Chapter Text
“So, Felix,” says the man finally. He takes a moment longer to finish surveying the piece of paper in his hand before he places it carefully on the wooden desk in front of him.
Felix nods attentively and puts on his best, professional smile that he can to disguise the way his heart hammers in his chest. He feels way too overdressed for this interview - his tie is a noose around his throat and the label at the back of his crisp, white shirt itches something dreadful.
“What is it that made you apply for our humble little cafe?” asks the man, lacing his fingers together and leaning across the desk. He doesn’t look that intimidating, with big dark eyes and soft dark hair. He can’t be that much older than Felix, really - but he’s so confident and relaxed that it’s… well, yeah, okay.
He’s intimidating.
“Well,” starts Felix, fidgeting with the hem of his shirt, then quickly flattening his sweaty palms out on his lap. “I’ve moved into the area recently for college. And I saw this place had evenings and weekends which works for my classes, and also - uh, there are cats, and I like cats.”
God, that sounded so fucking lame . Felix tries not to wince at how obviously unqualified he is for this, and how sappy his answer sounded in his attempt to not just blurt out ‘oh yeah I just applied for everywhere I do because I am a broke student who’s desperate for work but Jisung said he can get me a job here so I’m really hoping that you can give me a job-’
The manager doesn’t laugh at Felix, nor does he sigh, or scoff, or scold - he smiles warmly and glances back down at the CV in front of him.
“It seems this would be your very first job, is that right?”
“Yes, sir.”
The manager does laugh this time - but it doesn’t sound nasty. “Please, Felix. Call me Minho, this isn’t a law firm. It’s a cafe.”
“Yes, si- Yes, Minho,” says Felix, doing his best impression of one of those bobble-head nodding cats. His fingers twitch with the urge to rip his fingernails off.
“Good,” says Minho, smiling pleasantly again. “So, from your Resume, you’re currently studying your… second year of your degree?”
“Uh, technically, yeah. I - my first year I did overseas, and I lived at home. And then I transferred here for the start of the new semester.”
“Ah, I see. That makes sense,” says Minho. “So, as this would be your first job - can you tell us what you might bring to the table?”
“Yes, I can,” says Felix, then curses himself internally again. “I- I’m a pretty social person, I like people. I make lots of friends, and I think that I could be like - I mean, I reckon I can get along with the customers really well. I also like animals, my Aunt has like three dogs and six cats and I’ve house sat for her lots of times, and I - y’know, I like animals. And, uh - it’s a cafe, and I know there’s coffee, and tea, and cakes and things, and I like baking and stuff like that, so- yeah.”
Felix is about ready to stand up and leave to go throw himself in front of the nearest bus from the absolute fucking shambles that was that answer, but unfortunately, Minho has more questions for him.
“You bake, do you?” he asks. Felix nods uncertainly.
“Uh, yeah. I mean, yes, I do.”
“That could come in handy,” says Minho. “Could you tell me how you found out about this job listing, Felix?”
“So, my roommate told me about it - uh, Jisung? He said he works here and that he thinks I’d fit in.”
A small flicker of an expression crosses Minho’s face, a brief cloud crossing over the pleasant, comforting smile that Felix can’t quite make out - then he nods.
“Oh, yes, I remember Jisung mentioning you.” Minho makes a quick note on Felix’s CV - then looks up again. “I’ve just got one more question for you, Felix.”
“Yes?”
“Here at Purrfectly Brewed, we consider ourselves to be a friendly, all-inclusive cafe - particularly when it comes to our LGBTQ+ patrons. We work on a no-discrimination policy at all times. Would that be an issue?”
“What?” says Felix, taken aback. “No, not at all! I mean, actually, when Jisung told me about this, he said - well, he was like… it was another reason why I liked it, I mean. I like the uh, inclusiviy-ness…ecessness of it all.”
Stop talking stop talking stop talking.
Minho smiles warmly. “That’s great to hear, Felix,” he says. “Well, I don’t see much point in beating around the bush. I think you’d be a great fit with us, here.”
“You do?!” replies Felix, a little too loudly - then again, a little quieter. “I mean, uh, you do? That’s great.”
“Yes. When we hire, we try not to pay too much attention to things like employment history. We like to go with people that we think will be a great fit for the team. Coffee-making and litter-box cleaning, those are skills that can be taught. We want staff with a good… how should I say, a good attitude. A bit of spunk, if you will. And I think you have a very good energy about you, Felix.”
“Oh, uh. Thank you. Thanks very much,” says Felix, feeling his cheeks heat up.
With that, he’s dismissed from the small office with a promise of a phone call sometime in the next few days to discuss his contract, and a slight aura of surprise that holy fuck, he actually did it.
He enters the main body of the cafe feeling a little bit like he’s in a trance. Jisung looks up from where he’s sat cross-legged on a lavender-coloured pouffe, entertaining a long-haired tabby with a feather duster, and waves over at Felix expectantly.
“Hey! How did it go?”
“He just- he just gave me the job, there and then,” says Felix, taking a seat opposite Jisung on an identical pouffe.
“That’s awesome! Didn’t I tell you that you’d do great?!”
“I know, but I blew the interview at that Italian restaurant so fucking hard that I was sure I was gonna fuck this up too,” says Felix, burying his face in his hands. Jisung laughs.
“You didn’t wanna work there anyway. It was full of pretentious hipsters,” he says, flicking the feather duster again and grinning as the cat paws after it. “This place is way cooler.”
