Chapter Text
“The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion” – Albert Camus
Kim Hongjoong was sure he was living the dream of every young boy, a few points in his background aside. He had grown up with loving parents, and his father did well for himself as a merchant sailor. When he was five or six, his dad had been recruited to join the navy and soon became a valued member of his vessel due to his previous seafaring experience.
Each time his dad was home from duty, Hongjoong got to hear all the stories of what living on a ship was like – the good, the bad, and the ugly. Even hearing the not so savory parts of life on a boat, Hongjoong found himself yearning to experience the sea for himself from a young age.
His unintentional wish came true in an unexpected way a few years later. His mother fell ill, slowly declining each day that went by. His dad came back to look after her before she unfortunately passed away from the illness that all the doctors could not explain or cure. After this, his dad was all he had left. They took some time as a small family of two to grieve, before packing their belongings and returning to the ship Hongjoong’s dad had come to call his home away from home.
The captain of the ship, having been informed of the situation when Hongjoong’s dad had to leave suddenly, agreed to have Hongjoong on the ship in order to not lose one of his valued crew members. So Hongjoong, barely 9 years old, found himself the unofficial mascot of the navy’s ship. After a few weeks of adjusting to living on a ship, his curiosity could not be contained any longer and he was almost always found tailing a member of the crew to learn everything he could about their work.
Through his inquisitiveness, he came to have a detailed understanding of the ship and its workings. He often was asked to help out with tasks of fetching items from other parts of the ship, and also came in handy when repairs of the ship needed to be done due to his small stature and ability to get into much smaller spaces than a full-grown man.
After a few years on the navy ship, his dad decided he wanted to return to merchant sailing. The captain of the ship was reluctant to let them leave, but gracefully put Hongjoong’s dad in contact with a reputable merchant friend, sending them off with thanks for the years of service.
The structure and function of this new ship was different, and gave many more opportunities for Hongjoong to learn once they were aboard. The crew was initially wary of having a child on board for obvious reasons, but came to love him much the same as the previous navy crew had.
Unfortunately after barely six months on board, their ship was attacked by a corrupt military vessel of another land. All of the men of the ship, including Hongjoong’s dad, were killed in the fight, and Hongjoong was thrown overboard and left to die. The other ship had taken everything that could be scavenged from the ship before setting it afire and sailing away.
He had found a section of wood from the damaged ship large enough to support his weight and floated for just over a day before being rescued by another ship that had been coming to investigate the smoke of the burning merchant ship.
Hongjoong found himself at 12 years old having to ingratiate himself into yet another new crew, and this time without his dad to serve as his comfort and confidant. He shakily told the men the story of how he had come to be at sea at such a young age and what had happened to the ship.
He could tell the captain and the crew were skeptical of his claimed experience at sea when he insisted he could make himself useful, but there was one man, Daehyun, who volunteered to take him under his wing and make sure he understood the way the ship was run. During this tutelage, Hongjoong came to understand that the vessel that had picked him up was actually a ship of pirates. Ordinarily this would’ve brought him fear, having heard the stories of how brutal and heartless pirates were. However, he found it hard to link those stories with the caring men who shared songs and stories with him during meals, who joked with him when he was feeling down, and who offered silent shoulders to cry on when he was missing his family.
After several months of proving himself to the captain and the crew, he had finally been welcomed as a full and trusted member of the crew. The captain, Kim Gyuwook, explained how they were no ordinary pirates. Rather than victimizing blameless souls, they instead chose to fight against injustice. They used their skills to take down corrupt rulers and systems, their profits to feed and house those who lived in poverty, their connections to improve available resources to people with hardly anything, and their network of information to spread hope of a better life to those who previously only had despair. To Hongjoong’s surprise, Captain Kim also admitted they occasionally served as a ferry for magic users who found themselves in danger.
Hongjoong had never met someone who could use magic, but after hearing the tales of some of the people they had helped, he resolved that his ignorance and former indifference would end here.
Quickly adopting the mission as his own, Hongjoong proved his competence at sea, but also learned new tricks as he was walked through how to clean, repair, and care for the ship and all its workings. He was taught how to plan and budget food and water needed for travel, how to cook for a large group and keep both morale and nutrition high, what ports offered what merchandise and which to avoid, how to navigate, how to repair the various riggings and lines on the ship, how to maintain and use the large cannons that served as their protection, how to protect himself with swords, guns, or knives, and much more. He came to value the crew as his family, finding companionship and camaraderie in their free spirits and joyful demeanors.
