Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

1.1)

It’s late in the dorms when it happens. Dance practice had dragged on for hours that day, the group at the point of a comeback where all they could do was iron out mistakes as thoroughly as possible, a tedious and tiring process. The decision at the end of the day was that all of the group were to head back to the 3+1racha dorms to relax, order in food, watch a movie. Just spend some time together that would become ever fleeting in the next month or so.

The lights had been set to dim after they’d finished eating, takeaway boxes piled in the kitchen and every possible blanket and cushion piled into the living room. The boys have scattered across the room, mindlessly watching a disney movie, eyes beginning to slip shut as the night draws on. Changbin is curled up in an armchair in the corner, a blanket dragged over him at one point or another, lightly snoring. Jeongin is swaddled on the floor, surrounded by half of the pillows on his own. The 00-line have commandeered the largest sofa, forming a very precarious cuddle pile, Felix on top always slightly swaying as though he’s about to fall off.

That just leaves Chan and Minho to the smaller sofa, curled up together, neither of them really focusing on the movie. The skinship between them isn’t rare, but it still makes Chan’s heart leap whenever Minho chooses him for a hug or a tease. Now though, it might just be his favourite way he’s seen Minho. Curled up, head resting against his shoulder, a peaceful expression gracing his face. He just looks so utterly peaceful that Chan can’t help but to utterly adore the view.

Minho’s eyes slowly start to slip shut, eyelids fluttering and head drifting down only for it to jump back up as he tries to stay awake. Chan notices, smiling softly as he whispers,

“You’re allowed to sleep, you know.”

Minho turns to him, an expression that Chan reads as ‘mildly exasperated but fond’, before turning back to rest on Chan's shoulder. The elder, though, shifts Minho, so his body lies parallel to his own, and his head rests on his lap. Minho doesn’t question it, just allows his eyes to slip shut and into a gentle slumber.

As his breaths even out, Chan moves his hand to slip through Minho’s silver hair, gently running through it as though he were petting a cat. They stay there for the rest of the night, sleeping away in the dark of the living room.

(Minho complains the next day, telling Chan that he should’ve woken him up and taken him back to the dorm, that it hardly could’ve been comfortable for either of them. Chan just hits him with an utterly fond look and that’s all Minho needs to back down)

1.2)

When Chan hears the clicking of Minho’s back as they cool down after a long workout, he knows it's time to set the second step in his plan into action.

He finishes packing up his own workout bag, before picking up Minho’s as well, and taking the younger by the hand. Minho looks puzzled, complaining and questioning Chan all the way back to the dorms and into Minho’s own bedrooM. Chan lays him down gently onto the bed, and sits down behind him.

“Take off your shirt.” Chan says, and Minho turns back to face him, utterly baffled.

“Now what are you planning, hyung? “
“Relax, it’s nothing bad.” Chan responds. Minho reluctantly complies, pulling his sweaty workout shirt off and flinging it into the corner of the room, laying back down onto bed.

When Chan first digs his fingers into his shoulder blades, Minho finally catches on to Chan’s plan. The elder meticulously massages out all of the knots in his back, the pressure and stress of the comeback season being released with the movements. Minho continually lets out small grunts and groans of pleasure, finally being relieved as though a weight has been lifted from his back.

Chan is really good at massages, so thorough in his actions that after a while Minho just lets go. By the time the massage is drawing to an end, the younger is practically boneless on his bed, sighs of relief escaping his lips every few seconds. When Chan steps away, he giggles at Minho’s sad whine, a weak arm barely reaching out to drag him back over.

He leaves after that, clearing up the other half of the group's living space, and smiling gently as he hears te shower turn on in the background. His work is done, for now at least.

1.3)

When Minho doesn’t show up to practice with the maknae line, the red flags are immediately raised in Chan’s head. Minho, who he knows as one of the most hard-working dancers in his life, would never skip out on dance practice unless the world was practically ending. Felix senses his confusion and comes over to explain.

“Hyung woke up really sick, he’s got a fever and I don’t think his breakfast stayed down,” Felix’s expression drops to one more sombre, “Hyung was so stubborn…he kept trying to convince us that he could still come to practice. He could barely stand, Channie-hyung. We told him to call us if he needed anything, but I’m worried he’s not going to listen…”

Chan frowns. He knows all too well that their work can easily become the priority over health, but Minho always knew when to draw the line, and always tried to keep the others, including him, in check. He thinks for a moment, before deciding what needs to be done.
“Lixie, do you think you and Hyunjin would be fine running practice today? I wanna go check on Minho, and take care of him. I’m sure the others will help you, is that fine with you?” Felix simply smiles, responding brightly

“Of course! Tell Minho-hyung we hope he gets better.”
Chan promises, and he catches Felix gathering up the other members to start practice as he leaves the room.

