Straight-ish (Hwang Hyunjin Fanfic)

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Hyunjin's eyes sprang open. He looked wildly around the room before he could focus on Seungmin. He wrapped his arms around Seungmin's neck and cried. Seungmin sat them both up, leaning back against the headboard. He pulled Hyunjin into his lap, cradling him in his arms. "It's okay Jinnie. Breathe slowly. You're safe. I'm here." He slowly rocked Hyunjin as he cried into Seungmin's chest. It always amazed him how small Hyunjin became when he was frightened. He could curl up so tiny that it wasn't logical. It was easier to wrap him up when he made himself so small, but it hurt Seungmin's heart because of the level of fear it took to get him there. He was suddenly extremely grateful that they now lived together because Hyunjin would have tipped right into an attack after waking up like this. He hoped that him being there to comfort Hyunjin would help him to calm down fairly quickly. Seungmin had been on high alert when he fell asleep and wasn't certain he ever got any deep sleep that night. The scream scared him awake and forced him to spring toward Hyunjin. The fact that he had to wake Hyunjin from a nightmare like that worried him. "It's okay, baby. I'm here. Shhhh," he whispered. He gently played his fingers through Hyunjin's hair as it was truly the quickest way to calm him.

Hyunjin sniffled and hiccupped as he tried to find his breath. "I t-tried to f-fight him," Hyunjin stuttered through his sobs. "I c-couldn't s-s-save you," he cried.

"Baby, I'm fine. I'm right here. I didn't get hurt. You've never been able to fight him before. I'm proud of you. You're so strong," Seungmin whispered. He smoothed his hand over Hyunjin's back and continued to rock him.

---

The time passed so slowly for Hyunjin, waiting for release from his restrictions so he could get back to his life. Seungmin had infinite patience and had put up with more than one temper tantrum since his restrictions began. Hyunjin had also taken to mercilessly teasing Seungmin when he was bored (which was often). He had paid for it a time or two, with Seungmin returning the favor, getting him all fired up only to leave him an aching mess with no relief. Seungmin had much greater control of himself than Hyunjin did, so for him, that was fun. Hyunjin usually responded to these interactions by pouting until Seungmin cuddled him up and forced him to smile. Hyunjin's awkwardness with admitting attraction to his best friend was completely gone, at least in private.

Seungmin reached out to Dr. Adesina the day after their first appointment and let her know about his nightmare, remembering to mention that something had changed. They had another appointment this morning and Hyunjin was looking forward to it, just to get out of the house. They walked toward the waiting area and met Dr. Adesina in the hallway. "Good morning, gentlemen," she greeted them with a smile.

"Good morning," the two men chorused. She waved them into her office and asked them to have a seat. She was sipping on a cup of coffee and observing them as they sat down. She prided herself on her ability to deduce a person's state of mind from their body language. She noticed that the two of them were much more relaxed around each other than they had been during the last visit. "How are you doing Hyunjin?" she asked kindly.

"I'm going insane because I'm bored, but otherwise, I'm okay," he laughed. Seungmin nodded in agreement.

"He's doing well then?" she asked Seungmin, laughing softly.

"No, I mean yes, but he's definitely going nuts in the house. I can't find anything. He keeps rearranging things for something to do," Seungmin answered seriously.

Hyunjin giggled and shrugged his shoulders. "You told me to get a hobby other than messing with you."

The doctor scribbled a couple of lines with a smile. She saw such a change in Hyunjin's comfort level that she thought it was worth talking about. She had already decided not to bring up the nightmare again unless Hyunjin did. It wasn't associated with a real trauma he needed to deal with and had more to do with him being forced to choose between his feelings and his family than anything else. She could approach that without making him think about the dream itself. "When you visited me last time, you mentioned the struggle with your sexuality in your reasons for seeing me. Hyunjin, can you tell me about this? What did your struggle look like?" she asked, breaking the ice with the big question.

Seungmin's eyes popped wide and he glanced over to Hyunjin, whose smile had faded a bit. He knew this would be hard for Hyunjin to talk about. He quickly asked, "Jinnie, do you want me to go while you talk about this?"

Dr. Adesina tilted her head curiously, but she waited for Hyunjin's response. Hyunjin looked up to Seungmin with a guilty expression that said yes in a dozen different ways, while his mouth said, "No, it's okay."

Seungmin squinted his eyes at him, squeezed his hand and smiled. "I'm going to go track down some coffee. Talk. You can tell me about it later if you want to."

Hyunjin's face softened as he smiled, half-heartedly. "Thank you, Seungminnie," he answered quietly.

Dr. Adesina was intrigued by their level of communication compared to the age of their relationship. Seungmin was incredibly attuned to Hyunjin's expressions, body language, and vocal tone. Hyunjin was overly cautious about protecting Seungmin's feelings and honoring his need to protect Hyunjin. She jotted a few words and smiled.

"There's a wonderful coffee shop on the first floor, right off the main entrance," she offered.