If there was one thing Hyunjin wanted to avoid in life, it was not being on the receiving end of Jisung's rage. That was a given—he was practically the designated pain in the ass for Jisung as much as Jisung was for him. What Hyunjin truly dreaded was the wrath of a freshly woken Han Jisung. It was rare for the other man to feel mad in the morning, thanks to his low energy and foggy mind, which made it all the more terrifying when he did get mad.

Hyunjin slowly opened his eyes, blinking against the sunlight streaming through the window. As his vision cleared, he realized he was nestled against something warm. Correction—someone warm. He glanced down and saw his arms wrapped around Jisung, who was lying stiff as a board beside him, looking like he had been thrashing around to free himself from Hyunjin's grip. For the first time in a while, Hyunjin felt a twinge of fear when they made eye contact.

"Morning, sunshine," Hyunjin mumbled, his voice thick with sleep. He tightened his hold slightly, as if to snuggle closer, though in truth, it was to prevent Jisung from making any sudden moves that might lead to Hyunjin's untimely demise.

"Get off me!" Jisung hissed, wriggling in his grasp. Hyunjin's mind scrambled to piece together how they had ended up in the same bed. All he could recall was waking up last night to an unfamiliar ceiling in a dimly lit room while lying on the floor. For a moment, he'd panicked, thinking he had accidentally trespassed in a stranger's house—something that wasn't exactly off the list of things he'd do while drunk. Beyond everything, he'd once stolen someone's puppy, spent a night in jail, almost drowned in a kiddie pool, and vandalised a playground—all in one night. Trespassing someone's private property wasn't something to be fazed over although he was very much panicking inside.

His panic had subsided when he turned to see Jisung's face resting against a pillow, mouth open and drooling. The perfect image of someone who went through a rough day handling a drunken. Relieved, he'd promptly gone back to sleep. Now, though, he couldn't recall to save his own life how Jisung had ended up bringing him here or how he'd gone from the floor to Jisung's bed but that was probably the least of his worries, considering his life might be in jeopardy right now. It hadn't been in his future plan to be the victim of Jisung's first homicidal act. Hyunjin didn't want to die early and ended up in a murder mystery documentary on Netflix. That was not how he wanted to make his first TV appearance.

To buy himself some time, Hyunjin pulled Jisung closer to his chest and started rubbing his head. "What's wrong? Did you have a nightmare?" he asked, his tone as soothing as possible. They say when faced with a potential murderer, the best tactic is to confuse them. Given how muddleheaded Jisung usually was in the morning, Hyunjin was confident he could bamboozle the tiny, murderous voice in Jisung's mind that was probably screaming, "MURDER MURDER MURDER."

Maybe it actually worked because Jisung had finally settled down—or did Hyunjin accidentally smother him in his chest? Not exactly a good thing. He loosened his grip a bit and... "What's wrong? WHAT'S WRONG?!" Hyunjin yanked him back into his embrace. "A 'in tain t'geda fe dedi mi'it!" Jisung's muffled scream barely escaped Hyunjin's shirt before he went limp, settling into the hold.

"Okay, I'll let you go, but promise you won't attack me," Hyunjin said carefully. He had just woken up and really needed to pee, but Jisung was acting feral—all because Hyunjin had unknowingly trapped him in a hug. Seriously, how long had he been holding Jisung captive? Judging by the animalistic energy radiating from him, it must'd been a while. He felt Jisung nodding against him. "You really promise?"

Jisung mumbled something incomprehensible but nodded again much to Hyunjin;s amusement. He was glad to know that in a given situation, he'll be able to subdue an angry impala that Jisung was.

"Come on, pinky swear," Hyunjin coaxed as a shit-eating grin appeared on his lips. Now, he was just messing with Jisung, relishing in the glory of having the upperhand. Jisung, still partially pinned down, managed to lift his hand, but instead of offering his pinky, he flashed his middle finger. Maybe he had felt Hyunjin's smugness. Then, with zero warning, Jisung sank his teeth into Hyunjin's shoulder which was definitely going to leave a mark. Hyunjin yelped, his hand instantly reaching for his shoulder, releasing the other, which gave Jisung just the opening he needed to spring up and start pummeling Hyunjin with a pillow. "I'll swear at you instead, you crazy bastard!"