The drive back to the dorms seems to drag on, but he does manage to stop in a store on the way home to pick up some medicine and other essentials. He knows Minho probably already has these at the dorm ,but depending on how much is used, it’s probably a good idea to stock up regardless.

He enters the other dorm to the sound of Minho retching. Instantly, he drops the bag of items and paces through the dorm, stepping into the bathroom. Minho is kneeled over the toilet, sweat dripping down his face and hair falling down into his eyes. Chan sweeps it back and gently rubs Minho’s back, doing his best to comfort the younger. His stomach emptied, Minho turns to face Chan, confusion and guilt in his eyes as an apology begins to tumble from his lips. Chan merely shushes him though, standing and grabbing Minho to carry him back into the bedroom.

Minho is gently laid down, glazed over eyes and small coughs escaping his lips every couple of minutes. Chan leaves for a couple minutes, returning with his bag of supplies and a cold washcloth, which he places across Minho’s forehead, causing the younger to whimper. The noise makes Chan’s heart hurt, but he slowly has to lift the other’s back to get him into a sitting position. He undresses him, pulling a clean hoodie over his head, and hands him a bottle of water and a couple of pills.

Minho’s hands shake as he tries to take a sip of the water, which swiftly makes Chan help raise the liquid to his lips before it spills all over him. He swallows the pills and proceeds to curl up as tight as possible in the covers of his beds. The washcloth slips off in the process, so Chan re-wets it and places it on his forehead, running a hand through knotted hair. Minho’s eyes slip shut, and as he rests, Chan slips out into the kitchen.

Now, Chan definitely would have preferred to make soup from scratch, and while he isn’t the worst cook, he’s not necessarily the cleanest, and he’d rather not cause too much trouble in not-his-own-kitchen. So a thing of soup from the store would have to do for today. He stands over the stove as it heats up in the pan, and tries to clear his head from worry.

The comeback is most likely the cause of this. Minho has taken up doing most of the choreography for the title track this time round, along with multiple B-Sides. He’s been working for hours every day, longer than the rest of the group. Chan is riddled with guilt. He’s been trying to get Minho a break, trying to take care of him. It seems like his efforts weren’t enough, as the younger one still got sick. Regardless, all Chan can do at this point is take care of Minho, get him back to his best. He pours the soup into the bowl and goes back to Minho’s room.

Minho had barely moved in the time he was in the kitchen, still curled up asleep with the washcloth on his head. Chan shakes his shoulder softly, stirring the younger from his sleep , his head raising from the covers with a mess of silver strands atop. He looks so perplexed that Chan can’t help but coo as he hands over the bowl of soup. Minho’s hands are shaking less than before, Chan notices. Good, that’s a visible improvement. The other eats for a while, Chan running his hands through his hair as he does, until he can’t eat anymore and sets it beside him.

Chan moves to tuck Minho back in, his dongsaeng gripping his hand the whole time. As he turns to leave however, the younger whines, gripping tighter onto Chan’s hand. He drags the elder back over, pulling him into bed beside him. Chan doesn’t try to protest, simply shifts his body to lay beside Minho and wraps his arms around his waist, pulling the younger one closer as they both begin to fall asleep.

(A few days later, when he’s staying late in the studio, he opens the mini-fridge in the corner to find a stack of tupperware that was definitely not there before. There’s a cat shaped post-it note on top, ‘Thank you’ written in what is certainly not Minho’s handwriting. The food is delicious, and he returns to his work with a wide grin plastered on his face.)

1.4)

Minho slides down the wall of the practice room, breaths escaping in pants. He wipes the sweat off before moving to his phone, preparing to replay the newest title track. It’s been a few days since he was sick, and he’s desperate to get right back into work. Perhaps it’s hypocritical, but this needs to be the best yet. He needs to be the best version of himself. If Stay wants perfection, then that’s what he needs to show them.

His next run-through is interrupted by the door swinging open, his leader standing in the doorway carrying a pile of tupperware he vaguely recognises, his back pushing against the door to try and keep it open. Chan’s got a mile wide grin, and Minho can barely shut the music off, halting the booming bass, before he’s rushing over to help his hyung. Once all of the boxes are settled, he turns to Chan, confused and mildly annoyed.

