CALYPSO.

“very good,” jooae commented proudly, nodding her head with approval. “your pronunciation is getting a lot better these days.” she looked around the little boutique once more. she still had several presents she had to get, but at least a couple were knocked off her list. she could already feel her wallet sobbing.

“i think i’m ready to check out here. want to get lunch once we pay? i’m famished.” she stepped in line behind a guy who gave them a strange look that immediately got her on guard. she knew california was one of the more accepting states in america, but the past times she’d visited she’d still gotten dirty looks for speaking korean. perhaps they were just tired of tourists. she preferred to think that way. “are you in the mood for anything in particular? i think i could eat anything at this point.”

at jooae’s approval, noah beamed — it was nice to hear that was improving, when he’d actually been putting in the effort, especially once he’d found out that kostion would be attending kcon. with the help of both taewoo and jooae, he’d gotten much better in quite a short amount of time, even though his language learning skills were pretty low, at best.

With the yawn that sounded from their younger sibling, they couldn’t help feeling a sense of responsibility for him. Part of them wondered if he had planned what was going to happen once he turned up at Bandit’s place. It’d be very in character for Noah to have shown up on a whim. There wasn’t a spare bed, and the rapper wondered if they were to offer him to stay, would he be happy with the couch, or would he be expecting to share the king bed? Something was telling them he’d try and work his way into the bed with the Particle member and the cats.

The hand that previously flicked against Noah’s skull rest gently against his head, running fingers through his hair fondly and letting their nails scratch against his scalp. Absentmindedly they de-tangled a small knot that seemed to have formed, not thinking much about the action. “When are you planning on going home?” They questioned, ignoring the comment about the non-answer, in a way managing to give yet another one. The question wasn’t because they wanted Noah to leave, but it was definitely getting late. “Do you have a schedule tomorrow?”

.

focusing his attention on the hand running through his hair, noah could feel the exhaustion of the day finally start to wear him down — he hadn’t felt this tired when he’d left the dorm earlier, having spent all day moving around to keep up with everyone but, now that his body was taking it’s first break in what felt like ages, his limbs started to feel heavy against bandit’s leg. though he loved to bother his older sibling, he’d still walk back to kostion’s dorms if bandit told him to — he did his best to be nothing more than a nuisance to his sibling, not anything more annoying.

attempting to rub the sleep out of his eyes, noah shrugged at the question. “whenever you want me to.” he answered quietly, lifting his shoulders in a shrug. as much as he liked being in bandit’s apartment, he wouldn’t overstay his welcome — or he’d try not to, realistically. he’d have to leave soon if he didn’t want to get back too late, but he also didn’t want to cut his time with bandit short just yet. if he was being honest, he missed them. “not until later. i think i have to be at company early but no one told me anything.”

     officialkostion  who falls asleep while eating gummies?? only best leader does. #noah

For years, Bandit had learned the hard way how it can feel to have someone you love and adore tear down every aspect about yourself that you even remotely like. It was ironic, how the rapper had gone through that ordeal with their father, and turned out as cold and stubborn as they had. Although, never would they ever depreciate anything someone was excited about. Anything that you feel passion for is worthy of adequate time and attention, even if you don’t like or it or understand it yourself.

While they knew how icy their exterior had become since their relocation to Korea as a teenager, slowly it had been thawing when they were around their brother. They hoped he knew they were trying. 

The older of the two had only been teasing when they commented about his hair. These days, it was near impossible to be the first to do, well, anything. Inspiration comes from many sources, and sometimes maybe that was your sibling. “You wanna know what I think about your hair?” The rapper questioned, flicking the top of Noah’s head, not enough to hurt but enough to annoy him. That’s what siblings do, right? Noah seems to think so, anyway. “As long as you’re happy with it.”

.

despite all their differences, noah truly loves his older sibling — nothing could change that, no matter what. they would always be extremely different people with very different upbringings but noah would always look at bandit as though they put the stars in the sky — he admired them more than anyone, and that was most likely never going to change. he could tell that, although easily annoyed by their younger brother, they were trying with him, trying to give him the time and attention he wanted from no one else but them.

the thought made him happy.

