“Not even a single argument?”

Soobin looks up from his food and nods, a little proud to admit that he has no issues with Beomgyu. They had started dating exactly 11 months and 19 days ago (Soobin was keeping count since he knew Beomgyu liked remembering important dates. This one time, Soobin returned to the dorms to find Beomgyu lying in his bed, a laptop on the bedside table and a bunch of snacks. He was wearing his comfiest clothes and looked so excited, telling Soobin how it had been exactly a year since he had watched Hotel Del Luna and that he wanted to celebrate his one year by rewatching it with Soobin. Soobin had spent the entire afternoon dozing off between scenes, but Beomgyu didn’t seem to mind, laying his head on Soobin’s shoulder and loading up the next episode even when he started snoring.) In all those 11 months and 19 days since, they had not had a single problem (“yet,” Yeonjun always says with a knowing smile).

It wasn’t like there were never any issues between them. Besides the handful of times that they had argued before debuting, once Beomgyu had eaten all of the pudding Soobin had stacked their fridge with and yeah, sure, that made his blood boil a little (because that was his pudding), but the look on Beomgyu’s face after he finished eating drained all the anger out of him. His cheeks were filled with pudding, the spoon held up mid-air with the last piece of pudding in it. He stared at Soobin with wide eyes, the look he always gave when he got caught doing something wrong, as it was only then he realised Soobin had gotten them for himself. Before Beomgyu could splutter out an apology, Soobin took the spoon from his hand and fed him the last bite, calling him cute. The others said he was too weak when it came to Beomgyu. He didn’t mind.

There was another time when Soobin had read the lyrics Beomgyu had written for their next album without the younger knowing. In all honesty, Soobin thought he was allowed to read them, especially since Beomgyu had left his phone with the notes app open on his bed. But then Beomgyu came back with a glass of water and saw Soobin reading them and almost burst into tears. Not familiar with Beomgyu crying, Soobin awkwardly wrapped his arms around him, patting his back in the hope that it would help him stop. Eventually, after sobbing directly into Soobin’s shirt, Beomgyu pulled back and gave him a small smile, telling him that those were lyrics that had been rejected. It took him a second to realise before he started apologising profusely. In the end, Beomgyu accepted his apology and they moved past it.

So, overall, they never really had problems.

“It’s been like, a year. I’m impressed,” Taehyun says, nodding along with Soobin, who just smiles in return. Taehyun was the first to know about their relationship, having been the only member to have witnessed them confessing. He had only made his presence known after Beomgyu hugged Soobin by snorting at the sight. He congratulated them before disappearing off to his room.

“Not for long,” Yeonjun says, appearing from behind Taehyun. He drops himself onto the sofa next to Taehyun and plants an obnoxious kiss on his cheek, earning a groan from not only Soobin but Taehyun himself. “Don’t you remember how our honeymoon phase went? No issues until they finally built up and then-”

“Then we broke up, I was heartbroken, you stopped talking to me. The members all found it super awkward to walk on eggshells around us and then-” Yeonjun quickly covers Taehyun’s mouth and pouts.

“Anyway! What I’m saying is, Soobin and Beomgyu are probably going to reach the end of their honeymoon phase soon, I can feel it.”

Soobin rolls his eyes. Although the members had been supportive of their relationship, Yeonjun liked pretending to be that older brother who knew exactly what was going to happen. And yet he hated being called old. “How are you so sure? Maybe we’re just never going to get out of it, huh?”

He watches with narrowed eyes as Taehyun and Yeonjun share a knowing look, something they always seem to do nowadays when Soobin talks to them about Beomgyu. “When you reach my age, you’ll understand where I’m coming from.”

“You’re just a little over a year older than me, and Tyun’s younger.”

“Tsk, tsk,” Taehyun says as he shakes his head. “Once you reach that stage of your relationship you’ll get it.”

Soobin raises an eyebrow at the strangely synchronised nodding of the couple opposite him and shudders. “Is this how Beomgyu and I will be after being together for a few years?”

“That’s if you last,” Yeonjun yelps when Taehyun smacks his arm.

“Don’t listen to him, Hyung. I’m sure you and Beomgyu hyung will be fine. Just talk things out as soon as any problem happens, okay?”

But Soobin’s sure nothing will happen. He and Beomgyu are happy. Full of love.

