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Haknyeon can’t believe it.
It’s a dire situation— a Shakespeare tragedy, a roadblock in his easy going life, a harrowing scene presented to him on a silver platter like god is mocking him.
He’s clutching his chest in an overly-dramatic way, gawking at the asinine scene unfurling before his eyes.
How dare he. How dare Bae Jacob show up in the same Halloween costume. How dare he steal Haknyeon’s thunder like that. He cannot process it. And maybe he would have thought it was intentional if not for Jacob’s equally surprised expression, frozen in his place across from him.
It’s day one of their Halloween office team retreat, and Haknyeon’s #1 enemy has already ruined it.
“You…” he whispers, pointing an accusatory finger at Jacob’s face. His arch nemesis takes one step back and puts his hands up in defense.
“I swear this was not intentional.”
“Oh, so you’re telling me two grown men decided to go as a minion? Be so for real with me right now.”
“Hak…don’t do this now. It’s Halloweekend. Can’t you just come for my throat on Monday?” Jacob sighs and squeezes his eyes shut.
Okay, so maybe Jacob doesn’t know that he’s Haknyeon’s #1 enemy.
It’s not even his fault, either. Jacob’s addition to the team had been Haknyeon’s worst nightmare— stealing the promotion before he could secure it, weaseling his way into his friend group, becoming the boss’ favorite in record time. Everything he does is performed with a charming smile, a gentle and soft-spoken voice to accompany it. A certain sparkle in his eyes that pisses Haknyeon off to no avail. Even his hair is pretty, curled at the ends and bouncing every so often, brunette strands a sight for sore eyes. Even in that stupid minion suit, Jacob still looks like he’s carved from gold.
“Out for blood again?” Eric waltzes into the room wearing a ridiculous baseball uniform, giving Haknyeon a slap on the back. Haknyeon hisses at him.
“I don’t recall minions being feral like that.”
“I’ll kill you.”
Eric shrugs with a smile and gives Jacob an apologetic look before flopping onto the couch. “Behave for this one weekend. Or Sangyeon is going to put you both under supervision.”
“He’s the one who hates me!” Jacob pouts, a stupid, cute pout that Haknyeon wants to wipe right off his face. With either his fist or his lips (he’s not really sure).
Eric hums. “You’re right on that one. Hakkie, can’t you let up a bit? Our Jacob is just so sweet.”
“ Don’t refer to him as ours .”
“Ah, my Cobbie!” Younghoon trots into the room with his arms wide open. Haknyeon suppresses the urge to scream.
Eric gives him a smirk. “See?”
“I hate all of you.”
He sinks next to Eric on the couch and rips off his minion hat. He catches Jacob’s eyes behind Younghoon’s frame and gives him a scowl. Jacob shoots him a peculiar look, one that resembles something akin to an apology. Haknyeon almost feels bad for a moment. He shakes away the thought.
Well, at least they both win the costume contest later that night. Haknyeon’s eyes twitch when Jacob twirls, his oversized minion suit flapping about while his team claps around the campfire. He’s dragged out of his chair and forced to stand side-by-side with a beaming Jacob, pretending to smile for the camera as his friends snap a million photos.
Jacob turns to him with a weak smile. “Sorry.”
There’s that guilt again. Haknyeon huffs and returns to his seat, angrily sipping from his water bottle. Jacob is perfect, too damn perfect— was top of his class in university, speaks two languages, incredibly good at his marketing job, always getting praise from the higher ups. He’s too pretty for his own good, too nice to people who don’t deserve it. Haknyeon wants to strangle him.
“Do we have our room arrangements yet?” Chanhee pipes up, saving the minion photoshoot as his lockscreen. Haknyeon shoots him a glare.
Sangyeon claps his hands and rubs them together like a nefarious fly. “Oh, do I.”
“Boss…” Haknyeon says under his breath, a little growl following. “ Sangyeon .”
“Put me with Jacob, pretty please?” Younghoon begs, his eyes wide and puppy-like. He leans into Sangyeon with fluttering lashes. Sangyeon laughs and ruffles his hair.
“Sorry, Younghoonie. Not today.”
“Don’t tell me…” Changmin tapers off, narrowing his eyes at their team leader. There’s a mischievous smile playing on his lips.
Haknyeon is about to fling himself into the flames.
“Hak, you’re staying on the third floor with Jacob. No take backs.”
Haknyeon throws his hands to the sky and fights the urge to pounce on his boss. “You’re insufferable!” He groans and shoves a burnt marshmallow into his mouth. He catches Jacob’s eyes again, watching the fire in his reflection. The man’s expression is unreadable, neutral and tight-lipped. He can’t possibly be happy about this arrangement, either.