“that’s such a non answer.” the kostion member pouted, huffing at the flicks against his head. not bothering to suppress his yawn, noah pressed his face against his older sibling’s thigh instead of wiping at his eyes. the days since his debut felt never ending, and he missed days were he could actually sleep in later than six am. “you’ve gotten too good at giving non answers, i don’t like it.”

jooae couldn’t help the fond smile that appeared on her face. from the time they’d met years ago, his ability to read, understand, and speak english had improved tenfold. she was proud of him. 

“it’s a political comment,” she told him. “when people are being misogynistic, you know how they might say ‘women belong at home’? it’s playing on that, because the american lawmaking structure is divided into the house of representatives and the senate. so it’s basically saying women belong in government.” she was a little surprised she knew that much, but the lessons from back in school and the way american politics dominated social media had reasserted that information in her mind.

she checked the price on the shirt she was debating before tossing it over her arm with the couple other pieces she’d collected while in the shop. “read it out loud. i want to hear your pronunciation.”

listening to her explanation of the shirt, he tried his best to retain as much of it as possible. his memory wasn’t always the best, but he always tried to actually pay attention when jooae taught him things in english — between her and taewoo, he had learned a few sentences he felt confident in repeating without making feeling like he looked like a fool, and he was thankful for both of their help. 

when jooae took the shirt, noah hesitated for a second before grabbing one in his size, deciding it was worth a purchase. if anything, it would make his mom proud to see him in it, even if he might have to explain it to her the same way jooae had just done for him.

areum continued to munch on her pocky sticks, careful not to disturb the face mask she had on as she snacked. she knew that it was probably best not to move her face that much while using one, but watching dramas with noah called for snacks. it should only be a few more minutes on the timer anyway. she peeked at her phone to check before grabbing her carton of strawberry milk, metal straw poking out from the opening. if there was anything she learned from years of having to watch her make up while drinking is using a straw. 

she nodded. the character’s voice was getting higher and higher, to the point areum wondered when she’d reach the frequency only dogs could hear. “sometimes they make the love enemy extra annoying to contrast the lead couple.” areum couldn’t imagine screaming like this if she was jealous of her boyfriend, but then again, she had been single since birth so she wouldn’t really know. “maybe she’ll get better later? oh, i think she stopped. wait, no she’s back again. i wonder if the actress lost her voice after this?”

.

skincare and dramas had slowly turned into something he associated solely with areum, an activity he reserved for their time together. he’d thought about watching some alone, but he always got so mixed up — plus, it wasn’t as fun without areum’s commentary to guide him along. making a face as the woman’s voice screeched even louder, he couldn’t help but feel bad for the actress playing her — being an actor seemed hard, especially when you had to scream at the top of your lungs for what was probably multiple takes. 

“i don’t think i’ve ever seen someone that loud in real life.” especially not over jealousy, but his experience in relationships was minimal — he’d had a girlfriend before, but it was a childhood thing, nothing more than a few shared kisses before they broke up over something stupid. “have you ever felt so jealous that you wanted to scream at someone? or is this, like, completely made up?”

closed for @noahvld / restaurant / early 2020, evening

magpie, his parents used to call him for the way he would like to collect pretty things. things like white seashells and rounded bits of blue-green seaglass and the little holographic authenticity stickers on the tags of stuffed animals and friends. not that physical appearances are the first thing that gyumin looks for in a new friend, but it’d also be incorrect to say that he isn’t easily swayed by a warm smile. and noah’s smile was pretty and his laugh was even prettier — to the point that gyumin took a liking to him immediately even though they had just met. when he learned that they were both 99-liners … well, by that point, noah couldn’t get rid of gyumin even if he had wanted to.

