17hols | 2022 Round 1: Quotes

2022 Round 1: Quotes

Status: Closed

This round has closed. It remains open for fills, comments and remixes, but prompts are no longer accepted.

Seventeen Holidays

Round 1: Quotes

About

"If I loved you less, I might be able to talk about it more."

"What is grief, if not love persevering?"

"You kept me like a secret but I kept you like an oath"

Calling all readers, lovers of poetry and music, screen and stage. Quote collecters and lyric hoarders, unleash your archive. Each prompt must contain a quote - you can combine them, add commentary, link to articles, and more. Steal from a literary classic, or WeVerse drama. Have fun!

Examples

Minghao + Ocean Vuong

The most beautiful part of your body
is where it's headed. & remember,
loneliness is still time spent
with the world.

Ocean Vuong - night sky with exit wounds

Hoshi/Anyone; "Beauty is terror"

Thinking about these two quotes together and the idea of on/off-stage personas:

"Beauty is terror. Whatever we call beautiful we tremble before it. And what could be more terrifying or beautiful, to the Greeks to to our own, than to lose control completely?" - Donna Tartt, the Secret Histories

"I am calm in everyday life but when I put on my in-ear device and step on stage, I can feel the tension and hear the cheers getting louder as the music gets louder. When the staff tells me it's time to step on stage, I feel something boil inside me. I feel it steaming inside and I think I have to give a burst of something, spill what is inside me." - Hoshi in Hit the Road Ep. 04

Any ship; "It's been so many years"

Hello, hello there, is this Martha?
This is old Tom Frost
And I am calling long distance
Don't worry 'bout the cost.
'Cause it's been forty years or more
Now Martha please recall
Meet me out for coffee
Where we'll talk about it all.

Tom Watts - Martha

Rules

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There is no maximum cap.
Tag and provide content warnings at your discretion, but a good guide are the Ao3 four (Graphic Depictions of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage) and this list of common CWs (cr: SportsFest).
NSFW/Explicit content should be tagged
NSFW art should not be visible, please provide a link and a warning. You may crop the artwork and embed a SFW preview.

How it works

Prompting

Click on [Post a New Comment] at the bottom of this post;
Change the subject to something interesting;
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Ship/Member: Any Major Tags: N/A Additional Tags: N/A Do Not Wants: None Prompt: <blockquote>[QUOTE GOES HERE] </blockquote>

Filling

Reply to the original prompt;
Change the subject to [FILL], you may add a title or stay chaotic;
Copy+Paste the following HTML into your comment, edit the sections, and add your text.
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Ship/Member: Any Major Tags: N/A Additional Tags: N/A Permission to remix: Yes/No/Please ask ***

Remixing

Post as a reply to the fill you are remixing, using the same HTML as above;
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Ship/Member: Any Major Tags: N/A Additional Tags: N/A Permission to remix: Yes/No/Please ask *** <img src="INSERT IMAGE URL" width="400px"> <a href="INSERT ANY URL YOU WANT">TEXT THAT DESCRIBES THE LINK</a>

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Navigation

❮ ROUND 1: QUOTES ❯

ROUND 2: ALTERNATE UNIVERSES

ROUND 3: LAST WORDS

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

Ship/Member: Jeonghan/Chan
Major Tags: N/A
Additional Tags: idolverse, maknae-isms?
Permission to remix: Please ask
A/N: evil auberginedreams all 2022 babey!
***

The warnings are everywhere. Don’t meet your idols. Don’t fall in love with your target. Movies and television and books all show the desires, the ramifications of them. Except no one really warns you about falling in love with your bandmate. Maybe because it is both unacceptable and inevitable. At least Chan thinks so.

Jeonghan is talented. He is clever and smart and he understands how it all works faster than any other trainee Chan has ever met. He sticks to Seungcheol and Joshua, speaks to the others only when spoken to. Chan gets it. There are so many of them. Why would you want to get attached?

Chan doesn’t fall in love with Jeonghan all at once. It’s a slow thing, so gradual it feels more like friendship. Jeonghan tucks his hair behind his ear and Chan’s heart slams against his ribs. There are worse things he could be dealing with. This is what he reminds himself.

But Jeonghan is smart. He figures it out before Chan has even put a name to what it is. He stays late to watch Chan practice, the mirror fogged over by the time he’s done. Jeonghan grabs the towel slung around his shoulders and tugs him closer. Heat is already pouring off his skin, but the look in Jeonghan’s eyes makes the air disappear from his lungs. He wants Jeonghan to kiss him. They both know it.

