#[ A Dancer Also Escaping the Past: Minsung ]

[warsinmyhead]

OMG (for Minsung & Hiro)

x | meme status: accepting!

Instead of trying to impress Hiro by making coffee at home (and possibly not getting it exactly the way he wanted it), Minsung made a point of waking up early to grab coffees for the pair while Hiro slept in after staying over to avoid bad weather. (Due to a heavy snowfall in the forecast.)

The cafe in question wasn't too far of a walk from Minsung's place and he even saw some pastries that looked good and picked them up so he and Hiro could split them once the other woke up.

The dancer slipped inside his apartment quietly and placed the pastries on the counter, plus his own cup of coffee. He carried the second cup to the guest room where Hiro was currently sleeping and opened the door.

Hiro was lying on his stomach, the covers pulled up high where his closed eyes and messy head of hair were visible.

Minsung slowly approached the other boy with the cup of coffee in both hands and tilted his head as he noticed Hiro was moving in the bed, despite being asleep. His first though was Hiro was having a nightmare and he quickly put the coffee cup down on a dresser, before moving closer to comfort his boyfriend.

The dancer was a few steps from the bed and he blinked when he looked closer. Hiro wasn't shaking because of a nightmare – the bed moved back and forth and underneath the blankets, muffled moans were slipping from Hiro's lips. With a free hand, Minsung lightly lifted one of the covers and did a bit of a double take when he saw the movement was due to Hiro's hips rocking furiously into the mattress.

The other male carefully dropped the covers and backed away, before slipping out the door and turning to face the hallway.

Did Hiro realize he was masturbating in his sleep and it was not in the privacy of his own dorm room?

Minsung bit his lip and shook his head as a faint smile crossed his lips. For now, he wouldn't wake the barista. But he was definitely going to ask later why Hiro was so worked up this morning...

[warsinmyhead]

Hiro listened as Minsung shared his experience with hosting for events, only with the slight downfall that not all or most of the food would be consumed by the attendees. Nothing wrong with leftovers, but sometimes if there was too much food, it was a waste.

He continued to walk alongside the other boy, following the directions on Minsung's phone.

There was a point where sometimes he could escape into the party scene during his early days at college and thinking back on them, he wanted to be seen. He wanted to be liked and hell, he thought that someone wanting you, even for a night or a fling was good. But he's learned since that it doesn't fix the emptiness you're experiencing regularly.

Hiro decided to change the subject and he realized that break was coming up soon for those in school, like him.

"Any plans for the holidays? I'm kind of trying to get out of the ones with my family," he admitted. "My stepmom turns everything into a business trip or deal and usually it was just me, my sister, and my dad fending for ourselves. Once my sister got married, we added in her husband too and look, he's not bad, but he tries too hard to be cool around me. It's really cringey."

warsinmyhead​:​

Hiro watched as the other took a sip from his cup and he accepted it back. He swirled the contents around and looked around for a trash can to toss the rest in. His eyes fell on the one near the bathrooms and he pointed over at it, before quickly excusing himself to get rid of it. He walked over and tossed the cup in, before heading over to Minsung again. 

“I don’t get why these places don’t consider offering food or at least think about partnering with a food truck or two!” Hiro sighed as he exited the club. “You would think that would be smart and get people to spend more, but hey, I’m not in the business so what would I know?” He glanced at Minsung and asked the other how far the place was that the other male had in mind. 

Minsung let the other go and throw away his cup. As he waited for his return, he opened the app on his phone just to check to make sure if he was not mistaken for the 24/7 open shop. And yes, there was one nearby. Minsung knew he had seen it on his way here. Once Hiro came back to him, he slipped his phone back into his pocket and looked at him as they left the party.

“Hmm, I don’t know either. I haven’t thrown any big and wild parties like that, but I have had some friends over to my home for my birthday a few times. I had prepared food then, and they did eat a little, but there were also quite a bit of leftovers left.” But for such a party, having a food truck right outside of the place where everyone who wanted some food could go to and get something. Everyone was going to be happy then and probably there wouldn’t be too much food wasted at the end. “The store is about 10-15 minutes away from here, we’ll be there in no time.”

