Mid Summer

forty two,

Giggling could be heard from one of the classrooms in the almost empty art building. Normally, he wouldn't be here, but Renjun texted him asking if he wanted to hang out, and Donghyuck being Donghyuck, agreed immediately. So now here he finds himself, roaming the halls of the art department, trying to find room 283.

And it wasn't going well. Donghyuck has no reason to step into the art building. He has no friends in that field, and it's not like he particularly enjoys art.

Or in better words; Donghyuck's lost.

But one thing is for sure. He can hear other people in the hallway. Perhaps if he knocked nicely on the door and asked the people inside politely if they knew where room 283 was, he could find Renjun quicker instead of wasting time searching. 

But Donghyuck's never really been good with new people. Yeah, he was a stubborn person full of opinions and attitude, but that was only around people he knew; people he was comfortable with.

Maybe it wasn't too obvious to the naked eye, and maybe you really had to know Donghyuck to piece it together, but he was really shy and insecure. Throughout his life, he hasn't been a crowd favourite because he looked a bit different. A bit tanner, a bit shorter, and a bit chubbier. Mark just liked to say that it was because Donghyuck was just a bit prettier than everyone else, but that was besides the point. The point was that Donghyuck was insecure and didn't do well with new people. So yeah, knocking on the door and asking for directions during the third month of school was kind of intimidating and terrifying.

But he didn't want to keep Renjun waiting.

So he gives himself a small pep talk, tells himself to man up because he's already eighteen, takes a deep breath and wills his feet to follow where the giggles are coming from.

Thankfully, because maybe the universe doesn't hate Donghyuck, there's a small glass window on the door, which lets him look inside to take a peek at who exactly is occupying the classroom at this hour.

What he sees inside... Well, it's a bit uncalled for.

Inside is Renjun.

And that already confuses Donghyuck. Because Renjun said to meet in room 283. Donghyuck is currently looking through the window of room 139. What was Renjun doing here?

But there was something else too.

Renjun wasn't alone in the room right now. The sounds of laughter— Donghyuck doesn't know how he hadn't pieced it together up until now— wasn't just Renjun. There was someone else in there with him, and the person's laugh was painfully familiar.

Of course he knows what Jaemin's laugh sounds like. And it sounds like his laugh is resonating inside of room 139. With Renjun.

Now, Donghyuck wasn't possessive. Over time, maybe he became attached, but Donghyuck really wasn't possessive, which is why he didn't really expect or want Jaemin to tell him what he was up to. But seeing him with Renjun... Why hadn't Renjun just told Donghyuck he was with Jaemin? Why did he want to meet in a different room?

It's true that Donghyuck would like nothing more than for Renjun and Jaemin get along, his best friend and his boyfriend, but watching this with his own eyes through the glass, watching Renjun trap Jaemin in a back hug and paint a colourful mess all over the younger's face makes his gut twist. Watching how Renjun laughs brightly and happily, streaks of vibrant paint in his blonde hair, how Jaemin can't stop laughing and how they won't stop touching.

Donghyuck never knew he could feel this way about someone... Never knew he could feel so...

Jealous.

——

When Jaemin comes walking into his dorm, it's only Mark in there for the first time in forever. Normally, he wouldn't be surprised to see Jeno, Donghyuck, or sometimes both of the other boys lingering around in his and Mark's dorm. But Jaemin can't deny that quiet is nice.

"Hyung~" He calls, happily making his way over to the older boy. There's a light bounce in his step along with blinding smile on his lips, and Mark can't help but open his arms for the cutest boy to enter them.

And enter them he does, slipping between Mark's arms and pressing a warm kiss onto his cheek.

"I missed you today," Jaemin mumbles, lips moving wetly against Mark's cheek. If it were anyone else, Mark would've been disgusted. But it's Jaemin, so he can let it slide. "I missed you Markie," Jaemin whines again, tightening his arms around Mark's torso.

"I missed you too," Mark says, rolling his eyes and entertaining his boyfriend. Mark doesn't really have time to miss Jaemin, not when he lives with the younger, or when Donghyuck and Jeno always send him pictures of Jaemin when they were with the youngest. But he wouldn't dare say that out loud, for all he knows, that could result in Jaemin not speaking to him for about a week. "So come get your kisses."

Jaemin chuckles lightly at that, but still brings his paint streaked face out of Mark's neck and levels their mouths together. Mark's the first one to lean forward and bridge the gap, mind immediately going to the video Donghyuck sent him when he saw the paint on Jaemin's face.

A little over an hour ago, Donghyuck sent Mark a video. A video he took, a short one, where he could see Renjun and Jaemin being— what an outsider would call— the cutest couple.

And to say it didn't settle well with him was an understatement.

Mark's never been jealous of Renjun, not even when Donghyuck literally spent more time with Renjun than he did with Mark. Because Mark knew where he stood in Donghyuck's life, and he knew that Donghyuck wouldn't replace him like that.

But that was in the past. And that was also Donghyuck. This is now, the present. And it's Jaemin.

Not saying Jaemin would dish Mark, or any of them for the matter, out like that, but he can't read Jaemin like the back of his hand yet. He can't read his mind yet.

So there's a little pit in his stomach, one which makes itself prominent when he feels the roughness of dried paint on his fingertips. When his thumb brushes along Jaemin's cheek and feels the texture of paint, a sudden urge takes over Mark.

Before he knows it, Jaemin is under him and his eyes are wide open.

But Mark doesn't let him protest, shutting the younger up by roughly smashing their lips together. Jaemin doesn't seem to mind that much though, tangling his paint coloured hands in Mark's black hair, closing his eyes and kissing back just as passionately.

And if Mark bruises Jaemin's hips through his sweats because of how tight his grip on the younger was, the latter doesn't complain. But maybe it could have to do with how distracted he was, with Mark's tongue and teeth all up in his mouth and down his throat, clouding his judgement.

And if the next day Jeno sees those marks, he doesn't say anything, opting to shoot Mark a text. When he gets his reasoning, Jeno isn't surprised at why the bruises are there.

Seems like Donghyuck, Mark and Jeno were finally all on the same page about Renjun. There wasn't anything to accuse Renjun about yet, and they obviously couldn't point fingers yet, but there was... Something that they all felt. And it didn't settle well with any of them.

Jaemin was their youngest, after all.

__________

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