2.34 am
Jonghyun is stimming with the teeth of his shark stuffie, Dex, while trying to decide whether or not sheâs going to completely trash the audio file heâs been working on all night when his phone screen lights up, softly blipping as the screen reads: nini âĄ
She smiles, picking up, tugging at her bangs. âHey babe, thought you were asleep?â
Jongin is sleepy smiling-chuckling and Jonghyun thinks, not for the first time, about how massively gay he is, feeling warmer and safer and happier in the presence of his partnerâs voice. âDude, I was just talking to Taemin, and heâs out on the beach somewhere? He caught a fucking squirtle? Â And a horsea? And cut his thumb?â
Jonghyun rolls her eyes, and Jongin can feel the brain pap. âPokego is literally going to be the death of him, bless his little emo heart.â Â
Itâs not that Jonghyun doesnât care about what Taeminâs up to, he does, a lot, and heâs worried about him getting hurt and getting in trouble and losing his phone and falling asleep in public (he has a track record with all of these things) but she canât do anything about it; Taemin is hopelessly stubborn and Jonghyun admits that heâs a hardy little sucker. Â Taemin makes his messes, lives for them, and keeps on going. Â Itâs something heâs always admired, how fiery Taemin is, and how he literally gives no fucks. Â Sometimes she wishes she were that way too.
Jongin is giggling on the line, mumbling âemoâ to himself in his soft sleepy voice, and Jonghyun squishes Dexâs snout. Â He really fucking loves his qp. âYouâre horsea, Iâm squirtle.â
Jongin makes some kind of whiny noise of protest, and Jonghyun bites down at her smile. âWhat? Â Why do you get to be squirtle?â Â
Jonghyun makes a noncommital humming noise, shrugging. Â âDex said so. Â And you know heâs right, in your heart.â Â
He can hear Jongin shifting around on the other side, scrunching up his face. âDude, what are you doing?â
Jongin sniffs. âI stuck my head in my shirt, to reexamine my heart.â
Jonghyun wants to kiss him, and whines because he canât. Â âWhy are you far away, come over if youâre going to be a cute, soft, weirdie. Â Itâs not Fair.â
âIâm always a cute, soft, weirdie.â Â
Jonghyun huffs, threatening, âIâm gonna hang up.â
She hears shuffling on the other side, and-âBabe, just hold on, Iâm coming, Iâm just putting on pants.â
Jonghyun smiles. Â Sometimes she thinks that Jongin is so indulgent because sheâs selfish and needy, but Jongin just makes it really easy to be.
She looks over at the time, and realizes itâs a lot closer to 2 am than he remembered it being, flopping back on his bed. Â He canât remember a time when Jongin ever gave him a hard time for wanting anything, he and Taemin are always picking on each other and teasing one another, but Jonginâs always been so soft on her.
Sheâs always been a little fighty and headstrong when it comes to gaming, and is honestly one of the worst losers she knows, but Jongin never really fought him on anything, always good-naturedly conceding. Â He knows Jongin has let him win far too many times, and even though Taemin isnât always the best at gauging people, itâs something that frustrates him to no end. Â Sheâs giggling a little, thinking about Taemin getting impatient with Jongin, and Jongin finally speaks up.
âWhat are you thinking about?â A lot of their phone calls are pretty silent, Jongin is pretty nonverbal, and mostly it is Jonghyun monologuing at his datefriend or the two of them laying around or doing their own thing, happy that the other is present in some shape or form.
âAm thinking about you, about how smelly-sticky you are, how gentle you always are with me.â
Jongin exhales kind of loudly, and for a moment, Jonghyun is afraid. âWhat?â He doesnât hide the insecurity in her voice, fingers nervously curling up to stim with Dexâs gills.
âThe night air is nice, and talking to you is nice, and Iâm coming to see you. Â Am happy.â Â Jonghyun toes at his comforter, feeling a little guilty. Â Itâs hard for her to reconcile her self-hatey feelings, but Jonginâs honest way of responding, and the childish, determined, insistent way he expresses himself makes Jonghyun trust him. Â Jongin is so patient, and so good at making people he loves feel important and listened to, and Jonghyun feels so lucky for knowing him.
He gets up, wrapping himself in his pink comforter, rearranging the blanket around Dex so they can see, tapping through snap stories that heâs already seen but snapchat has for some reason decided to reload. Â âBabe, we should go to that bingsoo place Minjung is always at.â Â
She hears a tap at his window, shuffling over to let Jongin and his crinkly happy smiley eyes in. Â Jonghyun responds, the phone pressed to her ear. âHi.â
âHi, I like bingsoo. Â Agree.â Jonghyun smiles to herself, ending the call and tossing her phone back onto the bed before shuffling, comforter and all, into Jonginâs space, nuzzling into his chest when he wraps his arms around him.
Jongin smells like warm and laundry and happy and Jongin and Jonghyun bites at his thermal, feeling floaty with affection. Â Jongin laughs quietly, laying his cheek on top of Jonghyunâs messy pink hair.
