[fic] dependent
Dependent [3/3?]
Kyuhyun/Sungmin, Eeteuk; PG-13 (for language); 8607 words; chaptered
When Kyuhyun leaves for SJ-M promotions the first time, Sungmin just doesn’t know what to say.
a/n: will ramble in the afterword~
part 01 | part 02 | part 03
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Sungmin stares at Eeteuk, speechless the next day when his hyung tells him and the rest of the group that they'll be debuting as Super Junior-H at the Dream Concert in two weeks, and their group members in China will be returning for the night, too, so they can perform as Super Junior. Eeteuk takes Sungmin aside after they disperse and the rest of them begin stretching in the middle of the practice room.
"It'll be okay, Minnie," he says with a strained smile, and Sungmin snaps out of his daze to look at his hyung.
"Yeah... oh, but-" he starts, remembering that he hadn't even had a chance to tell Eeteuk that he called Kyuhyun last night. "I thought I had more time," Sungmin mutters, scratching at his cheek nervously. "I called Kyu last night and-"
"What?!" Eeteuk shrieks, and Sungmin cries, putting his hands over his ears as the others groan and shout at them.
"Sorry, sorry, shut up!" Eeteuk barks over his shoulder before turning back to Min and pulling his hands away from his ears. "Sorry Min, but, aish, why didn't you tell me? Wait, if you called him, what happened? What do you mean then, you thought you had more time? I'm freaking out, Minnie!" He says threateningly, shaking the younger boy before Sungmin cries again and he comes to his senses. "Sorry," he repeats, releasing his death grip and patting at Sungmin nervously.
"Yah!" Sungmin whines, batting Eeteuk's hands off his shoulders and rubbing at them while scowling at his hyung. "I confessed to him, okay?" He says a bit angrily, rolling his painful shoulders a bit and pouting up at Eeteuk.
The leader screeches again, clasping his hands to his face. Sungmin promptly cries and falls to his knees, covering his ears, while the others commence shouting at them again.
Ten minutes later after Eeteuk has finished apologizing, kissing Sungmin's ears and petting him affectionately, he gently moves back to the topic at hand and watches as Sungmin's cheeks redden and he pulls his knees up to his chest.
"He's in love with me, too, just like you said, hyung," he murmurs softly, glancing over to where the others are playing around, stretching long forgotten. "I thought we would have a few more months apart before getting to see each other... now I'm nervous," he admits quietly, looking up to his hyung.
"About what?" Eeteuk asks gently, coaxing his dongsaeng with a gentle hand on his back.
"Well, what happens now?" Sungmin wonders aloud, looking down at his lap. "What do I do when I see him?" He asks, looking back up at his wise hyung, as if he has the answer to everything. Eeteuk just laughs, pulling Sungmin into a tight hug before leaning back and looking him straight in the eye.
"You mean do you jump him when you see him?" He teases, and Sungmin's face turns a violent shade of red before he shrieks 'Hyung!' and tries to fight his way out of Eeteuk's grip. The leader just holds on and keeps apologizing until Sungmin gives up struggling and glares up at him. "I'm only kidding, Minnie," he promises with a smile. "I don't know why you worry so much. Nothing has to change between you and Kyuhyun... he was your dongsaeng before, and he still is now. You're brothers and you always will be. Falling in love doesn't change anything... and I'm sure when you see him, you'll know exactly what to do," he says with a wink, touching his fingertip to the end of Sungmin's nose.
"Pervert," Sungmin scoffs, pushing Eeteuk off him and standing up. He brushes himself off and starts towards the dog pile of other members in the middle of the room, but pauses briefly, looking over his shoulder to give his hyung a grateful smile. "Thank you, Teukie," he says quietly, before going to join the others for rehearsal.
Eeteuk watches his dongsaeng dreamily from the ground and sighs heavily before flopping backwards, head knocking against the hard floor, but it's like he can't even feel it. Things will be okay now, he knows.
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Kyuhyun calls Sungmin two nights before the concert to say Siwon has been sick for the past three days and isn't getting any better but plans to still travel the next day and perform with everyone on Saturday. Management doesn't want to say 'no, you should rest' even though it's true, which has Kyuhyun fuming for a while because lately manager hyung has been pissing him off. He's still sore about China even though SJ-M has been a complete success and he's gotten back in touch with Sungmin.
