When Chan re-entered the room, he found Jeongin already awake, sitting on his bed, visibly confused by his surroundings. The older sighed, putting the bowl of cereal onto the nearby table, he came up to the younger taking a sit next to him. After Jeongin had a slight emotional breakdown, he was in no shape or form to drive back to the dorms so Chan took him home to his apartment, the younger tapping out as soon as his head touched the pillow. Now that Jeongin was awake, he didn't look like less of a mess than the evening before, still in his outside clothes, smudged black eyeliner and unruly hair only accentuated his tired and puffy face.
"G'morning Innie, sleep well?" Asked chan as he helped the younger sit up in his covers.
Jeongin stayed silent for a couple second, bringing his hand up to his forehead and hissing at what probably was a headache. "I'm fine...you brought me to your home yesterday?" Chan nodded. "Hyung, you- you didn't have to do that, now your bed probably stinks of weed or some shit, i didn't throw up yesterday now did I?"
This oozed a slight chuckle out of the older as he passed a paper with fuzzy orange liquid to Jeongin. "Here, drink this, it'l get rid of the head pain....and, no, don't worry, you didn't throw up on me."
The boy nodded, taking the cup in both of hands and slowly sipping up the mixture, scrunching his nose at the sour taste. "This sucks, I hate medicine." He finished the rest of it in one flip of his head and coughed a little, wiping his mouth with the length of his sleeve. "Umm, do you mind if I borrow some of your clothes? Mine are fucked up."
Chan offered him a soft smile, standing up to quickly go through his closet and fish out a a white T-shirt and a big brown hoodie that Jeongin will most likely drown in. With a groan of complaint, the younger struggled out of bed and made his way to he shower, taking his friend's clothes with a graceful 'thank you' and disappearing behind the door. Chan sighed, moving his gaze back at the cereal he brought, flakes slowly turning soggy and drowning into the bowl, some still floating around in a slow motion whirlpool. He checked the time, 10 am, morning in full bloom outside of his bedroom window, gracing his boring room with the lively rays of sun which fell upon his furniture through the window.
Soon enough, after the dribbling of shower water ceased, jeongin walked out of the bathroom, his hair wet and glued to his forehead, Chan's white T-shirt swiftly pulled over his upper body as the lower half remained wrapped in a towel. Chan pursed his lips, avoiding to look at the younger as he continued to change and dived his attention firmly into the screen of his phone, occasionally checking messages and early updated feed. He was so engrossed in the task of not lifting his gaze that he failed to notice as Jeongin wandered around his room and stopped besides his desk, eyebrows furrowed as he cautiously peered over some papers.
"Umm, Chan...what's this?" Asked the younger as he turned to face his friend.The other hummed in response, looking up at Jeongin and in a split second the calm air of the room was filled with loud silence. Chan froze up, incapable of moving, he opened his mouth to mutter an explanation but his words piled up against a lump in throat and he only stared dumbly into Jeongin's dark calculating eyes.
It was suffocating, he would've probably already went weak in his knees if he wasn't seated beforehand. "I-"
"Why didn't you tell anyone?" Cut him off Jeongin. "Is this why you've been overworking nights in the studio? does Changbin know? Hyung...does anyone know?"
Chan shook his head, dropping his eyes down to his feet.
"It's next month, how are you even planning to get the money?" Carried on the younger, sliding the student debt back onto Chan's desk, the scary numbers bold on the yellow paper.
"Innie, please. It's my debt, it would be my fault if they'd kick me out."
"How are you planning to get the money Hyung? Have you been saving up?"
"Yeah, I've been saving up for a while now...so there's just a little bit more missing to cover me at least two months forwards. The gig next week, the one that we got, it has promising pay if considering the audience too..."
"Can I help? ...Can anyone help?" Carried on the other, their voices barely above a simple whisper.
The answer was pretty obvious, but the younger still felt the tiny bit more hollow when Chan firmly shook his head and returned him a sad, little smile. He sighed, standing up from his position and stretched his muscles, cracked his knuckles and slowly tidied the papers, hiding the evidence and cause of his insomnia into a drawer and turning the small golden key. His phone buzzed in his pocket and miraculously so, Chan has already regained his composure, typing something in response.
-NotAferret-
Hey, glad you called over, me and
@PixieLixie are happy to come. What time
should we join you guys and who else
is going to be there?
-Channiehyung-
Right, you guys come over at 5, i'll come w innie and i hope
that everyone could make it) )
-NotAferret-
Hahha yeh okay then _(:3」z)_
see u soon today
"Are we going somewhere?" Asked Jeongin when Chan was pulling a black jacket over his shoulders.
The older nodded, offering the younger a confirming smile. "I Feel that you need a little rest now don't you? You cried your yes out yesterday... I'm willing to make this day a little special for you."
Jeongin nodded, pursing his lips and looking around Chan's room another time before taking his own coat and scrunching his nose as he felt a strong scent of smoke still coating its sleeves. The aftertaste of these nights, be it tears, drugs or simple cigarettes always made sure that Jeongin was conscious of their presence, the past weeks giving up on any attempts to rid himself from the action. Today though, he could take Chan's advice and gift himself a day off...the older looked like he could profit from this too, his eye-bags begging for a break from the screen.
♡
Thin paper-flags attached to lamp posts and strapped over trees were being ruthlessly slapped around by the wind, showing off their pretty polka-dot pattern and flashing their bright straps before the entrance. The gates themselves were rather old and rusty, leading into a poorly constructed theme park to which people only ever went because of the street food that it sold before the slow roundabouts and rides for kids above three. The whole place was way more centered around food other than entertainment but even so - gained popularity over the loops of time and was in fact, often crowded.
The park opened every year once spring blooms its gentle pink flowers all across Seoul and the streets would be packed with pre-paid billboards signing for everyone to have fun among the marketable plushies and mechanic slides.
Seungmin eyed the invitational posters with a curved brow, his hands stuffed into the big pockets of his hoodie. "Are you sure? The fucking theme park?"
Changbin shrugged, a little smile painted on his lips. "Why not? We used to go here before like...last spring too, who knows maybe it's becoming a tradition. I actually feel its good for us, to let go for once. I'm so fucked out after the past week and well... you have been fucked out for the past year Minnie."
The other let out a little chuckle, turning his attention to his friend. "I guess you're right, I'm pretty grateful that you keep dragging me out."