Due to the fate of his previous ship, he came to realize he was presumed dead by the government who had come to investigate the wreck after he had been picked up. This offered him a lot of handy options for avoiding detection and gathering information for his new crew, and also led many of the crew to affectionately refer to him as their live-in ghost.
He came to enjoy the simultaneous anonymity and notoriety that came with being a part of such a well-known crew. He enjoyed his position as the youngest, though he often found himself being overlooked for more difficult or dangerous tasks and also sometimes had to protest against being treated as a child or not involved in planning their missions.
His mild frustration with his position on the ship was distracted when their ship was investigating an apparent shipwreck and found two younger boys as the only humans on the otherwise deserted ship.
They introduced themselves as Yunho and Mingi, and Hongjoong was irritated to find they were a year younger than him despite being several inches taller. As the closest in age to the boys, Hongjoong was tasked with looking after them and crafting them into helpful crew members, though Daehyun made sure to offer his assistance often.
It took several months before they were fully comfortable around Hongjoong, but after the initial period of hesitancy, they were thick as thieves. After those few months, it was rare to see the three boys apart from each other.
As he was teaching them about areas of the ship where they could pitch in, Hongjoong came to realize Mingi had an uncanny understanding of the maintenance and care of the carpentry and structure of the ship. The other boy shyly explained his parents had owned a carpentry shop and some of the information had stuck. He explained he had paid more attention on the previous ship whenever something was wrong with the wood, but had never felt confident enough to speak up. It wasn’t until a late night conversation that Mingi confessed he felt guilty that he had not done more to help his parents before he was taken, and that he could continue their legacy in this way by taking the best possible care of the ship.
Despite his appearance, Mingi was the definition of a gentle giant to those he cared about. He admitted he was often anxious when he was younger so it was simpler to have a strong persona so he wasn’t bothered by other kids. He was often quieter in larger groups, but became goofy and loud with those he trusted. He was often spooked easily, known to be an easy target for pranks. Though Hongjoong and Yunho could often be found taking advantage of their cowardly friend, they were fiercely protective of him the moment anyone else tried to take advantage of his fright. Almost in direct opposition to his usual fearful responses, Mingi was known to be steady and loyal in any stressful situation.
Yunho, on the other hand, seemed to be similar to Hongjoong in that he was good at anything he tried. Almost annoyingly so, Hongjoong reflected upon several occasions when Yunho took only a few days to pick up or complete tasks that had taken him weeks to master. If the other boy had been prideful about it, it would’ve been intolerable, but instead Yunho became bashful when attention was drawn to the speed he took to new tasks. He continued to insist his success was due to having such focused guidance from Hongjoong and support from Mingi. He was always cheerful and willing to lend a hand to anyone, not seeing any task as beneath him.
One skill that came naturally to Yunho that Hongjoong was jealous about was his ability to serve as a mediator of disputes between the crew. Even when it seemed he would have a stake in one side, he always listened fairly to both sides before offering his thoughts on the matter. Despite his young age, he was always able to offer insightful words and often had the much older men apologizing to each other simply by asking pointed questions to lead them to recognize their own wrongs instead of offering his own thoughts.
They continued to grow a deeper friendship as they shared victories and failures alike. However, their status quo was disrupted several years later when they were in port for several days at a small town to restock their ship. The three boys had decided to eat at the inn they were staying at for the evening instead of at a nearby bar with the rest of the crew. Hongjoong, now 16, and the other two boys, now 15, were surprised to see a boy their age serving patrons of the inn.
He served their table quickly and continued to whirl his way through the rest of the patrons with incredible speed, keeping drinks topped off and food flowing for the patrons and earning generous tips in return.
Seeing their young age, the server didn’t spend much extra time at their table, figuring they had little extra money to offer him in return for more attentive service. He instead spent his time flirting with the patrons who were rapidly approaching drunk, correctly assuming their hold on their coins would be much looser than their sober counterparts.
It seemed his antics were well-known by the patrons, as those who were less inebriated simply rolled their eyes when he winked, ran a teasing hand along a shoulder, or cackled too loudly at a joke that wasn’t deserving of such a reaction.
Hongjoong was content with watching the entertainment this boy provided during dinner as he discussed plans for the coming days in port with Yunho and Mingi. However, an uproar from a table of patrons who had been playing a card game drew his attention. He held up a hand to stop Yunho’s sentence and directed their focus to table where the server was waving his hands and protesting he won fairly and they would be known as dishonorable men who backed out of their bets if they didn’t see it through.