“What are you doing here? It’s way too late!”

Chan laughs breathily, starting to open up the boxes to reveal a variety of side dishes.

“I wasn’t at the studio if that’s what you’re worried about. Besides, you’re here this late, that’s not good for you either, especially so soon after you were sick!”

“But-”
“No buts Minho-ah. Hyung knows best. Nevermind that now, what I am here for, is so that both of us can eat. I knew that if you stayed here much longer you wouldn’t bother eating anything decent, so I brought the food to you. Now, sit down and enjoy.”
Minho can’t even protest before Chan is pulling out a pair of plastic plates and handing him his own pair of chopsticks. He sits down, crossing his legs, and hesitantly begins to grab pieces of the dishes Chan brought over.

When he takes the first bite, however, he’s…shocked. It tastes incredible. Chan’s obviously found a new takeout, as this tastes different to any of their regulars, but he’s amazed by how perfectly the flavours are balanced whilst also matching the textures perfectly. He looks up at Chan, midway through taking a bite of his own food.

“Where did you get this hyung? It’s really good, but I haven’t heard of any new takeout places opening recently…” Chan simply smiles and states

“Oh, I made it myself. I fed the rest of the group as well, and they had a good response to it, so… ”

Minho chokes, and Chan moves over to pat his back. The younger simply pushes him away and starts to talk.

“This is incredible. Restaurant quality. And you fed the rest of the group too?”
Chan looks more than a bit bashful at the praise, his face flushed red as he=is hands cover his face. He responds though, telling Minho.

“Yeah, I fed the others. I know that’s normally your job and if you don’t want to you don’t have to, but I could take over some of the group meal nights? It would just be to take more off your shoulders, nothing to do with the actual food or-”

“Yes.”
“Yes?”
“Yes, hyung, I would be very grateful if you did that. I’m definitely not complaining if it means eating more of your food.”

The blush doesn’t leave Chan’s cheeks as he nods slightly, and they both return to their food. The meal continues to its end without any more conversation, the pair just enjoying their mutual company as they finish eating. Once all the food has been gone, they gather up the tupperware and cutlery, and return to the dorms, Minho holding onto Chan’s hand the entire time.

1.5)

Chan frequently finds himself unable to sleep. More often than not it’s a curse, hours spent in a dark room, alone, scrolling mindlessly on his phone or trying to get something done for a song that inevitably ends up with no actual progress. Tonight, however, is a different story. Tonight, he’s beyond grateful he was awake.

The clock reads three forty-seven when Chan turns to see the door creaking open. It’s Minho. Minho, bundled in one of his hoodies, the sleeves falling over the ends of his hands. Minho, who looks so small, so scared standing there. Minho, there in the faint light from the hallway with tears running down his face. He looks as though he didn’t expect Chan to still be awake, but he moves into the room regardless, pushing the door shut behind him.

Chan is quick to move closer and pull his dongsaeng into his arms. The sobs start then, quiet but so filled with pain, Minho’s head tucked into Chan’s shoulder. He’s trembling ever so slightly, making Chan grip that much tighter. Neither of them say anything for a good ten minutes, just sit there in each other's embrace as Minho cries his eyes out, Chan shushing him, whispers of “You’re okay” leaving his lips.

Minho stops crying, but the agonising silence remains. He doesn’t say anything and that terrifies Chan. He’s not seen Minho in this state for a long time. Chan needs to know what’s troubling the younger. As the eldest, he’s responsible for taking care of all his dongsaengs and if something has happened to get Minho to this point, he has to help. It doesn’t matter how long it takes, he will get the truth from Minho tonight.

Another ten minutes pass in silence, Minho’s grip on Chan unwavering. His head turns, facing the wall, and he begins to speak.
“I keep wondering why I’m in the group.” Chan goes to question, to comfort, but he knows Minho, so he sits back, and lets him keep talking.

“The company wants perfection, Stay wants perfection, and despite how much you insist, I know deep down you want perfection. You’ll never hold it against us, but you do, because you spent so long trying to get here and now you have it you want it to stay. But this comeback has just been so damn difficult for me. I’m not sure how many revisions I had to go through to get the final choreography, and there always seems to be something they wanted me to tweak. I’ve been practising so hard so that I know all of it perfectly, and while I can perform it well, it just…it never seems to be enough.Then the B-Sides, I just can't seem to get the dances down, and it's pathetic because everyone else seems to be coping just damn fine. Being sick didn’t help. I know you wouldn’t ever say it, but I know you wouldv’e rather been working than forced to take care of me. Dance was why I was put in this group in the first place. If I fail at that then…what’s the point really?”

