Chapter Text
December 31, 11:00pm
It’s finally getting close to midnight and Soobin is starting to feel like Cinderella. Except he can’t leave until midnight and his fairy godmother is loud and unhelpful and has essentially abandoned him in a room full of strangers. And there’s no Prince Charming, just a dim room full of sweaty university students dancing haphazardly along to the pulsing beat from the speakers. Maybe not so much like Cinderella after all.
Soobin knew he was making a bad decision when he grudgingly agreed to attend a New Year’s Eve party with his roommate, but Beomgyu was just so persistent. With all his rattling on about celebrating their first term at university and having new experiences in reality instead of reading about them in books, he had made a decent case at the time.
Now that Soobin is actually here though, awkwardly hovering near the wall and scanning the room for any sign of his roommate, he’s full of regret. Beomgyu wandered off 10 minutes ago in search of a bathroom and Soobin had been edging around the room ever since, trying not to look too pathetic. It must not be working though because a group of girls were giggling and stealing glances at him as they talked and oh no oh no, one of them was starting to walk away from her friends and in his direction. Beomgyu be damned, Soobin is not mentally prepared for this interaction.
Soobin slips out of the nearby doorway and into a dark, hot hallway. If anything the press of bodies is worse here and Soobin gets swept up in the current of people moving to their respective destinations. Time dilates as he stumbles through the twisting hallways of the house before the stream of partygoers spits him out in a different room and directly into the broad back of another person.
“Oh no I’m so sorry I didn’t mean to - I just - um…” Soobin trails off as the person turns around and runs his eyes up and down Soobin’s body before breaking into a wide smile.
“That’s okay, it’s pretty crowded. Are YOU okay though? You look a little lost,” the stranger asks, giggling as his cheeks puff up and his eyes sparkle. He runs a hand casually through his tousled blue hair, silver sun and moon earrings glittering as they catch the flashing lights from overhead. Soobin realizes he’s been staring openly when the boy tilts his head and frowns, repeating his question with concern.
“Uh yeah, sorry. I got separated from my friend and I don’t know anyone else here so um-“ Soobin’s brain kicks back into action and offers a weak response, but it doesn’t matter because the other boy is already sticking his hand out to introduce himself.
“Oh! I’m Yeonjun! Now you know two people” he says with a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
“Soobin. And sorry again about running into you.”
“Don’t worry about it Soobin! But you do owe me for bumping into me,” Yeonjun says with a mischievous glint in his eyes. “You can repay me with a round of karaoke! I was hoping to sing a duet with one of my friends but he ditched me.”
Heck. Soobin is not one for embarrassing himself in front of large crowds, but who is he to argue with this cute stranger and his adorable pout? Maybe one song wouldn’t hurt…
“I’ll take your silence as a yes! Let’s go!” Yeonjun exclaims, grabbing Soobin’s hand as the latter gawks. He must have taken too long to answer again because Yeonjun is already dragging him through the crowd towards a small stage at the back of the room. Which is all well and good until Soobin manages to stumble into yet another person who, unfortunately, spills their drink all over his crisp white button down.
“S-sorry,” Soobin shouts behind him as he’s pulled along by Yeonjun’s warm grip, unable to stop and apologize properly. The two arrive at the foot of the stage a moment later and Yeonjun spins around on black heeled boots to face Soobin, exclaiming in surprise as he takes in the sticky amber mess soaking Soobin’s stomach.
“Oh no! You can’t go up on stage like this! Here, you can wear my sweater for now,” Yeonjun says, taking off his oversized black and white cardigan and stepping forward to wrap it around Soobin. Even on Soobin’s tall frame the garment hangs loosely, sleeves falling over his hands as Yeonjun buttons the front the cover the beer stain.
Without the sweater Yeonjun is even more eye-catching, Soobin muses. A black shirt with a loose collar reveals an expanse of chest and collarbones, bottom cropped just enough to show flashes of skin above Yeonjun’s tight black jeans when he lifts his arms to adjust the fit of the sweater. Soobin feels a bit stodgy by comparison in his simple white button down and black slacks, but it’s all he had on Beomgyu’s short notice to “dress up!”