"I really, really don't like it here," he whines, and Sungmin laughs a bit dreamily, indulging the magnae. "My Mandarin is awful, I feel like a complete idiot on all these stupid variety shows, and Hankyung won't help translate any. He wants me to figure it out myself," he huffs, and Sungmin rolls over onto his stomach, snuggling his face into Kyuhyun's bed sheets.
"What about Henry, or Zhou Mi?" He suggests half-heartedly. Part of his initial worry was that Kyuhyun, or his other self - Kui Xian - would become close with them, and Sungmin would be left out, a dead weight. Kyuhyun would be able to communicate with them, they would have inside jokes and memories built upon their time spent traveling around the country, promoting their album that Sungmin had no business in.
"I haven't been speaking to them much," Kyuhyun confesses stiffly, sounding a bit reluctant. Sungmin rolls onto his back again and focuses on the smattering of glow in the dark stars and hearts he'd stuck all over his and Kyuhyun's ceiling. "They got upset the other week when I called you during filming."
Sungmin starts, brow furrowing as he tries to comprehend what Kyuhyun has just said, but he's having little luck.
"What? When did you call me during a filming?" He asks a bit anxiously. He's been doing this long enough to know that manager hyung would flay him if he ever used his phone on a stage, even if the cameras weren't rolling. He said it was disrespectful, no matter how important it might be. And anyway, Kyuhyun usually called late at night before bed, saying he wanted to hear Sungmin's voice before falling asleep, so he couldn't have been on a set.
"Almost two weeks ago," Kyuhyun says, voice a bit strained, trying to communicate something without saying it outright.
Sungmin just stares blankly up at the ceiling for a minute before it dawns on him.
"Ohhh," he says suddenly, smacking himself on the forehead.
"You are so cute," Kyuhyun murmurs, and Sungmin flushes before sitting up abruptly, Kyuhyun's sheets tangled around his legs.
"But why did you call me back if you were filming? You could have waited," he says a bit weakly, realizing belatedly that Kyuhyun was definitely going to argue that point.
"I shouldn't have to wait!" Kyuhyun huffs a bit petulantly, and Sungmin can see him kicking about at his bed sheets, frustrated. "I've been waiting forever and I'm not a patient person, you know. Besides, it was a break, and I didn't feel well. I was messing everything up anyway. If I got a hold of you and could hear your voice, I knew everything would be okay," he mumbles. Sungmin places his hand over his mouth, hiding his smile from no one in particular, and lies back down.
"So they thought it was disrespectful?" He asks, fingertips brushing over his lips absently. There's silence on the other end of the line for a moment, some rustling, and Sungmin arches a brow.
"Well," Kyuhyun begins, hesitant. "I may have messed up a couple other filmings before that, too... um, and broken my phone at one of them." Sungmin's eyes widen. "I threw it across the room and the screen cracked."
"Kyuhyun," he breathes, shocked despite knowing how the magnae's temper can be.
"I know," Kyuhyun says in a tiny voice, and Sungmin can see him pulling the covers over his head, his voice becoming muffled in the make-shift cocoon. "I shouldn't have done it, I didn't mean to, but Eeteuk hyung was being difficult with me!" His humiliated tone turns into a whiny one and Sungmin sighs.
"What did he do?" He asks gently, hoping not to re-ignite the flames of whatever was the initial problem. Kyuhyun is silent again, for longer this time, but Sungmin is almost content to just listen to the sound of him breathing.
"You were sick. I wanted to come home but he didn't think it was possible," Kyuhyun explains, and Sungmin feels a shiver go up his spine. After a moment of silence on his own end, he trusts himself enough to ask a quiet 'What?' Kyuhyun sighs and Sungmin can hear him shifting around again. "Eeteuk told me when you got sick after I left. You slept for two days... I wanted to come home and take care of you like how I always do. I knew I could get you healthy again if you'd only let me," Kyuhyun says in a whisper.
Sungmin's eyes glaze over for a moment and he remembers bits and pieces; waking up to Eeteuk's worried face, slurping down soups, sipping Gatorade through a straw, sleeping, sleeping, sleeping... he closes his eyes and breathes deep, telling himself that it's okay now.
"I miss you," he finally murmurs, rubbing his stomach beneath his t-shirt.