Chan doesn’t say anything for a while, and when Minho looks back, there are tears cascading down Chan’s cheeks. They fall slowly, and Minho can’t find the words to say. It doesn’t matter, because Chan responds.

“How can you say that? How can you just, say all that, and not realise how crucial you are for this group. You are an incredible dancer, a few reworks or taking a bit longer to get it doesn’t instantly diminish that. You have a beautiful voice, and a more beautiful heart. You are so kind and considerate. You always try to trouble us as little as possible, but you need to understand that we want to be bothered by you. The only place I wanted to be when I found out you were sick, was beside you, taking care of you. We all love you, so fucking much Minho, I love you. Please, rely on me. Come to me with the smallest problems you have. Whatever you need, because all I need is to have you with me. Got it?”

They’re both crying at this point, but Minho is nodding as he pushes his head back into the crook of Chan’s neck and that’s enough. They stay there, in the dark of Chan’s bedroom, sitting and holding each other. At some point, Chan’s eyes slip shut, but when the sun begins to breach through the curtains and his mind returns to consciousness , Minho isn’t there. He quickly picks up the smell of food wafting through the door, and the sound of Minho humming, and he smiles. He knows things will get better from here.

+1)

When Chan sits down at the dining room table, grabbing the cup of tea that placed in his spot, Minho turns around, putting a hand on his hip, a judging expression resting on his face. Chan is almost worried at it, but is comforted when Minho speaks.

“You know hyung, you have the subtlety of a car crash.”
Chan is almost baffled, barking out breathy laughter and glancing at Minho, who seems to be in disbelief.

“Seriously though hyung, what are you trying? This isn’t just about the…breakdown, but the past few weeks in general. All of sudden you start randomly doing things for me that you don’t do for anyone else? Why? What are you trying to get me to do?”

Chan just keeps on laughing, a fond smile gracing his face all the while. At this point Minho is done trying to get an explanation out of the elder, huffing and turning back to the stove. After his laughter settles down though, Chan starts to respond

“I’m not trying to get you to do anything, honestly. It’s just…it’s like what I said last night. You do a lot for the group Minho. You work insanely hard while simultaneously taking care of all of us at the same time. You care so much and you don’t really get a lot of breaks from that,” Chan moves his hand across the counter, catching the younger’s wrist from where he leans against the table.

“I’m your hyung, and I care about you, a lot. You’ve been stressed recently and it just- iIt felt right for me to be able to take care of you for once. I know you’re independent but I just wanted you to know you can always rely on me.”  

Chan pulls Minho’s hand closer, gently pressing a kiss to the back. Minho flushes scarlet, pulling his hand away, but before Chan can regret anything, he’s moving round to the elder. He brushes a few stray hairs away from Chan’s forehead before pressing a barely-there kiss to the skin. It’s Chan’s turn to shut down from the action, though he tries his best to remain normal as Minho starts talking again.

“I like taking care of the group, and that’s why I do it. Besides, you do the same, hyung, don’t sell yourself short. Still,” Minho glances at Chan, an utterly fond look in his eyes, like millions of tiny stars twinkling.

“I’m really grateful for all of this, Chan-Hyung. Thank you.”

Something shifts in his dongsaeng’s expression, something in his eyes that makes it seem like there was so much more he could say. Chan’s thoughts are cut off however, by the increasing volume of bickering between Hyunjin and Jisung as they enter the room, greeting the both of them briefly before returning to whatever pointless argument they have happening. Minho has turned away from Chan at this point, focussing on serving up breakfast for them all. He’ll have to question the younger one about what he didn’t say at that moment, but that can wait. For now, he just settles back in his chair and takes a sip of tea, staring lovingly at Minho and letting the background noise settle in his mind.

Minho, though, is deep in thought. A plan forms in the back of his mind and he smirks. He’ll show Chan just how much he cares. How far gone in love he is. He’s sure of it.

Chapter Text

2.1)

It takes Chan a few minutes to realise that something had changed in his studio. Nothing is out of place per say, but after he’s dropped his bag down and started up the equipment, he turns to his desk to find a box. Just a cardboard box, brown and nondescript, the shipping details scribbled out in black pen, but it peaks Chan’s interest anyways, especially after he notices the ‘FOR BANG CHAN’ in large, messy writing on one side.