He has a point, thinks Felix. The cafe is adorable - it’s nestled away on a street corner just away from the hustle and bustle of the main street, but not so far away that it doesn’t get enough business. The large, white-framed windows that look onto the cobbled pavement outside are lined with soft, lavender-coloured window seats and a lavish amount of pillows in a variety of matching pastels. Most of the seating inside is low to the ground, pouffes and cushions and beanbags around circular wooden tables. The walls are the colour of coffee beans and have been decorated with dozens of cat perches and runs, little cubby holes and various toys for the many furry inhabitants. A long, rickety-looking wooden bridge hangs from the ceiling, stretching from one side of the cafe to the other. Currently, a couple of young tortoiseshells are running around after each other, apparently intent on knocking each other off into a cup of tea below.
The cafe counter is tucked along the back wall. The glass display is filled with delectable cakes, cupcakes, slices, tray bakes, pastries, brownies, paninis, sandwiches… There’s another member of staff in a light blue sweater that clashes with his lavender apron, smiling to himself and humming along to the music over the speakers as he cleans the espresso machine. He’s cute, too, thinks Felix.
All the staff here seem to be cute. Well, you know. All two of them that he’s seen so far - Minho, whom Felix had been so terrified of at first, and the guy in the blue sweater. Jisung included, he supposes - though he’d never admit it out loud.
“Did he tell you when you’ll start?” asks Jisung.
“He said he’ll call me tomorrow.”
Jisung grins. “That’s great. Oh man, this is gonna be so cool. You get to work with me!”
“Oh god, don’t make me regret my decision already,” says Felix, but it’s tinged with a joke and he shoves his roommate lightly on the arm.
Within the next few minutes, Felix climbs to his feet and bids Jisung farewell. He gives the long-haired tabby a scratch behind the ears and then leaves. The bell over the door tinkles as it swings shut.
Jisung finishes playing with the cat, before also climbing to his knees and heading over to the counter to take over from coffee-machine duty. He grabs a cloth and checks the water levels before he realises his coworker is watching him intently.
“What?”
“That guy,” says his coworker, whose little paw-shaped name tag on his chest labels him as ‘Jeongin’. “The one who was just interviewed. I’m guessing Minho hired him?”
“Who, Felix? Yeah, of course. He’s so fucking pretty, I bet Minho knew he was gonna have him before even opening his mouth.”
Jeongin snorts. “That sounds about right. That’s why he hired you .”
“Aw, you think I’m pretty?” says Jisung, batting his eyelashes and making a kissy face in Jeongin’s direction. Jeongin mimes being sick.
“Ew, get lost, dude.”
“You first.”
The two coworkers chuckle. Jeongin’s attention is snared by a couple of college girls in matching baseball jerseys, who order a slice of red velvet cake between them and giggle at Jeongin’s disarming smile.
“So, Felix,” says Jeongin, after returning to the counter having delivered the girls’ order. “Does he, like… know?”
“About the…” Jisung jerks his head backwards to indicate the back of the cafe. There’s a narrow corridor that leads to the toilets, to the maintenance and storage cupboards, to Minho’s office, to the staff room - and to one more door, right at the end of the corridor.
Jeongin nods. “Hm.”
Jisung shakes his head. “No. He’s just applied for the waiter role.”
“Ah,” says Jeongin wisely. “So do you think Minho’s going to, y’know-”
“Oh, no doubt.”
“How long d’ya think it’ll take for him to talk to Felix about it, then?”
“With a face like that?” hums Jisung, contemplatively. “A week. Even quicker if Chan gets his hands on him.”
Jeongin lets out another snicker.
How long, indeed.
~
Felix is an instant hit with the customers, to absolutely nobody’s surprise (except for maybe his own). He comes to work on his first day in a smart white button-down and blue jeans, and the lavender apron that is the only part of the cafe uniform is just a little too big for him, making his already slim frame look even smaller. That, combined with his big dark eyes, soft blonde hair, and a smattering of endearing freckles across his nose, has the customers fawning over him the moment he steps behind the counter.
Felix’s shifts vary in time and length to accommodate his classes at college - in between studying, working, classes, and sleeping, Felix barely has a moment to himself. His first few shifts are scheduled at different times - one day he’s due to open the cafe at 8 am, and is only scheduled in for four hours; the next he’s working from lunchtime until close. But there are perks; the pay’s good, and the customers tip well. The other staff are all really nice, even if Felix is a bit slow at picking up the ropes. Jisung teases, because of course he does - but always helps out when Felix has a question or has to wrestle with the milk steamer.
When Felix first asks Seungmin to show him how to work the toaster oven, he’s met with a deadpan stare and a comment about asking one of the cats for help. But Felix’s eyes go wide and just a little hurt, and Seungmin can’t help but melt before immediately showing Felix what to do. Then there’s Jeongin and Hyunjin, and a couple of other staff, but that's it. It’s a small cafe, explains Jisung. Minho’s picky with who he hires, and he stays out the back for the most part, doing paperwork and… y’know. Other manager stuff.
That comment’s met with a snicker from Jeongin.
“It’s good that you’re with us, actually,” says Hyunjin, on the Friday at the end of Felix’s first week. He tosses his cloth over his shoulder and regards Felix with a curious sort of look. “We don’t have any blondes.”
To that, Felix just… blinks. “Is hair colour that important? I was thinking of changing it up… I kind of wanted to dye it, like, silver. Or blue.”
“No, keep the blonde,” says Hyunjin, running his own long, elegant fingers through his long black hair. God, the man looks like a fucking model. Felix has only known him for a handful of days and is already sure that the man could make a potato sack look like couture.
“Oh. Okay,” says Felix, tugging at a lock of blonde that falls over his forehead. “I didn’t think hair colour was important.”