It feels like a long time before Jeonghan lets him go, stepping back and fixing him with a grin. Chan’s entire world rearranges itself.

“Whose baby are you?” Jeonghan asks sweetly.

“Jeonghannie hyung’s,” Chan replies, eyebrows pinched together.

Whose are you, Jeonghan is asking him, eyes dark, lips parted. Who do you belong to?

Yours, Chan is answering. Begging. Only yours.

The years move so quickly they feel like months. Promotions and concerts and filming. Practicing and sleeping on whatever soft surface he can find. It is moments and seconds and glances that go unanswered that come to a head while Chan is watching Jeonghan’s solo. It’s the flowing shirt, maybe, the tattoo on his neck. Seeing him alone on stage. Or maybe it’s just Jeonghan. It always has been.

When he comes down Chan grabs his wrist and tugs him closer, his hand over the fake tattoo. Jeonghan’s chest heaves, his eyes almost playful as he runs his tongue along his bottom lip. The silence stretches between them, nearly shimmering.
A few more moments and staff come rushing over, directing them to different parts of the stage, tugging Jeonghan’s shirt over his head.

“Maybe next time,” Jeonghan says, grinning.

Waiting and waiting. Nothing has ever happened between them. Chan has kissed boys and fucked girls but he has never stopped thinking about Jeonghan. Whose are you? Who do any of them belong to if not each other?

“How much longer are you going to keep doing this?” Chan nearly shouts as he’s tugged toward one of the lifts.

Jeonghan doesn’t answer.

Jeonghan kisses him in a clump of trees outside of the cabins they’re staying in. It’s a long time coming. So long Chan is convinced it will never happen, that Jeonghan has seen his heart and crushed it for his own amusement. That’s he’s done this on purpose. Ruined him.

“You’re treating me like a child,” Chan says. He can’t even remember what it was about. Fishing, or wearing the wrong shoes outside. It hardly matters in the end. “I’m not a kid anymore, hyung.”

Jeonghan rolls his eyes. “I never said you were.”

“Then when are you going to stop treating me like one?”

Chan steps closer, the setting sun backlighting Jeonghan in a halo of light. He is smart and he is cunning and he is so beautiful Chan doesn’t even know if a word exists to describe him. Long hair or short hair, blonde or dark. Chan has seen him cry and laugh and bleed. There has never been a part of Jeonghan that he didn’t want to see, to love. If only Jeonghan would let him.

It feels like Jeonghan is reading his mind, the way he lets his breath rush out of him and hold out his hand.

“You’re the worst,” Jeonghan says. “Come here.”

This is what you made me, Chan thinks but doesn’t say. He steps closer than he thinks is allowed. Jeonghan’s hand on his cheek is cool but soft. His lips are warm, though, when they finally meet his.

Jeonghan kisses like he’s had a lot of practice. He kisses like he knows exactly what he wants and expects nothing less. Maybe it’s a good thing Chan has been watching him all this time. He slides his fingers through Jeonghan’s hair and slots their lips together at a better angle.

This is why there should be a warning. Jeonghan is like the first drag of a cigarette. Like hitting a high note on the first try. He is beautiful and he is dangerous and Chan feels like he will never be able to take this back.

It’s a good thing he doesn’t want to.

feeling like tails gets trolled dot png

Ship/Member: Any (but jicheol vibes amirite...)
Major Tags: N/A
Additional Tags: N/A
Do Not Wants: None
Prompt:

I was the best man in a size too small
You were my best friend, going at it all
What if I put off my inheritance?
/
And what if I told you
I was still in love with this?
Would you surprise us
In a size for all of me?
/
I still owe you

— sufjan stevens, size too small

Feel free to interpret as literally as you'd like, or not!

Edited 2022-01-01 03:42 (UTC)

orphan black was one of my favorite shows so to see someone write that for this prompt is just !!! ohmygod you delivered it so so too well happy new year to me?? i loved everything but this line in particular just struck me:

He leads Seungkwan to an office on the opposite side of the apartment. It's pristine, practically a museum compared to the life he's taken over. This Seungkwan loves a mess, down to the man who keeps knocking at his door in the middle of the night.

it says so much about their contrasting lives and how they're about to collide with each other in every facet. a storm brewing! minho and seungkwan as adoptive brothers too... the possibilities of that... and seungkwan as alison hendrix is the most perfect headcanon ever i simply think you are a genius thank you happy new year <3

oh and thank you for not putting seungkwan in dreadlocks im grateful <3

HAHAHAHAHA okay i had to rewatch sarah's first scenes again with alison and cosima and that dreadlocks wig....is truly a thing that they put on her head. cosima!seungkwan has a Long Bang, in my head

Ship/Member: joshua/minghao
Major Tags: N/A
Additional Tags: one-sided infatuation, touch starved
Permission to remix: Yes

***

Minghao is gentle, deliberate with his actions in a way that most people don’t notice. Joshua notices.

