between masks
yungi, Spider-Man!yunho, deadpool!mingi, best friends, gun and violence mentioned (not grafic at all), nothing else to really mention rn, but if this does well, I have more to give trust. also a bit of a styke change how we feeling abt it
the city never really slept, but at 2:17 a.m., it pretended to.
New York was quieter in that strange, in-between way. Traffic lights blinked to empty streets. A distant siren echoed somewhere it didn’t belong. The air felt colder, sharper. Like something was about to go wrong. on the rooftop of a mid-rise apartment building, Spider-Man crouched low, fingers pressed against the concrete. His mask pulled up at the bottom, exposing his mouth a half assed sandwich he made for lunch stuffed in his mouth - listening.
"Okay," he muttered to himself, voice soft but restless, "either my spider-sense is broken… or tonight’s too quiet."
that usually meant trouble and trouble didn’t take long to show up.
a gunshot cracked through the silence.
Spider-Man’s head snapped toward the sound. "Yeah. There it is."
he quickly discarded the sandwich, stuffing as much as he could in his mouth before pulling the mask down, leaping down. three blocks down, in a narrow alley squeezed between a closed deli and a flickering laundromat, chaos unfolded fast.
a man staggered backward, hands raised, panic written all over him.
"I told you- I don’t have it anymore!"
standing across from him, casually spinning a pistol like this was all just part of a game, was Deadpool.
"Well," Deadpool said, tilting his head, voice almost playful, "that sounds like a you problem, not a me problem."
the man shook his head desperately. "Please-someone already took it, I swear -"
"uh-huh." Deadpool stepped closer. "And let me guess. you were just about to tell me who, right?"
the safety clicked off.
before the trigger could be pulled, a web shot out tugging the gun out of Deadpool’s grip. the heavy metal clattering loudly against the concrete.
"Okay!"Spider-Man landed between them, arms slightly out like he was breaking up a fight on a playground. "I think we’re done here."
Deadpool stared at his now-empty hand.
"...Rude."
Spider-Man tilted his head. "You were about to shoot him."
"Correction," Deadpool held up a finger, "I was about to convince him."
"With a bullet?"
"Motivation comes in many forms."
the man behind Spider-Man took the chance and bolted, disappearing out of the alley without a second thought.
Spider-Man glanced back. "Good. That’s one less person getting shot tonight."
Deadpool sighed dramatically, head thrown back. "You just ruined my entire evening."
"Pretty sure I saved a life."
"tomato, tomahto."
Spider-Man straightened slightly, his tone shifting, less joking now. "You do know you don’t get to decide who lives or dies, right?"
Deadpool stepped forward.
"right but you don’t get to decide how I do my job."
There was a pause.
Tension snapped tight between them.
Spider-Man’s stance changed, subtle, but ready. back straighter firsts slightly clenched.
Deadpool noticed. Of course he did.
"Oh, we’re doing this?" he said, almost delighted. "Great. I was getting bored."
Spider-Man exhaled slowly. "I don’t want to fight you."
Deadpool shrugged. "That’s okay. I don’t mind fighting you enough for both of us."
and then he moved.
fast.
too fast for someone who joked that much.
Spider-Man barely dodged the first strike, flipping backward as a blade flashed where he’d been standing.
"Okay-!" he landed against the wall, "you definitely skipped the ‘talk it out’ option!"
Deadpool spun the blade once in his hand. "Talking’s overrated."
"Funny," Spider-Man shot back, firing another webline, "you seem like the type who never shuts up."
Deadpool laughed.
"wow! I didn't think you'd pay enough attention to notice that detail!"
and lunged again.
"don't flatter yourself."
across the city, in a quiet apartment building that looked exactly like every other one on the block, the lights in one window were still on. inside, Song Mingi’s phone buzzed on the kitchen counter, completely forgotten and ignored. a half-finished drink sat beside it.
the room was empty.
one floor above, Jeong Yunho’s bedroom window was wide open. curtains swayed gently in the night air.
his bed was untouched.
back in the alley, sparks flew as metal clashed against webbing and brick. Spider-Man flipped over Deadpool, landing behind him. "you ever think about, I don’t know, not doing this?"
Deadpool didn’t turn around. "You ever think about, i dont know, minding your own business?"
"You were about to kill someone!"
“He wasn’t innocent either, okay!"
Spider-Man hesitated just for a second.
Deadpool caught it.
"yeah," he said more quietly this time, "didn’t think so."
That moment that tiny crack was all it took.
Deadpool spun and struck.
Spider-Man barely blocked it.
"still! killing the guy isn't what you should do!"
deadpool groaned loudly pushing spiderman away from him making him stumble over his own feet landing on his ass.
"God you are so boring. maybe a kiss would help? huh?"
loud kissing sounds followed as deadpool moved closer crouching down a few feet away from the hero on the floor.
"so, did it help?" he asked tilting his head to the side voice holding so much sarcasm it was annoying.
"uh..no not really."
after the answer a grumble of disappointment could be heard but before anything could be said Spider-Man quickly kicked Deadpool in the stomach making him go flying up. webs followed after sticking him to the wall securely.
"really?! out of everything you could have done? I just washed my suit man.."
"too bad. I don't want to say see you around but I know I will."
by the time Spider-Man finally made it back, the sky was already starting to fade into that dull pre-dawn gray.
too early to be night.
too late to still be out.
he slipped through the open window quietly, landing with a soft thud on his bedroom floor. For a moment, he didn’t move, just crouched there, staring at nothing.
"He’s so annoying," he muttered under his breath.
a pause.
