Chapter 8

Got the best of the best, nothing much I confess

I awoke to the sound of a fog horn.

This raised many questions, none of which I wanted to answer, so I waited until it had stopped, rolled over, and went back to sleep. I got less than five minutes of dreamless bliss before the incessant ringing of my phone by my bedside table drew me out of my slumber a second time. 

I covered my head with my pillow to no avail; whoever was calling was insistent. I groaned and yanked my phone out of the cord, almost pulling the charger off the wall, and looked at the screen with blurry eyes.

I blinked in confusion, then pressed answer and said to Changbin, "Once I get out of bed, I'm going to kill you."

"Were you asleep?" My brother's voice was far less apologetic than it should've been. "Sorry, I thought the foghorn would have woken you up."

"It did."

"Oh. Then why do you sound so grumpy?"

My brain was still fuzzy from sleep, and I struggled to process his words—probably good for him, because if I wasn't still groggy I would almost surely be strangling him right now. "Changbin. Where are you?"

"At the dorm."

I pinched the bridge of my nose. "Bin. I am at the dorm."

"I know."

"Your bedroom is directly across from mine. Why are you calling me?"

"I don't want to yell through the house, Yeji," Changbin said, like it was the most obvious explanation. "And I know you sleep next to your phone. Now, you need to get up, because you're the only one who can help us."

"Why?" I said, trying to keep the whine from my voice and failing.

"It's Jisung."

I groaned, letting my head fall back against the pillow. "Again?"

"We've tried everything, Yeji," Changbin said, his voice pleading. "Channie-hyung and I have to be at the studio by before eight. Please?"

With a sigh, I hung up on him and pulled myself out of bed. A few weeks before, I would've been embarrassed about seeing the members in my pajamas, but by this point I'd seen Hyunjin choke on air and almost have to be sent to the hospital, Chan try to eat pancakes and miss his own mouth because of how tired he was, and been forced to gag Jisung with a sheet during the night to stop his snores, so I didn't think they'd mind.

I emerged into the living room to see Changbin, Chan, and Hyunjin, the former giving me an annoyed glance for hanging up on him. "I assume the foghorn was no use?" I asked.

Chan's face was grave. "We don't know what else to do."

"You tried playing Secret Secret?"

"He sang along to his lines without waking up," said Hyunjin, shaking his head. "He was asleep again by the time Seungmin's vocals came on."

It was worse than I'd thought. I turned to Bangchan. "Chan, I need two ice cubes from the freezer."

Chan nodded grimly and left for the kitchen; I walked fatefully towards Jisung's bedroom, the others following.

He was curled up with his pillow; the others had opened the blinds, letting the light stream in, but he was still asleep. Chan re-entered the room, handing me the two ice cubes; I took a deep breath, stood at the side of the bed, and pressed them against Jisung's neck.

For a second, nothing. And then-

He jolted awake with a yelp of surprise, almost banging his head on the headboard; luckily, Chan was there, catching him before he could fall off the bed entirely. I kept the ice on his neck until I was sure he was fully awake, then dumped it into a nearby bin.

"What—what was that for?" Jisung spluttered once he could form coherent sentences.

"It's seven thirty, Jisung," said Chan.

Jisung blinked. "Ah, sh—"

"On that note," I interrupted, "I'll see you guys later. Text me when you get back from the studio."

This sequence of events had practically become my morning routine. In the past week, I'd fallen into a steady rhythm with the boys: making pit stops at corner stores and supermarkets with Jisung and sometimes Chan, listening to the former bicker with Hyunjin or Changbin if either decided to tag along; coming over to other dorm to sit and write or just hang out with Felix, Minho, Seungmin and Jeongin. Sometimes Hyunjin came with me in the evenings when there was no food left in the kitchen and 3Racha were becoming a hazard to be around.

I discovered that while Bangchan seemed chill and calm during daylight, he turned into a screaming kangaroo-like creature when he forgot to save his work before closing his laptop. That particular instance happened one night when I peeked out of my room to hear blood-curdling wails coming from the studio at eleven p.m. Hyunjin had inched past me on the way to his own room, glass of water in hand, looking mildly terrified for his life. Still, Chan was cool to hang around with, and he usually made me feel calmer.

Jisung and I had developed a friendship as well, mostly from me having to pull him out of bed on the days when 3Racha needed to get to the studio early. He was fun to the point of chaos, and always jumped to include me—for better or for worse—in whatever mildly illegal "amazing cool idea" he'd cooked up that involved the curtain rods, seven red poker chips, Minho, and a getaway car. Through this I grew closer to Hyunjin, as well; he was relieved to finally have someone who understood the trauma of living with 3Racha's crazy tendencies.

In the other dorm, I'd grown to consider Felix a friend. He was infectiously happy, and was almost too interested in my writing; it got to the point where I needed to call on Minho or Seungmin to pull him away when I wanted peace and quiet so I could focus.

