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Sunghoon is a clingy boyfriend.
Now that would come as no surprise to Sunghoon himself, to his beloved Sunoo, to their friends, and even to the fans who are uncertain of whether or not they are actually dating. He watches Sunoo get his makeup done with a dopey smile on his face, disrupting his own stylists; he focuses on taking pictures during Sunoo’s photoshoots instead of going to his own; and somehow he finds a way to mention him at any unrelated occurrence. It’s become a running joke at this point — how many seconds can he go without mentioning Sunoo?
The current record is at a whopping 7 minutes, with the greatest failure being a singular second, prompted by Sunghoon dejectedly asking “have you guys seen Sunoo?” as he came into the room right as soon as they set the bet.
And it’s not that Sunoo isn’t as clingy, he just tends to show it in less vocal ways, ones that don’t involve backhugs around the breakfast table when everyone’s just trying to get up on a typical Monday morning.
In fact, Sunghoon would say Sunoo is way more affectionate when it’s just the two of them. He’s usually the first to initiate cuddling, and not to mention, he always asks for kisses with that pouty face that he knows nobody can say no, much less Sunghoon. When he tries to leave, he practically transforms into a koala, one that has deliberately superglued itself to his bicep and knows it's too cute to resist.
Whenever Sunghoon tries to tell the others this, he seems like the crazy one, because, well, Sunoo isn’t the one who fuels dating rumors between you guys, but Sunghoon knows damn well that he is the one who interlocks their fingers under the table, who asks to call whenever they’re apart, and who quietly giggles over fan content when nobody is looking.
Unfortunately, all that stuff remains either subtle or secret, and Sunghoon will continue to look crazy until the universe decides to strike Kim Sunoo down with a visibly clingy habit which will prove Sunghoon’s “crazy” theories true. Until then, he will remain the clingy one, and Sunoo, for lack of better term — the seemingly nonchalant one.
Because that would never happen, right?
~
It starts with inconspicuous accessories and items of clothing. Old, faded t-shirts he barely wears anymore, a cap he bought once and just never used, and even one of his jackets that has been caught in way too many airport pictures.
Sunghoon didn’t pay it much mind at first — he knows some of the others have a tendency to share (steal) clothes and maybe he was just getting looped into the scheme without his consent. It’s weird that he’s never seen anyone actually having them on though, though that cap in Sunoo’s latest Weverse post looks oddly familiar, and they’re always returned or find their way back to him through the laundry cycle anyway.
He tries not to think about it all that much, not wanting to pry since they only recently did get together, after all, with the delay being mostly his fault for being way too dense. If Sunghoon’s theory was wrong, he would probably never hear the end of it.
But one day, his favorite hoodie, the one he specifically tells everyone is off-limits, mysteriously disappears from his closet.
It’s either he’s actually lost it, or he’s instead lost his mind, because there’s no way his beloved bundle of cotton magically escaped from his meticulously organized system overnight. In fact, Sunghoon could swear it was just there yesterday, hanging pretty at the leftmost side of his collection as he brought in the fresh laundry.
He mutters a curse or two under his breath after a few more searches prove unsuccessful, messily carding a hand through his hair as he exits to the main room to interrogate anyone he can find lounging on the couch.
Rounding the corner to block the view of the TV from the couch, he finds something, or rather someone else instead.
Sunghoon’s crossed arms fall to his side uselessly, because there lies the culprit himself, all sideways and sleeping beauty, practically drowning in his hoodie as his chest gently rises up and down, with his head leaning against an elevated side of the couch.
Well, if this isn’t a surprising turn of events, he doesn’t know what is, Sunghoon thinks as he tries to stifle his giddy satisfaction. What was originally the worst thing that had happened all week had only been a guise for the actual highlight — Sunoo stealing his hoodie and looking absolutely devastating in it. Not to mention, that particular hoodie is already oversized on Sunghoon, so it practically covers Sunoo’s thighs, which he tries really hard not to think about.
Sunoo looks peaceful as he sleeps, serenely beautiful, and even somewhat blissful, as if he had never known what it was like to worry. Sunghoon wishes he could remain undisturbed like this; it’s what he deserves.
Sunghoon watches him for a bit, before breaking out of his trance and shaking his head fondly, suppressing a laugh and wondering just how long the younger has been here. Sunoo seems pretty deep in slumber, and he would be killed without remorse if he woke him up from this much-needed nap. Still, he would have liked to see him be able to sleep in a much more comfortable place (preferably in his arms, at that).