Much to the server’s annoyance, Hongjoong intervened and allowed Yunho to talk the men down by buying another round of drinks while he and Mingi shuffled the server away from the angry table. After reluctantly introducing himself as Wooyoung, the son of the owners of the inn, he protested that he had it under control and didn’t need their help before flouncing off to continue serving customers that were impatiently waiting for his attention after his short absence to join the gambling table.
Aside from the bare minimum of service, Wooyoung avoided any other attempts at conversation from Hongjoong, Yunho, or Mingi that evening. Hongjoong had intended to apologize to the other boy, but had been so thoroughly ignored that he didn’t even get a chance.
When the crew returned to the inn later that night, Hongjoong cautiously approached Captain Kim and requested if he could be allowed to remain at the inn tomorrow to talk with Wooyoung instead of helping with the restocking of the ship. Hearing the situation and how important it was for Hongjoong to clear the air, he agreed, but said sternly that if Wooyoung again avoided him tomorrow that he would have to leave the other boy in peace.
Yunho and Mingi solemnly wished him luck the next day as they set out from the inn with the rest of the crew. Hongjoong made his way down, fully planning to spend his day positioned at the bar until Wooyoung deigned to speak to him. To his surprise, the other boy greeted him brightly when he came down the stairs as if the previous evening had never happened. Cautious with this change of mood, Hongjoong waited until the other boy sat down with him for breakfast (as there were no other patrons this early in the morning) before he mentioned the events of the night before and offered an apology for overstepping.
Wooyoung waved away his words and proceeded to ask what felt like a million questions about Hongjoong, Yunho, Mingi, and how they had come to be associated with Captain Kim’s crew. In return, Hongjoong asked him about his life in town. Wooyoung had nearly endless stories about the escapades of him and his best friend in town, Yeosang. In a whirlwind, Wooyoung had disappeared to plead with his parents to have the afternoon off that day and arranged a time and place to meet Hongjoong. He was sent off on an errand by his parents, yelling over his shoulder to instruct Hongjoong to bring Yunho and Mingi with him.
Later that day, the three boys were led on a grand tour of the small town by Wooyoung, given likely heavily embellished tales of his exploits with Yeosang, who had also joined their little group after Wooyoung had dragged him out of his work. During the day, they found out that Wooyoung and Yeosang were the same age as Yunho and Mingi. It was easy to get along with Wooyoung, who seemingly had boundless energy but spent just as much effort making sure everyone felt included and was heard.
Yeosang was certainly the quieter of the two, but by the end of the day felt comfortable enough to dish out some savage comments to his long-time friend, leading to indignation from Wooyoung and laughter from the other three.
Hongjoong, Yunho, and Mingi spent as much time as possible with the other two boys in between their responsibilities in restocking the ship. Hongjoong suspected that Captain Kim had seen the friendship blooming between the five boys and had given fewer responsibilities (and thus more free time) as a result, but he was enjoying getting to spend time with other people around his age and didn’t protest too much when they were let off earlier than the rest of the crew.
To Hongjoong’s surprise, he finds Yeosang on their ship one of the last days they were in town. The other boy was talking seriously to another crew member about the state of the sails, admonishing him for not taking better care of the ship’s equipment. Hongjoong had the pleasure of seeing a pretty red flush spread across the other boy’s cheeks when he noticed he had a witness for his tirade.
Despite only spending a few days together, the five felt like they had been friends for a lifetime. Their plan to have a festive dinner the night before the crew was set to leave again was overshadowed by heavy hearts. Wooyoung ended up storming away when Hongjoong tried to offer a heartfelt goodbye, and Yeosang offered only a sad smile before following his friend.
As he seemed to have a penchant for doing, Wooyoung astonished them by arriving on the dock the next morning with Yeosang in tow, announcing his parents had finally agreed to let them join the crew and see the world after days of begging and making arrangements with Captain Kim.
Wooyoung was every bit the firecracker that his first impressions led people to believe. He was unabashedly loud with his words and his actions. He was quick to take offense, but even more quick to forgive any slights and reconcile. He was able to talk his way out of almost any situation he found himself in, well-practiced from his years of trouble seeking with Yeosang. After a few meals on the ship, he announced he was taking over as cook because he would no longer allow such sad meals when he could make something better. To the crew’s delight, his promise was absolutely correct and they felt like they were feasting every meal afterwards.
