NCT One-Shots

Try My Luck|ChenHyuck

Chenle x Donghyuck

The world stopped has always been a dramatic description to Chenle. In any context. But he thinks it gets it now, because he's pretty sure that, even for a just a few seconds, when Donghyuck and Jisung announced their breakup, the world did stop.

It's rotating now, always has been, but it's still not moving in Chenles head. Everything is still, even the steady flow of thoughts that usually accompany him have disappeared. There's nothing but the words on his phone that barely breach the barrier from his eyes to his brain. Chenle is breathing, he knows he is, but he's not even aware of that. He feels frozen, trapped in this moment that definitely shouldn't make him as stuck as he is. His thoughts slowly start to come back as he realizes just how wrong this truly is.

Jisung is his best friend and he's bound to see him soon or just hear from him even sooner. Chenle always does his best to be a good best friend, provides advice, a different perspective, in truly dire times, a distraction. It's always genuine, he always wants to help Jisung, wants to make him feel better but ever since Donghyuck became a cause for concern, it's been well still genuine but also less sincere. More forced, because if he's being honest, he didn't always want to help. He got a break when they got together but that was the cost of the break. Now, he has to go back to pretending he doesn't have hidden feelings about Donghyuck that threaten to ruin his ability to have a successful conversation with Jisung.

Donghyuck is a different thing entirely. Chenle, who was supposed to be good at handling things, could not handle his feelings for Donghyuck. He didn't try. Instead, he let their friendship crumble to pieces, fully aware that it was hurting both of them instead of just him. He hates that knowing Donghyuck is single makes him feel like he can breath just a little bit more. It's not supposed to help him breathe. He knows Donghyuck is hurt, will need time to deal with the aftermath of the breakup and the fact that he won't be able to escape Jisungs presence long-term due to the fact that they share a friend group. He knows it's not right but nothing about this has ever been right. Not reallly.

He still hasn't moved when Jeno walks in and gives him that dad look that means he's concerned in more than one way. Chenle doesn't want to talk about it, never has. Jeno wasn't even supposed to know but he's always paid so much attention to everybody, has always been able to read the things you don't say out loud. He's reading Chenle right now.

Chenle gets up from the couch and wakes past Jeno before saying, "Don't."

He hears Jeno sigh and he guesses that he's pinching the bridge of his nose. "Don't do things you know better than to do." Chenle looks back and sees that Jeno is looking at him. "Whether it's for your sake or someone else's, don't do them."

Chenle knows what he's saying, he understands. Chenle has really been trying hard not to make anything worse than it needs to be but he doesn't trust himself, specifically not now. He's sure Jeno knows that too, especially when he doesn't respond and just leaves.

Jisung is in his living room when he walks in and though he was adamant that Jisung does not lose the spare key to his apartment, he kind of wishes he would've misplaced it. There's a chance Jisung would've shown up anyway but Chenle could've dealt with being the only way for Jisung to get in. He calls himself terrible again and just for a moment wonders if Jisung would be here if he knew all the things that go on in his head. Probably not. Chenle's not sure he'd blame him.

Chenle, who's supposed to know how to handle things, knows better than to ask someone if they're okay when they're clearly not. He asks anyway.