Minho I thought of as a friend, too; he complained to me about how none of his roommates knew about taking care of a cat, or three for that matter, and how they all preferred dogs over cats, and how he didn't know why he liked any of them, really. I listened and reminded him that at least now they all knew the existence of his cats, and now he could introduce them to Soonie, Doongie and Dori and show them why cats were superior.

I mentioned that Claire was into photography to Seungmin one day, and his face lit up like a light stick. We spent the rest of the afternoon together talking about photography and Day6, one of the groups that Claire liked. Seungmin even showed me part of his photo collection, easily blowing me away with his talent. It was astounding how he had the time with his career as an idol to pursue a hobby like photography—and be stupidly good at it on top of all that. I told him Claire would love him, and he looked at me and asked, "Your girlfriend?"

I nodded, wondering how he'd figured it out and hoping my panic was unwarranted. But Seungmin's face split into a smile, and he'd said, "She sounds awesome," and I'd agreed, shoulders loosening with relief.

I told Claire about everything, of course. Especially about how her bias had said he'd wanted to meet her, but also all the other things. She laughed when I told her about how Jeongin's archnemesis was sliding glass doors, teased me when I told her about how I'd been nervous to meet them at first, and almost cried when I told her how Minho was always making food for the others without them having to ask. "He really is all soft and sweet on the inside..."

"I'm pretty sure he's been arrested twice—"

"For being too beautiful and kind and gentle for the rest of us!"

I said goodbye to Changbin and 3Racha as they left for JYP, then headed back to my room. Hyunjin was scheduled for a photoshoot in less than an hour, so I got ready to head over to the maknae dorm for the afternoon. Today was Friday—it was surprising how little time had passed since I'd arrived in Korea.

When I arrived at the other dorm at around 2 p.m., however, it was in turmoil. It was almost as chaotic as the 3Racha dorm—which was saying a lot.

"There has to be some somewhere," Felix was shouting as I walked in, kicking off my shoes. "Have you checked the cabinet under the sink?"

"Of course I checked the cabinet under the sink!" Jeongin shouted back, currently in the process of yanking open all the drawers and shaking them out. "There's only cereal crumbs and pipes. Hurry—Minho-hyung's terrible at diversions—"

"Okay, what is going on here?" I asked, and they both turned.

"Oh, thank god you're here, Yeji," Felix gasped. "We lost the last bag of Seungmin's hot cheetos from the US and if he comes in here and can't find them, we're all as good as dead."

"Minho-hyung's distracting him in the garden, but I don't know how long he can do it," Jeongin told me breathlessly, beginning to root through the cabinets on the far side of the kitchen while Felix searched the other side. "He specifically told us not to lose them because they're his favorite and it's really hard to get them in Korea—"

"Wait, you mean like Takis?" I asked.

"Yeah," said Felix. "He likes the ones with lime flavoring. Why?"

"I have some in my bag that I brought from America," I said, my mind whirling. "I haven't even opened them yet—I was going to save them for the flight back. We can go get them for him."

Jeongin's jaw dropped, and he dramatically closed a cabinet. "You'd do that for us, noona?"

"It was a fifty-fifty chance I was actually ever going to eat them, so..."

Felix grabbed my hands, meeting my eyes. "Yeji, you are the most outstanding, spectacular, wholesome, fabulous—"

"Hyung, he's coming," Jeongin interrupted, shoving all the upturned snacks back into the cabinets. "Quick—everyone act casual!" He closed the last one just as the door to the patio opened and Seungmin stepped inside, followed by Minho.

Seungmin took in the scene and blinked. Apparently, "casual" meant something else to these people, because Jeongin had swan dived to the floor and was now lying on his stomach like he was trying to swim through the floorboards. Felix had put his hands on his hips like a pregnant mother and was examining the wall like it held all the secrets of the universe.

Minho pinched the bridge of his nose. "Hi, Yeji-noona," Seungmin said, the words sounding like a question.

"Heeey, Seungmin." I pursed my lips. "Jeongin was just, ah ... looking at this ... crack. In the floor. We're thinking it might be mice."

"Yeah, but the mice repellant is at the other dorm," Felix jumped in, still talking to the wall. I gently took his shoulders and rotated him until he was facing Seungmin. "Let's go get it."

"Okay," said Seungmin, still seeming perplexed. I wouldn't blame him. "Did you guys ever find my Ch—"

"Well, let's best not be late," Minho said loudly. "I'll drive." He gave Jeongin a questioning look as he passed him; Jeongin just winked, which didn't really help.

We all piled into the car; Felix and Jeongin talked to Seungmin about rainbows and their favorite kinds of popsicles during the drive, and they ushered me into the living room first. I slipped down the hall into my room as Felix said loudly behind me, "So, what are your guys' favorite colors? Mine's blue and pink."

