Archive of Our Own

Seungmin was decidedly not a loner. He had friends, thank you very much. And okay, maybe it was rare that they hung out outside of classes but they did hang out. Sometimes. More often than not though, Seungmin found himself wandering the campus on his own in the gaps between his classes, camera secured between his hands as he searched for the perfect shot. And honestly, who needed a constantly buzzing phone when he had a reliable DSLR that never woke him up at three in the morning drunk texting him like his roommate’s friends?

He was self-aware enough to admit that he was shy— painfully shy— and that such a heavy reliance on an inanimate object in replace of human connections he was too terrified to make was not a healthy coping mechanism but honestly Seungmin couldn’t find it within himself to care. He was happy wandering around the bustling city with his camera, even if he sometimes looked a bit out of place amidst all of the couples and groups of friends parting around him. 

Seungmin never minded the silence that seemed to accompany him wherever he went, though, sometimes, when he finally got that perfect shot, he wished for someone next to him to show and share in his excitement. None of his friends were close enough to him to care about his photos, having met them through his roommate and were, technically, more his roommate’s friends than his, though they did still include him when they went out most of the time and he did get the random meme at one in the morning. But none of them were in the arts program, none of them understood where his excitement came from when he finally caught the light through the trees just right.

He was studying photography— wanted to turn his passion into his profession and whatnot— and so far, he was excelling in his classes. The passion, as his professors said, was there in abundance, just bubbling under his skin. The problems arose when people became involved. Seungmin didn’t know how to direct shoots nor was he confident enough to work with strangers to get the shots he needed. It was something he was working on, practicing his speeches in the mirror before he went to bed and dreaming about having normal conversations with strangers. It worked, to an extent. 

His biggest nemesis was his Portrait Photography class. Honestly, he loved the curriculum, loved the theory of it, but when it came to the practical portion of the class, Seungmin fell a bit short. Working with people had never been his strong suit and not for lack of trying either. Getting people to feel comfortable around him enough to show the human sides of themselves to his camera was nearly impossible, or perhaps, Seungmin mused, he just hadn’t figured out a good technique yet. 

Lately, Seungmin had taken to wandering the campus aimlessly after his classes finished for the day in the hopes of finding inspiration. He had more pictures of flowers and random small critters than he knew what to do with. What he didn’t have, however, were people. There had been a few quick snaps he had taken of students around campus, though, even without them realizing he was taking their photograph, the pictures always seem to turn out... posed and lifeless. Seungmin was ready to tear his hair out, drop Portrait Photography, and change his major (not necessarily in that order either). 

It was late as Seungmin wandered around the eerily silent music labs on campus. Most of the studios were dark, students having long since retired to their dorms with the exception of a few, very stressed upperclassmen working on their senior year-end projects. Through one of the softly glowing windows, Seungmin spotted a familiar figure. 

Bang Chan was a well known, well liked senior music major. For obvious reasons, Seungmin never so much as breathed too closely to the cool upperclassman but that never stopped him from admiring the man from afar. He was insanely talented and hardworking and had a reputation on campus as being the go-to guy for everyone because of his kind, friendly personality. And of course, Chan was drop-dead gorgeous. 

Through the glass door of the studio, Seungmin could easily see the taut line of the elder student’s shoulders as he hunched over the mixer in diligent concentration. Chan was in his own world, hands gliding across the knobs and buttons with ease, thick, noise-canceling headphones cupped securely over his ears as he worked on, what Seungmin had no doubt, was a stellar beat. From this angle, Seungmin could just barely make out the silhouette of Chan’s face, his forehead scrunched into cute wrinkles as he pulled his eyebrows together. 

Without meaning to, Seungmin’s camera snuck up to his face, the display light flickering to life as he snapped a photo of the elder. He frowned when he realized the hallway light had reflected off of the glass in the photo, obscuring Chan from view. He bit his lip, glancing between Chan’s headphone-covered ears and the dark door handle. The senior seemed really focused on his work and Seungmin would be quick. 

He just wanted to see if he could capture Chan’s intensity. 

He took a moment to mess with some of the settings, changing the F-STOP and the ISO to better capture the elder in the lower light, before cautiously pushing down on the door handle and pulling it out toward him. Seungmin settled himself in the gap of the door, letting the metal frame rest heavily against his shoulder as he brought the camera back up to his face once again. He took a bit more time to adjust the focus before snapping the photo. 

With a near-silent click, the flash went off and Seungmin fumbled, nearly throwing his very expensive camera onto the ground if not for the wrist strap secured around his arm. He yelped, tearing himself away from the door as Chan turned around, eyes wide in startled befuddlement. Seungmin darted out the door, just barely making petrified eye contact with the elder before disappearing down the hall. He heard the sound of Chan’s chair hit the desk as he stood, a startled “Wait!” echoing down the hall after Seungmin as he ran all the way back to his dorm. 

Back in the quiet of his dorm room, Seungmin collapsed on his bed, careful not to wake his sleeping roommate on the other side of the room. His heart was still racing, beating painfully in his chest as he cupped his heated cheeks with shaking hands, breaths coming out as frantic little puffs of air. 

He was, understandably, freaking out.

THE Bang Chan had just caught him creeping on him like some obsessed stalker. If the floor opened him up and swallowed him whole in that moment it would be the most ideal outcome. Seungmin prayed that the senior hadn’t caught a good look at his face and that when they inevitably passed by each other on campus again, Seungmin would be able to go unnoticed. He doubted that would be the case. Knowing his luck, Chan would know exactly who he was and tell all of his ten thousand friends just what a freak Seungmin was and then he’d have to spend the next three years avoiding any and all human interactions. 

He could acknowledge, as his heart rate finally calmed down a bit, that he was probably being a little over dramatic and that, even if Chan did on the off chance recognize him, the elder was too kind to spread his idiocy all over campus in the form of cheap gossip. That, of course, didn’t stop the shaky, sweaty feeling from spreading through his body as nausea took hold of him. 

Seungmin should delete the photo— get rid of the evidence and assuage his guilt a bit for invading the elder’s privacy so thoroughly. Honestly, it was probably a crap photo anyways, Seungmin mused, he was sure he hadn’t set the ISO correctly. 

With shaking hands he yanked his laptop from his backpack before sliding the SD card out of his camera and uploading the photos to his hard drive. He felt sick as he clicked through the photos, doing his best to calm himself down by deleting the other, normal photos that hadn’t turned out quite right either. 

