tender age (vol. i)
pairing/characters: jongup/zelo - onesided! bangzelo, mention of yongguk/himchan, and hinted!daehyun/youngjae
rating: PG
summary: junhong is heartbroken. and the least expected hyung fixes it by asking him to runaway together. part of the canon fic universe.
previous parts: games people play / don't know how you do it
for a moment, junhong’s brain really short circuited.
it’s just his luck to caught them locking lips after the exhausting dance practice for their april comeback.
his tongue works faster than his brain, and he makes a sound eerily similar to a whimper as he leans heavily against the door; his two hyungs are wide eyed when they notice his slumped figure going paler by the second.
“junhong-ah―” yongguk-hyung is saying his name, hurrying to go to him but junhong is too confused to register what’s going on.
...
the realization has two deep impacts on him, one, he hates himself for being so naive about the way yongguk-hyung looks at himchan-hyung after all this time, and two; he hates yongguk-hyung for still babying him while the only one he kisses is himchan-hyung.
junhong feels so hopeless and stupid and angry.
his most favorite man in the whole world is touching his arm, and junhong yanks that arm away to get to his feet and run. he vaguely hears yongguk-hyung shouting his name again but he keeps running until he arrives in front of the elevator. he puts a palm on his chest, the thudding heart beats are deafening him.
the elevator dings, and he bolts inside. he tries to regulate his breathing and wipes the sweat off of his face. he plasters a smile as he speed walks towards the van.
the other hyungs are joking around, and jongupie is eating a bag of nori. junhong grabs it without a word, not looking at jongupie who blinks confusedly at him.
“where’s yongguk and himchan-hyung?” youngjae-hyung asks as he dodges a punch from daehyun-hyung.
junhong hums, not really meeting any of his hyungs’ eyes; not really answering. he eats and eats and eats until youngjae-hyung shrugs and goes back to daehyun-hyung.
jongupie nudges him with an elbow. but junhong shakes his head because if he opens his mouth he’s pretty sure he will start to cry.
jongupie doesn’t relent either, he jabs junhong’s sides playfully to get his attention. junhong ignores him as best as he can, but the tears are threatening to fall anyway. he slips out a sob when yongguk and himchan-hyung are coming into view, and jongupie doesn’t miss that.
“junhong-ah?” jongupie touches his arm; the same arm yongguk-hyung was touching earlier. junhong quickly wipes his tears with the sleeve of his jacket, but it’s too late.
“um, daehyun-hyung?” jongupie says carefully. “i think junhong is crying.”
it’s youngjae-hyung who reacts first, “oh my god junhongie are you alright?!”
there are hands stroking/patting/calming him as junhong chooses to hide his head in between his knees. the van’s door slides open, and he hears yongguk-hyung asks,
“what’s wrong?”
“junhong is crying.” daehyun-hyung states matter-of-factly, and junhong shuts his eyes tight.
kang manager rushes to the scene before yongguk-hyung can do anything. junhong mumbles he’s alright repeatedly without looking up until kang manager announces that maybe junhong just needs some time alone; that he will eventually speak up later, so all of you have to keep an eye on him.
the other five hyungs agree, and the whole way back home jongupie’s hand never stops caressing his back and junhong is grateful for that.
▲▼
junhong avoids yongguk and himchan-hyung for the next a couple of days, and it doesn’t go unnoticed by the other members. even at some point, youngjae-hyung tries to coax him to spill whatever is bugging him, but junhong knows better. he gives youngjae-hyung a smile but declines and pretends to be busy with school works. daehyun-hyung sits with him during his homework time, not saying anything, as if waiting for junhong to talk about it. funnily, that method almost works for junhong, because entering the thirty minutes mark, he begins to glance back and forth at daehyun-hyung and seeing that the older boy just stares back; he’s thisclose to―
but junhong uses his last weapon in the end; he cries again.
daehyun-hyung only leaves reluctantly after junhong pleads him to please, please let me be.
because it’s his heart, no one can’t understand and no one can’t feel it breaks; and junhong doesn’t need sympathy.
he wants yongguk-hyung.
▲▼
“hey.”
jongupie lies down next to him on the bed, under the moonlight when the other hyungs aren’t back yet from recording a variety show.
“hyung.” junhong scoots backward, making room for jongupie.
“himchan-hyung just called. he left some money for dinner.” jongupie says, throwing his arms behind his head.
“okay.” junhong shrugs. he’s not really hungry. he knows he’s getting thinner by the days, but.
“let’s go out. you can eat anything you want.” jongupie whispers, smiling a little.
“i’m not hungry, hyung, i’ll just eat ramyun later.” junhong sniffs.
“how about we run away?”
junhong sits up so fast his head hits the top bunk. jongupie winces and blows it, hugging him.
“w-what? are you serious? waeyo?” junhong babbles as he grips jongupie’s muscly biceps. “wae, hyung?”
jongupie grins sheepishly, running a hand through his hair. “just for a night. we can sleep on an empty street, in front of a closed shop? or we can just spend the night eating and shopping, if you want. let’s be irresponsible, junhongie. you look so stressed out lately. and you cry, sometimes. i don’t like it.”
