Crash, fall down (i’ll wrap my arms around you now) for everyone [1/2]
For: EVERYONE
Title: Crash, fall down (i’ll wrap my arms around you now)
Pairing(s): Chanyeol/Sehun, Fem!Chanyeol/Kai
Rating: PG-13
Warning(s): language
Length: 11.7k
Summary: High school seniors Park Chanyeol and Park Chaejin come up with a list of things to do before their high school experience come to an end.
Author's note: To my lovely recipient, I hope you like this! I’m sorry if it didn’t turn out the way you wanted it, but I hope you enjoy this anyway! I definitely enjoyed bringing a fem!pcy into life, so thank you so much for the beautiful prompt. Thank you, M, for the words of encouragement and support through it all, and of course, thank you to the YPD mod for being patient and allowing me to be a part of this exchange! The title is based off a lyric from You Me at Six’s “Crash.”
empathy
noun
the psychological identification with or vicarious experiencing of the feelings, thoughts, or attitudes of another.
--
Four figures stand in two pairs, their shadows become longer with each passing second as the sun begins to set, their hearts beating rapidly out of their chests, unsaid words lingering in the air, waiting to be brought out into the open.
One of these pairs is at the local high school’s dance room, in which an eighteen year old girl is worrying her bottom lip between her teeth as she stands before one of her good friends, a boy who is a year younger than her. The strong and powerful beats that were playing a moment ago were long gone once she turned off the music and tugged on his wrist. Now, he’s giving her worried looks, but there’s something in his says that she can pinpoint as determination, waiting for her to break this silence with the truth.
The other pair is just outside at the school field, in which an eighteen year old boy and his junior of one year are staring at the trail of footsteps they made on the muddy field, more importantly, the distance between them. The wind blows only slightly, and the younger of the pair turns his head to look at the older, worried that they’ll both catch a cold. The taller one puts a calming hand on his arm, as if reading his thoughts, but the younger turns to him sharply, and the other retreats his hand. Their eyes scream of desperation, of need, and they’re wondering if one of them is courageous enough.
Even though they’re in different locations, the taller boy at the field and the girl in the dance room take sharp intake of breaths as they close their eyes, willing their hearts to calm down. It’s only then when they feel a slight push in their chest, a feeling of slight relief and comfort, and that’s all they need. The taller boy turns to his junior, just as the girl walks towards the younger boy. The setting of the sun make their distinguishable chocolate brown eyes more defined, almost as the words that come out of their lips.
“I love you.”
--
Most times, Park Chanyeol wishes that he bought that Pikachu alarm clock that he saw in an anime convention, or that alarm clock that plays songs when it goes off. Anything, and he means anything, would be better than waking up to the weight of his twin sister on top of him as she thinks of another way to get him to start his day.
“Chae, get off,” Chanyeol grumbles as he buries his head into his pillow. Park Chaejin stares at her brother for a moment before she shifts on his bed, adding more weight onto his back. Chanyeol grunts as he says, “Alright, I’m awake!” and looks for his phone to check the time. This is Chaejin’s cue to get off his bed but can’t leave his room without fulfilling her purpose, so she retreats to the far corner, next to his beloved sports trophies.
“Fucking hell,” Chanyeol doesn’t have the energy to raise his voice because one - he just woke up, two - it’s 6:30 A.M. and three - it’s a Saturday. Chaejin gives him a shy smile, happy at the safety that his guitar provides. She raises her hand in a meek wave.
“Good morning.”
He sits up and doesn’t bother to argue, knowing that it would prove to be pointless. Chaejin uses this knowledge to her advantage more than Chanyeol would like, but of course as the older twin, it’s an unwritten law that he must tolerate her. So, like always, he gets straight to the point.
“What do you want?”
Chaejin steps out, but carries the trophy that reads ‘Player of the Year' for good measure. Chanyeol rolls his eyes but sits up anyway, ready to listen to his sister’s demands no matter how ungodly the hour is. He just wants to get this over and done with so he can go back to sleep.
“Can you lend me some clothes?” She asks with a sweet smile on her face. Chanyeol scrutinises her but she brushes it off easily. “I know you don’t like me going through your things, so I was polite enough to ask-”
“By lying on top of me?”
“-and I have dance practice in about thirty minutes, so I need it soon, and don’t forget that you also have to meet up with Sehun in an hour-”
“Shit,” Chanyeol scrambles up from his bed, suddenly remembering that he has to take a shower, get changed, and cook breakfast for himself and his best friend. He heads to his closet, taking out his spare clothes to hand to Chaejin. She smiles and opens her mouth to say her thanks, but he waves her off as he searches for appropriate clothing for himself. Chanyeol looks over his shoulder to see that Chaejin is making her way out of his room, but not before he calls out, “have fun at the dance practice. Don’t injure yourself again, and have a nice day.”
Chaejin huffs at that last piece of advice. “You’re just saying that for yourself.”
Chanyeol smiles for the first time that day. “Yeah, well, what can we do? The more happiness the better, right?” He is met with narrowed, suspicious eyes, and a mumble that vaguely sounds like, “yeah, you too,” and Chaejin closes the door, leaving him with a faint smile on his face.
~~
Park Chanyeol and Park Chaejin are identical twins, with Chanyeol only six minutes older than Chaejin. He never lets her forget it, along with their twenty centimetre difference in height. They have the similar wide, brown eyes and toothy grins, and the pointy ears that manage to attract other people’s attention if their loud voices aren’t enough to do so. (It’s a really touchy subject for Chaejin, who claims that her brother can pull it off because girls call it cute, but on Chaejin, it’s just a disaster. Thank God for her long hair.)
Adults who have identical twins as their children would tell them that their similarities stop at their appearances. This is where they are wrong, but neither Chaejin or Chanyeol ever make the effort of correcting them. Biologists would say that identical twins form strong bonds between them, and the Park twins would agree, but they wouldn’t say what they agree on.
For as long as Chaejin has known, she has always tried to have a positive outlook on life. She’s not the smartest student, but she’s healthy with a big circle of friends and connections, so she’s more than content with what she has. With her hands full of homemade lunch boxes, Chaejin pushes the dance room door open with her shoulder. She nods her head along to the music as she makes her way across the room, smiling as she notices her friends turning their heads, mesmerised by the scent of the meals. She’s proud of their reactions, feeling flattered that they acknowledge her skill in cooking. It’s a skill that she’s worked so hard to get - all those summer vacations in which she had to bribe her brother into sharing his knowledge with her.
“What’s all this?” Jongin eyes the lunch boxes and frowns. He has a fairly good idea about it, but he doesn’t want his suspicions to be true. Nonetheless, she answers truthfully, and yup, he was right.
“It’s for all of you hard-working dancers. That includes you, too,” Chaejin says with narrowing eyes as she sees Jongin hesitate. She takes in Jongin’s black track pants that hide his legs, but the tank top that he’s wearing tells her that he hasn’t been eating properly lately. Along with the dark circles underneath his eyes, Chaejin can’t help but worry for her junior. Jongin shies away from her gaze, knowing that she’s bound to bring it up to Chanyeol again, who is one of Jongin’s closest friends. He’s too tired to argue and honestly, he does need the nutrients so he sits down and takes the box and a pair of chopsticks, after thanking her sincerely. She smiles and fondly ruffles his hair before she stands alone in the dance floor, her gaze locking on her reflection, just as music begins to play and she lets herself get carried away.
