#side!markjin

Dragging his attention away from Youngjae’s mouth yet again, Jaebum tries, futilely, to focus on the voices filtering through the computer speaker. Mark and Jackson are bickering playfully about something, and Youngjae is laughing along with BamBam and Yugyeom’s cackles as Jinyoung’s exasperated interruptions go ignored, but Jaebum realizes he has no clue what anyone on the other ends of the Skype call are talking about.

Knee jostling Jaebum's when he shifts, Youngjae glances over, and Jaebum forgets to breath for a moment when their eyes meet, Youngjae’s still crinkled with his laughter. Zoned out as he was, Jaebum has no idea why everyone’s so amused, but Youngjae’s grin widens when he catches Jaebum’s gaze, and Jaebum can’t help grinning back. He can’t seem to look away either, and Youngjae’s smile wobbles as the moment stretches, turning shy. Flushing slightly, his teeth catch on his lip, and Jaebum quickly jerks his gaze back to the computer.

He wants to kiss Youngjae so bad.

It’s been a constant distraction from the moment he walked into Youngjae’s dorm room. A constant preoccupation from the moment he finally confessed his hopeless crush a few days ago and found out it wasn’t so hopeless. A recurring daydream from even before that, though he’d tried to keep anyone from noticing all the times he spaced out, thinking about how much he wanted to taste that chapped, pink pout.

And yet, he still hasn’t done it.

Initially, it was because he didn’t want to rush things. After Jaebum’s awkward confession over text, their first encounter had been on the sidewalk outside of where Youngjae and Mark worked. Jaebum had dragged Jinyoung along--using Mark as an excuse--to surprise him at the end of his and Mark's shift, and he had been a nervous wreck while waiting, repeating a litany of, “What if I misunderstood? What if he misunderstood? What if he was just being nice? Or what if he just doesn't want to see me yet?” and wearing a hole in the concrete with his pacing.

“Jaebum-hyung?” Jinyoung had hissed after the 10th variant, “Please shut up.”

Youngjae’s face lit up when he spotted Jaebum waiting for him though, and it was more than worth Jinyoung’s rolled eyes and impatient sighs for the way Youngjae rushed over to them and hugged Jaebum, pressing his face into his shoulder.

Overwhelmed by the abrupt wave of relief and giddiness, Jaebum had almost kissed him then, but Mark and Jinyoung’s eager gazes made him hesitate, and he settled for wrapping his arms around Youngjae and hugging him tight. Using the cold October air as an excuse, Jaebum had kept Youngjae as close as he could manage as the four of them shared a couple bottles of soju and demolished a tray of barbeque, and Youngjae didn't protest, snuggling closer throughout the meal and pulling Jaebum's arm tighter around himself when he started shivering at the cool, evening breeze.

By the end of the night, Jaebum felt like he had Youngjae’s warmth against his side imprinted into his skin, and it had been hard for him to pull away when finally walked Youngjae to his dorm room. Jinyoung and Mark had already vanished into Mark’s room a few floors down, and, for a moment, Jaebum considered kissing Youngjae in the fluorescent lights of the dorm’s hallway. Youngjae had yawned widely just as Jaebum started to lean in, though, half-hiding it in Jaebum’s shoulder before giving him a sleepy smile, and Jaebum decided that he would rather their first kiss not happen while Youngjae was already half-asleep.

He told himself that he would go for it the next time he saw Youngjae instead--that he would pull him close immediately and finally find out how soft Youngjae’s pout really was--and he’d been ready for it when he arrived an hour ago, stomach fluttering with anticipation as he knocked. But then Youngjae had opened the door with an apologetic grimace and Yugyeom and Jinyoung’s voice already arguing through the speakers on Youngjae’s laptop, and it just hadn’t seemed like the right moment.

So now Jaebum is stuck sitting awkwardly next to Youngjae, knees pressed together as they share a laptop on Youngjae’s bed, listening to his friends discuss plans for the charity fundraising show Jinyoung and Jackson are organizing, and suffering. It’s a particular kind of torture. His stomach twists every time Youngjae glances his way, he’s not sure what to do with his hands, and he's lost count of how many times he's zoned out staring at Youngjae's mouth. He almost feels guilty about how preoccupied he is, because it’s not as if he doesn't enjoy spending time with Youngjae without kissing being involved, but now that kissing is theoretically a possibility, Jaebum is finding it increasingly difficult to think about anything else.