There’s a pair of scissors in his ‘drawer of random things, which he pulls out to slice open the tape sealing the box shut. The flaps open to reveal…another box. This one however, is much more informative as to what it contains. The plain black panel on the top of the box has the logo for his favourite tech brand embossed into it. Excitement brewing, he opens the flap to reveal a sleek pair of luxury headphones. Chan is amazed. He’d wanted them for months, he remembers bringing them up in a conversation ages ago, but he never expected anything to come from it. The reason he hadn’t bought them earlier was because they were just so expensive.

He looks back into the cardboard box to find a small whiter card, a message printed onto it.

‘You deserve nice things.-?’

No name. Great. It’s not that he’s worried at all, the opposite really. It has to be one of his group members, they were the only people present for the conversation and the only people with the code to his room. His frustration came from the fact that he wanted- no, needed to thank the gifter. To spend so much money for no apparent reason, it was crazy really.

It would have to wait though, he had too much to do. He slotted the cable into the headphone jack and slipped them over his head, getting to work.

The gifts didn’t stop coming. Over the next few weeks they just kept showing up, not just in his studio, but they’d pop up in his bedroom too. Clothes he’d kept in his basket for months, equipment he’d barely mentioned in passing, a replacement pair of his favourite shoes. It was all too much. Heck, sometimes he’d leave the studio for a quick toilet break, only to return to takeout containers or tupperware to appear on his desk.

He was getting more and more impatient to find out who was giving him these things. The gifts in his bedroom would only appear when the entire group were at their dorm, so that didn’t eliminate things. He was always alone when he got the gifts too, so nobody could really be eliminated. The problem was that if he started questioning people, there would be suspicion and lies, and would probably ultimately lead nowhere. So, he came up with a plan. His computer’s webcam would let him discreetly record for a while, so if he kept it on while he was out of the studio, it might just catch the gifter in the act.

At 11:47 , he switched it on, before stepping out for a bathroom break. He sat in a stall, waiting and waiting. For ten minutes he sat there in anticipation. When he returned, more tupperware sat on his desk…but the only way he could tell was the red light flashing at the top of his computer. He flicked the switch and rushed to the computer, switching to watch the playback. He knew the moment the gifter arrived, because the footage went dark as the lights were switched off. No image, no face, nothing. Dammit.

The next morning however, came with some interesting information. Chan was set to record with Jeongin and Minho that morning, for a new SKZ-Player track. Jeongin however, arrived alone.

“Minho hyung is probably gonna be late, he went for a walk late at night yesterday and he wasn’t even back at the dorms until past midnight.”
Huh.

(Later, when Minho came to record, he tried his best to hint that he had caught on. The younger one however, just looked at Chan like he was a madman. Tsundere.)

2.2)

The pout on Chan’s lips is almost laughable. Minho’s watches as he slumps back into his bed, arms crossed and sulking as the others try to cushion his left leg. The thick black boot that sits below his knee and wraps around the rest of his left leg stands out against the pale bedsheets. Minho is obviously sympathetic, knowing that his hyung is probably in a lot of pain but is trying his best to hide it for the younger members. It’s hard to feel too bad though, when Chan’s grumpy expression is the cutest thing to him.

The incident happened during practice, the new choreography isn’t exactly the simplest, and a complex move had ended with their leader crying out in pain and the rest of the group being instantly sent into mild panic. It had taken probably too long for them to organise themselves, get Chan in Changbin’s arms and carry him to the JYP medical suite. A sprained ankle and -2 weeks of bedrest minimum was what the in-house doctor had told Chan, and then no dance for at least 6 weeks after.

Minho knew Chan was frustrated. The dance practice had been the start of preparations for their next comeback, and now all of it would have to be delayed, and the incomplete practices would make it even more stressful closer to the actual release. None of the members blamed Chan obviously, but there was a level of guilt Chan held constantly when things went wrong.

That was why taking care of Chan now was so important to Minho. He needed to prove to the leader that this wasn’t an inconvenience, that he was more than happy to take care of him when he needed it, hell, just to show that he cared. There were three (hopefully foolproof) steps to his plan.

Step one: Food. The others had settled down in the living room a while ago, watching some drama they started a while ago. Minho had holed himself into the kitchen with a stern “Do not enter” warning to his dongsaengs before getting to cooking. The repetitive actions were calming after their stressful day, and he’d been lucky enough to have all the ingredients he needed to execute the idea. A couple hours later, the table had been set out for the younger members to eat, and he had a tray of Chan’s favourite dishes ready to go.