-

On the day Soobin confessed, he had come home to a quiet dorm, stumbling over the pile of shoes Yeonjun probably forgot to take back to his room. It wasn’t always this quiet, someone would be lazing around in the living room, either the TV would be playing a drama or munching some dinner away while a hushed conversation was happening. The only times it was this quiet was when there wasn’t anyone home or if everyone was asleep.

Soobin guessed they went out.

He was the only one who had been called in that afternoon, a small meeting discussing some schedules that seemed to clash due to misunderstandings. Soobin had called Taehyun just an hour ago to ask about something and the younger sounded like he was in a rush. Probably getting ready to leave.

Soobin walked past the empty unlit living room and was about to head to his room, ready to quickly shower and hit the bed when he heard a faint, “Soobin hyung?” from behind. He spun around and squinted in the dark to see Beomgyu lying on the sofa, his phone barely lighting his face up. “You’re finally home.”

“Yeah, finally,” Soobin laughed dryly, shrugging his jacket off. “Why are you up this late?”

While they both knew that Beomgyu was an insomniac, he wouldn’t spend his nights in the living room, saying that it’s too chilly there and that he would rather spend it in the comfort of his bed (Soobin shared the sentiment). So to find him on the sofa, not a blanket in sight, the TV switched off, curtains pulled shut, and with the lights off; it was a bit concerning, to say the least.

Beomgyu sat up and covered his eyes when Soobin turned the light on. “You were taking a long time and no one was home. Didn’t want to sleep with no one home.”

“Have you eaten?” Soobin asked as he took a seat next to him.

“Yeah, you?” Beomgyu shuffled closer to him and his head perfectly fit upon Soobin's shoulder.

Soobin hummed in agreement before closing his eyes. It had been a long day, with him spending the entire afternoon in practice and then the evening going back and forth between event organisers, all he really wanted to do was climb into bed and sleep, but from the way Beomgyu was playing with the end of his sleeve, he could tell the younger wanted to talk. And Soobin was willing to sacrifice anything for Beomgyu’s comfort.

“What’s up?” Soobin decided to get straight to the point. Beomgyu never liked beating around the bush anyway. All the members preferred different ways of having conversations, with Taehyun wanting time and space so he could come and start the talk and Kai wanting Soobin to come first and soothe him into talking. Yeonjun was the same as Soobin, you had to force it out of him before he drowned himself in his concerns.

“It’s nothing big, really,” Beomgyu said, fidgeting even more when Soobin opened his eyes and turned to stare at him. “Just, was thinking.”

“About?”

“Work?” It came out more as a question and they both looked at each other confused before Soobin urged him to continue by patting his thigh. “You stayed back today.”

“I stayed back, yeah. What about it?”

It wasn’t like that was anything new and neither was it something only Soobin experienced. Just the other day, Beomgyu had been called back for a project they wanted to work on with him. So, it wasn’t like it was the first time it had happened. Sure, it was tiring and Soobin wished that they wouldn't ask him to stay back for extra hours and instead just talk to him about certain things (easy ones, like when they were telling him off for mentioning another idol who was promoting at the same time as them on live) over text. But it wasn't so bad.

“This is the sixth time this month, Hyung, and we're not even halfway through it yet,” Beomgyu answered with worry heavy in his voice. His brows furrowed in concern as he raised his hand to Soobin’s arm. “You always go in before the rest of us and come home after us.”

“It’s always been like that, Gyu. Don’t worry about it.” And Soobin truly meant it. Since it had been something he had faced since their debut days, and even sometimes before, Soobin had gotten into the routine of having to get through longer days at work.

“Well, that’s not something you should be used to,” Beomgyu grumbled, frown deepening when Soobin smiled at him. “I’m being serious here, Soobin, don't smile.”

“I know, I just find you really cute.”

Beomgyu’s eyes widened slightly and he pursued his lips before doubling down. “Listen here, Choi Soobin,” he started and Soobin had to force himself to not smile any wider. Beomgyu always used his full name when trying to appear mad and intimidate him, but it had the complete opposite effect. “Either you tell them to stop calling you every other day, or I will.”

“You will? Oh, my saviour, Beomgyu!” Soobin joked, throwing himself over the younger, who tried tickling him in retaliation. “How kind of you to offer yourself as a sacrifice to protect me.”

“Hyung,” Beomgyu mumbled, pushing him back enough for them to be able to look at each other. “I'm being serious though, okay? It's not healthy for you to sleep barely 2-3 hours a day and then spend the remaining hours of the day at work.”