"I miss you, too," Kyuhyun says just as softly, voice deeper and seeping into Sungmin's ears, as if the magnae were really there, breathing into the coil of his ear. "I can't wait to see you on Saturday. I won't. You need to placate me or I might get into a fight with someone," Kyuhyun grumbles. "I haven't seen you in months, except for the picture Eeteuk hyung sent me," he complains, using his best voice to get his way.
"What picture?" Sungmin asks immediately, interest piqued.
"Uh," Kyuhyun stutters unintelligently, and Sungmin's muscles tense.
"What picture, Kyuhyun?" He asks, voice dangerously low.
"Hyung," Kyuhyun murmurs. "You know, you sound really sexy like tha-"
"What picture, Kyu?!" He shrieks, kicking his legs in frustration, tangling Kyuhyun's bed sheets even further. There's only a moment of silence on the other end of the line before Kyuhyun fesses up, knowing he's in for it if he drags this out any longer.
"I begged him for a picture when you were sick. I needed to see you since I couldn't come home," he confesses, and Sungmin wails, flailing and kicking his feet around more. "Hyung, please calm down," Kyuhyun tries, but Sungmin isn't having it.
"You know I hate having my picture taken, Kyuhyun! Why would you do this to me!?" He cries dramatically, kicking his feet at the mattress.
"Only if you haven't got make-up on or don't know it's happening," Kyuhyun muses aloud, then realizes his mistake.
"And that's exactly what you did!" Sungmin huffs, kicking Kyuhyun's sheets off the bed angrily. "Whatever," he mutters, glaring at the ceiling.
"Hyung~" Kyuhyun singsongs. "Sungmin hyung~ I only did it because I love you~"
"I'm going to ask Ryeowook to take a picture of you when you're sleeping on the plane tomorrow and see how you like it," Sungmin threatens, trying not to break a smile when Kyuhyun begins laughing.
"Whatever it takes to have your forgiveness," he says honestly and Sungmin grumbles one last time before letting it go. He doesn't want to hang up even though his bedside clock reads 2:30 AM on the other side of the room. He has to sit up and crawl to the end of the bed to pull the sheets back on top, and Kyuhyun begins to chuckle.
"What's all the rustling, hm?" He asks, a mildly suggestive tone reaching Sungmin's ears.
"Nothing like that," he retorts judgmentally. "I kicked your sheets onto the floor in a fit. They were already dirty from when you left, though, so don't go thinking I'm going to do your laundry for you," he says seriously, still mildly annoyed. Kyuhyun is silent for too long, so Sungmin huffs, "Kyuhyun?"
"What are you doing with my sheets?" He asks, voice sounding strained over the line.
"Well you took your blanket, they're all that's left to keep warm," Sungmin complains, wrapping himself back up in a cocoon, tucking his feet in. Kyuhyun is silent for too long again, so Sungmin whines, "Kyuhyun!"
"Are you on my bed, Min?" He asks, voice feathery and deep. Sungmin rolls his eyes and sighs in exasperation.
"Yes, genius. I thought you were supposed to be intelligent," he grumbles, burying his face into Kyuhyun's scent. "This is where I am when we talk every night," he adds absentmindedly, and starts when he hears a low sound, almost like a growl, or maybe a groan, coming from Kyuhyun's end. "What was that?" He asks suspiciously.
"Me," Kyuhyun says immediately. "Imagining you in my bed."
Sungmin's body feels hot suddenly and he licks his lips, willing his heart to stop beating so fast, lest Kyuhyun should be able to hear it or feel its intensity.
"Oh," he says weakly, eyes darting around the room nervously.
"Hm," Kyuhyun purrs. "What are you wearing, Min?" He asks throatily, and Sungmin sits up abruptly, kicking wildly at the sheets and jumping off the bed before backing into the corner of the room.
Kyuhyun bursts into laughter in his ear and Sungmin breathes heavily, almost panting, looking wildly around the room like a terrified animal.
"Oh God," Kyuhyun is still laughing, probably clutching his side from the sounds of how out of breath he is. "Oh God, I'm kidding Min, oh," he hiccups, and Sungmin can see him in his mind, wiping away tears of laughter from the corner of his eyes, face bright and eyes squeezed shut with amusement. "You're so easy to freak out, I swear. Just don't let this ruin my bed for you," he adds seriously.
Sungmin scowls but looks at Kyuhyun's bed, thinking it still looks comfortable and inviting, and after listening to Kyuhyun apologize for another three minutes, he eventually makes his way back onto the sheets, cuddling in again.