▲▼
so they sneak out of the dorm at eleven, with a bunch of cash in jongupie’s pocket (because he’s the oldest of the two), and runs hand in hand breathing the night air of hongdae.
junhong’s hair is straight tonight, and he wears his favorite red iron man hat with black mask for a disguise while jongupie wears the hood of his green varsity jacket and endless smile on his face. they go to eat at the spicy jjangmyun restaurant and order a bottle of soju, just a bottle. junhong drinks a gulp and instantly despises the taste. surprisingly, jongupie can manage to finish two glasses before he starts burping like an infant. then they go to a 24/7 clothing/accessory store and plays dress up until about one in the morning. neither purchases anything, but the cashier noonas recognize them and lets them being unprotected children trolling at the eerie hour. they give complimentary signs and selcas for the giggling noonas.
next, junhong spots a couple cute bunny sweaters at the next store and says that they should buy them; the pink one for him and the blue one for jongupie. they gather the remaining of their money and get a thirty percent discount from the kind hearted cashier hyung. they change into them immediately and hug the cashier hyung before run hand in hand again to go to the sticker photo booth.
maybe it’s the light and melancholy atmosphere that makes junhong leans forward and plants a kiss on jongupie’s cheek.
that’s caught on the first shoot.
the second shoot shows jongupie’s shocked but pleasant expression and junhong’s blush.
the third shoot jongupie is the one making the move and kisses junhong square on the lips; they still look shy and hesitated.
by the fourth and last shoot, even until the photos are printed; the two boys are still kissing tenderly inside the booth. jongupie has junhong pressed against the wall, his tongue touching junhong’s and junhong feels something bursts inside his ribcage; the dugeun dugeun sound is loud on his ears. his hat is knocked to the floor and his feet slip. jongupie holds him gently and he opens his eyes and hears giggles from outside the booth.
flustered, they bow apologetically to three girls around their age and picks their printed photos and run elsewhere. junhong seeks for jongupie’s retreating back and unconsciously makes a panicky sound; jongup-hyung don’t leave me alone!
he bends down, catching his breath. his eyes watered as he watches jongupie runs even further away from him. before he knows it, he goes limp to his knees and sobs.
“jongup-hyung...” he murmurs, “come back jongup-hyung...”
“junhong?” there are strong arms lifting him up, and it’s jongupie, looking puzzled with his red iron man hat on his hand. “are you okay?”
junhong bites his bottom lip, embarrassed by his silly outburst. jongupie tilts his head and reaches to place the hat back to junhong, and then he smiles his heartwarming smile and junhong wails.
“don’t you ever scared me like that again!” he bear hugs his shorter hyung. “i was so scared i thought you left me alone! uhhh...”
jongupie laughs to his neck and hugs him back, guiding them to the safety of the sideway (because they’re starting to attract attention from curious passersby). there, he strokes junhong’s back and apologizes for the crime he didn’t do. junhong just hugs his sweet hyung tighter.
“don’t leave me...” junhong says pitifully.
“i’m here, aren’t i?” jongupie smiles and kisses his nose. “now what do you want to do? our escapade has just begun.”
junhong hiccups, “where did you learn the big word?” then he does a mehrong. jongupie narrows his eyes but entwines their hands together and swings them as they walk back to the main street. “i want ice cream.”
“and then?” jongupie tugs his hand to stop him because they’re going to cross the road.
“and then let’s ride the subway to...i dunno...to incheon? and back here? do you still have money left, hyung?” junhong lets go of their hand and slips his arm to the crook of jongupie’s arm instead; emitting extra warmth. jongupie hums an agreement.
they wait for their subway, just standing side by side in a comfortable silence.
“has anyone called?” junhong asks.
“we purposefully left our cell phones back at the dorm, remember?” there’s a slight smug tone from jongupie’s voice.
junhong grins, who knows that his most passive hyung can be this devious?
“you’re the best!” junhong pecks jongupie’s cheek and rests his head on jongupie’s firm shoulder. “thank you, hyung. i really appreciated this.”
“you’re welcome, but,” jongupie clears his throat, he sounds nervous all of a sudden. “um, what can i do to be your one and only the best hyung forever, junhong-ah?”
▲▼
they arrive at incheon at four, and finds a warm waiting room to sleep on. junhong has his head on jongupie’s lap, and they wake up with sour breath and makes a quick trip to a minimart to buy on-the-go mouthwash. then they eat late breakfast on a local restaurant and are shocked by the cheap price both eat two servings. by lunch, they run out of money.
“let’s perform.” jongupie says, getting up and looking so determined. he holds out his hand for junhong and junhong gladly takes it. they dance and with his robot persona junhong gathers the money in his hat, even letting a couple of ahjummas pinch his cheeks. after some time, suddenly there are cameras with KBS logo and the reporter interview them about ‘the impromptu street performance of the two youngest B.A.P.’s members’.
when they’re asked why they’re in incheon without the other, jongupie says proudly,
“yongguk-hyung, himchan-hyung, look. zelo is safe with me. i made him smile again! you don’t have to worry, hyungs, we’ll be home soon. see you annyeong!”
junhong hugs him and thanks him on national television with sparkling eyes. later when they arrive at the dorm and himchan-hyung is crying/yelling at them, junhong smiles and apologizes and hugs the older boy. himchan-hyung is startled, he pauses, but then he cries/laughs and apologizes too. yongguk-hyung ruffles his hair and apologizes. junhong jokingly says why is everyone apologizing?―and yongjae-hyung flicks his ear and daehyun-hyung groans in relief.
in the chaos, junhong never lets go of jongupie’s warm hand. jongupie’s eyes meet his, and they exchange a secret smile.
▲▼
“um, what can i do to be your one and only the best hyung forever, junhong-ah?”
junhong stares unblinkingly at jongupie, doesn’t quite understand about the question.
jongupie scratches his chin. “aaa...nevermind. forget i ever ask. are you tired, junhong-ah?”
and then everything just clicks.
junhong blushes a deep shade of red. he hides his face on his hands and whines. jongupie tries to calm him down, but what’s the point really. it’s all crystal clear now. how can he, choi junhong, be this stupid?
“junhong-ah?”
“thatwasmyfirstkiss,” junhong whines. “i don’t let anyone kiss me like that, jongup-hyung.” he pouts. “i don’t let anyone kiss me at all.”
t h e e n d