He froze when he got to the photo, unable to take his eyes off of it. He had taken this. The lighting was perfect— dark and intimate, the fluorescent lights creeping in from the hallway cast an eerie shadow against the back wall of the studio. Chan’s computer also glowed softly, lighting the music major’s face in a muted blue light that contrasted nicely. The elder was hunched over, an intense, focused look painted across his face. It was clear in the photo that Chan had no clue Seungmin was there, completely fixated on the work in front of him. It created an intimacy, like Seungmin was just a lover coming to collect his significant other in the late night hours for an overdue rest and this was the scene he had walked into, unable to do anything but pause and admire him for a few moments before inevitably dragging him off to bed. 

The photo was perfect. He had finally captured the human essence on film and it was a peeping tom shot. Maybe he should just apply to be a photographer for Dispatch. Seungmin snorted that preposterous idea, flinching when the sound came out of his mouth louder than intended. A quick glance over at Jongho pulled a sigh of relief from him when he saw that his roommate hadn’t even twitched at the noise. 

His finger hovered over the trash can icon, hesitant to delete something so perfect, but he knew that it was the right thing to do; he didn’t have permission to take that photo after all. With a heavy heart, he clicked the button, watching the photo disappear from view. 

It barely took thirty seconds before Seungmin was frantically clicking through his files and rescuing the photo from his trash folder, restoring it and moving it to his personal photos folder with resigned embarrassment. If Chan ever asked, Seungmin would tell him that he deleted the photo, he assured himself, biting his lip at the fragile technicality he was basing his reassurance on. Just because he never used the photo in anything didn’t mean he couldn’t appreciate it from time to time. 

He just hoped the senior student never confronted him about it.

One would have thought that after the fiasco of Seunmin’s last late night adventure that he would hold off on digging himself further into an early grave but here he was, not even four days later, wandering around the performing arts building at one in the morning. There was something about the eerie aesthetic of dark and empty dance studios and the long shadows that were cast through the theater halls in the dim running lights on the steps that settled Seungmin. He had been struggling through a massive history essay, three seconds from pulling his hair out, when he grabbed his camera bag and stormed out the door. 

He took a shot of the hallway, loving the way the moonlight crept through the open window at the end of the hall. Without even realizing it, Seungmin was on his belly, angling his camera upwards slightly to get the space from a different perspective. The hallway was admittedly creepy. Seungmin loved the shadows cast from the doorways and the way the darkness could play tricks on your eyes if you stared into it long enough. 

He continued to wander down the hall, snapping a few more pictures when he got close to the source of the moonlight. As he turned the corner, a slow, captivating melody crept out from one of the practice rooms, light spilling out of the open doorway and into the dim hallway. Seungmin froze, for a single terrifying moment thinking that perhaps he had stumbled upon a ghost before he shook himself back to rationality and stepped forward. 

Someone was here— practicing— and Seungmin was nothing if not curious. He took slow, cautious steps toward the doorway, careful not to make a sound as he peeked around the corner. 

The man was ethereal in his beauty, completely absorbed in his dance, moving fluidly as though he was made for this purpose only. His blonde hair was thrown up in a high ponytail, the few wispy strands that framed his face stuck firmly to his skin with sweat and his eyes were focused on his own movement in the mirror on the left side out of the room, entirely unaware of his uninvited audience. 

Before he realized it, Seungmin’s camera was creeping up to his face. He paused long enough to make sure the settings were right and that the flash was actually off before he took a series of rapid shots. Seungmin took his leave, the dancer still unaware of his presence as he continued on with his routine. 

The walk back to his dorm was long, his camera sitting in it’s bag like a pile of bricks, weighing him down in his guilt for, yet again, taking a photo of a fellow student without their permission. 

Jongho was sleeping, soft, rumbling snores escaping him as Seungmin tiptoed across the dark of the dorm room towards his bed. His camera bag settled gently on the floor by his pillow, tucked just far enough under the bed frame that he couldn’t accidentally step on it if he stood up too suddenly come morning. Seungmin fell asleep quickly after that, the late night adventure combined with the promise of an early morning lecture encouraging his eyes to close for a few hours of uninterrupted sleep. 

It wasn’t until lunch the next day, after his morning classes, as he was sitting on the steps of a rarely used stairwell in the arts building, that Seungmin finally pulled the photos of the dancer off of his SD card. He was once again completely taken by the man’s ability to enchant him just by his movements alone. There was no doubt in his mind that, on stage, this man would ensure the entire audience left breathless. Even in the still shots of Seungmin’s photos, the dancer’s body showcased his talent and hard work and, without meaning to, Seungmin dragged the photos into his personal collection with Bang Chan’s.

In the afternoon the next day, Seungmin found himself frozen in the bustling quad on campus. In front of him, leaning against one of the picnic tables, was the most intimidating man he had ever seen. Despite his short stature, the man was not someone that looked like you wanted to mess with, wearing all black and leather with an angry glare painted across his face as he watched the passing students with rapt attention. By himself, the man would have been enough to make Seungmin pass by with a wide berth. It was the sun, however, that made Seungmin pause, shining brightly behind him. The bright, natural light bounced off of the man just right, creating the most perfect halo of light around his head and softened his features to the point that he looked a bit like a fallen angel. The juxtaposition was a thing of beauty and Seungmin couldn’t stop his hands from reaching into his bag for his camera and snapping a picture.

The angry-looking student’s head snapped to him, meeting Seungmin’s eyes just as the camera shutter went off. He squeaked in fear, already stumbling backwards before the other man could push off of the table to go after him. He ran— sprinted, more like— not looking back as he backtracked across campus until he found himself a nook in the library to hide in and catch his breath. 

Seungmin trembled, positive that he had gone too far this time and that the angry man would be the death of him. Surely someone so cool and intimidating wouldn’t be chill with a random second year student just... snapping a picture of him because he thought the lighting was neat. 

He needed to move. Drop out and go back home before the angry senior could track him down and relieve him of his kneecaps. 

This photo, for sure, needed to be deleted. Perhaps if he got rid of the evidence and changed his appearance, the older student wouldn’t have any way of proving that he was the one to have taken his picture without his permission. Honestly, Seungmin needed to stop, this bad habit wasn’t good for his health and only skyrocketed his anxiety more. He’d delete the photo, he decided, already pulling out his laptop, and then he would only stick to professional shoots and nature shots. No more people stalking.

Once the man’s photo was pulled up on his laptop’s screen, however, Seungmin released a huge, exhausted sigh. 