“ have you ever been here before ? ” gyumin asks, smiling at noah. he remembers from their brief conversation from when they had first met that noah hasn’t been in korea for long. “ i really like it here. i used to come here all the time as a trainee. do you see anything on the menu that you like ? ”

outside of the group he’d recently been placed in and his sibling, noah didn’t have many friends since he’d moved to south korea. his grasp of the language was still awful so he shied away from most social situation, clinging to the people he’d marked as “safe” in his mind. that small list of people suddenly grown when he’d met gyumin, the boy somehow both towering over him and just looking like a baby at the same time.

Before Taewoo could even try and argue that there were no other blue haired members of Kostion, and that his friend doesn’t count, he was being asked to get the door. He understood, knowing that while Noah was capable with the Korean language, there were still words and phrases he was uncertain about, which could worry him when speaking with strangers. With a bow and a thank you to the man who had delivered their chicken, it didn’t take long before he was rushing back to the couch house, socks sliding beneath him on the hard floor.

As he returned, he poked his head inside where Noah had continued working on the fort, seeing how far he’d come with the task in the few short moment it had taken the leader to collect their chicken. “Ah, hurry up will you?” He teased the younger member, putting the chicken down near the entrance so he could run and collect his laptop. “Think if something to watch when I come back, okay!”

.

though there wasn’t much to tease the kostion leader on that actually got to him, it was almost easy to point to the trainee soloist that often occupied their couch. the whole thing had only grown funnier to noah when both of them had showed up to the dorm with matching blue hair, but he didn’t comment on that now, especially since taewoo held their precious meal between his hands. he knew there would plenty of other good opportunities to tease the leader about his best friend other than this one.

rolling his eyes with a smile at taewoo, he put the finishing touches on their couch house before deciding that it was to his liking. “don’t say that, or i’ll make you watch the sopranos and i don’t even like the sopranos.” he’d only ever seen one episode before because someone kept asking him if his life had been like the show and he had hated it, but the thought of trying to convince anyone that that was actually real was funny to him. grabbing the chicken, he crawled into the fort and made himself comfortable before calling out for the leader. “hurry up, ahjussi.” even if the other couldn’t see him, no doubt he could hear the grin on noah’s face.

starter for @noahvld​

yeseul’s already placed an order — two americanos, one iced and one hot, balancing in her hand. a tote bag’s swung around her shoulders, and the heels of her boot click against the granite floors of the cafe. to a passerby — yeseul becomes the quintessential woman on a mission in a pantsuit too cut out and proper for the casual setting around her. but she has no mission, nor is her schedule packed with a train of events falling one after another, toppling down with no second to spare. today comes with the taste of freedom, and an open schedule welcoming someone akin to a child, a child she’d adopt as her own if she could — noah.

she finds herself nestled in a corner, setting aside the coffee on the table with fingers tapping away to an off-beat tune of some indie music echoing through the speakers. but as soon as her eyes float off to the entrance of the cafe, she waves her hand motioning the boy to walk in her direction. “noah, noah. noah. my child come here. i already bought your coffee.” what she wants to do is ruffle his hair, pat it down in an outward affection fulfilling the role of the motherly figure she slips into. but instead, she maintains the level of professionalism required in such a public sphere. “how’ve you been? korean getting any easier these days?”

.

noah would be lying if he said he hadn’t felt a certain amount of fear when he’d first met yeseul, the woman exuding such a powerful and strict aura that it made the twenty one year old feel like he’d been scolded before she’d even opened her mouth. of course, that assumption had been fully incorrect, the woman becoming the closest thing to a mother figure he had in korea, for which he was thankful. whenever she made time for him, noah did everything to make sure he was on time so he’d get to spend as much time with her as possible, despite both of their busy schedules.

walking into the coffee shop, he smiled brightly as soon as his name was called. the italian coming from the corner was like honey to his ears, much smoother than vastly forgotten italian bandit spoke. “why did you do that, you didn’t have to do that.” he pouted as he sat down, expression quickly dissipating as he saw what yeseul had bought for him. smile back on his face, he grabbed the drink in both hands, taking a second to just breathe it in. “no, korean’s only getting harder and somehow i feel like i’m forgetting italian now too.” he complained, much like a child would after a long day of school. “how are you? i feel like you’ve been extra busy recently.”