"Are you a fucking animal? Why did you bite me?!" Hyunjin shrieked with each hit he received while trying to cover his head. "I am an animal when you suffocate me the whole night." Hyunjin winced, he didn't think he had been hugging Hyunjin the whole night but if he wanted to blame anybody, he'll blame it on Jisung for being soft like a pillow. It was the only plausible reason as to why he was willing to hug Jisung aside from holding Jisung in place to prevent his own murder.

Jisung heaved a sigh, his chest going up and down after the energy burst he just had. He looked at Hyunjin's pathetic state, the other had two hands shielding his face from Jisung's attack. Jisung turned his head away while brushing his hair back in frustration, "When did you even get in my bed? I was sure you were on the floor." Great question but Hyunjin had no idea either.

"I don't know! Is that important? You bit me like a goddamn animal. I'm going to sue you for assault!" Hyunjin pointed at Jisung, crawling back to the wall when Jisung reached for the pillow again. Jisung did consider hitting Hyunjin again but decided it was a waste of energy. "Sue me? Assault? Should I remind you what you did yesterday? The one that should be suing anybody here is me. I should sue you for being a nuisance." Hyunjin's eyes bulged out. What did he do the day before? He couldn't recall anything.

"What- What did I do?" He asked, his voice wavering because he sure hope he didn't do anything that will come back to bite him in the ass.

Jisung scoffed, he got off the bed and threw the blanket over Hyunjin's head. "I'm not going to tell you. I'm sure your memory will come by. When that happens, I will have my fun. It will teach you not to drink that much again."

Hyunjin pushed the blanket off, "Seriously! What did I do?" Jisung stared back at him with dead eyes and shrugged, "Tell me when you remember, princess hyunnie." At Hyunjin's gapped mouth after hearing the childhood nickname his parents gave him, Jisung scurried away with a laugh to the toilet. His face paled when a piece of memory seeped into his mind.

Hyunjin had a vague recollection of himself—blushing, giggling, and acting...cute. Oh no. He cringed internally, desperately trying to push the memory away, but more details started flooding in. He remembered Jisung looking at him with wide, astonished eyes as Hyunjin did a full-on aegyo routine. He had even called Jisung "Prince" in a sugary-sweet voice, which was probably the most embarrassing thing he could have done. Hyunjin's frown deepened because he didn't think acting cute would warrant him to be sued by Jisung no matter how traumatising the after image was. What else did he do?! He wished the earth would just swallow him whole.

When Jisung came out from the toilet with a toothbrush stuck in his mouth, he had refused to look at Jisung. Jisung, of course, decided to be his worst nightmare, threw a toothbrush his way. It landed on Hyunjin's lap. "That's new. You can use it or do you want me to help you brush your teeth, princess?" The red on Hyunjin's face further spread to other parts of his upper body. He flipped Jisung off before he ran to the toilet.

As Hyunjin slammed the bathroom door shut, he leaned against it. He stared at his reflection in the mirror, mortified by the idea of what he might have done the previous day. He turned on the tap, splashing cold water onto his face in a desperate attempt to clear his mind and wash away the lingering embarrassment but the memories kept trickling in—his drunken antics, the way he had clung to Jisung like a leech too close for his own comfort. Hyunjin groaned, running a hand through his hair. This was bad. Really bad.

"Pull yourself together," he muttered to his reflection, trying to psych himself up. "It's just Jisung. You can handle him." After brushing his teeth and relieving himself, he took a few deep breaths to calm his racing heart, Hyunjin opened the bathroom door, ready to face the music but when he stepped out, Jisung was nowhere to be seen. The bed was a mess, with pillows strewn about, evidence of their earlier scuffle, but the room was otherwise empty.

Hyunjin let out a sigh of relief. Maybe Jisung had decided to let it go after all but as he ventured into the living room, his hopes were dashed.

Jisung was lounging on the couch, phone in hand, grinning like the cat that caught the canary. "Took you long enough, princess," he teased, not even looking up from his screen. "I was starting to think you drowned yourself in the toilet." Yup, there was no way Jisung would easily drop the childhood nickname now.

However, Hyunjin had 101 ways to deal with a smug Jisung. Article 25: When Jisung finds something embarrassing about you, play an uno reverse card. He leaned against the door frame and crossed his arm. "Careful not to wear out that nickname. For a second, I almost thought you find me as pretty as a princess," he teased with a mock-flirtatious tone. Jisung's mouth fell open, and he sputtered silently, completely thrown off. Note under Article 25: Jisung is utterly defenseless when someone flirts with him or tease him.

