CONNEXA | NAMJIN

8

The morning sun came through the gaps from the curtain now making the room all golden. Namjoon stirred slightly, his head buried in his pillow, the events of the previous night feeling like a forgotten memory until his arm brushed something warm and solid. He blinked his eyes open, only to see Seokjin curled up on the floor beside the bed, arms tucked under his head as he slept, looking surprisingly peaceful for someone so out of place in his world.

Namjoon didn't want to admit it, but Seokjin's presence had started to feel less strange and more.. familiar. And that scared him. Rolling over onto his back, he let out a quiet sigh. This wasn't normal. Nothing about this was normal. And yet here they were, tangled in some ancient mess involving mystical crystals, very real possibility of disaster for both their worlds.

He tried to shake the thoughts from his head, focusing instead on how he was going to survive another day of this chaos. His phone buzzed on the nightstand, pulling him out of his thoughts. Namjoon reached for it.

It was a message from Hoseok.

"Hey, I'm coming over in 10. We need to talk."

Namjoon groaned, sitting up on bed and running a hand through his messy hair. Hoseok. Of course. He had completely forgotten about him. His best friend would definitely have a million questions about why he had vanished last night without an explanation.

Namjoon glanced down at Seokjin, who was still sound asleep on the floor. How was he going to explain this?

He moved quietly out of bed, trying to gather his thoughts and figure out how to manage the situation. He tiptoed to the window and peeked outside, seeing no sign of Hoseok yet. That gave him some time. But not much.

Leaning down, he gently nudged Seokjin's shoulder. "Hey, wake up," he whispered, careful not to startle him too much.

Seokjin's eyes fluttered open, and for a lil second, he looked confused. He looked at Namjoon and then around the room as he slowly sat up. 

"We've got a problem. Hoseok's coming over." Namjoon said, glancing at his phone again. 

Seokjin blinked, the name not immediately registering in his mind. "Hoseok?"

"My best friend," Namjoon cleared, pacing the room. "I didn't tell him anything last night, and now he's coming over to talk. We need to figure out a way to explain all of this." He gestured a lil to Seokjin, to the room, to the mess that had become their lives.

Seokjin rubbed his temples, trying to shake off the bits of sleep. "Can't you just... not tell him? Keep things unclear?"

Namjoon shot him a look. "Hoseok's not stupid. He'll know something's up. And besides, he's been worried. I can't just lie to him."

Seokjin sighed. "Alright. What do you want me to do?"

"Hide," Namjoon said immediately, then hesitated. "Or.. maybe not. I don't know. It's not like you're some houseplant I can tuck away."

"I'm glad you've upgraded me from alien intruder to houseplant," Seokjin mumbled standing up and brushing off his pants. He looked around the room as if thinking about his options. "I could just stay out of sight until you figure out how to explain things."

"Maybe," Namjoon agreed. "But if Hoseok sees anything weird.."

Before they could settle on a plan, there was a knock on the front door.

Namjoon's heart jumped in his chest. "Too late," he mumbled under his breath. He quickly signalled to Seokjin. "Go, just.. hide in the closet or something for now."

Seokjin gave him an doubtful look but didn't argue. He stepped into Namjoon's closet, pulling the door closed just as the knock came again, louder this time.

Namjoon rushed downstairs, trying to appear as casual as possible. When he opened the door, Hoseok was standing there, arms crossed, an expression of both concern and irritation on his face.

"Dude," Hoseok said, stepping inside without waiting for an invitation. "Where the hell were you last night? I called, texted, nothing. You just disappeared."

Namjoon rubbed the back of his neck, trying to think of a proper excuse. "Uh, yeah. Sorry about that. I just.. had some things to take care of. Got a little caught up."

Hoseok raised a brow, clearly not buying it. "Caught up with what? You didn't even say goodbye. One minute you're there, and the next, poof."

Namjoon winced. "It's complicated."

"Complicated how?" Hoseok narrowed his eyes. "What aren't you telling me?"

Before Namjoon could answer, there was a faint creak from upstairs. His heart sank. He tried to keep his face neutral, hoping Hoseok hadn't heard it, but of course, Hoseok's attention snapped to the stairs.

"What was that?"

Namjoon's brain raced for an explanation. "Uh, nothing. Probably just... the wind."

Hoseok gave him a look. "The wind doesn't sound like someone walking upstairs."

Namjoon chuckled nervously, but his eyes betrayed him. "Look, Hobi, I can explain, but you've got to promise not to freak out."

Hoseok raised his brows. "That's not exactly reassuring."

Namjoon sighed and signalled for Hoseok to follow him upstairs. He hesitated at the door of his room, then slowly opened it to reveal Seokjin, standing awkwardly in the middle of the room, arms crossed.

Hoseok's eyes widened and looked between Seokjin and Namjoon. "Who.. who is this? Why is there a random dude in your room?"

Namjoon opened his mouth to explain, but Seokjin stepped forward, his expression calm, though there was a hint of amusement in his eyes.

"I'm Seokjin," he said simply. "And I'm not from around here."

Hoseok blinked. "Not from around here? What does that mean?"

Namjoon prepared himself for what was about to come, but before he could speak, Seokjin gave Hoseok a small, almost apologetic smile. "It's.. a long story. And well, I'm not exactly from Earth."

Hoseok froze, his eyes widening even more. He looked between the two of them, searching for any sign that this was a joke, but found none. Finally, he let out a shaky breath. "You're.. kidding, right?"

Namjoon shook his head, stepping forward to stand beside Seokjin. "I wish we were. But he's telling the truth."

For a moment, there was silence. Hoseok looked like he was trying to process everything, his mind working overtime to make sense of the situation. Finally, he spoke, his voice a mix of disbelief and concern. "So.. what now? You're telling me you've got an alien in your house and... what? You're just.. cool with it?"

Namjoon shrugged. "It's.. complicated. Like I said. But yeah, for now, I guess we're just figuring things out."

Hoseok stared at them for a long moment, then let out a loud sigh, running a hand through his hair. "This is insane. I don't even know what to say."

Namjoon chuckled nervously. "Welcome to my life."

Hoseok looked between them again, then shook his head. "Alright, fine. I'm in. But you owe me an explanation. A proper one."

Namjoon and Seokjin exchanged a glance, the weight of the moment settling in. They had one more person on their side now, and though the road ahead was still unclear, there was a small sense of relief in sharing the burden.

"Deal," Namjoon said. "We'll tell you everything."

And so, as the three of them sat down to talk, the pages of seriousness began to come clear.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

A/N:- Hope you found the chapter good/interesting. 🐹