During fighting lessons, Wooyoung came to be recognized as the most innovative and would often win despite his smaller stature and less formal training. He wasn’t afraid to resort to unorthodox methods to win, and often would rile up the others by boasting of his wins.
Even though Wooyoung’s personality was often mistaken as shallow or abrasive by those who barely knew him, Hongjoong came to know him as an almost unbelievably sincere friend who loved deeply and held nothing back. He noticed when someone was upset almost before they did and often stepped in to cheer them up before melancholy could set in. He was always looking out for the others and doing little things to make their lives better, and always found new and inventive ways to express his appreciation for them. However, the first few times Hongjoong genuinely returned the fondness or affection offered by Wooyoung, it was almost heartbreaking to see the surprise in the younger boy’s eyes.
Yeosang, not unexpectedly, took much longer to open up than Wooyoung. He approached every task with prudence, but had an unexpected clumsy side that only added to his charm. He had a singular focus when he was given a task, and continued with dedication until that task was complete.
He expressed his interest in helping with the sails and riggings, having worked at his parents’ tailor shop and being very familiar with different cloth materials. He even admitted to taking jobs at the harbor mending sails for various merchant ships over the years to make some extra money, which gave him excellent knowledge in the required knots to secure and manage the sails and riggings.
After a few weeks, he became comfortable enough to start to show his goofy side, starting with offering a snide remark to Wooyoung before moving his savagery onto the other boys. Eventually he blossomed into offering cringey puns and gags, laughing freely at his own jokes even if no one else joined in.
He also took some time before sharing how he had been idolized and held on a pedestal by those in his town without being offered any chance to show who he was or what he thought, feeling rather like a porcelain doll instead of a person with feelings. Wooyoung had been the one to smash through all those notions, slowly coaxing the other out of his shell with his steadfast friendship that valued who he was as a person rather than his looks. In return, he did his best to keep the other out of trouble as much as he could.
Hongjoong came to appreciate the boyish innocence that Yeosang held. His heart was something truly precious, and the boys had wordlessly vowed to protect it as best as they could. Unlike his best friend, Yeosang’s friendship was rooted in soft-spoken words or silent support when he noticed someone faltering. He was known to take thankless tasks and complete them without having any expectation of receiving appreciation or notice.
Their next addition came unexpectedly. When some of the crew had infiltrated a party hosted by some nobles to gain information about a local crime syndicate, they were not expecting to be interrogated. Previously all of their infiltration missions had barely garnered a blink from those they were impersonating. This time, however, they were scrambling for answers while trying to avoid suspicion.
It was during this scramble that a young noble breezily interrupted, creating an entirely credible backstory and thus a legitimate reason for their presence without hardly pausing for breath. After smugly sending the nobles away disappointed with the lack of uncovered drama, he introduced himself as Seonghwa. In exchange for rescuing them, he demanded they let him join the crew and give him something interesting to do for once.
It took some bargaining, but Captain Kim eventually ended the conversation and welcomed Seonghwa aboard. Being the youngest in his noble family, his parents cared little for his actions, only demanding that he not embarrass them with his actions and must return to town to make a public appearance at several events during the year or he will be disowned.
They came to learn that, though he was the youngest of his family, he was the oldest of the boys by several months. At first he seemed somewhat uneasy with this role, more used to the dynamic in his family. He rarely used his voice as the eldest, though he did begin to speak up when he felt it was necessary. He slowly adjusted to his place among his new friends, finding himself caring for the younger boys when they were upset and offering a softer approach to Hongjoong’s usual discipline. That softer side disappeared when it came to matters of hygiene and cleanliness, though. He insisted that even living on a ship, there were certain standards that could be upheld.
Along with his support he offered unconditionally to the younger members, he also served as a source of comfort to Hongjoong. When Hongjoong shared his worries about how he was handling a situation or addressing a complaint, Seonghwa was quick to offer his views on how a situation was handled or what could be changed for the better if it was to happen again.
Because of his softer side, he often found himself the target of jokes from the younger boys, though only because he continued to respond to them good-naturedly. Hongjoong had offered to tell them to ease off, but Seonghwa reassured him he enjoyed the antics of the other boys and that it made him feel like he was welcomed into the group.
With his previous education, Seonghwa was able to navigate between ports with great ease, whether it be night or day. His abilities of navigation only became even more prominent as he came to understand the winds, the waters, and their ship.