Realizing he's staring at Youngjae's lips again, he jerks his gaze away and tries, once more, to tune into what everyone else is saying.

“--be really cool and--”

“BamBam.” Jinyoung cuts BamBam off, and Jaebum can practically feel his exasperation through the WiFi connection. “The fundraiser is in three weeks. You are not going to learn fire breathing in three weeks and perform it at an indoor event . You could kill someone, and it probably wouldn’t even be yourself, so no ”

“Why you gotta be so rude.” BamBam drawls the English words--some song reference Jaebum vaguely recognizes--but he doesn’t sound particularly disappointed. Jaebum has the distinct feeling that he only suggested the idea to get Jinyoung riled up in the first place.

Youngjae seems to have the same idea, judging by the way he knocks his shoulder against Jaebum’s and grins broadly, and Jaebum gets distracted all over again by the way Youngjae’s teeth catch on his lower lip as his eyes crinkle. His own returning grin is instinctive, triggered by Youngjae’s proximity and his contagious happiness, and his nerves tingle giddily when Youngjae’s smile softens, turning into something more personal--something just between them. The change makes the air feel charged, making Jaebum hyper-aware of every inch of space between him and Youngjae. For a moment, the distance is almost unbearable, and Jaebum feels like he’s being pulled by an invisible force, leaning closer involuntarily.

Jinyoung’s voice through the computer speakers slices the growing tension, shattering the moment, and Jaebum breaks eye contact, straightening awkwardly. He wonders what he did in a previous life to deserve this much suffering.

“Are there no other ideas? So far we have a freestyle dance performance courtesy of Yugyeom--”

“Whoop! Whoop! That’s my boy!”

“--a poetry reading by yours truly--” Jinyoung barrels on as if BamBam hadn’t spoken, and Jaebum feels himself significantly cheered by the knowledge that he’s not the only one suffering during this call. Swallowing down a laugh, he shoots a glance at Youngjae to find his own amusement mirrored back at him, and looks away again quickly to avoid cracking up and enraging Jinyoung further. “--and fencing display by Jackson and his teammate… The rest of you have nothing to offer?”

“What about Mark-hyung?” Jaebum stiffens, smile slipping and good mood vanishing as quickly as it had come, but Youngjae continues on obliviously, leaning closer to the mic in his excitement. “Mark-hyung! You could do a martial arts display! You could do your tricking! It’s really cool! I bet a lot of people would wanna watch you!”

Jaebum represses the urge to glare at Mark’s name on the chat screen. He knows it’s ridiculous to get jealous over Youngjae’s appreciation for Mark’s martial arts because Mark is happily head-over-heels for Jinyoung, and it’s not like he’s going to swoop in and steal Youngjae with some back-flips, but he can’t help the swell of possessiveness. Which is also ridiculous because he’s only had any right to be possessive about Youngjae for three days, and even that’s debatable considering they haven’t even done anything yet. He represses a secondary urge to pout and focuses his attention on a stray thread in the seam of his jeans, picking at it.

“Me?” Mark sounds hesitant. “I don’t know… I’m not really that good. I don’t think people would be that interested in--”

“No way, hyung!”

“You’re amazing!”

“Mark-hyung, please.”

“Shut up, Mark!”

“Are you crazy, man?”

The protests layer over each other, and Youngjae flails with his, tipping the laptop sideways in his agitation before turning and looking aghast at Jaebum, smacking at his shoulder and gesturing at the computer in a speechless signal for Jaebum to contribute his own argument. Jaebum’s lips twitch. He was half tempted to stay out of the group’s efforts to reassure Mark out of a petty sense of vengeance, but it’s hard to stay upset when faced with how insanely adorable Youngjae can be. Besides the sting in his shoulder from Youngjae’s attack was a good reminder that Youngjae is here, with him, because they’re together. Because Youngjae chose him and not Mark.