Without saying the proper salutations, Haknyeon leaves the campfire and storms up to his room in annoyance. He flops onto the bed and throws his suitcase in the corner, completely disregarding the contents spilling onto the floor. And maybe it’s silly for a grown man to be pounding fists against a mattress, groaning into the pillows like he’s a middle-schooler. But it’s Jacob for god’s sakes, the bane of his existence, the looming threat in the neighboring cubicle.
There’s a moment where he stops wailing and pops his head up, narrowing his eyes. He scans the room and scrambles to his feet in horror.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Just then, Jacob trudges up the stairs and lets himself into the room. Haknyeon snaps his head in his direction and stares at him with a pale face.
“Hak…? Did you see something spooky? Why are you looking at me like that?”
Haknyeon is acutely aware of the problem at hand. He slowly looks at the single, distressing, king-sized bed in the center of the room. This is worse than suffering through a horror movie or even dressing as a goddamn minion in front of his colleagues. This cannot be happening to him.
Jacob follows his eyes and drops his lips. “Oh. I see,” he whispers, defeated. Haknyeon watches as his enemy slips off the top half of his costume, revealing a black tank top underneath. A light blush dusts over his cheeks and he slaps a hand over his mouth.
Jacob stalks over and puts a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry, Hak. I can sleep on the floor.”
“N-no, I’ll sleep on the floor,” Haknyeon stammers, temporarily dropping the arch-enemies facade. Jacob shakes his head with a sad smile.
“I know you don’t like me. It’s okay, I don’t wanna make you uncomfortable.”
Haknyeon feels a strange pang in his heart, accompanied by something that feels warm and fuzzy. Jacob has never been anything but sweet to him— helpful, patient, gentle. It’s infuriating. Haknyeon watches as Jacob rummages through the Airbnb closet and pulls out a handful of pillows and blankets, arranging a bed on the ground. Haknyeon blinks and stares, too tired to say anything more. He sighs and heads to the shower.
Getting in bed that night feels like a challenge. For some reason, Sangyeon took it upon himself to choose the haunted cabin in the damn woods, the beginning of some kind of 80’s slasher film. Haknyeon is not a fan of the terribly dark room, not accompanied by any sort of comforting night-light. He hears Jacob quietly stumble out of the bathroom, slipping into the blankets on the floor. Haknyeon can’t help but think that it’s probably uncomfortable to lay on the aged ground, all creaky and rock-hard. But he drifts off to sleep anyway, fighting the guilt pooling in his stomach.
🏕️
A bump in the night isn’t supposed to scare a man with a degree and a stable income.
But it does. And Haknyeon squeals awake with a pathetic jump, gripping onto his blanket with fervor.
He doesn’t even know where it’s coming from, but there’s a perpetual scratching sound at the walls, followed by the moaning of the floorboards and some kind of mumbling. He hears Jacob stir in his sleep with a groan, awakened by Haknyeon’s panicked screams. He leans up and rubs his eyes, barely visible in the dark room.
“Hak? Are you ok—”
Another chilling bump in the walls. Jacob jumps back with a gasp and gives Haknyeon a look. “Oh! Oh, okay!” Another noise, this one a little louder than the last. Haknyeon pulls the blankets over his head and curls into a ball.
“There is no way.”
“It’s probably just the wind,” Jacob tries to assure him, despite the very obvious fear in his voice. But the next disembodied voice has him scrambling against the wall. “Okay! Maybe not the wind.”
“This is not happening. I told Sangyeon not to book this place! Why would anyone pay extra for a stupid haunted cabin?!”
“A certain level of masochism,” Jacob half-jokes, though Haknyeon does not receive it well. He’s still cowering under the blankets, teeth chattering. “Hey,” Jacob coos, gently pulling back the blankets. “You’re not in any danger.”
“How could you be so sure?”
“The guys are all downstairs.”
“But it’s just us on the third floor!”
Jacob cocks his head. “What, you think I’m not capable of keeping you safe?”
The words aren’t supposed to make Haknyeon feel so utterly warm inside. Jacob isn’t supposed to make him swoon.
“That’s not…that’s not…” Haknyeon tapers off in embarrassment. He swats Jacob’s hand away and turns his back to him. However, another strange noise causes his anxiety to spike.
He feels ridiculous, but he has to pop the question. Or, he has to demand it.
“Jacob.”
“Hm?”
“Get in the bed.”
He can hear an audible gasp. “W-what?!”
“Jacob. Bae Jacob. Please get into the bed.”