He watches how carefully Minghao plays with Mingyu’s hair and how delicately he touches Seokmin or Jeonghan’s faces and hands. He stares at the soft touch of Minghao’s fingers and wonders.

Joshua doesn’t like to be touched. There are many reasons, the inherent trauma of being scrutinized every single day for almost ten years notwithstanding. What it boils down to is this: it’s his body and he controls who touches him. He wishes it were easier, that he could accept fingers on his wrist or a friendly hand-hold without shrugging it off. He wishes that he could maintain any kind of contact when the cameras turn off and they’re all in the dorm. It’s so easy for everyone else to pile onto the couch, legs and arms and hands intertwined. Jeonghan lays on top of Mingyu more often than not, and Seokmin always seems to have a hand around Minghao’s wrist or ankle. Joshua could never. He isn’t sure why.

He excuses himself to his room — not that anyone is paying attention — to change. He runs his hands down his own body, trying to imagine what it might be like to let someone else, wondering if Minghao’s touch feels like a whisper of bird wings as it takes off beside you, or if he’s just being dramatic. Weird. He could let someone in. He could reach out and pull someone toward him.

He thinks about someone coming through the door. No, not someone. Minghao. Minghao wouldn’t be pushy about it, he would just ask what was wrong or if Joshua needed anything. Joshua could turn and touch him so easily. His face, his waist. Minghao would let him, he thinks. Minghao welcomes his touch.

What might Minghao’s hands feel like? His long, thin fingers remind Joshua of bird bones, delicate and hollow, but there’s a strength to him, too. Minghao would know how much pressure to put, where exactly to touch. He’d know Joshua better than Joshua knows himself. It would feel good, if Minghao touched him. Joshua wouldn’t tense up like he usually does. He wouldn’t squirm away or push Minghao’s hands away. He’d be comfortable with Minghao. Safe.

Joshua drops his hands, a bitter taste in his mouth. There’s no use in thinking about things that will never happen.

Ship/Member: Jeonghan/Wonwoo, past Jeonghan/Seungcheol, Jeonghan/Others
Major Tags: Character Death
Additional Tags: Jeonghan POV, historical (Silla ish, hwarang aesthetic), tragedy, doomed romance/love vs duty (wink wink)
Permission to remix: Yes

***

He had met Seungcheol when they were still children.

Years later, he recognised it as love at first sight. On Seungcheol's part, not his own.

It was brief but it was happy, just like how summers are. And peace.

When the letters started coming in, his father had smiled. The Chois to the south were good people, ruled by a prudent and patient king, slow to violence and generous towards his subjects. Politically, the Hongs to the east were a better choice, for their warriors and their iron, but those were the days of summer songs and winter had yet to stir.

///

Personally, Jeonghan had liked Seungcheol. Liked how he pressed flowers into the parchment and accompanied every letter with spices and leather, not just for Jeonghan, but also for his family. Seungcheol promised him the moon's glow on dewy reeds, the sun's first light in autumn, the western wind that delivered rain. Jisoo had looked over his shoulder and laughed, because Seungcheol's intentions were as clear as spring water.

"Will you say yes?" Jisoo had asked once, when they were still young and had time to dip their feet into the river.

Jeonghan thought of Jisoo, how his eyes smiled with his mouth. How his lips were always upturned. How they walked together from birth to battle, sharing wine and water. Jeonghan thought of his father, greying over scrawled maps, muttering about the Hongs and their ever expanding territory, seeding plans to support a coup against Jisoo's father.

Jeonghan looked at Jisoo, clenched his heart and said, "I will. When Seungcheol asks, I will say yes."

The letters from Seungcheol came with reports, of trade and commerce, news from distant lands and neighbouring counties. What Seungcheol didn't tell him, Jeonghan could figure out.

The crown prince successfully defeated the mountain bandits, accompanied by the second prince and two dozen soldiers.

The crown prince solved the case of the corrupt magistrate and delivered justice, asssisted by the second prince.

The crown prince defeated 3 other princes in a friendly tournament, a poem was written in his honour by the second prince.

Sometimes, the letters came with phrases that made Jeonghan pause.

Although apart, we share the moon.