Step two: Rest. When he entered Chan’s room, the initial plan had been to set up the TV so the two could relax together as they ate, maybe even getting Chan to get his frustrations out unintentionally. What he didn’t plan for was Chan, headphones over his head, laptop resting on his lap, working. Of course. Minho set the tray down on his desk and pulled the headphones off Chan’s head. The elder was shocked, trying to reach up, whining, but Minho is utterly stubborn.

“Save your work.”

Chan doesn’t move, staring Minho.

“Save your work or I unplug it.”
That spurs Chan to action, francitcally clicking at the screen, before pushing it away. Minho grabs the laptop and takes it out of the room, before returning to a pouting Chan once again. That pout is successfully lifted when he brings the food over. He hands Chan the remote, letting him choose what to put on. The pair sit there and eat, no real noise other than the movie. If they don’t end up talking, Minho is fine with that. Once they’re done eating step three starts anyways, he thinks, the sooner the better really.

Step three: comfort. Sue him, he doesn’t get the chance to cuddle with his only hyung very often, both of them being with the younger members more often. Besides, Chan is the type of person that needs skinship like oxygen, especially right now. The food is cleared and the movie continues, but Minho moves closer so his hands are around Chan’s waist. They lay there for the rest of the night, and as Minho starts to drift off, he notices the bright smile on Chans’s face before everything fades.

He thinks he did pretty well.

2.3)

Chan comes back home after a day of meetings ready to fall into bed immediately. Well, maybe not immediately. It was a knock on effect really, he woke up late, meaning he didn’t have time to shower before the meetings. After hours of sitting in a small meeting room with broken air conditioning, he can’t exactly say he smells the best right now. A shower will do him good.

It’s dark when he walks into the dorms, the lights are off in the living area and he fumbles his hand along the wall as he simultaneously tries to take his shoes off and turn the light on. When he finds it, he moves through the house, bumping into Hyunjin leaving his own room. The younger startles, but smiles in greeting

“Oh, you’re back hyung, good timing. When you told us you’d be back soon Minho-hyung practically sprinted over and took charge of your bathroom. Not sure why…but I’m not really involved.”
Chan is just as puzzled, but he tells Hyunjin goodnight as the other leaves for the kitchen, and continues through the dorm.

The sound of running water is what hits his senses first, then a soft glowing light from through the door. He steps through and sees Minho kneeling by the bathtub, stirring something through the water, turning his head to Chan as he steps through.

“Welcome back hyung. The bath’s almost ready for you, you might wanna start stripping.”
A thin cover of blush settles on Chan’s cheeks when Minho says that, and the younger giggles.

“Don’t get shy now, you walk around with next to nothing on most of the time, we’re all used to it.”

Chan just groans, hiding his face in his hands out of embarrassment, but complying.

The water is warm when Chan steps in, his body sinking into the water as though it were a thick blanket. He sighs as the water relieves the ache in his back, for all the money JYP has, the meeting room chairs are awful for more than half an hour at a time. After a few minutes, he reaches out for his shampoo, but before he can grab it, Minho takes it into his hands, squirts out some product and reaches for Chan’s hair.

This is definitely new, Chan notes, but far from unpleasant. Minho’s nails are great at massaging his scalp, the actions causing him to go basically limp in the water. The younger washes the shampoo away, being ever so careful to keep it from his eyes, an action that makes Chan’s heart weak. This repeats for the conditioner, and he helps scrub Chan’s back as well. Minho leaves to allow Chan to finish washing up his body, mind still a little fuzzy from the soft treatment. He leaves the bath before his skin wrinkles too much, but when he steps out after getting dried, Minho is gone. He does find a hoodie and a pair of sweatpants on his bed, freshly warmed by the drier. He finds sleep comes to him easily that night.

2.4)

Minho is always tired after variety shows, even if half of the day is spent off-camera. The constant touch-ups on makeup and hair, orders coming from one person or another. They usually have fun in the end, the games are always pretty chaotic, but even he can’t resist the lull of sleep in the car on the way back. The issue is that the younger members have somehow managed to keep their energy up after the long day, and are still as loud as ever in the back of the car.

Chan is asleep. It’s a miracle really, with the high volume conversations happening, but his hyung has always been known to take naps over actually sleeping. Minho’s pretty determined to actually let him sleep though, schedules are always draining and the lack of sleep certainly doesn’t help. He turns his focus to the other members, trying to think of the best way to go about this.