~~
If it’s dance for Chaejin, it’s football for Chanyeol.
Despite the occasional episodes showcasing Chanyeol’s clumsiness, he makes a pretty good athlete, a valuable player to their team. If there’s one thing that Chanyeol is always praised for, it’s his diligence. He can still remember how three years ago, the past team leader had said that he wasn’t fit enough for the team, turning him away from the prestigious title of a team member. Chanyeol came back the next year with stronger muscles and a much better stamina, and it’s one of the years in which their school’s football team received the title of ‘Sports Team of the Year.’
Sehun appears at his doorstep a few moments later. Chanyeol hears his best friend before he sees him. Oh Sehun’s face is passive, but his stomach is growling with aggression that as a self-proclaimed chef, Chanyeol cannot ignore. As a guest, Sehun sets out the plates and the cups as Chanyeol brings forth the freshly cooked traditional breakfast for the younger.
“I’m so hungry,” Sehun grumbles, bowing and giving thanks for the food before digging in with his chopsticks.
“Didn’t you say you ate breakfast?”
“But your cooking is so much better,” Sehun says with his mouth full. Chanyeol passes on some napkins, which the younger takes gratefully. Chanyeol can’t say that he isn’t pleased - after all, food is the way to one’s heart, or soul, or something in between.
Chanyeol gives him a slightly worried look. “You said that you’re here because you need me to teach you calculus, but also to help you train for the upcoming game, since you’ve been sick because of your hay fever.”
“Yeah,” Sehun says, eyeing the piece of meat on Chanyeol’s plate. The older sighs and passes his plate forward, and Sehun’s chopsticks are swifter than his running pace. When Chanyeol had commented on his athleticism in the past, Sehun had looked at him with a serious look on his face as he said, “it does not matter how slow you go as long as you do not stop.” It does, however, matter when it’s the final game of the year and there are four guys coming after you when you’re holding the ball.
Being best friends with Sehun is easy. Despite the difference in their age, the two boys find it easy to communicate with each other than anybody else. After all, who else would understand Chanyeol when he pranked Sehun by putting lotion in Sehun’s supposed shampoo bottle, and who else would prank Chanyeol back by cutting off the sleeves of the shirt that he’s supposed to wear to look professional? No one else but Sehun.
They became friends because when Sehun started in high school, he reminded Chanyeol of himself. Sehun struggled to fit in and find his passion, but when he did, he was told that he wasn’t good enough. Chanyeol remembers the look of anxiety and vulnerability in Sehun’s eyes, even to this very day, and it’s with Chanyeol’s help and Sehun’s motivation that the younger managed to make it into the team.
Sehun groans for the fifth time that morning when he mulls over a calculus problem, not understanding why a function needs to be integrated when graphics calculators exist. It’s the tenth and final problem of the day, and Chanyeol can’t help but take pity on the boy.
“Come on, Sehun-ah, you’re almost there.”
Sehun wonders if throwing a ruler at his best friend’s ears would make them shorter.
“I heard that,” Chanyeol grumbles, feigning offence as he covers his ears with his hands.
Sehun shakes his head, the smile remains on his face only it changes from a teasing smile to a more fond one. Chanyeol pretends to not notice.
~~
It almost seems impossible that in a few months, Park Chanyeol and Park Chaejin are graduating from high school, leaving Jongin and Sehun behind to deal with their own senior year. Unfortunately for the twins, whereas the other years of high school have dragged on so painfully slow, their final year seems to be running faster than anything they had ever laid their eyes on. It’s disorienting, exciting, and somewhat disappointing to find that their high school lives are ending in a few months, and there are still things that they hadn’t done.
“I haven’t been kissed,” Chaejin says during one lunch time. Sehun raises an eyebrow at her, questioning the relevance of the statement, whereas Jongin starts to cough up his soup and Chanyeol looks like it’s a topic he would rather not talk about.
“No, thank you,” Chanyeol politely declines the ideas that begin to take form in his sister’s head. “When you kiss someone, please do it when I’m asleep.”
Sehun laughs at his best friend’s comment and turns to ask, “why? Are you afraid you’ll get the sudden urge to kiss and you’ll end up making out with your pillow?”
“Doesn’t he already do that?” Jongin asks, and Chanyeol glares at him.
Chaejin slams her palms down on the table. “Exactly. That’s what’s wrong. Not that I haven’t been kissed, but the fact that we’re letting this special … connection stop us from doing things that we want to do.”
“You really want to kiss someone?” Chanyeol asks in surprise. “Why don’t you go to the school fair and to their kissing booth or something?”
“It was just an example,” Chaejin says, furrowing her brows. “Not everything is about romance. For example, I still can’t watch horror movies because Chanyeol pisses his pants whenever we do.”
Jongin blinks, wondering why it’s such a dilemma when the solution seems so simple. “Why don’t you just watch it when you’re not in the same room?”
Chaejin and Chanyeol let out an exasperated sigh, and Sehun pats Jongin in the arm in a condescending manner. Jongin had been their last addition to their group. He was a transfer to their school only a year ago, and the four teenagers have been able to click well ever since.
“He would still be scared shitless,” Chaejin answers, casting a somewhat worried look at his brother. “We don’t want baby Chanyeol to be scared shitless.”
Sehun smirks at the comment, before leaning in towards the table and asking, “Why don’t you just create a list of things you want to experience, then? The things that you’ve always wanted to do but have been too scared to do because of your twin’s emotions… if you get what I mean?”
“Wow,” Chaejin says, blinking at his words. “You actually said something useful.”
“Alright, so what would you put on your list?”
Chanyeol and Chaejin exchange looks for a few moments, before respectively getting out pieces of paper and pens as they write down their list, as follows:
1. Do something that can get me in trouble. (at school, nothing too serious)
2. Watch a horror movie.
3. Do something embarrassing or something that risks my reputation.
4. Bungee jump.
The four friends look at the short list, satisfied with themselves. They ignore other emotions such as anger and jealousy, and decide on when and how they should carry out the following tasks, completely convinced that everything will go according to their plans.
But falling in love is not a part of their plan.
~~
“Are you sure about this?” Chanyeol asks as he takes out his card to pay for his purchases. Chaejin looks somewhat excited, Jongin appears to be intimidated, but the knowing smirk on Sehun’s face says that there is no way out of this.
“Positive,” Sehun says, tugging on the plastic bag as the group of four leave the shop with somewhat satisfied but doubtful looks on their faces. Not one of them can deny that they’re all anticipating how this would turn out, though. This is something new, somewhat dangerous, exciting and rebellious which is how teenagers are stereotyped to act. They’ll certainly give the adults something to talk about.
~~
“I can’t believe we’re doing this,” Chanyeol says as he throws his bag over his shoulder, looking at Sehun who takes confident strides as they walk to school.
His best friend merely smiles. “You worry too much, hyung,” Sehun says, reaching out to pat Chanyeol in the head, indirectly making another joke about their non-existent height difference. Damn puberty.
Chaejin isn’t quite sure about what to do with all the attention they’re getting as students from left, right and centre turn to look at their group. If you can’t beat it, you might as well work it, Chaejin thinks as she flips her hair, making Jongin laugh. They don’t even make it to the front doors of the school when one of the teachers pull them aside, immediately ranting about breaking the school’s rules about uniform.
