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As idols, they can’t leave the house. Bonding for the best of bros still needs to happen however, and the best solution is movie night.
Small problem however, after watching three straight horror movies (that Minghao chose! Who let the guy that isn’t scared of anything chose??), Seokmin is unable to let go of Mingyu. It’s reciprocated though, Mingyu is hugging Seokmin’s arm back, 97 bros solidarity, yknow?
Screw Minghao. If Seokmin writes a long enough letter to the hospital that Minghao was born in, then they’ll change his birthday and oust him from the 97 liners. It’s deserved. It's Seokmin keeps hearing the dorm creak and all of the traffic sounds like incoming accidents and he swears the curtains are moving and-
Did his reflection just move without him???
“Mingyu.” Seokmin turns to look at his slightly younger best friend (seungkwan abandoned them on this couch to go to his room with Jun cause ‘his martial arts will protect me’, the traitor). “Mingyu, I’m alone in my room, can I sleep with you?”
Mingyu shakes his head rapidly, “won’t work. Jihoonie-hyung probably just got back from the studio so he’ll scold us. Minghao also has his own room do you think-“
“We can’t rely on evil men, Mingyu. My room is scary, your room is guarded, Nonie and Kwannie clearly hate us because they’re fine sleeping in their own beds, who’s left?”
Mingyu sulks and clings to Seokmin tighter, too fearful to care about his lisp, “It was a stupid idea to watch three, let alone five. At least Seungkwan had the right idea with having someone for protection, Channie went to their shared room though, so we can’t even steal Chan’s bed.”
Mingyu can’t even look up the TV because it makes him think people are behind them on the couch, they’ll have to navigate the dorms blind.
Seokmin hugs Mingyu close, considering hiding in a closet, before he gasps as the idea hits him. “Seungcheol! Seungcheol’s buff and does martial arts too!”
Mingyu looks up, eyes wide, “you’re a genius, Minnie.”
Seokmin finally smiles as he and Mingyu practically become conjoined twins with their effort to stay as close as possible while heading to Seungcheol’s room; Wonwoo will just have to be a casualty for rooming with their leader.
The two of them, in their pure scared and frightened crawl downstairs to safety, are unable to stop themselves from feeding their own and each other's fears. What can they say? Mingyu’s afraid of the dark, Seokmin’s afraid of ladybugs, and the walls probably know this and that's is why it seems like they’re closing in. If you don't believe them, you're on the side of the unseen horrors, and they can't trust you either.
Minghao was messing with them by turning off all the nights before they watched the movies, but now they’re convinced that if they turn on the lights the serial killer will know where they are. It’s why there seems to be so many noises suddenly, and those shadows are probably spirits because they’re absolutely moving, and you can’t deny that the fact that it’s dark means that they could step on a bug or the bugs are the trap set by the killer-
They make it to Seungcheol’s door, and the hardest part of the night so far is deciding who will let go of the other to be able to open the door. The entire group knows Seungcheol never locks it, and when Wonwoo does, Seungcheol’s usually outside of the room to give Wonwoo his introverted space. They know Seungcheol at least is in there, the older told them all to not watch more than one movie before he went to sleep. They'll figure out how to admit later that they're like this after watching not only more than one movie but horror movies specifically, since it is probably not what their leader meant.
They whisper as they bicker.
“You let go.”
“No you-
“You’re older.”
“You’re using two months against me?”
“No one told you to be born premature.”
“I’m telling both our mothers you sa-“
The door opens, they weren’t really whispering. Seungcheol takes them in with a tired but soft voice nonetheless. One of Seungcheol's hands is used to hold the door open but the other is attempting to brush the lull of sleep from his eyes and possible fix his hair; his gaze trying to level on the two younger men while he fights how heavy his eyelids feel. The two of them are his sweet and caring boys after all. “What happened? Is anyone hurt?”
Seokmin looks sorry first before dropping his gaze to mumble, “sorry, hyung. We just- everyone- the shadows are trying to strangle us.”
Mingyu nods, “there’s a serial killer and he’s waiting for us to turn on the lights.”