"You're so cruel, Kyuhyun," he murmurs sleepily. "You're supposed to be respectful to your hyungs, but you just tease me all the time," he complains, unable to suppress a yawn.
"Min," Kyuhyun whines suddenly, not even defending his honor. "You're going to fall asleep on me? But I wanted a picture," he complains, and even with sleep threatening to pull him from consciousness, Sungmin can imagine the pout on the magnae's face and it makes him smile dreamily.
"You already got one, remember? Me looking hideously grotesque when I was sick," he murmurs, snuggling further into the sheets.
Kyuhyun tuts and Sungmin can hear random thumping over the line, like the magnae is flopping around in bed, agitated. "You didn't look hideous or grotesque," he grumbles. "Just... unwell, and I didn't like it. It's not how you should look... I want to see you so badly, Min. I miss you," he whispers, voice weak and desperate and working its magic on Sungmin.
"You'll see me tomorrow. Or later today, actually," Sungmin murmurs back just as quietly, a strange feeling churning in his stomach. Kyuhyun's desire to see him, to be with him, is almost overwhelming. It's something he had never really anticipated. Even though he suspected and hoped with all his might that Kyuhyun loved him back, he had never thought it would feel like this.
"I can't wait that long," Kyuhyun replies, voice so low and fragile that Sungmin could barely hear him.
Sungmin exhales deeply, buries his face into Kyuhyun's blankets and breathes in again, hard, trying to absorb as much of the magnae as he can. Maybe he'll dream about him tonight.
"Okay," he concedes, his eyes fluttering back open reluctantly under the dull light of the bedside lamp. "I'll take a picture after I hang up," he says quietly, voice betraying his mild embarrassment.
"I don't want to hang up," Kyuhyun grumbles childishly, but Sungmin can hear the exhaustion in his voice. "But I will because you sound so sleepy and I will get to see you..." he trails off dreamily, and Sungmin almost rolls his eyes. Who knew snarky magnae Kyuhyun was such a romantic?
"I miss you," Sungmin whispers. "And I love you," he promises, eyes closing again when Kyuhyun says the same things, word for word, and begs him to sleep well. When they reluctantly end the call, Sungmin just breathes deeply for a few minutes before remembering his promise. He extends a tired arm out to his side toward the lamp, so the faint light will catch his face, and smiles shyly at the camera light on his phone. Sungmin checks the picture before sending it on, thinking if it looked too unflattering he would discard it, but he feels too tired to keep taking pictures until he gets one he likes. And anyway, the first shot seems okay. It's obvious that he's lying on Kyuhyun's bed. The sheets are obviously his and not Sungmin's, whose are pink. A few of the posters above Kyuhyun's bed can be seen behind Sungmin's messy bed hair, and even though his eyes look particularly sleepy, it's not the worst picture of him ever. Besides, it's for Kyuhyun, and Sungmin has never been a good judge of his own worth.
After he's sent the picture to Kyuhyun and turned off the lamp, cuddling under the sheets, he finds himself hovering between consciousness and sleep, waiting for Kyuhyun's ringtone to hopefully sound. It does, just before he feels like he'll be knocked out, and he smiles, burying his face into the sheets when he sees the picture message Kyuhyun has sent in reply. Kyuhyun's tired face and hair messy from lying in bed have never looked more attractive to him than now. And Kyuhyun's full lips, slightly puckered as if to kiss, and sleepy eyes having fallen shut make Sungmin feel like the most loved person in all of Seoul, or maybe, just maybe, the entire world.
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afterword/notes: ah, I am very humbled by everyone's kind comments for this fic. I was not expecting such a response, but I'm very pleased that the story was so much enjoyed 'til this point. I'm worried that the 'ending' will not be satisfying especially because the last line is so trite and I would just ruin what you've enjoyed thus far if I tried to continue beyond part 3... but I had originally intended to, so if the words will come to me, I would like to write their meeting at the Dream Concert and Kyuhyun's return home which would probably be another two parts. I have three other kyumins in progress (1 min/girl!kyu, 2 kyu/girl!min - I am sorry if that is not to your taste ㅋㅋ) and I jump around between them whenever I feel inspired or don't feel like studying, so this will join the pool and we shall see what happens. Above all else, thank you to everyone who felt compelled to tell me how they felt about the fic - I was really happy to see your thoughts :)
Kyuhyun/Sungmin, Eeteuk; PG-13 (for language); 8607 words; chaptered
When Kyuhyun leaves for SJ-M promotions the first time, Sungmin just doesn’t know what to say.
a/n: will ramble in the afterword~
part 01 | part 02 | part 03
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Sungmin stares at Eeteuk, speechless the next day when his hyung tells him and the rest of the group that they'll be debuting as Super Junior-H at the Dream Concert in two weeks, and their group members in China will be returning for the night, too, so they can perform as Super Junior. Eeteuk takes Sungmin aside after they disperse and the rest of them begin stretching in the middle of the practice room.
