And that might have been a mistake.

Because in the following morning it was none other than Seungmin bursting into the room.

"Oh come on! I've been calling you for the past five minutes, Minho!" Although, when he looked at the male's bed, he saw just how tight he was holding Hyunjin, whom they have been looking for all morning as well after not having found him in his own bed. "Oh you've got to be joking. Chan, he's here. Actually, both of them are."

"Would you mind being a little bit more quiet? Some people here are trying to sleep. It's way too early to be waking us up", Minho complained and covered Hyunjin's ears with the hand that wasn't placed on his waist. He didn't know why, but he was feeling incredibly disturbed by Seungmin. Not because he got woken up, but because he didn't want the male in his arms to wake up too. His week had been rough and Minho knew that, so he deserved some rest. In addition to that, he simply looked way too beautiful when he was sound asleep.

"Too early? Are you crazy?! It's 1 p.m. and we have practice in just one hour! And you also shouldn't forget about the preparations for our music video, you know how important the first takes are. You two are insane."

After that, he left. Finally.

They did have to get ready for practice though, so Minho gently nudged Hyunjin and brushed his hair out of his face. "Hyunjin.. you idiot, you know damn well you're gonna need so much time to get ready.." And yet he didn't feel like letting go of the sleeping man. He couldn't possibly disturb his sleep.

When he finally heard soft groans, he looked straight into his sleepy eyes. At least he didn't have to keep trying to wake him up. Because just a few seconds prior he had planned on letting Hyunjin sleep for just a little bit longer.

"Don't you want to do your weird skin stuff?" "Good morning to you too, Hyung. You should try some skin care too, you know. The constant frowning is giving you creases." At that he could only give him an eye roll and carefully remove his hands. "That's a way to thank me for keeping you warm at night."

He could hear Hyunjin chuckle. "It's okay. I'm grateful. Thank you."

And that had no right making Minho's face heat up the way it did. He didn't even get the time to reply, as Hyunjin had already gotten up and left the room, leaving Minho on his warm bed with an empty spot next to him.

How badly he wanted to keep laying in bed with Hyunjin, although the chances of that happening again were way too low. And he hated that. There was just no way Hyunjin would fall asleep next to him like that a second time. But it would be so nice. Just holding Hyunjin made him feel at ease. The male really did have something special to him, something Minho couldn't exactly explain.

And in that moment he didn't have the time to think about it either, because he already needed to get up as well and change into more fitting clothes for their dance practice.

Practice went pretty good, better than the times before. Hyunjin was able to fully participate again and it made a big difference in the energy. Being a part of the dance unit in the band made him play a vital part in the choreographies. They just weren't the same without him.

And while it went much better, it was also more exhausting. Minho too put in a lot more work than he usually would. Hyunjin's energy seemed to be motivating him a lot.

But their day didn't get any less exhausting after a couple hours of practice. They had to shoot the first clips of their music video.

And while they all had a lot of fun acting and spending time together with the staff, shooting a certain scene over and over again was also extremely draining for all of them. So it was only natural for Minho to be in a rather bad mood after having to shoot the same scene for the fifth time.

He couldn't blame anyone and even if there would be one person always messing it up, he'd understand. They were all exhausted. For the past hours they have been doing nothing but stay active.

"Okay guys, let's take a break here. We're gonna try again in fifteen minutes." Finally. A break sounded just perfect and they all needed to get something refreshing to drink. That alone motivated most of then to get up and off the floor.

Before he could walk over to the drinks, he could already feel someone's arms wrap around his waist from behind, holding two bottles of water. "You're so frustrated. Thought I'd get you some water before you knock someone out." And then that familiar giggle. Hyunjin.

"Hyunjin-ah, you're gripping me too tight." Again he laughed, though he did let go of him right after. Why did he have to say that? He already missed his touch. One of the bottles was carefully placed in Minho's hands and he was focused enough to thank the other. It was sweet of him after all. How didn't he notice that side of him earlier?

After a few sips of the water, Minho put the bottle on the floor and couldn't help but glance over at Hyunjin, unhappy upon seeing the sight. Changbin was too close. Again. They were friends and Minho truly adored Changbin, but why did he always have to be that close to Hyunjin? It was weird. He didn't own him, so why act like he does? Besides, was it really necessary to show off his muscles all the time?

After clearing his throat the male hurried over to him, grabbing Hyunjin by the wrist and pulling him away.

"What are you doing? I wasn't done talking to him!", Changbin protested but remained on the same spot. After that Hyunjin was laughing and didn't seem to have a problem with the action. "More like you weren't done flirting with him", Minho corrected and pulled Hyunjin closer to his own body. "I'm simply protecting him from that perverted beast!" Laughter again. It was even louder this time, because Changbin too was laughing.

But Minho could only look at Hyunjin and smile to himself. His eyes were no longer visible due to how big his smile was and his laugh sounded so adorable. The way his face scrunched up looked way too cute. How could he not smile at the sight? And Hyunjin was laughing because of him, no one else. It shouldn't have felt as good as it did.

And could you really blame Minho when he somehow ended up trapping Hyunjin between his arms with his back against the nearest wall? It was as if looking at Hyunjin made his body do things on its own.

"And you call me the pervert?" Changbin appeared from behind Minho, the grin on his face audible in his voice. "You sound a bit jealous there, Changbin." And Hyunjin laughed again. Minho knew that the male wasn't exactly seeking that kind of attention constantly, but he clearly didn't mind.

So he placed his hand on Hyunjin's waist and pulled him in closer, making him gasp at the sudden act. They all were having fun — it was obvious.

But that didn't last long.