Without waiting for Jisung's reply, Hyunjin began to survey the house, his eyes sweeping over the living room as if it might hold the secrets of the night before but no, there was nothing—no flashes of memory, no sudden epiphanies. The room was fairly tidy, except for the smattering of empty beer cans and snack wrappers cluttering the coffee table. It looked like they had been lounging here before things inevitably spiraled out of control. The sound of Jisung sputtering behind him brought a smirk to Hyunjin's lips—at least he had managed to wrestle back some semblance of control in this weird, messy situation.

"Is it really okay for you to bring me here?" Hyunjin's voice was curious, but there was an edge to it. He had never been to Jisung's house before, and he was pretty sure Jisung's family wouldn't know him either. In fact, he figured Jisung would keep him far away from anything resembling family. It would be hard to explain, and their so-called fake relationship wasn't exactly the kind of thing you'd want to flaunt in front of parents. "Where did your family go?" he added, partly out of genuine curiosity and partly to keep Jisung from recovering too quickly.

Jisung, still trying to shake off the effect of Hyunjin's earlier comment, took a moment to respond. "They're out of town for the weekend. So, it's just us. Do you really think I'd bring you here if my parents were home?" His voice carried a mix of exasperation and relief. When his mom texted the day before that she was heading off to Aunt Misook's family wedding with his father and would be staying there for a while, Jisung had breathed a sigh of relief. He had no idea where Hyunjin lived and he wasn't cruel enough to throw Hyunjin somewhere by the roadside. He considered calling a police to report about a drunk man and pretends he didn't know Hyunjin but his morality got the best of him.

As Hyunjin processed Jisung's explanation, the room settled into an awkward silence, with neither of them quite sure how to proceed. Logically, Hyunjin should probably get the hell out of here, right? It looked like Jisung's muddle headedness had infected him as well.

The silence was abruptly shattered by the unmistakable sound of the front door's electronic keypad being pressed. Both of them froze, eyes wide, as they registered the beeping and the soft mechanical click of the door unlocking. "Didn't you say your parents were out of town?" Hyunjin whispered, his voice barely audible.

Jisung nodded slowly, his eyes darting toward the door. "Yeah, they're supposed to be..."

"Then who the hell is that?" Hyunjin's voice shot up an octave as the door began to creak open.

In an instant, they sprang into action, adrenaline surging as they frantically searched for a place to hide. Jisung, thinking quickly, grabbed Hyunjin's arm and yanked him toward his room. They stumbled inside, managing to pull the door shut just as footsteps echoed through the living room.

"Shh!" Jisung hissed, though it sounded more like a desperate plea than a command. He pressed his ear against the door, straining to hear who might be on the other side. "Sungie! Are you home?" That was unmistakably his mom's voice. Didn't she say she wouldn't be back until tomorrow? Why was she home so early?

"This kid really. I told him to clean up if he eats in the living room." Seemed like his mom found the mess they did at the coffee table. "Sungie?" She yelled again but she got no response still.

Hyunjin and Jisung exchanged panicked looks, their hearts racing as they realized they were trapped. If Jisung's mom found them like this, in his room, their already complicated situation would escalate to a whole new level of awkward. Would Jisung need to introduce him as a friend? as a boyfriend? No, he didn't want to introduce Hyunjin to his parents ever. Jisung's mind raced, searching for a way out. He couldn't let his mom find out he had brought Hyunjin over—especially not under these circumstances. Minho's mom and his mom were friends which mean it was a recipe for chaos.

"Hyunjin, the window!" Jisung whispered urgently, pointing to the slightly open window in his room. It was their only escape route.

Hyunjin's eyes widened in disbelief. "Are you serious? We're on the second floor!"

"Would you rather explain this to my mom?" Jisung shot back, already making his way to the window. Without waiting for a response, he pushed it open wider and motioned for Hyunjin to follow. With no time to argue, Hyunjin scrambled after Jisung, who was already halfway out the window, balancing precariously on the ledge. Jisung glanced down at the drop below and didn't think much of it because he had snuck out a lot. It wasn't a big deal but when he looked up, he saw Hyunjin who was struggling to keep himself from falling.

"Careful!" Jisung hissed, grabbing Hyunjin's arm to steady him. They both glanced nervously toward the door as they heard the unmistakable sound of footsteps approaching.