"It'll be okay, Minnie," he says with a strained smile, and Sungmin snaps out of his daze to look at his hyung.
"Yeah... oh, but-" he starts, remembering that he hadn't even had a chance to tell Eeteuk that he called Kyuhyun last night. "I thought I had more time," Sungmin mutters, scratching at his cheek nervously. "I called Kyu last night and-"
"What?!" Eeteuk shrieks, and Sungmin cries, putting his hands over his ears as the others groan and shout at them.
"Sorry, sorry, shut up!" Eeteuk barks over his shoulder before turning back to Min and pulling his hands away from his ears. "Sorry Min, but, aish, why didn't you tell me? Wait, if you called him, what happened? What do you mean then, you thought you had more time? I'm freaking out, Minnie!" He says threateningly, shaking the younger boy before Sungmin cries again and he comes to his senses. "Sorry," he repeats, releasing his death grip and patting at Sungmin nervously.
"Yah!" Sungmin whines, batting Eeteuk's hands off his shoulders and rubbing at them while scowling at his hyung. "I confessed to him, okay?" He says a bit angrily, rolling his painful shoulders a bit and pouting up at Eeteuk.
The leader screeches again, clasping his hands to his face. Sungmin promptly cries and falls to his knees, covering his ears, while the others commence shouting at them again.
Ten minutes later after Eeteuk has finished apologizing, kissing Sungmin's ears and petting him affectionately, he gently moves back to the topic at hand and watches as Sungmin's cheeks redden and he pulls his knees up to his chest.
"He's in love with me, too, just like you said, hyung," he murmurs softly, glancing over to where the others are playing around, stretching long forgotten. "I thought we would have a few more months apart before getting to see each other... now I'm nervous," he admits quietly, looking up to his hyung.
"About what?" Eeteuk asks gently, coaxing his dongsaeng with a gentle hand on his back.
"Well, what happens now?" Sungmin wonders aloud, looking down at his lap. "What do I do when I see him?" He asks, looking back up at his wise hyung, as if he has the answer to everything. Eeteuk just laughs, pulling Sungmin into a tight hug before leaning back and looking him straight in the eye.
"You mean do you jump him when you see him?" He teases, and Sungmin's face turns a violent shade of red before he shrieks 'Hyung!' and tries to fight his way out of Eeteuk's grip. The leader just holds on and keeps apologizing until Sungmin gives up struggling and glares up at him. "I'm only kidding, Minnie," he promises with a smile. "I don't know why you worry so much. Nothing has to change between you and Kyuhyun... he was your dongsaeng before, and he still is now. You're brothers and you always will be. Falling in love doesn't change anything... and I'm sure when you see him, you'll know exactly what to do," he says with a wink, touching his fingertip to the end of Sungmin's nose.
"Pervert," Sungmin scoffs, pushing Eeteuk off him and standing up. He brushes himself off and starts towards the dog pile of other members in the middle of the room, but pauses briefly, looking over his shoulder to give his hyung a grateful smile. "Thank you, Teukie," he says quietly, before going to join the others for rehearsal.
Eeteuk watches his dongsaeng dreamily from the ground and sighs heavily before flopping backwards, head knocking against the hard floor, but it's like he can't even feel it. Things will be okay now, he knows.
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Kyuhyun calls Sungmin two nights before the concert to say Siwon has been sick for the past three days and isn't getting any better but plans to still travel the next day and perform with everyone on Saturday. Management doesn't want to say 'no, you should rest' even though it's true, which has Kyuhyun fuming for a while because lately manager hyung has been pissing him off. He's still sore about China even though SJ-M has been a complete success and he's gotten back in touch with Sungmin.