He couldn’t delete it. 

The lighting was truly perfect, perhaps even better than the one of Bang Chan’s softly glowing features. There was no way Seungmin could throw away such a good reference photo. With a resigned droop of his shoulders, the photography student dragged the file into the folder that was quickly becoming his collection of guilty conscience photos. 

He started wearing beanies and his thick rimmed glasses after that. Seungmin had no clue who the intimidating upperclassman was but he had seen him around more frequently after he took that photo, always having to run in the opposite direction whenever he spotted him. It was clear that the man was trying to talk to him but Seungmin was too overwhelmed with fear and embarrassment to ever give him a chance to get near him. The closest he got was when Seungmin was eating lunch in the cafeteria, a rarity for him, tucked in the back corner of the large room with one of his textbooks lying open on the table next to his meal while he multi-tasked eating his food and studying for his upcoming exam. 

He startled when the table shifted as someone sat down across from him. Before him was the angry man, his hair no longer haloed by the afternoon sun, as he eyed Seungmin curiously. The sophomore flinched, slamming his textbook shut and clambering out of his seat, with his book and backpack, a hurried, apologetic bow pointed towards the elder student as he made a break for it, ignoring the man’s baffled stuttering about his left-behind lunch as he escaped the cafeteria. 

After that, the older student didn’t approach him, keeping a careful distance between them whenever Seungmin happened to catch his eye. 

It wasn’t until nearly a week later, as Seungmin made his way back to his dorm from the library, eyes only half opened in his exhaustion, that he found his next unintentional victim. It was late, the area only being lit by street lights and passing cars as he trudged home, his book bag feeling like a sack of lead weights against his back. The sounds of shuffling feet and heavy thuds of a ball against pavement drew his eyes open as he glanced over to the basketball court on his left. There was a group of six men playing a friendly game of basketball, throwing the ball back and forth, and laughing loudly as they moved around on the small court. 

There was one man that caught Seungmin’s attention more than the others. He had an intense, determined look on his, admittedly, very attractive face as he dribbled the ball across the court. His arms were bare, muscles flexing underneath his sweat-darkened tank top. It took Seungmin a good five minutes to realize that he had just stopped walking in the middle of the sidewalk in front of the court, his hand hovering over the zipper to his camera bag like it was a gun holster and he was a cowboy in one of those American ‘Old West’ movies. 

Somehow, none of the basketball players had spotted him yet so Seungmin assumed that they must have been really invested in their game and that it would probably be safe for him to snag a few photos— for research purposes only, of course, he was studying lighting effects in one of his courses right now, after all.  

He pulled out his camera, checking that he had the correct lens attached and adjusting the settings before snapping a few photos. When he checked the photos he hummed, dissatisfied with the results and switched a few of the settings before trying again. This set turned out much better and Seungmin found himself subconsciously creeping closer to the court to get another shot from a better angle. The basketball players didn't acknowledge him as he continued snapping photos, having found his way behind one of the hoops as he got the perfect, up-angled photograph of the pretty one dunking a basket above him. 

Seungmin paused, sitting back on his heels as he clicked through the gallery to make sure he had captured it right. He was admiring the way the light reflected off of the sweat on the man’s skin in the photo when he nearly got smacked in the face by the basketball going rogue only to be saved by the pretty man, himself. 

He chucked the ball backwards towards his friends, the game paused awkwardly as the sweaty student crouched down in front of Seungmin, worry etched across his features. “Are you alright?” he asked, hand reaching out to Seungmin as he helped him up from where he had fallen backwards in fright, his camera clutched to his chest like an old woman’s favorite set of pearls. 

His hand felt cold and clammy in the athlete’s as he accepted the help, stuttering through a series of apologies before running off, once again, too embarrassed to acknowledge the man’s worried shouts trailing after him. 

By the time he got back to his dorm room, Seungmin was out of breath, panting heavily as he leaned against the closed door of his room, trying to get his racing heart under control before he entered. Those plans were foiled when the door opened behind him, taking his feet out from underneath him as he toppled backwards only being saved by Jongho’s strong, muscled arms before he could meet the floor. 

“You good, bro?” Jongho asked, sounding incredibly baffled as he helped straighten Seungmin before gently nudging him inside their room and closing the door behind them. 

On Jongho’s bed were two of his friends, Wooyoung and San, who were watching Seungmin with thinly veiled amusement as Jongho guided his roommate to his own bed. Jongho gently pried the camera from Seungmin’s death grip and set it on his desk before plopping down next to him, his arm coming up to wrap around the slightly taller boy. 

He rubbed at Seungmin’s shoulder gently, sending worried looks to Wooyoung and San as they watched on with growing concern. 

“Are you alright, Minnie?” San asked, shifting off of the bed to crouch down in front of Seungmin. 

The younger nodded his head, swallowing around his pained breaths as he tried to reassure his roommate and his friends. “ ‘m good,” he mumbled, eyes firmly in his lap as the other three watched on carefully. “Sorry for worrying you.”

Jongho rolled his eyes, squeezing Seungmin to his side affectionately. “Silly, of course we’re going to worry about you— especially when you crash into the door like you’re being chased by demons from hell.”

“What happened?” San asked, eyes still filled with worry as he watched Seungmin carefully. 

“Nothing,” the younger admitted quietly. “I just uh— got... startled.”

San raised an eyebrow, giving Seungmin a doubtful look. “Alright,” he said. “You don’t have to tell us. Just know that we’re here if you need help okay?” He shot the younger a genuine smile. “Lord only knows what you get up to when you’re left unattended.” 

Seungmin ducked his head, releasing a soft whine of embarrassment at the elder’s gentle teasing, making the other three laugh. Jongho nudged Seungmin a few minutes later, garnering his roommate’s attention. “Did you catch a ghost?” he asked, nodding towards the camera. “Is that why you were so out of breath? Was it really a demon?”

He shook his head, hiding his face in his hands as he admitted, “It was a basketball player. He was just— really pretty. I didn’t think he noticed me but then... he... spoke to me and I just— ran. God, I’m so fucking awkward.”

The three smiled at him fondly, their expressions going unnoticed to Seungmin who still had his face hidden away. They let him hide, moving back over to Jongho’s bed while Seungmin curled up into a ball, dropping off to sleep before he could even change out of his day clothes. 

In the morning, Seungmin checked out the photos from the previous night, whining pitifully when he discovered he had a handful more to store in his personal folder. Wooyoung snuffled in displeasure from where he slept on the floor, head pillowed on San’s chest. Seungmin bit his lip, carefully dragging and dropping each of the photos of the pretty basketball player into the folder on his computer before closing the laptop and getting himself ready for his classes. 

