Dejun x Joohyuk

@☭ Nam Joohyuk After a long day of work in the early morning, classes past noon, and dance practice until the evening, Dejun was more than ready for a dinner night out with his friends. Hendery had planned for them to visit a barbecue restaurant, which meant that Dejun had also not eaten all day so he would eat well at dinner. His friends had for eating too slowly before, but that only made him want to eat more with them to prove them wrong. Their group of six had decided to walk instead of taking two cabs, which would cost money, which meant going across campus.

As they passed the university center, one of their friends, Gyubin, pointed over to the big tents set up in two rows on opposite ends. "Hey! I heard they're doing a bunch of tabling over there. Usually there's a bunch of freebies they give out. We should check it out!"

"Freebies?" their other friend Ricky asked with a raised brow, "We're not a charity, why would we want that."

"It's not a bad idea," Dejun hummed, taking a turn in that direction while dragging Hendery along with him, which only meant Ricky and the rest had to follow along. Once they got there, Dejun scanned the booths, seeing lots of campaigns to raise awareness about different issues on campus, which seemed rather disappointing. It wasn't until he came across a very familiar logo that he'd seen down at the police station where his interest was piqued. Wouldn't Joohyuk find it funny that his station was tabling at his alma mater, which Dejun currently attended? Perhaps the one tabling for SNU was a close coworker to Joohyuk. Speeding past his friends to take a look, Dejun's skidded to a halt suddenly when he realized that under the awnings of the tent was none other than Joohyuk himself. He gasped, then smiled, and screamed lowly to himself while rushing over, "Hyung! Hyung what are you doing here!?" he exclaimed, grinning from ear to ear.

Gyubin and Taerae started to giggle when they heard Dejun's shrill squeaking noises, wanting to follow and ask what had gotten him so riled up. Immediately, he heard Hendery's voice in the background rearing the rest of their group away. "Hey, hey, let's get going. I'm hungry!" his friend declared loudly.

"What about Junjun?" Ricky asked, glancing over Hendery to see if Dejun was following.

"He'll have his dinner. Trust me on that." Hendery said, leading the group away so that Dejun was in his own little world with Joohyuk.

@☭ Xiao Dejun Joohyuk was not one for free work until said free work was going to take place at Seoul National University. When he first received the email invite, Joohyuk nearly trashed it after seeing that tabling for an anti-DUI was going to be on a volunteer basis only (i.e., unpaid), but when he saw where one of the locations was, he hurried to sign up before the spots were filled. He couldn't explain why he was doing it, but just imagining Dejun's shock and surprise seeing Joohyuk on campus brought a smile to Joohyuk's face. The tabling itself started the week after, and Joohyuk showed up the earliest to pitch the tent, unfold the table, and lay out their campaign materials, all while scouring the students walking by for a certain omega.

@☭ Nam Joohyuk "Ow!" Dejun whined when Joohyuk flicked his forehead. He rubbed at it, but then stopped when her realized that his make up could come off with too much pressure. Dejun continued eating his ice cream with the silliest of grins on his face, gushing internally that he and Joohyuk had gotten to the point of playing around each other like this. When they finished their ice cream, Dejun remembered to grab Hendery's milk, though it wasn't until they were back at his apartment that Joohyuk handed it back to him. "Wahh, thank you hyung~" Dejun chirped happily, seeing the cold puffs of air in his face again, "You get home safely too okay? Next time I'll make you an extra strong cup of oatmilk latte." He nodded at Joohyuk's chiding, and waved before heading inside with the milk. When he got back into his apartment, the first thing he did was store his bag of milk next to the new one that Hendery had just brought before he screeched, "GUANHENG, COME HERE! I HAVE TO TELL YOU STUFF!" all while donning the most unbridled smile on his face.