"I really, really don't like it here," he whines, and Sungmin laughs a bit dreamily, indulging the magnae. "My Mandarin is awful, I feel like a complete idiot on all these stupid variety shows, and Hankyung won't help translate any. He wants me to figure it out myself," he huffs, and Sungmin rolls over onto his stomach, snuggling his face into Kyuhyun's bed sheets.
"What about Henry, or Zhou Mi?" He suggests half-heartedly. Part of his initial worry was that Kyuhyun, or his other self - Kui Xian - would become close with them, and Sungmin would be left out, a dead weight. Kyuhyun would be able to communicate with them, they would have inside jokes and memories built upon their time spent traveling around the country, promoting their album that Sungmin had no business in.
"I haven't been speaking to them much," Kyuhyun confesses stiffly, sounding a bit reluctant. Sungmin rolls onto his back again and focuses on the smattering of glow in the dark stars and hearts he'd stuck all over his and Kyuhyun's ceiling. "They got upset the other week when I called you during filming."
Sungmin starts, brow furrowing as he tries to comprehend what Kyuhyun has just said, but he's having little luck.
"What? When did you call me during a filming?" He asks a bit anxiously. He's been doing this long enough to know that manager hyung would flay him if he ever used his phone on a stage, even if the cameras weren't rolling. He said it was disrespectful, no matter how important it might be. And anyway, Kyuhyun usually called late at night before bed, saying he wanted to hear Sungmin's voice before falling asleep, so he couldn't have been on a set.
"Almost two weeks ago," Kyuhyun says, voice a bit strained, trying to communicate something without saying it outright.
Sungmin just stares blankly up at the ceiling for a minute before it dawns on him.
"Ohhh," he says suddenly, smacking himself on the forehead.
"You are so cute," Kyuhyun murmurs, and Sungmin flushes before sitting up abruptly, Kyuhyun's sheets tangled around his legs.
"But why did you call me back if you were filming? You could have waited," he says a bit weakly, realizing belatedly that Kyuhyun was definitely going to argue that point.
"I shouldn't have to wait!" Kyuhyun huffs a bit petulantly, and Sungmin can see him kicking about at his bed sheets, frustrated. "I've been waiting forever and I'm not a patient person, you know. Besides, it was a break, and I didn't feel well. I was messing everything up anyway. If I got a hold of you and could hear your voice, I knew everything would be okay," he mumbles. Sungmin places his hand over his mouth, hiding his smile from no one in particular, and lies back down.
"So they thought it was disrespectful?" He asks, fingertips brushing over his lips absently. There's silence on the other end of the line for a moment, some rustling, and Sungmin arches a brow.
"Well," Kyuhyun begins, hesitant. "I may have messed up a couple other filmings before that, too... um, and broken my phone at one of them." Sungmin's eyes widen. "I threw it across the room and the screen cracked."
"Kyuhyun," he breathes, shocked despite knowing how the magnae's temper can be.
"I know," Kyuhyun says in a tiny voice, and Sungmin can see him pulling the covers over his head, his voice becoming muffled in the make-shift cocoon. "I shouldn't have done it, I didn't mean to, but Eeteuk hyung was being difficult with me!" His humiliated tone turns into a whiny one and Sungmin sighs.
"What did he do?" He asks gently, hoping not to re-ignite the flames of whatever was the initial problem. Kyuhyun is silent again, for longer this time, but Sungmin is almost content to just listen to the sound of him breathing.
"You were sick. I wanted to come home but he didn't think it was possible," Kyuhyun explains, and Sungmin feels a shiver go up his spine. After a moment of silence on his own end, he trusts himself enough to ask a quiet 'What?' Kyuhyun sighs and Sungmin can hear him shifting around again. "Eeteuk told me when you got sick after I left. You slept for two days... I wanted to come home and take care of you like how I always do. I knew I could get you healthy again if you'd only let me," Kyuhyun says in a whisper.
Sungmin's eyes glaze over for a moment and he remembers bits and pieces; waking up to Eeteuk's worried face, slurping down soups, sipping Gatorade through a straw, sleeping, sleeping, sleeping... he closes his eyes and breathes deep, telling himself that it's okay now.
"I miss you," he finally murmurs, rubbing his stomach beneath his t-shirt.