“Your prompt for your final project is ‘kalokagathia’,” his professor declared, smirking when the small class of thirteen burst into giggles. Seungmin was sitting in his Portrait Photography class, listening intently to the elderly woman as she taught. “Yes, yes, I know, it’s a mouthful,” she continued, chuckling softly. “This class is not just about how best to capture a person on film but how to capture the essence of who they are. You should be able to look at a photo and be able to sense what that person was feeling. It’s about taking the knowledge that you have gained this semester and bringing the perfect profile to your models. Show me the good and the beautiful in a person— the kalokagathia— give me something that is natural and real— true emotion. A good photographer can make their models so comfortable that they aren’t afraid to strip themselves bare for the camera.” She went on to explain the rubric for the assignment before dismissing the small class. 

Seungmin stared after the professor as she walked out with the students, feeling a bit out of breath when he realized that he was going to have to find real, live people to model for him. And he was going to have to make them comfortable enough to bare their soul? What did that even mean? He wanted to slam his head against the table in frustration. By the time he got back to his dorm room nearly an hour later, Seungmin’s head was throbbing and he collapsed on his bed face first, ignoring Jongho’s startled noise at his sudden appearance. 

He had a month to do this project. A month to find a way to showcase the good and beautiful in a person. He groaned in frustration only flinching slightly when Jongho caged him with his own body, deep chuckles vibrating against his back. 

“Rough day, Min?” he asked, shifting to rest his cheek on Seungmin’s hair. 

Seungmin grunted, huffing into his pillow. “ ‘m gonna drop out,” he declared. “ ‘m not cut out for this. Gonna go become a monk or some shit where I never have to interact with people ever again. Or do stupid projects that involve me having to talk to strangers.”

Jongho laughed, pressing a kiss to Seungmin’s hair before getting up and pulling his moping roommate with him. “Come on,” he declared, pushing Seungmin towards the door. “Let’s get some caffeine into you while you tell me all about this debilitating project that’s going to make you give up on your dream— which I’m not going to let you do by the way, Minnie. I like you too much to let you abandon me.”

After their coffee date, Seungmin felt much better about his project. He was still terrified at the prospect of having to interact with people, but with Jongho’s help, Seungmin thought that he could at least make something worthy of a passing grade. Jongho had offered up himself and his friends for Seungmin to work with, citing that having familiar faces might be a bit easier for him to work with than strangers, at least while he was getting his footing. 

He found himself in the library later that same day, looking for some books on the history of the camera for his history essay when he heard hushed giggles through the stacks. Seungmin glanced around curiously, finally spotting the culprits of the disturbance through the book shelf. 

Two boys were sitting at one of the study tables against one of the large windows of the library, their books stacked precariously next to them while they played an intense game of hangman on a scrap piece of paper between them. He marveled at the uniqueness of the angle presented to him by the books surrounding him as he brought his camera out of his bag to snap a photo of the boys, the spines of the books out of focus on either side of the blonde boy’s face. He frowned as he checked the photograph, the angle not quite right as he realized that the brown haired boy’s face was cast in shadows from the setting sun and created an odd mood in the picture, like he wasn’t supposed to be there. 

Seungmin shifted down the aisle, tugging books off of the shelf as he found a better angle to take the photo from where both of the boys' faces were visible and the sun filtered through the window at just the right angle to make the moment seem intimate on film rather than stalkery. He stacked the books on the floor next to him as he made the hole bigger for his camera to fit in. The warm, orangey glow of the setting sun shone perfectly and Seungmin snapped the photo. He couldn’t help but stand there a moment and admire the finished product sitting in his hands, completely taken aback by how gorgeous the two men were and how the colors contrasted with the light and bounced off of their hair and their skin and—

A loud grunt interrupted him followed by a thud and a pained moan. He startled, glancing up only to realize that the stack of books he’d carelessly left on the ground had caused an accident with another student. The boy looked younger than Seungmin— probably a freshman if he had to guess— pouting fiercely at the now-toppled over stack of books as he pushed himself back up onto his feet. He rubbed at his tailbone as Seungmin began making stuttering excuses, haphazardly shoving the books from the floor back onto the shelf while simultaneously glancing over at the younger boy repeatedly in concern.

“Are you alright?” he finally asked, turning his attention fully to the boy as he shoved the last of the books back onto the shelf, doing his best to ignore the sudden silence that had fallen over the library after the boy fell. “Do you— do you need a doctor? Oh god— I’m so— so sorry.”

The boy shook his head, pout melting into a blinding smile as he grinned impishly. “No, no doctor. A coffee with a cute boy will more than make up for this inconvenience, don’t you think?” he asked, voice lilting playfully. His hand darted out, fingers lacing around Seungmin’s wrist as he pulled the other away from the book shelf. 

Seungmin yelped in surprise, barely remembering to grab his book bag and camera before being swept away. 

He learned the boy’s name was Jeongin on the walk over to the campus cafe. Jeongin was, indeed, a freshman and was studying elementary education. He was bright and smiling, never letting go of Seungmin’s wrist as he dragged the elder into the cafe and up to the counter, ordering himself an iced coffee before looking at Seungmin expectantly. 

Seungmin stuttered through his own order before pulling out his wallet to pay for the both of them, cheeks reddening when Jeongin bounced happily next to him with an excited “thank you, hyung!” before freezing and looking at Seungmin in apprehension. “I can call you that, right?” he asked. 

The elder nodded, relaxing at Jeongin’s equally nervous demeanor. “Yeah,” he stuttered. “I’d, uh— you can call me hyung if— if you want.”

Jeongin visibly deflated, his excited smile returning to his face as he led Seungmin over to a table by the windows. He left the elder sitting there when their names were called, bringing back their coffees with a bright smile. 

“So,” the younger student started, taking a long sip from his drink as he examined Seungmin curiously. “Are you a private investigator or something?” he asked, practically vibrating in his seat at the implication from that assumption. “Is that why you were taking pictures through the bookshelves?”

Seungmin ducked his head, trying to hide in his own coffee as he shyly admitted to being a photography student. “It’s a bad habit,” he admitted. “I just— they looked so perfect in the setting sun and having the scene framed by the books was just... really captivating. I couldn’t not take the photo.”

