and Gwangchul pushes at his arm. "What? Got something on your mind?"

Gwangchul bites at his lip in silence for a moment before deciding to swallow a little more pride. "Why aren't you hungover?"

Hyunmin groans and lets his head hang over the back of his chair. "Oh god, I knew that's what this was about." he sighs, as if he's preparing to explain the meaning of life to a four-year-old. "I'm not hungover because I've built up tolerance. That and I know when to stop."

Gwangchul sighs and his attention is peaked when the door creaks open. He looks up and Injoon is tiptoeing into the room, creeping behind the back of their professor. Gwangchul is about to wave him over when he slides into a seat two rows ahead, next to Jihwan instead. Gwangchul's ego is bruised a little, not because he's hurt but because he's not used to being ignored. But he's awful at hiding it and Hyunmin chuckles because he finds amusement in nearly everything Gwangchul does.

"Funny." he says with a slight sneer. "I would've figured you got all that jealousy out of you last night." Gwangchul grips his pencil a little tighter. "I've known you long enough to know that what's going on here is that either your monstrous ego just took a huge blow or you maybe like Injoon a little more than you realize."

Gwangchul turns his head, his glare directed toward Hyunmin's eyes. "You're crazy."

"Hey, I'll admit to my problem when you admit to yours."

Gwangchul scoffs. "I don't have a problem." And Injoon laughs out loud at something Jihwan said - probably something that wasn't even funny, but Injoon laughs at everything - and Hyunmin hears a snap. He turns his head and sees Gwangchul opening his hand, releasing the two halves of the pencil he just broke.

"I'd say that's a problem."

Injoon catches up with Gwangchul after class, lazily throwing an arm over his shoulder. "Hey." he drawls. Gwangchul nods at him but keeps his head straight ahead. Injoon suddenly feels awkward, and searches for something to say. "Hey...why did you...you know-"

"Joon-ah. I told you, it's no big deal. Don't even worry about it."

Injoon pulls on Gwangchul's arm, and Gwangchul stops in his track when his skin starts to tingle. "No. I mean it, you didn't have to do that...why did you?"

Gwangchul bites the inside of his cheek and sighs. "I don't know." He rubs at his forehead and speeds up, leaving Injoon standing alone. Hyunmin comes up behind him and slings an arm over his shoulders. "Excuse him, he's just crabby today."

Injoon blinks. "Did I do something?"

Hyunmin cocks his head to the side and hums. "You could say that."

Injoon sighs, exasperated, and wrinkles his eyebrows. "Is it because of yesterday?" Hyunmin nods, scrunching his face as if to say Possibly. Injoon groans and puts his head in his hand. "What did I do last night?"

Hyunmin tries not to laugh as he remembers, smirking at him as he tightens his grip on his shoulders. "You were certainly the entertainment of the evening, that's for sure."

Injoon grits his teeth. "I was an ass, wasn't I?" Hyunmin grins and nods apologetically and Injoon mentally slaps himself. "Why did he help me?"

Hyunmin shrugs. "He must really like you." But this time, he thinks he sees a smile on Hyunmin's lips. There is no underlying thought or doubt.

Injoon's heart skips a beat.

He walks back to their room rather slowly, trying to think of good apologies but there are no Hallmark cards that say Sorry I don't remember what I did. Injoon isn't even sure he did anything in the first place, but he feels guilty and can't seem to figure out why.

He opens the door quietly, and notices Gwangchul sitting on the edge of his bed with hid forehead in his hands. The boy doesn't move until Injoon clicks the door shut. Gwangchul then stands and walks toward him, slamming his shoulders against the wall and staring him down. Injoon cringes because he's sure he's about to be hit, and quietly mumbles something that sounds like Gwangchul-I'm-sorry-I-don't-remember-what-I-did-I'm-sorry.

Gwangchul scrunches his face in seemingly-fake confusion because he can't believe Injoon thinks he actually did something wrong, and he's having an internal struggle because he can't decide whether he wants to punch or kiss Injoon right now. And that thought alone is getting under his skin. He pushes away from the wall and out the door, and Injoon collapses on his bed.

Gwangchul stands outside Hyunmin's dorm room, lightly banging his forehead against the door until he decides to answer. Hyunmin finally gets up and opens the door, and Gwangchul loses his balance, heading face-first to the floor. "What do you want?" Hyunmin scowls.

"You were right." Gwangchul says, face pressed against the hardwood.

Hyunmin crosses his arms, leaning against the door frame. "I'm always right. But which genius statement are you referring to?"