"I miss you, too," Kyuhyun says just as softly, voice deeper and seeping into Sungmin's ears, as if the magnae were really there, breathing into the coil of his ear. "I can't wait to see you on Saturday. I won't. You need to placate me or I might get into a fight with someone," Kyuhyun grumbles. "I haven't seen you in months, except for the picture Eeteuk hyung sent me," he complains, using his best voice to get his way.
"What picture?" Sungmin asks immediately, interest piqued.
"Uh," Kyuhyun stutters unintelligently, and Sungmin's muscles tense.
"What picture, Kyuhyun?" He asks, voice dangerously low.
"Hyung," Kyuhyun murmurs. "You know, you sound really sexy like tha-"
"What picture, Kyu?!" He shrieks, kicking his legs in frustration, tangling Kyuhyun's bed sheets even further. There's only a moment of silence on the other end of the line before Kyuhyun fesses up, knowing he's in for it if he drags this out any longer.
"I begged him for a picture when you were sick. I needed to see you since I couldn't come home," he confesses, and Sungmin wails, flailing and kicking his feet around more. "Hyung, please calm down," Kyuhyun tries, but Sungmin isn't having it.
"You know I hate having my picture taken, Kyuhyun! Why would you do this to me!?" He cries dramatically, kicking his feet at the mattress.
"Only if you haven't got make-up on or don't know it's happening," Kyuhyun muses aloud, then realizes his mistake.
"And that's exactly what you did!" Sungmin huffs, kicking Kyuhyun's sheets off the bed angrily. "Whatever," he mutters, glaring at the ceiling.
"Hyung~" Kyuhyun singsongs. "Sungmin hyung~ I only did it because I love you~"
"I'm going to ask Ryeowook to take a picture of you when you're sleeping on the plane tomorrow and see how you like it," Sungmin threatens, trying not to break a smile when Kyuhyun begins laughing.
"Whatever it takes to have your forgiveness," he says honestly and Sungmin grumbles one last time before letting it go. He doesn't want to hang up even though his bedside clock reads 2:30 AM on the other side of the room. He has to sit up and crawl to the end of the bed to pull the sheets back on top, and Kyuhyun begins to chuckle.
"What's all the rustling, hm?" He asks, a mildly suggestive tone reaching Sungmin's ears.
"Nothing like that," he retorts judgmentally. "I kicked your sheets onto the floor in a fit. They were already dirty from when you left, though, so don't go thinking I'm going to do your laundry for you," he says seriously, still mildly annoyed. Kyuhyun is silent for too long, so Sungmin huffs, "Kyuhyun?"
"What are you doing with my sheets?" He asks, voice sounding strained over the line.
"Well you took your blanket, they're all that's left to keep warm," Sungmin complains, wrapping himself back up in a cocoon, tucking his feet in. Kyuhyun is silent for too long again, so Sungmin whines, "Kyuhyun!"
"Are you on my bed, Min?" He asks, voice feathery and deep. Sungmin rolls his eyes and sighs in exasperation.
"Yes, genius. I thought you were supposed to be intelligent," he grumbles, burying his face into Kyuhyun's scent. "This is where I am when we talk every night," he adds absentmindedly, and starts when he hears a low sound, almost like a growl, or maybe a groan, coming from Kyuhyun's end. "What was that?" He asks suspiciously.
"Me," Kyuhyun says immediately. "Imagining you in my bed."
Sungmin's body feels hot suddenly and he licks his lips, willing his heart to stop beating so fast, lest Kyuhyun should be able to hear it or feel its intensity.
"Oh," he says weakly, eyes darting around the room nervously.
"Hm," Kyuhyun purrs. "What are you wearing, Min?" He asks throatily, and Sungmin sits up abruptly, kicking wildly at the sheets and jumping off the bed before backing into the corner of the room.
Kyuhyun bursts into laughter in his ear and Sungmin breathes heavily, almost panting, looking wildly around the room like a terrified animal.
"Oh God," Kyuhyun is still laughing, probably clutching his side from the sounds of how out of breath he is. "Oh God, I'm kidding Min, oh," he hiccups, and Sungmin can see him in his mind, wiping away tears of laughter from the corner of his eyes, face bright and eyes squeezed shut with amusement. "You're so easy to freak out, I swear. Just don't let this ruin my bed for you," he adds seriously.
Sungmin scowls but looks at Kyuhyun's bed, thinking it still looks comfortable and inviting, and after listening to Kyuhyun apologize for another three minutes, he eventually makes his way back onto the sheets, cuddling in again.