His lips twitch up again at the thought, and Jaebum swallows a stupidly pleased grin as he rights the computer and musters his dryest tone. “Don’t be an idiot, Mark. Just do it. I’m sure someone will manage to stay awake through the display.”

There’s a snort from the other end of the call. “Wow, thanks, Jaebumie. I can feel your support from here, man.”

Jinyoung cuts in over Mark’s snark, tone cloyingly sweet. “Oh there you are, Jaebum-hyung. You were so quiet that I was starting to wonder if Youngjae had suffocated you with a pillow.”

“Hey! I wouldn’t do that!” The look Youngjae gives Jaebum is almost anxiously defensive, like he thinks Jaebum is going to start running for his life, and Jaebum bites his lips to keep from laughing.

“At least,” Yugyeom jumps in, “it wouldn’t be with a pillow!” He makes a grotesque kissing before cackling, cracking BamBam up as well, and Jaebum swears he hears the sound of a high-five through the speakers.

Face flushing, Youngjae splutters, and Jaebum’s grin escapes despite his efforts to hide it, spreading across his face as Youngjae studiously avoids his gaze.

“Yugyeom, you--I--that’s--”

Jaebum wonders how much darker Youngjae’s blush would get if Jaebum told him he wouldn’t mind that kind of suffocation at all.

“To get back on point--” Jinyoung raises his voice, interrupting a pleasant detour of Jaebum’s imagination. “--do you have anything to contribute, hyung?”

Feeling rather like he’s been caught red handed when Youngjae’s attention focuses back on him, Jaebum clears his throat. “Ahh… Me?” He swallows down a sudden urge to contribute his thoughts about the pinkness of Youngjae’s lips. “I don’t really think--”

“Oh! Oh! Oh!” Jackson’s voice is loud and staticy, and it’s easy to picture him bouncing in his chair and leaning way too close to the mic. “Hyung! Your b-boy dancing! Like what you used to do in high school!”

Jaebum freezes. “What? No, I--”

It’s Youngjae who cuts Jaebum off this time, eyes lighting up. “Oh! Yes! Jaebumie-hyung! Your dancing is so cool! You should definitely do that!”

Torn between reactive dismay at the idea of performing and a surge of delight that Youngjae seems even more excited about his b-boying than he had about Mark’s martial arts, Jaebum shifts awkwardly, feeling flustered. He clears his throat again and tries to deflect. “It’s been so long since I performed anywhere, though. I don’t even know what I’d do.”

“You’re saying you don’t remember how to b-boy anymore?” Mark’s tone is taunting, and Jaebum bristles.

“Of course I remember! It’s been a while, but I can still break out some moves if I really--”

“Yeah, Mark-hyung! Remember Jaebumie-hyung’s talent show?” For a moment, Jaebum blanks on what Youngjae is referring to, and then he feels his stomach drop as he remembers the video clip Jinyoung had dug up a few months ago.

“Youngjae, don’t--”

“Hyung’s got the moves like Jagger, He’s got the moves like Jagger.” Belting the lyrics at full volume, Youngjae cuts him off with a blithe grin and a wink, and Jaebum groans aloud.

“No. Stop. That’s not fu--”

“He don’t need to try to control you.” Youngjae’s grin spreads with each word, cheeky and bright, and despite Jaebum’s burning embarrassment, he can feel his own lips tugging up in response. He tries to fight it.

“Youngjae, I swear--”

Undeterred by Jaebum’s half-hearted glare, Youngjae’s eyes crinkle, and Jaebum feels himself losing his battle with amusement. “Look into his eyes and he’ll own you.”

Jackson, BamBam, and Yugyeom are sniggering openly, and Mark sounds like he’s choking. “Youngjae, bro, you know that song’s not actually about--”

“Guys, if we could please focus? I have other things I--”

“He’s got the moves like Jagger!” Yelling the lyrics, Youngjae drowns out Mark’s protests and Jinyoung’s nagging, and Jaebum is acting on the behalf of all their friends and Youngjae’s neighbors when he lunges at him, digging his fingers into Youngjae’s side and making him shout again with startled laughter.