Sunghoon thinks he can do something about that, and so he bends down to gently slide one arm under the back of Sunoo’s knees, with the other one securely holding his shoulders, before lifting him close to his own chest with ease. As he walks towards his room, Sunoo shifts a bit and leans his head against Sunghoon’s chest, and he bites his lip to prevent smiling like a maniac, just in case somebody passes by.
“Here we go,” he says to no one in particular, lightly nudging the door open with his knee before setting Sunoo down onto the bed, bundling him up in the covers like a solitary gimbap roll before brushing his lips on his forehead as a silent goodnight.
“Sleep well, sunshine.”
As he turns to leave, he feels a light tug on the edge of his shirt. “Stay with me?”
“Hm?” Sunghoon turns around to see Sunoo’s arm reaching out, sweater paws from his hoodie and all, with the boy himself half awake and staring at him with bleary eyes. Sleep sounds heavy in his voice as he mumbles something Sunghoon quite can’t make out and rolls over to make space for him.
As quietly as he can, Sunghoon moves onto the bed as well, languidly drawing Sunoo closer with one hand, which then comes to comfortably rest on his shoulder, as the other tucks himself in to lean on him.
For a while, he is content staying like this, holding him and tracing meaningless circles onto his shoulder, looking at the person who makes everything worth it and more.
Sunoo breaks the silence. “Sunghoonie-hyung.”
“Yeah?” Sunghoon wonders what was on his mind. Could it be one of those questions with no right answer that he steals from those Tiktok videos made by girlfriends who love to trick their boyfriends, or was he about to admit to stealing from Sunghoon’s closet? The possibilities were truly endless.
It turns out he’ll never know, because his lover had just fallen asleep in his arms and was snoozing without a care for anything in the world. Honestly, given how quickly he fell back asleep, Sunghoon doubted he would even remember this attempt at conversation when he woke up.
~
Now, Sunghoon isn’t that dense. He has a running theory that Sunoo had most likely stolen the previous clothes too, but he wasn’t about to complain and lose the chance of seeing him in that hoodie again.
But then again, maybe it was cold and there was nothing else around, or maybe he just happened to own an identical hoodie in a size way too big for him (you know how fashion gets nowadays). The point is, the possibilities are endless. Whatever the reason may have been, his beloved hoodie had been dutifully folded and returned to his closet without his notice anyway.
But the next day, his most-used leather jacket, as well as that semi-rimless pair of glasses that he planned to wear on their next flight were gone, and this time the culprit was standing, or rather posing for his daily selfies, near his favorite wall in the main room.
Quietly, Sunghoon approaches the thief, a smile already growing on his face as he plots on the best way to tease him. Sneaking up behind him, he blocks the camera with one hand as he pulls Sunoo in by the waist, who quickly turns to him with a pout on his face. “Hyung! I was about to take a really good one too.”
As expected, the jacket drapes over his figure, baggy yet still stylish against his gray tank top and jeans, while the glasses make him look like a gorgeous nerd that Sunghoon would pay to listen to talk about quantum physics for hours (sorry, Jake). Sunghoon is always talking about how Sunoo should wear glasses more, even as he teases him for his terrible eyesight, when he would actually rather die than let his boyfriend ever get Lasik.
Sunghoon pauses before kissing the pout off his face. “You’re incapable of taking any selfies that aren’t amazing, baby, and that’s not a biased opinion.”
“Hm, I guess,” Sunoo hums, scrolling through his gallery and efficiently marking his favorites. Sunghoon leans over to look and almost has a heart attack. “Okay, you’ve convinced me.”
“Anyways,” He addresses the elephant in the room, teasingly adjusting the glasses on Sunoo’s face, “what’s with the get-up? Looks kinda familiar.”
Sunoo shrugs, adjusting the jacket to let one side slip off of his shoulder and observing how it looks through his camera. Sunghoon didn’t want to say he was a mere weak man, but if this was a ploy to distract him, it was most certainly working.
“Just thought they’d look good with my outfit. Why? Do you want them back?” Sunoo asks, stepping forward to idly play with the strings of Sunghoon’s hoodie. As he waits for his answer, he looks right at Sunghoon with foxy eyes that wordlessly weaken his resolve.
“N-no, it’s alright,” Sunghoon stammers, cursing his potato of a brain. Sunoo had a way of turning things around — what may have initially started as him teasing Sunoo and having the upper hand could transform into him being a flustered mess in the blink of an eye, with the effect that Sunoo has on him. “You should keep them, actually.”
“Really?” Sunoo smiles, clasping his hands together. He looks genuinely excited, and it makes Sunghoon want to give him all the clothes in the world.
Nodding, Sunghoon watches the way that Sunoo spins in celebration, his favorite habit of his, then bounces forward to plant a thank-you kiss on Sunghoon’s cheek before skipping towards his room.