“I think it suits you. Plus, everyone likes blondes.”
“They do? What, do I get more tips or something?”
Hyunjin snorts. “Something like that. Do you have a name, by the way?”
“It’s… I’m Felix. I’m sure I’ve told you already?”
“No, I know your name, but like - what’s your name ?”
“... Lee Felix?”
“Right,” says Hyunjin slowly. He continues to regard Felix with that same curious expression, even as Felix turns around to clean up a table whose patrons have just left. The blonde gives a particularly large Maine Coone a scratch behind the ears, and smiles to himself, completely oblivious to the way Hyunjin’s looking at him.
The cats are the other best thing about this job. There are no fewer than thirty different cats of all different ages, all strays that Minho’s either rescued off the street or adopted from shelters. Some are friendly, some are stroppy, some are aloof - Felix doesn’t mind. He loves them all. But the Maine Coone in particular took a shine to him and starts to follow him around, getting under his feet and tripping him up when he’s trying to deliver trays to tables.
The food is great, too. Everything’s prepared fresh on site, according to Jisung - one of Minho’s passions, other than cats, is food, and the man’s instrumental in making nearly everything. All staff are given a free meal a day, which allows Felix to not have to worry about packing something to eat. Which is great, because he’d never remember otherwise.
“And here you were all worried about not getting the job,” teases Jisung. Felix glances up from his spot on the window seat, momentarily distracted by the tabby cat in his lap.
“Huh?” asks Hyunjin, glancing over at Jisung.
“Not you. Felix. He was all worried about doing awful at his interview.”
It’s late in the evening. There are a couple of customers straggling about, but for the most part, they’re ready to close. Jisung’s wiping tables. Hyunjin’s cleaning the counter. Felix has already clocked out and is reading an article on his phone for his degree.
“I wasn’t that bad,” mumbles Felix, his cheeks blushing.
“You were. I could hear him like, rehearsing interview questions in his room, but I didn’t know what he was saying at first and I thought he was trying to summon a demon to trade his soul. Wait, is that what you did? Is that how you passed the interview?”
“Oh, piss off,” mutters Felix, mindful not to speak too loudly so that the last couple of customers don’t hear him. “I didn’t need to make a deal with the devil to get a job, you know.”
“Could have fooled me.”
“What are you up to this evening?” asks Hyunjin, moving from behind the counter to hover around the only table still occupied; a clear indicator to the customers that it's Time to Leave.
“I don’t have plans,” says Felix, shuffling on the window seat. The tabby cat stands up, stretches, and leaps elegantly from his lap and onto the floor by his feet. “I’ve got some homework I should probably do.”
“Ew,” says Hyunjin, wrinkling his nose. “It’s Friday night, and you’re gonna do homework?”
“I’m a student, I’m here to study .”
“You’re a student, you’re here to have fun,” counters Hyunjin. “Sung and I have to stay back to prep some stuff for tomorrow morning - but after, I was kinda hoping we could go out or something. Maybe we could call the rest of the guys and they could meet you.”
“The… guys?”
“He means the other staff,” supplies Jisung helpfully. “But you’ll get to meet the rest of them next week anyway. Chan - our other boss - and Changbin. And Changbin doesn’t get back from his holiday until tomorrow, anyway. The bell over the door tinkles and Jisung quickly hurries over to lock it behind the customers who’ve just left. “Thank God. I thought they’d never leave. Lixie, it’s late. How are you getting back to the dorm?”
“I was gonna take the bus. How are you gonna get back?”
Jisung shrugs. “Probably get a taxi when we’re done here.”
“How long will you be?”
Jisung casts a strange look in Hyunjin’s direction. “Uh, not sure. We’ll be done when we’re done? I’ll text you when we’re leaving.”
Hyunjin snickers. “Yeah. Can’t rush these things, Lix,” he says, with a tone that clearly insinuates something, but damned if Felix knows what it’s supposed to be.
“Oh, okay then,” says Felix. “If that’s it, then I’ll be going.”
“Sounds good, Lix. Text me when you’re home, yeah?”
“What are you, my mother?”
“I’m supposed to look out for you, I’m your elder.”
“Yeah, by one day,” mutters Felix, heaving himself to his feet.
“When are you next in?” asks Hyunjin, removing his apron and carefully bundling it over his arm.
“Oh, uh, let me see.” Felix digs out his phone to check the schedule. “I… I’m not in again until Tuesday. Same shift as today. And then both Wednesday and Thursday.”
“Sweet. With any luck you’ll meet both Chan and Changbin next week,” says Hyunjin. “That’s good. You’ll like them.”
And with that, Jisung unlocks the door again to let Felix out into the cool night air, then locks it behind him. He waves at Felix through the glass. The younger man (though only by one day, as he insists), smiles, pops his earphones in, and walks the two blocks under the streetlights toward the bus stop.
He doesn’t see the lights in the cafe switch off as Hyunjin and Jisung disappear into the back.
~
He’s been working for a couple of hours on that Tuesday when a man walks through the door, with a bright grin that slaps Felix square in the face. He’s quite short, but what catches Felix’s attention immediately is just how broad he is - the cream, long-sleeved shirt he’s wearing is loose, but the front is French-tucked into a pair of jeans that emphasise how broad his shoulders are in comparison to his waist - and fuck, it makes Felix’s head spin.
Felix is too dumbstruck for a moment to go and take the man’s order and just stands there until Jeongin realises and greets him.
“Changbin-hyung,” he says, putting down the plate in his hand and waving. “How was your holiday?”