Jisung gave Hyunjin a reassuring nod, though his own heart was racing. They managed to slip out onto the ledge just as the bedroom door opened. Clinging to the ledge, they crouched as low as they could, hoping to remain unseen. From their precarious position, they could hear Jisung's mom muttering to herself, exasperated but not overly concerned.

"This boy, really... leaving the window open again?" she sighed, as the sound of the window being pulled shut echoed in their ears. Hyunjin felt his heart skip a beat; if she had just looked down, they would've been busted for sure but she didn't. She simply shut the window and moved on, probably figuring Jisung had forgotten to close it after he went out.Once they heard her footsteps retreat back down the hallway, Hyunjin and Jisung exchanged relieved glances.

Jisung exhaled a breath, his grip on the ledge relaxing slightly. Hyunjin, still clinging tightly, gave Jisung a look that said, "What the hell did we just survive?"

"Let's go," Jisung whispered, nodding toward the edge of the house where they could shimmy down safely. Hyunjin followed, his body still tense as they carefully maneuvered along the ledge, making their way to a tree that stretched close enough to the house to offer an escape route. Jisung went first, expertly climbing down the tree like he'd done it a million times before. Hyunjin, on the other hand, was less graceful, nearly slipping twice as he tried to mimic Jisung's movements. Once his feet hit the ground, he let out a long, relieved breath, shooting Jisung a glare that was half amused, half annoyed.

"Are we breaking out of a prison or something?" Hyunjin muttered, dusting off his clothes. "This is ridiculous."

Before Hyunjin could say more, Jisung clapped a hand over his mouth and frantically gestured for silence. Outside, he spotted his father on his motorbike, revving up to leave. Jisung fished out his phone, swiftly navigating to the Kakao app and ignoring the flood of unread messages. He tapped into the family chatroom, skimming the latest text from his mom asking where he was.

'I went for a jog. How's the wedding?' he typed back. A moment later, his mother replied with a thumbs-up emoji. 'Just like any other wedding. Kind of boring so we left early. We're home now but heading out again soon. Don't forget to clean the living room when you get back.'

Once he saw his mom leaving the house and getting on the bike, he leaned against the wall and slowly sat down. That was close. "an u et o ow?" He glanced at Hyunjin who was muffling to be freed. He shook his head, feeling a rare sense of satisfaction seeing Hyunjin silent for once. It was payback for being held captive the entire night. "Finally quiet, huh?" Jisung muttered, unable to hide the smirk tugging at his lips. "You're a lot more tolerable like this. Who knew?"

Hyunjin's eyes narrowed, calculating, as though weighing some mischievous decision. Jisung barely had time to process the shift in his expression before something warm and slick grazed his palm. It was a strange, sudden sensation, almost too absurd to comprehend at first like a fleeting brush of velvet. Jisung's brain caught up a moment too late, his fingers tingling as realization struck. He yelped, yanking his hand back as if shocked by static. "Wait—did you just lick me?!" His voice broke with incredulity, staring at Hyunjin, who seemed far too pleased with himself.

Hyunjin grinned, his tongue flicking out with a deliberate slowness to taste his own lips. "Hmm.." He mused, the corner of his mouth twitching at the same time Jisung's eyes did. "It's a bit salty," The comment was so casual, so absurdly reflective, as though he were actually evaluating the taste of Jisung's palm. Jisung's face flushed crimson as he scrambled to his feet, glaring at Hyunjin with shock and outrage. "Are you completely insane?!" His voice rose, echoing through the space as he stared at Hyunjin with wide eyes. "Who just licks someone like that?!"

The indignation surged out of him louder than he'd meant it to, but the sheer ridiculousness of the situation left him no room for restraint. Still leaning nonchalantly against the wall, Hyunjin's grin widened. "You looked like you needed to cool off. Besides," he added with a mischievous glint, "You told me to shut up. I was just following orders."

"Following orders, my ass!" Jisung snapped, wiping his hand on his sweatpants with exaggerated disgust. "You're just a—" He paused, searching for the right word to capture the sheer frustration he felt. "—a crazy bastard!"

Hyunjin chuckled, clearly relishing Jisung's flustered state. "A crazy bastard, huh? That's a bit harsh. I thought I was a princess." He took a step closer, his tone turning teasing as he added, "And if I'm a crazy bastard who licks you...what does that make you, the one who bit me?" Hyunjin tugged down the collar of his shirt, revealing the bite mark Jisung had left earlier that morning. When Jisung didn't respond, Hyunjin bent down closer to Jisung's height while raising an eyebrow. "Hm?"