Chanyeol looks at the teacher contemplatively. Sure, the teacher has a point that students should have natural hair colours and shouldn’t dye it to their liking, but he thinks he looks pretty good with the silver hair on his head. With no further discussions, the four friends get a detention slip, determining their plans for tomorrow after school.
~~
As the older twin, Park Chanyeol has tried his best to not get into any serious trouble. Chaejin, sharing his sentiments, does the same. Chanyeol can remember breaking one of their mum’s beloved glass figurines when he was younger. His mother telling him off felt like it was the end of the world, and in return, Chaejin couldn’t help but cry along with her twin brother. Since then, Chanyeol and Chaejin have tried their best to make sure that they don’t do anything reckless which could land either of them in a difficult situation, for the sake of their own sanity.
“I still don’t understand how we got a detention,” Chaejin starts conversationally in the next hour that they’ll be spending together, “I think my hair looks pretty cool.”
Chanyeol eyes his younger sister. He agrees that her pink hair with blue and purple tips does look amazing, and the grin that’s been on her face since she got it done is a bonus.
Sehun runs his fingers through his red hair, and Chanyeol can’t stop himself from laughing from seeing his best friend’s hair. He doesn’t think he’s laughed this much since the lotion incident.
“What?” Sehun asks.
“It’s like there’s a tomato on your head, I swear,” Chanyeol answers.
Chaejin hums. “More like a strawberry.”
“If you wear a green shirt, you could be a walking watermelon,” Jongin adds as his input. Sehun groans and decides that the desk seems like a good object to hide his face with.
“And now you look like a wilted apple,” Chanyeol says.
“Shut up,” Sehun deadpans, but the three other teenagers find it difficult to stop making fun of the red hair, until Sehun snaps and tells them to talk about Jongin’s pink hair instead.
“I don’t know,” Chanyeol says contemplatively, “Jongin’s hair looks quite cool.” Jongin does a hair flip as to showcase his point, and Sehun continues to bury his head into the desk, hoping it would swallow him whole into another dimension.
When detention ends, Chaejin and Jongin excuse themselves to a dance practice, whereas Sehun and Chanyeol decide to roam through the streets and buy food. They’re outside standing between a traditional Korean restaurant and a Chinese restaurant, arguing about which would be a better option, when two girls approach them asking for their autograph. The two best friends exchange incredulous looks, but sign their phones and autograph books anyway.
“Do you like our new song?” Chanyeol asks, and Sehun plays along by posing for pictures with the girls.
“Oh, we love it!” one of them says enthusiastically.
“I composed it,” Chanyeol continues, and the girls are in awe. Sehun has to bite down on the side of his cheek to prevent himself from laughing. “Anyway, we… oppas will enjoy our meals now. You girls be safe!”
It’s only when the girls leave that the boys finally allowed themselves to laugh.
“It’s our hair colour, isn’t it?” Chanyeol mumbles, running his fingers through his silver hair. Truly beautiful. “Can you imagine us as idols? Wow. I can’t wait for those pictures to circulate the internet.”
“Let’s go and see if we can get any discounts for food,” Sehun suggests and they decide on eating Chinese food instead. They pay the original price in the end, feeling bad for the restaurant owners, but they leave the place after signing a few autographs for its owners.
“I think it would be nice if you were a rapper or a singer of a group,” Sehun says conversationally as they begin to make their way home. “You have a really nice and deep voice.”
Chanyeol laughs in agreement. “But I can’t dance for shit.”
“That’s why you have Chaejin as a sister,” Sehun hums, deep in thought. “I used to be a dancer.”
“Yeah, but dancers also need to have lines in groups,” Chanyeol reminds him.
“I can rap,” Sehun answers, and Chanyeol smiles at how seriously the younger is taking this idea. “What? Why not,” he says, seeing the look on Chanyeol’s face. “Wouldn’t it be cool for us to be in a group, doing what we like doing, seeing so many fans support us and care for us? We could inspire people, slowly take on the world doing the things we love, you and I.”
Chanyeol has to admit that it does sound good. He decides to ruffle Sehun’s hair as an answer, along with another insult for his red hair (a Stop sign), and wonders why in this journey of dyeing his hair silver, the feeling that is consuming him is one that is warm and comfortable, rather than a feeling that’s worrisome and fearful.
~~
“Why am I the one with you on this again?” Jongin asks for the nth time as he pays for his and Chaejin’s popcorn and drinks, as Chaejin tugs on his hand, not taking note of the food that Jongin is carrying.
“Because,” Chaejin mutters, not finishing her sentence. It’s only been a week since they made up their list, and Chaejin has already started on hers (which are namely numbers two and four). “Thanks for coming out with me, Jongin.”
The boy in question only blinks at her. “You didn’t give me much of a choice.”
“I asked you, that was giving you a choice,” Chaejin says, looking somewhat hurt. Their plan to go out and watch a movie is on a very short notice, and it’s only possible to do it now that Chanyeol has fallen asleep earlier than usual, probably tired from his football practice.
“More like persuaded me,” Jongin says with a sigh as Chaejin leads him to their seats. The movie is Insidious 3, and if only it wasn’t Chaejin who asked, Jongin never would have thought he would see this film in his entire life, but he would never tell her that.
The lights dim and the movie begins with Jongin’s hand on top of Chaejin’s. The girl shoots him a look, but all Jongin says is, “it’s a precaution. Just in case it gets too dark later and you can’t see my hand and you might want to hold it.”
Chaejin looks half unconvinced and half flattered by his consideration, and Jongin lets out a sigh of relief as the movie starts and Jongin’s life begins to fall apart. Even though he and Chaejin have only known each other for a year, he considers her as his best friend from the day that they began to connect. He supposes that the relationship between best friends is not something that can be defined by time, but the empathy between two souls. Chaejin knows him better than anyone else, but he would prefer it if Chaejin didn’t know about his fear of horror movies.
Unfortunately, this proves to be quite difficult whenever intense or suspenseful music comes on, and all Jongin can do is squirm on his seat and hold onto Chaejin’s hand tightly. Jongin is that viewer that gets surprised at anything and everything, and he’s certain that the people watching behind him must be laughing at him.
When the movie ends, it takes Jongin a few moments why he had agreed to go out in the first place. He turns to face Chaejin who is looking at him with an odd expression on her face. “What’s wrong? Did it scare you?”
“No,” Chaejin says with a light tone mixed with disappointment. She smiles at Jongin and asks, “did it scare you?” Jongin opens and closes his mouth like a fish, and Chaejin can’t help but laugh.
“You were so cute during the movie. I mean, it wasn’t really scary for me, but it looked like you were really into it. I guess watching scary movies isn’t going to scare Chanyeol, seeing as how I just sat through that… but I might be speaking too soon. Do you want to have a horror movie marathon?”
Seeing the ghastly look on Jongin’s face, Chaejin laughs and wraps an arm around him, keeping him steady as they begin to leave the cinema. “I’m kidding. I got you, Jongin, no need to be scared.”
The grateful smile on Jongin’s lips makes Chaejin feel a different emotion, and it’s not the same emotion that she was hoping to get in the first place.
~~
They find themselves buried in tests and assignments in the following weeks, to the point that their maximum hours of sleep is three hours. As the midterms creep up, Chanyeol is convinced that coffee can be found in Chaejin's blood. His twin sister acts as the optimist, always cheering everyone on and giving praise for their hard work. During this time, Chanyeol is the loud, happy-go-lucky guy. He laughs at everything that everyone says, his laughter becomes louder every time and Sehun thinks it's a matter of time until Chanyeol cries. Jongin, on the other hand, is the one who is evidently calm but judging from the bags under his eyes, anyone can tell that he hasn't had a peaceful sleep in God knows how long. Sehun is the spectator of it all, also known as ‘I will only give a shit the night before the exam.’