“Would you stop singing that, you disrespectful brat?” Jaebum’s grinning too much to really sound annoyed, but that doesn’t stop him from rolling half on top of Youngjae and pinning him down mercilessly when he tries to wriggle away from Jaebum’s attacking fingers.

Their eyes catch, only inches away, and Jaebum’s fingers still abruptly, Youngjae’s laughter fading as his teeth catch on his lip. Somewhere he’s aware that the other boys are still talking, but he can barely make them out over sudden rush of his pulse in his ears. All his lingering dismay and embarrassment are shuffled to the back of his mind as his focus narrows to where Youngjae is sprawled beneath him.

Youngjae is warm underneath him, a flush spreading up his neck and staining his cheeks, and Jaebum’s gaze is drawn to the cute mole under his eye when his lashes flutter. His tongue peeks out, startlingly pink, and the other mole on his neck bobs when he swallows and opens his mouth. His voice is quiet, but there’s a lilt of cheekiness in it.

“Make me.”

His lips are soft--even softer than Jaebum had imagined--and, for a moment, that’s all Jaebum can think about, losing himself in the sensation. It’s when Youngjae exhales shakily, the air brushing against Jaebum’s skin, that everything else rushes in, and Jaebum realizes a lot of things all at once. He realizes that Youngjae’s lips are delightfully warm. He realizes they’re still teasingly wet from the sweep of Youngjae’s tongue. He realizes that he can feel their slightly chapped texture against his own.

He realizes that he’s doing it--that he’s finally kissing Youngjae.

Youngjae is very still underneath him, not even breathing past his initial exhale, and Jaebum kisses him cautiously, moving his lips against Youngjae’s chastely before pulling away just enough to separate them, reeling dizzily and wondering if he made the wrong move.

He doesn’t get far.

With a choked-off gasp, Youngjae chases Jaebum’s mouth, and the skip of Jaebum’s heart is like a physical jolt--a flood of relief and elation and want rushing over him and pushing the air out of his lungs in rush. Bracing himself on his elbow, he slides his free hand along Youngjae’s arm and shoulder until he can cup his neck, threading his fingers through Youngjae’s hair and tilting his head back for better access as he leans in, feeling the thud of Youngjae’s pulse against his fingertips.

His lips find Youngjae’s chapped ones again, molding against them and catching on the full curve of his pout. Chasing the softness, Jaebum tests the plush swell, and Youngjae inhales sharply at the pull of friction. His mouth parts loosely under the pressure, and the temptation is too great for Jaebum to resist, latching onto Youngjae’s lower lip and sucking gently. With an aborted sound, Youngjae arches his neck, hand scrabbling along Jaebum’s back, and Jaebum’s pulse skips again when Youngjae’s fingers wrap around his bicep, pulling him closer and urging him on. Jaebum doesn’t fight the demand, losing himself to the moment and catching Youngjae’s lips again and again--tugging at them lightly until Youngjae is matching him kiss for kiss, and Jaebum feels like his heart is going to beat it’s way right out of his chest.

The first tease of his tongue is testing--a gentle taste as he drags Youngjae’s lower lip between his own--and Youngjae’s gasp catches in his throat, turning it into a breathless whine. Heat flaring in his veins, Jaebum’s lungs empty in a rush, and he has to break away to catch his breath. Letting his eyes flicker open, he drinks in the sight of Youngjae’s flushed cheeks, lashes fluttering against them under eyes squeezed shut. Youngjae’s mouth--shining wetly and vibrantly pink--opens with his next exhale, lower lip trembling, and the heat in Jaebum’s veins pools in his stomach.

Grip on Youngjae’s nape tightening, Jaebum’s fingers tangle deeper into his hair as he pulls Youngjae closer, catching at his trembling lip and sucking it between his own. His teeth scrape lightly, tongue swiping over the swell, and Youngjae whimpers, gasping as his hand tightens around Jaebum’s arm almost hard enough to bruise, and Jaebum feels like he’s on fire--overwhelmed with the taste and feel and sounds of kissing Youngjae and being with Youngjae and--

“-- there? Jaebum-hyung? Youngjae?”

Youngjae startles, and Jaebum releases his lip with a wet pop, leaning back.