He starts with a glare towards them, his piercing gaze getting them to lower their volume immediately. He gestures to the napping Chan, and the twins’ eyes widen, immediately resort to whispering with one another. That works, but Minho pulls out his phone, opens up the notes app and starts typing just to be sure.

‘If you get to a volume that even risks him waking up, you’re getting a mouth stuffed with tissues. All of you.’

Hyunjin looks successfully terrified, and the maknaes seemingly understand how serious Minho is. They pull out their own phones and talk there, Minho assumes. The quiet is a relief to him, both as it means Chan can hopefully stay asleep for just a bit longer, and that his own headache starts to reduce.

When the car pulls up to the dorms, he lets the others go first, before removing Chan’s seatbelt. It’s a bit of a fight to get him out of the car, trying to get his arms under the elder’s legs,all without waking him up. He might not be as strong as Changbin, but he’s certainly not the weakest. He wonders why the hallways are so narrow as he fights to carry Chan into his dorm.

Minho sighs in relief when he sets Chan down and he’s somehow still asleep. He stands in the doorway for a minute, watching the up-and-down of his chest. Hestating, he steps forward, shifting the mess of curls away from Chan’s forehead.Ever so softly, he presses a kiss against the skin .Blush coating his cheeks, he staggers back rushing to the door. Chan stays asleep.

(He stays asleep for a while apparently. Jisung texts him later, in hysterics, telling him that Chan only woke up when he quite literally fell out of bed.)

2.5)

There’s sobbing. Minho’s eyes shoot open at the noise. Their living room is still dark, the tv must have shut off automatically he presumes. Hand reaching out, he flicks on the table lamp and scans the room.

Changbin and Felix are sleeping in the armchair, Felix straddling the elder, resting his head on the other’s shoulder. Jisung has an iron grip on Hyunjin, hands tight around his waist. Seungmin is curled up in a blanket against the base of the sofa, smiling gently in his sleep. Jeongin is opposite him, head hanging over the edge of the sofa. Minho shifts the maknae so his head is properly against the armrest, his original position couldn’t have been comfortable.

That leaves Chan, who is…not here. Minho gets up, feet light as he follows the sobbing noises to the kitchen. His heart wrenches at the sight. Chan is hunched over the counter, a glass of water in his hands trembling with them. Their leader is clearly trying his best to stay quiet, lips torn up from how hard he’s biting them and tears continually rolling. He hasn’t even realised Minho is there.

He’s so stuck in his own mind he practically jumps out of his own skin, a sharp inhale and terrified eyes when Minho sits opposite. The younger, though, takes it in stride, moving Chan’s hands into his own and staring back, eyes filled with love. His hyung’s hands are still trembling, but he just runs thumbs over the back and lets Chan cry and tremble for however long is needed.

He isn’t sure when Chan stops crying or shaking, but it’s been a good while when he whispers a quiet ‘Thank you’ in the dim light. They sit in silence for a few minutes. Minho has already given him ‘the look’. The one that tells his hyung that there’s no need to talk, but he can if he wants. The one that says he’s staying no matter what. The sharp inhale is the only warning he gets before Chan spills.

“A nightmare. It was a nightmare, I know it sounds stupid really. But it just- You were there, all of you but you weren’t there. It was like when I was younger. I was alone. I don’t know how or why but you were all performing together on stage and all I could do was watch. It kept flashing between different moments and from what I gathered, you- you all left me. I don’t know what I did but you got so angry at me and you all hated me and you left and you regrouped and you were happy. I just. I never want to lose any of you, and seeing you all happy without me just hurts so much. I’m so fucking scared of being alone again.”

Minho sits and lets Chan’s words sink in. More silence.

“You know, hyung, I don’t think I could ever hate you. Maybe if you killed one of my cats, but then again, I know you’d never do that, and that’s why I’m so certain on this matter. The others know it well too. You’ve done so much for us Chan, so don’t you think we’d ever leave. Especially now, after everything we’ve been through, there’s no way we’re going anywhere, no way I’m going anywhere.”

Chan sits there for a while, tears drying against his cheeks, eyes unfocused, simply absorbing what the younger said. In the dim kitchen lights, despite everything, Minho still thinks Chan looks beautiful, especially when a smile slips onto his face.

"So you wouldn't hate me even if I killed a person?"

