#messyindustry

Jonghoon had come all the way to the sight where his boyfriend was filming to pick him up. He had arrived early just to see how he was doing, it had been a while since he last came to watch him film. He did well and for a moment he thought about taking him out to eat in celebration. That was until he saw a man the other had swore he’d never see again approach him. He watched as the man ogled his boyfriend and he watched the way he made no real move to just walk away.

When the man finally leaves he closes the distance between him and Hongki, the smile that had been on his face gone without a trace. When he speaks his voice comes out cold, accusing, maybe even a little threatening. He watches as the other shrinks in on himself stuttering out a pathetic excuse. He purses his lips and stands there in silence for a long moment simply just staring him down. He wouldn’t dare do anything in public and draw peoples attention but the whole situation brought a sour taste to his mouth.

It had been a few days since both he and Jae had confessed things they probably shouldn’t have. After their shared confession things got awkward. They both just decided to sleep on it and basically pretend it never happened. They avoided each other as much as they could, thankfully Jaejin had schedules for a few days in a row which made it easy. However, today, he didn’t have a single thing planned which meant he was at the house all day.

He woke up to see the other was still sleeping, at least he appeared to be. He had been doing it a lot, at least from what he could tell when he was home. It was...worrying but he felt he shouldn’t question it. Instead he quietly leaves the room to shower before curling up on the couch. It seemed he’d spend most of the day here, hopefully able to mostly avoid the other. Part of him wondered if he should try and talk to him, fix whatever this was. Could it even be fixed though? Was anything wrong or was he just making it a bigger problem than it needed to be? He honestly wasn’t sure but more than anything he didn’t want to upset Jae. They had a silent agreement to just not talk about it so he’d keep his end of the deal unless the other spoke first.

There were 6 of them in total, including himself and the younger behind him. For a while they were all together that was until they all became separated. The separation left Jaejin with one of the other’s, a boy named Kenta. They had all given a brief introduction before the separation happened, basic name and age sort of thing just so they weren’t completely clueless about who they were with. It came to his attention fairly quickly that despite his appearance he was the oldest of all of them.

The fact that he was the oldest had him feeling as if he was somehow responsible for all of their safety even if they were strangers and grown adults too. The fact that Kenta was now hiding himself behind him, despite their 4 cm height difference somewhat confirmed the feeling. Jaejin was used to keeping his cool even if on the inside he was freaking out.

He gently pushed the younger back so he could fully hide himself around the corner, letting out a shaky breath of his own. The two had just narrowly escaped whatever creature had been chasing them. He barely even caught a glimpse of the shadowy figure before he knew it wasn’t something friendly. That’s when he dragged him with him to one of the empty stores. He was thankful that the door was actually open and not locked, being inside behind the glass door made him feel a bit safer and let him think clearly.

Jaejin wasn’t stupid. No, he was anything but stupid. He was sly, cunning, quick witted and he had his looks and silver tongue to back him up. But apparently he wasn’t sly enough to pickpocket the man who was now pointing a gun directly at him. His back was to a wall, hands raised in surrender at either side of his head. He stood there calmly, staring down the barrel of the gun not even batting an eye. This definitely wasn’t the first time someone had pointed a gun at him.

What was a first for him though, was the fact that the man holding the gun was scarily calm. Normally the person’s hands would shake, they would stutter and try to dance around the subject of shooting him, but this man was different. His gaze was cold, empty, lacking any sign of fear or hesitation. His hands were steady and his voice showed no sign that he was frightened at all. This wasn’t the first time the other had done this and he’d bet in any other situation he’d shoot the person without a second thought. So it peaks his interest that he hasn’t ended his life where he stands.

Hero? He gave the older a perplexed look confused by the new pet name. Honestly he was just generally confused about everything, when he tried recalling anything everything was just a bit fuzzy. He remembers Hongki’s confession to the world and he remembers going to see him but after that it’s a blur. Now he’s laying in a hospital bed and everything hurt but beside him sat his shining star.

Finger’s move to intertwine with the other’s, a weak fond smile crossing his lips as he takes him in. His hair was a mess and his clothes seemed to be a bit dirty, eyes were blood shot and puffy. Hell, he looked like he had barely slept in days. The smile fades at that thought, his lips now forming a thin line as his brow furrows. He may hurt like hell but as per usual he was more concerned about the man beside him. Whatever had happened had clearly messed him up.

Listen, Jaejin was a lot of things: stupid, definitely an asshole, kind of sadistic, etc. But when it came to music he was all seriousness and just because he made one tiny mistake when composing a song for their undetermined Korean comeback doesn’t mean he’s not trying his best. His full attention had been on his work since they got back from Japan, he wanted to do well with this comeback. He wanted this to be the comeback that skyrocketed their popularity in Korea. He was just nervous.

But telling that to Hongki, especially a slightly buzzed Hongki, was a challenge in itself. The thing about Hongki and Jaejin’s ‘friendship’, if you could even call it that, is they didn’t agree on a lot of things especially when it came to music. But in the end they always figured it out and they always thought they did their best work because of their clashing opinions. It gave them both a new perspective on things and gave them a lot of new ideas. However it kind of made things difficult especially when Hongki decided he wanted to drink and be an asshole about it. Jaejin’s temper didn’t help of course, but he’d never admit it.

“God damn it Hyung do you always have to barge in here and act like you own the place? I told you I’m just worried about this comeback that’s why I made the mistake.” God sometimes even his presence was just so annoying.

Stupid. Careless. Idiotic. There was a number of things they and this situation could be called. Careless was the one that stuck with him though especially since he wasn’t the one caught, it was only Hongki. It only made him feel even worse. Hongki already got enough shit from the media and now this in a society like theirs? It could be career ruining for him especially if the company didn’t do anything. And with the way they were talking when they first found out...it didn’t seem too likely.

He wanted to freak out, scream and break things, just let out the frustration boiling inside of him. But right now, especially after Hongki’s response, he knew he couldn’t. Freaking out wouldn’t do them anything, it would just get him worked up and it might end up being directed at the wrong person. On top of that he was sure they’d be meeting the company soon enough and he didn’t need to be pissed off and blowing up at the CEO again.

The minute Jaejin received the text from Hongki he was getting up from his seat and collecting his jacket. He had been out with a few friends just to eat and chat for a while. When he got the older’s text he grew concerned, his messages seemed urgent and pleading and came more rapidly as he didn’t reply. His phone continued to chime throughout his drive to the company, as worried as he was he was already driving and wasn’t going to text. He felt bad at the thought that he worried the other by not replying but hopefully him showing up would make up for it.

He wasted no time when he pulled up to the building, immediately hopping out of the car and running down the hall to the room he said he was in. Worry etched itself into his feature as he saw the state he was in. If he wasn’t worried because of his urgent texts he was definitely worried now seeing him now. He was always concerned when it came to Hongki, more than he should be really. He found himself repeatedly worrying for his health and safety, especially when he knew he was in heat. Hongki was stubborn and would push himself to his limits, it worried him but he understood.

Jaejin crossed the room as he was fixing himself meticulously, he did it a lot when he was nervous, he found it adorable. Without any hesitation he reaches out to fix a stray hair he had missed, offering a soft smile. “You don’t have to thank me, especially if you’re like this. Sorry I didn’t answer by the way I...wanted to get here quickly. You seemed a bit panicky so I got worried.” The last part comes out a bit sheepishly as he moves his hand to rub the back of his neck. He tended to not have a filter around Hongki which lead him to spill his feelings and immediately become shy about it.