“I understand, Gyu,” Soobin said, patting his head as he felt a wave of affection wash over him. Beomgyu was always looking out for them, something Soobin loved mentioning to the fans, but they'd never be able to live through it. And Soobin wasn't willing to share.

“What?” Beomgyu asked after Soobin stared at him for a second too long. Beomgyu's eyes searched his, waiting for something that Soobin was too afraid to say out loud. He had said it only once and that was to Taehyun, who had coaxed him into admitting to it, reminding him that if he was to ever say the words to Beomgyu, he would be there to support him.

He never planned to; it was too risky. They were meant to be an inseparable group and confessing to Beomgyu could cause a rift between them, ruining the entire dynamic of the group. Soobin never wanted his feelings to affect the group, ever.

And yet, as he continued staring at Beomgyu, endeared by the way the younger raised his hands to Soobin's face in an attempt to stop him from staring, he felt as though he could say the words comfortably.

“Beomgyu-yah,” Soobin started, his heart beating fast enough to beat out of his chest. He took Beomgyu's hand in his own and brought it to his chest, feeling a smile itch onto his face at the way the younger's eyes followed the motion. “Ah, what to do? I love you so much that my heart feels like it's going to burst.”

Beomgyu pressed his hand on his chest and stared in awe before turning to Soobin, his cheeks a rosy shade. “You really can't live without me, huh?”

“Really.”

Soobin grabbed his hand and tugged him into a hug, arms wrapping around Beomgyu’s smaller body as he tightened his embrace. “I really love you, Beomgyu.”

“I love you too, Hyung. Always have, always will.”

-

“Hyung,” Beomgyu calls out from the entrance, kicking his shoes off in the general direction of the shoe stand and tucking his feet into the slippers Soobin had laid out for him. “Hyung.”

Soobin takes his glasses off and puts them on his nightstand alongside his phone. He watches as Beomgyu shuffles across his door before taking a few steps back and peering through his door frame. He has a frown on his face as he walks over, collapsing into Soobin’s outstretched arms.

“Hyung,” Beomgyu mumbles against his chest, squirming around until he finally wraps all his limbs around Soobin.

“Mhm?”

“I’m so tired,” he answers, picking at the blanket by their feet to pull it over them, a small smile forming on his face as Soobin drags them down the bed to rest his head on the pillow. “I dropped coffee on myself earlier.”

Soobin sniffs at his hair, running his fingers through the sticky strands and gets hit by the strong scent of coffee. Sighing, he says, “How exactly did this happen? Did you slip?”

“I put my cup on the table, accidentally dropped my phone, reached down to pick it up, hit my head on the table, and coffee spilt on me,” Beomgyu says all this with the corner of his lips downturned. He whines when Soobin stops petting his hair but then quietens when he tucks his head back onto his chest. “The managers all saw it happen.”

“Did they help?”

“No!” Beomgyu exclaims, pushing his head out of Soobin’s grip to sit up straight. “They just watched the coffee spill everything. It was on my phone, in my hair, on the table, on the floor!”

Soobin coos and caress his face. “Did they laugh at poor Beomie?”

“Don’t laugh at me right now, Choi Soobin. I will fight you,” Beomgyu responds, his brows gathered together, lips pursed into a pout and satori slipping into his words. Grumpy Beomgyu was always like this, but Soobin found him cute regardless. The members always teased Soobin, saying that he quietly took all of Beomgyu's anger, but the reality was that Beomgyu rarely ever actually got mad. Sure, there were times when he would huff and puff and look the other way, ignoring Soobin, but that wouldn’t last any longer than a few minutes. Arguably, Beomgyu was just as weak when it came to Soobin.

“Anyway,” Beomgyu says, giving up on glaring at Soobin to fall back onto the bed with him. “How was your day, any better than mine?”

“I was telling Taehyun about how we’ve never fought and Hyung said that soon we would.”

“Yeonjun hyung?” Beomgyu asks, to which Soobin nods. “Oh, then it doesn't matter what he says.” This gets a laugh out of Soobin. “His relationship has been through so much and he never handled it well. He probably has no idea what he’s talking about, I mean, did you see how he handled the tiny argument he had with Kai the other day?”

“I guess.” While Yeonjun and Taehyun were probably not the best examples of how a relationship should be, it still got Soobin thinking. He never truly knew what happened between them, since Taehyun didn’t want to tell anyone what was going on as he claimed it was something ‘Yeonjun hyung had to figure out on his own’. Regardless, seeing the two argue and yet still make it all work out in the end, made him think that maybe arguments were not always something to avoid.