Minho chuckles in response. He knows Chan is trying to change the subject, trying to avoid talking about his problems, but that's fine. More will come out eventually. For now, Minho will indulge Chan's 'distraction'

"Well…there definitely are a few people you could kill and I wouldn't be mad about."

Chan's giggling this time, and his eyes seem to light up. It's just what Minho wanted, to see him happy. Under it though, his exhaustion still shows, so the younger stands from his chair and moves over to the elder.

"Go back to sleep, hyung."

He leans down and presses a kiss to Chan's cheek, both having their faces flush pink. Minho moves quickly, heading back into the living room, hiding his blush under the darkness and comfort of a blanket.

He doesn't know what time it is when Chan steps back into the living room, but he's fully awake when his hyung presses a kiss to his forehead.

Minho dreams of love that night.

(+2)

The sunset casts a warm glow over the kitchen, the sizzle of the oil in the frying pan overlapping with Minho's humming acting as the only noise. An utterly domestic view as the first thing Chan sees as he walks into the other dorm.

It's moments like this that he misses having all eight of them in one dorm. While the increase in space is nice, it'll never truly beat the feeling of living with the seven people you care about most. He misses the maknaes, and he especially misses Minho. While he might tell an interviewer it's just because of the help he provided in the dorm, Chan knows that's far from true.

He's admitting it all tonight.

Minho turns to him with a smile that makes Chan’s heart flutter. Minho is so perfect. Golden visuals and a golden heart to match.

"You're back home early, hyung. It's nice to see you here."

Chan settles down at the counter, content to just watch Minho cook.

"I've been inspired faster, I guess. The ideas I have are coming together faster."

Minho just hums again, checking over the pot before grabbing ingredient after ingredient to add to the sauce.

'Now is the only opportunity you've had,' Chan thinks to himself, 'Ask him about it all, explain, confess, whatever, just do something!'

He clears his throat.

"You mentioned before that I wasn't exactly being subtle, but uh, I don't think you've been either…"

Minho just continues to stir for a minute, and Chan thinks he might be ignoring him, until he puts a lid on the pot and sets it to boil. The younger moves to stand opposite him, arms resting on the kitchen counter.

"Well, hyung, you mentioned before that you were taking care of me because I was stressed, whilst simultaneously being stressed yourself. So I felt it fairly obvious that it would only be fair to care for you in return. I thought I made my intentions pretty clear, so there was no need to be subtle…"

Oh. Of course. Chan's mentally slamming his head against the counter, because of course that's all. Chan's never been a romantic but he should've never got his hopes up.

"Unless, you weren’t truthful about your intentions."

'Excuse me, What the fuck.'

Chan just about chokes at that, coughs wheezing out. Minho is still leaning on the counter, that cat-like smirk resting comfortably on his lips. He's made a ruin out of Chan at this point, and there's no turning back.

"Maybe I wasn't fully truthful…Maybe I might worry about you a lot and wanted to show how much hyung…cares."

Minho’s cheeks are dusted pink, and his smirk has fallen to a soft smile. There's a tender look in his eyes as he speaks.

"Chan, it's okay. I was doing this because I wanted to prove how much I love you."

Oh.

Oh.

He can tell by the way Minho is giggling that he must look like an absolute mess right now. He guesses red cheeks and wide eyes, subtly moving to close his slack-open jaw. Then Minho is slowly moving over and resting his hands on Chan’s shoulder and suddenly he can barely breathe.

"I'm guessing that's what you were trying to tell me Chan-hyung. No need to be shy."

God, Chan is ruined, but at this point he's not thinking straight so he does the one thing he can.

He lowers his face and kisses Minho.

It's not rough or deep, but it's warm and passionate and so filled with love that Chan feels like he's about to become a puddle of Chan-goo on the floor. When he pulls away Minho looks slightly dazed but the smile that creeps over is so giddy he can't help but swoon. He's so in love.

"So maybe I might want to care for you as more than just a hyung? As a boyfriend perhaps?"

Minho giggles again, that light sound that makes Chan's heart glow.

"Yes, hyung, I will be your boyfriend. I love you."

Suddenly everything seems to fall into place, Chan’s arms reaching forward to pull Minho into an embrace. It's no different than any other time they've hugged but the emotions behind it make it the most comfortable place Chan's ever been, his boyfriend's arms. It comes out as a whisper.

"I love you too."

But Chan can feel the smile break against his head as Minho nuzzles into his hair. The door to the dorm opens as the others file in with bags of shopping but neither of them make an attempt to move. This is all they need right now.

This is home to them.