It's 6:30 A.M., and Chanyeol walks to his school alone, his body sore and eyes too heavy, wondering how the football team expects him - any of them - to be training during this strenuous time. He walks past Sehun and Jongin's classroom, only to find that Sehun is nowhere to be found but Jongin is asleep on top of his notes.
Chanyeol removes the pile of notes underneath Jongin's head, taking care not to leave wrinkles. He eyes Jongin's bag, looks at his friend, before focusing on the bag once again. He takes out a packed lunch that he had prepared just before he left home, and he crouches down to unzip Jongin's bag to find that there's already a packed lunch inside, covered by a familiar-looking handkerchief. Chaejin's.
Chanyeol decides to leave his own packed lunch there anyway, claiming that Jongin is a growing boy and needs all the food and sleep that he can get. He stands up and he brings his hand just before Jongin's face, contemplating whether he should ruffle the younger boy's hair.
“Chanyeol,” calls out a voice. It's a hushed whisper, but clearly audible. Chanyeol's hand jerks away from Jongin as he looks up to the boy standing in the doorway with an unimpressed expression on his face. Sehun.
“Oh, hey,” Chanyeol says in a soft tone, joining Sehun shortly, careful not to wake Jongin. He closes the classroom door softly behind him, smiling at the sight of a sleeping Jongin before he turns to look at Sehun who looks like he ate something sour. “What?”
Sehun's lips curl in distaste before he breaks out into a smile. “Nothing. Let's go.”
~~
They celebrate the end of their midterms at the Parks’ restaurant. Chanyeol and Chaejin’s mom welcome Sehun and Jongin as her own children, immediately serving them with side dishes, knowing the hardships they’ve gone through in the past few weeks.
“Let’s not even talk about it,” Sehun says, eyeing the egg roll. He gets his chopsticks and tries to pick one up, only to have Chaejin steal it. Sehun groans and tries to take another one, but Jongin beats him to it. Sehun looks at Chanyeol, glances at the last egg roll, and the oldest shrugs before getting the egg roll with his own chopsticks. Sehun slumps in his seat until Chanyeol nudges him and feeds him the egg roll. Sehun can hear Chaejin’s gagging noises, but he doesn’t care at this point. He’s so damn hungry.
“Easy for you to say,” Jongin replies after chewing his food. “You only have to pass so that you can stay in the team.”
Sehun shrugs. “We all work on things at our own paces. Speaking of which,” he pauses to grab some kimchi before the others get the chance, “how’s the list?”
“Actually, Jongin and I have already watched a horror movie,” Chaejin begins, and Sehun hums contemplatively. “We watched Insidious 3, and-”
“You...what?” Sehun asks, putting his chopsticks down. Chaejin has his full attention now, and Chanyeol isn’t sure if he likes the look in Sehun’s eyes. “You’ve watched it? Without me? I thought you would have watched the older movies before going to the theatres to see one. I can’t believe I missed out on it!”
The smile that spreads on Chaejin’s face is contagious. Chanyeol can feel the excitement bubbling in her chest and his, but he doesn’t know what to feel about it. “I haven’t watched the older movies yet, though! I’ve only watched that movie but I liked it, I didn’t really find anything scary. Jongin, on the other hand…”
“I’m not a fan of scary movies,” Jongin says, dejectedly. He makes eye contact with Chanyeol, knowing that they are able to empathise with each other. Sehun and Chaejin, however, engage themselves in a rather exciting and thrilling discussion about holding a marathon.
“Chae, you and I should just watch as many horror movies as possible,” Sehun offers, and something stirs in the pit of Chanyeol’s stomach. It’s unpleasant and he feels apprehensive, but he dismisses it as his hunger instead.
Chaejin laughs at that. “Yeah? When are you free?”
“Seriously?” Sehun’s eyes light up as he leans across the table to smile at Chaejin. Jongin eyes their youngest warily. “I’m free after trainings on weekends. They’re usually held for calculus tutoring, but I’m sure I’ll be fine without them for the mean time since the midterms are done.”
“But you need to keep up with calculus,” Chanyeol argues weakly. Jongin quietly nods his head in agreement. “Just because the midterms are over doesn’t mean that calculus stops being important.”
“I know,” Sehun agrees, “But we’ve been working so hard and since Chae doesn’t get scared of them and rather enjoys them, I think it would be pretty fun. You won’t have to deal with being scared, and I can finally have a horror movie marathon with somebody.”
Well, when you put it like that, Chanyeol hesitates as he looks at Jongin, begging the younger to come up with a comeback, but they’re both speechless. Sehun and Chaejin continue to talk about their preferences, whereas Chanyeol sinks deeper and deeper into his seat until Chaejin gives him a smile that looks anything but innocent and oblivious. Chanyeol sits up at the sight of it, but Chaejin only continues to talk to Chanyeol’s best friend.
~~
If someone asks Chanyeol if he’s been sulking, he would lie and say no, why would he be? Despite the fact that his best friend is spending a lot of time recently in his house - with his sister instead of him, Chanyeol feels like something’s off, like it’s something that should be forbidden but it isn’t. When he hears Sehun and Chaejin laughing at something in Chaejin’s room for the nth time, Chanyeol decides that this is it, this is the very last straw.
Chanyeol calls for an important meeting the next day, to which the three attend without any problems. They eat at their parents’ restaurant once again, only this time, Mr Park somewhat teases and scolds Sehun for spending too much time with his daughter. The feeling that rises in Chanyeol’s stomach is an unpleasant one.
“Can’t let this happen, can you, Jongin?” Mrs Park says with a teasing tone, complete with the wink. Chaejin raises a curious eyebrow at Jongin who avoids her gaze by deciding that the painted walls are very attractive.
Once they’ve finally ordered for the usual, Sehun leans across the table, ready to get into another conversation with Chaejin, when Chanyeol finally opens his mouth and very wisely says, “Careless Whisper.”
“I… Sorry?” Sehun asks, leaning away from Chaejin to look at him. The tips of Chanyeol’s ears turn red, unable to handle the sudden embarrassment that’s threatening to swallow him whole.
“Careless Whisper,” Chanyeol repeats after a long breath. He has their attention now. “It’s a song. That sexy background music. I was thinking for the third task of embarrassing ourselves and not caring about reputation - we should dance to Careless Whisper but with serious expressions.”
Sehun does a double-take at Chanyeol. “I thought you said you can’t dance.”
Chanyeol winks at him, which looks like an eye twitch instead. “Exactly.”
Sehun laughs at the failed attempt and the sound of the idea, but he laughs even harder when Chanyeol plays the song on his phone and he begins to dance to the song. Once Chaejin and Jongin get the feel of the song, they join in on the dance.
Chanyeol raises his hand to his head, rolling his body in time with the beat. He meets Sehun’s eyes, which are staring at him in amusement and something like adoration, and Chanyeol wants to stop what he’s doing and ask what that look means. But he can’t stop now that the music is continuing to make his friends laugh, and Sehun’s eyes are on him. There’s a weird feeling stirring in Chanyeol’s stomach, but he loves to dismiss it as his hunger. As usual.