He had also had extensive training in swordsmanship, though notably had difficulty when faced with an overwhelmingly different style, like Wooyoung’s. The years of experience made him a difficult opponent, even when he was on his heels. Before too long, he had incorporated their various styles of swordplay into his own version that was nearly unbeatable.
As each of the new members had come into their roles several months after Seonghwa had joined, Captain Kim informed them that he had another smaller vessel that had been waiting for a worthy captain and crew to join the mission. With a fatherly smile, he told them how much he had enjoyed watching them come together and make a family and that he was certain they would do exceptionally well in continuing the mission. He reassured them that he would always be available to offer advice and wanted them checking in regularly about their location, their missions, their struggles, and their successes.
On their new ship, the Horizon, Hongjoong was unanimously voted to serve as captain. He was overwhelmed by the show of support from his friends and promised that, even though he was a captain, that their voices would always be valued and that he would strongly weigh their advice before any decisions were made.
He was unsurprised when Yunho was unanimously voted as the quartermaster, the one to maintain discipline on the ship and serve as the advocate for the crew to the captain. However, it was easy to see the taller boy was stunned by the high regard the others held for him.
Mingi took over the role of maintaining the small vessel they now called home. He was militant when it came to maintenance and would not allow any protests when he felt that something needed to be fixed, arguing that their safety was dependent on his work.
Wooyoung continued his duties cooking for their smaller crew, also taking care of planning for supplies on their travels. He, having previously helped Yeosang with the sails and riggings, also took up a supporting role there when necessary.
Along with his work with the sails, Yeosang also hesitantly accepted Hongjoong’s request that he serve as a medic for the ship when Wooyoung let it slip that he had sewed up several gashes when they were barely children and surely could do the same now. While he didn’t have an extensive knowledge of medicine, he knew enough to treat common problems they would encounter at sea and did his best to ask questions of the nearest apothecary whenever they were in port to further his learning.
Seonghwa took the role of navigating, along with helping Wooyoung keep an eye on supplies. Because of his background, he also had some familiarity with the workings of the navy and would often run interference if there were any run-ins with navy vessels. Given his desire for a clean environment on the ship, he also forced the others to keep to a strict cleaning schedule, whether it be for themselves, their living space, or the larger common areas of the Horizon.
They found a new rhythm of life, taking missions that Captain Kim assigned them. As they got a few under their metaphorical belts, they began to meet some of the other ships under the fleet that were operating under the same mission as them. Hongjoong was taken aback at how many people were invested in making the world a safer and more fair place, regardless of the personal cost to them.
After one close call when several of their small crew were almost jailed for being involved in what was deemed shady business by the local authorities, Hongjoong realized they had perhaps overestimated what they activities could get away with. Due to their age, they were fairly memorable and recognizable.
Before their next stop in port, Yeosang suggested using some sort of uniform or disguise to keep themselves from being so easily identified. Fully behind the idea, the crew left it to Yeosang, who created an all-black ensemble consisting of masks and hats to minimize their chances of being recognized, saying they could wear them when they were on missions and otherwise wear their normal clothing.
Of course, their newfound rhythm also had a few hiccups. They had to spend time dealing with tensions that cropped up from sharing such a close space for such a prolonged time. They still had to address the clashing of personalities and misunderstandings that came along with getting to know someone on the deepest level.
But despite those setbacks, Hongjoong had never felt such wild and joyous freedom as when he was purposefully sailing with those he had come to consider his family. He had never imagined that they would add more to their little family, as perfectly as they all seemed to fit together.
Though most of their time was spent in new places on missions, they still did have the occasional return trip they had to plan for an event to satisfy the agreement with Seonghwa’s parents. Even after attending several of these events, Hongjoong couldn’t help but feel stifled by the stuffy atmosphere and constrictive clothing and often found other ways to occupy himself while some of the others accompanied Seonghwa.
It was after one of these events that Seonghwa, Yeosang, and Wooyoung returned to the Horizon with another boy in tow, all of them looking rather disheveled as if they had left in a rush. This was how he came to know San, a skinny boy the same age as the rest of the younger boys who somehow could both give the impression that he was a 5 year old child or that he was much older than his 17 years in the same conversation.
He was reluctant to share his story, but gave the basic details of how he was sold to a brothel when he was a child and came to be one of the most sought out escorts of the elite in the same town as Seonghwa. By happenstance, he happened to be at several parties hosted by Seonghwa’s family and this most recent one was when Seonghwa had finally decided enough was enough and demanded he return to their ship with them.