@☭ Xiao Dejun "Humans weren't made to drink other milk, anyway," Joohyuk retorted. "And how dare you speak to your elders this way? Come here." He gestured for Dejun to lean over the table, pulled his index back with his thumb, and landed a swift flick to Dejun's forehead. "That'll teach you." Once they finished their ice cream, Joohyuk brought them back to the fridge aisle for Dejun's milk. He held on to it the entire time, even after it was paid for, figuring it'd be too heavy for Dejun and not wanting him to have his hand exposed in the cold. With their detour and meal, it was nearly one in the morning by the time Joohyuk brought Dejun back to his place. "Go in," Joohyuk said, handing the bag of milk to Dejun. "Don't stay up too late."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk "No it has nothing to do with that!" Dejun exclaimed indignantly when Joohyuk tried to take another jab at his beloved ice cream. He continued to eat, though he was starting to lose the feeling in his fingertips. When Joohyuk got up, Dejun's eyes followed him while he stiffly held onto older's Melona bar. Seeing how Joohyuk expertly wrapped his cone for him, Dejun gasped at the alpha's genius, only for himself to be dissed. For some reason, it didn't hurt his feelings nor make him feel bad though. Instead, he giggled and shot right back at Joohyuk, "Well I didn't know you're so weak that you can't even handle real milk!" Bursting out into a fit of laughter, Dejun happily at his ice cream again, this time making quick work of it since his hands weren't being frozen.

@☭ Xiao Dejun Joohyuk couldn't hold back his snicker when Dejun made all sorts of faces over one bite of ice cream. "Maybe because I'm not eating a mint-chocolate flavoured ice cream," he teased, taking another calm bite out of his popsicle. When he watched Dejun switch the cone from one hand to another for the third time, Joohyuk rose to retrieve tissues from the self-service counter, letting Dejun hold his Melona while he wrapped the cone snugly with the tissues. "Here, take yours back. Didn't know you were so weak you can't even hold a cold cone to eat it."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk "Oh right, I'll get that later before we leave," Dejun said offhandedly as he unwrapped his mint chocolate ice cream cone. He bit into it boldly, but was soon hissing and scrunching up his face as the cold hit him face on. How was Joohyuk eating his with such a straight face? His lips were too cold, and so he opened them to let some of the cold air out of his mouth, "Ah- ah-" he huffed out, turning away from Joohyuk as he did so to protect his own image. "Hyung! How did you just bite into that?" Dejun asked, resorting to his ice cream cone instead of biting. "It's so cold!" And that was one thing, but Dejun's hands were starting to get cold from just holding the ice cream. "Wahh, policemen are built different!" he concluded, shivering as he persisted in eating his ice cream.

@☭ Xiao Dejun "Mm, it's new," Joohyuk confirmed, narrowing his eyes when Dejun paid once again. He said a quiet thank you, not wanting to make a big deal out of it to encourage Dejun into paying again. They sat at their window seats again, since Joohyuk didn't want to bring Dejun out to eat in the cold. "Don't forget your roommate's milk," Joohyuk said, peeling his wrapper back and taking a large bite out of his popsicle, not at all affected by the iciness of the dessert. "What else? I forgot."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk Joohyuk's green light to get ice cream had Dejun bouncing up in his seat again. He threw his trash into the garbage before practically skipping back over to the freezer section where the variety of ice creams were laid out for him to choose. Sliding open the glass door, he picked out his mint chocolate ice cream cone and also the melona bar that Joohyuk wanted. Once he returned to the older's side, he held up Joohyuk's bar for his inspection, "Hyung! I didn't know they made a non-dairy version of this!" Dejun exclaimed, grinning as he brought both over to the cash register to check out, "Let me treat you for this hyung!" he insisted, quickly paying for it before Joohyuk could even take his wallet out.

@☭ Xiao Dejun If Dejun made it into the executive spot and got to coordinate, that was a lot of shows Joohyuk would have to go to. "We'll see then," he said, finishing the rest of his gimbap when he saw Dejun lift his bowl and slurp up the last of his noodles. He had barely swallowed when Dejun was bouncing up again, and unfortunately for Joohyuk, Dejun hadn't forgotten about the ice cream. "Alright, alright," Joohyuk said, since he had actually agreed earlier to get Dejun to eat a proper meal first. Not being one to go back on his word, Joohyuk gathered up their trash before heading to the freezers again. "I'll have the non-dairy melona," Joohyuk said, letting Dejun pick it out of the freezer for him, "melon flavoured."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk Joohyuk's concern for Dejun's schedule had the younger swooning again, since it was so obvious that the alpha was a tender hearted man who would undoubtedly be a caring and gentle lover. He wished they could just close the gap already and move on to the next leg of their relationship. A part of him wanted to make good on his competition again by asking Joohyuk to date him if he won. It did seem a little too shameless, so he decided not to after another thought, and instead shrugged casually, "Well, I don't have much else to do but keep myself busy," he told the alpha, "But if we have showcases that I get to coordinate, I want you to come hyung," Dejun said, chewing slowly. He was thankful that he was naturally a slow eater, which meant more time to spend with Joohyuk. Dejun ate his noodles without drinking much of the soup, since he didn't want to get a stomachache from the spice. A few bites later though, he had slowed down even more obviously than earlier. "Hyung, I think I'm full-" he said, though he still other motives, "Can we get ice cream now!"

