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Yeonho doesn't like the sight of bared teeth. A little ironic, he knows, considering how often he reveals his own in his impulsive fits of mischievous biting. However, he likes to think he's familiar with his own teeth; he knows the relative shape and size of them all, and, most importantly, he knows exactly where they've been and what they've touched. Anyone else's? That's an entirely different beast.
"You're staring again."
Strategically, Yeonho snaps his gaze back down to his phone. It's not as subtle as he hopes it is; Minchan laughs and approaches him, flopping down next to him on the sofa. His shoulder digs into Yeonho's as his hand comes down onto his thigh. Yeonho is so very grateful he chose to wear sweatpants that day.
"Weren't you doing it on purpose, hyung?" he shoots back, still looking at his phone. He swipes his thumb over the screen to keep it from falling asleep. "Putting on a little show?"
"No?" Minchan's voice lilts up, all mirth and mischief. His thumb rolls over Yeonho's inner thigh, and Yeonho drags it up to his mouth and bites. "Ow! Okay, so maybe it was a little show. What's so wrong with that?"
"Keep that between you and the other members."
"I don't like what you're implying."
"Are you denying it?"
Minchan almost whines. Yeonho can tell because his breath is too high and pitchy when he sighs, and he can spot the pout from his periphery. Honestly, it's embarrassing to think that he's older than Kangmin, much less Yeonho. …And maybe a little funny, too.
"But, you can't deny that you like to watch," Minchan continues because he is incapable of letting the topic die. He's far too stubborn when it comes to satisfying his curiosity and ego in one fell swoop.
Yeonho chuckles and gives up on feigning disinterest, tucking his phone into his pocket. He turns to Minchan to deny any and every accusation thrown his way, ready to bury the conversation—before taking in what Minchan is wearing.
"That's my shirt," Yeonho says, eyebrows pinching together.
It isn't a rarity for the other members to share clothes, and they end up pilfering Yeonho's wardrobe more often than not. However, Minchan rarely ever wears anyone else's clothes. It's mostly because nothing will fit him unless it's obscenely large on the original member, but there's also the simple fact that Minchan doesn't think too deeply about his fashion choices. He doesn't understand the need to wear something that's both comfortable and stylish, and Yeonho sincerely doubts he's reached a sudden epiphany after living together for nearly a decade.
Minchan smiles, purposefully stretching his lips wide and high enough to show his canines. Yeonho fails to catch himself, staring for a beat too long.
"I thought it was Kangminie's, honestly. I saw it on him first," Minchan says as he stretches the shirt between his fingers, waving the striped material back and forth like a flag. "It's comfy."
It's almost believable. Yeonho knows that the best lie always has some truth blended into it; he doesn't doubt that Minchan really does find it comfortable. There's no way he would go through the trouble of even putting it on if he found it unbearable. However, there's no chance that he didn't already know it's Yeonho's.
"Why are you lying?" Yeonho asks, airing out the obvious. When Minchan continues to play coy and dumb, he continues with, "Are you just trying to get my attention?"
That finally gets a reaction out of him: He laughs, startled and genuine. Yeonho hasn't cut deep enough into him, although he very much doubts there's anything he can do that'll sober up Minchan's attitude. Once he's riled up, there's no telling when he'll come back down.
Unfortunately, Yeonho is much the same.
It's a snap decision, something stupid enough to mirror Minchan: Yeonho grasps Minchan's jaw—tight. Minchan doesn't immediately struggle, nor does he even offer up much of a reaction. No spluttering, spitting, or whining—nothing but wide-eyed, open-mouth bewilderment. Yeonho pushes his palm to the underside of Minchan's jaw to close his parted lips.
"No fight?" Yeonho asks, failing to keep the grin out of his voice. The taunt must come across on his face, too, because Minchan's eyebrows furrow. But, still, no struggle. "You're way too comfortable in this position, Minchan-hyung."
Minchan shrugs. Yeonho remembers to loosen his grasp just enough for him to speak.
"Gyehyeon-ah likes to—"
Yeonho swiftly tightens his grip once again. Minchan's laughter rumbles through him, shaking his shoulders and crinkling his eyes, but he remains remarkably still and relaxed otherwise.
It's not pleasant to be explicitly reminded of what goes on behind closed doors. There isn't a world where Yeonho can be totally ignorant toward it because he is neither blind nor deaf, but it sends an ugly twist to his stomach when he stops and wonders how, exactly, Minchan came to be so at ease with a situation like this: the air growing stifling and electric whenever their eyes meet; his body becoming limp beneath Yeonho's firm touch; his smile softening when Yeonho's hand starts to tremble against him. There isn't a hint of unease in him. It's awful.
Minchan's hand comes down onto his leg again. There isn't anything playful about it this time; he rolls his thumb into the meat of Yeonho's thigh in a placating manner. Embarrassingly enough, it works.
