Stray

two

Namjoon is bored out of his mind. He's been watching cartoons all day, engulfed in his fluffy quilt as he adjusts his glasses once in a while.

He turns off the TV as he's craving some deliciously cooked instant noodles. He opens his drawer, seeing dust. Nothing else. The man groans loudly, but proceeds to collect his car keys and off he drives to the nearest store.

His feet naturally guides him onto the noodle aisle when he arrives, body running faster than his mind. When he reaches the aisle, his hands automatically favour for his favourite, cheese ramyeon. He lets out a relieved sigh after placing a big box into the shopping cart.

He wanders for a while, going from one aisle to another to cross off his grocery list. Letting himself have a small adventure along the store, Joon skims through each bizzare stuff he finds until he sees a familiar bundle of hair peeking through the opposite end of the shelf.

"Papa, can you get me this?," a small girl with pigtails points to one of the toys. Namjoon's vision wasn't the best due the the boxes blocking him. Curiosity got the best of him, so the man leans in, peeking through the small gaps of the shelves.

"But we got you your hamster pillow last week, baby," he says, rubbing his nose onto her little one's, "Papa promises you'll get it for your birthday, okay?"

Jiah nods, a bit disappointed but nevertheless she giggles as her dad pokes her waist. Right after, their footsteps go smaller and smaller until they can no longer be heard. Namjoon being clumsy, stumbles forward, almost knocking himself onto the shelf. Luckily, his reflex was quick. He only dropped a few boxes.

Namjoon curses under his breath.

With long legs, he smoothly strides to the opposite aisle. The shelf was like a kids' dream, toys ranging from various dolls to water guns to plastic cooking sets. Namjoon doesn't know why he's doing this, but he feels the need to buy Jiah the toy. He ponders for a few minutes before deciding on one -hopefully the one which Jiah wanted. He sets off to the cashier and pays for his things.

As he strolls out of the store, he glances at the gift inside the bag, a small smile playing on his lips.

"I'm home!", Namjoon shouts as he closes the door, not forgetting to lock it this time.

"Hyung! You're back," his little brother Taehyung leans on the wall, amused as Namjoon takes out things from the plastic bag. Besides the ramyeon and the toy, he bought other groceries and a velvet beret for Taehyung.

Taehyung's eyes immediately widens at the hat, sparkling. He stares into the mirror, striking some confident poses that makes his brother laugh. "You look good, Tae, as always."

"Thanks, hyung," he grins his signature square smile. "Also, what'd you get here? Wha-what is this? Is this a cooking set? Hyung I-I'm not a kid anymore, you know I left that dream years ago—"

"That's not for you," Namjoon says hastily, snatching the box from Taehyung and shielding it with his arms. Taehyung blinks, a little offended.

"Who's it for then?"

"My student. She likes cooking, just like you do."

"Aren't they like 3 or something?"

Namjoon rolls his eyes, "yea, whatever. I'm giving it to her because she deserves it."

"And the other kids?", Taehyung mumbles but his brother's not looking at him anymore. Namjoon grins at the gift and walks into his room, almost hitting the door but plays it off cooly, giving it a nice pat. He then places the gift gently on the carpet floor.

Setting his textbooks on the table, Namjoon was about to study when he senses Taehyung's figure on his door. Namjoon knows what comes next. "Wanna watch Finding Dory with me?"

"No. I have to study."

"But hyung~"

"Don't 'but hyung' me, go rent a boyfriend or something."

"Ahh, hyung~," he clicks his tongue, already entertained, "seems to me that you're the one who needs a boyfriend."

"I don't." Namjoon stares at his book despite not being able to concentrate, "I'm single and stable and that's fine with me."

"Why be single and stable when you can mingle with the abled? You get it, like sugar dadd-"

"Yeah, no," Namjoon pushes Taehyung out of his room, struggling to do so as his brother is just as strong as he is. "Alright, alright." Taehyung puts his hands up defensively, "you really want me out. I'm hurt, Hyung." He pouts, sticking out his bread-like cheeks.

"Good talk." The older sends him a sarcastic smile before shutting the door and locking it. Damn, he needs some privacy, which unfortunately isn't in his brother's vocabulary.

Namjoon plops onto the chair again, pulling the book close to him. It's a book about astrology, a subject the man would like to study in university. Truthfully, the only thing holding him back were the kids. Namjoon loves them, their bright individualities and all.

Namjoon studies for a long time, going through thick pages of the book before deciding to take a break. He unlocks the door to find Taehyung sitting on the couch, legs crossed as he watches his favourite movie of all time.

"Come join me, I have popcorn."

"Thanks." The elder takes a seat next to him and enjoys the movie. It's his favourite movie too, but lately he's been busy. Always studying and working. Taehyung sometimes worry for his hyung, he needs to have fun too in his life.

"You good?", Namjoon asks when he notices Taehyung's focus on him and not the movie.

Taehyung hums in return. Eyes on Namjoon, he fills his mouth with popcorn, while watching his every move. "Okay, it's getting creepy here." He pauses the movie. "What do you want? Money? I'll give it to you right now-"

"Relax, I'm fine."

"Stop staring at me then."

"Okay."

Minutes pass.

"Hyung, is it bad that I'm worried for you?"

"That's sweet, Tae, but no I do not need someone. I'm fine being alone."

"What about that girl at the coffee shop last week? Or the guy from the bar? He makes good cocktails—"

"Not interested," he says monotonously. "It's sweet that you care about me, but honestly, I'd rather you find one, not me."

"You know I don't do relationships," the younger shrugs.

"Well you should start having them as a change."

"If I do then will you too?"

"No."

"Then no."

Taehyung grabs his hair in frustration before pressing play, leaving Namjoon satisfied as he's won this little argument. Namjoon walks back into his room and immediately plops on the mattress as he lays on his back.

He sighs.

Relationships are weird.