Jisung's eyes widened, and he took a step back, bumping into a nearby tree. "You—You—!"

Before he could finish, a high-pitched squeal rang out behind them. Jisung's eyes widened further when he saw Jeongin and Seungmin staring at them, their faces frozen in shock. The source of the squeal was too embarrassed to make eye contact with either of them and in the end, Jeongin made a smart choice to stare on the ground instead of the couple.

Jisung closed and opened his mouth like a fish out of water and Hyunjin who was first to recover finally let go of his shirt collar before straightening his back. "Since when were you guys there?" He scratched his cheeks awkwardly and Seungmin huffed out a breathy scoff.

"Since you guys climb out from the window." Jisung's face paled and he tried to recall if they did anything that will expose their charade. He didn't think this situation was unsalvageable as of yet. If he tweaked his story right, there could be a reasonable excuse why the two of them were sneaking out of Jisung's room early in the morning or why they were avoiding Jisung's parents if they were dating; wait, Seungmin and Jeongin knew about them 'dating', right? Hypothetically, they should because Felix told Hyunjin-

In the middle of his train of thoughts, Jeongin cut him off with an exaggerated cough. The youngest shook his head as if to drive away the blossoming red on his cheeks. "I guess the two of you didn't see the text we sent."

Promptly, Hyunjin pulled out his phone and finally checked at the barrage of text he received. There were a couple of text from his mom, a few from Seungmin and a whole bunch in their group chat. He checked Seungmin's first. The other had sent him a simple text saying, 'I'm not mad that you told me you're not dating Jisung when I asked. Why are you hiding it though?'

Then the rest of texts in the group chat was their friends worrying that both him and Jisung had not say anything for hours after Felix discovered about them. A lot of them were worried that they were 'outed' without their consent. It ended with them planning to check on Hyunjin and Jisung. Seungmin and Jeongin was given the duty to find them.

"Oh, sorry. I drank too much last night." Then he turned to Jisung, "I was drunk but you weren't. Why didn't you say anything in the group? What's your excuse? " He asked accusingly and Jisung scoffed, "My excuse? You were clinging to me all night long! That's my excuse, you infuriating ferret and I woke up with you still clinging to me like an octopus. When would I have the time to chcek my phone when you're all over me the whole night?"

At his words, Jeongin choked and lost his cool again. Seungmin patted him on the back and groaned. "I think we should talk somewhere else?" He suggested.

Instead of moving into Jisung's living room, they relocated to a nearby restaurant. Although Jisung's parents had gone out, there's still the remaining fear from earlier that those two will do something out of their plan and return again. Hyunjin had been the one to suggest this, saying he was hungry and they should talk things out over a meal, silently admitting that trying to jump from the second floor of Jisung's house had taken all of his energy.

Hyunjin had taken a seat next to Jisung much to the other's dislike. The latter had not forgotten Hyunjin's audacity with the act he pulled before Jeongin and Seungmin found them.

"I'm sure you guys want an explanation from us but it's quite difficult to say anything on my own." Jisung started as he drew out chopsticks and spoons from the wooden box at the edge of the table. He set a pair next to Hyunjin's bowl first before handing the rest to the two of his friends. When he was about to take his own, Hyunjin had already put them for him. "If you guys have any questions. It might be more helpful to answer anything."

Hyunjin's glance shifted between Jeongin and Seungmin who both seemed to wear very different expressions on their face. While Jeongin's face was blossoming with a tinge of red (that Hyunjin did know the very reason why), Seungmin's body language showed that he was conflicted, almost speechless and confused at the same time. In the midst of the silence, Jeongin raised his hand, resembling a primary school student waiting for his turn to ask a question. Looking around, Jeongin noticed that nobody was stopping him. For that reason, he kindly began with a simple question both Hyunjin and Jisung could answer without breaking into cold sweat. "I know what I see..." there's a pause in the middle followed by a cough that was intended to hide his stubborn blush. "...but I just need a confirmation. Are you two really dating each other?"

Hyunjin turned his head to Jisung just in case they had any sort of disagreement. Jisung had no retaliation as far, so, they both turned back to the curious man and nodded at the same time. Jeongin opened his mouth in shock before shaking his head. He slammed his hand on the table, much to everyone's surprise and continued, "Words! I need a verbal confirmation! Don't be quiet out of a sudden when the two of you are the loudest friends I have."