Jeongin perked up. “So you take photos of people a lot?” he asked. “Can I see them?” At Seungmin’s hesitant nod, Jeongin clambered around the table to sit next to the elder while Seungmin pushed their drinks out of the way and pulled his laptop and camera out of his bag. 

He inserted the SD card onto his computer and uploaded the photos. Once he had pulled up the final photo from the library Jeongin made an approving hum, his head bobbing against Seungmin’s shoulder. 

“Yeah,” he murmured, sounding a bit breathless as he stared at the photo of the two boys. “This was definitely worth tripping over. You’re really talented, hyung,” Jeongin praised eyes fixed reverently on the photo. After a few minutes of staring, the younger peeks up at Seungmin through his fringe. “Can you show me more, hyung? Like this?”

Seungmin paused, biting his lip nervously before pulling the laptop back in front of him and clicking through his files until he found his personal folder. He hesitated, fingers hovering over the keys before passing the laptop back over to Jeongin who eagerly clicked through the photos, humming approvingly at each new picture. 

“These are so good,” he whispered, unconsciously leaning against Seungmin’s side as he clicked back through the photos again more slowly, sometimes zooming in on certain sections. 

They ended up talking for hours in the cafe once Jeongin was done admiring Seungmin’s photos, the sun well below the horizon by the time they finally teetered off in conversation. Seungmin stood up, stretching his arms above his head before offering a hand out to the younger. “Come on, Innie,” he invited, pulling the younger up before collecting their backpacks. “I’ll walk you back to your dorm. 

“You don’t have to do that, hyung,” Jeongin tried to argue weakly, already trailing behind Seungmin as the elder led them out of the cafe. “It’s late. I’m sure hyung wants to go home too. I can get back by myself.”

“Hush,” Seungmin chided gently, feeling much more confident in the younger’s presence after so many hours getting to know the bright boy. “Hyung is walking you back to your dorm and that’s final.” He and Jeongin made their way across campus back towards the dorms together, the street lamps lighting their way. 

He walked Jeongin right up to his door after they realized that they lived in the same building, just on different floors. Before Seungmin could say goodnight, however, Jeongin reached out to snag the elder’s sleeve. “Wait, hyung,” he called, putting on his best pout as Seungmin turned back to face him again. “I need your number. You still need to take pretty pictures of me. I deserve to be immortalized on your camera, too, hyung.”

Seungmin burst into giggles, pulling out his phone and handing it to the younger so that Jeongin could input his number and text himself. He did a happy little wiggle when his phone chimed softly from his pocket before handing the phone back and wishing Seungmin a good night. 

They end up in the local park that weekend, Jeongin immediately darting towards a swing. He leaned back dangerously to grin upside down at Seungmin who couldn’t help but take a picture of the boy. He got a few pictures like that— Jeongin acting silly for the elder as he played around and posed with the full intention of making Seungmin laugh. 

The best photos the elder got, however, were when Jeongin wasn’t focused on the camera at all. When he was talking excitedly to the elder about his classes, the sun spattering his face beautifully through the leaves of the tree they were sitting under. A shot of his back as he ran towards the fountain to chase pigeons. His face the moment he spotted the ice cream truck, childlike excitement as he begged Seungmin for a treat. And Seungmin couldn’t say no to the younger, already completely suckered by Jeongin’s pout, so he bought them each an ice cream that they licked at contentedly under the shade of the large tree. 

His camera found its way into Jeongin’s hands as the younger excitedly scrolled through the photos they had taken so far. Seungmin watched on, absentmindedly wishing he had a second camera so that he could capture Jeongin’s expressions as he examined his photos. “You’re so talented, hyung!” he praised, looking up at the elder in awe. 

Seungmin brushed off the praise, feeling his cheeks brighten under the younger’s words when Jeongin continued. He eventually caved, thanking the younger through stuttered whispers when Jeongin brought out a set of wide, imploring puppy dog eyes, combining it with his pout in a lethal combination. 

Just as Jeongin was about to hand the camera back to the elder, a dog sprinted up to them. It was a tiny thing, a little Yorkshire, with a happily wiggling butt as it climbed excitedly into Seungmin’s lap, high pitched yips escaping it’s mouth as it licked at the boy’s chin. Jeongin watched on in rapt fascination as Seungmin melted into an excitable puppy himself in the face of a random dog. 

He was able to snap a few photos with the elder’s camera before the owner came racing up to them, already apologizing profusely as they tried to get the dog off of the student. Seungmin waved off the apologies, still completely entranced by the dog in his arms, as Jeongin snapped a few more photos, even getting the moment the elder’s face turned melancholic as he handed the dog back to its owner. 

Jeongin passed the camera back to Seungmin, the older completely unaware of the newest photos on his SD card until he got back to his dorm and uploaded the files onto his computer. Jongho teased him relentlessly from his side of the room, pointing out how Seungmin looked like a lovesick fool as he stared down at his laptop. 

It wasn’t until a few days later that the realization hit Seungmin like a freight train: he already had kalokagathia. The rubric for his Profile Photography semester project called for six to eight photos of different examples and he had six— seven if you counted the sneaky ones Jeongin took of himself, though he didn’t have any intention of using those. There was just one glaring issue. 

He didn’t have permission. 

And since these photos were going to be displayed in a public showcase and not just presented to his class for a grade, it meant that Seungmin needed written consent from each model he used in order to showcase them. It was an easy enough solution though.

Seungmin needed to confront his muses. 

Though, that, of course, was easier said than done and he practically trembled at the idea of having to ask for permission to use photos that he took of strangers without their consent but the photos were too perfect— fit the prompt and his own artistic style too much to try to recreate it with Jongho and his friends— to not use. 

Convincing Jeongin was easy, the younger bobbing his head in excitement and jumping around like an eager puppy when Seungmin asked him, hanging off of his back as he asked about the other photos the elder was planning on using. He promised to help Seungmin track down the other students and convince them to let him use their photos, eager for the hunt.

Seungmin didn’t have as high of hopes for the rest of his muses but he smiled and thanked Jeongin for the offer nonetheless. It was the next morning that found Seungmin sequestered in a familiar corner of the library, studying for an upcoming exam. Jeongin came up to him excitedly, dragging one of his pretty muses behind him by the wrist. The other student looked a bit like a startled deer even as he allowed the freshman to maneuver him through the stacks of books with little resistance. 

At first, Seungmin didn’t even notice them, too invested in the chapter he was reviewing to acknowledge the ruckus happening around him. It wasn’t until the pretty stranger yelped in recognition, much louder than what was typically an acceptable volume for a library. “You’re the cute peeping tom!” he exclaimed, bouncing on his heels excitedly before dropping into the empty chair across from Seungmin.