[warsinmyhead]

💋 (for Min and Hiro)

x | meme status: not accepting!

"Don't be ridiculous, we are not making you walk home in this weather!"

Emerson and Mayumi insisted on driving Minsung back to his place after dinner, despite the dancer trying to persuade them to drop him off to catch the last subway.

Hiro mouthed an apology to Minsung from his seat and he shook his head at his sister and brother-in-law. The evening had been somewhat comical to say the least: Emerson made the mistake of eating a large piece of kimchi and almost choked on it due to the spice level. After that incident, the waitstaff left a couple of containers of water at their table to be safe and Emerson blamed himself for embarrassing the table. Then Mayumi asked about the pair and Hiro stumbled over his words, which led his older sister to ratting out her younger brother for really liking Minsung if he was struggling to speak.

"It's here, correct?" Emerson asked he slowed to a stop.

Minsung looked through the window and saw it was his building and nodded. He unclipped his seat belt and Hiro said something about walking him to the door.

"I'm so sorry about them," Hiro apologized as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Emerson's no good at spicy food and MayMay, I didn't know she was going to expose me like that! She's not usually like that, you know?"

Minsung shrugged with a hint of a smile as he recalled the previous couple of hours and added it was no big deal. "I can tell they really love each other," he noted as he looked back in the direction of the car. He paused at the door and dug around in his pockets for his keys.

Hiro stepped a bit closer and stood up on tiptoe to try to kiss Minsung. The other male looked up from trying to find his keys and he tried to repress the laugh threatening to slip out as it dawned on him their height difference. Taking the other male's hint, he leaned down to close the gap.

[warsinmyhead]

Silent Night (for Minsung & Hiro)

x | meme status: not accepting!

Minsung ignored his teammates who were teasing him for visiting the cafe again this month. None of them bought his excuse of saying that he was maybe getting a cold and that he wanted a tea for his throat.

As he walked up to the cafe, he saw that it was the short girl that Hiro called Drea that was cleaning the tables by the windows. Before he could open the door, Drea beat him to it and she leaned forward slightly.

"Hey, I'm sorry to tell you, but Hiro's at the airport," Drea shared.

Minsung's eyes widened and his lips parted as he tried to formulate a response. Wait, did Hiro tell him he was flying home to Japan for the holidays? He tried his hardest to recall if maybe he only partially paid attention to something like that, maybe spoken when he was practicing a routine for a winter showcase.

"Question for you, are you his boyfriend, or are you toying with him like that rich hotshot manager he saw for a hot second?" Drea interrupted his thoughts.

"I...I would consider him my boyfriend, but he's never said it back," Minsung replied as he tried to respond thoughtfully to the girl's blunt question. "Wait, Hiro dated someone rich?"

Drea waved it away and murmured that it was over a long time ago. "Real control freak to him and honestly I think Hiro was done dealing with trying to tell him what to do. Guy wanted him to quit his job here and while I like the owner, making coffees and teas isn't exactly the endgame job for most people. But Hiro, I don't know, he really likes it." She tossed the cleaning rag in her hand onto the nearby table and looked back at Minsung.

"You seem like a decent guy," she concluded. "Just tell the guy how you feel, okay? But if you hurt him in any way, I'll kick you so hard that you can kiss having children goodbye, you hear me?"

Minsung nodded quickly and ducked his head as he excused himself to try to call Hiro. His fingers fumbled to dial the other boy's contact in his phone and he raised it to his ear.

"Hi! You're done with practice?" Hiro's voice responded.

"Hi, yes um, sorry to call you before your flight, but I was hoping to see you," Minsung said. He messed up his hair and looked around the area, trying to figure out his next move.

"Flight? Oho! I'm not leaving Korea this year for the holidays!"