He doubts Seungcheol has read the Poets, he wouldn't have time between his training and his campaigns. Copies of the anthologies are rare and guarded. Jeonghan himself only read them in secret, hiding pages in his sleeves as his father drilled him with military tactics and historical strategems. Reading those words was like a love letter sliding between his ribs, slicing into his beating heart.

There was Yoon Jeonghan, first son of the Yoons, inheritor of lands and horses. But there was also Jeonghan, a boy who dreamt of slow summer afternoons, lying down by the river, poetry being whispered into his hair.

///

The plague was a blessing in disguise. It weakened the Hong monarchy and the Kim regency, curbed the ambitions of the highland tribes as every ruler scrambled to hold their kingdom together.

For years, Jeonghan's father was the only one who looked past his own greed and understood what their people needed. Not just their people, the villages under the Yoon clan, but also the people of their neighbours, the Hongs, the Kims, the Chois. The peasants do not care who sits in the palace on the hill. One year they may be ruled by a Lee, the next they may be ruled by Boo. They all have lives, but without a single whisper on their part, their entire family can be wiped out by men in silk robes a hundred miles away.

There were naval invaders from the western sea and horseback warriors beyond the mountains. One clan alone can not hold back the threat, but the other clans will not assist. They can not see it as their problem, until it is too late.

Silla needed a unified kingdom. A crop ruined by drought can be bolstered by a generous catch from the sea, and vice versa the following year when the tides turn. Why must men die by the stars?

///

The letters stopped coming from Seungcheol, and Jeonghan assumed that the Chois were busy with logistics and consequences. But the news arrived after the winter solstice. Seungcheol perished in the plague, the second prince from the Jeon house will inherit the throne, and consequently, also Seungcheol's betrothed.

///

Jeonghan played the part of a maiden, knowledgeable only of the soft arts. Embroidery and music, poetry and flora. He wrote letters beseeching Elder Choi, outlining the vast extent of their ruined farmland, the multitudes of people clamouring for rice and grain, willing to work their bones for a meal. It was an open bowl, painting themselves as beggars and the Chois as a generous saviour. Seungcheol would have indulged in it, he had a champion's heart and a champion's ego. About the second prince, Jeonghan was not so sure.

Wonwoo was not like anything he had imagined.

Jeonghan arrived in Changwon on horseback, mind filled with plans and counterplans and strategums complicated enough to confuse scholars. But Wonwoo stood at the border, waiting for him. He greeted them with a wordless nod and turned his horse around, accompanying Jeonghan through the forest path. He was as silent as moonlight, a lake's silken surface to Seungcheol's bronze wildfire. When Jeonghan saw Wonwoo, his mind cleared and for the first time in many seasons, he felt at peace with himself.

///

Jeonghan requested personal space at the Jeon palace, but he didn't expect to get it. He phrased his request delicately, one hour of his company per night if it pleases. Surprisingly, Wonwoo approved everything, as if Jeonghan was a guest of honour and not a bargaining chip in a political game.

Jeonghan played the gayageum, fingers flying over the strings. He plucked his heart into the music, creating worlds where Silla was at peace, its people well-fed and happy. A world where he did not have to carry two faces and think about every word that falls out of his mouth, a world where he can live in the woods without the fate of the world on his shoulders.

Wonwoo was familiar with the magic of words, but music was a language only known to courtesans.

Despite not understanding, Wonwoo had listened. He sat still, with his hands on his knees. His body did not move but his eyes betrayed his wonder, glistening as the melody rose with empires and fell with battles.

"That was lovely, thank you," Wonwoo had said. And then he asked something Seungcheol would have never asked, "What else did you learn?"

In another life, Jeonghan would tell him about the poems he hid in his sleeve when he was fifteen, about a world dreamt by the poets where every land was at peace. Where kings ruled, not for their own wealth, but for the good of the people. And afterwards, Jeonghan could turn to Wonwoo and ask, what did your poets say about honour.

In this life, Jeonghan pushed him.

"Do you see him in me?" Wonwoo had whispered, much later, after their robes had fallen to the floor and Jeonghan showed him what he had learnt, not from the poets, but the courtesans.

Jeonghan stilled for the barest of moments. He was not thinking of Seungcheol at all, he had not thought of Seungcheol since he passed into the dark.

"No, I do not," Jeonghan replied. He leaned down until their lips were touching. "I see me in you."

///

Perhaps, it need not be another lifetime.

Wonwoo may understand, he was different to Seungcheol, as different as the sun was to the moon. Seungcheol was loyal to a fault, he would die with his father regardless of the cause.

But Wonwoo, Wonwoo thought about his words before he spoke. He kept his opinions close to his heart and allowed his ears to hear the voices of others. He read the poets, he may have read the histories, he may also dream of peace.