“Are you sure? I know you don’t like me and I’ve been trying to talk to you about it for weeks and—” There’s a particularly loud bang on the wall.
“Jacob, please !”
Jacob clambers to his feet, nearly tripping over his makeshift bed as he climbs in next to Haknyeon. Immediately, the warmth of his body seeps into Haknyeon’s skin like a comforting hug. They’re separated by a few inches but close enough that it’s making Haknyeon blush like a moron.
“I hate this.”
“I can move back to the—”
A terrifying voice speaks somewhere outside the windows. Haknyeon instinctively grabs onto Jacob’s arm. “Oh my god, we’re gonna die.”
“We’re not gonna die,” Jacob gently places his hand over Haknyeon’s, the subtle intimacy causing goosebumps to raise on his skin. He takes a deep breath and slides further into the sheets, away from Jacob’s body. Surprisingly, Jacob follows him.
They’re face to face under the covers, soft breaths filling the enclosed space.
“They’ll never get us in here,” Jacob giggles. Despite the horrifying noises outside, Haknyeon cracks a smile.
“I…I…” Haknyeon starts. “Can I…oh my god this is humiliating. Jesus christ .”
“Hm? Do you need my protection?”
Hesitantly, Haknyeon nods.
“Come here, then.”
Almost too eagerly, Haknyeon nestles himself into Jacob’s homely arms. He deeply inhales the faded scent of cologne clinging to his t-shirt and sighs into his skin. He will not be indulging in Bae Jacob this fateful night.
A knock on the door causes them both to jump, Haknyeon entangling their legs together with a muffled scream. He feels Jacob run a comforting hand through his hair and another hand smoothing over his back.
“You’re safe with me, Hak,” Jacob whispers into his skin.
And truly, it’s the first time that Haknyeon notices the subtle nickname. He would’ve reamed him for it if he’d realized it earlier, but it sounds so strangely comforting at this very moment. He nuzzles into Jacob’s chest and snakes an arm around his waist.
“I don’t like this."
“Hm? You want me to let go.”
“No! I don’t mean you…I mean—”
Another bang. Haknyeon yips in frustration. Jacob only pulls him tighter.
“Hak?” Jacob asks, ignoring the haunting events occurring around them.
“W-what?”
“Is it a bad time to ask why you hate me so much?”
Silence. Even the walls have stopped scratching. Haknyeon doesn’t have it in him to pull away from his enemy’s body, frozen in place from the question. Jacob doesn’t stop stroking through his hair.
Why does Ju Haknyeon hate Jacob? Perhaps it’s the way his smile never falters, or the way he never leaves the office without helping others, or the way he approaches Haknyeon with such gentleness, absent of hate in his heart. Or maybe it’s his pretty face and his warm hands— or how delicate his voice sounds right about now.
So maybe Ju Haknyeon doesn’t hate Jacob. At first it was jealousy, frustrated with working so hard only to have the higher position stolen right away from him. And Jacob could have been mean about it if he wanted to, he could have rubbed it in his face and bragged every chance he got. But he didn’t , and perhaps this is where the issues started.
Lost for words is an understatement. The guilt comes full circle, and Haknyeon feels bad.
“I don’t…I don’t.”
“You…don’t?”
Haknyeon sighs into Jacob’s skin and pretends he hates the way he smells. Has Haknyeon always been this obvious?
“You’re nice to everyone but me,” Jacob whispers, his voice sullen. He nuzzles into Haknyeon’s hair and breathes him in. “I want you to be nice to me, too.”
“I’m...” Haknyeon struggles to form a sentence. Jacob doesn’t stop talking.
“I was so excited to join the team when I first saw you. Everyone seemed to love you. But it only took a week for you to hate me,” he sighs. “I think I might know why.”
Haknyeon’s mouth hangs open. He doesn’t say anything.
“I took your promotion. I didn’t mean to. It wasn’t Sangyeon’s choice, either. In fact, I tried convincing him otherwise. Sometimes I feel like I kind of intruded on your friend group, too.” Jacob continues to pet Haknyeon’s cheek. “I’m arranging to be moved to a different department so I can get out of your hair.”
Haknyeon nearly squeaks, curling his fists around Jacob’s collar. He doesn’t know what he wants, but it’s not this. “N-no! Don’t…don’t do that!”
Jacob looks shocked. “You…want me gone, don’t you?” He ceases contact but Haknyeon catches his wrist.
“I don’t want that. In fact, I’m an asshole for thinking otherwise,” he confesses and deeply sighs. “You’re right, I was upset that you took my position. But I didn’t know that you…fought for me to have it instead. Actually…” he squeezes his eyes shut and prays to god Jacob doesn’t notice the blush on his cheeks. “I didn’t know how to react to you being the opposite of how I thought you would be…so I just…continued to dislike you. Er— pretended to, at least.”