@☭ Xiao Dejun Joohyuk didn't understand the competition for those spots in the club at all, but when he was in university he was only in the webtoon club, so maybe Joohyuk wasn't exactly qualified to comment on that. He could only nod while letting Dejun ramble. "Oh... I see. I hope you get into it, then. Being president is overrated, anyway." Joohyuk watched Dejun stuff his cheeks—the resemblance to a chipmunk was unmistakable. He had to stifle a snicker, stuffing a piece of gimbap into his mouth, taking a moment to chew and swallow before he spoke again. "You have to be responsible for so much. You'd never have time for yourself again."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk "Eung, it's going to be April 29th!" he said, "But I don't know the exact time yet. We won't get the line up until it's closer to the actual competition." He accepted the piping hot bowl of ramyeon from Joohyuk, taking the same chopsticks that the older had been using to eat with. Dejun didn't really get the hype of eating in a convenience store for the most part, but being able to sit with Joohyuk late at night like this made the concept somewhat more appealing. "No, there's a total of five open positions for the club leadership, but only three people will get in this year because 2 of our current leaders aren't graduating yet, so they get to continue their position. Only first place of the competition has the choice to become the next president though. I don't really care if I get to be president or not, but I want to be part of the choreographing crew!" Dejun didn't think he was the best one in the competition, but one thing he knew for sure was that he was much better than Hoseok. After talking so much, he finally took his first bite of the noodles. They were comforting and warm for his stomach, but the spice soon had him panting as the heat took over his tongue's senses.

@☭ Xiao Dejun Joohyuk had already attended two rounds of Dejun's dance competition, somehow, so attending the third and final round was a given by now. He had already stuck by Dejun for so much of it. "Of course I will," he said. "Give me the time and date when you know. I'll be there." Once the few minutes were up, Joohyuk lifted the cover of Dejun's noodles to check on them, loosening them with the wooden chopsticks provided before pushing it over to Dejun. Only then did he unroll his gimbap, eating slowly to keep pace with Dejun. "How many spots on the team are people competing for? Just one?"

@☭ Nam Joohyuk Anytime someone who was against eating mint choco ice cream argued against him, the first thing they would bring up was the toothpaste scenario. Dejun had heard it all too many times, but that didn't stop him from pouting at Joohyuk anyways. There was a difference! "But mint choco ice cream is lighter in flavor than toothpaste," he insisted, following Joohyuk closely to the preparation counter. Undeterred by the alpha's reluctance to try, Dejun even grabbed onto Joohyuk's wrist, giving it a pleading squeeze, "Just once hyung, for me." Dejun's mind couldn't easily be taken away from the controversy surrounding his favorite ice cream flavor, but Joohyuk was skilled in conversation, and shifted his attention away successfully. "Mm, the final round is going to be next month!" he said, "Then we'll know who's qualified to be part of the leadership team for the dance club next year. The leadership team all have to know how to choreograph and freestyle, so only the best of the competition will have a chance." Dejun didn't want to derail, and since Joohyuk had brought the topic up, he used this chance to boldly ask, "Hyung, will you come watch me?"

@☭ Xiao Dejun "No, I've tried it before," Joohyuk said. Sungkyung, too, had offered him a bite every time she got her hands on the disgusting treat. "It literally tastes like toothpaste. Do you swallow your toothpaste or do you spit it out? That's what I thought." Taking Dejun's cup noodle, Joohyuk brought it up to the counter where he picked out half a roll of gimbap for himself so that he could accompany Dejun while he ate and line his stomach for the ice cream Dejun would inevitably force him to eat. While they waited for Dejun's noodles to cook, Joohyuk brought them to a table inside, against the window looking out to the street. "So when's the next round of your dance competition?"

