Genre/AU: fluff, romance, angst, band au, apocalypse au, time capsule au
Warnings: swearing, mentions of violence, food, making out, cockroaches/bugs and their extermination, mentions of alcohol, dream/nightmare, mentions of death and the undead, no cheating and it's barely a love triangle but she has a boyfriend who isn’t Ten at one point and that causes conflict of the bromantic kind, pettiness, a bit of dark humor, non linear narrative
Synopsis: In a world that's changing in ways none of them ever imagined, Ten and his friends take a trip down memory lane.
WC: 5.6K
Inspiration: Playlist (also Club Nightmare- I might write a spinoff inspired by it one day, expanding on 'the nightmare' au)
Ten wakes up to the sound of Mariya Takeuchi’s Plastic Love and is left staring at his phone in disbelief when the ringtone cuts off right as his finger hovers over the answer button.
Nine missed calls. It’s 7’oclock and Johnny knows he doesn’t wake up before eleven on Sundays, so this better be important, or else.
When the phone lights up, Ten answers before the music even starts playing. It’s not Johnny’s voice he hears.
“Johnny says we’ll be in front of your place in fifteen minutes. Today’s the day, you know?” That’s all Doyoung says before he hangs up.
A look at the calendar is all it takes for Ten to realize that it has, in fact, been five years since that day. Wow. Ten feels old, theoretically. He can still do the splits with little to no strain, so he’s technically fine, for now.
She is not a morning person. Sure she could stick to the schedule on weekdays. Weekends and holidays though? Those are days to sleep in, stay in bed all day. Three cups of coffee is the minimum to be functional in the morning on a day like this, though the flask she holds barely qualifies as coffee and is really just warm water.
So why is she awake and outside so early on a Sunday without the comfort of caffeine?
Five years ago, Johnny had a eureka moment that led to them shoveling dirt. Fortunately, Johnny’s brilliant idea did not involve hiding a dead body. Unfortunately, there’d be more digging today.
She snatches a flyer flying around with the wind. We make your special day as special as it can be, it says. 20% discount with this flyer, it says. You dream and we plan, it says.
She is engulfed in a warm embrace, and she relaxes in the familiar scent of her fiancé, the flyer now in his grasp.
“Is there something you want to tell me?” he asks, amusement slipping into his voice behind the mock seriousness. There's a pause before the two of them burst into laughter.
It started with a post she saw online that got her thinking.
“Ok so this is the part where you come up with a bad idea and I go along with it because I’m amazing and I love you, right?” Ten teased.
She’d swatted at Ten for that. Failing to hide her smile at his laughter, she continued. “ You know I don’t want to get married, but I want a wedding.”
“So you want to have a fake wedding? Get fake married?”
“Exactly!” She grinned, grasping his hands. “It’ll be fun.”
“Wait seriously?” When she nodded, he thought it over. “Did you miss the news this morning? Is this the best time?”
They’d announced an asteroid was likely to crash land on the Earth, its expected impact being great enough to worry about the fate of humanity. There was a chance that its path could pass by the planet without doing any damage.
“Is any time the best? We have to make the best out of what we have.”
Doyoung did not react well to the news when he found out a week later.
They’d walked in with matching rings and said they were engaged- fake engaged.
Doyoung stared at them in disbelief, and then when he realised they weren’t kidding, he started shouting and it quickly evolved into a quarrel between Doyoung and her.
A car drives down the street, coming to a halt right before them. Johnny sticks his head out the window to tell them to get in, although his way of doing it is a little crude.
"So," she says. "Who else?"
"Taeil, Taeyong, Jungwoo." A pause. "Oh, Donghyuck decided to tag along."
She brightens up at the mention of the youngest member of NCity. "Sunny boy's going to be with us? Then this certainly counts as band bonding activities."
“You’re not our manager anymore.” Doyoung rolls his eyes at her.
She scoffs. “Yeah well, do you see Kun here?”
For the remaining duration of the car ride, the bickering between the two serves both as entertainment and annoyance for the rest.
Finally, they reach the place they’d left behind their memories and trinkets. Technically, they’re supposed to wait another five years, but with the way the world is headed, it’s hard to say how things would be next week, let alone years into the future.
The others had gotten there first, already digging at the spot.
Jungwoo runs over to the couple and pulls Ten into a hug, not letting go until she playfully accuses him of trying to steal Ten away. They laugh, and join the rest of the group in their chatter and labor.
