(no subject)
l'appel du vide | pg | 830 | chanyeol/jongin
for brittany, who is the only one making this journey with me
New Year's is the worst for Jongin. He tries as hard as humanly possible every single year to keep from having to go out because the fear of having his anxiety in regards to the whole sudden loud noises thing far outweighs his anticipation as far as fun goes. This goes double for when his friends find out -- he suspects they will eventually -- because they will never in a million years let him live it down.
So, in essence, he has absolutely no idea how he's managed to get dragged out on New Year's eve, the taste of beer staling on his lips and Chanyeol, of all people, expertly weaving them through the dense crowds, only knocking into a couple people along the way. Jongin's staring down at the way Chanyeol holds his hand, careless and clutching and all fingers, no palms. How Chanyeol manages to stand up so straight when he's had at least twice as much to drink as Jongin himself, Jongin will never completely understand.
In any case, Chanyeol's calling over his shoulder that he knows the best spot to watch the fireworks show, and Jongin's heart is sinking fast, rolling down past his ribcage and into the center of his guts as soon as he hears the distant crackle of what had to have been a baby firework. The sky isn't even lit yet and he's already got the jitters just thinking about it. "We don't have to do this," he's protesting weakly, but apparently they do.
He didn't have to say yes, he knows that, but... well, disappointing Chanyeol is basically the same thing as kicking a three-legged puppy out of the house and into the rain. Especially around the holidays. He gets more excitable than the theoretical puppy would if you let it back in. Jongin sighs every time he thinks about it (and every time he comes up with metaphors; he's kind of horrible at it). Besides, despite the fact that he's going to spend a good three-quarters of the evening scared out of his mind, he intends on being able to have fun with his friend, the way (not that way) he can't when they're in the dorms, or out doing promotion, or any of those things.
They're travelling up a hill, and the murmur of a thousand people quiets around them. Damn, this hill is steep. Almost as much as it is empty. "Your long legs are gonna get me in trouble," he whines, nearly falling in the damp dirt almost a dozen times. "How much further?"
"Enough," Chanyeol replies enigmatically, glancing over his shoulder at Jongin with an eyebrow raised and his lips pursed very un-seriously.
They continue walking in silence -- this is the longest Chanyeol has been quiet in recent memory, Jongin thinks, then winces, scolding himself for the unnecessary cruelty -- and it takes about twenty minutes but then they're at the top of the hill, alone, at a pretty damn good vantage point for observing fireworks. "Good thing we got here in time," Chanyeol breathes slowly, sitting with his lower back pressed against a large rock as he flickers his eyes down to his wristwatch. "They're gonna start any minute, now."
Jongin all but quivers with fear, sinking down beside Chanyeol, resting his head against the other's shoulder, their elbows brushing together. They sit like this, conversing blithely about absolutely nothing -- how they manage to talk after spending a vast majority of their waking hours together, Jongin will never understand, but it's nice to be able to think about something that isn't schedules for a minute -- and then the first spark shoots up into the sky. It sets off in a trail of smoke and with a loud pop, and Jongin nearly jumps out of his skin -- he hadn't been prepared the way he thinks he probably shouldn't have been.
When he settles back in against Chanyeol's side, the older takes him firmly by the chin and forces Jongin to look him in the eye. "What was that...?" he demands in a low, rumbly and decidedly un-cheerful voice.
"I'm, um, I...don't...likeloudnoises." Jongin feels his earlobes grow hot, and it quickly spreads across his cheeks and the bridge of his nose. "Sorry. I wanted to tell you, but--"
"Is that all?" Chanyeol laughs, all seriousness forgotten immediately. "They're kind of obnoxious, but they're nice to look at."
It takes a great deal of restraint to keep Jongin from saying that they remind him of someone he knows in that respect. He nearly tastes the faint tang of copper from biting the inner corner of his lip hard enough to keep the words inside. He doesn't feel guilty about the reflex until Chanyeol covers Jongin's ears with those massive hands of his, turning his head towards the direction of the fireworks display.
"You shouldn't miss something because you're scared," Chanyeol murmurs between bursts, lifting one hand a crack to make sure the words get in.