“It was good! Needed a break, but it’s good to see your pretty little face again,” says the man, presumably Changbin. Jeongin just rolls his eyes at the compliment. “How’s things here?”
“Well, we’ve got a new hire.” Jeongin gestures over at Felix, who flushes pink at the sudden attention and smiles awkwardly over at Changbin. He flushes again when the older man’s gaze turns to him, and suddenly he feels like he’s under a spotlight - it doesn’t help that, like the rest of the staff here, Changbin is way too good-looking. He’s got a sharp jawline but soft cheeks, and his eyes sparkle and oh fuck, he’s got dimples -
“Ah, Minho told me we had someone joining us,” he says. He grins and holds out a hand; Felix manages to shake it without making a complete and utter fool of himself, but that might have something to do with the fact that he still hasn’t managed to open his mouth yet.
Changbin heads out back and puts his apron on, coming back just as Jisung’s clocking out.
“You gonna be okay?” he asks Felix quietly, shrugging on his coat.
“I’m fine,” says Felix. “I think I’ve got the hang of things.”
“Well, if you need anything, just call me.”
“Sungie, it’s a cafe. What could possibly go wrong?”
“I’m just saying.”
Nothing goes wrong. Felix makes it throughout the whole day without doing something incredibly stupid, such as tripping over a pouffe with an armful of cupcakes or spilling an iced coffee on top of a poor cat’s head. It’s really fucking hard, particularly because Changbin’s lavender apron is stretched tight across his broad chest and he’s extremely loud and vibrant with the customers, his high-pitched laugh always eliciting a smile from Felix without even realising.
He makes it home again in one piece. He’s got a late shift tomorrow, too, and a class in the morning - his body’s definitely not getting enough sleep, but he doesn’t mind. This job’s been a real oasis in the desert.
It’s dark by the time Felix lets himself into his home. The apartment he shares with Jisung is tiny, and they barely have enough room to themselves; they have their own bedrooms, which are little more than box rooms with a single bed pushed against the walls, a desk, and a wardrobe. And the walls between the rooms are way too thin, and Felix had discovered within a few days of moving in and hearing Jisung jerking off in the other room.
Felix now sleeps with earphones in.
Jisung’s sprawled across the tatty beige sofa in the living room, lightly snoring while his laptop is open on the coffee table in front of him. It’s not porn, thank god, because that has happened before - it’s an episode of some anime that Felix doesn’t recognise. Felix tiptoes past his sleeping roommate and into his own bedroom, shutting the door quietly behind him.
He changes out of his clothes - after his first shift at the cafe, he’d realised that there really isn’t a need to dress ‘smart’. So he takes off his black jeans and baggy grey sweater, into loose gym shorts and a cosy hoodie, and throws himself down on his bed. Man, he really needs to work on that assignment that’s due at the end of the week - he pulls out his laptop from where it’s been lying underneath his backpack near his closet and gets to work.
But try as he might, he just cannot focus on the word document in front of him. He manages a couple of paragraphs, but his attention is drifting-
He grumbles and shuts the laptop with a definite snap, and instead pulls out his phone. He’s got a few more days to do this assignment, he’ll be fine. He scrolls aimlessly through TikTok, then through Instagram until the niggling tingle of sleep starts to prick at his eyeballs - he groans and rolls onto his side.
Fuck, he’s too restless. He knows his body is tired, but his brain just is not - he steals a glance at the silent wall opposite his bed, and slowly puts in his earphones. He opens his private tabs group on his phone and opens up his go-to porn website.
But even the first couple of videos he has bookmarked, his usual favourites, aren’t doing it for him like they usually do. Felix grumbles and rolls onto his back. He’s only half hard in his shorts and if he can’t find something that works well enough, then he might just give up and go steal one of Jisung’s sleeping tablets from the bathroom.
He scrolls for another moment, going through a couple more pages on the site - and he’s about to close the window, to give up and try to force himself to sleep, when he pauses.
That couldn’t be-
No.
It is .
Felix’s mouth drops open as his thumb hovers over the video, unsure if he should open it or not - he’s not sure if it’s the title or the people in the video thumbnail that piques his curiosity the most.
‘Pretty blonde twink confesses to straight best friend - he doesn’t expect what happens next.’
Because, as he fucking lives and breaths, the ‘pretty blonde twink’ just so happens to be Hyunjin. He’s kneeling on - a bed, or a sofa, he’s not sure - and he’s facing-
Fucking hell, that’s Changbin.
Felix’s head spins. His curiosity is a powerful motherfucker and easily overpowers the part of his brain that tells him to keep scrolling. He clicks the video before he realises he’s done it.
The video starts to play - it must be a year or two old because the Hyunjin that Felix knows has long, black hair. Here, it’s much shorter and also blonde, but the man on screen is still unmistakably Hyunjin. There’s no wondering who those lips belong to.
He’s sitting on the edge of the bed, talking into the camera which is set up at a high-ish sort of angle - maybe it’s been propped up on top of his wardrobe? Not that it really matters - Hyunjin’s carefully explaining how he’s about to confess his crush to his straight best friend. He’s swamped in a large black hoodie and fiddling with the hem of his sleeve.
When Changbin comes into frame and sits on the end of the bed next to Hyunjin, Felix’s cock twitches of its own accord. He looks so fucking good - he’s in a tight black T-shirt, and this one doesn’t leave anything to the imagination. It clings to the curves and contours of what’s clearly a well-muscled body underneath, and oh god, his biceps -
Should Felix be watching this? This is clearly a really private moment between the two - and oh fuck, he works with both of them. He should turn this off before it goes too far. But it’s like he’s been entranced and just cannot turn it off, cannot turn away - and the minutes pass and he watches the confession, and watches the way Changbin’s shoulders melt-
Still sitting sideways on the bed, he watches his two coworkers kiss each other. Then again, and again and it’s deeper now, and Felix can hear the breathing and soft panting through his earphones - Hyunjin whines, and Felix watches Changbin pull the blonde into his lap.
