You're the One

-31-

Bang Chan stopped walking and just looked at Minho. "I hate you," Chan exclaimed. "I hate you too," Minho simply replied.

Earlier that same day:
Since Chan's door was open, Minho just popped his head in and said: "You need to eat, and we need to talk. Let's go." Chan looked away from his laptop and stretched. He had been sitting still for too long. "What's the time," he asked. "It's nearly 3 o'clock." "I didn't realize it was that late. We need to feed the others. Have you seen them?" Minho had expected this. Off course Chan wouldn't go out to eat before making sure the other members had lunch as well. "I took care of it, the take away will be here shortly. I.N and Seungmin is out, looking at an abandoned warehouse, but Seungmin promised me he would feed our baby." Chan got up and grabbed his black hoodie. "Great. I should probably check on the others before we leave though. See how they are doing." Minho smirked. "Felix and Hyunjin is in the drama lama's room, listening to the track and trying an alternative approach to mapping out the song's sections and absorbing the feel. Don't ask. Changbin is working on his lyrics and his guide, while taking a bath. And Jisung has proudly finished his lyrics." Chan fell for it. "Jisung has finished his lyrics? Han Jisung? Are we talking about the same guy here? Kinda cute, looks like a squirrel?" To say he was surprised was an understatement. "Yes, this is the 9th time he as finished his lyrics," Minho grinned. "I imagine he will finish it again very soon." Chan shook his head an laughed softly. "Yes, that's the Jisung I know. OK, let's go."

"This kimbokki is really good!" Chan was humming with delight and shook his fists happily after the first bite. "It's alright. I make it better myself." The purple haired didn't look neither impressed or dissapointed. The food was just a way to ease into the conversation they both knew they were going to have later, so it didn't really matter to Minho as long as it wasn't straight up bad. He had thought about how to approach Chan, and feeding him first was a no-brainer. When he decided to interfere in his leader's personal life, he automatically became invested in the outcome of the conversation as well. It was no point in talking to Chan, if the goal wasn't to persuade Chan to act differently. Minho was now officially team Chanlix. It felt a bit weird. He mentally shrugged. It might be fun too.

They kept the conversation neutral during the meal, since they were too close to the other guests to talk about the real issue at hand. When they were done eating, they headed for the sidewalk that went alongside the river Han. "So, what's up, Minho? What did you want to talk about?" Even if things had been a bit strained between the two friends the last weeks, Chan appreciated that Minho reached out to him – maybe especially because things had been strained. "Well, I would like to know what's going on with you and Felix." Chan's head whipped around to look at Minho. Was he serious? "You what?" "Felix tells Sungie everything, and Sungie tells me. Normally I wouldn't care, but the way you're acting hot and cold is making Felix suffer. That makes Sungie suffer, and then I suffer. I demand an explanation. Or compensation," he finished. "You choose."

They walked on in silence. Chan was agitated. He knew how close the fake twins were. He knew how close Minsung were. He just didn't expect Minho to bring it up, like it was common knowledge that there was something going on between him and Felix. It was shameful how he felt about his younger band member. He was supposed to be leading Lix, not yearn for him like an emotional teenager desperately in love.

Minho finally continued in a much softer voice. "Do you need help to sort out your feelings for Felix? Is that it?" Chan kicked a rock on the sidewalk like an angry toddler. "It doesn't matter what I feel or doesn't feel for Lixi. I'm still his leader. As long as that doesn't change nothing else will." "Then kick him out of the band," Minho suggested nonchalantly to gauge Chan's reaction. "I am not kicking Felix out of Stray Kids on the grounds that I love him!" Chan barked out.

Once the words were said, Chan couldn't take it back. He was almost thrown into a panic, from saying it out loud for the first time. He had known for a long time that he loved Felix, and he knew Felix well enough to know that it was love, not just an infatuation. But now a band member knew and it scared the bejesus out of him. Chan kept on walking, but his movements were stiff and he didn't dare to look at his friend walking beside him.

"Exactly why are you letting that stop you," Minho asked after a few minutes. "Why? Because it would be wrong. Unethical. What would everybody think?" To Chan this was obvious. Why was Minho acting like it wasn't a big deal? "And who is everybody exactly and why does it matter what they think?" Minho kept pushing.

"I guess with the way things are going with Park Jin-young, his opinions doesn't mean shit. But what about the rest of the members? What about STAY?" Minho looked at Chan and saw the hurt in his face, the worry. "Chan hyung, as long as you treat Felix well, none of us would mind. Changbin loves you like a brother, I.N adores you and would follow you anywhere, Jisung would be thrilled and start planning your wedding, Seungmin and I really don't give a fuck, and that just leaved the drama lama himself." Minho was counting off the members on his fingers as he spoke. "And I'm pretty sure he will manage to give you his blessing in his own, dramatic way. You know he's the biggest romantic of us all. We want you to be happy."

"But a leader and a band member changes the power dynamics of the group. If we...if we were to become something more and I'm the leader, wouldn't you guys think that it's unfair?" Chan was struggling to explain his thoughts, even though he had spent many sleepless nights thinking about the ins and outs of the Felix issue. "Are you asking if we would think of you as biased towards your boyfriend," Minho asked in a colder tone, emphasizing the biased part. "Auch. I guess I deserved that." Chan acknowledged. "You did," Minho retorted.

"Look, I'm sorry I accused you of being biased at dance practice. I overreacted, and I'm sorry that I haven't apologized about it earlier. I've had a lot on my mind lately, but that is no excuse." Chan looked at Minho for the first time since they had started their walk towards the apartment. He wanted Minho to understand that he was sincere. "I understand why you reacted like you did. I really do. I've been instructing seven kids, including a five year-old at times, in dancing for a few years now. I've learned how to help and motivate them most efficiently. Felix usually responds well to a challenge combined with some assertion that I think he can do it." Chan nodded. "Hence the comment about how he should already know his part?" The elder remembered the line very well. "Excactly. Hannie on the other hand was spiraling and I needed to stop it, before he got too far into that head space. Now, I had no way of knowing that Felix was so emotional that day. When I saw the tears it was too late. However, I talked to Felix about it afterwards."

"That is an option, you know? To actually talk to Felix? Ask about what he is thinking and feeling about this?" Bang Chan stopped walking and just looked at Minho. "I hate you," Chan exclaimed. "I hate you too," Minho simply replied. They looked at each other with straight faces, but they both saw the smile tugging at the corner of the other's mouth. Minho patted Chan on the back. "Come on, old man. We're almost home." They walked the rest of the way in companionable silence. Chan had a lot to process.