âThat was my boob.â
Jonghyun giggles, pressing his face into his qpâs pectorals, hard from dancing, soft from everything else. Â âYou have nice boobs.â
They are swaying a little from side to side, and Jonghyun feels like heâs being eaten by fuzz. Â Jongin noses softly at the top of Jonghyunâs head, pressing a smile there. âGuess who picked up a geodude on the way over here.â Â
Jonghyun raises a brow, breaking their embrace to squint up at her partner skeptically. Â âSerious?â
Jongin nods with all honor of a true boyscout. Â âSwear. Â Triple Swear.â
He presses a kiss to his collar, murmuring, âProud of you,â before suddenly snorting, remembering, âStill doesnât compare to Taem today. Â I canât believe he got a squirtle out there.â
Jongin bodily crushes Jonghyun back to him, and Jonghyun smiles at the nonverbal âMore Hugâ. âMe neither. Â I wonder what he ended up catching over where heâs at now. Â Do you think we should bug him?â
Jonghyun shrugs a shoulder, the one not holding onto Dex because he doesnât want to jostle him. Â âHonestly, he might be in a sticky situation and I donât want to risk making his phone go off or distracting him if heâs like. Â Scaling the boardwalk or someoneâs fence? Â We should wait.â
At that, Jonghyunâs phone starts quietly blipping on her bed, phone lighting up with an unknown number. Â The pair of them waddle together towards the bed, landing on their sides, Jongin whining a little when his datefriendâs forehead knocks into his jaw. Â Jonghyun picks up the phone, reaching up to lay apology kisses on Jonginâs chin.
âTaem?â
âHowâd you know itâs me?â Jonghyun sighs.
âBabe, itâs always you. Â Who else would be calling me from a number I donât have at 2:34 in the fucking am?â
âThatâs fair.â
âWhere are you, do you need to be picked up?â Jonghyun thinks about teasing Taemin about how her number is the only one he can remember when his phone isnât operational because Jongin sang it in the powerpuff girls theme once, but doesnât have the heart to.
Taemin is making a thinky sound, and Jonghyun waits. Â She knows that processies can take time, sometimes. Â âIâm okay. Â I made a friend, and theyâre taking me home. Â Weâre heading to In Nâ Out? Â Did you want?â
Jonghyun looks up expectantly at Jongin, who nods. Â âYeah, can you get two double doubles?â Â Jongin whines, pawing at Jonghyunâs stomach.
âOh and Jongin wants animal fries and cherry coke.â
âYouâre with him?â
âYeah, he came over, Â caught a geodude.â
âNice!â Jonghyun squints, tucking his phone between her ear and shoulder, picking Jonginâs hand up where it lays by her tummy, inspecting his chipped yellow polish. Â Fucking Team Instinct.
âAre you going to tell me why you are calling Not from your phone, or are you going to just have me guess.â Â
âOh!â Taemin forgets a lot when it comes to filling people in, and thatâs okay, just sometimes Jonghyun likes to know. âUm! I fell into the ocean when Kibum came out? Onto the pier? I couldnât really help it, it just happened, freak thing.â
âDid you get caught? Â Kibumâs that kid you dogsat for right, that time you snapped from that hella beach house? Â Is that where youâre at? Â Taem!â Taemin is giggling, and Jonghyun can make out someone elseâs laughter as well. Â Heâs going to have to ask about Taeminâs friend later.
âUm!!! I didnât get caught, and I was at that beach house. Â What was the other thing?â
âKibum.â
âOh, oh, yeah, Kibum is the dog dude.â Â Jonghyun whines softly, he misses Roo. Â Sheâs staying with her sister right now, while Jonghyun is house sitting. Â âHeâs an art kid? Â And heâs from church.â Â Jonghyun wrinkles his nose a little, but heâs nodding, even if Taemin canât see, lifting Jonginâs hand to her mouth to chew on his knuckles.
âI have so much to tell you?â Taemin continues, and Jonghyun can feel him fidgeting. Taemin doesnât always need to say things, but when he does, he gets wiggly with wanting to get the words to all come out. âJinki caught a fucking lapras?â Â
Jonginâs hand drops from out of her mouth. âJinki, huh?â Thereâs a little smile in Jonghyunâs voice and she knows it. Jongin quirks an eyebrow beside him, and she rubs thoughtfully at his bottom lip, mischief twinkling in the upturned corners of her mouth.Â
âYeah, the person I met tonight, you wouldnât believe it. Â I found them hanging by a support beam underneath the pier? Â Iâm in love, Jjong.â Â
Jonghyun hears the other person--Jinki-- laugh again. Â âDude, are you for real? Â I believe Jinki but like are you real for real about the lapras, because like. Â Thatâs like, fucking unheard of.â
Taemin speaks in the most serious voice heâs managed to muster in his twenty some years of existing. Â âJinki is magic.â
âIâm excited to meet them, then.â
âDude.â
âYeah?â
âUgh fuck, weâre going through the drive through, Iâll see you in a bit okay?â
âOkay my dude. See you.â Jongin whines at him.Â
âOh, and donât forget the ketchup.â


