Beside him, Jeongin collapsed into another chair, cackling a bit madly as red crept up Seungmin’s neck. He started stuttering incoherently, unable to get out more than a single full word while Jeongin laughed at his pain and the other student watched on in fascination, a large, excited smile spread across his face.  

The stranger made them both jump when he suddenly pulled out his cellphone, declaring loudly, “I need to tell Felix that I found the pretty library dweller!” 

Jeongin choked on his spit amidst his laughter, staring at the boy in bewilderment. “You’re so weird,” he noted, the playful smile on his lips detracting from the bite of his words. 

The other student’s large bambi eyes widened in shock. “Oh! I never introduced myself— I’m Han Jisung.”

Before Seungmin or Jeongin could respond, a blonde blur crashed around the corner, very nearly running into the table in his hurry. “The—” he gasped, deep voice rattling Seungmin as he caught his breath. “The pretty photographer?” He paused, staring at Seungmin in amazement. “Wow, you’re even prettier when you’re not hiding behind bookshelves.” 

Jisung nodded excitedly, pulling out the chair next to him for the other boy to collapse into. “This is Felix. Felix, this is... Ah— sorry, I never got your names?”

Jeongin laughed, wrapping his arm around Seungmin’s tense shoulders. “I’m Jeongin, and this is Seungminnie-hyung,” he replied, squeezing the elder’s shoulder in comfort. “Hyung is a photography major— that’s why he was taking your picture before.”

Both Felix and Jisung made noises of interest at Jeongin’s explanation, sliding their chairs around the table to crowd the other two in. “Our picture? Can we see?” Felix asked, bouncing like a little kid from his place pressed against Jeongin’s side. 

Seungmin choked, fingers fumbling with his laptop as he shifted it so that all four of them could see the screen before hesitantly making his way to the folder and opening the one of Felix and Jisung that he intended to use for his project. “I have this assignment,” he started, feeling like a stuttering fool as he tried to explain why he took their picture in the first place, even if it wasn’t quite the full truth. “And I’m not... not the best with posing people so I— I was... practicing by—” he trailed off, ducking his head in embarrassment until Jisung gently squeezed his shoulder in encouragement. “I was practicing by taking pictures of— of students around campus and I ah— may have gotten a couple that... that were exactly what I needed for my assignment.” He paused, taking a deep breath while he tilted the laptop so that the two could see the photo better. “It’s just that— the assignment is going to be put into a public showcase so... in order to use the photos I need permission.”

“Wow,” Felix murmured, eyes locked on the image in front of him. “You took that? Of us?” At Seungmin’s embarrassed nod, the blonde broke out into a blinding smile once more. “Well— you have my permission, that’s for sure!”

Jisung’s head bobbed excitedly against the other’s shoulder. “Mine too. Aish, you make us look so pretty, Seungmin-ssi.” He turned to look at the photography student imploringly. “Can we see the others?”

At Jeongin’s encouraging nod, Seungmin carefully navigated the folder to show the other two the rest of his photos. 

Jisung startled when he saw the photo of the angry student standing in the quad. “That’s Changbinnie-hyung! Wah, he looks so cool, Seungminnie!” 

They ooh’d and ahh’d at the different photos, not recognizing any of the others until they got to Bang Chan. “Channie-hyung!” Felix exclaimed, leaning forward to get a better view of the senior. “I know him! He’s so pretty. Ah— you captured him so well!” 

“You know him?” Seungmin asked, a bit breathless. “Like— are— are friends with him?”

Felix nodded, pulling his phone out of his pocket and sending off a text message. “Yeah! He was my student mentor when I came to Korea and has been one of my best friends ever since.” He set his phone on the table, shooting Seungmin a happy smile. “Hyung is on his way.”

“Wh— what?” Seungmin choked out, staring at Felix in horror. “You— you told him to come here? Now?”

The blonde shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. “Yeah? Why not? Sungie, you should text Binnie-hyung too.”

Jisung nodded his head, pulling out his phone determinedly. “That’s a good idea, Lix. Then Seungmin can get two more people’s permission. And who knows— maybe they know some of the other students in your photos, Minnie.”

Sooner than Seungmin could have imagined, he had two more of his muses sitting on the other side of the table smiling with fond indulgence as he explained once again how and why he wanted to use the photos he took of them without their permission. 

Chan agreed immediately, his entire face lighting up when he got to see the photo of himself that Seungmin wanted to use. “You’ve got a real talent, Seungmin-ah,” he complimented. “It’d be an honor to be a part of your art.” He paused, his grin turning cheeky. “On one condition: I want to come see it when it’s done.”

Seungmin couldn’t help but gape at the elder before slowly nodding his head. “Of— of course, Chan-ssi.”

The elder grinned, reaching across the table to ruffle Seungmin’s hair. “Oh— and call me hyung, yeah? I expect we’re going to become great friends. Especially with Sungie and Lixie hanging off of you like they are. You too, Jeongin-ah.”

Changbin pouted next to the elder, still staring at his picture as though it was going to reach through the screen and bite him. “I look so mean,” he finally mumbled sadly. 

Jisung and Felix immediately move around the table to encompass the elder student between them, showering him in compliments and reassurances until Changbin put on a stern front and shooed them away with a gentle smile. 

“Alright,” he conceded. “You can use my photo— it does look kinda cool— but you gotta take some more of me, okay? Ones that don’t make me look so... angry. I could use a cool new profile picture.”

“Done,” Seungmin agreed immediately, feeling as though all of the air had been let out of him at once as he deflated in relief. With Changbin’s permission, he had five out of seven models green lighting their photos and he felt much more confident in the possibility of actually being able to accomplish his assignment. 

Unfortunately, none of them knew the identities of either the dancer or the basketball player so they all settled down to study together before heading out to get lunch. 

Over the next few days, the tiny duo of just Seungmin and Jeongin grew to become a rambunctious group of five. His phone constantly had messages and notifications and suddenly, his free time was taken up by adventures instigated by Felix and Jisung and study sessions with Chan or Changbin. Jongho had taken to teasing his roommate relentlessly, giving him suggestive eyebrow wiggles anytime his phone chimed with a new text message. 

Seungmin ignored his roommate’s good natured ribbing and focused instead on not panicking too much as the due date for his assignment grew nearer with no sign of either the dancer or the basketball player. 