They do, but not in the way he'd expect.
for brittany, who is the only one making this journey with me
New Year's is the worst for Jongin. He tries as hard as humanly possible every single year to keep from having to go out because the fear of having his anxiety in regards to the whole sudden loud noises thing far outweighs his anticipation as far as fun goes. This goes double for when his friends find out -- he suspects they will eventually -- because they will never in a million years let him live it down.
So, in essence, he has absolutely no idea how he's managed to get dragged out on New Year's eve, the taste of beer staling on his lips and Chanyeol, of all people, expertly weaving them through the dense crowds, only knocking into a couple people along the way. Jongin's staring down at the way Chanyeol holds his hand, careless and clutching and all fingers, no palms. How Chanyeol manages to stand up so straight when he's had at least twice as much to drink as Jongin himself, Jongin will never completely understand.
In any case, Chanyeol's calling over his shoulder that he knows the best spot to watch the fireworks show, and Jongin's heart is sinking fast, rolling down past his ribcage and into the center of his guts as soon as he hears the distant crackle of what had to have been a baby firework. The sky isn't even lit yet and he's already got the jitters just thinking about it. "We don't have to do this," he's protesting weakly, but apparently they do.
He didn't have to say yes, he knows that, but... well, disappointing Chanyeol is basically the same thing as kicking a three-legged puppy out of the house and into the rain. Especially around the holidays. He gets more excitable than the theoretical puppy would if you let it back in. Jongin sighs every time he thinks about it (and every time he comes up with metaphors; he's kind of horrible at it). Besides, despite the fact that he's going to spend a good three-quarters of the evening scared out of his mind, he intends on being able to have fun with his friend, the way (not that way) he can't when they're in the dorms, or out doing promotion, or any of those things.
They're travelling up a hill, and the murmur of a thousand people quiets around them. Damn, this hill is steep. Almost as much as it is empty. "Your long legs are gonna get me in trouble," he whines, nearly falling in the damp dirt almost a dozen times. "How much further?"
"Enough," Chanyeol replies enigmatically, glancing over his shoulder at Jongin with an eyebrow raised and his lips pursed very un-seriously.
They continue walking in silence -- this is the longest Chanyeol has been quiet in recent memory, Jongin thinks, then winces, scolding himself for the unnecessary cruelty -- and it takes about twenty minutes but then they're at the top of the hill, alone, at a pretty damn good vantage point for observing fireworks. "Good thing we got here in time," Chanyeol breathes slowly, sitting with his lower back pressed against a large rock as he flickers his eyes down to his wristwatch. "They're gonna start any minute, now."
Jongin all but quivers with fear, sinking down beside Chanyeol, resting his head against the other's shoulder, their elbows brushing together. They sit like this, conversing blithely about absolutely nothing -- how they manage to talk after spending a vast majority of their waking hours together, Jongin will never understand, but it's nice to be able to think about something that isn't schedules for a minute -- and then the first spark shoots up into the sky. It sets off in a trail of smoke and with a loud pop, and Jongin nearly jumps out of his skin -- he hadn't been prepared the way he thinks he probably shouldn't have been.
When he settles back in against Chanyeol's side, the older takes him firmly by the chin and forces Jongin to look him in the eye. "What was that...?" he demands in a low, rumbly and decidedly un-cheerful voice.
"I'm, um, I...don't...likeloudnoises." Jongin feels his earlobes grow hot, and it quickly spreads across his cheeks and the bridge of his nose. "Sorry. I wanted to tell you, but--"
"Is that all?" Chanyeol laughs, all seriousness forgotten immediately. "They're kind of obnoxious, but they're nice to look at."
It takes a great deal of restraint to keep Jongin from saying that they remind him of someone he knows in that respect. He nearly tastes the faint tang of copper from biting the inner corner of his lip hard enough to keep the words inside. He doesn't feel guilty about the reflex until Chanyeol covers Jongin's ears with those massive hands of his, turning his head towards the direction of the fireworks display.
"You shouldn't miss something because you're scared," Chanyeol murmurs between bursts, lifting one hand a crack to make sure the words get in.
They do, but not in the way he'd expect.