Minsung frowned as he looked back at the cafe in confusion. "What? But I just talked to Drea and she said–"

"I am at the airport, but I'm picking up my sister and her husband, AKA my brother-in-law," Hiro clarified. "Ah we're waiting for their suitcases to make it to the carousel. Hang on."

Minsung heard Hiro speaking in Japanese to someone else and then he heard Hiro speaking again.

"So my sister and brother-in-law wanna invite you to dinner tonight, if that's okay," Hiro shared.

"Oh...um yes! I mean, I don't want to intrude on your family catch-up," Minsung replied.

"Well my sister mainly wants to meet–"

"You tell me about this boyfriend and that he dances–" a girl said in the background.

"Aigoo, MayMay stop that! He can hear you!" Hiro shot back.

Minsung couldn't help but smile when he heard the word uttered by the other's sister. Boyfriend. So they were a thing.

@r3dblccd

[warsinmyhead]

Hiro Tag Dump

[warsinmyhead]

Hiro slowly pulled away and took the box of sweets in both hands. He looked around the airbnb and his eyes fell on the kitchen. He quickly excused himself to put the box in the kitchen and dashed back to the front so Mayumi and Emerson didn't have a chance to interrogate Minsung or maybe embarrass Hiro more.

"Of course," Emerson replied with a warm smile. He dug around in his pockets for the keys and gestured to the front. "So shall we go? I heard the restaurant is very good and I've not had Korean BBQ in years!"

Mayumi followed her husband out to the front and Hiro grabbed a jacket and slipped his arms into it before Emerson closed the door to lock it.

"Ugh so cold!" Hiro whined as he shoved his hands into his pockets after zipping the jacket up.

"Well why not head for the car?" Mayumi teased as she nudged her brother.

Hiro sighed as he tugged Minsung off to the car in the drive way and positioned himself so they could sit together in the back.

Hearing the voices inside right as the door opened made Minsung grin a little, making almost all his anxiousness melt away. Wasn't Hiro just so cute? Although, if Minsung were in his shoes, he'd probably done the same, knowing his own family (he loved them, he really did, but they were a little too high energy sometimes, wonder where Minsung got his energy from). As he stepped inside, he came closer to Hiro and gave him a gentle hug. "I see. Where can I leave these sweets then?" He pointed at the box once he pulled away. "I made them for the three to enjoy."

When Hiro's brother-in-law approached as well, Minsung put aside the box where he saw he could and then also extended both of his hands for a greeting and gave him a polite bow. "That's okay. I'm Minsung. It's nice to finally meet you."

Once they greeted, Minsung also turned to Hiro's sister to give her a bow, too. And he couldn't help but chuckle at her words and Hiro's sudden reaction. So, a smooth dancer boyfriend, huh? Maybe he should ask her what other other things Hiro has told her about him. A little later, though. He didn't want Hiro to feel too embarrassed. "It's nice to meet you too. Thank you for inviting me for dinner once more."

[warsinmyhead]

[Musing] Recipe for a Break

“Again.”

His fellow dancer looked at him in disbelief and wiped away the sweat on his forehead. “Minsung, we’ve been over the routine, what? 8 times already? You’ve got the point choreography down – what is it?”

Minsung shook his head vigorously and insisted that the movements could be better. He was sweaty, his muscles in his arms and legs were starting to ache, but he wasn’t satisfied with the previous 8 attempts he did with the other dancer. Something wasn’t right and he was determined to get it this time. 

The other dancer sank to the floor and shifted so he was leaning against the wall. “Look, I need a break because my head’s starting to hurt. You wanna run through it again, fine. I’ll watch and re-hydrate.” He stretched his arm out for his water bottle and dragged it across the wood floor before unscrewing the top and taking a long sip from it. 

Minsung straightened up and walked over to the speakers to play the song again. He reset the song and walked back to his starting place in the choreography, waiting for the correct beat when he started dancing. He got a few minutes in the routine and then heard a loud knock on the door, making him lose his focus. He groaned loudly and messed up his hair, which was all over the place, and he stomped over to the practice room door. 

