OFF OF THE DEEP END | CHANGLIX ✔️

13. hot dancer

song: hey there delilah // plain white t's

Changbin wasn't sure what to make of Felix.

He was multilayered, that's for sure. On one hand— a tender soul, singing beautiful notes and smiling gently at a crowd. While there was certainly heaps of lies that kept up the fake personality of idol Felix Lee, truths seeped through. A genuine love for music, adoration for the fans, the occasional shyness that donated to the idol's childlike demeanor, all were true. There was the other side of Felix, too. Darker hair, darker thoughts, even darker eyes void of unnatural contacts all formed the true personality of the man. Slender frame drowned in baggy jeans and massive hoodies, face obscured by a mask or bangs.

A person who wanted to hide.

It was obvious— at least for Changbin. Of course, there was the basic precautions Felix had to take to not be recognized everywhere. A mask, perhaps a hood or a hat. However, the younger had decided to obscure every part of him.

Especially with the way Felix looked after the comeback.

Scared, worried about how Changbin felt about the performance. Anxious about eating a meager portion of chips. Hiding himself behind humor, but still distracted on how Changbin would view him.

It wasn't his right to pry. Changbin just hoped Felix would do okay after the stress from being back in the public eye.

And the idol had Hyunjin to be with him. While Changbin wasn't exactly sure of the tall man's job description, his job definitely had the access to be close to Felix. Changbin had originally viewed Hyunjin as another standoffish guard, the man pegging him as an obsessed fan Felix had somehow come into contact with. But as Hyunjin opened up, he was a nice man. Humorous, too. And finally, the remark he'd slipped mid conversation again and again, about Felix's sex life. A bit personal to throw around as an insult, the guard was certainly not one you share secrets with. Yet another similarity to Jisung.

Ah, Jisung.

He was currently roaming around the bookstore, "shelving books." In other words, one of his more plausible excuses he used to exempt himself from work in favor of scrolling through TikTok or some other media. Changbin could hear him now, or rather hear his phone, blaring some audio as gasps and oohs occasionally escaped from the man hidden behind bookshelves. Likely thirst traps, as Jisung's feed was full of them. The younger man had once made the mistake of scrolling through his feed with Changbin in eyesight, and Changbin was traumatized. Ever since, Jisung had maintained a six-feet distance from the older when watching anything.

"Auuuueeeghhhaaaaauu," screeched out from behind the shelves.

"Everything okay?" Changbin responded to the t-rex roaring behind the shelves.

"Get your ass over here Changbin! It's an emergency!" Jisung yelled.

Reluctantly, Changbin abandoned the couch and walked over to where Jisung was hidden. He found the man staring intently at his phone, jaw wide open.

"Changbin," Jisung began, "I found Minho's TikTok."

"Did you find a thirst trap?"

"Even better. He's a dancer."

Expecting to see the normal basic dances high school girls posted, Changbin peered at the video Jisung showed. It featured Minho, the mirrored wall of a dance studio behind him. The barista was attempting a complicated dance requiring complete control over one's body, and he was excelling.

"See."

"Yeah, Jisung, I see what you mean. Your crush just increased tenfold."

Leaving Jisung to stalk the dancer's page, Changbin returned to the hot cup of coffee and book that awaited him back in his corner. There he read in peace, before the obnoxiously loud voice of Jisung trumpeted out again.