I quickly found the Takis and stealthily made my way back to the living room to Jeongin saying his favorite color was pink too. I threw them on the floor by the couch; they made a crunching sound, drawing everyone's attention.

I picked them up. "Oh my god, are these Takis? They must be Changbin's. Well, I'm not hungry. Anyone want some?"

"I'm good," said Felix quickly. "I already ate some, uh, Dino Nuggies. Before we left."

"I don't like spicy food," Minho said.

"Braces," said Jeongin.

Seungmin frowned. "Didn't you get your braces off last year, though?"

"Yeah, but ... my teeth are still ... getting braced. So I can't eat powdery foods." Jeongin nodded rapidly.

"Well, who wants them, then?" I asked. The room was quiet. "Seungmin?"

"I'm good," said Seungmin. "I think I'm off American snacks. They're too processed for me."

I blinked; everyone gaped at him. "But ... weren't you just asking about the Flaming Hot Cheetos you brought back from the US?" Felix asked.

Seungmin blinked. "...no? I asked if anyone had seen those things I got in the US."

"Yeah, your cheetos," said Jeongin.

"No, I was talking about my Chinchilla stuffies," Seungmin replied, looking a little concerned for the younger boy. "You know, the ones I got at that dollar store we went to? I put them somewhere and now I can't find them."

"Your chinchilla stuffies," Minho repeated with a dead look on his face. Jeongin opened his mouth, but no words came out.

The silence was broken by a crunching noise; everyone turned to look at me as I popped a second Taki in my mouth. I blinked. "Oh, sorry. I just assumed if no one wanted them..."

"You said you didn't want them," Seungmin pointed out.

Ah, crap. "I ... lied?"

"I guess I'll take one, then," said Felix, and I held the bag out to him.

"Hey, I want one," said Jeongin.

Minho reached for the bag. "Me too."

Seungmin stared at all of us, visibly confused. "But you all just said—"

We were saved by the sound of the door opening, and Chan stepped into the house. He stopped when he saw us, blinking in confusion at Minho, Felix, Seungmin, Jeongin. "Hello, people who do not live here."

"Hi," said Minho.

"Hey," said Seungmin.

"Hi, hyung!" Felix said brightly.

Jeongin just waved, his face stuffed with Takis.

"You're only supposed to use the key for emergencies," Chan said, trying to muster up his Stern Voice but only half-making it.

I held up the bag of chips. "We ran out of hot cheetos."

"You did?" Seungmin asked, and I bit my tongue—too late. Realization slowly dawned on him. "Wait, that's why Minho-hyung was explaining photosynthesis to me for ten minutes? You were trying to hide the fact that you ran out of the hot cheetos I like?"

Jeongin winced. "Maybe?"

"We just ... remembered the time Hyunjin took your Lee Daehwi photocard collection without asking and misplaced it," Felix explained. "We didn't want to face your wrath."

Seungmin's lips turned up at the corners. "That's ... kind of sweet." He was fully grinning now. "You guys didn't have to do all this, you know. I only got mad at Hyunjin because he told me he was the bigger Lee Daehwi fan."

Felix's shoulders slumped. "Oh. That's a relief."

"Thanks, hyung," Jeongin said as Seungmin ruffled his hair affectionately.

Chan cleared his throat. "I'm getting the feeling that I ... missed something?"

"Long story," Minho agreed.

Chan shrugged. "Okay. I'm just here to pick up some stuff before I head back to JYP, so ... stay here if you want, I guess? Hyunjin will be back from the photoshoot in a half hour if you want to wait for him."

"Nah, let's head back to our dorm," said Seungmin. "This place is dirtier than ours, and we have Jeongin's socks in the living room."

"What about Hyunjin?" asked Felix.

"I'll just tell him to come there instead of here when he gets out," said Minho.

"First, Yeji, do you have any Takis left?" asked Jeongin.

I laughed. "Are you sure you should have some? Your teeth are still getting braced, after all."

"Hey, it was the only thing I could think of," said Jeongin. "I'm bad at excuses. It's common knowledge."

Seungmin snorted. "You can say that again. Remember when he ate the last powdered donut at that reception we went to?"

"Oh, yeah." Felix laughed. "He had white powder all over the front of his shirt," he explained to me. "When Channie-hyung asked him what it was—"

"He panicked and told us it was cocaine," Minho finished, a smile tugging at his lips. "You should've seen the look on hyung's face."

"We had to sit through lectures about drug use and responsibility for weeks," Seungmin said, shaking his head.

"It wasn't pretty," Jeongin said gravely.

Chan raised an eyebrow. "I am right here, you know."

Jeongin beamed and patted him on the head. "I know. Thank you for taking care of us, Channie-hyung."

Chan's face melted into a smile, and I wondered if Jeongin was using his sweetness as a way to get out of trouble or if he just did it naturally. Either way, Chan left the dorm with that giddy smile still on his face, and we drove back to our own place recounting stories of Chan's attempts to teach the group life lessons gone wrong.