"I'm so fucking tired."

"Well, good evening to you too," Changbin greeted the tired voice ringing throughout his kitchen with a breathy laugh. He turned around to the phone screen he propped up against a random jar he found on the counter at the last minute, quickly scanning over the boxy surroundings that Hyunjin was trapped within. It looked to be metal, square, mirrors on the back side of him, showing off the parts of him that Changbin couldn't see. Not that those parts were anything particularly interesting, but he could see them nonetheless. He furrowed his eyebrows at the phone screen, wondering, "Where are you? That doesn't look like your hotel room."

"Because it's not. The hotel we're staying in decided to feed us dinner. Very nice of them. Food was good. I'm on my way back to my room now," Hyunjin hummed, "I'm surprised you called me."

Changbin shrugged, turning away from the phone to search inside his fridge for something to munch on, "I'm lonely. Talk to me about some bullshit."

I wanted to hear his voice for bit, but I'm not about to admit that.

He allowed himself to smile as he searched around in the cool refrigerator, knowing full well that he could hear the other hum in an acknowledgement but Hyunjin couldn't see his own stupid grins he had yet to discover how to contain. He needed to learn how to control his smiles. And fast. If he didn't, he swears he would be swimming in the deep end with the sharks and even a giant squid within the next week with how quickly he was catching feelings. Otherwise he'd be stuck, smiling in place at the leftover dinner in his fridge to cool himself down and to hide his grins away so he wouldn't be discovered for all of eternity. He liked his dinner, but he did not like it enough to be grinning fondly at it in the way he was.

"Let's see," Hyunjin started with a drawl in his tone, his words pulling long in thought. He make a light noise, the mix of an 'Ah' and an 'Oh' that he usually gave in the lower of his chest when he was about to speak about something, his fingers snapping together in almost an excitement before he started off, "The picture you sent me, yesterday night? This morning? The screenshot of me sleeping on call?"

"Yeah?" Changbin prompted him to continue.

"You can keep it."

His heart did a strange fwoomp thing as soon as he heard the words come over the speakers. He grabbed the tupperware of leftover dinner off from the shelve, whipping outside of the fridge to look at the person at the phone screen with an excitement he couldn't contain. He tried to. He really tried to hide his excitement. He really tried to hide the way his words made his whole body feel as if it was levitating off the floor, enlightened by rays of light carrying him up, he swears he tried to hide it. Especially considering he wasn't entirely sure if it was alright for him to have snapped the screenshot in the first place. Changbin checked in excitement, "I can?!"

"Keep it, as long as you're not going to use it as blackmail or bribery or something," Hyunjin confirmed

Changbin pumped a fist in the air, "Yes!"

Unfortunately, that pump wasn't entirely well timed with his other hand. As soon as his elbow came down to set gingerly back to his side, the limb came slamming onto the plastic container in his other hand. It banged onto his nerve, hitting precisely between the bones where it caused his arm to turn into a pterodactyl wing and go numb against the side of his body, his lips curling a groan of pain out as the container nearly slipped from his grasp. It didn't, luckily. But the split second that he felt it's balance go topside and try to slip out of his hands, caused his heart to slide to a screeching halt as the world slowed with the sight of the dinner regardless. He managed to catch it up in his hands in time to throw it down on the counter and cradle the elbow he smacked down.

Why did it hurt so bad?

Why did hitting the elbow on the bottom make him feel like hell came to make him personally pay the cost for their outrageous heating bill?

A soft laughter graced his ears.

With his arm still cradled to his chest to rub out the painful numb currently throbbing through it, he narrowed his eyes down to daggers and tossed his pointed glare to the phone screen. The digital pixels showing off another one of those sights that caused his face to heat up and his heart to miserably flush down to leave him for dead on the kitchen tiles; Hyunjin covering his laughter with a palm as he was gazed away from the phone screen, the amusement at the messy sight evident in the way his eyes glimmered and in the shaking of his shoulders trying not to bounce too high so his chuckles weren't entirely obvious. But the soft sound still came across. The breathy puffs were audible regardless of how he tried to cover it up.