In time, he could tell Wonwoo about his plans. Seed the ideas until he is sure Wonwoo could understand, and then he could reveal it all. Wonwoo would have ideas upon ideas, he would care about the people the same way Jeonghan did. He could see beyond the yearly skirmishes and envision a unified Silla. Perhaps, Wonwoo would be the other half of his soul.

He could do this, with Wonwoo's hand in his, Jeonghan can rule. He could stop doing this alone.

"I am glad it is you," Jeonghan whispered, long after their breathes slowed down. A secret between himself and his pillow.

Wonwoo was awake. He turned around and placed his hand on Jeonghan's cheek, as gently as a flower descending to the ground. He looked at Jeonghan, a gaze that pierced through facade and words and saw Jeonghan as a man, naked and bare. Jeonghan trembled, wondering what Wonwoo saw.

Wonwoo echoed the words, "I am glad it is you."

///

He did not have time.

Before their wedding, a messenger came from his father.

The Hongs are planning to attack. Start the Jeon coup, take the troops.

Jeonghan read the battle plans, memorised the details, and threw the paper into the fire. He watched the embers float into the winter air and knew, that there would be no honour in this lifetime.

///

Wonwoo was the only crown prince he buried.

He used the younger Lee against Boo, pulling on their grudges until Boo's corpse was stringed on the city wall for the crows to feast on.

Jisoo had smiled when they met again, a smile that did not reach his eyes. There was no hatred between them when Jeonghan pushed him into the fire, burning with his father's house and Seungcheol's letters.

Wonwoo had met him on the battlefield with the last of his brother's men. He had no chance against Jeonghan's army, but he unsheathed his sword without hesitation and charged.

Jeonghan had paused, just for a second, so he could see Wonwoo's eyes one last time. So he could see himself in Wonwoo, and the kingdom they could've built together.

Their lips were cracked when they kissed, summer sun melting his tears. In a different lifetime, Jeonghan would spend summers by the river, Wonwoo whispering poetry into his hair. In another life, they would wear red to the altar, the red of love, not blood.

Jeonghan would remember this, as the price he paid for a kingdom.

It should have been you, Jeonghan thought to say, as his sword pierced Wonwoo's armour, sliding between his ribs, slicing into his beating heart. It should have been your kingdom.

***

(thank you vee, this was so fun to remix, and I hope this semi-makes up for King Again. You are my no.1 supporter for that and I will not forget it!

Ship/Member: Wonwoo/Any
Major Tags: N/A
Additional Tags: Explicit content, literally go ham be free genderbend if you want or whatever its all good
Do Not Wants: None

Prompt:

I wanna fuck you in the bathroom / I wanna fuck you on the roof of my car / I wanna drink your juice so badly / I want it dripping from my ass to the floor

Bathroom Bitch by HOLYCHILD

The more he says it, the more it becomes okay. Becomes something tolerable, something manageable, something easy to tuck away and hide and never have to bring up again. karina what the fuck lmao!!!!!! josh trying so hard to convince himself it's fine because it has to be fine.... EXTREMELY messed up and extremely josh. he always tries to make himself grin and bear it!

“I’ve never really done this before,” Joshua confesses, flexing his large fingers this way and that, marveling at their size and strength. His fingers clench into a fist suddenly, fast enough that his knuckles crack with the ferocity of it. VILE!!!!!

Minghao uses Joshua’s face to smile. WRETCHED!!!!!!!!!!!!

you set up the mood and horrifying vibe here soooo well i'm so impressed. you always have such a good way with words and this was no exception. you showed just enough to leave us with a sense of distinct horror but there were still so many questions at the end, which imo is the best way to go with this genre. the exchange with seungkwan (;~;) was so short yet added such a good (horrible) emotional layer as well.

thank you so much for filling the prompt in such a distinct and wonderful(ly unpleasant) way!!!!!! you have so much talent and i'm so honoured you shared it with me like this ( ⌯’ㅅ’⌯)♡

Ship/Member: Jun/Yanan, Jun & Minghao
Major Tags: N/A
Additional Tags: Passion and love at the wrong times. Set in a canon where Yanan (and Pentagon) see a lot more success.
Permission to remix: Yes

"Who the fuck dubbed him?" Minghao blurts out the moment Yanan's character speaks onscreen.

"Same guy who did Zhao-zhao apparently," Jun answers, still half-asleep, his head lolling on the head of the couch in their dorm.

