Straight-ish (Hwang Hyunjin Fanfic)

21

While they waited for their meals, Seungmin took a sip of his coffee and looked at Hyunjin. He still felt a little unsure that this was all real. He knew Hyunjin would need a little time to adjust to the sideways glances and stupid remarks that people would make. Seungmin couldn't care less about them at this point, but it would all be new for Hyunjin. "This won't be easy," Seungmin said softly.

Hyunjin looked up to him and tilted his head. "What do you mean?" he asked, with such a child-like expression that Seungmin couldn't help but to smile.

His smile faded a bit as he explained to Hyunjin, "Remember how you used to get so mad about the things people said about me or to me? How you always wanted to take up for me and make them stop?"

Hyunjin nodded quietly, remembering the anger he had felt over people being so hateful. Seungmin reached over the table and took his hand. "They're going to say those things to both of us when we're out together. If you need to go slow, I understand. You don't have to hold my hand, hug me, kiss me, or show any affection at all in public until you are ready to, okay?" Seungmin wanted to make sure that he made the reality as easy on Hyunjin as he could. Hyunjin smiled at him sweetly, stood up, leaned over the table and kissed him in the middle of the café.

"Let'em say whatever they want. I don't care anymore," Hyunjin whispered.

Seungmin smiled brightly as Hyunjin sat back down but he responded, "It's easy to say that now, but you have to tell me if you start struggling with it, okay? I will help you with it. People can be assholes."

Hyunjin grinned and squeezed his hand. The server brought their plates just then and both boys jumped into their meal. When they were finished, Hyunjin sat back for a moment and asked, "So... Leo... You said he got aggressive, but do you promise me he didn't... hurt you?" Hyunjin had trouble with finding the right word. He was worried because of Seungmin's sudden change of heart with the other man.

"Hurt me? Like... force himself on me? No," Seungmin laughed a little, making Hyunjin curious. Hyunjin tilted his head in confusion (his most frequent state of existence these days). Seungmin grinned and answered softly, "He wasn't trying to get at me. He wanted me to get at him..."

"Seriously?" Hyunjin asked a little louder than he meant to. Seungmin laughed and nodded.

"Yep, that big, muscled up bitch was a bottom," Seungmin answered. They both laughed because it just seemed so unlikely with his dominating attitude. Suddenly, Hyunjin's face went bright red. Seungmin couldn't help but laugh because he knew what flew through his head. He gave Hyunjin a minute to think it through and asked with a grin, "You gonna be alright, over there?" Hyunjin looked up to him and nodded but was still the color of a tomato. "It'll be okay. I promise. We need to go slow. We'll experiment a little. We'll figure out what we like. We'll figure out what you like, and what you don't. That's how it works. But we don't have to figure anything out right now. It's not like I'm going to tackle you the second we walk in the door," Seungmin told him with a smile.

Hyunjin's face went red again and he hid his face in his hands. "What are you so embarrassed about, baby?" Seungmin asked with a chuckle.

Hyunjin peeked between his fingers and mumbled into his hands, "I kinda hoped you would." Then immediately snapped his fingers back together to hide his flaming cheeks again.

Seungmin laughed out loud then leaned over the small table and whispered, "It can definitely be arranged."

"Aya!" Hyunjin yelped as he sunk into the chair further. Seungmin was enjoying the cute way that Hyunjin was getting so flustered, but he thought Hyunjin might be more comfortable away from such intimate surroundings with strangers. Seungmin paid the bill for their breakfast and stood, waiting for Hyunjin to join him. They walked over to a park nearby. The park was on the water and quiet. There was no one around but a couple of older ladies feeding bread to some ducks. The two men sat on a bench and looked out at the water. Seungmin began to play with the hair at the nape of Hyunjin's neck, sending chills down Hyunjin's spine. 

He scooted a little closer to Seungmin to feel his warmth and his protective nature. Seungmin had always been incredibly protective of Hyunjin and Hyunjin had always secretly loved that about him. Hyunjin rested his head on Seungmin's shoulder and thought about how many times Seungmin had protected him from something. The list was too long to measure. They had been friends for so long. Neither of them was really sure when their feelings started to change.

Seungmin laid his head against Hyunjin's, smiling involuntarily. He felt the slightest shiver in Hyunjin's body and whispered, "It's getting cold. Let's go home." Hyunjin nodded and the couple headed back to their building.

They went to Hyunjin's apartment because he didn't want to leave Kkami alone for so long on a day he didn't have to. The little dog curled up between them on the couch while they cuddled, watching a movie and sipping hot chocolate. Seungmin chuckled, "How are we going to tell the guys?"

Hyunjin's head popped up and he facepalmed, instantly hearing all the crap they were going to catch from their friends. Their friends had known his feelings longer than he had. He knew he could handle their teasing and he had an idea. He giggled, "Let's not tell them. Let's get everybody together at the club, not say a word, and let them figure it out."

"You're an evil genius!" Seungmin laughed and started sending messages. After about half an hour, it was all set. They'd all meet up on Saturday night.

"Do you care if I invite Maria?" Hyunjin asked, wanting to share the news with her as well.

Seungmin looked a bit confused and asked, "What happened between you two?"

Hyunjin laughed quietly and explained how, in the midst of making out, he realized it wasn't her he was thinking about. He went on, "She was so understanding about everything. It's kind of hard to explain how I feel about her. I really, genuinely care about her, but I have no interest in being involved with her physically. We've become very good friends. But that's all it's going to be. She's going to be so excited for us."

Seungmin grinned, a little uneasy, but he nodded. "Make sure she's there, then."