Hyunjin didn't know whether to laugh or be offended by the youngest. It seemed like the news of them dating was really that unbelievable. From all the movies, dramas and books he had read, the fake dating tropes always have the bunch of friends believing the fake couple almost instantly. Especially when the two doesn't get along. Something about when they get rid of the rivalry and tension, they're actually madly in love (there's none of that between him and Jisung of course. If he had any, he wouldn't be an idiot about it.)

"We are together." Hyunjin said and to make things crystal clear, he reached for Jisung's hand on the table and held it. He didn't look at Jisung this time. He believed Jisung would be on his best behaviour with the two people they spent time the most at the campus. A little mistake would throw it all away. Jeongin was a romantic person but he's by no means wearing rose tinted glasses. Seungmin gazed over their intertwined hands with a raised eyebrow, a sign that he was not believing what he was seeing just yet. "Then why say you weren't dating him the other day?"

At this Jeongin opened his mouth in shock again. "You knew?!" It was already scandalous enough for him that the two people who he had been trying to make them get along was actually dating behind his back and made him look like a fool. Now, he even had to face that his boyfriend also knew it before him and didn't even bother saying anything. He pushed his betrayal down for the moment and refocused on the conversation. His disappointment could wait, but the tea couldn't.

"I wasn't exactly sure but a month ago we, as in me and Felix suspected that he was seeing someone. He's being pretty damn obvious about it and when I asked if it was Jisung. He denied it so strongly." To be honest, that had completely slipped away from Hyunjin's mind. Yeah, he did reject the idea of dating Jisung pretty strongly but that was before he made the decision to elaborate their scheme.

Jisung hadn't know this, and he shot up to frown at Hyunjin for not telling him about this interaction. Hyunjin squeezed Jisung's hand to reassure him that he got this. Well, it slipped away because it was an unimportant detail. He could play into it.

"I was simply shocked when you asked me." Which wasn't a lie because he hadn't expected to be assaulted by the sharp observation Seungmin made right after he had a physically and emotionally draining argument-not so-argument with Jisung. "If anything, Jisung wants to tell everyone about us but I asked him not to."

"Why? I mean, it's not like you guys are obligated to tell us whoever you're dating but if all of us are always together, it must be uncomfortable to keep your distance each time we hang out. Are we making you guys uncomfortable? Is that it?" Jeongin reasoned. He had to ask because he couldn't imagine having to hang out with the group and not gravitate towards Seungmin. That would be pure torture and now that he was able to see clearly the 'relationship' between Jisung and Hyunjin, it must be pure agony that they even have to act like they hate each other and if they had to go so far, were they such bad friends that these two couldn't be open about it? That somehow made Jeongin feel very guilty that his friends would ever feel that way around them.

"I don't know? It's not specifically you guys. I was afraid of a lot of things. Do you want me to list it out? I can.
Let's see...Point 1: this is my first ever relationship. Point 2: I've never explicitly told anybody what my sexuality is. Hell, a lot of people assumed I was asexual and revealing our relationship means, automatically outing myself which brings us to Point 3: I'm not ready to come out.

Point 4: I'm afraid of what people are going to say when I start dating Jisung when everyone knows we don't get along. What if they say something, we fight and then we break up because we're used to hating each other more than liking each other? and that is something so much bigger than any other of my concerns because I don't want to break up with him. Does that make any sense?"

He finished and it was eerily silence that Hyunjin contemplated whether he had gone off the script or not. However, the owner of the stiff hand he was holding wasn't refuting anything or throwing tantrums yet over the things he said.

A moment later, the waitress headed towards their table with the fried chicken they ordered.

Seungmin scratched the back of his head, a hint of annoyance sharpening his words. "So, has anyone tried to mess with you yet?" he muttered, sliding a drumstick onto Hyunjin's plate, then onto Jisung's, as if he were dealing out cards at a poker game.

Hyunjin stared back at him, eyes wide and vacant. "Uh... what?" Seungmin rolled his eyes, his expression growing more intense. "I'm saying, if anyone gives either of you crap, you come to me. I'll take care of it." The seriousness in his voice left no room for doubt.