"You wanted this, right?" Yeonho remembers to ask. Now that his mind isn't clouded with adrenaline, he can finally think of the important things—like making sure he isn't jumping Minchan's bones on a complete misinterpretation.
Yeonho can't say he knows Minchan well enough to read his intentions, but the enthusiastic nod is plenty legible.
Yeonho doesn't immediately move. Minchan doesn't get impatient; he shifts his position so that he's facing Yeonho directly, his legs folded in front of him and spilling off the edge of the couch cushion. He's pink in the face, and Yeonho figures he looks worse. He can feel his pulse in his cheeks, now.
Gliding his forefinger across Minchan's cheek, Yeonho lands on his prize and rolls the pad of his finger across Minchan's lips.
"Open."
It spills out of him before he even registers it as a thought. Minchan complies before Yeonho can take it back (because of course he does), and, now, Yeonho is faced with his true treasure.
Ivory. Perfectly aligned. Harmless.
But, of course, it isn't enough to just look. Yeonho has always been a more tactile person. He loves to grasp whatever catches his eye and revel in the weight and feel of it against his fingers. So, he indulges in that want, and Minchan lets him—not for entirely selfless reasons, though. Yeonho knows he's simply enjoying his hard-earned prize. Yeonho is the last to crumble in the group, after all.
Yeonho banishes the thought from his head before it sours his mood. He runs his forefinger along the neat row of Minchan's bottom teeth, and as he inches closer to the molars, Minchan shows the first sign of resistance against his hold. Not to escape, but to aid Yeonho in his exploration: He loosens his jaw, opening his mouth wider. Is there truly nothing left for Yeonho to explore, untouched and without the comfort of experience? It only makes him want to push past his reservations and plunder deeper.
With such a blatant invitation, it's easy to do just that. He glides his fingertip over Minchan's molars and lands on the back of his tongue. He doesn't quite dare to dig in deep, however, because he truly does not want to risk ruining the sanctity of this moment by accidentally gagging Minchan. It will only create a mess.
Fresh mint wafts up and out of Minchan's gaping mouth. That was the whole preface for this embarrassing situation: Minchan brushing his teeth out in the living room, baiting Yeonho like he was some easy, small fry to catch. Which he is, technically. Minchan knew exactly how to appeal to him, and Yeonho fell for it. He's still falling for it, honestly, greedily drinking in the sight of his hyung holding his finger on his tongue like it belongs there. Like he's tempted to clamp his lips around it.
"They're still not as good as Yongseung's," Yeonho says.
Minchan's entire face twists and pinches together. Childish glee bubbles up Yeonho at the sight, glad to have finally punched low enough to get some form of outrage out of him. He's certain guilt will replace that joy soon, but, for now, it's enough to stoke his confidence.
"They're still pretty," Yeonho continues, sliding his finger down the length of Minchan's tongue. It's starting to dry out. "Close."
Minchan's lips pucker around Yeonho's finger. Yeonho raises an eyebrow, and Minchan's teeth follow, tentatively settling against his second knuckle. Yeonho can feel his pulse pound against its prison, which can only mean that Minchan feels it as well. He's doing a great job at pretending not to notice. It's disturbingly kind of him.
Yeonho swipes his finger over the inside of Minchan's cheek, soft and warm, before he tugs back, and Minchan lets him go. He remains still and quiet as Yeonho traces over his mouth once more, adding the faint sheen of his own saliva to them. It's gross, but, as Yeonho pulls away and watches the string stretching between his finger and Minchan's mouth snap, he mourns the lost connection.
"Your lips are prettier, though."
Minchan lolls his head onto his shoulder, studying Yeonho with open amusement and curiosity. "Then, what's the thing with my teeth?"
Yeonho shrugs, but acting noncommittal was never his strong suit. He's thought about it before, obviously. Playing into that small, insignificant fascination of his always seemed like dangerous territory, though. He isn't the type of person to gain an interest for some half-hearted reason; he always invests himself fully into the things he enjoys, and his enjoyment around Minchan isn't wholly perverse, which is deeply unfortunate because writing it off as a simple fetish is infinitely easier than the reality.
If he isn't looking—really looking, Yeonho will miss those simple moments of laughter. They're scarcer than they once were, and that's probably why he doesn't ignore them as often as he used to. That's really the only time he can see Minchan smiling, too. It's a strange thing to seek out from one of his members. He can try to pass it off as just wanting to see Minchan happy just like anyone else in the group, but he can't lie to himself. It's too pitiful.
Minchan is the most gorgeous when he smiles. It's not objective, but it is the truth. Yeonho can't believe he only realized it when it started to fade away. Now, he looks for any trace of it whenever he can. In his desperation, his wires crossed, and now he seeks out the mere sight of Minchan's teeth. Is it tragic or comedic that Minchan only notices his gaze when it's heated?