"Lee Know, Hyunjin, I don't think you two should be getting any closer. The rumors are already spreading. Please cut out the majority of that."

Both didn't listen to what was said after that, since their manager started talking with the camera man instead. Why should they cut out those scenes? Their fans loved the behind the scenes moments and they surely would be happy when they saw how close the members really were.

And Minho was pissed.

He had to admit, he was touchy, he did like Hyunjin more than he should. But it was nothing other members have never done. They were just joking around and having fun. In that moment his goal wasn't to have Hyunjin all to himself, but to make him laugh. The past weeks have been bad enough for him already. He had all the good intentions.

The manager had surely wiped out the smiles on their faces and without saying anything he let go of the male and walked off. Otherwise it would have been awkward and in addition to that clearly the manager did not like their interactions.

Even Chan, who had heard those words too, didn't seem to be happy about it. Every member knew how much their leader loved seeing all of them happy. So having to watch someone ruin that fun upset him, Minho was aware of that.

Changbin was not even mentioned and yet he saw how the male sighed and looked rather tense. The mood in the room was ruined.

The staff still wanted them to go on and continue trying to record the scene. And everyone tried to be as professional as possible, it wasn't the first time they heard something they didn't like. But Minho was still upset. All he wanted was for Hyunjin to have that smile back on his face. At least he knew what he'd be doing after they were done recording for the day.

When that time came and they headed towards the changing room, Minho hurried to be able to walk next to Hyunjin.

"I was thinking maybe we all can gather in one of the dorm rooms and have dinner together? I'm sure no one has anything against it. I've asked Chan, he liked the idea."

No, that wasn't enough. Hyunjin did not smile. The manager had really killed the mood. Could he even save it at that point? "Yeah, that sounds good. We haven't done that in a while."

He had to think of something more.

"Do you think you want to help me cook? I wouldn't trust Innie or Seungmin in the kitchen, that'd be too chaotic. I wouldn't mind Felix helping, but I wanted to ask you if you're interested."

That question was impulsive, Minho never planned on asking Hyunjin for help. After all he enjoyed cooking and he enjoyed doing it alone.

But-

"Sure, I'll help. Sounds good. Is it alright if you get the ingredients and I'll come over later on? I'd love to take a shower before Changbin gets any crazy ideas." Hyunjin chuckled and Minho could only furrow his eyebrows. "Shower at our dorm. No one's gonna bother you there."

Why was he making such decisions? He probably sounded like some crazy idiot. With that he was just scaring Hyunjin away. Or was he? Because the male did not lose the smile on his face. "That actually sounds good."

"Wait.. it does?" Minho was confused. How was Hyunjin not suspicious of his behavior?

"Yeah. I'll still have to go to the other dorm though, I have to get all of the things I'll need." And for a split second Minho wanted to offer him his shower essentials, though that was most likely exaggerating.

He was just glad Hyunjin really did end up coming over and taking a shower at their dorm while Minho prepared the ingredients. He made sure to cut everyone, so they wouldn't be wasting any time and didn't have to hurry up with the cutting later on.

The male finished just in time for them to get started on the Jjigae¹. Thankfully it wasn't too difficult and with Hyunjin it was a lot more fun than it usually would be. Company meant he had someone he could talk to.

"You're pretty good at this. Hyunjin-ah, you're just so talented when it comes to anything." Now how was Minho supposed to not compliment him? Especially since no one was around. He had to take the chance and make sure Hyunjin knew he appreciated the help a lot. "I'm just doing what you're telling me to.. it's you who's so good at it."

"Just let me compliment you for-"

"Yah, enough with the flirting."

Both of them quickly turned to the entrance, seeing not just one of the members, but instead the entire band arriving for their dinner.

"I wasn't flirting, I was just letting Hyunjin know that he does a much better job than some people in here." As Minho said that, he made sure to look directly at Seungmin. He had to know he was referring to him.

To that he only got an eye roll and was forced to make everyone sit down, just to avoid any more questions about why he was complimenting Hyunjin and since when they had gotten that close. Not everyone needed to know. No, nobody needed to know about Minho's little crush. It was temporary for sure, so not worth mentioning. At all.

Dinner was quite nice, they all seemed to be having a lot of fun and the situation from before didn't get mentioned again. It was just like every time they ate together.

Until it wasn't.

"Hyunjin, you might wanna slow down a little", he heard Han say while the mentioned male was about to fill his plate with food again. Instantly he stopped his movement and cleared his throat. "You're right, I'm feeling pretty full already. I'll be right back, it's way too hot in here."

So he got up and Minho looked after him, sighing. "Was that really necessary?" "It's okay Minho, I'll look after him", Felix suggested but Minho gave him an annoyed look. Groaning he got up and followed Hyunjin, leaving the other members in an awkward silence.

Meanwhile he left to follow Hyunjin to the balcony, closing the door behind him and sitting down on the floor, right next to him. It was a little bit cold, but nothing too dramatic. It even felt good in a way.

"You know Jisung didn't mean to offend you, right?" "I know." Silence. While Hyunjin was looking up at the night sky, Minho was admiring the way his eyes glistened. It would have been such a beautiful sight, if the reason behind that shimmer weren't tears that were threatening to spill.

"I love your eyes, Hyunjin. I know I usually don't say such things, but I thought this is the perfect time to let you know and get over my stubbornness. You're really pretty, it always amazes me. You're just so sweet and beautiful. I think it makes you special, different from others. Not only that, but you're also really talented. You never fail to impress me.

Carefully he took the other's hand, not letting go of it.

"We can stay here for a little bit, I think the stars look really beautiful tonight."

"I know you're not looking at the stars, Hyung."

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¹ Jjigae = Korean stew

[2500 words]