@☭ Nam Joohyuk Dejun must not have heard Joohyuk correctly. Nasty? His mint choco ice cream? His most precious beloved flavor of ice cream? In his shock that his dearest alpha could say something so hurtful, Dejun squeaked to express his heartache, "No! It's really good!" he insisted, pouting as he was led away from the ice cream section and towards the hot foods. "Hyung, I think you just need to give it once chance," Dejun tried to reason with the older, thinking that it was probably because Joohyuk had some offbrand stuff that made him dislike the most wonderful refreshing minty flavor ever. "If I eat ramyeon with hyung, then will hyung eat ice cream with me? Mint choco ice cream! Please!!" he insisted, picking up the first cup noodle that he saw, "This one!" he said, "I want this one!"

@☭ Xiao Dejun Joohyuk made a face. He genuinely did not understand people who enjoyed mint chocolate ice cream, just like Sungkyung did—and it was exacerbated by her pregnancy, too. "That's nasty," Joohyuk said, pulling Dejun away from the freezers and back toward the large selection of ramyeon, stews, and fried foods. There were so many things for Dejun to pick from, and Dejun wanted /mint chocolate/ ice cream. "Can you eat something proper before you eat ice cream? It's not to put something cold in an empty stomach. I'll buy you ice cream after that, okay?"

@☭ Nam Joohyuk The convenience store was empty, luckily, except for the young worker who was more interested with playing on his phone than the two customers who just walked inside. Dejun glanced around at the options, clutching his stomach when he saw the rows upon rows of instant noodles. As much as he enjoyed the occasional treat, he knew that eating ramyeon so late at night would only cause him bloating tomorrow. Furthermore, Joohyuk's resolution to leave Common Grounds with him had Dejun giggling at the older's loyalty and sincerity towards his lattes. "I like working at Common Grounds. It's close to work for you and school for me. Plus, my coworkers are so nice there. I promise I'll eat hyung," he said, walking down the aisles without having fully settled on what he'd eat yet. "Hm, I want...oh! Mint chocolate chip ice cream!" he exclaimed, rushing up to the freezer section that housed his favorite flavor of ice cream. Dejun had yet to share with Joohyuk about his true love for mint chocolate chip, but he supposed there was no better time than now.

@☭ Xiao Dejun Did Dejun really feel safer at night? If he did, then all of Joohyuk’s effort wasn’t all for naught. He smiled, gesturing to the case of prepared foods again. “I’m the hyung. Let me treat you.” And, since Dejun would be eating, it didn’t feel right for Joohyuk to just sit there and watch him eat. Although he had been planning on stopping after his cafe earlier that night, Joohyuk started considering options for himself, too. “What do you want to eat?” he asked again. “Ramyeon? Soup? You’re still growing, you should be eating more. And if they won’t even feed you at Common Grounds, just look for another cafe to work at. I’ll follow you there.”

@☭ Nam Joohyuk Dejun technically did have a break throughout his shift, but if he had taken it, that would've meant a whole twenty minutes of having to sit in the back without getting to peek at Joohyuk even once. Store policy had it that workers on break had to stay away from the counter to avoid getting tasks. He had forgone his break and opted to stand idly at the counter while glancing at Joohyuk every other minute or so, which resulted in his grumbling stomach now. "They do...sometimes," he admitted. Joohyuk was too quick to offer to pay for him, and Dejun quickly tried to refuse in case the older thought he was trying to freeload. "It's okay hyung! If anything, you should let me treat you for always walking home with me. It makes me feel safer at night!"

@☭ Xiao Dejun Joohyuk's brows drew together. "You work in a cafe and you haven't eaten? Do they even let you eat there?" They arrived at the mini mart, and before Dejun could head to the fridge for the milk, Joohyuk pulled him toward the hot food counter at the front. "What do you want to eat? It's on me." Seeing how Dejun was only a poor part-timer college student who didn't even have time to eat nor watch trashy documentaries, it was hard for Joohyuk to just stand by and do nothing.

@☭ Nam Joohyuk Dejun wasn't slow at picking up cues, but never would he have guessed that Joohyuk was concerned about his weight. As far as Dejun was concerned, the alpha had the most perfect physique he'd ever seen. "But you look handsome no matter what!" he exclaimed, blushing when he realized that Joohyuk was actually saying it out of concerned for staying physically fit. "Oh, I'll be sure to save you a chocolate croissant next week," he said, changing the topic. Dejun wondered if Joohyuk had anything to say about his body, since the alpha had seen him before. "Ah, well...I haven't eaten yet," Dejun mumbled, "I might grab something to eat then."