Changbin intensified his glare st the phone screen, the corner of his lips pulling up as he watched the other try to hide his smile, "Are you laughing at my misery?"

"No, no, I'm not laughing at you."

"You are."

"I'm not!"

"Do you know how much that bullshit hurt? I can't feel my arm. Complete fuckery."

"I'm sure it did hurt," Hyunjin reassured him, more of his soft laughter tumbling from his lips as he removed his hand from hiding his smile away. He put the squishy smile on full display as Changbin scoffed to himself, picking up the leftovers and throwing it closer to where the phone was so he could talk with Hyunjin easier, all the while comforting his elbow that still tingled with anger. Before either of them could say any more on the matter, a gentle ding came over the speakers of the phone and Hyunjin glanced up, "Hang on, someone's coming into the elevator with me."

Changbin nodded to himself. That means he could busy his attention with the dinner in front of him while Hyunjin was, most likely about to be, locked into a conversation he either wanted or wanted to avoid entirely. He pursed his lips together, starting to pry open the tupperware container that sent his arm into the painful flight or fight response he was attempting unsuccessfully to fight odd. A sweet smell assaulted his nose. Which, was a little strange, because he didn't remember eating anything sweet for a while. He definitely didn't remember eating any dinners or meals that would have a sweet scent to them.

Even weirder was the fact, the more he looked at the leftover food inside, he had no idea what it was. The food wasn't bad. It wasn't molded or rotted out, it looked fresh, smelled fresh, and from the little nibble he took off the corner, it tasted fresh too.

While he was busying trying to figure out what was in his refrigerator, Changbin heard the dinging of an elevator over the phone, followed by the curt squelch of metal doors opening then closing as someone greeted beneath the various noises,

"Hey, Mr. Hwang."

"Seungmin, just call me Hyunjin. Please. We've known each other long enough to drop the formalities and, please, I hate Mr. Hwang," Hyunjin answered him. Not that Changbin was really listening to the conversation, he wasn't, he was more busy with figuring out what he was about to heat up and put into his mouth. Not that he's ever truly cared about that before now. If he just happened to overhear a few words here and there, it wasn't his intention to. Not at all. He wasn't eavesdropping at all, so he definitely didn't glance over to his phone screen when he heard Hyunjin start up the investigation towards whoever joined him in the elevator, "How are things with Jisung?"

"Bad. He hates this schedule. I'm thinking of quitting soon, or else I think I'm going to be down a boyfriend soon."

"Is he worth quitting this job for?"

"Yeah, he is. I'll miss the paycheck but I'd miss him more," The person answered, before he quipped in a snicker, "Not that you have that problem. You're still single, right? Single and desperate."

Changbin snorted, laughing to himself as he picked up another bit of the dinner between his fingers to taste, "He sounds just like Jeongin."

Seriously, what the hell was this?

Now thinking about it, was the tupperware his? He didn't remember putting anything in a tupperware that looked like container on the counter in front of him, he didn't even remember purchasing a container that looked like the one in his hands. He never bought this brand. He never had the need to, this was one of those fancy metal thermal containers that people used with lunches, he never had to use that kind of container, why was it in his refrigerator? Why was it in his house? What was in it, why did it taste vaguely like chicken?

A part of him started to wonder if the tupperware was leftovers from the boyfriend squad. He knows Chan has a spare key to his apartment in case of emergency, and he keeps a spare to their apartment as well. But by no means did 'emergency' mean leaving their dinner leftovers in his kitchen. But thinking about Jeongin and Minho, that seemed like something they would do when they were at a loss for where to put leftovers.

"Did you visit the boba shop I recommended?" The other person in the elevator started again, continuing on a conversation which was drowned out by Changbin's thoughts playing detective with the mystery container of dinner.

Hyunjin replied, warily, "I... did."

"Did you see the guy who works the counter?" His coworker kept talking, "The one with the tattoos and the big muscles, kind of intimidating guy who glares a lot? He's short but he's hot, right?"