Fuck.
Felix can’t help but press his hand over the front of his shorts and he feels his dick straining against his boxers now - god, the video is so tender, and it’s making him feel dizzy. His heart’s already racing as he slowly starts to palm himself over the fabric, as he watches Hyunjin straddling Changbin and kiss him harder, more desperately, and the sounds are wetter and more breathless-
Changbin grabs Hyunjin’s hoodie and pulls it off in one clean sweep, revealing his pale torso. Slender arms, slim waist, very soft muscle definition - fuck, the man’s body is as pretty as the rest of him.
Changbin effortlessly picks Hyunjin up by the waist, turns around and lays the blonde down on the bed. Then, once he’s climbed onto the bed so that he’s kneeling on either side of Hyunjin’s thighs, Changbin reaches his arms over his head and pulls off his own shirt.
Felix nearly passes out. He can only see Changbin’s back from this angle, but holy shit - the muscles on his back fucking ripple as his arms move, and his biceps are the size of Felix’s thighs - Felix moans softly to himself and finally pushes his shorts and boxers down past his thighs. His cock springs free, pink and flushed and fully standing to attention.
He slowly starts to stroke himself as the rest of the scene unfolds, his brain too full of cotton wool and his cock too damn hard - even the niggling voice in the back of his head, the tone telling him to stop the video, has quieted, too enraptured by the two men on his screen. His entire body feels far too warm, and his tip is already healing fat pearls of precum, which he smears down the length of his shaft, making it glisten and glimmer in the low light of his bedroom-
The video is so fucking hot. Felix can feel himself whining in the back of his throat as his hand speeds up, and he’s so aware of the thin walls of his room; he stuffs the hem of his hoodie into his mouth to muffle the sounds he can’t help but make.
On his screen, Hyunjin and Changbin are both fully undressed now, and they haven’t taken their hands off each other - they’ve adjusted their position and now Felix can see both of them. Changbin’s chest heaves with deep, heavy breaths that tickle the inside of Felix’s ears, and Hyunjin’s head is tossed back on the pillow with his eyes closed. His blonde hair is spread out under him like a halo, and Felix watches his Adam’s apple bob and his beautiful lips part to exhale. Changbin hitches one of Hyunjin’s legs up and lines up his own cock to press against Hyunjin’s hole-
As he fucks up into his own fist, Felix wants nothing more than to watch Changbin push into Hyunjin - but Changbin pauses to press a kiss to the inside of Hyunjin’s knee - it’s so fucking tender - Felix squeezes his eyes shut as a wave of pure lust wracks through his chest -
His entire body is on fire and the pace of his hand stutters as the heat swells in his gut - he needs to slow down, calm down because he’s going to come before the video ends - the noise that Hyunjin makes when Changbin finally pushes into him is a brand on Felix’s brain that will stay there forever.
Felix is floating, his brain so far detached from his body, resting among clouds of arousal as he watches Changbin fuck Hyunjin. He bites down harder on the fabric of the hoodie in his mouth, and the pressure is building in his gut-
Hyunjin’s loud through Felix’s earphones, high pitched and sharp, short moans as Changbin fucks into him with smooth, fluid motions, the muscles of his arms and shoulders and back rippling with every thrust. Changbin’s own sounds are low and husky-
-and suddenly Felix can imagine himself in Hyunjin’s position, legs up on Changbin’s shoulders while the man fucks into him smoothly, steadily, pressing gentle kisses to the inside of Felix’s legs while he does-
Felix’s orgasm hits him hard enough to fill his vision with white spots, his entire body convulsing as he comes all up his bare stomach to the mere thought of Changbin’s cock buried inside him.
He slumps back into the pillow, his body weak and shaking in the aftershocks of his orgasm. He lets the fabric of the hoodie fall from his mouth and he raises a shaky hand - the one not covered in cum - to his face, and presses it over his closed eyes. His chest heaves as he slowly tries to get his breath back-
He sits bolt upright in bed. His hoodie falls over the sticky remnants on his stomach, but he doesn’t fucking care - he checks the video still playing on his phone and sees it still has a good ten minutes left, and he does even care that he came before it finished because holy fucking shit what have I just done-
~
He cannot bring himself to look Jisung in the eye the next morning. They’ve grown close enough in the couple of months they’ve been here that, when they hear each other jerking off, they’re comfortable enough to tease each other about it the following morning. Jisung’s favourite tease is how, despite how pretty Felix is, he has to rely on his hand because he’s too shy to hook up with anyone. Felix always retorts that even though Jisung does try to hook up with people, he still always ends up in his bed at night, alone .
Jisung doesn’t say anything the next morning, which means he didn’t hear Felix jerking off. A good thing, too, because Felix isn’t sure he wouldn’t be able to hold back the information that ‘apparently our coworkers are dating and their sex tape ended up online and I fucking jerked off to it and what do I do-’
He’s a dazed mess during class that morning, unable to focus on the lecture in front of him - his brain is filled with the sounds of Hyunjin’s moans and the image of Changbin’s bare, flexing biceps -
Fucking hell, he can feel himself half-hard in his pants in the middle of the lecture theatre just thinking about it. Then the guilt and the pure embarrassment that follows about fucking smothers him, and he almost rushes out to the bathroom go and - he’s not sure. Throw up? Scream? Jerk off?