Gwangchul doesn't even think to reply with a snarky comeback. "I think I like Joon." It's plain and quick and simple, and there is no epiphany or shock, but it's a big step for Gwangchul because he's not one to share his feelings, or even admit to them.

Hyunmin only nods. "Where is he?"

Gwangchul sighs and points in some random direction he thinks could lead to his room. "In bed I think."

Hyunmin clicks his tongue and promptly grabs the back of Gwangchul's shirt, pulling him up and shoving him out into the hallway and whispering Go join him. before slamming the door in his face.

Gwangchul paces outside the door for at least ten minutes, rapping out the wood of the door frame occasionally, before taking a deep breath and going inside, closing the door as promptly as he'd opened it. Injoon is laying on his bed, not asleep but not fully awake either.

Gwangchul takes another deep breath and crawls onto his bed, placing his hands at either side of his head, and his knees on either side of his hips, determination in his eyes as he leans down to whisper in his ear. Joon barely escapes his lips before Injoon twitches his head awake, confusion on his face as he stares up at the boy not three inches above him.

"Gwa-" he starts but Gwangchul immediately shushes him, swallowing hard before looking him straight in the eye.

He pauses, taking note of every one of Injoon's features. "Just. Don't talk, okay?"

Injoon looks more than slightly confused, but when Gwangchul leans closer, eyes fluttering closed, all he can do is nod, letting his eyes do the same. Gwangchul fully closes the space between them, pressing his lips to Injoon's, gently and hesitantly. Injoon's cheeks flush red, and his toes curl because Gwangchul is kissing him and he thinks this may be exactly what he wanted.

Gwangchul runs his hand down the side of Injoon's face, tracing his neck and shoulder before resting on his arm briefly before sliding his hand under his shirt, fingertips grazing Injoon's stomach. Injoon quivers lightly at the touch, and Gwangchul slowly pulls Injoon's shirt over his head, mentally noting the embarrassed look on Injoon's face as he does. Injoon darts his eyes around the room, looking at anything but Gwangchul. Gwangchul traps him in another kiss, one hand behind Injoon's neck, the other gently playing with the hem of his boxers.

Injoon uncomfortably re-adjusts himself and Gwangchul pauses, planting a kiss on the corner of Injoon's mouth, smiling against his lips. He continues planting kisses on Injoon's neck and chest, delicately removing the remains of their clothing. Injoon swallows the lump in his throat and Gwangchul waits to see him smile and nod before continuing.

Their rhythms match perfectly, and Gwangchul hears Moonlight Sonata in his head. Injoon memorizes the scent of Gwangchul's hair and thinks about Saturday morning cartoons.

Injoon wakes up alone in his bed, listening to the sound of blue jays at his window and the laughter from down the hall, wishing he could go back to his dream just a little while longer. He stretches every part of his body, somehow feeling more rested than he has any night this year. He gets up and walks across the room, feeling sore in places he hasn't before. He stops at the closet, turning his head to see Gwangchul still fast asleep in his bed, and notices the younger boy's shirt and socks at the end of the wrong bed.

Injoon clutches the chain around his neck and smiles, biting his lip as he leans his head against the door of the closet, feeling his heart pound in all the right ways.

Hyunmin looks back and forth between the two of them, eyes wide. "Are you two up to something?"

Injoon nervously shakes his head and shrugs. "No, why?"

Hyunmin narrows his eyes, sucking on his teeth. "I don't know. You keep looking at each other all...nervous-like."

Gwangchul coughs, avoiding Injoon's eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Hyunmin bites his lip. "Gwangchul, what did I tell you about lying? You're bad at it." he sighs, glancing back at Injoon. If he can get either of them to crack, it'll be him.

Gwangchul knows this too, and lightly kicks Injoon under the table. Injoon kicks back, just a little bit lighter. Gwangchul knocks against Injoon's knee with his own, and Injoon knocks back. Gwangchul slaps Injoon on the arm, and Injoon pokes him in the stomach. They trade back and forth for a few seconds until they can't keep form laughing.

Hyunmin stares at them all the while, raising an eyebrow. "Get a room, guys."

Jihwan snickers from a few seats down, providing his own commentary. "They did last night." All three sets of eyes slowly turn towards him. Hyunmin wides his eyes questioningly, and Gwangchul's face seems to show a mix of surprise and regret. Jihwan smiles apologetically. "My room is right next to yours, remember?"

Gwangchul's face goes ghost white and his teeth clench. Injoon's cheeks turn bright red and he drops his head to the table. Hyunmin chuckles when he catches eyes with Gwangchul, shaking his head. "I knew you two would end up in each other's pants eventually."