"Why's it matter?" Yeonho says, trying not to sound too irritated. None of this is really Minchan's fault, after all. "You got what you wanted in the end."
Coyness curls the corners of his lips, not quite baring his teeth. He's doing it on purpose; he waits for Yeonho's gaze to meet his before he speaks. "Did I? What is it that I want, Yeonho-ah?"
"I don't know. To collect us all like some sort of prize?"
"Wrong." He crosses his arms in an X and puts on an exaggerated pout. "You disappoint me, Yeonho."
Yeonho can't fight the urge to roll his eyes. "Then, enlighten me."
"You."
It's the most ridiculous thing to come out of Minchan's mouth, which is incredible because he says some truly asinine things. Yeonho doesn't bother to mask his disbelief, and Minchan acts like it's the most offensive thing in the world.
"I pour my heart out to you, and you scoff at me?" he says as he clutches at his chest dramatically. "You're so mean to your hyung, Yeonho-ah."
"If you just told the truth, then I wouldn't laugh."
"I just did, though?"
Is it a matter of pride? Minchan can't own up to his behavior and decides to play dumb? Or does he actually think Yeonho is oblivious to what's happening in the dorm? He's trying to insult both Yeonho's intelligence and trust? The thought hurts more than it agitates.
He doesn't mask it well enough. Minchan's expression immediately turns tender as he reaches out and places his hand on Yeonho's shoulder. It's at times like these that Yeonho hates he's such an open book. He doesn't want pity. He wants to argue—to let everything that's simmered inside boil over and burn anyone in the hazard zone. He wants to be petty.
Minchan doesn't let him, speaking over the blood roaring in his head. "I'm going to say something that will upset you, but I want you to listen all the way through. Okay?"
He's treating him like a child—like he's Kangmin. That kills all the immediate anger in Yeonho. It's such a humiliating position to be in that he can't even muster up a half-hearted protest to escape it. He just nods and accepts his miserable fate.
"Gyehyeon-ah told me that you only act when you're jealous," Minchan says, which is so out of left-field that it successfully freezes over any remaining anger in Yeonho. "So, we kind of set up this whole idea that we're, y'know, together to get you worked up. I'm glad it worked," Minchan says, smiling and laughing now, "but I wasn't expecting you to think I was the group's bicycle."
Yeonho flushes hot, all the way to the roots of his hair. "You acted like that with everyone—not just Gyehyeonie-hyung."
"See? You are a jealous man." Minchan laughs when Yeonho tries to pull away, his hands reaching down to clasp their hands together. Yeonho doesn't like how damp his are compared to Minchan's, but Minchan doesn't seem to mind, too busy trying to catch his eye. "But, seriously, I only pretended with Gyehyeonie. I acted the same with everyone else."
"All that flirting—?"
"Just the usual jokes."
"And the clinging—"
"They're like that with you, too."
"And those noises…"
Minchan snorts, finally growing bashful enough to break eye contact. "Gyehyeon's idea, too. He tricked me into pretending to moan whenever we were alone together."
Yeonho turns his head to the ceiling and closes his eyes. He counts to ten and slows his breathing until he rids himself of the urge to throttle Minchan and Gyehyeon.
"I'm never forgiving either of you for this," he says as he opens his eyes and finally meets Minchan's expectant gaze. "Why couldn't you have been normal and just confessed?"
"I did! You just never thought I meant it."
Maybe Yeonho should extend some of his outrage toward himself. He can't believe this could have all been avoided if he had just taken Minchan's words seriously. Sure, most of the fault lies on Minchan for being so lackadaisical with everything he says and does, but Yeonho knows better than to expect anything extraordinarily romantic from a guy whose only knowledge of romance extends as far as a shoujo anime. In fact, this is the exact type of hair-brained scheme he should've expected.
"You roped Gyehyeon-hyung into this?" Yeonho asks, still struggling to wrap his head around it.
"He wanted to be free from my constant whining."
"How long did it take to break him down?"
"Three years."
Yeonho brings Minchan's hands up to his mouth and bites them both in rapid succession.
"Ow! Use your words, Yeonho-ah! You're not a dog!"
Yeonho only releases him when the indents of his teeth are plain and red on Minchan's skin. He hangs his head low to hide the heat in his face, but he knows his flushed ears give him away. He can't believe he never noticed. He can't believe it took Minchan over three years to finally work up the courage to try in earnest to get his attention. He wants to die.
"Hyung, I need you to never try something this stupid ever again."
"Is it really stupid if it worked?"
"We're not together. I only shoved my finger down your throat."
"Is that not what love is?"
Yeonho doesn't bite him. He does, however, lift his head to crash their lips together. It finally silences Minchan, and when he pulls away, the wide, wide grin that greets him is almost worth the embarrassment. Almost.
He'll just have to keep working to see it again and again. Until it's seared into his mind.