SWEET CREATURE | stray kids

TWENTY NINE

changbin bounced nervously on the balls of his feet, rolling the microphone between his sweat-slicked hands. in one corner, jisung was on his phone and taking up the entire couch with his manspread, while chan spoke with the club manager near the door. they would be up on stage in five minutes and changbin felt like he was going to vomit.

he always got nervous before shows. the moment he got up on that stage though, all the fear melted away and the rapid words slid out of his mouth like jelly.

"alright, you guys ready?", chan asked, turning to the two. jisung sighed and stood up, stretching his arms out as he did.

"i could use a quickie, if you're offering, chris."

"gross", chan muttered but there was a small smile on his lips. the three had been best friends for years; banter like this was a normal part of their pre-show talk. "changbin? you need a trash can to barf in?"

"i'm fine", changbin reassured and chan shrugged.

"if you say so. let's get lined up."

they got in position on stage and silently waited for the curtain to rise. jisung turned to changbin and wiggled his eyebrows teasingly, easing the nervousness out of the older's belly.

then the curtains rose and everything melted away.

«────── « ⋅ʚ♡ɞ⋅ » ──────»

"holy fucking shit."

felix collapsed into a seat at the bar and waved his hands at his sweaty face. hyunjin laughed loudly and slapped a hand on his shoulder. "you good, bro? you gonna cum your pants or something?"

god, maybe. "he's so hot on stage. i literally—i can't do this. why does he have to be straight?"

"careful, he's coming this way", seungmin warned and felix's face went bright red when he saw chan wave at him as he made his way over to the five boys.

"hey!", he greeted cheerily, so different from the way he'd been on stage. when he was up there, it was like a completely different side of him came out. that chan was terrifying in a sexy kind of way. "thanks for coming guys!"

"it was so good, chan!", jeongin complimented. "how come you didn't invite me to one of these sooner?"

"changbin would've killed me if i did", chan replied just as said man slid up next to him and asked, "why am i killing you?".

"because you won't let me see you guys rap", jeongin complained. changbin narrowed his eyes.

"that's because you're a—"

"if you say solicitor, i will kick you out of the group", chan threatened and changbin shut up. chan looked at felix then and the younger's heart skipped a beat. "i don't think i know all your friends yet."

"oh, right", felix replied stupidly. "well, you already know jeongin and that's seungmin and hyunjin and this is minho."

when he gestured to minho, changbin made a small but noticeable squeak and everyone turned to look at him. he was bright red and looked like he'd stuck his finger in an electric socket and gotten shocked. minho cocked his head to the side and smirked.

"hey changbin. good to see you somewhere other than our hallway."

"haha, yep", changbin replied nervously. next to felix, hyunjin giggled softly.

"what are you laughing at, fuckface?"

jisung appeared at chan's other side, already glaring at hyunjin. the taller scowled.

"jesus christ, do you have any chill in that five-foot body of yours?"

"i am 5'7!"

"more like four feet!"

"anyway", chan said, just to felix, as the two continued to argue. "can i buy you a drink?"

"oh", felix let out as a small squeak. "uhm, sure. thanks."

"hey, it's no problem." he slid into the seat next to felix, close enough that their arms were centimeters away from touching. felix tried to ignore the way his heart sped up and jumped into his throat.

"so, how'd you like the show?", he asked. felix attempted to stay calm, even when chan was looking at him like that.

"it was so good", felix replied earnestly. "really. i didn't know you were so talented. do you write the songs?"

chan laughed and nodded. "yeah, most of them. changbin and jisung help out, of course."

"that's so cool."

chan seemed embarrassed by felix's compliments. he was so humble. "ah, it's not that cool..."

"no, it really is", felix insisted. "not everyone has that kind of talent. i hope you remember me when you're rich and famous."

"i could never forget you, felix", chan replied. they held eye contact for a prolonged amount of time, an amount of time that was definitely longer than two coworkers or even friends would hold eye contact, until chan coughed and looked away. felix looked quickly away too, face heating up.

"chan! jisung's trying to fight hyunjin!"