Charmer // Hyunlix

9 - Closer?

"My birthday is on Saturday, and I was wondering if you guys wanted to come over and have a slumber party."

It was the middle of the week after Jisung and Felix's birthday party. The boys were sitting on the practice room floor talking and snacking before they begun practice, and Seungmin had grabbed everyone's attention so he could ask something. 

In response, the boys gladly agreed to his slumber party idea. 

"I can sleep next to Seungmin hyung!" Jeongin gasped, clinging to the older's arm and laying his head on Seungmin's shoulder. 

This caused a collective laugh out of the group, well, except for Seungmin, who was trying to pry the younger off of him. 

"Seungmin, can I sleep with you?" Chan asked with a wide grin on his face. 

Seungmin shook his head, answering, "No. I shall sleep with no one."

"You're no fun, Minnie!" Jisung pouted dramatically, purposefully using a cutesy nickname to get on the younger's nerves. 

"Alright alright, let's start practice before Seungmin uninvites us," Chan announced, standing up from the floor. The others did the same. 

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Hyunjin was the last to enter the house after Changbin, Chan, and Felix; all whom he had ridden with to get to Seungmin's house. 

As the four entered the common area where the others were, Seungmin looked up from his phone. His eyes scanned across all the boys before he stood up, saying, "Alright, let's go downstairs."

Seungmin led them to a finished basement where a large L-shaped couch sat facing the flat-screen TV. Off to the side was a pool table and a bookcase filled with board games. There was also a small bathroom, and a small "kitchen" that was just a fridge, a counter, and a microwave. 

The boys set their stuff down and got comfortable around the TV. Seungmin turned on his Xbox and showed the boys the different games they could play. They quickly decided on Super Smash Bros, and soon, the basement was a loud and chaotic mess.

After a while, though, the boys started to get hungry. Seungmin stood up after Minho beat Hyunjin, saying, "Who wants to go to the store with me and get food? I'm hungry."

Everyone raised their hands eagerly, and Seungmin waved his, saying, "Okay, I can't have everyone go with me."

"I'll stay here," Hyunjin spoke, nodding towards Seungmin. 

Felix glanced at Hyunjin, then turned back to Seungmin before saying, "I'll stay too."

"Okay, that works. What kind of pizza are you guys okay with?" Seungmin asked. 

"Pepperoni or cheese," Felix smiled.

"Cheese is fine," Hyunjin added. 

Seungmin made the "OK" sign with his fingers and, with the other five boys hot on his heels, he walked up the stairs. 

Hyunjin became hyper aware of the nauseating feeling in his stomach as he was left alone with Felix. He tried to ignore it and stared at the TV, but that quickly failed as Felix said, "Do you wanna play a match together?"

"Sure," Hyunjin nodded. 

Felix grabbed the other controller, and the two boys played a few rounds together, with laughter emitting from both of them. 

Hyunjin was genuinely having fun with Felix, and it made him pause. He had been avoiding this boy because of the weird feelings he gets when the younger is around. Hyunjin felt guilty, and his anxiety began to rise. 

"Felix..." Hyunjin started, looking down at the controller in his hands. 

"What's up?" Felix asked, his attention fully focused on Hyunjin at the sound of the older saying his name. 

"I'm...sorry," Hyunjin spoke quietly, his eyes glued to the controller. 

Felix furrowed his brows together, asking, "Sorry for what?"

"I just...I don't talk to you but, you're actually really fun and nice, and I feel bad for having been distant," Hyunjin explained, his thumbs now rubbing the controller due to the anxiety rise. 

Felix couldn't help but smile. He thought that it was cute how Hyunjin had felt guilty for something that Felix was okay with. He figured that the older needed time to adjust to a sudden addition of the friend group, and Felix respected that. 

"You don't need to feel bad about that. I understand that you needed time to adjust to me joining your friend group, and dance team. It never upset me," Felix said, hoping that the older would face him. 

Hyunjin's grip on the controller tightened, however, and her muttered, "I feel like an asshole, though."

Felix's smile quickly disappeared. He took notice of Hyunjin's hands and the uneasy tone in the older's voice. He reached his hand out and gently laid it on top of Hyunjin's controller. 

It startled Hyunjin, that uncomfortable feeling in his chest becoming heavy. He then slowly turned his head to face the younger, only to be met with a concerned look on the younger's face. 

"Hyunjin, you're not an asshole! An asshole wouldn't have cared about what to get me for my birthday. An asshole wouldn't have played video games with me. An asshole wouldn't have talked to me at all! It takes you time to get used to a person, and that's okay. Please don't feel like you've been rude. If anything, you've been rather caring," Felix explained. 

Hyunjin was shocked, to say the least, and nauseous from staring at the younger's seemingly flawless face. 

His eyes landed on the ring that Felix had on his finger. It was his gift to the younger. His lips slowly curved upward into a soft smile, something that made Felix's heart flutter. 

"Thank you, Felix," Hyunjin said, looking back at the younger. 

Felix smiled back, stretching his arms out to inaudibly ask for a hug. Hyunjin hesitated at first, but then accepted the invitation. 

Being in Felix's warm embrace made Hyunjin's chest feel like it was on fire, and like his stomach was a cage of butterflies. 

I'm not sure...does the old store owner know something that I don't?

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A/N: I FINALLY UPDATED. Oh my god, I have been having one hell of a time trying to find motivation for anything. Something as simple as getting out of bed has been difficult for me the past couple of weeks, so it's been even harder to have motivation to work on this story. However, I've been doing a little better the past couple of days, so I'm hoping that I will be back on schedule this week. I hope that you guys are enjoying this story! I already have the next few chapters planned out, so stay tuned! ;P