“I’m busy rehearsing,” he informed the girl on the other side. 

She glanced over her shoulder and then met Minsung’s gaze. “So, should I send the coffee guy away?”

Minsung frowned when she said ‘coffee guy’ and the girl jabbed her thumb at the young man standing a few feet from the door with a cup in his hand. The dancer leaned out and saw it was Hiro, the boy who worked at the local cafe he visited sometimes. 

“Oh um, no ah, he’s cool. He can come in,” Minsung said to the girl. “Thanks so much.” 

Minsung stuck his head back in the practice room and dismissed the other dancer. “Hey take a break – my friend’s here.” 

The other male pushed himself to his feet and retrieved his phone and water bottle. He murmured a thank you to Minsung as he slipped past him and he passed the young man with the cup in his hands. 

“Hi Hiro, sorry I’m a sweaty mess,” Minsung apologized. “What’s up?”

“I know you’re busy practicing,” Hiro began, “but seeing as you’re working so hard, I thought I’d bring you our newest tea drink. It’s a vitamin C booster – good for your immune system and it’s caffeine free.”

Minsung flashed a smile at the other male and accepted the cup with two hands. He sniffed the cup and detected notes of orange, honey, and a little mint. “Thank you for thinking of me. Do you need to head back to the cafe?”

Hiro shook his head and explained that he finished a couple of minutes ago. “My boss said I needed to take one free drink – that’s one of our perks and I keep forgetting to do that. So I thought maybe you’d like this new drink to help keep you healthy. She also said I should take a free brownie, but I don’t think brownies go with that tea very well. Next time you come, I’ll let you have a free brownie with your usual drink.” Remembering the other male was practicing, he glanced over his shoulder at the entrance to the studio.

“Do you want me to let you get back to dancing?” Hiro asked.

Minsung stepped to the side and shoved the door to his practice room open wider. “Actually, why don’t you come in? I can enjoy some of your tea, then I can show you my routine.”

@notfrsale​

[warsinmyhead]

💖 (for Minsung & Hiro)

x | meme status: accepting!

"I admire his passion and finesse when it comes to dancing!"

[warsinmyhead]

"Careful there – don't wanna slip!" Emerson called out from the side as Hiro ran to catch the door.

"Please, you know he's trying to avoid one of us opening the door," Mayumi teased as she nudged Emerson in the arm.

Hiro threw the pair a look as he opened the door and replaced the look with a smile.

"Hi, come on in – we're actually going to eat out tonight," he shared. "This is just an AirBnB my sister and brother-in-law rented."

Emerson stepped forward and extended a hand, then quickly produced the other hand as well, remembering the conventions were different here in Korea. "Hi I'm Emerson, sorry I almost forgot that Korea does both hands for a proper handshake."

Mayumi waited until her husband finished greeting Minsung and she slowly approached him with a warm smile. "Hi I'm his sister Mayumi, it's nice to meet the smooth dancer boyfrie–"

"Aigoo! MayMay!" Hiro yelled as he waved his arms around frantically.

: ̗̀➛ @warsinmyhead, fast forwarded from here ❄️

Minsung was nervous. Very nervous. Why was he nervous again? Well, he never really met anyone from Hiro's family before. He's only heard a few things about them. He knew in reality there was nothing to be anxious about, he was an open book. But, obviously, he wanted to make a first good impression.

Earlier in the morning he baked some cookies so that there would be enough time for them to bake and cool down a little once they were done and for him to pack them up just in time for him to head out. He wanted to express his gratitude for being invited over somehow, and he figured that would be a good way to do it. So, here he was at the front door, with a box full of sweet treats in one hand and the other reaching up to knock on it.

When the door opened, he gave a polite bow to the figure before him and smiled. It was Hiro. "Hello. Thanks once again for inviting me here. I haven't come too early, right?" Minsung likes to be punctual, but he did head out a little earlier, just in case there was too much traffic around this hour.