Sunghoon watches him go like there’s nothing else he would rather do, endeared by the way his fluffy hair bounces and the jacket swishes around him as he moves.
Suddenly, he spins back and pokes his head through the door. “And for the record, I don’t wear these for fashion purposes, I wear them because they’re yours,” Sunoo adds with a wink, before slipping out again, like he didn’t just endanger Sunghoon’s health.
“Don’t take that jacket off, please,” Sunghoon mutters, a few seconds too late for anyone to hear. Well, supposedly no one, he thinks, as Jungwon pops up from the couch to pat him on the back sympathetically.
~
‘I’m going out!” Sunoo announces as he opens the door of his room, throwing his arms around Sunghoon as soon as he catches sight of him. Stumbling back a bit, Sunghoon can’t help but smile as he returns the hug.
“Hm? For what?” Sunghoon asks, head resting on top of Sunoo’s. “Do you want company?”
Sunoo shakes his head as they pull away, thanking him anyway. “I’m just gonna meet with one of my friends from high school.”
“Ah, okay.” Sunghoon’s glad to see him get the chance to go out, as much as he wants to spend time with him. Besides, he knows that even if he hasn’t met them, whoever has cared for and been loved by Sunoo is worthy of his respect.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” Sunoo frowns, and he realizes he’s gone quiet for a bit, toying with an idea in his head.
“Hold on for a bit,” Sunghoon excuses himself and approaches his closet in search of a particular item of clothing, then returns to Sunoo, who has busied himself staring at the figures on Sunghoon’s desk.
“Take this, I don’t want you getting cold out there,” Sunghoon says to him, the tone of his voice gentle as he wraps his scarf around Sunoo’s neck, ensuring that it works with his coat to prevent all cold air from even daring to reach his exposed skin. Once it’s secure, he looks Sunoo up and down before letting him leave, unable to resist the smile fighting its way onto his face from how cute his boyfriend looks.
“It’s mine, by the way, since you only seem to be interested in that type of clothes nowadays.”
Color rushes to Sunoo’s face as he folds his arms in protest. “They’re really comfy, okay? And I think I have a right to it as your boyfriend.”
Sunghoon steps closer to adjust a small fold in his coat, leaning down to kiss Sunoo’s cheek as he does so. “Never said you didn’t, baby. You should just keep them all, actually. I like how my hoodie looks on you.”
Sunoo lightly punches his side. “You still remember that? All I remember is falling asleep on the couch and suddenly waking up in your room.”
“How could I forget? I thought it was cute that you missed me and wanted to have something of mine to keep.”
“I wouldn’t say it’s just because of that," Sunoo pretends to deliberate on a difficult decision. “Maybe they’re just really nice clothes.”
“Ahh, so we’re lying to each other now. Fine, I was just about to tell you I wouldn’t miss you while you’re out.”
Sunoo immediately frowns, staring at the ground and playing with the edge of his coat. Truth to be told, Sunghoon can’t tell if he’s joking or not, and he’s not about to take that chance.
He grits his teeth and swallows his pride. “You know I’m just kidding, right? The room suddenly feels hotter than it should be. “Right?”
Avoiding his gaze a bit longer, Sunoo folds his arms across his chest. “I don’t know with you, Sunghoon-hyung.”
There’s no point in fighting a losing battle, Sunghoon thinks as he cups Sunoo’s face in his hands, laughing at how he squirms under his hold for a bit, cheeks still slightly puffed up and reddish in hue. Just because he can, he kisses Sunoo’s forehead, then his cheeks, then finally his annoyingly glossy lips. His actions receive no protest, if the softening of Sunoo’s gaze as he breaks out into giggles is any indicator.
“Take care of yourself, sunshine.” Sunghoon grins as he releases Sunoo from his hold, who he delights in the fact is a few shades redder now. “Call me when you get drunk.”
Sunoo gapes. “I won’t? You think so lowly of me.” He replies, punching Sunghoon in the chest repeatedly in mock frustration, as if he were a professional boxer and not someone bundled in at least three layers of clothing.
Sunghoon pretends to keel over, laughing as he does so. “I’m just saying, the offer still stands.”
“Fine, fine.” Sunoo fixes his hair one last time before retrieving a beanie to wear from his jacket pocket. “I’ll see you later, love.” He exclaims, blowing him a kiss before turning to leave.
Sunghoon waves at him dumbly before he closes the door, already saving that mental voice note in his head.
~
Waking up to an empty space where Sunoo should have been, Sunghoon normally would have been upset.