What happens next feels like something of a blur as Soobin is pulled on stage and a microphone pressed into his hand. He barely even registers the song he’s singing along to, lost in the pull of Yeonjun’s effervescent smile and the encouraging nods directed at him as Yeonjun dances around the stage. Distantly he hears the crowd cheering, his focus almost entirely consumed by Yeonjun’s clear voice. Maybe he has stumbled into a fairy tale after all.
As the song ends and he trips off the stage Soobin laughs to himself about the absurdity of the situation. This boy must be popular and certainly talented, why is he electing to spend his time with a veritable stranger who ran into him?
“Why didn’t you tell me you have such a nice voice?” Yeonjun exclaims as he smoothes back his inky hair once more. Soobin is entranced by his movements, by the sparkly rings adorning long fingers that are now reaching again for Soobin’s hand and fitting themselves between his own fingers.
December 31, 11:50pm
Soobin re-enters the world of the living in a cramped kitchen with Yeonjun standing in front of him, withdrawing a stained cloth from his now slightly cleaner shirt. He mentally kicks himself when he sees the hint of worry behind Yeonjun’s small smile, realizing that he has once again been awkwardly silent.
“Um, thanks for helping clean this up. You really didn’t have to,” Soobin ventures quietly. “I’m the one who bumped into you in the first place.”
“No, I’m the one who should be thanking you. It’s not every day a cute stranger agrees to sing karaoke with me,” Yeonjun says with a wink, wringing out the damp rag in the sink and taking a step closer to Soobin.
In imminent danger of combusting under Yeonjun’s apprising gaze, Soobin steps backwards and collides with the old refrigerator. Yeonjun lets out a tinkling laugh and closes the gap again, looking up through his eyelashes at the taller boy.
“You know it’s almost midnight,” Yeonjun starts.
“Ah you’re right,” Soobin says, craning his head to peer out of the kitchen and into the packed room beyond. “I should find my roommate, I’m sure he’s worried about me.”
“Maybe you could wait a few minutes? Look, everyone has already started getting ready for the countdown. Pairing up. We don’t want you getting lost or crashing into someone else…” Yeonjun trails off suggestively.
Suggestively? Wait, Soobin must be misinterpreting this. Choking slightly at the implications, Soobin’s eyes dart around before landing on the tip of Yeonjun’s tongue peeking out from between his plush, glossy lips.
His eyes must linger for a breath too long because Yeonjun is extending a long finger and tapping it underneath Soobin’s chin, drawing his gaze to Yeonjun’s eyes.
“We can go find your friend now if you’re uncomfortable you know,” Yeonjun says with a wistful smile. “Or you can go alone if you don’t want the company. The cell service isn’t great in here but I bet you can get through to them if you step outside.”
“N-no I’m not - I mean - I can wait,” Soobin chokes out, blushing furiously.
Yeonjun nods and opens his mouth, but before he can speak there’s a flash of black at the edge of Soobin’s vision and a hand clutched to his arm.
“There you are, I’ve been looking everywhere! We have to go NOW. This girl in the bathroom line started talking to me and - I’ll explain on the way, let’s gooooooo,” Beomgyu fires off, pulling Soobin sideways towards the exit.
For a split second Soobin can see his own surprise mirrored in Yeonjun’s wide eyes and open mouth, the latter frozen in the dingy kitchen as the clock strikes midnight and Soobin vanishes into the crowd. Maybe he is Cinderella after all.
January 1, 12:30am
“Are you going to explain?” Soobin huffs out between gulps of water, chest pounding from the haphazard run back to their dorm room. “I didn’t even want to go in the first place and you disappeared and then you made me RUN. You know how much I hate running,” Soobin pouts.
