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It starts small.
It always does.
Jeongin wakes up before his alarm because something warm is pressed against his back. Not uncomfortably. Just… there. Solid. Safe. Breathing.
Felix.
He doesn’t move right away. He just blinks at the wall, registering the weight of an arm draped lazily over his waist. Felix’s hand is curled loosely against his stomach like it belongs there.
Which, frankly, it does.
Jeongin could move.
He does not.
Instead, he shifts slightly backward.
Just a centimeter.
Felix makes a sleepy noise and tightens his arm automatically.
There it is.
That feeling.
Jeongin lets out the tiniest sigh and melts.
“Morning,” Felix mumbles into the back of his shoulder, voice gravelly with sleep.
Jeongin hums. “You’re squishing me.”
Felix presses closer on purpose. “You like it.”
Jeongin considers arguing.
He does not.
“…Maybe.”
Felix freezes.
Then lifts his head slightly. “What.”
Jeongin rolls onto his back and squints at him. “You heard me.”
Felix’s eyes are still half-closed but somehow sparkling anyway. “Say it again.”
“I’m not repeating myself.”
Felix gasps dramatically. “You’re accepting affection without a fight? Who are you and what have you done with Yang Jeongin.”
Jeongin yawns and grabs Felix’s sleeve.
“I’m sleepy,” he says simply. “Don’t make it a thing.”
Felix goes quiet.
Soft quiet.
The kind where his teasing dissolves and something deeper slides in.
“Okay,” he murmurs.
And then he presses his forehead gently against Jeongin’s.
Not playful.
Just tender.
Jeongin doesn’t pull away.
—
From that moment on, something shifts.
Felix has always babied him.
But now?
Now Jeongin participates.
Later that morning, Jeongin walks into the kitchen with bedhead and a hoodie that’s too big on him. He doesn’t even pretend to be alert.
Felix looks up from the stove and immediately softens.
“You’re still half asleep.”
Jeongin walks straight toward him and—without a word—leans forward until his forehead rests against Felix’s shoulder.
Felix freezes.
He blinks down at him.
Jeongin mumbles, “Carry me.”
Felix nearly drops the spatula.
“Excuse me?”
“You heard me.”
Felix stares. “You weigh—”
Jeongin lifts his head just enough to give him a look.
Felix sighs like a man about to commit to something life-altering.
“Fine.”
He turns off the stove, crouches just enough for Jeongin to climb on and stands up carefully. Jeongin doesn’t cling dramatically. He just settles into Felix’s hold like he belongs there.
Like this was the natural next step in human evolution.
Felix carries him to the couch.
“Princess behavior,” he mutters.
Jeongin rests his cheek against Felix’s chest.
“Yes,” he agrees calmly.
Felix short-circuits.
—
It becomes a thing.
Jeongin doesn’t overdo it.
He just… stops resisting.
Felix wipes crumbs from his mouth? He doesn’t swat his hand away.
Felix adjusts his collar? He tilts his chin up slightly to make it easier.
Felix cups his cheeks randomly and squishes his face? He lets it happen.
One afternoon, they’re sitting on the floor of the practice room after rehearsal. Jeongin is exhausted, limbs sprawled out, hair damp with sweat.
Felix sits beside him and gently starts wiping his face with a towel.
Normally, Jeongin would complain.
Today?
He closes his eyes.
Felix slows down.
“You okay?”
Jeongin nods faintly. “Feels nice.”
Felix’s entire nervous system reboots.
He moves the towel more carefully now. Dabbing his temples. Brushing hair off his forehead. His touch is soft, deliberate.
“You worked hard,” Felix murmurs.
Jeongin peeks one eye open. “You did too.”
Felix shrugs. “I’m talking about you.”
Jeongin’s lips twitch.
“Then keep talking.”
Felix laughs softly, but he does.
He tells him he did well. That his vocals were stable. That his timing improved. That he looked confident.
Jeongin listens quietly.
And when Felix finishes?
He leans forward and rests his forehead against Felix’s collarbone.
Just for a second.
Felix wraps his arms around him without hesitation.
There’s no joke this time.
Just warmth.
—
The members absolutely notice.
Chan walks into the living room to find Jeongin curled up with his head in Felix’s lap while Felix plays with his hair.
“Is this legal?” Chan asks flatly.
Jeongin opens one eye. “Mind your business.”
Felix grins. “He’s comfy.”
Chan stares. “He would bite anyone of the rest of us if we touched his hair.”
Jeongin closes his eye again. “Yeah.”