Jeongin choked back a laugh, a mischievous grin spreading across his face as he piled chicken onto his own plate and Seungmin's. "Yeah, yeah. Tell us if anyone dares. Our big guard dog over here is just waiting for an excuse to bite." He cheekily said while patting Seungmin's head with his vacant hand. Seungmin shot him a glare, but a faint smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

"Just eat. The two of you. We're not here to interrogate you guys. We're here to see if you're fine." Jeongin sighed, urging them to eat their food. Hyunjin exhaled, the tightness in his chest loosening just a bit as he picked up his chopsticks.

"Fine is... subjective." Jisung suddenly muttered after being quiet for a while, feeling the weight of everyone's eyes still on him. He nudged Hyunjin's foot under the table, a silent cue, half a command to let go of his hand. He just sighed, as if already tired of the theatrics, and began to eat. "Nobody says shit yet but I'm sure they will."

Seungmin watched them both with an unreadable expression, but the way he moved his chopsticks across his plate showed he was listening closely. "Are you both still not ready to reveal your relationship openly?," he started after a pause, "I guess, makes sense since it was revealed from a rumour. If so, maybe we can think of a way to diverge the rumour. Say it's a prank or social experiment or something. Not like the four of us never pull a stupid prank anyways. Says you went out on fake dates to fool people for fun."

Hyunjin scoffed to hide his nervousness because Seungmin was getting dangerously close to the truth, "I never plan to join those pranks?! I was always roped in!"

Jisung's face twisted into disbelief. "If anything, you're the one who enjoyed those pranks the most aside from Minnie." Hyunjin shrugged, he had no idea what Jisung was saying. He was never willing to join the pranks.

"So?" Seungmin raised an eyebrow. Jisung also turned his head to Hyunjin again. Since it was Hyunjin who apparently wanted to keep it quiet, it should be his call. Hyunjin shook his head and picked up the drumstick, "I'm surprisingly more at ease after stuff gets out. It's kind of a good thing since when we return to the campus, everyone just kind of already knows. I don't have to explicitly say it."

"You sure? Cuz it's different when they start questioning you stuff. You're not going to get overwhelmed?" Jeongin asked as he was devouring the chicken in his hand. Hyunjin hummed, "When have you ever even seen me get overwhelmed? I'm fine but Sung, are you?"

Jisung flinched, not expecting that Hyunjin would address him and Hyunjin had called him a nickname that Jisung swore sounded so stupidly affectionate, he wanted to shove a chicken down Hyunjin's throat. It gave him a shiver.

Now the attention was on him. He'd rather let Hyunjin be the active actor here. "Ah...I? Yeah, of course I'm fine. Duh? I wanted to let people know first?" Yeah, nice. That didn't sound scripted at all. "Can we just eat now? The big reveal is over and I really just want to eat in peace." Jisung groaned, his cheeks filled with food. His day has been hectic since he woke up. His battery was depleting before the day even ended.

"Yeah, of course." Hyunjin laughed before he poked Jisung's cheeks just because he knew Jisung wouldn't be able to do anything in front of their two friends.

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Changbin was the last person to find them and thankfully, not in a compromising situation for once. The older man had given them an early notification to meet at his place. So, they both came together and Hyunjin felt more nervous than ever.

For many reasons, it felt like preparing yourself to meet the in-laws. "I don't believe it." Changbin had said the first thing those two had seated in front of him. Hyunjin nudged Jisung with his knee. It didn't feel right if Hyunjin did the talking here. Changbin was much more acquaintanced to Jisung than he was with Hyunjin even if the older was always clingy to him. It was something to think about and Hyunjin wondered if he should foster a closer friendship with Changbin since the older always seemed to welcome his presence. It was funny to think the older was not as clingy with Jisung who had known him better.

"Hyung..." Jisung pursed his lips and hesitated. Changbin would usually joke around in any sort of situation but when he's serious, it could get a bit scary but Hyunjin recognised that the oldsr wasn't trying to be scary or domineering. He was simply stating a fact. He didn't believe them. As simple as that.

"I'm not telling the two of you to prove anything to me. I'm just saying I don't see the two of you being truly together."

Had it been any other person, it could have been portrayed as being rude but Changbin was just being himself. He wouldn't force the thing that didn't make sense just because other people said so just like how he never forced Hyunjin to get along with Jisung just because he was friends with the two of them. There was zero pressure. Then and even now.

"Hrm...then why did you call us here?" Jisung dared himself to ask and Changbin's stuff face merged into a playful pout. "I can't even call my favourite dongsaengs to hang out with me?" He said while shaking his shoulder like a child throwing tantrums. It was quite a scene to see. A welcomed one actually.