For a moment, they stare at each other, speechless, as Jaebum tries to pull himself back to the real world, attempting to register anything other than the lingering taste of Youngjae on his tongue.

“Wh-what?”

Jaebum’s voice only cracks a little, but Youngjae doesn’t miss it, eyes curving with a teasing grin, even as his chest still heaves with breathless gasps and his pulse races against Jaebum’s fingers. Squeezing his neck in revenge, Jaebum presses hard enough to tickle, and Youngjae wriggles away from it, grimacing in silent protest even as his eyes crinkle further.

“I said that you two had been quiet for a while, and I was wondering if you were still...” Jinyoung trails off, and there’s a moment of heavy, weighted silence.

Mark’s voice breaks it. “Dude. Are you two making out right now?”

“What?!”

Jackson’s shrill exclamation covers up Youngjae’s own, and Jaebum has a feeling he should probably be embarrassed about being caught out so easily, but he’s too distracted by the dark flush of red that he spots spreading up Youngjae’s neck and tinting his ears. Leaning down, Jaebum nuzzles the blush with his nose, and Youngjae makes a little breathless sound of surprise that sparks through him and makes his skin tingle.

Feeling inordinately pleased with himself, he grins against Youngjae’s neck before lifting his head and interrupting the overlapping tirade of voices spilling through the speakers. “Mind your own business, punks.”

Youngjae makes a soft, flustered sound of protest that’s drowned out by a loud groan through the speakers.

“Which means you totally are! Hyung! We’re all right here! Seriously!”

Jaebum’s not sure which “hyung” Yugyeom is referring to, but he doesn’t really care. He’s way more interested in the way Youngjae’s arms have looped around his neck, clinging tight as he hides his face in Jaebum’s shoulder. As if hiding is going to make a difference over a Skype call. He’s adorable, and Jaebum feels his stomach roll happily, slipping an arm around Youngjae’s waist and pulling him closer against his chest.

“Hey, you’re the ones that called us. We would have been just as happy spending our time without all of you--”

“Wait.” Mark cuts him off, sounding suddenly eager. “Was that your first kiss? Did you just--”

“Okay!” Youngjae sits up so abruptly that he almost sends the laptop and Jaebum toppling off the bed. “That was fun, but we have to go now. My--uh, my laptop is dying!”

Jinyoung’s snort is loud even through the crackle of the speakers. “Sure it is, Youngjae-yah.”

Youngjae’s cheeks are practically glowing with the heat of his blush. “What? Can’t hear you, hyung. The connection is--”

“Youngjae-hyung, that only works when--”

Interrupting BamBam, Jaebum sits up and plucks the laptop out of Youngjae’s hands, navigating to the chat controls. “Yeah. Youngjae and I are gonna go. We have way better things to do with our time--” Youngjae smacks Jaebum’s shoulder, and Jaebum shoots him a grin that has Youngjae flushing darker and biting at his lip. “--so leave us alone, or we’re disowning all of you.”

“Wait! That reminds me!” BamBam’s voice is shrill with excitement. “If you two are fucking now, does that mean that Youngjae is our new mom?”

“What?” Youngjae’s shocked exclamation echoes Jinyoung’s indignant one, and Jaebum hears Mark start choking again in the background as Jackson cracks up into high-pitched laughter.

Jinyoung’s voice is layered with offense. “I’m your mom, you brat! I’ve raised you since--”

Not bothering with a proper goodbye, Jaebum hits the end-call button mid-rant and quickly closes the laptop on the string of typed messages that start flooding in, pushing the computer away.

Youngjae is watching him with his burning cheeks pressed between his hands and a vague expression of horror on his face. “I can’t believe that just happened. I can’t believe they know what we were--that we were--ah…”

Trailing off, Youngjae’s gaze flickers down to Jaebum’s mouth and catches there, the expression of horror fading as his lips part slightly, and Jaebum’s stomach flutters, his heart thumping unsteadily with a mixture of desire and anxiety.

He makes his tone light, trying to keep it teasing. “Would you rather pretend it never happened, then? Give them some other excuse and--”

“No!” Youngjae’s expression twists with dismay at the suggestion, and Jaebum can’t help laughing--the relief and delight that he’s not the only one who wants this making him giddy.