And he was, believe him, until he saw that the shirt he had picked out for the day was gone. Under normal circumstances, this would in no universe be a good thing, but in this context, it could only mean one thing: Sunoo had stolen it to wear today!
He practically jumped out of bed, grabbing the first replacement shirt he could find before heading to the kitchen, where he knew everyone would be gathered.
Lo and behold, there was Sunoo, wearing a loose black shirt — his shirt — that was again, way too big for him. Sunghoon personally thought it matched fabulously with his green striped pajamas.
Smirking, he swaggered up to the table with his hands angled out in front of him. “See, what did I tell you guys?”
Jay stared at him unimpressed like he had just tried to initiate conversation about the weather. “What?”
“Wait, what did you tell us?” Jake, never one to back down from a challenge, squinted at him.
“You guys didn’t believe me when I said Sunoo could be as clingy as me.” Sunghoon frowned, now pointing triumphantly to the aforementioned boy, who was merely looking at him in fond amusement. “Now look!”
“Is this another rant about how good he looks in the morning? We’ve heard enough of those, trust me.” Heeseung teases as he walks towards the table with his cereal setup in hand, looking between him and Sunoo.
“No?” Sunghoon sighs, exasperated, as Sunoo shamelessly laughs at him.
“Wait, is that a new shirt, Sunoo?” Jake lights up. Sunghoon is about to point victoriously and rub it all in their stupid faces before his best friend speaks up again. “Where’d you order it?”
“Seriously?”
Sunoo giggles. “I’ll send you the link.”
“Hello? This is false information.” Sunghoon glares at him, though it’s hard to stay mad with how soft he looks in the morning. Staring at his messy hair and oversized fit, Sunghoon thinks that he wouldn’t mind waking up to this view for the rest of his life.
“Ohh, is the point that it’s yours, Sunghoon-hyung?” Riki pauses his overconsumption of breakfast food to dryly comment.
“Yes, thank you. At least someone can admit that.” Sunghoon applauds.
The rest look at him, unimpressed, as Jungwon throws a pitiful “cool” into the abyss of silence.
Sunghoon thinks it’s time to wrap up this discussion. “Anyways, you guys believe me now, right?”
“I mean, you probably told him to, right?”
“I thought you guys already shared clothes.”
“Did you pay Riki to respond?”
“I honestly just feel bad for you.”
“I guess, but he could never be as clingy as you, anyway. That’s against the laws of the world.”
Sunghoon throws his hands up in the air, admitting defeat. “You guys are impossible. I give up.” Because he feels like being a drama queen, and maybe, just maybe, because he wants Sunoo to follow him, he stomps off towards his room and pretends to nap.
The second he hears a knock on the door, he jumps out and opens it, and there stands Sunoo, wrapped in the same hoodie he returned once, stole again, and just never gave back, and Sunghoon wouldn’t have it any other way.
“You know we’re all just kidding, right?” Sunoo asks, slight concern reflected on his face as Sunghoon pretends to be upset. “I mean, everyone knows how gone I am for you, and I have been since that stupid show.”
“I know. I just like hearing it from you, babe.” Sunghoon grins immediately, and Sunoo slaps him. “I came here to get your attention, honestly, but now some cuddles sound pretty good.”
“Really? What if I say no?” Sunoo teases, pulling his hood over half his face and pretending to sulk, and Sunghoon wants so much, wants to be by his side for as long as he will allow him, that his heart hurts.
Before he can stop himself, he’s become a sap, pulling the hood off of his boyfriend’s face and trailing off. “You know, I really- I care about you, so much, like more than I thought I was capable of caring about someone.”
“You sure know how to convince me.” Sunoo giggles. “And I know, baby. I love it when you take care of me, honestly.”
“Never forget that, okay?” Sunghoon says, close to a whisper, almost fragile.
Sunoo smiles at him, nodding, seeing his vulnerability laid out before him and keeping it close to his chest, before breaking out into a yawn. “Okay, real quick, I need a nap.”
And as Sunghoon lays there, arm wrapped around Sunoo’s waist with the other boy’s head tucked close to his neck, as cliche as it would sound, there’s honestly nowhere else he would rather be.
Sunoo looks like an angel in this light. He admires him as the sunlight trickling from the window kisses his features, gently moving a strand of hair that had fallen onto his face, wondering how he had ever gotten lucky. Maybe he’ll dream about saving a country in his past life, or anything that could ever make him deserving of this beautiful boy.
Needless to say, they don’t wake up in time for their next schedule, and if Jungwon comes into the room, sees them huddled together, and decides that maybe they all deserve the day off, that’s his problem to settle with management.