Once the couches had been turned so their backs were to each other, Taewoo looked at them with hands on his hips, pleased with the height the fort was going to get. No doubt when the other members saw what they’d done, they would likely want to join, so there had to be plenty of room. At least in the meantime before that happened, the two of them who had actually done the work would be able to spread their legs out and have some space. They would need it if they were going to eat chicken, and maybe watch a movie on a laptop.

“I’m your only leader that isn’t fair,” Taewoo replied with a laugh, swinging one of the blankets over the top to begin to create a makeshift roof. “Can you please tuck that in between the couch cushions at the back?” Continuing with their construction, the leader instructed where Noah should put things, how he should anchor them, and the best way to keep it sturdy so it ( hopefully ) doesn’t collapse while they’re inside. Like a good leader would. “Now, we just throw the pillows in and move them around until they’re comfy.” Pleased with their work, as Tae was about to throw the first pillow in, there was a knock at the door. “Ah! Chicken!!”

.

though the eight of them would certainly be a little squished if they all tried to fit in the fort at once, noah didn’t doubt that this is where the group would end up spending most of their evening tonight. sebin would most likely be the last one in and the first one out, but he was sure that, as a team, they could probably bully him into staying with them at least a little bit. if anything, a few of them would probably end up falling asleep in their makeshift fort but for now, the construction was only for taewoo and noah, a moment for the two of them to be alone.

“fine — you’re my best blue haired person. there’s at least two of those in here, usually.” he grinned at the other, alluding to the trainee who seemed to be at their dorm just as much as any kostion member. listening to the instructions he was given, he followed tae’s words until the fort was mostly done, happy with their progress. the knock on the door made noah jump slightly, looking at the door before looking at taewoo with a shy smile. “can you get it? i’ll put pillows inside?” he asked softly, having never liked interacting with strangers in most situations.

The years Bandit spent living with their father as a teenager had made them a much colder person, in terms of speaking how they felt, and physical affection. It was difficult for them to be vulnerable with people that way, opening themself up to rejection or hurt. It had happened twice ( okay, maybe one and a half times since they never told Odum how they felt in order to be officially rejected ), and the lump in their throat and their heart pounding in their chest is something they would never forget, and something they weren’t eager to relive.

Even when the person pining for Bandit’s affection was their little brother, who looked up to them more than anything in the world. The rapper knew this, and was confident making that statement, but it was still difficult to do. You can’t just flip a switch and expect it to be all better suddenly. For now, the gentle carding through his hair would have to do.

“People are gonna start thinking you’re copying me soon,” they commented, a soft, fond smile across their lips as they looked down at the top of their little brother’s head. It was no secret to anyone that Bandit was… Adventurous with their hair, preferring to grow it out as long as KMG would let them, or having some sort of interesting cut and color. Right now, their mullet was in an awkward growing out phase, and they weren’t sure what they were going to do next.

.

though they were siblings, the two had had completely different upbringings — something noah often forgot, but was reminded of every time he seeked attention from his older sibling. the younger didn’t have many memories of their father past the age of five, he knew enough to assume certain things, like what he thought of his children acting anything less than whatever was ‘manly’ in his eyes. in the years bandit had lived with the man, they’d had to push down a part of themselves, whereas noah had been allowed to forge his own way, and just be himself openly.

sometimes he forgot how different he and bandit really were.

“people already think i’m copying you.” he shrugged, eyes still on their older sibling. from the moment he’d landed in seoul, people had made comparisons between him and bandit — not that he minded, when his whole life he’d wanted to be just like them. the hair hadn’t meant to be a copy though, noah genuinly wanting to try something new out, just to see how he felt about it — and bandit’s answer hadn’t been the one he wanted. pouting up at them, he widened his eyes to stare up at them. “i don’t care what people think. i wanna know what you think.”