Seungcheol blinks at them, before stepping to the side to enter his room. He didn’t understand any of it, but his brain is getting tired, might as well be slowing down, and he really just needs them to be quiet. He’s learned by now to just accept them as they are. It would be funny if it wasn’t so late and he didn’t use up all his energy at the company. “Okay.”
The two immediately shuffle inside and flop onto Seungcheol’s bed and shove their faces into his pillow. Seungcheol’s cologne lingers and it makes for the perfect warning for any and all monsters. Probably better a salt circle and works just as well as burning sage or incense. Their leader has fought many battles for them, (arguing with the company), he’d surely win against anything, (even monsters can’t out-lift The Choi Seungcheol).
Seungcheol just sighs, closes the door, and grunts as he sits back down at his desk. Since his bed has been overtaken, and he feels like he just got Wonwoo to put the phone down and sleep, Seungcheol figures he might as well get work done, Seokmin and Mingyu will talk to him on their own time.
A minute passes of Seokmin and Mingyu waiting for Seungcheol to join them.
Two minutes.
Four.
The bubble of Seungcheol’s cologne wears off and they look up with dual pouts as Seungcheol is sitting at his desk, head resting in his hand, as he writes in his notebook. Then the whining starts since he’s clearly abandoned them.
“Hyunnnggg…”
“Hyung, you can’t keep working.”
“Hyung, most stabbings happen when you’re distracted.”
“Hyung! Do you hate us?”
That’s the statement that makes Seungcheol give in. He sighs, turns off the desk lamp, (doesn't hear Mingyu's whimper at the loss making the digital clock the only light source in the room), while he grunts to stand, and sits on the edge of the bed to cup his boys’ faces. “Never, not in this lifetime or the next.”
Seokmin immediately clutches at him. “Hyung don’t be sentimental, the killer is gonna go after you first.”
Seungcheol can’t help but laugh softly, “what even is this whole thing about?”
He receives silence.
Seungcheol raises an eyebrow and Seokmin already wants to confess. His leader has done a lot with that eyebrow, okay. Seokmin looks away because another second with firm eyes would make him relive all of the times Seungcheol has scolded them, (and all of the times Seokmin felt guilty for making his leader have to stay longer at the company).
Mingyu breaks first, probably because he gets scolded more and knows now to get it over with. “We watched horror movies.”
Seungcheol gives up on these two. “At night?”
They nod.
“Multiple movies? When I told you that we have to make a good impression tomorrow?”
They nod again, shyer this time.
“You- just why? You both know you’re cowards right?” Seungcheol drags his hands down his face to hopefully remove some of his exhaustion so their statements make at least some rational sense. It doesn’t help. He’s absolutely worried about how tomorrow will go when it’s an outlet they haven’t interviewed with before.
Seokmin whines at that, “well Minghao suggested-“
“You took suggestions from-“, Seungcheol sighs again and pinches the inner corner of his eyes, “-okay. You two want to sleep here?”
They nod and Mingyu begins to try to tug Seungcheol down to lay with them, “please don’t be angry, Cheollie-hyung, if you’re angry you can’t protect us.”
It’s absolutely manipulation when the two of them make puppy-dog eyes at him but Seungcheol can’t help but let himself be pulled to lie down in the middle of his already cramped twin bed, Seokmin and Mingyu each happily taking a side of his chest. He can’t help it; he sees those two sets of wide brown eyes and sees their pre-debut teenage selves and just wants to protect them from everything all over again. He’ll protect them from these monsters this time, just as he'll protect them from the world every other time.
Seungcheol keeps them close, these stupid idiots that are his kids, and begins to gently run his fingers through Seokmin’s hair and softly trail Mingyu’s spine with his nails. Seokmin has always liked the more repetitive touch but Mingyu’s height makes him curl around Seungcheol and round his back.
He holds them as lightly as he can without letting them know he’s gripping Mingyu a little tighter since he’s on the side of the bed that isn’t protected by a wall to make a crib panel. He doesn’t trust Mingyu in the slightest not to fall. He may be a teasing hyung, but willingly letting Mingyu fall when he knows Mingyu used to fall out of their bunk beds as trainees a bunch seems too far.