Lunging at Youngjae, he knocks him onto his back, rolling to hover over him and caging him like before. Youngjae’s lungs empty in a rush and his eyes widen as he looks up at Jaebum, darkening with an eager anticipation that Jaebum feels sinking through his skin and flooding his veins.

“In that case.” Resting his weight on one elbow, Jaebum fits his hand along the shallow dip of Youngjae’s waist, teasing at the fabric of his t-shirt. “Maybe we should get back to--”

Youngjae doesn’t let him finish, but Jaebum decides that he can live with this kind of disrespect.

Even if Youngjae does push his luck when he presses his lips to Jaebum’s ear as he’s kissing his way along his throat and whispers, “I’ve got the moves like Jagger.” The way Youngjae laughs and wriggles underneath him when Jaebum pins him down, tickling him until he’s begging for mercy and Jaebum can’t resist the pink flush of his skin any longer, makes it hard to really be bothered, though, and Jaebum figures that, really, he could learn to live with a lot of things if they’re paired with Youngjae’s kisses.

(Jaebum does a b-boy performance to ‘Moves Like Jagger’ at the fundraiser show three weeks later. Mark snickers and Jinyoung rolls his eyes dramatically the whole time, but Youngjae stands front-and-center for the showcase, cheering loudly, and later--back at in Jaebum’s bedroom--Jaebum offers him another private performance inspired by the true meaning of the song.

Jaebum would like to think his moves are probably better than Jagger. Youngjae breathlessly agrees.)

-------

The main star of the play, a modern embodiment of Romeo in ripped jeans and a leather jacket, raises an eyebrow as he brushes hair out of his eyes, and he’s still waiting for Youngjae’s response to the information he’d just offered, but Youngjae's brain stutters to a stop as his gaze fixes on the two little moles under the Romeo's lifted brow.

“What?”

The roll of his eyes, drags Youngjae’s attention back to the rest of his face, and he’s pretty sure that only Im Jaebum can make exasperation look so good. He’s also pretty sure that he’d be able to appreciate that exasperation a lot more if it was directed at someone else like usual, because Youngjae has a hard enough time dealing with Jaebum’s presence from a distance let alone when the other boy is right in front of him.

“I said,” and the way he drags out the word should be a lot more annoying and a lot less attractive, “that Jinyoung called to say he caught a cold--which is probably named Mark, by the way, because that loser’s also missing today--so he won’t be coming to rehersal, but I really need to practice running this scene because we have the dry run of it for Director Park tomorrow.”

Youngjae is trying to follow, he really is, but he’s already spent two weeks zoning out to the smooth tones of Jaebum’s voice while he speaks, and it’s proving harder than he expected to actually focus on what he’s saying. Especially when he’s this close to the way his mouth is moving and Youngjae is kind of losing himself in the rich brown of his eyes.

“And…” He scrambles for some way to summarize and show he’s paying attention. “You’re telling me because…”

His voice trails off as he realizes he has no idea how to finish that sentence. He half expects Jaebum to growl at him like he had at Bambam yesterday and storm away in frustration at his apparent stupidity, but instead the corner of the older boy’s mouth quirks up, and Youngjae really didn’t need to know what an amused smirk looked like on Im Jaebum’s face, but now he does, and he only hopes that he’s not making it obvious to the entire room what a blush looks like on his.

“Because you’re the understudy?” As Youngjae stays frozen, Jaebum points to the script he’s clutching. “For Jinyoung?” The half-question in his tone is close enough to teasing that it almost derails Youngjae’s thoughts again.

“Oh. Right. I am.”

Jaebum’s lip is twitching again, and Youngjae really wishes he would go back to glaring because the way he ducks his head and looks up at him through his fringe is making it even harder to think. “And, you know. Jinyoung is playing Juliette.” Youngjae’s fingers twitch against his script, and he can almost feel that additional sharpied name burning into his skin. “And I’m playing Romeo. So I would normally be doing this scene with Jinyoung, but he isn’t here right now.” The note in his voice is just the slightest bit patronizing, though the exasperation in his face has faded fully to amusement. Youngjae feels like his face is on fire. “And, like I said, I really need to rehearse this part, so--”

“Okay!” Youngjae’s voice is too loud, and he sees Jackson jump, dropping the tool box he’d been carrying and sending the equipment scattering with the deafening clatter of metal on tile.

