Chapter 2

Knock, knock, knock!

"Jisung-ah!"

Knock, knock!

"Go away!" Han called, pulling his blankets over his head to muffle the noise. "I'm sleeping!"

"You've slept all day!" called Changbin. "Felix and Chan are making dinner for everyone at the other dorm. We're going over to eat." Han groaned and rolled over. "Fine!" Changbin called through door. "Stay here and be lazy, but I won't save you any leftovers."

"Don't be such an ass!" Han called back. "I'm coming!"

Rolling out of bed, he pulled on a random shirt that was already crumpled on the floor, not even checking if it was clean or not. He didn't care. The last two weeks had been exhausting, as the team was working hard to crank out four new songs with completed choreography and production, ready to film music videos by a rapidly approaching deadline. Han was spending upwards of twelve, thirteen, fourteen hours a day working in the studio with 3RACHA, and the mental strain was beginning to wear down on them. That also didn't include the dance rehearsals scheduled throughout the week, or much less his own work-out plan that he was trying to uphold. Even gym rat Changbin was struggling to keep up his regiment lately.

The only saving grace to their crazy schedule recently is that Han had very little time to mourn the absence of his best friend… their work and sleep schedules often overlapped each other, so the only real times he saw Minho was during dance rehearsal, during which he was so busy instructing the group that there was rarely any downtime to interact with him. To the credit of both men, they had truly been focusing on their work diligently, which was a welcome distraction at first, but as the days wore on Han began to feel more and more empty. This dinner might finally be a chance to actually spend time with Minho again, even just a little bit.

Upon exiting his room, Han found Hyunjin and Changbin waiting for him. "Nice hair." Hyunjin said tonelessly.

"Shut up," Han snapped, though he hurriedly tried to brush out his untamed mop. Together they exited the apartment and made their way down the hall to the other dorm where Felix, Jeong In, Seungmin, and Minho lived.

"What's up fam!" Changbin cried as the entered, which was followed various responses by the other members as they came in ("Ahh, there they are.. Late as usual." "Glad you could join us!" "Hurry up, I'm starving.") Han scanned the room, quickly locking on Minho's location. He was seated cross-legged at the far end of the coffee table in the living room, talking to Seungmin. His eyes flitted up and briefly met Han's, acknowledging his presence, but then he diverted his gaze.

"Take your seats, everyone!" Chef Chan called from the kitchen. "Dinner is almost ready!"

Han resolved this would be his chance. This was just a quiet dinner amongst the team. No cameras, no livestreams, just Stray Kids enjoying a meal together. He didn't need to cuddle up close to Minho or anything, he just wanted to be near him, even just a little bit. As the other men started moving towards the living room, Han bee-lined his way to the far side of the room, snagging a pillow from the couch and sitting down on it just to the right of Minho. He chanced a small smile at his friend, but Minho only gave him a look of mild shock as if to say, "What are you doing?"

But Han did not have time to respond, as just then Felix rounded the corner carrying a steaming pan of egg-fried rice, with Chan following closely behind with seared pork bulgogi. All the team members whooped and cheered triumphantly, celebrating the arrival of the delicious smelling-food. To Han, everything felt graciously normal again. Everyone was smiling, even Minho, and they each began piling their bowls high, with celebratory cheers of "Jal meokgesseumnida!" as they began eagerly stuffing their faces.

"Thank you, Hyungs!" Jeong In mumbled with his large mouth impossibly stuffed with food.

"Don't talk with your mouth full," Hyunjin scolded.

"But it's so good!" their maknae whined.

"It's delicious," Seungmin agreed. "Best food I've had in weeks."

"Thank you, thank you," Chan said, laughing. "And thank you to Felix for making the rice. You've all been working really hard. You deserve a good meal."

Another round gratitude spread around the group, with everyone praising and thanking their Aussie line. Han chewed contentedly, feeling better than he had in days, just knowing that Minho was next to him and everything felt sort of normal. But his happiness was short lived, as he adjusted on his pillow seat and his knee came to rest unsuspectingly against Minho's leg. At first, he didn't think anything of it. It was such a small, innocent little touch. In the past they may not have even noticed it, but now Minho suddenly stood up.

"It needs some spice," he announced randomly and started walking towards the kitchen.

"Spice?" Changbin called after him. "But you just agreed it was already good!"

"It is good," Minho called back, accompanied by the sounds of drawers rummaging. "But I like things spicy." He returned to the room carrying a bottle of pepper sauce and squeezed himself in between Felix and Hyunjin who were seated closest to the pan of food.

"Ugh! Do you mind?" Hyunjin chided, leaning dramatically over to get out of Minho's way.

"Nope, I don't mind," Minho smiled, clearly proud of himself for successfully irritating Hyunjin. Han could only watch in disappointment as Minho forcibly settled into a sitting position between them, scooped some more rice and meat into his bowl, and topped it generously with the pepper sauce. Felix, being always so polite, kindly scooted over to give Minho space—and that was that.

Han immediately no longer felt hungry anymore, but he gripped his bowl tightly and tried his best to muscle down some bulgogi. He did not want to alert his friends to how upset he really was. So Minho could not even bare to sit next to him anymore? Could not even handle the accidental touch of Han's leg against him? Even when surrounded by their best friends, with no audience remotely nearby, Minho could clearly no longer withstand Han's proximity anymore. It made Han feel sick. Sipping slowly from his water glass, he tried to steel himself against the pain and disappointment. This was his reality now. He would have to learn to live with it.