Whenever he had any sort of build-up to an argument with Beomgyu, the two of them would immediately drop it. It was an unspoken rule between them that they were not to drag out any fights (or rather, build up to potential fights). The start was from when they were roommates and they realised that being mad at each other was not productive, especially since they would have to wake up together, go to work together, spend the entire day together, and then sleep in the same bunk bed. It wasn’t ideal to keep fighting. While he knew that wasn’t the best idea - Soobin bases this off how his parents had a rough patch during their relationship from their lack of communication - nothing incredibly wrong had happened in their relationship yet. They were happy, small issues came up but they weren’t avoidable. They were happy.

“For now,” Beomgyu brings the blanket to his chin and lets out a deep breath. “How about we nap for a bit?”

“We have a schedule in an hour and a half, also you need to shower.” Soobin laughs when Beomgyu stuffs his face into the blanket before groaning. “Beoms, you’re making my sheets dirty, come on. It’s only a matter of two more hours till you can sleep.”

“Soobin-ah,” Beomgyu says softly, peeking out of the blanket. Soobin almost thinks he’s won this time when Beomgyu flicks his forehead. “Wake me up in an hour.”

They were happy.

-

“So,” Yeonjun slumps down next to him a few days later while they’re taking a 15-minute break during a dance lesson. They both panting as they take turns taking big sips from their water bottles. “Have you and Beomgyu fought yet?”

“It almost sounds like you’re waiting for something bad to happen to us, Hyung,” Soobin says, giving Yeonjun a stink eye.

The older of the two muffles a laugh. “I’m not, I’m not. I’m simply predicting the inevitable. Everyone goes through their honeymoon phase where they think nothing could ever go wrong, and then baam! Out of nowhere, issues start building up and you begin to argue over the tiniest things, and that gets you thinking if everything was worth it. The small things in life that made you happy, like eating food together, or watching TV, or playing games, all of this became mundane.”

“Is that what happened between you and Taehyun?” Soobin finds himself asking, unintentionally sidestepping everything he had said in favour of his curiosity winning.

Yeonjun pauses and shakes his head. “Not exactly. Sure, Taehyunnie found my going out with friends every other night annoying once we started dating, he also didn’t like how I would prolong chores, but that wasn’t the main reason behind our breakup. It still played a part, though.”

Soobin wasn’t sure how this would all play out between Beomgyu and him. They both like doing chores together since it would make them more tolerable. Soobin would wash the dishes while Beomgyu would put them away. They would put music on in the background, singing along as if they were at a karaoke bar and ignore the complaints they’d get from the other members. By the end of the day, Soobin would be tired and looking forward to getting a good night's rest, but then Beomgyu would call him and he’d end up spending hours on the phone with him as if they hadn’t just spent the entire day together. It never bothered Soobin, especially not when he’d end the day listening to Beomgyu’s sleepy mumbles.

“Listen,” Yeonjun says once they’re picking themselves up from the floor. He brushes off the dust from his butt and smacks Soobin’s while he’s at it. “There’s a very slight chance that nothing ever happens, that you guys stay happy with no problems, or whatever. But it’s not a bad thing to argue, okay? It’s best to get things off your chest than bottle it in and let them fester.”

“I’m just a little worried,” Soobin confesses, feeling like a weight had lifted off his chest. He hadn’t even considered arguing with Beomgyu before Yeonjun and Taehyun spoke about it. “What if we end up fighting but since we’ve never had a proper fight since we started dating, what if we don’t know how to handle it? And then Beomgyu gets mad at me and then I have no idea how to calm him down and then I get mad and don’t calm down and then we’re both mad and no one’s calm—”

Yeonjun grabs Soobin’s arm and forces him to turn around and face him. “Woah, woah. Calm down, Lover boy. Breathe.” Yeonjun takes a few deep breaths with him before continuing. “Stop thinking about it. Forget it, like I said, there’s a chance nothing ever happens. And I’m confident that if anything does happen, the two of you will solve it easily. You’re not like Taehyun and I.”

“But what if-”

“No, what if’s,” Yeonjun cuts him off. “Now, focus on the lesson.”

Soobin reluctantly follows him to the middle of the practice room. He catches Beomgyu’s eyes in the mirror and immediately looks away, feeling a little on edge. Throughout the lesson, Soobin feels Beomgyus burning holes into the back of his head but tries his best