The Adventures of Cat and Kitten

Chapter 13

Seungkwan sighed softly and eyed the book in front of him. Vocal theory was no joke, but his mind didn't want to stick with it today, and he tuned it out in favour of Chan at his side. "How long will Soonyoung-hyung be away for?" he asked curiously. "The floor with Jihoon-hyung's studio is already a no-go zone, practically. I tried to turf him out earlier, but he threw a narwhal plushie at me. I thought his tail would lash itself off his backside."

Chan sighed dolefully, leaning forward onto the table in a slouch Seungkwan envied. "Two more weeks, the conference is over next week but then he's leaving directly from there to the dance camp. It's a repeat of the one they had in February, so the department didn't want to shell out for Jihoon-hyung to go again. It's gonna get worse before it gets better. As it was, he nearly danced our legs off standing in for Soonyoung-hyung."

"There's a party tonight," Hansol said out of the blue. "At Seungcheol-hyung's place. He wants to know if you two are coming. We're all leaving directly after gym."

"Yes!" Chan said, back straightening. "Who knows, maybe one of his million girlfriends will take pity on me."

"I..." Seungkwan hesitated. "Um, perhaps I should talk to Jihoon-hyung first... perhaps we'll have practice late?"

"He'll go," Chan announced. "Unless you want to sit there and third-wheel their nightly Skype session."

Seungkwan blanched at that thought. Gods, he appreciated and loved and admired the couple very much, but if there was one thing he didn't want to do, it's know what they got up to in private, especially after that time he had nearly walked in on them in the studio. "I'll be there," he hastened. "Is Seokmin-hyung welcome too?"

Hansol lifted his head to gift him with a tiny smile and nod. Seungkwan thanked his lucky stars they were in the cafeteria, where the air didn't carry any trace of his body's reaction to it.

Seungcheol's place turned out to be a three-level apartment in Gangnam, filled with a medley of scents that teased, and Seungkwan spent a moment trying to decipher them as Seokmin-hyung made his way into the apartment with no fear whatsoever. Slowly, hesitantly, he scooted inwards, and was practically pounced on by Seungcheol-hyung, who dragged him all the way into the party.

"Kwannie," he said happily, locking his arms around him in a back-hug filled with gentle ferocity. "Glad you could come. Is Woozi still sulking in his sound-cave?"

Seungkwan smiled over his shoulder. "Yes, hyung," he said. He could already hear Seokmin-hyung's laughter twine around Chan's as they listened to a joke from Mingyu-hyung. "But he has a fast internet connection and I dropped off some chicken and he promised me he'd eat."

"Good boy," the alpha murmured, letting him go only to pat him on the head. It was a lovely gesture, exactly what a wolf hybrid would do for one of his own pack when pleased, but all it did was mess up the way Jeonghan-hyung had hung the beret on the back of his head. Wonwoo-ah and Hansol-ah are still upstairs, if you want to go and say hi, and we're having noraebang tonight so I hope you practiced your rapping?"

Seungkwan's grin turned a bit more genuine. "I'll rap like fire, hyung!" he promised, and received a fist-bump before they split up, Seungcheol-hyung to go and corner the other new guests, and Seungkwan to trot up the stairs.

He counted rooms as he went, comparing them to the map in his mind, and cautiously knocked on Wonwoo-hyung's door, earning a grunt and a quiet hello before he moved on. Hansol's door was slightly ajar, lo-fi spilling into the corridor from it – one of the English artists he loved so much, it sounded like. "Hansolie?" he asked, poking his head into the quiet room. It smelled so damn good. "Are you..."