Gwangchul and Injoon sit nervously, feeling the burn of Hyunmin's gaze. Jihwan gulps down the last of his sandwich. "I shouldn't have said anything."

"Hyunmin grins, sliding over and patting him on the back. "Actually Jihwan, I'm glad you've started talking more." Jihwan cringes. "Tell me what else you know."

Gwangchul doesn't wait around to see if Jihwan offers any details, but stands and leaves, tapping Injoon on the shoulder as a sign for him to follow. Injoon stumbles out of his seat to walk with him.

He matches his stride, tripping a little as he does. "Well that was awkward." he says with a slight waver in his voice.

Gwangchul breathes out, long and deep. "Tell me about it."

Injoon twitches a little, insecurities he didn't know he had getting the better of him. "Do you regret it? You know...what we did?"

Gwangchul rolls his eyes and groans, "Injoon-ah..." and Injoon stops him in his path with the back of his arm.

"I'm serious." And Gwangchul locks gazes with him, staring for a moment before taking him by the hand and dragging him along, his pace thrice the speed. Before Injoon can say anything, Gwangchul has thrown him into an empty classroom, pushing him up against a wall.

"Gwangch-" he tries to speak, but his voice is soon muffled when Gwangchul covers his mouth with his own. Injoon's knees give out a little, and Injoon slips. Gwangchul holds him up by his lapels and smiles against his lips. Injoon thinks of a few metaphors about falling - falling in love? - but he mentally slaps himself because he's always hated cliches.

Injoon laughs and Gwangchul muffles the sound again, kissing him deeper and gripping his jacket, pulling him closer and closer until their bodies are pressed together, fitting like pieces of a puzzle.

Injoon's brother once told him that nothing during sex counts, so this could be considered his first real kiss. And the way Gwangchul is working his tongue, Injoon can guess it's not the same for him.

Gwangchul lightly clutches Injoon's hand, and gently runs his fingertip back and forth up the underside of his wrist and back down the curve of his palm. The touches make Injoon shiver in all the right places. For whatever reason, they catch eyes and butterflies flutter in Injoon's stomach. Gwangchul pulls away, keeping his eyes locked on Injoon. "That answer your question?" he asks breathlessly.

Injoon clears his throat and nervously scratches his head. "Um. What was the question?"

The third time they go drinking, they go for pure entertainment.

They have the place to themselves again - most don't stay out as late as them - so Jisang seizes the opportunity to play some music. After they've all had a few drinks, Hyunchul and Jihwan find themselves dancing in the middle of the room, and Suhoon spends most of the night draped over Hyunmin, pretending to be hammered. But everyone knows he's never been much of a drinker. Gwangchul, who chose to be the party animal of the night, drinks to his heart's content and stumbles onto the makeshift dance floor with several cocktail umbrellas in his hair, dancing along with the others but out of sync with the beat.

Injoon just smiles as he sits and watches from his seat atop the bar.

Gwangchul almost decapitates Jihwan with the broom he's dancing with and so Jihwan decides it's time to take a break. He hops up onto the bar next to Injoon and lets out a long breath. "You know. He's interesting like this, but completely insane."

Injoon laughs but keeps his eyes on Gwangchul because he hasn't seen him having this much fun before, and it makes him smile. Even if it is alcohol-induced.

"I think it's your fault." Jihwan says after what seems like eternity. "He used to be kind of boring. But since you're kind of interesting...I think you made him a little interesting too." Injoon ignores the backhanded-ness of Jihwan's comment and tries not to let the pinkish tint in his cheeks show.

Gwangchul accidentally snaps his broom in half and realizes he needs a new dance partner. He skips over to the bar, climbing on top and laying his stomach across the surface. "Injoon-ah! Dance with me!~" he whines, but Injoon doesn't mind that he's acting like a five-year-old. Gwangchul kicks his feet a few times and jumps back onto his feet, grabbing Injoon by the arm to pull him along onto the floor. He has Injoon spin him around rapidly a few times before he loses his balance and lets himself fall against Injoon's shoulder, and lets out a snorting laugh. "Can I tell you a secret?" he 'whispers' so loudly that Injoon just nods and hopes it's not that important. "I like you."

"I think you've had too much to drink." Injoon sneers as he pats his head.

"Not as much as you that one time." Gwangchul reminds him.

Injoon scoffs. "Yeah but what if you end up puking in the bathroom? You won't have you to walk you home."

Gwangchul snorts. "But I have you!" Injoon begins to think that a drunken Gwangchul is almost as good as a sober one.

"Yeah. You have me." He smiles into Gwangchul's hair, knowing he won't have any problem walking him home later.