@☭ Xiao Dejun Joohyuk had been hoping Dejun wouldn't bring up the croissant. His cheeks felt warm even in the cool nighttime air, and he rubbed at the back of his neck. "Croissants have a lot of butter..." he said, not wanting to finish the rest of his sentence. But when Dejun didn't seem to get it, Joohyuk cleared his throat to clarify, "I've been gaining weight... I have to keep fit and stay in shape for my job. But those croissants were really good. Maybe next week... I want a chocolate croissant next week."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk "Just milk," Dejun confirmed, "He needs it for his protein shake in the mornings, and...it's my turn to buy milk!" Joohyuk was such aa considerate alpha when he offered to accompany Dejun, which only further convinced the younger that this was his soulmate, no doubt about it. Dejun walked in the direction of the mini mart, leading the way just slightly ahead of Joohyuk, "Hyung, you only had your latte tonight. You didn't even get a pastry, are you not hungry?" Dejun asked, wondering if he could maybe sneak in a mini date into their impromptu detour.

@☭ Xiao Dejun Joohyuk frowned. Late as it was getting for him, he didn't want Dejun to run into someone with less-than-pure intentions on his trip to get milk. Besides, it was just milk. How far could the walk possibly be? "I'll go with you," Joohyuk said, glancing in the direction that Dejun pointed out. In the distance, the faint, glowing sign of an EMart could be seen. Besides, Joohyuk told himself, milk was cold and heavy, and Dejun was already his work bag. "What else does he need? Just milk?"

@☭ Nam Joohyuk "Wah, that's so scary! Imagine living next to a criminal-" Dejun started to muse aloud. He stumbled onto the inside again with Joohyuk's guidance, and giggled at the older's suggestion, "Okay, I'll do that hyung~" he agreed, wanting to show Joohyuk that he could put the same effort as the other did when he first started watching 'Playing Card Killer'. Dejun saw the corner of his apartment approaching, which felt like it had come even sooner than usual tonight. Thinking quickly on his feet, he pulled out his phone and glanced at it. "Oh hyung...I have to go pick up milk for Hendery," he said, stopping in his tracks. "Uhm...but the convenience store is that other way. Maybe you should...go home first?" he offered, fully expecting Joohyuk to take the bait and continue accompanying him.

@☭ Xiao Dejun "It's crime," Joohyuk reassured Dejun, pulling Dejun to the inside of the sidewalk again. The younger had a bad habit of straying toward the curb. "It's about people whose roommates commit crimes, like they've either committed them already or it happens after they move in. It's pretty good, and it isn't that long. You can watch it between classes or as a study break." By now, even if Joohyuk wanted to spend a little longer with Dejun, they were both so accustomed to the route that it seemed to take no time at all for Dejun's apartment to start appearing in the distance. "Oh, and 'The Melendez Brothers' is pretty good, too."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk "It's not that bad hyung, I'd rather have a busy schedule than nothing to do at all," Dejun said, having never really been one to entertain boredom before. Once they were outside, Dejun shoved his hands into his pockets again, rocking on his feet as he gazed up to meet Joohyuk's discerning gaze. It seemed that the alpha was particularly concerned about keeping him warm, though Dejun didn't know where that concern had stemmed from. It was a touching feeling though, which only fueled the idea that there was actually some feelings Joohyuk was harboring for him that he wasn't letting on. "What's that?" Dejun asked, "Is it a documentary series again? It doesn't sound like crime though, is it good?" Regardless if it was his taste or not, Dejun would commit to watching anything for the sake of having yet another talking point with Joohyuk. "How many episodes are there?" he asked, "Is it complete yet?"

@☭ Xiao Dejun "You don't even have time to watch shows now?" Joohyuk waved to the worker left behind the bar, who he learned was Yangyang, goodbye as he led Dejun out. Yangyang had been immensely reasonable for some reason, letting Dejun go right at eleven rather than keeping him behind to help clean the last of the equipment and close down. "Maybe you've got too much on your plate. Between school, dance, and work... I dunno. It seems like a lot." By this time of the month, it was still cold, and Joohyuk inspected Dejun's outfit carefully outside Common Grounds before he allowed them to continue their walk. "Well, now that Playing Card Killer is over, I've been watching 'Worst Roommate Ever'. Have you heard of it?