The Boy in the Library - Meanie

007

"We should've known."

After being shut out of Mingyu's house once again, Minghao sighed and kicked the ground. "It's hopeless. We've officially pissed him off. What can we do now?"

"Honestly, I don't think there's much we can do." said Dokyeom. "I think we have to wait for him to come back to us."

"And what if that doesn't happen?"

Dokyeom bit his lip. He didn't have a good answer.

***

Over the next few days, Wonwoo spent more time at Mingyu's house than his own. He didn't try to keep Mingyu away from the cigarettes with force, nor did he yell when Mingyu tried to sneak away to his room to find them. Instead, he tried to keep Mingyu occupied all day, hoping it would take his mind off his bad habit.

"You've gone seven hours without a cigarette." said Wonwoo eventually, after losing at Mario Kart for the umpteenth time that afternoon. "I'm proud of you, Gyu."

"Gyu? What's with the nickname?" chuckled Mingyu.

Wonwoo shrugged. "I think it's cute."

Mingyu blushed and averted his gaze.

"You should really go home. Your parents must be so worried." he mumbled, staring at the floor.

"Mingyu, you don't understand. I'd much rather be with you. My parents... let's just say they think they know where I am, but they really don't."

"Hyung, you are so mysterious." giggled Mingyu.

Wonwoo smiled sadly. "Yeah... I kinda have to be. Do you want anything to eat?"

"You literally cook for me all the time, but have you eaten anything yourself?" asked Mingyu in concern.

Wonwoo sighed. "Listen, it's not important."

"It is important! You need to eat something, what do you like?"

"Gyu." said Wonwoo softly, placing his cold hand on Mingyu's arm, sending shivers down the younger's spine for multiple reasons. "Don't worry about me. You're more important. Just trust me, okay?"

Mingyu sighed. "Alright, fine... but you don't have to cook for me, either. I can make my own food."

"Why not put me to good use while I'm here?" asked Wonwoo. "I don't mind, Mingyu. I'd honestly clean your room if you asked me to - which I doubt anyone else, including you, would ever do. I like to feel useful."

He left out the fact that he'd felt anything but useful for... actually, how long had it been? A long time, he knew that much. Or maybe it just felt like a long time. How would he know? His perception of time was poor because... oh screw it, he couldn't bear to think about it.

"Okay, but I'll help you." said Mingyu stubbornly. "I'm craving pizza right now."

"Pizza? That's easy enough to make." said Wonwoo. "Let's go."

As they walked downstairs, Mingyu couldn't help but realize that a reasonable person would have punched Wonwoo in the face and called the police by now. After all, they had just met merely days ago, and now Wonwoo basically lived with him. But something in him told him that he couldn't do it. Something about Wonwoo was just too irresistible to be a logical person and kick him out.

If anyone knew about this, they would probably suspect something bad of Wonwoo... that is, if they believed that Wonwoo existed in the first place.

But Mingyu knew what he was seeing. Every moment with Wonwoo felt so blissfully real. Those people were all kidding themselves. Wonwoo was real, and he was the most beautiful human being the planet had to offer, both inside and out.

Mingyu was sure of it.

"Hey, earth to Mingyu."

Wonwoo's voice brought him back to reality. Somehow, they had made it to the kitchen.

"Hm?" hummed Mingyu, pretending he hadn't been mentally fawning over Wonwoo.

"I asked where the dough was." repeated Wonwoo patiently. That was just one of the millions of things Mingyu admired about Wonwoo; he never got mad. No matter how much Mingyu tested his patience, Wonwoo kept his calm composure, which Mingyu was simultaneously grateful for and envious of.

"Up in that cupboard." replied the younger, gesturing to the cupboard in question. It was quite tall, as Mingyu only filled the taller cupboards and not the shorter ones. It was a form of exercise in his opinion, as even he had to stretch for it sometimes.

"Gyu, you know even I can't reach that." said Wonwoo, chuckling.

Mingyu laughed and reached into the cupboard. "I know. I just wanted to see your reaction."

"You're a tease." sighed Wonwoo, although a fond smile formed on his face. "You know what, you deserve this."

He reached into the bag of flour and touched Mingyu's nose, instantly covering the middle of the younger's face with flour. Mingyu sighed, a grin on his face.

"I never knew you could be like this." he said in a playful menacing tone, grabbing the bag. "Come here, you."

Wonwoo laughed out loud for the first time in a long time as Mingyu cornered him near the oven. It'd been a long time since he let out a genuine laugh.

Was this what Mingyu was doing to him?

"You're done, Jeon Wonwoo." giggled Mingyu, as he got his floury revenge. Wonwoo felt tears of laughter coming to his eyes, which surprised him. Was this what happiness felt like? It'd been so long since he'd last felt this happy that he'd forgotten the feeling.

Mingyu really brought the best out of him, and he loved it.

***

That night, Wonwoo lay awake while Mingyu slept peacefully beside him, hiding under the covers like the big baby he secretly was. The two had decided to sleep together whenever they spent the night at Mingyu's house, because Mingyu had insisted on it and who could say no to Mingyu?

The whole situation Wonwoo had found himself in was already a mess, but the complexity of it all had grown the second Wonwoo had seen Mingyu's parents. They hadn't come home since the first morning the boys had woken up together, but the thought of them kept him up at night. He never would have guessed...

Mingyu mumbled slightly in his sleep and inched closer to Wonwoo. Wonwoo smiled, charmed by the cuteness of the younger. It was amazing how someone who looked so cold and menacing could be such a sweetheart.

He hugged his friend back without much thought, an action quite unfamiliar to him. He wasn't the overly touchy type, but Mingyu was different. Mingyu was... irresistible. Wonwoo wanted to protect him with all the overprotective nature in him.

Oh Mingyu, look what you're doing to me...