Finally they get what they're looking for. Inside the tin box they used as their time capsule they find:
· A used spray paint can
· A photograph with all the original members of Seventh Sense
· A flyer for Mad City's performance
· A newspaper cutting
· A letter for Jungwoo
· Taeyong’s mixtape
· A sketch of apples
· A Planet of The Apes DVD
· A dead cockroach (that shouldn't be there- why the fuck is it there)
A used spray paint can:
Ten drops the empty spray paint can into his bag. Taking a few steps back, Ten's eyes flicker over the work he'd just finished spraying onto the wall that had once been covered with vulgarity, advertisement flyers, and painted political campaigns.
In Ten's opinion, graffiti cats getting a social message across seemed a better use of the wall than Park Jinyoung's name and face plastered on it or Lee Sooman Inc.'s poster on their latest advancements in AI technology.
He wasn't alone, his partner spraying the sign of their team in fluorescent green which he didn't have long to admire, the sound of sirens in the distance being their cue to flee from the site.
They take a moment to grab their stuff before she takes hold of his hand and pulls him along as they make their escape. There are shouts at them to stop which they, naturally, ignore.
Hurrying onto a busier street gives them the chance to blend into the crowd. Slipping into an alley at the side of a restaurant, they pull off their masks, caps and hoodies and shove them into their bags. Then they walk back out like they were a couple having fun on a date.
Which is why he leans into her space, close enough to place a kiss if he just moves forward a bit. It doesn’t hurt to be careful, even if Ten is pretty sure they'd lost the people pursuing them streets ago. Yep. That is why he draws closer, eyes dropping down to her lips. Just to keep their cover believable. It has nothing to do with the attraction that has been lingering in the air between them since they first met.
Ten has to admit that doesn’t sound believable even to his own ears. But it doesn’t matter. He throws away all excuses when she lunges forward and lets her lips meet his.
There was nothing shy or gentle about the way they kiss with how they skip the slow start to dive straight into the passion.
"Do you want to spend the night at my place?" Those are the most words Ten has heard from her today, and he finds himself wanting to hear more of her voice. What would it sound like when she wasn't breathless after all the exertion? Not that Ten doesn’t like how she sounds now. He does. Very much. She speaks and he focuses on the sounds over the meaning of the words. Ten just stares at her, lost in his thoughts, until she flicks his forehead.
"So I was saying," her grin makes Ten's heart beat faster. "What do you think about dinner and a movie marathon?"
"Yeah. Sure. That sounds great."
When she beams at him, Ten knows the night would be worth it. Shit. He is falling fast and hard, he knows it, and he doesn’t care. The world could end tomorrow for all they know, but tonight would be theirs, and Ten had every intention of making each moment count.
It would have been nice if he'd gotten a warning beforehand.
Overprotective flat mate trying to intimidate him into leaving was a part of the night he didn't foresee. Ten had gotten through his life so far without getting injured over his flings and relationships, something he would like to keep that way.
Fortunately, said flat mate is soon dragged away by an apologetic roommate who hands a bowl of popcorn to Ten with a kind smile.
The rest of the night is fun and the start of something, though they don’t talk about it.
A photograph with all the original members of Seventh Sense:
Yuta is the one who first brings up the idea of starting a band.
It's a Wednesday that passes by without much excitement like the week before and likely the week to follow.
Yuta is sprawled across Taeil's bed with his head hanging off the edge- which Taeil had told him to stop doing multiple times, only to be ignored- when suddenly he sits up, startling Jungwoo who rolls off the mattress onto the floor. Sicheng doesn't bother to divert attention from the book he was reading even as his friend falls close to where he is seated.
Immunity to their antics developed over time, and Sicheng had known them for years. Jungwoo was eager for excuses to be dramatic, and Yuta gave him plenty of them.
Taeil, who'd just walked back into the room after hearing the commotion, sighs and looks expectantly at Yuta, who clearly had something to say if his wide grin and sparkling eyes were any hint.
"Let's start a band."
That certainly hadn't been expected, and even Sicheng's attention is on Yuta once he makes that declaration.
Honestly, Yuta expected Sicheng to be the one who refused to participate, so it was a pleasant surprise when he’s the first to get on board with the idea. Taeil hesitates, more since he has questions than because he is against the idea. Yuta thought Jungwoo would be the most enthusiastic after him, however he's proven wrong when Jungwoo's face hardens and he walks out of the room without another word.
Taeil and Sicheng exchange a glance that suggests they knew something that Yuta didn't. Annoying information out of Sicheng was Yuta's specialty, though he doesn't have to resort to that when Taeil explains it himself.
"Remember Jungwoo had an ex when you were away? She broke up with him for the drummer of a band, and he's still bitter about it."