Seungcheol is already incredibly fond that his boys - cute, cowardly, and clingy boys - thought to come to him once they got scared, and forgives them immediately. “How could I ever be angry at you for being scared?”
With a grunt, he tries to maneuver them closer to the wall so Mingyu is less at risk, which Seokmin adjusts to happily as long as he claims more real estate on Seungcheol’s chest.
Seokmin relaxes into the pillow of his leader’s chest, “mhm, because we were stupid and watched horror movies.”
Seungcheol scoffs, “you were stupid, yeah. But hyung still loves you.”
Mingyu lifts his head to pout, “what about me, Cheol-hyung?”
“I love you too, Gyukkie.”
Seokmin shifts to try and get closer to their leader, as if he isn’t already half on top of Seungcheol, “But you love me more, right?”
“Go to sleep, Kyeommie.”
“Yeah, Seokmin-ah, I’m his one-pick, yknow.” If the lights were on, Mingyu would stick his tongue out at Seokmin.
“Go to sleep, Mingyu-ah.” Seungcheol’s more exhausted by the second, before they can bicker again he adds, “Whoever speaks next is getting kicked out.”
The younger duo huff, but snuggle in to sleep.
Until Mingyu shoves at Seokmin and telepathically claims it was because the older took ‘his space’ for cuddling their leader.
Seokmin retaliates and sulks to Seungcheol with pretty brown doe eyes that seem to twinkle even in the dark.
Seungcheol has to sigh again, and groans before giving a kiss to both of their foreheads. “Please, sleep, I beg of you. I’m tired.”
The two of them, puppies that seem only to respond when Seungcheol’s voice gets stern and exhausted, reach a compromise of Mingyu hugging Seungcheol’s waist and Seokmin latching onto Seungcheol’s shoulders and neck.
A few minutes later, when Mingyu falls asleep in the safety and warmth of his leader, the guilt erupts in Seokmin’s ever flowing heart. Seungcheol kept saying he was tired, that they had things they need to do tomorrow, that now he needs to care about Seokmin and Mingyu when he could’ve been sleeping.
Seokmin whispers into Seungcheol’s neck, quiet and regretful, “I’m sorry for being scared, hyungie. I didn’t mean to stop you from sleeping.”
Seungcheol kisses Seokmin’s forehead before pressing his head close for a moment just so Seokmin can feel him; even in the dark Seokmin can see the faint outline of his dimples.“You can come here even if you’re not scared, Sunshine. I’ll sleep better with you here.”
Seokmin nuzzles closer, tired and eternally grateful Seungcheol decided to build perfect muscle pillows. “Thanks, hyungie. I love you too.”
——————-
Ten minutes later, Chan creeps in, and almost cries at the fact that Seungcheol’s bed is already taken. Seungcheol speaks to him gently, it’s okay, Chan-ah, you’re so strong for coming here, like Chan was a kicked baby otter scared of the world, and guides Chan to walk to Wonwoo’s bed, if you want to stay near, there’s a second bed in this room, baby.
Wonwoo is more than happy to take Chan in. He’s ecstatic, actually. He already woke up because of Seokmin and Mingyu, whom he has switched to internally cursing to thanking for giving him this opportunity to cuddle the most precious and ethereal person ever, Chan.
Wonwoo believes he was casual about it. Seungcheol knows Jeon Wonwoo, Number One Dinoara, had his arms open the moment Chan entered their room and was crestfallen when Dino looked to Seungcheol’s bed first.
Chan was extra clingy that night, which caused Wonwoo to stay up longer to only remember this moment and encase it in a shrine for his personal memory.
Seungcheol knows Seokmin tried to do the same, to hold onto the feeling of being comforted instead of comforting, but he fell asleep too.
The night is restful, finally, for Seungcheol and his insomnia. When he wakes to the first sound in the morning, (Jun making breakfast), his stress about the day are lessened by the warmth it’s started with.
He’ll do it all again, twelve times over, in every lifetime until there are no more monsters to fear.