It was by sheer luck that Seungmin stumbled upon the basketball player late one afternoon on his way back to the library after taking an ice cream break with Chan. The elder had split off to go back to his studio, leaving Seungmin to make the rest of the trek alone. The athlete was at the same court Seungmin had first spotted him in, just packing up his things and waving goodbye to his friends as they parted with him. 

He froze when he spotted him, staring at the other student in shock even as the elder made his way over to him, his gym bag slung over his shoulder casually. “You’re the photographer,” he said in lieu of greeting. “Back for more?”

“No—” Seungmin stuttered, eyes wide like a deer in headlights. “I mean, yes— wait, no— yeah... not exactly.”

The athlete laughed loudly, slinging his arm over Seungmin’s shoulder as he steered the younger away from the library and towards the campus cafe Jeongin had dragged him to all those weeks ago. “You look stressed,” he explained. “Finals will do that to a guy. Come on, I’ll buy you a drink and you can tell me what you did with those photos you took of me.”

He led the younger into the cafe, settling him, ironically, at the same table he and Jeongin had gotten to know each other the last time he was there. Once they both had coffees in front of them, the other student introduced himself as Minho, pushing back his damp hair as he smiled coyly at the younger stuttering student. 

Seungmin felt like a complete mess next to the suave older student, especially when Minho draped his arm over the back of the younger’s chair while Seungmin tried to gather his wits. “You don’t have to tell me about the photos if you don’t want to,” he started softly, giving Seungmin an encouraging smile. “I was just teasing you. Honest.” Seungmin stared at the elder in shock, especially when Minho went on to say, “It’s funny. You were the one with the camera but I wanted to be the one taking pictures of you. Your face— it’s so captivating, especially when you’re so focused.”

It was silent for a moment as he ingested the elder’s statement before he blurted, “I want to use your photo in my showcase.” Seungmin immediately ducked his head, his face turning bright red in embarrassment. Slowly he stuttered through his explanation, the wording having gotten easier after doing it multiple times, though no less humiliating.

Minho agreed easily, his arm dropping down from the back of Seungmin’s chair to squeeze the younger’s shoulder instead. “I want to see the photos,” he demanded lightly. “To make sure you got my good side.”

“You don’t have a bad side,” he muttered inaudibly, already pulling his laptop out of his bag and opening up his project folder. 

Minho cooed at the photo of himself, ruffling Seungmin’s hair in approval before demanding to see the rest. Seungmin obliged easily, scrolling through each of his new friends’ photos. The elder stared on in awe. “And none of these people knew you were taking their photos?” he asked in amazement. “That’s so cool! You’re really talented.” When they got to the mystery dancer, Minho burst into happy giggles. “That’s my boyfriend,” he explained, leaning forward slightly to get closer to the screen. “God you somehow made that pain-in-the-ass Adonis even more beautiful.”

Seungmin felt himself startle, feeling his chest simultaneously constrict and finally relax at Minho’s words. He couldn’t deny the tiny spark of hope that got snuffed out at the mention of Minho’s boyfriend. He was, after all, a very sweet, attractive, and touchy upperclassman and Seungmin was nothing if not smitten. He bit back the disappointment, accepting Minho’s invitation back to his apartment where Hyunjin, his boyfriend and Adonis dancer, was waiting for him. 

Hyunjin was sprwalled lazily across Minho’s couch when the two of them entered, raising an eyebrow in confusion when he spotted Seungmin. 

“Jinnie,” Minho started. “This is Seungmin. He’s a photography student and you’re going to say yes to what he asks of you.”

The blonde nodded in easy agreement, an amused smile dancing across his lips. He gave Seungmin a ‘go on’ gesture, encouraging the shorter boy to, once again, painfully stutter through his explanation and ask for permission to use Hyunjin’s photo in his showcase assignment. 

Hyunjin cackled at Seungmin’s story, giving the smaller man an amused smile. “You took that good of a photo of me without me knowing?” he asked, chuckling softly. “Impressive. Sure— you can use my photo. I want to see it in person though, so Minho-hyung and I will be coming to your showcase for sure.” 

The three of them relaxed into Minho’s couch after that, getting to know each other excitedly as they talked well into the evening. At some point, Minho moved their party to the kitchen so that he could make them all dinner, waving off Seungmin’s offers to leave them alone for the evening. 

They ate amiably before finally parting ways, two new numbers saved in Seungmin’s phone. 

With the last of the consent forms signed, Seungmin could finally finish putting his project together. He worked late into the night, hiding the light of his laptop underneath his comforter to avoid keeping Jongho up. 

His eyes were dry and scratchy by the time his blanket was ripped off of him, flinching at the bright morning sunlight that assaulted his eyes. Seungmin hummed in confusion when Jongho’s amused face greeted him, an irritated Jeongin standing a few feet behind him. 

“Have you been up all night, hyung?” the younger chided, stepping around Jongho to close Seungmin’s laptop and pull the elder out of his stiff, hunched over position. “What in the world were you thinking? That’s so irresponsible of you.”

“Ah,” Seungmin murmured, rubbing at his face tiredly as he allowed Jeongin to help him get ready for class. “Sorry, Innie. I found the last two last night— Minho and Hyunjin— and I just— I had to finish it now that I knew I could.”

Jeongin sighed tiredly, as though he was an old, weary hyung instead of the maknae. “Come on, hyung,” he said, slinging the elder’s backpack onto his own shoulder. “You’ve got an exam today. We’ll get some energy drinks on our way. Thank you, Jongho-ssi.” He bowed to the elder before leading his friend out of his room and towards his class, listening raptly as Seungmin excitedly went into more detail about Minho and Hyunjin and how he was so thankful to finally be completed with his final assignment. 

During lunch, Jeongin found him and dragged him to a table with the rest of their friends, not giving the tired boy a chance to speak before he outed Seungmin’s poor choices to Chan who immediately went into worried mom-mode, shifting to sit next to the younger as he pet back Seungmin’s hair while simultaneously chiding him on his irresponsible sleeping choice. 

Felix cut Chan off, pointing an accusing finger at him as he cackled. “You have no room to say anything, hyung,” he accused. “You have the worst sleeping habits of anyone I know.” He turned to Seungmin, smiling blindingly. “I’m happy for you, Minnie,” he said, voice turning genuine. “Just— please don’t be so reckless with your health in the future if you don’t have to, okay?” The others joined in, nodding their heads and congratulating him as they expressed their excitement for his upcoming showcase. 