He contemplates calling in to work sick. Especially after he checks the roster and realises that he’s in with both Hyunjin and Changbin, as well as Jeongin. But he’s only been at the cafe for like, a week and a half, and it would look really fucking bad to call in when he can still count the shifts he’s worked on one hand.
His knees feel like they’re not even there as he walks towards the cafe. It’s standing there on the corner of the cobbled pavement, as soft and bright and inviting as ever. He freezes when he spots Hyunjin in the window, on his knees on the window seat and sticking up the new seasonal menu on the glass. He smiles and shoots Felix a friendly wave. Felix takes a second before he remembers he’s supposed to wave back.
“Hey, Lixie,” Hyunjin says as Felix steps through the door. He looks stunning, as always - soft and radiant in a stripy blue sweater that falls down past his fingertips, black hair tousled but always falling perfectly without a single strand out of place. He looks like he comes with his own fucking background music, strings and harps and a gentle chorus of angels as they descend from the clouds in golden beams of sunlight-
“Morning,” says Felix. “Uh, I mean, afternoon - I mean, hi, Hyunjin, how - uh-”
“Jeez, what’s got you in a fluster today?” Hyunjin hops down from the window seat and crosses over to Felix to press the back of his hand against Felix’s forehead, then his cheeks. It only makes Felix blush harder, because Hyunjin’s just slightly taller than him and he’s seen him naked-
“I’m fine,” Felix mumbles, batting Hyunjin’s hand away.
“Are you sure? You’re warm.”
“It’s warm outside.” He’s not exactly wrong, but it’s hardly hot enough for him to have gotten sunburned in the two minutes it took him to walk from the bus stop-
He shakes Hyunjin away and darts through to the small staff room in the back of the cafe.
Felix looks over his shoulder at the door as he ties his apron over his outfit for the day. Is Hyunjin aware that his fucking sex tape is online? More than that - are he and Changbin still together? Felix hasn’t had a chance to suss out their dynamic yet - fuck.
He’s not sure how he makes it through his shift. He can’t bring himself to look Changbin in the eye and busies himself with the coffee machine and counter service. Hyunjin and Changbin drift around the cafe, bringing orders to customers and empty plates back to the counter. Felix tries to watch the both of them as subtly as he can, all while a low burn simmers in his gut - they don’t exactly look uncomfortable with each other. They talk, and laugh, and joke around.
Well, Changbin jokes around while Hyunjin fixes the other man with the fiercest side eye that Felix has ever seen. But it’s not angry, it’s affectionate, and when Changbin turns away, Felix does spot the smile of affection on Hyunjin’s face -
It’s like Felix dancing on hot coals because he just cannot stand still at all, shifting his weight from side to side and doing laps around the counter when there are no customers. He tries his best to still his racing brain - thinking about it logically, how is he supposed to react in this situation? Tell the two that he knows they’re dating, when they’re clearly keeping it a secret? Tell them he found their sex tape online - then he’d have to confess to having watched it.
No, thinks Felix - best to try and pretend like it never happened. It’s not easy, especially when Changbin, at one point, bends over directly in front of Felix to pick up a long-haired white-haired kitty, and gets an eyeful of the man’s ass constrained in his acid wash jeans-
Thankfully, Felix doesn’t have to panic long at the sight, as Changbin starts sneezing violently after burying his face in the cat’s fur. He turns to Felix with red, watery eyes and a frankly adorable pout, and explains that he’s actually allergic to cats and he forgot his meds today. Felix giggles and digs into the pocket in his apron to extract his own packet of meds - he’s mildly allergic, too.
“Are you staying behind tonight?” asks Hyunjin, just as the clock starts to tick towards closing time. Felix pauses behind the counter, his hands full of dirty teacups.
“Uh, I wasn’t planning on it?” he says, a little confused. The day has become marginally easier as the hours have passed, but the sound of Hyunjin’s little moans still ring in Felix’s ears at random intervals, and he can't help but flush whenever he remembers them.
“Oh, that’s alright,” says Hyunjin. “It’s just that Chan’s not coming in any more, and Seungmin’s gonna need an extra pair of hands.”
“I mean - I can stay if you need me,” says Felix, still not really sure about what Hyunjin is referring to. “I don’t have plans, so - if you need like - yeah.”
Hyunjin smiles. “Oh, nice. Seungmin won’t be long, I think - there’s no need to clock out at 8, just stay in until you leave afterwards. I assume Minho’s spoken to you about overtime pay?”
“Uh, no.”
“Oh. Well… you’re in tomorrow too, right? You can ask him then.”
Felix nods slowly, placing the cups one by one on the dirty-dishes tray.
Staying behind? Chan? Seungmin?
Maybe he needs to help them do some extra cleaning up. Or - he looks over at the empty display case - yeah, they do need to do some baking. The display case is always empty at the end of the day but full of fresh pastries and sandwiches when the day starts again. And Minho was in the kitchen that one time when Felix had to start at 8am, and Felix knows the manager has a passion for food. Come to think of it, didn’t Hyunjin and Jisung stay behind once? They had to prepare something for the following morning?
That must be it, thinks Felix happily. He picks up the tray full of dirty dishes and swans around to the kitchen to start loading up the dishwasher.
Seungmin arrives shortly after, dressed much more comfortably than Felix has ever seen him in grey joggers and a white hoodie. Changbin is just getting ready to leave - Hyunjin and Jeongin have already left for the day, seemingly slipping out of the building without Felix even noticing.