Jacob gently smiles and brushes away the hair falling over Haknyeon’s forehead.
“Of course I didn’t actually dislike you. How could I?”
Jacob shrugs. “You’re allowed to dislike me.”
“But you’re so…” Haknyeon begins, yet his words fall flat.
“I'm so?”
“You’re so perfect . You’re so nice and pretty and helpful,” Haknyeon sighs and buries his face into the mattress. “Lying to you was so hard.”
Jacob hums. “You think I’m pretty?”
Self-combustion would be convenient right about now.
“Hak?” Jacob gently slides one hand underneath Haknyeon’s cheek and brings their eyes upon each other. “Hak, would it be inappropriate to tell you that I also think you’re pretty? I mean—” he stammers. “I don’t know if I’ll have another chance to tell you. I’m not sure if you’ll hate me after this moment.”
Haknyeon stares, unable to process what is going on. Jacob has just told him he’s pretty, and it’s making his heart burst with rainbows.
“You…do?”
Jacob swipes a thumb over his lip. “Who wouldn’t?”
Haknyeon isn’t quite sure how to answer this. But he does think that a kiss might be the better option, so he leans in. “Jacob…can I…can I—”
Jacob smiles and kisses his thumb laying flat over Haknyeon’s lips. He pouts.
“No! A real one!”
“You sure?”
Haknyeon cups Jacob’s cheeks and delicately brings their lips together. And of course, it’s everything he’s fantasized about (or everything he’s refused to fantasize about). Jacob tastes like toothpaste and the lingering scent of a campfire, all wrapped up with that dizzying cologne and velvety hands. They kiss for what feels like forever, Haknyeon chasing his lips when they pull away. He grips onto Jacob’s waist and covers his collarbones with kisses.
“Should we stay like this forever?”
“In this little haunted cabin?” Jacob giggles and presses a kiss to Haknyeon’s forehead.
Haknyeon narrows his eyes and pushes the blankets off of them. “Am I crazy, or did the activity just…stop?”
Jacob leans up and scans the room. “Hm, you’re right. I don’t hear any weird banging.” He scratches his neck. “Do you think maybe the ghosts are pro-lgbtq+?”
Haknyeon bursts into laughter and tackles Jacob back down onto the bed, straddling over his hips. “Or maybe they’re homophobic and ran away when you kissed me?” Jacob giggles.
“Nah. I like the first option better.” He tugs Haknyeon back down and connects their lips once more, pulling the covers over the both of them and snaking hands around Haknyeon’s waist.
It’s no telling how long they kiss, but Haknyeon doesn’t have any nightmares.
🏕️
“Good morning you gay minions!” Eric calls when the two boys with swollen lips make their way into the kitchen. It’s a gray day, but the smell of pancakes and sausages makes up for it.
“Don’t…call us that,” Haknyeon grumbles.
“But I was right, wasn’t I? That you had the hots for him this whole time?”
Haknyeon glares and goes to pounce on Eric before Jacob holds him back.
“He’s not worth it.” Jacob laughs and throws a glance to the other men. “Besides, you can’t take them all.”
“Are you trying to tell me that they all—”
“ Please tell me you finally kissed,” Changmin runs over and grips Haknyeon’s shoulders. Jacob wiggles his eyebrows at him.
“No way, did our Hakkie finally give in?” Younghoon beams. He pumps his fist in the air. “You did! Look at how red you are!” Haknyeon swats him away and groans. Jacob gives him an apologetic look.
Haknyeon squeezes his eyes shut and takes a deep breath. “You guys are so mean to me.”
Jacob pulls his hips towards him. “I’m not mean to you!”
The chorus of boys giggle and coo. Haknyeon buries his face into Jacob’s neck. “This is so sick and twisted.”
Jacob gives him a pet. “Would a kiss make it better?” Haknyeon looks up and nods. The boys boo.
“I think it worked too well,” Chanhee rolls his eyes.
Jacob and Haknyeon appear to be in their own little world, too lost in each other’s eyes and affection to notice their boss grinning like an idiot from the kitchen. He leans back against the counter and levels his eyes at Changmin.
“Do you think they know it was us?”
Changmin deviously smiles and shakes his head.
“They’ll figure it out in a few months,” he laughs, whipping out a remote-controller with the word ghostbox on it.
Sangyeon gently hits his shoulder and watches as the two lovebirds sneak off to the upstairs bedroom.