"Did he just call me short?" Changbin perked up, dropping the bit of the leftovers he held up between his fingers. Of course that was what his mind decided to focus on that part of the sentence and nothing else. Not the fact he was acknowledged to be attractive, only the fact he was called short. A second later, his jaw went slack, "I'm intimidating? Since when was I intimidating?"

"Most people who go there thirst for him, it's bad. But, he's totally your ty-"

Changbin's eyes snapped over to the phone screen.

Was he about to say type?

Hyunjin interrupted him, "Please stop talking."

"What?"

"I'm on call with him."

The other end of the call was silent for a second.

"You know what, this is my floor. See you tomorrow."

The coworker left the elevator as soon as he had popped in.

Neither Hyunjin or Changbin said anything.

Not for a while.

Not until Hyunjin had disembarked from the elevator on his own floor, and started trudging down the hallway with a blank expression on his face.

"So..." Changbin started in a drawn out tone, frankly afraid to ask but too curious to leave the conversation alone. When Hyunjin glanced back down to his phone as he marched along the corridor, wordlessly telling him to continue his line of thought, Changbin bit down a light upturn of his lips threatening to pull his expression clean into the realm of obvious. Not that his question wasnt about to give himself up it's own way, but he had to protect at least an inch of his dignity. He folded his arms over his thumping chest before leaning forward onto the counter, propping himself up on the tile like he did at the boba tea shop, "Was he about to say I'm your type?"

"You are my type. But I don't want you to think that's the only reason I'm talking with you and decided to talk with you," Hyunjin admitted to him, a soft sigh tumbling from his lips. If Changbin wasn't entirely lying to himself, that breath sounded unsure of itself. Then again, he wasn't entire sure of himself most of the time either. He hardly knew what was in his fridge, he hardly knew whatever the hell was in the container that the boyfriend squad dropped off for him to deal with. Hyunjin continued to explain himself through murmurs and mutters, each word sounding slower than the following, "I enjoy your company, genuinely. And that has nothing to do with my type or anything."

Changbin bit his smile back, "Right so... But to you, I'm attractive?"

"If I may be blunt, yes. To me you are attractive," Hyunjin answered without a second of hesitation.

Changbin stared at his phone, blinking at it as his mind tried to process the words he had just heard.

Hyunjin? Thinking he's attractive? Someone as perfect as him? Thinking that Changbin was attractive? This had to be some kind of dream he came up with when he hit his head really hard. Maybe his real self is laying sick and fevered in a hospital bed. This was probably some sick joke that someone thought would be funny. A prank being pulled on him to get him to open his heart and be vulnerable again, to show him how foolish he was for starting to fall. How stupid he was to let himself be caught up in his feelings again. A bet made between two people to see how quickly his heart could be bridled and broken in until it crumbled to dust under heavy steps which didn't care for him a second time.

It had to be.

He had to stop this.

Before he could catch himself, Changbin whispered, "I should go."

"Did... Are you upset?" Hyunjin quirked an eyebrow at his phone, his pace stopping in the hallway as he came to a doorway. He didn't open it, only leaned onto the threshold as his eyes turned soft, "I was worried you'd be upset if you heard that."

"No, I'm not upset, I just..." Changbin trailed off. He looked anywhere but to the phone screen ahead of him, trying to alleviate the burn in his heart and the stinging in his cheeks as he sucked in a sharp breath, "I don't know. It's not your fault, though. It's me and my stupid head."

Hyunjin hummed, "It doesn't feel real, does it? It doesn't feel honest and even if I tell you it is, your head won't trust it."

"I'm sorry," He nodded in confirmation.

"Don't be. You shouldn't apologize for how you feel."

Changbin scrunched his nose up, "I know I said I should go, but I don't want to hang up yet. I feel like if I did, it'd make things strained between us. No matter how I feel, that's the last thing I want."

"I'd prefer if you didn't hang up right now," Hyunjin smiled to the phone, "I'd like to keep talking with you. Even if we don't talk about anything important."

"Wanna stay on call until we pass out together?

"Absolutely."

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