►
Title: Crash, fall down (i’ll wrap my arms around you now)
Pairing(s): Chanyeol/Sehun, Fem!Chanyeol/Kai
Rating: PG-13
Warning(s): language
Length: 11.7k
Summary: High school seniors Park Chanyeol and Park Chaejin come up with a list of things to do before their high school experience come to an end.
Author's note: To my lovely recipient, I hope you like this! I’m sorry if it didn’t turn out the way you wanted it, but I hope you enjoy this anyway! I definitely enjoyed bringing a fem!pcy into life, so thank you so much for the beautiful prompt. Thank you, M, for the words of encouragement and support through it all, and of course, thank you to the YPD mod for being patient and allowing me to be a part of this exchange! The title is based off a lyric from You Me at Six’s “Crash.”
empathy
noun
the psychological identification with or vicarious experiencing of the feelings, thoughts, or attitudes of another.
--
Four figures stand in two pairs, their shadows become longer with each passing second as the sun begins to set, their hearts beating rapidly out of their chests, unsaid words lingering in the air, waiting to be brought out into the open.
One of these pairs is at the local high school’s dance room, in which an eighteen year old girl is worrying her bottom lip between her teeth as she stands before one of her good friends, a boy who is a year younger than her. The strong and powerful beats that were playing a moment ago were long gone once she turned off the music and tugged on his wrist. Now, he’s giving her worried looks, but there’s something in his says that she can pinpoint as determination, waiting for her to break this silence with the truth.
The other pair is just outside at the school field, in which an eighteen year old boy and his junior of one year are staring at the trail of footsteps they made on the muddy field, more importantly, the distance between them. The wind blows only slightly, and the younger of the pair turns his head to look at the older, worried that they’ll both catch a cold. The taller one puts a calming hand on his arm, as if reading his thoughts, but the younger turns to him sharply, and the other retreats his hand. Their eyes scream of desperation, of need, and they’re wondering if one of them is courageous enough.
Even though they’re in different locations, the taller boy at the field and the girl in the dance room take sharp intake of breaths as they close their eyes, willing their hearts to calm down. It’s only then when they feel a slight push in their chest, a feeling of slight relief and comfort, and that’s all they need. The taller boy turns to his junior, just as the girl walks towards the younger boy. The setting of the sun make their distinguishable chocolate brown eyes more defined, almost as the words that come out of their lips.
“I love you.”
--
Most times, Park Chanyeol wishes that he bought that Pikachu alarm clock that he saw in an anime convention, or that alarm clock that plays songs when it goes off. Anything, and he means anything, would be better than waking up to the weight of his twin sister on top of him as she thinks of another way to get him to start his day.
“Chae, get off,” Chanyeol grumbles as he buries his head into his pillow. Park Chaejin stares at her brother for a moment before she shifts on his bed, adding more weight onto his back. Chanyeol grunts as he says, “Alright, I’m awake!” and looks for his phone to check the time. This is Chaejin’s cue to get off his bed but can’t leave his room without fulfilling her purpose, so she retreats to the far corner, next to his beloved sports trophies.
“Fucking hell,” Chanyeol doesn’t have the energy to raise his voice because one - he just woke up, two - it’s 6:30 A.M. and three - it’s a Saturday. Chaejin gives him a shy smile, happy at the safety that his guitar provides. She raises her hand in a meek wave.
“Good morning.”
He sits up and doesn’t bother to argue, knowing that it would prove to be pointless. Chaejin uses this knowledge to her advantage more than Chanyeol would like, but of course as the older twin, it’s an unwritten law that he must tolerate her. So, like always, he gets straight to the point.
“What do you want?”
Chaejin steps out, but carries the trophy that reads ‘Player of the Year' for good measure. Chanyeol rolls his eyes but sits up anyway, ready to listen to his sister’s demands no matter how ungodly the hour is. He just wants to get this over and done with so he can go back to sleep.
“Can you lend me some clothes?” She asks with a sweet smile on her face. Chanyeol scrutinises her but she brushes it off easily. “I know you don’t like me going through your things, so I was polite enough to ask-”
“By lying on top of me?”
“-and I have dance practice in about thirty minutes, so I need it soon, and don’t forget that you also have to meet up with Sehun in an hour-”
“Shit,” Chanyeol scrambles up from his bed, suddenly remembering that he has to take a shower, get changed, and cook breakfast for himself and his best friend. He heads to his closet, taking out his spare clothes to hand to Chaejin. She smiles and opens her mouth to say her thanks, but he waves her off as he searches for appropriate clothing for himself. Chanyeol looks over his shoulder to see that Chaejin is making her way out of his room, but not before he calls out, “have fun at the dance practice. Don’t injure yourself again, and have a nice day.”
Chaejin huffs at that last piece of advice. “You’re just saying that for yourself.”
Chanyeol smiles for the first time that day. “Yeah, well, what can we do? The more happiness the better, right?” He is met with narrowed, suspicious eyes, and a mumble that vaguely sounds like, “yeah, you too,” and Chaejin closes the door, leaving him with a faint smile on his face.
~~
Park Chanyeol and Park Chaejin are identical twins, with Chanyeol only six minutes older than Chaejin. He never lets her forget it, along with their twenty centimetre difference in height. They have the similar wide, brown eyes and toothy grins, and the pointy ears that manage to attract other people’s attention if their loud voices aren’t enough to do so. (It’s a really touchy subject for Chaejin, who claims that her brother can pull it off because girls call it cute, but on Chaejin, it’s just a disaster. Thank God for her long hair.)
Adults who have identical twins as their children would tell them that their similarities stop at their appearances. This is where they are wrong, but neither Chaejin or Chanyeol ever make the effort of correcting them. Biologists would say that identical twins form strong bonds between them, and the Park twins would agree, but they wouldn’t say what they agree on.
For as long as Chaejin has known, she has always tried to have a positive outlook on life. She’s not the smartest student, but she’s healthy with a big circle of friends and connections, so she’s more than content with what she has. With her hands full of homemade lunch boxes, Chaejin pushes the dance room door open with her shoulder. She nods her head along to the music as she makes her way across the room, smiling as she notices her friends turning their heads, mesmerised by the scent of the meals. She’s proud of their reactions, feeling flattered that they acknowledge her skill in cooking. It’s a skill that she’s worked so hard to get - all those summer vacations in which she had to bribe her brother into sharing his knowledge with her.
“What’s all this?” Jongin eyes the lunch boxes and frowns. He has a fairly good idea about it, but he doesn’t want his suspicions to be true. Nonetheless, she answers truthfully, and yup, he was right.
“It’s for all of you hard-working dancers. That includes you, too,” Chaejin says with narrowing eyes as she sees Jongin hesitate. She takes in Jongin’s black track pants that hide his legs, but the tank top that he’s wearing tells her that he hasn’t been eating properly lately. Along with the dark circles underneath his eyes, Chaejin can’t help but worry for her junior. Jongin shies away from her gaze, knowing that she’s bound to bring it up to Chanyeol again, who is one of Jongin’s closest friends. He’s too tired to argue and honestly, he does need the nutrients so he sits down and takes the box and a pair of chopsticks, after thanking her sincerely. She smiles and fondly ruffles his hair before she stands alone in the dance floor, her gaze locking on her reflection, just as music begins to play and she lets herself get carried away.