To the untrained ear—rather to anyone who hadn't heard Yanan speak in actual person—it sounded like him enough. Inflection was intentional which meant it was off, because the last time Minghao had heard Yanan speak, it was on stage; he'd given the acceptance speech on behalf of Pentagon in Mandarin for an award show. Even through the courteous professionalism, he sounded perfectly happy. It'd been so late in the game for them; Yanan was in Korea for the stage and award acceptance, and in a few days he'd dipped back to Beijing for another drama casting.

The web drama they're watching right now is something long overdue, to Minghao. Jun has watched it twice since its release earlier in the spring. To the untrained eye, that isn't anything new—Jun folded himself comfortably in front of their flat screen whenever some of them turned it on to view some variety episode any of his acquaintances and friends guested on. But Minghao notices that Jun isn't really watching anymore, probably hasn't been this whole time.

Chao Yin Zhan Ji didn't really have a high viewer rating in the first place. It was a friendly competitive show, a competitive show of stage collaboration that was meant to consist of a balanced roster of musicians and performers, except no one really gave a shit about the idols that were on it. Zhou Zhennan was the exception because he'd come in first place.

The irony of it was nearly forgotten about because Zhennan had considered pairing up with either Jun or Yanan somewhere, though he'd never said that in front of the cameras for the talking head segments.

"You're pitting them against each other? Seems brave," Samuel commented in Korean thoughtfully, which Minghao faltered to translate for Zhou Zhennan because he was already responding in English, "They both have the same type of voices; it's a competition." Also, because you don't go through hell and back retaining what you'd learned as a foreign trainee in JYP for a few years; Jun ran down Zhou Zhennan's idol resume for Minghao on the way to Beijing. Minghao had considered earlier on that maybe he'd get to know Zhennan better.

Meanwhile, Jun's strategy was entirely different.

"That's not a strategy," Minghao said. "Yanan doesn't have a clue as to what he's doing."

"I think the audience might see the charm with two bumbling performers willing to grow, right?" Jun shrugged, padding around barefoot in the dead of the night after the camera crew left and Wu Jiacheng finally called it a day and left their room. "Now, if I don't find my phone to make a call, I'll be screwed for real."

"Woozi-hyung is a good strategy. I'll take back what I said," Minghao said, throwing him his phone.

They'd been good for their first performance. It was theatrics—gave them space to play around in, in a sandbox they liked. Yanan had already made his decision to step out of the show then, and Minghao only knows because he'd stumbled upon him and Wu Jiacheng's smoke break.

"Jun already knows," Yanan said, holding Minghao's gaze when he opened his mouth to say something.

"Ah. Good, then," was all Minghao could say, then, "We're with you on this, man."

Yanan didn't smile back. "I'll announce it, properly." Formally, he means.

The scene edited was the most moving thing on the entire show yet. Jun, for all his enthusiasm and loud-mouthed outward exterior of being carefree, took things in good stride while Yanan spoke carefully, softly. His decisiveness was admirable, and Jun's kindness shone through. Nothing about that part was staged.

Yanan used to drop by the studio room when they had time to mess around and gather together after filming takes. Whenever Jun laughed, Yanan just couldn't stop looking at him, something pensive in his expression.

"You're conflicted," Jun spelled out for Minghao, eyes wide that made Minghao feel like he was 12 years old and being talked down. Jun was older, but still, and that had never really mattered anyway.

"Conflicted about whatever you're thinking about doing now we're in China," Minghao says. Yanan had been there filming for another drama that had seen moderate success which, for an idol actor, was success huge enough in China. He'd be heading back to Seoul in a few weeks.

"Just two long-time brothers, meeting up for old times' sake because—why not. You think paparazzi will want to get a load of that?" Jun counters, patiently.

"I hate you both," Minghao deadpans, and Jun is already puckering his mouth with a light smack of his lips through video call, separated one wall away during their quarantine in their Beijing hotel.

During the filming of Chao Yin Zhan Ji, Jun had been—there was no other way to put it—sticky. He'd looked up at Yanan with something that felt like sugar melted between teeth, unmistakeable, palpable enough to potentially churn a stomach after too much cake. After that, Yanan had kept true to his word, and hung out a bit when he'd gotten back to Seoul, for the better longer period when he'd said he would stop worrying people around him. Minghao had thought nothing of it at first—but Jun had dragged him along in place of Qian Kun, who'd turned down his invitation to hang out with a few friends, being holed up for the millionth time in SM's studios. And well—the moment Minghao saw the look on Yanan's face when his eyes found Jun at their haidilao table, Minghao almost spat out his beer.

"There's nothing between us," Jun announces around a mouthful of pork ribs, apropos of nothing beside Minghao in their hotel room, a month into their time back in China. Minghao had eaten enough; he can barely move.

