22 days | felix lee

X | tester

━━☆⌒*.

"CHAN HYUNG?" At the call of his name, said boy immediately looked up. His black hair cutely flopped on his head, some of the curls falling over his forehead as he glanced up to meet Jeongin's scared eyes and hesitant smile. Meanwhile, beside him, Jisung was losing his shit and Minho was lightly smirking.

Jeongin continued, sensing Felix's impatience. "Can you take your phone out? I don't trust the others to type 911 fast enough." That sent Jisung into hysterics, the poor boy falling backward onto the floor. However, he didn't seem to have a care in the world, letting his back smack against the tiles as actual tears streaked down his cheeks.

Felix mumbled, "It's not poison, Jeongin-ah."

"It might as well be."

"Just eat it," Changbin smiled slightly. "Maybe it's not that bad."

"Then why don't you eat it?" Seungmin asked, closing his journal to glance at each of the boys.

"I don't think my health insurance would cover the casualties," He said sheepishly.

Hyunjin snorted, nearly spitting out his chocolate milk. Chan, on the other hand, gave a reassuring smile to Felix before nodding at Jeongin. "It's probably not bad, Jeongin-ah, but I do have my phone on speed dial." The youngest took in a breath dramatically, bidding them all farewell before saying hello to the afterlife.

With a quick lift of his chopsticks, he shoved the black bean noodles into his mouth. Tuesday didn't seem to be any less eventful as Jeongin's painful gaze turned into an excruciating 'I want death' look as he spat the food out back into the container. It even splattered on the table, Seungmin and Changbin immediately recoiling.

Minho turned his head away, his shoulders shaking as he attempted to hide his laughter. Jisung, the complete opposite of his boyfriend, was still on the floor. Hyunjin hadn't even bothered to conceal his chuckles, his hyena-like laugh resounding at the table as he shook his head and slapped his hand against it.

"So much salt, why so much salt?"

Jeongin sounded like he was in genuine pain, wiping his tongue furiously before downing a bottle of water that Seungmin had gotten for him just in case. Felix blinked wildly at the statement. "It might've been instinct because I'm used to adding a lot of sugar into recipes." Chan shook his head, smiling as he pocketed his phone.

Jeongin glanced at his hyung, horrified as he pushed away the food. "No, someone get me real food." Hyunjin sighed, feeling bad for the youngest at the table as he reluctantly got up to get the boy a proper meal. The blue-haired male whipped his head towards Felix, playfully hissing. "What you fed me was poison; absolute poison!"

Changbin poked at the noodles, taking a small bite for himself as his face shaped into the same disgusted expression. "And you plan to give her food one day too?" He pointed shamelessly at the girl that sat just a few tables away from them. Surprisingly, she was in the cafeteria this time but didn't seem to be any less at work.

Her lunch sat in front of her, only a few bites missing while her hands and eyes were honed in on a book. "Forget giving her the food, he'd kill her with the food," Jeongin criticized, his eyes sharping into a glare as he glanced at the embarrassed sunshine again. Felix let out a groan, "Ah, I'm sorry, Jeongin-ah. I seriously tried, promise."

"And we're proud of you for trying," Minho said, patting his back. However, Felix immediately knew there was going to be something following that statement. "I'd love it more if you tried it on Hyunjin-ah." Jisung, who was attempting to get up to sit properly at the table, lost it all over again as his back slammed into the floor.

Felix set his head in his arms, embarrassed as the silver-haired male returned, completely unaware of the reference that was just made. "Here, Jeongin-ah," He slid the tray over as the blue-haired male took it gratefully, unashamedly digging into the actual food that was presented in front of him.

"Stick to baking," Jeongin said, shoving noodles into his mouth. "For the sake of my health and everyone else's, please." Felix chewed the inside of his cheek before his brown eyes narrowed into a sharp look, the deadly gaze landing on the youngest of the group. "I wouldn't be cooking if it wasn't for your lie, Jeongin-ah."

Chan clicked his tongue, nodding slowly as a small smile shaped his lips. "So, it's Jeongin-ah's fault that you're in this mess?" The boys' eyes slowly trailed to the blue-haired boy that had his head tilted down, feeling everyone gaze at him as he slurped his noodles quicker, clearly nervous.

The Australian sighed, chewing on his bottom lip. "Yes, no? I don't know," He groaned, setting his head in his arms like he had done earlier. Chan stifled a laugh, eyes darting back and forth between the fast eater and the moping boy beside him. Everyone went back to eating or small talk, leaving Felix to ponder while Jeongin ate slower at the sound of Chan's scolding.

The day continued on like normal, the group eventually dispersing to head to their separate classes. Felix sighed, readjusting his backpack as the last bell rang, his feet already stepping towards the front door as he readied himself to go home. "Hold on," He heard a familiar voice say followed by the call of his name.

Confused, the freckled boy looked over his shoulder.

Jisung looked up at him with a small smile, "I know we were joking about your cooking earlier, but I'd still be willing to be your taste tester, if you want." The boy said sweetly, his chubby cheeks poking out as he looked up at him. His boyfriend, Minho, came up behind him, holding both of their things as he cocked a brown brow at Jisung.

"You will?" Felix looked at him, bewildered.

"Yeah, sure. Why not? It's all for a good cause, man!" He said, snapping his fingers snazzily at the end as he grinned widely at his friend. It was meant to be cool, but it was more cringey than anything; even Minho rolled his eyes and shook his head before averting his gaze. "Alright, will tomorrow afterschool work?" Felix said, licking his lips.

Minho glanced at Jisung, still confused. Jisung just nodded, beaming before he and Minho headed the opposite way from Felix, talking about what had just happened. Felix let out a sigh of relief. Maybe he had some hope to improve his cooking skills after all.