♡︎|30

chapter thirty—✧♡︎✧—

The sun was way too bright.

Hyunjin groaned, rolling over and burying his face into something warm and soft—wait. His eyes snapped open. This was not his bed. His head was pounding like a drum solo in a rock concert, and his mouth tasted like expired orange juice. What the hell happened?

He lifted his face slightly and immediately froze.

Felix.

Sleeping next to him, all cozy in a hoodie that was definitely Hyunjin's, face smushed against the pillow, breathing peacefully.

Hyunjin jerked back too fast and immediately regretted it as his brain rattled against his skull. "Fuck," he groaned, clutching his head.

Felix stirred, scrunching his nose before slowly cracking his eyes open. It took him all of three seconds to assess the situation before a lazy smirk spread across his face.

"Good morning, sunshine."

Hyunjin's whole body tensed.

"Do I even want to know what happened?" His voice was so hoarse.

Felix stretched, yawning like a spoiled cat. "Oh, definitely. But first, drink this." He reached over and handed Hyunjin a glass of something green that looked like it was made from blended grass and suffering.

Hyunjin eyed it like it was poison. "What the fuck is this?"

Felix grinned. "Your hangover cure. Now drink up."

Hyunjin sniffed it. "It smells like feet."

Felix rolled his eyes. "Drink it, dumbass."

Hyunjin groaned but took a sip, immediately gagging. "This is worse than death," he croaked, shoving it back.

Felix gave him a look. "You chugged a whole bottle of soju last night and then cried into my hoodie for two hours. You need this."

Hyunjin nearly choked. "I WHAT?"

Felix beamed.

"Ohhh yeah," he said, sitting up fully, excitement in his eyes. "You were so gone. You kept whining about life, how I smell nice, and then—"

Hyunjin lunged forward and slapped a hand over Felix's mouth. "Do not finish that sentence."

Felix just laughed against his palm, eyes way too amused. Hyunjin groaned again, falling back against the pillows.

Then something else hit him.

"Wait. My mom. She's gonna kill me—"

Felix waved him off. "I texted her."

Hyunjin blinked. "Huh?"

Felix shrugged. "I told her you were sleeping over. She said 'okay."

Hyunjin squinted. "That's it?"

"That's it."

"Damn. Okay." He let out a deep sigh, staring at the ceiling. His brain was still foggy as hell, but at least Felix had taken care of things.

And that thought made something weird bloom in his chest.

He glanced at Felix, who was now leaning against the headboard, scrolling on his phone, completely unbothered. He looked... soft like this. Cozy. Comfortable with him.

Hyunjin hated how warm that made him feel.

Felix suddenly looked up. "Oh, by the way, Seungmin and Jisung are coming over."

Hyunjin groaned dramatically. "Why?"

Felix smirked. "Because they know you got shitfaced and they want to roast you."

Hyunjin died inside.

He grabbed a pillow and smothered himself. "I'm going to pass away."

Felix just patted his leg. "Drink the hangover cure first. Then you can die."

—

Seungmin and Jisung arrived with energy.

The moment they stepped into Felix's house, they were on a mission.

Jisung gasped dramatically upon seeing Hyunjin. "THERE HE IS. THE ALCOHOLIC."

Seungmin snorted. "He looks like death."

Hyunjin, curled up on Felix's couch in a hoodie, scowled. "I feel like death."

Jisung flopped next to him, grinning. "SO. Let's talk about how you drank a whole bottle of soju and ran here like a maniac."

Felix cackled. "Oh, it gets better."

Seungmin sat on the coffee table, arms crossed. "Let's hear it."

Felix beamed. "He cried."

Jisung and Seungmin lost it.

"YOU CRIED?!" Jisung screamed.

Hyunjin groaned, pulling the hood over his face. "SHUT UP."

Felix, enjoying this way too much, continued. "He also kept saying I smell nice and then hugged me for like an hour."

Jisung literally fell off the couch.

Seungmin was wiping tears from his eyes. "This is the best day of my life."

Felix grinned, looking at Hyunjin. "Do you want to tell them what you said about my freckles?"

Hyunjin shot up. "STOP TALKING."

Jisung wheezed. "WAIT WHAT DID HE SAY."

Felix smirked. "He said they were pretty."

Silence.

Then absolute chaos.

Jisung screamed . Seungmin choked. Hyunjin died of embarrassment.

"I WAS DRUNK," Hyunjin yelled, flushed to his ears.

Felix just shrugged, smug as hell. "Sure, sure."

Jisung, still cackling, wiped away fake tears. "Oh my god. This is so beautiful."

Hyunjin grabbed a pillow and yeeted it at his face.

Seungmin just smirked, arms crossed. "I mean, he's not wrong. Felix is pretty."

Felix shot finger guns. "Thanks, bro."

Hyunjin groaned and curled up into the couch again, praying for death.

Jisung grinned. "Okay but real talk, Hyunjin. What were you actually crying about?"

And that made Hyunjin freeze.

Felix immediately looked away.

The teasing energy in the room shifted just slightly.

Hyunjin hesitated, not sure what to say. He wasn't ready to talk about Haeri, about the break-up, about how fucking weird he felt about everything.

