[ tangled ] nomin

mulan

Buzzfeed needed to hire new writers because they were wrong about 69% compatible. Jeno and Jaemin were at least 98% compatible, besides their outfit choices and Starbucks drinks. Jaemin was flashy on dates, with arms full of shiny jewelry and eyeshadow smeared across his lids. Jeno preferred to show up as a sugar daddy from Wattpad mafia fanfictions, with the silky shirts and tight pants. In return, Jaemin buttoned his top buttons and Jeno brought makeup wipes. So yeah, maybe they were 100% compatible, but don't let Jeno hear that.

-2 percent for Jeno disliking his seven-shot espresso drink, though ("It tastes like Satan's asshole, Nana").

Besides that, Jaemin and Jeno worked well together. Jeno scared off all the people trying to get Jaemin's number on their dates with a flashy show of muscles. Muscles which Jaemin helped make, seeing as Jeno practically benched him every time they were at Jaemin's house, hiding from his parents. There was no hiding from first-gen immigrant parents, though, especially when they brought a fruit tray in Jaemin's room every hour, so their exposure was inevitable. Jaemin was lucky he got off with a warning and a heavy slap on the back of his head from his mother. Oh, yeah, and his bedroom door was missing, no biggie. 

Jaemin thought about mentioning apartment hunting during one of their 7/11 slushie dates but never did. If Jeno said no, he'd be mortified. Plus, Jaemin had yet to meet Jeno's parents, or see his room, or see if he left his dirty laundry laying around his house. How the hell could he ever move in with someone who left socks In the kitchen? Gag.

Which brings him to his current situation.

There he is, nineteen years old, sitting on the curb outside of a convenience store with a half-melted ice cream cone dripping down his chin and across his forearms. Honestly, what the fuck at that moment possessed Jeno to ask him to meet his parents? Was it the ice cream on his arms or the giant spaghetti sauce stain on his white shirt? Either way, Jaemin was, 1. appalled, and 2. completely caught off guard.

"Jeno! You bread fucker!" He yelped as his ice cream cone tumbled to the ground, rolling in the gravel. 

Jeno handed him a tuft of napkins and scrunched his nose. "A what fucker?" 

Jaemin ignored the question in favor of wiping the vanilla from his arm. "We've been dating for almost four months, and now you want me to meet your parents?" 

"Parent, actually, but yeah." Jeno's eyes softened, almost timidly, and Jaemin felt bad for his outburst. "Unless you don't want to?" 

Jaemin tossed the napkins in the trash can (liar, he missed), and gently laid his head on Jeno's broad shoulder, intertwining their fingers in a beautiful mess only they understood.  He loved moments like those, with the warmth of Jeno's hand in his and the steady rise and fall of his chest as his heart beat, faster and faster, for Jaemin and Jaemin alone. 

"Of course I do, Jeno," he said, and Jeno's head laid atop his, black hair tickling his nose. "I'm happy you want me to meet them." 

Jeno kissed the top of his head and smiled, dimples and all. "They're going to love you, Nana." 

Spoiler Alert: they did not. 

Jeno and Jaemin arrived almost half an hour late because of some annoying mom and her kids that refused to leave the meet-and-greet spot, then an extra ten minutes because Jaemin refused to meet new people without at least ten espresso shots in his body, which left Jeno silently fuming in the passenger seat.

To make matters worse, Jaemin arrived to discover that Mr. Lee and his girlfriend, who very much does resemble a frog, prepared seafood for dinner. Jeno's favorite food was baked clams, apparently. Fine, whatever, enjoy your dead ocean life, but never, ever since they started dating has Jaemin eaten seafood. In fact, he explicitly told Jeno that he was very allergic to most seafood, including the crab dip and fish cakes on the dinner table.