Hongjoong had never known someone with so many contradictions as San. He would sometimes be so shy and unsure of himself that it was hard to believe he was the same age as the rest of the boys. Other times, it was like something in his eyes would flip and he would be confident and suave with easy smiles, bold flirtations, and smooth conversation, making Hongjoong wonder which was his true self. It took several times witnessing this change before Hongjoong came to realize the latter was the character he had taken at the brothel, which made it all the more heartbreaking to realize the innocent side was the child San had never been allowed to be.
Another contradiction was revealed during their attempts to teach the boy how to use weapons. He had a natural grace and was able to punch, kick, and fly through the air like no one else. He could wield knives and swords with the same elegance, despite no formal training. After beating Wooyoung in his first practice bout, San eventually admitted it was likely due to his almost painful awareness of his own body that he had developed at the brothel, and they never raised the topic again. Conversely, the boy could barely stand to be around any guns, hating the loud noise that came whenever they were shot. Though he gritted his teeth to learn to be a decent shot in case of emergency, he avoided guns if at all possible.
It became clear through their missions that San had absolutely no intention of allowing any of his new family to be put in harm’s way, instead volunteering for the most dangerous tasks and somehow managing to escape mostly unscathed. Despite Hongjoong promising that he would no longer need to use his body for the pleasure of others like he had in the brothel, San offered freely if it would make the mission easier, often with a self-deprecating comment of how his honor couldn’t be tarnished any further than it already had or that he had little else to offer.
It wasn’t until a mission where Hongjoong had sent Yunho along with San that they came to understand his solo successes on missions, separate from his ability to seduce the most uninterested targets. Over dinner, Yunho explained in a quiet voice what he had witnessed, seeing his friend flip his personas seemingly at will, torturing a corrupt official with hardly a blink before turning back to his friend and smiling innocently, unaware or uncaring of the blood coating his hands and clothes.
Like many other things with San, they learned not to ask unless he offered the information or raised the topic himself.
San fell into the jack-of-all-trades role, inspecting the stores, the rigging, and the ship, helping with the sails, the navigation, or the anchor as needed. He often trailed the others, wanting to learn from their experience. Before long, he was helping Wooyoung cook, helping Yeosang grind herbs for medicine, and helping Mingi maintain the Horizon. Having previously been fashionably scrawny so as to appeal to more nobles, it took only a few months of vigorous work and proper nutrition before he started to bulk up considerably.
Hongjoong came to deeply value his friendship with San. He was, as he was in many other ways, a contradiction in how he showed his affection. He was the first to offer loud encouragement for any of their crew, and after being affectionately bitten by Wooyoung several days after joining the crew, he was quick to offer physical comfort and closeness in any situation. He was always willing to listen and cared deeply for each of them, but was often slow to share his own thoughts and feelings, not wanting to burden his new friends or deeming his needs as unimportant in comparison.
Hongjoong had often tried to reassure the other boy that he was worth just as much as the rest of them, and that he didn’t need to continue to place himself last. San would only smile gently and thank him for his words, before returning to the same destructive behaviors.
Regardless of all his quirks, San fit into their crew like a missing puzzle piece.
Another change that seemed to be triggered by San, but likely had been a long time coming, was shared intimacy between the crew members. Their newest addition was so unused to the taboo of nudity or shame around things related to sex, merely considering it another form of being close, and they were all healthy young men, so he saw no problem in relieving stress or sharing space intimately with those he loved and trusted. By no means was he disrespectful or pushy, instead treating each of them with the utmost regard, as if they were priceless. Though he would often admit not understanding when someone didn’t want to be close, if there was a boundary set, he would become practically the perfect gentleman in his efforts to honor it.
It all started with San and Wooyoung, and Yeosang was a quick addition. Before too long, all of the younger boys were known to share beds, for blowing off steam or for simple comfort. It almost felt inevitable when Hongjoong and Seonghwa also joined several months in. Given their former closeness, it hardly felt like much of a change.
Of course, not everything was easy going. There were fights, both verbal and physical, between all of them. But they all held enormous respect for each other, even when they were upset, which made their reconciliations quicker and more wholesome.
It had been three years since San had joined their crew, and honestly Hongjoong thought they were complete. He couldn’t imagine having any more space in his heart for another crewmate, let alone another lover.
He couldn’t have possibly prepared for their youngest.