"You're so cruel, Kyuhyun," he murmurs sleepily. "You're supposed to be respectful to your hyungs, but you just tease me all the time," he complains, unable to suppress a yawn.
"Min," Kyuhyun whines suddenly, not even defending his honor. "You're going to fall asleep on me? But I wanted a picture," he complains, and even with sleep threatening to pull him from consciousness, Sungmin can imagine the pout on the magnae's face and it makes him smile dreamily.
"You already got one, remember? Me looking hideously grotesque when I was sick," he murmurs, snuggling further into the sheets.
Kyuhyun tuts and Sungmin can hear random thumping over the line, like the magnae is flopping around in bed, agitated. "You didn't look hideous or grotesque," he grumbles. "Just... unwell, and I didn't like it. It's not how you should look... I want to see you so badly, Min. I miss you," he whispers, voice weak and desperate and working its magic on Sungmin.
"You'll see me tomorrow. Or later today, actually," Sungmin murmurs back just as quietly, a strange feeling churning in his stomach. Kyuhyun's desire to see him, to be with him, is almost overwhelming. It's something he had never really anticipated. Even though he suspected and hoped with all his might that Kyuhyun loved him back, he had never thought it would feel like this.
"I can't wait that long," Kyuhyun replies, voice so low and fragile that Sungmin could barely hear him.
Sungmin exhales deeply, buries his face into Kyuhyun's blankets and breathes in again, hard, trying to absorb as much of the magnae as he can. Maybe he'll dream about him tonight.
"Okay," he concedes, his eyes fluttering back open reluctantly under the dull light of the bedside lamp. "I'll take a picture after I hang up," he says quietly, voice betraying his mild embarrassment.
"I don't want to hang up," Kyuhyun grumbles childishly, but Sungmin can hear the exhaustion in his voice. "But I will because you sound so sleepy and I will get to see you..." he trails off dreamily, and Sungmin almost rolls his eyes. Who knew snarky magnae Kyuhyun was such a romantic?
"I miss you," Sungmin whispers. "And I love you," he promises, eyes closing again when Kyuhyun says the same things, word for word, and begs him to sleep well. When they reluctantly end the call, Sungmin just breathes deeply for a few minutes before remembering his promise. He extends a tired arm out to his side toward the lamp, so the faint light will catch his face, and smiles shyly at the camera light on his phone. Sungmin checks the picture before sending it on, thinking if it looked too unflattering he would discard it, but he feels too tired to keep taking pictures until he gets one he likes. And anyway, the first shot seems okay. It's obvious that he's lying on Kyuhyun's bed. The sheets are obviously his and not Sungmin's, whose are pink. A few of the posters above Kyuhyun's bed can be seen behind Sungmin's messy bed hair, and even though his eyes look particularly sleepy, it's not the worst picture of him ever. Besides, it's for Kyuhyun, and Sungmin has never been a good judge of his own worth.
After he's sent the picture to Kyuhyun and turned off the lamp, cuddling under the sheets, he finds himself hovering between consciousness and sleep, waiting for Kyuhyun's ringtone to hopefully sound. It does, just before he feels like he'll be knocked out, and he smiles, burying his face into the sheets when he sees the picture message Kyuhyun has sent in reply. Kyuhyun's tired face and hair messy from lying in bed have never looked more attractive to him than now. And Kyuhyun's full lips, slightly puckered as if to kiss, and sleepy eyes having fallen shut make Sungmin feel like the most loved person in all of Seoul, or maybe, just maybe, the entire world.
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afterword/notes: ah, I am very humbled by everyone's kind comments for this fic. I was not expecting such a response, but I'm very pleased that the story was so much enjoyed 'til this point. I'm worried that the 'ending' will not be satisfying especially because the last line is so trite and I would just ruin what you've enjoyed thus far if I tried to continue beyond part 3... but I had originally intended to, so if the words will come to me, I would like to write their meeting at the Dream Concert and Kyuhyun's return home which would probably be another two parts. I have three other kyumins in progress (1 min/girl!kyu, 2 kyu/girl!min - I am sorry if that is not to your taste ㅋㅋ) and I jump around between them whenever I feel inspired or don't feel like studying, so this will join the pool and we shall see what happens. Above all else, thank you to everyone who felt compelled to tell me how they felt about the fic - I was really happy to see your thoughts :)