Chan leaves shaking his head.
—
Even small things shift.
Jeongin starts calling for Felix more often.
“Lix.”
Not loud. Not dramatic.
Just that soft tone that means come here.
And Felix always does.
One evening, Jeongin is sitting on his bed scrolling through his phone.
“Lix.”
Felix appears in the doorway almost instantly. “Yeah?”
Jeongin holds up his arms slightly.
No explanation.
Felix walks over and sits behind him, pulling him back into his chest.
Jeongin settles immediately.
Felix presses a kiss into his hair without thinking.
Jeongin tilts his head back slightly.
Not asking.
Just allowing.
Felix’s hand rests over his stomach, thumb rubbing small circles absentmindedly.
“You’re extra clingy lately,” Felix whispers.
Jeongin shrugs. “You don’t mind.”
Felix smiles into his hair. “I don’t.”
Jeongin hums contentedly.
There’s no embarrassment anymore.
No defensive sarcasm.
Just quiet acceptance.
—
The turning point—the real one—happens late at night.
It’s raining outside. The dorm feels smaller somehow, wrapped in the sound of it. Most of the members are asleep.
Jeongin is not.
He’s sitting at the kitchen table staring at nothing in particular.
Felix notices.
He walks over slowly.
“You can’t sleep?”
Jeongin shakes his head.
Felix pulls out the chair beside him. “What’s going on in here?” He taps Jeongin’s temple lightly.
Jeongin hesitates.
He doesn’t always talk when things feel heavy.
But tonight he’s tired.
Not physically.
Just… tired.
So instead of brushing it off, he leans sideways until his head rests on Felix’s shoulder.
Felix stills.
Jeongin’s voice is quiet. “Everything feels loud.”
Felix doesn’t ask him to elaborate.
He just shifts so he can wrap an arm around him.
“Okay,” he murmurs. “We’ll make it quiet.”
Jeongin closes his eyes.
Felix rubs his back slowly. Steady. Repetitive. Grounding.
“You don’t have to be strong all the time,” Felix says gently.
Jeongin’s fingers tighten slightly in Felix’s hoodie.
“I know.”
Felix rests his cheek against the top of Jeongin’s head.
“You can just be small with me.”
The words hang there.
Soft. Open.
Jeongin exhales.
And instead of deflecting—
Instead of joking—
Instead of pulling away—
He whispers, “Okay.”
It’s barely audible.
But Felix hears it.
And something in him goes impossibly gentle.
He stands and pulls Jeongin up with him.
“Come here.”
He leads him back to the bedroom and tucks him into bed like he’s done a hundred times before.
But this time, when Felix starts to pull away, Jeongin grabs his wrist.
“Stay.”
Not shy.
Not embarrassed.
Just honest.
Felix climbs in without a word.
Jeongin turns and presses himself against him immediately. His arms slide around his waist. Face tucked into his chest.
Felix wraps himself around him instinctively.
“You’re not fragile,” Felix whispers into his hair.
Jeongin shakes his head lightly against him. “I know.”
“But I like being taken care of,” he admits softly.
Felix’s heart practically explodes.
“Yeah?”
Jeongin nods.
“With you.”
Felix kisses his temple.
“Then I’ll take care of you.”
Jeongin relaxes fully.
No tension.
No resistance.
Just trust.
—
The next morning, Jeongin wakes up wrapped around Felix like a koala.
He doesn’t move.
Felix is still asleep, lips parted slightly.
Jeongin studies him quietly.
Then, without hesitation, he snuggles closer.
Felix stirs.
“Mmm.”
Jeongin smiles faintly against his chest.
“Morning.”
Felix’s eyes blink open slowly.
“You’re still here.”
“Obviously.”
Felix squints at him. “You’re very clingy lately.”
Jeongin shrugs.
“Feels nice.”
Felix smiles softly.
He brushes his fingers through Jeongin’s hair again.
Jeongin closes his eyes automatically.
And for the first time, there’s no pride battle.
No teasing deflection.
Just warmth.
Being babied doesn’t make him smaller.
It makes him safe.
And safety?
That’s rare.
So he lets Felix hold him.
Lets him adjust his hoodie.
Lets him wipe his face.
Lets him carry him when he’s tired.
Because being loved gently isn’t weakness.
It’s trust.
And Jeongin trusts him completely.
Some people fight softness.
Some people pretend they don’t need it.
Jeongin used to.
Now?
He simply reaches for it.
And Felix, every single time, is already there.