"So? What does that have to do with us starting a band? He needs to get over it," Yuta scoffs. "It's been months. If anything, it's even more a reason to start our band."
"Let's do it," Jungwoo announces.
"There's a chance we'll run into them. Are you sure?"
"Yeah, I count on it. Yuta has a point." Determination shines in Jungwoo's eyes. "Even if he's a dick."
The problem wasn't that Yuta quit the band when bigger, better opportunities came. It was how he did it that left the rest of them fuming, in tears, or a mix of both. He sends a text in the group chat to tell them the band wasn't working for him, cuts himself out of their lives without any further explanation and when almost all of them had finally resigned to the fact they'd probably never see him again, well, that's when he shows up again.
Jungwoo notices a Yuta listed as a member of Cherry Bomb and makes a whole fuss over it for an afternoon which for most part is brushed off as a coincidence by the rest of the band.
Their Yuta couldn't be the only Yuta in the world- though it was debatable whether he could still be called their Yuta. No, no matter what they couldn't deny the memories they'd made, regardless of how Yuta had vanished from their lives so easily as if he wasn't the reason the band existed in the first place.
Except it is the Yuta that had been with them through it all, heck, he's the one who started the band- but now he's the one that left them behind for Cherry Bomb.
If any good comes out of it, it's that they write songs about broken promises and the one that got away, and it's still raw and painful and bitter, something that seeps into the songs and snatches people's attention.
Eventually, Sicheng leaves the country. At least he told them beforehand, giving them time to say goodbye. He admits that he isn't sure about staying in touch, but wishes them well, nevertheless. They hold a farewell party which in reality is just Taeil, Jungwoo and Sicheng ordering food and acting like it's just another evening, and not the last time they'll see each other in a while, or possibly ever. Unlike Yuta who they see around in magazines and on the television and on the sides of buildings, once Sicheng gets on his plane they don't hear from him again.
Jungwoo doesn't want to give up on the band. Taeil finds himself less enthusiastic about getting on stage, especially when they don't have their former friends around anymore. It doesn't feel right to him to replace Yuta and Sicheng.
For Jungwoo, it's been all about moving on from the start. He had to move on when the band started, and he'll move on now to let the band survive.
Johnny agrees to give the band a try. It's more of a favor to Taeil than anything, but it makes Jungwoo happy to see Taeil trying. When Johnny brings Ten along, Jungwoo's smile widens further. They'd shown up, and Jungwoo wasn't going to let them go so easily.
A flyer for Mad City's performance:
"So, you still don't know her name?"
Johnny's brow raises, unimpressed. Well, perhaps he is a tad impressed with the absurdity of what Ten's narrating.
They'd somehow skipped over the introductions and gone straight to whatever they were doing now, Ten and her. And it'd be weird to go, "Hey, so what's your name? I never asked before, haha." It'd been days since they'd first met. To not know the name of the person you spend most of your time with shouldn't be possible, yet Ten had managed to do just that.
"Well fuck," Johnny exclaims as he realises Ten isn't joking. "You know where she lives, for fuck's sake. How do you know everything about her besides her name?"
"In my defense, we used nicknames from the start. I didn't think it'd get serious, so I didn't bother to ask, you know. But then it did get serious. So yeah." Ten scratches his neck. "Everyone uses nicknames with her, so that's no help in finding out."
Johnny pats him on the back. "I'm sure you'll find out eventually. Or you'll break up and it won't even matter."
Ten tries to bite Johnny's hand for that.
"Well I think it's time I properly introduced myself, " she says before giving him her name and revealing her job- or well, one of them. "Manager of Mad City."
Mad City. The Seventh Sense’s rival. That made her the enemy. This was a forbidden romance. They were star-crossed lovers. Ten was going to get in trouble for fraternizing with the enemy. No wonder she lived with half of Mad City. That should have raised suspicion.
"No way." Ten is not ready for this. Shit. "Are we going to break up?"
She just laughs with her arms still wrapped around him. "Is that what you want?"
Ten shakes his head. "No. I like you too much to let you go so easily."
Satisfied, she kisses him. This time it was soft and short, though a promise of more lay behind it.
Except Ten gets busy with the band and his art and his dance classes, and she drifts away too. It's a while before they meet again, and things change.
A newspaper cutting:
It starts with news that the dead weren’t staying dead. People weren’t rising from ancient graves or anything. But the recent death reports were a mess with people’s bodies somehow repairing themselves and recovering like they hadn’t undergone fatal injury. Even so, there were limits- ashes could not piece back together.
“It’s something in the air,” Doyoung says. “Mutagens. Genetic mutations. We’ve evolved.”