“Hyunjin said he’s already told you?” says Seungmin, shrugging his bag off his shoulder and shoving it into his locker in the staff room.
“That you need my help tonight because Chan’s not coming in?”
Seungmin nods approvingly. “Yeah, exactly.”
“He didn’t say exactly what you needed me to do, though.”
“Oh, don’t worry,” says Seungmin, waving a hand airily. “You won’t need to do much, you’re just gonna be helping out. Just do what I tell you, and you’ll be fine.” Seungmin then guides Felix out of the staff room and down to the door at the end of the corridor. He turns the doorknob, and it swings open. Felix is surprised to see a flight of descending stairs and not what he’d assumed to be a storeroom. Or a pantry, or something. Not a flight of stairs.
Seungmin goes first, and Felix follows him curiously. Over his shoulder he waves goodbye to Changbin as he leaves the staff room - Changbin waves back, then hesitates. Felix is halfway down the stairs, and doesn’t see the look of confusion that forms on Changbin’s face.
Felix has no idea what he to expect at the bottom of the staircase. They’re in a plain, looking corridor, which has plenty more doors leading off it-
“The door is locked during business hours,” explains Seungmin. “So no customers accidentally come wandering down.”
“Right.”
Seungmin heads into one of the rooms. It’s… a bedroom?
Even though the room is underground, it’s been decorated to look just like a regular college bedroom might. A double bed in the centre of the room, a desk, a closet - heavy black curtains hang on the wall to mimic the effect of there being windows there. But when Felix fulls them back, it only reveals plain plaster.
The most curious thing about the room, however, is the equipment. There’s a film camera on a stand in the corner of the room with a mic attached, pointed directly at the bed. There’s another camera sitting on the bed. There are a handful of different lights set up, too - Felix turns on the spot, taking everything in, when Seungmin hands him a large, reflective, white square.
“Normally, Chan or Minho works with me to get the best lighting with this, but neither of them are here today,” explains Seungmin.
“Oh, it’s a - reflector, right?” says Felix, peering at the equipment curiously. “Yeah, I did a photography course in my last year of high school.”
“Great! For this, you just need to stand there - yes, like that, exactly. If I need you to move, I’ll just either do this - or this -” Seungmin makes a couple of gestures with his hands “-and you just tilt it up and down. So if you move it - yes, just like that. Perfect.”
Felix follows Seungmin’s instructions to the letter, adjusting his movement slightly so that the reflector catches the light - he’s so engrossed in making sure he’s getting it right, that he doesn’t actually have a chance to ask exactly what’s going on before Seungmin darts out of the room. Felix is left standing there politely baffled.
And then Seungmin sets off a nuclear bomb.
Not literally, of course, but metaphorically - he comes back into the room, walking backwards with the film camera on his shoulder, pointing it at-
Hyunjin and Jeongin, who look like they’re in the middle of an argument?
Seungmin makes a gesture - Felix blinks but he adjusts the reflector just as he’d been told - Jeongin and Hyunjin pay Felix absolutely no mind, pretending like he’s just part of the rigging on the lighting set up - which he is, kinda -
And then Jeongin grabs Hyunjin roughly by the waist and kisses him on the mouth.
Felix might as well be part of the rigging because the scene that starts unfold in front of him freezes him to the fucking ground and he’s not sure he’d be able to move even if the building around him was on fire -
None of the others sees the look of shock that spreads on Felix’s face like flames licking up a spill of oil, the way his eyes blow wide and his jaw drops open as Jeongin fists his hand into Hyunjin’s black hair and forces the man to his knees at the foot of the bed. Seungmin’s concentrating too hard on making sure his framing is just right, and then Jeongin pulls his fucking dick out-
Whatthefuckwhatthefuckwhatthefuck -
Felix’s entire brain goes blank - his head is spinning and it’s all he can do to keep standing upright because he’s sure his knees are going to give way and if he falls forward now he’s going to crash into the fucking camera and knock Hyunjin out with the reflector and-
“Hold on, pause,” calls Seungmin. Jeongin stops and looks over his shoulder at the cameraman. Felix also forces himself to look over, his scene blurry like the frames of his vision are being played back in slow motion. Seungmin jerks his head to indicate the door just behind him - and Felix can see Changbin’s head poking around the doorframe.
It takes Felix a second to realise that Changbin is gesturing to him, making a gentle little ‘come here’ motion with his hand. He shakes the water from his ears and places the reflector down by the wall, then slides behind the cameras so he stays out of the shot.
The last thing he hears before the door shuts again is Seungmin explaining how that interruption is fine, it can be edited out - and then suddenly Felix is being hurried back up the stairs and into the main floor of the cafe, and guided into a beanbag.
A second later, a mug of hot chocolate is being pressed into his hands.
Felix blinks, and Changbin’s face swims into focus. The man’s lost all of the brightness and sparkle that had been in his eyes earlier in the day is completely gone, replaced with a stone-carved set jaw and worry etched into the creases in his forehead.
“Felix, are you okay?” he asks, and Felix realises it’s not the first time that he’s been asked that. He cradles the mug in his palms, the heat of the ceramic just about burning the skin, but it’s the sort of burn that brings a reset to the system and helps clear his head.
The big Maine Coone that’s taken a shining to Felix has appeared next to him, and bats its fluffy head against his shin before leaping onto the beanbag and curling into his side.
“I - that - what?” is all Felix manages to stammer out. Changbin closes his eyes and breathes in deeply through his nose. He presses his fingertips to his temples and takes a second before he addresses Felix.
“That shouldn’t have happened. I’m sorry. I think the others must have thought… they didn’t realise you didn’t know. That must have been a shock.”