~~
If it’s dance for Chaejin, it’s football for Chanyeol.
Despite the occasional episodes showcasing Chanyeol’s clumsiness, he makes a pretty good athlete, a valuable player to their team. If there’s one thing that Chanyeol is always praised for, it’s his diligence. He can still remember how three years ago, the past team leader had said that he wasn’t fit enough for the team, turning him away from the prestigious title of a team member. Chanyeol came back the next year with stronger muscles and a much better stamina, and it’s one of the years in which their school’s football team received the title of ‘Sports Team of the Year.’
Sehun appears at his doorstep a few moments later. Chanyeol hears his best friend before he sees him. Oh Sehun’s face is passive, but his stomach is growling with aggression that as a self-proclaimed chef, Chanyeol cannot ignore. As a guest, Sehun sets out the plates and the cups as Chanyeol brings forth the freshly cooked traditional breakfast for the younger.
“I’m so hungry,” Sehun grumbles, bowing and giving thanks for the food before digging in with his chopsticks.
“Didn’t you say you ate breakfast?”
“But your cooking is so much better,” Sehun says with his mouth full. Chanyeol passes on some napkins, which the younger takes gratefully. Chanyeol can’t say that he isn’t pleased - after all, food is the way to one’s heart, or soul, or something in between.
Chanyeol gives him a slightly worried look. “You said that you’re here because you need me to teach you calculus, but also to help you train for the upcoming game, since you’ve been sick because of your hay fever.”
“Yeah,” Sehun says, eyeing the piece of meat on Chanyeol’s plate. The older sighs and passes his plate forward, and Sehun’s chopsticks are swifter than his running pace. When Chanyeol had commented on his athleticism in the past, Sehun had looked at him with a serious look on his face as he said, “it does not matter how slow you go as long as you do not stop.” It does, however, matter when it’s the final game of the year and there are four guys coming after you when you’re holding the ball.
Being best friends with Sehun is easy. Despite the difference in their age, the two boys find it easy to communicate with each other than anybody else. After all, who else would understand Chanyeol when he pranked Sehun by putting lotion in Sehun’s supposed shampoo bottle, and who else would prank Chanyeol back by cutting off the sleeves of the shirt that he’s supposed to wear to look professional? No one else but Sehun.
They became friends because when Sehun started in high school, he reminded Chanyeol of himself. Sehun struggled to fit in and find his passion, but when he did, he was told that he wasn’t good enough. Chanyeol remembers the look of anxiety and vulnerability in Sehun’s eyes, even to this very day, and it’s with Chanyeol’s help and Sehun’s motivation that the younger managed to make it into the team.
Sehun groans for the fifth time that morning when he mulls over a calculus problem, not understanding why a function needs to be integrated when graphics calculators exist. It’s the tenth and final problem of the day, and Chanyeol can’t help but take pity on the boy.
“Come on, Sehun-ah, you’re almost there.”
Sehun wonders if throwing a ruler at his best friend’s ears would make them shorter.
“I heard that,” Chanyeol grumbles, feigning offence as he covers his ears with his hands.
Sehun shakes his head, the smile remains on his face only it changes from a teasing smile to a more fond one. Chanyeol pretends to not notice.
~~
It almost seems impossible that in a few months, Park Chanyeol and Park Chaejin are graduating from high school, leaving Jongin and Sehun behind to deal with their own senior year. Unfortunately for the twins, whereas the other years of high school have dragged on so painfully slow, their final year seems to be running faster than anything they had ever laid their eyes on. It’s disorienting, exciting, and somewhat disappointing to find that their high school lives are ending in a few months, and there are still things that they hadn’t done.
“I haven’t been kissed,” Chaejin says during one lunch time. Sehun raises an eyebrow at her, questioning the relevance of the statement, whereas Jongin starts to cough up his soup and Chanyeol looks like it’s a topic he would rather not talk about.
“No, thank you,” Chanyeol politely declines the ideas that begin to take form in his sister’s head. “When you kiss someone, please do it when I’m asleep.”
Sehun laughs at his best friend’s comment and turns to ask, “why? Are you afraid you’ll get the sudden urge to kiss and you’ll end up making out with your pillow?”
“Doesn’t he already do that?” Jongin asks, and Chanyeol glares at him.
Chaejin slams her palms down on the table. “Exactly. That’s what’s wrong. Not that I haven’t been kissed, but the fact that we’re letting this special … connection stop us from doing things that we want to do.”
“You really want to kiss someone?” Chanyeol asks in surprise. “Why don’t you go to the school fair and to their kissing booth or something?”
“It was just an example,” Chaejin says, furrowing her brows. “Not everything is about romance. For example, I still can’t watch horror movies because Chanyeol pisses his pants whenever we do.”
Jongin blinks, wondering why it’s such a dilemma when the solution seems so simple. “Why don’t you just watch it when you’re not in the same room?”
Chaejin and Chanyeol let out an exasperated sigh, and Sehun pats Jongin in the arm in a condescending manner. Jongin had been their last addition to their group. He was a transfer to their school only a year ago, and the four teenagers have been able to click well ever since.
“He would still be scared shitless,” Chaejin answers, casting a somewhat worried look at his brother. “We don’t want baby Chanyeol to be scared shitless.”
Sehun smirks at the comment, before leaning in towards the table and asking, “Why don’t you just create a list of things you want to experience, then? The things that you’ve always wanted to do but have been too scared to do because of your twin’s emotions… if you get what I mean?”
“Wow,” Chaejin says, blinking at his words. “You actually said something useful.”
“Alright, so what would you put on your list?”
Chanyeol and Chaejin exchange looks for a few moments, before respectively getting out pieces of paper and pens as they write down their list, as follows:
1. Do something that can get me in trouble. (at school, nothing too serious)
2. Watch a horror movie.
3. Do something embarrassing or something that risks my reputation.
4. Bungee jump.
The four friends look at the short list, satisfied with themselves. They ignore other emotions such as anger and jealousy, and decide on when and how they should carry out the following tasks, completely convinced that everything will go according to their plans.
But falling in love is not a part of their plan.
~~
“Are you sure about this?” Chanyeol asks as he takes out his card to pay for his purchases. Chaejin looks somewhat excited, Jongin appears to be intimidated, but the knowing smirk on Sehun’s face says that there is no way out of this.
“Positive,” Sehun says, tugging on the plastic bag as the group of four leave the shop with somewhat satisfied but doubtful looks on their faces. Not one of them can deny that they’re all anticipating how this would turn out, though. This is something new, somewhat dangerous, exciting and rebellious which is how teenagers are stereotyped to act. They’ll certainly give the adults something to talk about.
~~
“I can’t believe we’re doing this,” Chanyeol says as he throws his bag over his shoulder, looking at Sehun who takes confident strides as they walk to school.
His best friend merely smiles. “You worry too much, hyung,” Sehun says, reaching out to pat Chanyeol in the head, indirectly making another joke about their non-existent height difference. Damn puberty.
Chaejin isn’t quite sure about what to do with all the attention they’re getting as students from left, right and centre turn to look at their group. If you can’t beat it, you might as well work it, Chaejin thinks as she flips her hair, making Jongin laugh. They don’t even make it to the front doors of the school when one of the teachers pull them aside, immediately ranting about breaking the school’s rules about uniform.