"What," Minghao says.

"Me and Yanan."

"Mmm," Minghao just responds cleverly, brain catching up through the post-food haze. Usually, he could only ever eat ths much if it was with his mother. That was exactly how he uploaded douyins of them together, not that he complained much. "You guys are done? Why?"

"It was just...a bad idea in the first place," Jun settles on, with a small frown on his sharp features.

It was easy enough to understand, all things considered: Yanan's first webdrama had garnered him enough of a fanbase to catapult him to getting more roles. His members joked once on a live to follow the group's official Weibo account, not just Yanan's. It was nothing short of a miracle to people who weren't fans, that Yanan was coming back to Korea each and every time Pentagon had a comeback to record for it but that was definitely one of the things Jun shared with him in innate understanding. Shinwon and Kino spoke about Yanan the way Seventeen spoke about Jun and Minghao now that they're abroad. You kind of just don't really forget about the people who helped raised you and corrected you for fluency.

XCSS as a label was just as good as their Korean counterpart for keeping their artistes' private lives and relationships on a tight leash, but Jun's reasons were casual enough: it didn't make sense to keep it up, Yanan couldn't afford to keep taking risks like that, and well—Jun's career in China needed to take off again after years of being out of it. Either way, he's taking it well. Maybe he really was good enough an actor as he hopes to show.

"You know, he might not say yes to the casting. Noise marketing, and all that," Jun says, scrolling through his phone. There was this variety show that had decent ratings and coverage, that Jun and Minghao were invited to. Of course it'd been spread over the Internet that Pentagon's Yan An, could be guesting as well.

"He hasn't told you," Minghao says.

"Ah. No."

"How often do you still talk?"

Jun glances at him then. "Often."

Yanan on the show feels a little bit like talking to stiff cardboard in between the dead air during filming, for someone unused to variety and coming on alone.

Minghao being bound at the hip with Jun by company decision for these things, would have never been able to stop him from making his own decisions.

"Talk as in, you were still sleeping with him?" Minghao finally asks, over a glass of wine later on in a small night bar a few days later. Their new manager is out of earshot, trying to order himself something off the menu at the bar to keep himself awake to be able to drive later.

Jun doesn't even need alcohol to be honest. "I know I shouldn't."

"Jesus Christ." People around them had always known, but the tense is what does it. "Still?"

"It was a mistake."

"What the fuck."

"I said—"

"Exactly. So stop." Jun continues to frown over his glass. "You can't keep doing this."

Jun rubs the spot between his brows, shoulders deflated. "You've seen the all the movies, right? The ones you can't forget." The ones that didn't really make you cry but stayed with people long enough through generations with big names behind them. No one could really make movies about two male leads anymore, and have it screen for award nominations. People like Wang Yibo got lucky in a whirlwind of just two years for his shot at superstar fame. "They don't tell you all the good parts about the people you really like. Just the endings," Jun says, unusually calm. It only reminds Minghao that Jun really is older, if only by a year. But still. "I know it'll stop soon. It has to."

Until then—Minghao downs the rest of his wine. "You're brave."

"You're being nice now?"

"Well, stupid," Minghao finishes, raising his hand for the tab.

The next time Yanan's name makes rounds on the Internet, it's next to a girl's name. A small-time actress who'd emerged onto the scene and saw decent praise for her performance as the female lead to Yanan's character on a heart-wrenching coming of age movie. The news of their rumoured relationship was released days before the award show in Korea. When Yanan stepped down with the rest of his group off the stage after Pentagon's acceptance speech, he kept his eyes ahead of him.

Edited 2022-01-01 05:31 (UTC)

nj hello!! thank you for reading and for??!! commenting so quickly. This is literally the first thing I posted since January 2021 so I was quite nervous in the immediate aftermath and you just swooped in and said so lovely things!! ahhh thank you!!!

- YES REPRESSEIONISMS, when I saw this I was just like u___u sigh pb you're so obvious trying to bait wonwoo-ists surely this won't work -- and here we are haha
- that interview is iconic!! so much to think about, the contrast between the 97z, but also how it highlights Mingyu as a performer (haha)

<333

hello karina!! omg thank you, you get it, that's exactly what I was trying to go for with this fill. there's not a lot of plot or r'ship development because I was trying something else. Like putting scenes next to each other, and then having the reader figure out the connotations through the contrast. seeing your comment makes me so happy because yes!! exactly!! I want to explore why Soonyoung is so magnetic to Wonwoo even though they are so different on paper. But in RL we all know Wonwoo loves Soonyoung to bits, especially for his crazy bits. Writing Wonwoo looking at Soonyoung makes me think about the wistful parts of him that wants to be more than what he currently is.