"and he talks too much."
another pause.
"and he doesn’t take anything seriously."
his shoulders dropped slightly.
"but he didn’t shoot him."
that part stuck.
more than it should have.
Yunho reached up, pulling the mask off slowly, like he needed a second to separate himself from it. His hair was a mess, his expression more tired than he expected.
"...why didn’t he?"
the question lingered in the quiet room.
he shook his head once, like he could physically get rid of the annoying thought.
"who the fuck cares" he mumbled, standing up hitting the spider on his chest making the suit basically deflate as he got out of it kicking it under his bed without much care. "He’s still a problem."
but even then as he jumped into bed the image replayed in his mind-
Deadpool pausing.
Deadpool noticing.
Deadpool choosing not to pull the trigger.
Yunho frowned slightly.
a few hours later, the building was alive again.
footsteps in the hallways. Doors opening and closing. Someone arguing loudly over the phone two floors down.
normal.
safe.
ordinary.
Yunho stood outside a familiar door, dressed and showered, shifting his weight slightly before knocking.
once.
twice.
there was a pause.
then-
the door swung open.
"Dude," Song Mingi said, voice still rough with sleep, hair completely unstyled, "it is way too early for you to be a functioning human being."
Yunho smiled immediately. That soft, automatic kind of smile that didn't need effort.
"Good morning to you too."
Mingi squinted at him. "you're suspiciously cheerful."
"I'm always cheerful."
"No," Mingi leaned against the doorframe, eyeing him, "you're tired cheerful right now. That's different."
Yunho huffed a quiet laugh, brushing past him into the apartment like he belonged there because he basically did.
"Did you sleep at all?" Mingi called after him, closing the door.
"Enough."
"That’s not an answer."
"It’s the only one you're getting."
Mingi rolled his eyes but followed him into the kitchen anyway, watching as Yunho moved around like he'd done this a hundred times, grabbing a glass, opening cabinets without asking.
familiar.
comfortable.
dangerously easy.
"you're staying for breakfast, right?" Yunho asked casually, already reaching for ingredients.
Mingi blinked, pointing a finger to himself. "You came over to mine uninvited, and you're asking me if im staying?"
Yunho glanced at him over his shoulder. "So is that a yes?"
there it was.
that look.
soft. hopeful. just a little too careful for something that was supposed to be casual.
Mingi hesitated for half a second too long.
"yeah," he said finally, quieter than before. "Yeah, stay."
Yunho smiled again smaller this time, but warmer.
while Yunho busied himself in the kitchen, Mingi leaned back against the counter, arms crossed loosely, watching him.
"you're in a good mood," he said after a moment.
"Am I?"
"Yeah."
Yunho shrugged lightly. "Just...feels like a nice morning."
it wasn't entirely a lie.
Mingi studied him for a second longer.
"You didn't hear anything weird last night, did you?"
Yunho froze for the briefest moment.
barely noticeable.
"like what?" he asked, keeping his tone light.
Mingi shrugged. "i don't know. Thought I heard something outside. Probably nothing."
Yunho turned back to the stove quickly. "Yeah. Probably nothing."
silence settled for a moment.
but it wasn't uncomfortable.
it never really was between them.
"I ran into someone last night."
the words slipped out before Yunho could stop them.
Mingi straightened slightly. "Oh?"
Yunho hesitated.
he didn't know why he said it.
maybe because it was still stuck in his head. maybe because he tells Mingi everything.
"just some guy near our building." he added quickly.
Mingi's gaze sharpened just a little. "And?"
Yunho leaned back against the counter, crossing his arms.
"He's-" he stopped, searching for the right word.
"Annoying."
Mingi let out a short laugh. "That's your biggest complaint?"
"He doesn't take anything seriously."
"sounds like someone I know."
Yunho shot him a look. "I'm serious."
Mingi held up his hands. "Okay, okay."
but there was something thoughtful in his expression now.
"did he do anything specific?"
Yunho paused.
"no."
Mingi nodded slowly.
"then maybe he's not as bad as you think."
Yunho frowned slightly at that.
"You're taking his side?"
"I’m taking the side of 'you dont know the dude'," Mingi replied simply.
Yunho looked away, his thoughts drifting again-
to red and black.
to sarcasm dripping through every word.
to that pause.
their eyes met.
something unspoken passed between them briefly, but heavy.
rhen Mingi looked away first, rubbing the back of his neck.
"you think about people too much," he muttered.
Yunho smiled faintly. "Someone has to."
a few minutes later, they ended up sitting side by side on the couch, plates balanced on their laps.
too close to be accidental.
oo normal to question.
at some point, Yunho's shoulder brushed against Mingi's.
he didn't move away.
instead, he leaned in just slightly.
testing.
careful.
like he was waiting to see if it would be noticed.
Mingi did notice.
of course he did.
but he didn’t move either.
"you're clingy today," he said, voice casual.
Yunho hummed. "Am I?"
"Yeah."
"is that a problem?"
Mingi glanced at him.
Yunho wasn’t looking back just focused on his food like the question didn’t matter.
like the answer wouldn’t.
"no," Mingi said after a second. "It's not."
Yunho’s shoulders relaxed just a little.
and for a moment, everything felt simple.
no masks.
no fights.
no choices about who deserved what.
just this.
but in the back of Mingi’s mind-
there was still the feeling of webbing snapping tight against his suit in an oddly hot way at that.
and in Yunho's-
the sound of a voice that wouldn’t take anything seriously.
they sat side by side, close enough to feel the warmth of each other
thinking about someone else entirely.
and not realizing..
it was the same person.