So he just sighed and muttered, "I don't even remember."

Seungmin squinted.

Felix glanced at him but didn't push.

Jisung, ever the chaotic one, clapped his hands. "WELL. Since we're here, should we do something stupid?"

Felix immediately perked up. "Yes."

Hyunjin groaned. "Define stupid."

Jisung grinned. "Let's dye someone's hair."

Felix gasped. "YES. But not mine. I just did it."

Seungmin smirked. "How about Hyunjin?"

Hyunjin shot up. "Absolutely not."

Jisung narrowed his eyes. "Coward."

Felix grinned. "Oh, come on. Let's at least do something to your hair."

Hyunjin sighed, rubbing his temples. "Fine. But nothing crazy."

Jisung immediately grabbed Felix's phone and started looking at the craziest hairstyles possible.

Hyunjin deeply regretted agreeing to this.

Felix, Jisung, and Seungmin were gathered around him like a council of evil, debating his hair like it was a life-or-death decision.

"I think we should bleach the front pieces," Felix suggested, tapping his chin.

Jisung, laying upside down on the couch, waved his phone. "Nah, let's do something bold. Like platinum blonde all over."

Hyunjin immediately shook his head. "Not happening."

Seungmin, ever the menace, smirked. "We could shave his head."

Hyunjin jerked away. "YOU WILL NOT TOUCH ME."

Felix burst out laughing. "Okay, okay, no shaving. But let's at least do something fun."

Hyunjin sighed. He really didn't care that much—but after last night, he wasn't exactly in the mood for drastic changes.

"I'll let you do the front pieces," he grumbled, crossing his arms.

Felix lit up. "YES."

Jisung dramatically wiped a fake tear. "Our boy is growing up."

Seungmin just clapped his hands together. "Alright. To the bathroom."

Hyunjin sighed, standing up. "I hate all of you."

Felix slung an arm around him. "You love us."

Jisung snickered. "Especially Felix."

Hyunjin kicked him on the way to the bathroom.

Hyunjin sat on the closed toilet seat, head tilted back while Felix worked on his hair. Jisung was sitting on the counter, swinging his legs, while Seungmin judged them all from the doorway.

Felix was way too excited. "You're gonna look so good. Trust the process."

Hyunjin side-eyed him. "You just like messing with my hair."

Felix grinned. "Obviously."

Jisung chuckled, twirling a comb in his fingers. "This feels like a sleepover from middle school, except instead of making friendship bracelets, we're committing war crimes against Hyunjin's scalp."

Hyunjin groaned. "Great. Love that."

Felix flicked his forehead. "Relax. I do this all the time."

Jisung hummed. "Yeah, but what if you accidentally make him look like a skunk?"

Felix's hands paused.

Hyunjin shot up. "DON'T EVEN JOKE—"

Felix shoved him back down. "I WON'T. Trust me."

Seungmin, finally stepping into the room, leaned against the sink. "Hyunjin, you're surprisingly chill about this."

Hyunjin sighed. "I'm too tired to fight back."

Jisung smirked. "Not when Felix touches your hair, huh?"

Hyunjin threw a towel at him.

Felix just giggled, finishing up the bleach. "Okay, now we wait."

Hyunjin leaned back against the wall. "How long?"

Felix checked the time. "Like thirty minutes."

Jisung immediately perked up. "Ooh, story time."

Hyunjin groaned. "Can we not?"

Felix grinned. "Nope."

Jisung wiggled his eyebrows. "Let's talk about Felix's crush."

Felix immediately threw a towel at him. "I do not have a crush."

Seungmin raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure about that?"

Felix crossed his arms. "Yes."

Jisung smirked. "Suspicious."

Felix pointed at Hyunjin. "We should talk about his love life instead."

Hyunjin nearly choked. "No."

Jisung snorted. "Okay, but, Did you ever, like, have a crush on someone else while dating Haeri?"

Hyunjin tensed. He really hoped they couldn't hear his heartbeat. "No."

Felix, surprisingly, didn't look at him. He just stared at the counter, fingers tapping against the sink.

Jisung sighed. "Boring."

Felix suddenly looked up. "What about you, Seungmin? Who do you like?"

Seungmin blinked. "None of your business."

Jisung gasped. "YOU LIKE SOMEONE."

Seungmin grabbed the hair dye bottle and threatened to pour it on him.

Hyunjin sighed dramatically. "Can we just go back to roasting me? This is exhausting."

Felix laughed, gently pushing his head forward. "Shut up. Let's rinse."

—

Half an hour later, Hyunjin was staring at himself in the mirror.

Felix had once again done an amazing job. The front strands were perfectly bleached, blending into his dark roots, and Hyunjin had to admit—it looked really good.

Jisung clapped. "He's gorgeous."

Seungmin smirked. "Finally, some flavor."

Felix grinned. "Told you to trust me."

Hyunjin rolled his eyes but smiled. "Yeah, yeah. You win."

Felix's smile softened. Just a bit.

Hyunjin definitely noticed.

Jisung ruined the moment immediately. "Okay, now let's dye Felix's eyebrows."

Felix chased him out of the bathroom.