thank you!! haha I also lied down after writing this

He stares at the soft touch of Minghao’s fingers and wonders. this followed by It would feel good, if Minghao touched him. Joshua wouldn’t tense up like he usually does. He wouldn’t squirm away or push Minghao’s hands away. He’d be comfortable with Minghao. Safe. i'm gnawing on my own fist in agony rn lol!!!!!!! he's noticed minghao's hands!!!! HE WOULD BE COMFORTABLE WITH HIM.... HE WOULD FEEL SAFE... I'M GONNA SCREAM ABOUT IT I THINK. I HAVE NO OTHER CHOICE.

you got just the right level of aching loneliness and want i'm so in awe! the way josh feels like there's something wrong with him, the way he wants it so badly but can't voice it and can't let himself have it... everything was completely perfect. like you saw inside my brain honestly! thank you so much for writing and sharing this!!!!!!! love you ♡♡♡

thank you!! it is so interesting, how mentally they are completely different but Wonwoo is still drawn to Soonyoung, and how, unknown to Soonyoung, Wonwoo also helps him in turn.

thank you pammie for your comment ;___; thank you for noticing the construction because I thought so hard about that, since it's a fic made from a construction of scenes, rather than a linear progression of a relationship. Soonyoung IS such a foil to Wonwoo!! exactly!! because even though the way they think is so different, Wonwoo still wants to be Soonyoung in some way, like he yearns for Soonyoung's mindset, his silliness. Wonwoo is so serious but deep down I think he has great horangdan potential u___u

yess risa!! I know you'll get all the details!! the soonyoung falling thing is based on the fearless behind, where he actually suggests the pose to Jeonghan (he leans back but doesn't actually fall down hehe). Wonwoo is so fun to write for his interiority because he thinks so much more than he says - it's kind of weird writing him from someone else's POV because I'm thinking about all the things he's saying but in the end all I write is "Ah."

Also fyi, one of the scenes I considered was the interview they did for Abema about what they would do when they liked someone + Wonwoo said he'll take them out for a perfect picnic on the weekend (wtf hahaha). There was a wip about the honesty in their answers and how Wonwoo was answering to show off his jpn grammar/vocab... but the interview was in korean so I dropped it.

thank you for reading this klav *__* I didn't realise confession came up in my fics so often, I reflected and it's so true wow. Now I need to reflect on myself, I think I'm drawn to the honesty of it and how it shows the reasons why people confess, reflecting on their own personal wants.

ahh thank you for pointing out the lines you liked - yes Hoshi is a Force to be admired!

Ship/Member: seungcheol/any, seungkwan/any, josh/any
Major Tags: the parts of yourself you don’t want anyone to see
Additional Tags: none
Do Not Wants: none

Prompt:

The wrong things have been wired
together. Things that shouldn't touch. The sooner
you embrace it, the sooner it will leave you. Okay.
The bruise: milk yellow. You are what you cover up.

— richard siken, glue

it literally is going to be the year of the tiger next year, Hoshi has already mentioned it. He's only going to become stronger with all the tiger content

I originally had a heartfelt ending where Hoshi grows into godzilla and then becomes sad when he realises he can't dance on a stage with Taemin hahaha. you're welcome!!

ahahaha yes the old 'post and pass out and wake up to the consequences' - will use hwaranghae non-ironically from now on and regret in 2023.

hahahaha thank you klav I'm glad it made you laugh in the morning (and happy new year now!!)

alternate title is: Hoshi's World haha, I had so much fun thinking about how things worked if everything went according to Hosh logic

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

Page 40 of 73

2022 Round 1: Quotes

[Fill] the mess you made

Re: [Fill] the mess you made

size too small

Re: symmetry/asymmetry

Re: symmetry/asymmetry

Re: symmetry/asymmetry

[FILL] a gentle touch

[REMIX] a kingdom for this

Happy 2022

Re: [FILL] a whisper in the breeze

[FILL] your dreams in your hands

Re: [FILL] then fall

Re: [FILL] then fall

Re: [FILL] then fall

Re: [FILL] a gentle touch

Re: [FILL] then fall

Re: [FILL] then fall

Re: [FILL] then fall

Re: [FILL] then fall

Re: [FILL] then fall

the soft animal of your body.

Re: [FILL] it's the eye of the tiger

Re: [FILL] it's the eye of the tiger

Re: [FILL] it's the eye of the tiger

Re: [FILL] it's the eye of the tiger