Chanyeol looks at the teacher contemplatively. Sure, the teacher has a point that students should have natural hair colours and shouldn’t dye it to their liking, but he thinks he looks pretty good with the silver hair on his head. With no further discussions, the four friends get a detention slip, determining their plans for tomorrow after school.
~~
As the older twin, Park Chanyeol has tried his best to not get into any serious trouble. Chaejin, sharing his sentiments, does the same. Chanyeol can remember breaking one of their mum’s beloved glass figurines when he was younger. His mother telling him off felt like it was the end of the world, and in return, Chaejin couldn’t help but cry along with her twin brother. Since then, Chanyeol and Chaejin have tried their best to make sure that they don’t do anything reckless which could land either of them in a difficult situation, for the sake of their own sanity.
“I still don’t understand how we got a detention,” Chaejin starts conversationally in the next hour that they’ll be spending together, “I think my hair looks pretty cool.”
Chanyeol eyes his younger sister. He agrees that her pink hair with blue and purple tips does look amazing, and the grin that’s been on her face since she got it done is a bonus.
Sehun runs his fingers through his red hair, and Chanyeol can’t stop himself from laughing from seeing his best friend’s hair. He doesn’t think he’s laughed this much since the lotion incident.
“What?” Sehun asks.
“It’s like there’s a tomato on your head, I swear,” Chanyeol answers.
Chaejin hums. “More like a strawberry.”
“If you wear a green shirt, you could be a walking watermelon,” Jongin adds as his input. Sehun groans and decides that the desk seems like a good object to hide his face with.
“And now you look like a wilted apple,” Chanyeol says.
“Shut up,” Sehun deadpans, but the three other teenagers find it difficult to stop making fun of the red hair, until Sehun snaps and tells them to talk about Jongin’s pink hair instead.
“I don’t know,” Chanyeol says contemplatively, “Jongin’s hair looks quite cool.” Jongin does a hair flip as to showcase his point, and Sehun continues to bury his head into the desk, hoping it would swallow him whole into another dimension.
When detention ends, Chaejin and Jongin excuse themselves to a dance practice, whereas Sehun and Chanyeol decide to roam through the streets and buy food. They’re outside standing between a traditional Korean restaurant and a Chinese restaurant, arguing about which would be a better option, when two girls approach them asking for their autograph. The two best friends exchange incredulous looks, but sign their phones and autograph books anyway.
“Do you like our new song?” Chanyeol asks, and Sehun plays along by posing for pictures with the girls.
“Oh, we love it!” one of them says enthusiastically.
“I composed it,” Chanyeol continues, and the girls are in awe. Sehun has to bite down on the side of his cheek to prevent himself from laughing. “Anyway, we… oppas will enjoy our meals now. You girls be safe!”
It’s only when the girls leave that the boys finally allowed themselves to laugh.
“It’s our hair colour, isn’t it?” Chanyeol mumbles, running his fingers through his silver hair. Truly beautiful. “Can you imagine us as idols? Wow. I can’t wait for those pictures to circulate the internet.”
“Let’s go and see if we can get any discounts for food,” Sehun suggests and they decide on eating Chinese food instead. They pay the original price in the end, feeling bad for the restaurant owners, but they leave the place after signing a few autographs for its owners.
“I think it would be nice if you were a rapper or a singer of a group,” Sehun says conversationally as they begin to make their way home. “You have a really nice and deep voice.”
Chanyeol laughs in agreement. “But I can’t dance for shit.”
“That’s why you have Chaejin as a sister,” Sehun hums, deep in thought. “I used to be a dancer.”
“Yeah, but dancers also need to have lines in groups,” Chanyeol reminds him.
“I can rap,” Sehun answers, and Chanyeol smiles at how seriously the younger is taking this idea. “What? Why not,” he says, seeing the look on Chanyeol’s face. “Wouldn’t it be cool for us to be in a group, doing what we like doing, seeing so many fans support us and care for us? We could inspire people, slowly take on the world doing the things we love, you and I.”
Chanyeol has to admit that it does sound good. He decides to ruffle Sehun’s hair as an answer, along with another insult for his red hair (a Stop sign), and wonders why in this journey of dyeing his hair silver, the feeling that is consuming him is one that is warm and comfortable, rather than a feeling that’s worrisome and fearful.
~~
“Why am I the one with you on this again?” Jongin asks for the nth time as he pays for his and Chaejin’s popcorn and drinks, as Chaejin tugs on his hand, not taking note of the food that Jongin is carrying.
“Because,” Chaejin mutters, not finishing her sentence. It’s only been a week since they made up their list, and Chaejin has already started on hers (which are namely numbers two and four). “Thanks for coming out with me, Jongin.”
The boy in question only blinks at her. “You didn’t give me much of a choice.”
“I asked you, that was giving you a choice,” Chaejin says, looking somewhat hurt. Their plan to go out and watch a movie is on a very short notice, and it’s only possible to do it now that Chanyeol has fallen asleep earlier than usual, probably tired from his football practice.
“More like persuaded me,” Jongin says with a sigh as Chaejin leads him to their seats. The movie is Insidious 3, and if only it wasn’t Chaejin who asked, Jongin never would have thought he would see this film in his entire life, but he would never tell her that.
The lights dim and the movie begins with Jongin’s hand on top of Chaejin’s. The girl shoots him a look, but all Jongin says is, “it’s a precaution. Just in case it gets too dark later and you can’t see my hand and you might want to hold it.”
Chaejin looks half unconvinced and half flattered by his consideration, and Jongin lets out a sigh of relief as the movie starts and Jongin’s life begins to fall apart. Even though he and Chaejin have only known each other for a year, he considers her as his best friend from the day that they began to connect. He supposes that the relationship between best friends is not something that can be defined by time, but the empathy between two souls. Chaejin knows him better than anyone else, but he would prefer it if Chaejin didn’t know about his fear of horror movies.
Unfortunately, this proves to be quite difficult whenever intense or suspenseful music comes on, and all Jongin can do is squirm on his seat and hold onto Chaejin’s hand tightly. Jongin is that viewer that gets surprised at anything and everything, and he’s certain that the people watching behind him must be laughing at him.
When the movie ends, it takes Jongin a few moments why he had agreed to go out in the first place. He turns to face Chaejin who is looking at him with an odd expression on her face. “What’s wrong? Did it scare you?”
“No,” Chaejin says with a light tone mixed with disappointment. She smiles at Jongin and asks, “did it scare you?” Jongin opens and closes his mouth like a fish, and Chaejin can’t help but laugh.
“You were so cute during the movie. I mean, it wasn’t really scary for me, but it looked like you were really into it. I guess watching scary movies isn’t going to scare Chanyeol, seeing as how I just sat through that… but I might be speaking too soon. Do you want to have a horror movie marathon?”
Seeing the ghastly look on Jongin’s face, Chaejin laughs and wraps an arm around him, keeping him steady as they begin to leave the cinema. “I’m kidding. I got you, Jongin, no need to be scared.”
The grateful smile on Jongin’s lips makes Chaejin feel a different emotion, and it’s not the same emotion that she was hoping to get in the first place.
~~
They find themselves buried in tests and assignments in the following weeks, to the point that their maximum hours of sleep is three hours. As the midterms creep up, Chanyeol is convinced that coffee can be found in Chaejin's blood. His twin sister acts as the optimist, always cheering everyone on and giving praise for their hard work. During this time, Chanyeol is the loud, happy-go-lucky guy. He laughs at everything that everyone says, his laughter becomes louder every time and Sehun thinks it's a matter of time until Chanyeol cries. Jongin, on the other hand, is the one who is evidently calm but judging from the bags under his eyes, anyone can tell that he hasn't had a peaceful sleep in God knows how long. Sehun is the spectator of it all, also known as ‘I will only give a shit the night before the exam.’