“I - just - what’s going on, please,” says Felix, shaking his head slowly. “I’m so… I’m really confused.”
“Minho had planned on speaking to you about this next week,” says Changbin. “Felix, this cafe - it’s not just a cafe. And Minho’s not just the manager. He’s the head of a small, independent porn company.”
“A… porn?” repeats Felix. He feels slow and sluggish, like he’s trying to run his thoughts through two or three languages that he’s only semi-fluent in. “You mean, this… that… you’re all…”
“Actors, yes.” Changbin's hand has found its way onto Felix’s knee, and he’s rubbing his thumb gently up and down into the muscle of Felix’s leg in a comforting way.
Then it all snaps into place into Felix’s mind, and his eyes blow wide, and he points at Changbin - “That explains your sex tape!”
“I - huh?” This time, it’s Changbin’s turn to look confused.
“Last night, I was - I found - look, I was on this website, and I - I, uh, saw a clip of you and Hyunjin,” says Felix, his cheeks turning neon pink. “And I thought… well, I wasn’t sure if you were - or if someone had like, leaked the video, or - and I - it was - y’know?” A small, affectionate smile breaks out on Changbin's face, and Felix feels like he’s known him for years even though they technically only met yesterday- “But that kind of explains everything,” Felix continues. “Because I wanted to say something but then I didn’t because then you’d know that I’d seen the video and I didn’t know if you knew it was and then I was looking at Hyunjin today and all I could think of-”
Changbin’s gentle laughter cuts through Felix’s babbling, and he holds up a hand to soothe the stream of now-nonsense coming from the blonde's mouth.
“I’m glad you’re - well, I think you’re taking this all okay. But what it still shouldn’t have happened. You didn’t consent to any of that - and I’m really fucking sorry.”
“How did you know that - I mean, why did you come and get me?”
“Minho told me when you were hired that he was gonna wait to tell you,” says Changbin, sweeping a lock of blonde hair from Felix’s eyes, and the motion makes Felix feel even dumber than he already is. “He was going to wait and then introduce you slowly, once you were comfortable with everyone. But I saw Seungmin taking you downstairs. It doesn’t take a genius to put two and two together. And your face - you looked like you weren't sure if you’d seen utopia or the seven circles of hell.”
The only other thing that Felix manages to say in response to that is a small ‘huh’.
Changbin sits with him for a few moments longer while he sips on his hot chocolate, filling him in on the briefest of details at Felix’s behest. It’s a small company, Changbin explains, with Minho and Chan as the ‘owners’ — best friends from college who’d decided to set up the business once they’d graduated. Using the cat cafe as a front was Minho’s idea. They’ve been in operation for three years - Changbin and Hyunjin were with them from the start. Seungmin came on board two years ago. Then came Jeongin a year ago, and a month later Jisung joined, making him the newest member of the team.
Well, until Felix.
Changbin explains this all in a calm, gentle, and not at all overwhelming way, giving Felix a few moments to process each small piece of information. The only things keeping him grounded at the moment are the taste of chocolate on his tongue, the press of Changbin’s grip on his knee, and the gentle vibrations from the purring cat at his side.
Then there’s the now-familiar tinkle of the bell that hangs over the front door. Felix looks up just in time to see Minho locking the door behind him.
“Felix,” he says. He hurries across the room, as quickly as he’s able to without stepping on a sleeping cat.
“I called him just before I came to get you out,” explains Changbin.
Minho kneels down next to Felix with a heavy frown creasing his eyebrows.
“Are you okay?” His voice, normally so calm and professional, is unusually tight.
Felix nods. “I’m fine. Changbin told me everything.”
Minho closes his eyes and lets out a low sigh. When he looks back at Felix, the expression on the manager’s face fucking scares him - his eyes are almost completely black in the low light of the night, and he’s looking up a Felix through his lashes. Felix swallows - he looks like he’s only half a second away from filling the air with maniacal laughter -
“Thank you, Binnie,” says Minho softly. His voice is low, sending a cold spike into Felix’s nervous system. “Now, Felix. You were due to come in tomorrow afternoon, I think. I don’t mind if you want to take the day off, to, uh, think about what’s happened -”
“I don’t mind coming in,” says Felix hastily. I could do with the money.
He doesn’t add that last bit.
“Well, no matter what,” says Minho. “If you wake up in the morning and change your mind, that’s okay. We can talk about all of this in more detail the next time you’re in. As for those three downstairs-”
“Did you hire me to be a pornstar?” blurts out Felix. Minho raises his eyebrows - Changbin snorts.
“Well - Jisung spoke to me about you a few weeks ago. He seemed to think you’d be a good fit, both in the cafe proper and the - well, wider business,” says Minho. “But I was - I’d planned on speaking to you about everything gently. And you’d have been given a choice. You could say no.”
“… so if I didn’t want to, I wouldn’t have to?”
“You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to. We have a few other staff who aren’t actors here, too. Kitchen staff, a couple of waiters…”
“But… Did you hire me to be a waiter, or because -”
“We should talk about this more when you’ve time to think, Felix,” says Minho, with an air of finality that confirms that the conversation is over. “We won’t make you do anything you don’t want to, or get you into anything that you’re not certain of what’s going on. At least, not again,” he says, and suddenly that same cold, maniacal glint is back in his eyes. “Speaking of, I’ve got three fucking morons to go and shout at. Changbin, drive Felix home, will you?”
With that, Changbin gently helps Felix to his feet and guides him out to the car. Even over the sound of the engine whirring to life, Felix is certain he can hear the dulcet tones of Minho’s rage echoing through the still night air.