"As long as you treat us to some food of course you can." Jisung shrugged, at least one person wouldn't be too nosy.

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One day when they were all hanging out again, Minho had taken a seat next to Hyunjin. He was just there for a long time even as he was interacting with other people. He knew Minho had a odd way of showing that he cared. Perhaps, he was more open around Jisung. Hyunjin wouldn't know but he guessed. With Hyunjin, Minho was not as open. It might even be awkward to start a heartfelt conversation with a dongsaeng who he always threatened to shove tissues inside his mouth.

This time they were on the rooftop, grilling some meat. Hyunjin found it hilarious that his interactions with his friends were always over a meal. It's not that weird, was it? It'd be more weird to have a conversation when they were karaokeing or when they're playing at the arcade. Of course, they would have a conversation over a meal just that Minho wasn't really saying anything to him.

"Hyung, just say what you want to say. It's scarier when you keep putting meat into my bowl." Hyunjin begged, he shook his body to show how much shiver Minho was giving him. Minho lifted his head and shot him a killing glare. "Do you know who spread the rumour?" Minho didn't ask if Hyunjin was fine because it would be an empty and stupid question.

Rather, it's more concerning for him that people were just spreading words without care.

"Does it matter?" It's actually me... so, you don't have to be that worried. He looked everywhere but Minho's eyes. He did feel a bit bad but it was for a better cause.

"Duh. Do you want people to keep spreading things whenever you go on a date with Jisung? That's a breach of privacy." Not so much if Hyunjin and Jisung were showing what they wanted people to believe. "They'll get bored eventually." He'd hoped people stay interested for a while. It's like their nosiness was a shield to hide the truth."Is that so?" Then the both of them remained silenced after that. Not for long because at the end of the table Jeongin spilled BBQ sauce all over his shirt.

By night, he went home with Jisung. "What did he say to you?" Jisung asked just to be kept updated. Hyunjin told him the exact conversation since there wasn't much. "What about you? What did Chan hyung say to you?" Somewhere during the hangout, Chan had also approached Jisung.

"He asked how I was doing and he felt sorry that people outed us before we were ready. He also apologised. I'm not certain for what. For accusing me of liking Minho hyung? I don't know. Maybe it was because he didn't believe we are together although he never explicitly showed any disbelief...I still think he doesn't believe us.
So, I don't even know what he's feeling sorry for. To start with, he always carry a huge guilt on his shoulder for who knows what goddamn reason."

Hyunjin hummed, "You want my honest opinion?" Jisung snorted, "You will still say it no matter what I say anyway." The 'nobody ever ask for your opinion but you always talk anyways' was left unsaid.

"My honest opinion is, he needs therapy and so do you." Hyunjin deadpanned with all the seriousness in the world. "And you need a beating." Jisung said in response, already pulling a fist out of his pocket. "Therapy for anger issues too." Hyunjin added as he made a run for it. "Like I can date you and all but you really need to work on your anger issue. I will even pay for therapy." He yelled as he ran to his car.

"Hyunjin..." Jisung yelled when Hyunjin had locked the car. Turning the car engine, Hyunjin slowly pulled out from the parking and Jisung watched him with a dumbfounded look. "You- open the damn car." Jisung urged when the car started to move. "Hyunjin, you're not actually leaving without me right?" They'd both come here by Hyunjin's car. Jisung didn't have a ride home if Hyunjin just leave.

"I never said I will be your ride home." Hyunjin yelled inside the car and drove away with Jisung chasing after the tail of his car, throwing curses and middle fingers as he ran. If you thought Hyunjin was kidding, he wasn't. Jisung had ended up calling a cab that night. Hyunjin was an asshole, alright? He does anything as he wish and just because he was enthusiastic to help Jisung with his fake dating endeavour, it didn't mean he would stop acting like a brainless jerk.

Hyunjin did however transfer him some money with a note saying 'call a cab. It's on me.' with a silly '-from your princess ;).'

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Hi, guys! Sorry for the very late update. I'm writing on two different devices. Hence, my motivation to compile what I wrote is a bit low. Don't worry, I still plan on writing and finishing this fic.

In another week or so, I'm going back to uni. So, I will be a bit busy but I will try to write.

I would appreciate it if you leave a comment as it is what will motivate me to write more hahaha
-Hunny