It's 6:30 A.M., and Chanyeol walks to his school alone, his body sore and eyes too heavy, wondering how the football team expects him - any of them - to be training during this strenuous time. He walks past Sehun and Jongin's classroom, only to find that Sehun is nowhere to be found but Jongin is asleep on top of his notes.
Chanyeol removes the pile of notes underneath Jongin's head, taking care not to leave wrinkles. He eyes Jongin's bag, looks at his friend, before focusing on the bag once again. He takes out a packed lunch that he had prepared just before he left home, and he crouches down to unzip Jongin's bag to find that there's already a packed lunch inside, covered by a familiar-looking handkerchief. Chaejin's.
Chanyeol decides to leave his own packed lunch there anyway, claiming that Jongin is a growing boy and needs all the food and sleep that he can get. He stands up and he brings his hand just before Jongin's face, contemplating whether he should ruffle the younger boy's hair.
“Chanyeol,” calls out a voice. It's a hushed whisper, but clearly audible. Chanyeol's hand jerks away from Jongin as he looks up to the boy standing in the doorway with an unimpressed expression on his face. Sehun.
“Oh, hey,” Chanyeol says in a soft tone, joining Sehun shortly, careful not to wake Jongin. He closes the classroom door softly behind him, smiling at the sight of a sleeping Jongin before he turns to look at Sehun who looks like he ate something sour. “What?”
Sehun's lips curl in distaste before he breaks out into a smile. “Nothing. Let's go.”
~~
They celebrate the end of their midterms at the Parks’ restaurant. Chanyeol and Chaejin’s mom welcome Sehun and Jongin as her own children, immediately serving them with side dishes, knowing the hardships they’ve gone through in the past few weeks.
“Let’s not even talk about it,” Sehun says, eyeing the egg roll. He gets his chopsticks and tries to pick one up, only to have Chaejin steal it. Sehun groans and tries to take another one, but Jongin beats him to it. Sehun looks at Chanyeol, glances at the last egg roll, and the oldest shrugs before getting the egg roll with his own chopsticks. Sehun slumps in his seat until Chanyeol nudges him and feeds him the egg roll. Sehun can hear Chaejin’s gagging noises, but he doesn’t care at this point. He’s so damn hungry.
“Easy for you to say,” Jongin replies after chewing his food. “You only have to pass so that you can stay in the team.”
Sehun shrugs. “We all work on things at our own paces. Speaking of which,” he pauses to grab some kimchi before the others get the chance, “how’s the list?”
“Actually, Jongin and I have already watched a horror movie,” Chaejin begins, and Sehun hums contemplatively. “We watched Insidious 3, and-”
“You...what?” Sehun asks, putting his chopsticks down. Chaejin has his full attention now, and Chanyeol isn’t sure if he likes the look in Sehun’s eyes. “You’ve watched it? Without me? I thought you would have watched the older movies before going to the theatres to see one. I can’t believe I missed out on it!”
The smile that spreads on Chaejin’s face is contagious. Chanyeol can feel the excitement bubbling in her chest and his, but he doesn’t know what to feel about it. “I haven’t watched the older movies yet, though! I’ve only watched that movie but I liked it, I didn’t really find anything scary. Jongin, on the other hand…”
“I’m not a fan of scary movies,” Jongin says, dejectedly. He makes eye contact with Chanyeol, knowing that they are able to empathise with each other. Sehun and Chaejin, however, engage themselves in a rather exciting and thrilling discussion about holding a marathon.
“Chae, you and I should just watch as many horror movies as possible,” Sehun offers, and something stirs in the pit of Chanyeol’s stomach. It’s unpleasant and he feels apprehensive, but he dismisses it as his hunger instead.
Chaejin laughs at that. “Yeah? When are you free?”
“Seriously?” Sehun’s eyes light up as he leans across the table to smile at Chaejin. Jongin eyes their youngest warily. “I’m free after trainings on weekends. They’re usually held for calculus tutoring, but I’m sure I’ll be fine without them for the mean time since the midterms are done.”
“But you need to keep up with calculus,” Chanyeol argues weakly. Jongin quietly nods his head in agreement. “Just because the midterms are over doesn’t mean that calculus stops being important.”
“I know,” Sehun agrees, “But we’ve been working so hard and since Chae doesn’t get scared of them and rather enjoys them, I think it would be pretty fun. You won’t have to deal with being scared, and I can finally have a horror movie marathon with somebody.”
Well, when you put it like that, Chanyeol hesitates as he looks at Jongin, begging the younger to come up with a comeback, but they’re both speechless. Sehun and Chaejin continue to talk about their preferences, whereas Chanyeol sinks deeper and deeper into his seat until Chaejin gives him a smile that looks anything but innocent and oblivious. Chanyeol sits up at the sight of it, but Chaejin only continues to talk to Chanyeol’s best friend.
~~
If someone asks Chanyeol if he’s been sulking, he would lie and say no, why would he be? Despite the fact that his best friend is spending a lot of time recently in his house - with his sister instead of him, Chanyeol feels like something’s off, like it’s something that should be forbidden but it isn’t. When he hears Sehun and Chaejin laughing at something in Chaejin’s room for the nth time, Chanyeol decides that this is it, this is the very last straw.
Chanyeol calls for an important meeting the next day, to which the three attend without any problems. They eat at their parents’ restaurant once again, only this time, Mr Park somewhat teases and scolds Sehun for spending too much time with his daughter. The feeling that rises in Chanyeol’s stomach is an unpleasant one.
“Can’t let this happen, can you, Jongin?” Mrs Park says with a teasing tone, complete with the wink. Chaejin raises a curious eyebrow at Jongin who avoids her gaze by deciding that the painted walls are very attractive.
Once they’ve finally ordered for the usual, Sehun leans across the table, ready to get into another conversation with Chaejin, when Chanyeol finally opens his mouth and very wisely says, “Careless Whisper.”
“I… Sorry?” Sehun asks, leaning away from Chaejin to look at him. The tips of Chanyeol’s ears turn red, unable to handle the sudden embarrassment that’s threatening to swallow him whole.
“Careless Whisper,” Chanyeol repeats after a long breath. He has their attention now. “It’s a song. That sexy background music. I was thinking for the third task of embarrassing ourselves and not caring about reputation - we should dance to Careless Whisper but with serious expressions.”
Sehun does a double-take at Chanyeol. “I thought you said you can’t dance.”
Chanyeol winks at him, which looks like an eye twitch instead. “Exactly.”
Sehun laughs at the failed attempt and the sound of the idea, but he laughs even harder when Chanyeol plays the song on his phone and he begins to dance to the song. Once Chaejin and Jongin get the feel of the song, they join in on the dance.
Chanyeol raises his hand to his head, rolling his body in time with the beat. He meets Sehun’s eyes, which are staring at him in amusement and something like adoration, and Chanyeol wants to stop what he’s doing and ask what that look means. But he can’t stop now that the music is continuing to make his friends laugh, and Sehun’s eyes are on him. There’s a weird feeling stirring in Chanyeol’s stomach, but he loves to dismiss it as his hunger. As usual.
►