“It’s not my fault!” Beomgyu exclaims. Waving his hand dismissively at Soobin’s eye roll, Beomgyu continues, “I was in the bathroom line and this guy kept pestering the girl behind me. I had to help her! Of course the guy couldn’t take no for an answer and things got heated, but the important part is that I saved her from Creepy McCreeper.”
Soobin sets his water bottle down on the coffee table and lets out an exasperated sigh. He’s about to resume complaining when Beomgyu fixes him with a suspicious stare and says, “are you going to explain what happened to YOU? You weren’t where I left you and I had to go searching everywhere, only to find you off with a stranger. And where did that sweater even come from??”
“OH NO” Soobin shouts, jumping up from his seat on the worn grey couch and wringing his hands. “I forgot to give his sweater back, what am I going to do?”
Beomgyu’s eyes widen in alarm and he shushes Soobin, blocking his path around the table and forcing Soobin back onto the couch.
“Story time! Does the sweater belong to that cute guy you were with when I found you? DID YOU MEET A BOY?” Beomgyu asks, waggling his eyebrows and grinning.
“Yes but - I mean - I don’t know anything about him! Shut up! How am I going to return it?” Soobin wails, burying his face in a pillow.
“Okay back up, you’re wearing someone’s sweater and you don’t know ANYTHING about him? Tell me everything,” Beomgyu giggles.
“I was waiting for you and then some girl kept making eye contact with me and started walking towards me and you know how awkward I am around strangers so I left the room and got lost and ran into this guy and he was super nice about it but he made me sing karaoke and someone else spilled beer on me so he put his sweater on me and then took me to the kitchen to help me clean up and I don’t even fully understand what happened myself okay?” Soobin spits out in a rush, curling further into himself and gently hitting his head with the pillow.
“I can’t believe shy little Soobin met a boy! Well he shouldn’t be THAT hard to find. We’ll ask around, see if anyone knows him.” Beomgyu pats Soobin’s knee comfortingly as he stands up and stretches his arms over his head. “This is why people go to parties you know. To meet people and have fun. Maybe you’re finally getting over your fear of flirting and it’s all thanks to me.”
Soobin responds with a dark glare at his roommate, who is now vanishing down the hall with a wave good night and a promise to get breakfast together the next day.
“It’s not my fault that no one teaches you how to flirt with guys,” Soobin grumbles to himself. “It’s not like anyone gave me an instruction manual or anything.”
“You owe me a new shirt as well as breakfast!” Soobin shouts halfheartedly towards Beomgyu’s room, receiving only a muffled “good night” in response.
Soobin presses his palms to his eyes and groans before standing up shakily to head to the shower. He looks at himself in the mirror, hands absentmindedly tracing the black and white checkered pattern on Yeonjun’s sweater and admiring the way it envelops him. He can’t help but get lost in thoughts about the warmth of Yeonjun’s hand, his wide smile and puffy cheeks, the timbre of his voice as he sang, the fluid way he moved around the stage.
He really should stop thinking about this. He had only known Yeonjun for one hour and had embarrassed himself and made off with the boy’s cardigan with no way to return it. And if they did find him, what was Soobin supposed to say? Sorry for stealing your sweater and abandoning you, my roommate thinks with his feet instead of his head and couldn’t have texted me from outside?
Yeonjun seemed confident, put together, definitely popular. Considering it logically, Soobin is no match for him. He allows himself to mope as he cleans the sweat and stench of beer from his skin and hair in the shower.
Reviewing himself again in the mirror as he pulls on a set of faded flannel pajamas, Soobin comes to a decision. New year means new hopes and dreams right? Maybe it’s time Soobin learns to be more comfortable around new people.
“Okay,” Soobin sucks in a breath. “Tomorrow I’ll look for a club or something to join. I can do this. I need to do this.”
Holding his pinky up to his reflection in the mirror as if to promise himself, Soobin resolves to work on overcoming his anxieties. Just in case Beomgyu takes him to another party, of course. Just in case he needs the social skills.
Just in case he meets Prince Charming again.