Jeongin pressed closely to Seungmin’s side, turning his lethal pout onto the elder. “You need to use one of yourself too, hyung,” he stated. “For your project— you should be one of the models too.”

“I don’t have any photos of myself like that,” Seungmin argued, shaking his head bashfully. 

“You do!” Jeongin argued excitedly, already pulling the elder’s laptop out of his bag as he expertly maneuvered through Seungmin’s files with familiarity. “Here,” he said, turning the laptop back to the elder, showing him the photo he had taken of Seungmin that day in the park. In the photo, Seungmin was sitting cross legged on the grass in the shade of a large tree that loomed above him while a tiny Yorkshire lapped excitedly at his chin. He had a large smile on his face, his genuine happiness tangible in the photo. “This is your kalokagathia, too, hyung.”

Seungmin couldn’t deny that seven photos would balance his overall piece better than six and the photo Jeongin took was... truly brilliant to say the least. “Have you ever thought of going into photography, Innie?” he asked, smiling playfully at the younger.

“Nope,” he chirped, closing the laptop resolutely. “And I’m not going to. But you are going to use that photo as a consolation because I’m your favorite dongsaeng.”

“You’re my only dongsaeng,” Seungmin reminded exasperatedly, already nodding his head in agreement at the younger’s proposition. 

Jeongin giggled excitedly before tugging him up from the table. “Excellent,” he declared. “Now that that’s settled, if you’ll excuse us, I have a hyung to put down for a nap.” The rest of the table waved goodbye to the two cheerfully, laughing at Seungmin’s put-out expression as he was dragged away.

The day of the showcase dawned bright and cold, the crisp winter air biting at Seungmin’s nose as he made his way to the gallery. Seungmin was a frantic mess, nearly pulling his hair out as he made final adjustments to his display before the gallery was opened to the public. 

“Wow,” a soft voice murmured from behind him, causing Seungmin to whip around in alarm only to sag in relief when he caught the familiar form of Jisung. He only seemed to have eyes for Seungmin’s project though, staring at it as though the piece held all of the answers to the universe. The brunette stuck close to Seungmin throughout the afternoon, admitting quietly to the slightly younger sophomore that he wasn’t too keen on crowds but that he wanted to stay and support him for as long as he could. Every once in a while, Jisung would break away from Seungmin while the artist was busy fielding questions from inquisitive guests to go look at other pieces in the exhibit though he always reappeared by Seungmin’s side before he could even notice that he was missing. 

The others slowly trickled in as they finished their schedules for the day, eager to support Seungmin. Jeongin and Felix arrived together, the younger’s hand wrapped tightly around Felix’s smaller one. Chan, still rubbing the sleep from his eyes even though it was four o’clock in the afternoon, trailed in not long after them with Changbin at his side, gently guiding him so that he didn’t run into anything as they made their way over to the group. 

Near the end of the night, Minho and Hyunjin came in together, both sweaty and carrying gym bags. “Sorry we’re late,” Minho said, giving Seungmin a fond hair ruffle once the younger was in range. “We had a last minute practice session that we couldn’t get out of. Though we ducked out early so we could see your project in person.”

“Worth it,” Hyunjin added, stepping up to examine the collection of photographs in awe. “God, you’re so talented, Min.” After that, the boys all introduced themselves to each other, chatting quietly when Seungmin was pulled away by his professor to receive his final grade. 

When he came back, Seungmin was grinning widely, practically floating on air as he declared to his friends that he passed, his entire body loose with relief. They all cheered, Jeongin wrapping himself around Seungmin in a congratulatory back hug as they led him out of the gallery and towards the campus cafe to celebrate a job well done. 

Around a large plate of fries, Seungmin cleared his throat, garnering everyone’s attention. “I want to say thank you,” he started, unable to meet anyone’s eyes as he spoke. “For allowing me to use your photos and being so understanding— especially after I took them without your permission. I’m really— really thankful to have met all of you.”

Minho wrapped his arm around Seungmin’s shoulders, pulling the younger against his side tightly. “There’s really no need to thank us, Minnie,” he murmured. “We’re just happy to have met you too.”

“Still,” Seungmin pressed on determinedly, ignoring the heat settling across his cheeks. “I want to thank you all— properly. By, uh— taking you out.”

“Kim Seungmin,” Jisung admonished playfully, leaning across the table to get closer to the photographer. “Are you asking us out on a date? All of us?”

Seungmin’s eyes rolled up to gaze at the ceiling intently. “Maybe? Is that— is that overstepping? I mean— I’m— I can just take you all out as friends too. It’s just— I really like you— all of you. But I know that that may be... weird or whatever so— I’m— I’d be happy with whatever you’re all comfortable with.”

Jeongin grinned, wiggling as close as he could to Seungmin’s side not occupied by Minho. “I, for one, have been waiting for you to ask me out since I fell for you— literally,” he joked, pinching Seungmin’s thigh playfully. “You can take me out on a date anytime, hyung.”

“Me too,” Felix agreed excitedly. “Sungie and I have been a little bit in love with you since we spotted you in the library that first day.” Jisung nodded his head in agreement, leaning back against Felix’s chest as he watched Seungmin’s cheeks grow alarmingly more red as they each confessed to him. 

Chan just nodded his head, giving the younger a fond smile while Changbin loudly proclaimed that he was going to sit next to Seungmin at their next date and he didn’t care who he had to fight for that privilege. 

Hyunjin started cackling, leaning around Minho’s side to glare playfully at Seungmin. “Way to ruin our plans, Min,” he chided. “Hyung and I had this whole confession planned for you and you just go and ask us out instead. You’re lucky you’re so cute.”

Next to him, Minho’s head bobbed exasperatedly. “You really like to keep us on our toes, don’t you, Seungmin-ah? Good thing there’s going to be seven of us to keep you in line, eh?”

Jisung cackled, leaping forward to pinch Seungmin’s red cheek with lighting speed while Jeongin snapped a photo of the overwhelmed photographer with his cellphone. “Where do you want to take us?” Jisung asked, leaning back into Felix’s chest once again.

“Oh!” Jeongin exclaimed, looking over to Seungmin pleadingly. “Let’s go to a cat cafe— please, hyung? Who doesn’t love cats?” 

Minho pointed to the maknae dramatically, a cheek splitting grin stretching across his face. “You! I like you!” he declared, sending the table into a round of raucous laughter. 

This, Seungmin thought, watching the seven boys around him interact with each other, was exactly what he was missing in his life.