Minho woke up with mild confusion, wondering why he was on the couch, but was soon brought to reality when he saw the boy sleeping on his bed. Memories flooded back, and he remembered telling Jisung rather sternly to stay over for the night. Thinking back, he had no idea why he suggested it. To be fair, he was quite worried about the boy and would rather keep him under his watchful gaze.

Jisung was sound asleep, so Minho moved as quietly as possible to allow Jisung to rest optimally. Minho sat up from the couch, staring at the sleeping boy in silence as he observed his features. Jisung had quite long eyelashes and rosy cheeks to accompany his fair tone. Minho looked away, realising that he was staring at the sleeping boy for a little too long.

Minho glanced at his phone, realising that he still had to get ready for work within the hour. He eventually found the will to stand up and get ready to take a shower but stopped when he noticed the slight movement on his bed. He looked back, seeing that Jisung had slowly lifted his head off the pillow.

"You're awake," Minho noted, smiling as he made his way to the kitchen to turn his espresso machine on. "There's coffee if you'd like, but eat something first. There's still leftovers from last night in the fridge."

Jisung hummed in response, not exactly awake yet. "Mhm. Where you headin'?"

"Work," Minho chuckled. "I'll write down the pass code so that you can come in or out as you please. Just don't... steal anything, I guess."

"Why would I— okay, it's a necessary precaution," Jisung chuckled, turning to lay on his back. "Thanks for this. I... I enjoyed last night."

"That sounds weird. Word it differently."

Jisung smiled at the ceiling, his mind deep in thought. "Thank you for being my friend."

Minho looked over to the other, and it was as if the world had stopped for a moment. The gentleness in Minho's eyes was a kind that Jisung wasn't accustomed to. Seeing someone be so gentle and nice to him was a strange experience — he wasn't quite used to it. Minho cleared his throat, turning away for a second. "I'm glad to be there for you, Jisung."

He entered his bathroom, closing the door behind him to leave Jisung in silence. The other lay in thought, gazing wistfully up at the white walls and ceiling. Even though Minho told him not to think about it, Jisung couldn't help but feel like he was intruding in on the other's life. He felt as if he was bothering the other — and it didn't feel good at all.

Jisung planned to sneak out once he heard the shower turn on, planning to leave before Minho did, but he still felt too welcome in Minho's home. Even as he glanced about, everything felt warm and soft. Even though he knew Minho would be okay with him staying longer, he still felt obligated to leave.

Jisung didn't know how long he had been just laying in silence. Minho eventually emerged from the bathroom, hair wet with a single towel wrapped around his lower body. "I'm working a half shift today, so hopefully, I'll be back at around 2pm. We can go grocery shopping because something tells me you survive on takeout too often."

Jisung smiled guiltily as he nodded. "Kinda. I don't cook my own meals."

"I can tell," Minho scoffed, grabbing his uniform out of his closet and tossing it onto the bed. "What do you want for dinner? Cheese tteokbokki? We can prepare the food together so that you can learn something in the kitchen."

"I don't want to cook, though," Jisung complained. "Why would I when I have you as a neighbour?"

"... lazy."

"Just a little," Jisung teased, rolling over onto his stomach. "I'll head home until this afternoon. I'll get ready at home."

Minho seemed to think for a moment, pressing his lips together. "Then it's a date."

"A d—?"

"I'll get dressed in the bathroom now!" Minho exclaimed suddenly, taking his uniform with him into the bathroom. Jisung stared at Minho's disappearing figure in confusion, a blush spreading over his cheeks slowly.

"Fine... it's a date..."

•

Jisung stared at his computer screen blankly, eyes darting back and forth between the enemies in the video game he was playing as he shot a gun. "I'm clutching, I can feel it." Jisung glanced at his chat on the second monitor. "'Hanji is streaming in the middle of the day, I better play the lottery'. Listen here — I just had some extra time on my hands."

Jisung glanced between his chat and the screen of his video game, occasionally answering some questions he got. As he waited for the next round to start, he noticed that his phone had buzzed a few times. Jisung picked up the device, unlocking it to check his messages.

minholee
> u ready? i'm preparing to leave in ten minutes

HAN JS
> sure, let me end my stream

Jisung hummed for a second, putting his phone down as he left the match on his screen. "Just remembered that I have plans in a few minutes. Well, I guess that's the end for now. Any requests or stuff for when I come back tonight?" Jisung was quiet for a bit. "Genshin? I'll get Felix to come online later. I've been working on my Kazuha, actually. He's nowhere near perfect, but he's one of my best current characters."

Jisung spoke with his chat for a bit longer before ending his stream, turning off the camera and his PC. He was nervous, but didn't let it quite show. He glanced into the full-body mirror at the opposite end of the room, observing himself closely. Did he look okay? Did he look presentable? He was just going out grocery shopping, though.

But Minho called it a date.

Jisung quickly changed his shirt and grabbed the white puffer jacket hanging over his chair. It was Minho's jacket from a few nights before. He held his breath for a moment before slipping the jacket on. His phone began buzzing again and Jisung quickly picked it up.

"Oh, hi Felix..."