There’s a moment of stunned silence in the theater and then Jaebum breaks it by bursting into laughter.

Acting without thinking, Youngjae is smacking Jaebum on the shoulder and shooting him a glare before he remembers through his embarrassment exactly who he’s talking to, and by then it’s too late to take it back. Jaebum does stop laughing though, even if his grin is still wide when he meets Youngjae’s gaze.

Youngjae looks away first as his glare fails him. “Okay, I get it. Do you want my help or not?”

The hand on his wrist startles him, but he doesn’t fight it as Jaebum pulls him to his feet and shoots him another bright grin before half dragging him up the aisle. “Come on, I know the best places to practice in this theater. Because I’m sure as hell not doing this for the first time out here.”

Youngjae realizes too late to protest that he doesn’t even know which scene they’re supposed to be going to practice, but the way his stomach is sinking is telling him he’s not going to like it.

Or, maybe, it’s saying that he’s going to like it too much, because of course it’s the kiss scene that Jaebum needed help with, and Youngjae has no problem running through the pop song duet that the director replaced the original dialogue with (and it was no small boost to his confidence when Jaebum stopped singing to look at him wide-eyed and slack jawed when he’d hit the power notes during the harmony), but this--standing toe-to-toe with one of the most attractive and talented people that Youngjae has met in all of his 18 years--is not something his school choir has prepared him for. His heart is threatening to pound out of his chest as Jaebum reads through his lines, and Youngjae isn’t really following the script or the dialogue, but the sound of his voice is enough to get him feeling the part.

And suddenly, Jaebum’s right there. Youngjae has a moment to notice his moles again before there are warm lips against his, and Youngjae will totally deny whimpering if asked, but his eyelids do flutter shut, and he may be at least half responsible for the way the kiss lasts for a heartbeat and before abruptly going from a soft press of lips, to Jaebum’s hands framing his cheeks while Youngjae leans up to chase the way Jaebum teases at his bottom lip.

Then, as quickly as it began, it’s over. Breathless, Youngjae stares at Jaebum, and he doesn’t think he’s imagining the pink flush in Jaebum’s cheeks, but surely it has to mean something else because Youngjae doesn’t think that’s how the kiss was scripted, but maybe Jaebum is just a method actor or something and getting into the role is how he does things. All Youngjae really knows is that he really needs to stop staring, because his heart is racing against his ribs and he feels like he’s about to do something stupid like lean back in and kiss Jaebum again.

“I forgot the next line.” It’s not what he means to blurt out, but his script is crumpling as he grips it too tightly and it’s all he can come up with.

“You sit one seat ahead of me in Intro to Economics.”

Youngjae blinks. “What?”

Jaebum doesn’t look like he meant to blurt his statement out either, and now Youngjae’s positive he’s not imagining the flush across his cheekbones, but the other boy shrugs and continues. “You chew on the ends of your pens and doodle puppies in the margins of your notes, and you always forget to write down the equations until right before the professor changes the slide.”

Frozen, Youngjae stares at Jaebum as the older boy shifts awkwardly.

“You’re also kinda loud, so I always hear you talking to that Yugyeom kid about whatever before rehearsals. And we kind of have a lot in common.”

There's another pause of silence as the information sinks in. “What are you…”

Youngjae’s voice trails off again, and he blinks at where Jaebum has shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his leather jacket, shoulders hunched and head ducked as he stares at Youngjae again through the fringe over his eyes. Under the shock, there’s a little part of him that’s starting to stir and makes his heart stutter, and Youngjae tilts his head, studying him. The flush on Jaebum’s cheeks is enough to make his lips twitch up, and he takes a breath. “And you’re telling me this because…”

The echo of his earlier words registers with Jaebum because his head lifts enough for Youngjae to see the corner of his mouth tug up before he takes a deep breath and stands straight. “Because I’d really like to kiss you again.”