He was the only one who’d finished college with a STEM degree, so the rest of them are inclined to believe he had an idea of what he is talking about- but his theories are boring and technical and no one actually listens past three sentences.
“Let’s say I drive a knife through someone.” Everyone knows who Jungwoo has on his mind. “They’ll recover like it never happened. Would I still get in trouble?”
“Jungwoo!” Taeyong turns to glare at him, disappointed. “No.”
“He’ll be fine though. Probably. Just once?”
“You cannot stab Ten,” says Taeil. He rubs his forehead, he needs more caffeine to deal with all of this. “No one is stabbing anyone.”
A letter:
She hasn’t been anywhere near alcohol. That doesn’t stop her from giggling as she takes the seat next to Ten, "I swear I'm not drunk."
He picks out the fruit from his sundae and carefully arranges it on her plate. "I know." Sometimes she acted like she was when excitement coursed through her. It was kind of cute, kind of annoying.
Annoyingly cute. That summed up what Ten thought of her.
She was quiet and shy, until she was yelling in Ten's ears and animatedly telling him about how they could take over the world.
The first time he'd met her was at a party as a friend of a friend of a friend, and it'd been so brief they'd exchanged no words, let alone their names. She'd rushed away, Ten's gaze following her until she was out of sight, and since then he'd been trying to get her out of mind.
Except he ran into her again, that next time with paint and adrenaline. And then she'd wormed her way into his life as she already had with his heart.
There's a period where they didn’t have as much contact, and while he didn't see anyone else, she didn’t wait for him.
"I have a boyfriend," Y/N says one day in a voice that suggests she regretted it. Or maybe that is just Ten's wishful thinking. After a pause she adds, “You know him.”
Well, fuck.
She doesn't reveal who it is. Ten doesn't probe any further. He isn't sure if he wants to know. He did, he didn’t.
And one day there she is with Jungwoo’s arm around her, snuggled into his side. Jungwoo meets his eyes and turns up his smugness. Ten is a nice person, or he would give in to the temptation to rip Jungwoo away from her.
She finally notices him, and they just stare at each other for a while. Jungwoo has to nudge her, his smile fading. This brings Ten satisfaction.
“Hey,” she says.
“Hey,” Ten says back.
“Hey,” Jungwoo says. Because of fucking course Jungwoo cannot be left out of a conversation even when it is smaller than small talk.
Sometimes Ten wonders if he’s too harsh on Jungwoo. He gets close to admitting his jealousy colors his opinion of Jungwoo. But then Jungwoo opens his mouth or does something stupid and Ten knows he wasn’t wrong when called Jungwoo all those names at 3 AM last Saturday.
Afraid of the answer, Ten asks anyway. “Do you love him?”
Ten expected her to take a moment to think about it. Yet there’s no hesitation as she immediately says, “No.” Her hand flies to her mouth and she looks like she wants to take it back, but it’s too late and now Ten knows he hasn’t been imagining it.
Knowing she doesn’t want to dive into this, not now, not with him, Ten starts talking about his latest art project.
It isn't long before Jungwoo and her break up.
She calls Jungwoo out for coffee, they talk it over and it's a pretty anticlimactic end to their short relationship. They decide to stay friends, although they agree it might take a while before the awkwardness entirely dissipates. Before they leave the shop, she holds out a letter, which he takes with curiosity.
“A parting gift?” She grins.
Jungwoo smiles back.
As much as he harbors dislike for Jungwoo, he isn’t the worst and Ten is decent enough to feel guilty. Ten knows Jungwoo and her had been falling apart even before he came into the picture. Yet there was a chance they could have reconciled if he didn’t show up and find a place in her heart. Ten was no homewrecker, and they hadn’t cheated. But maybe he’d pushed along the process of breaking up that would have been prolonged without his presence.
Jungwoo is quick to reassure her that he doesn't hold a grudge against her. Both of them knew their relationship wasn't meant to be, they just couldn't bring it to an end. Until Ten came along as the perfect excuse.
They hadn't been in love. Besides, this wasn't Jungwoo's first break up. Barely even counted as a heartbreak.
But he did care about Ten. They were supposed to be bandmates, best friends, bros. Ten was all supportive, then he stole her heart. So maybe Ten had met her first, and there hadn't been any cheating, but Jungwoo felt bitter and betrayed and needed someone to blame, and Ten was taking the brunt of it. It was easy to put the blame on Ten and bitch about him. Jungwoo is aware he's being unreasonably petty, but it makes him feel better. Eventually, he'd make up with Ten and they could go back to their old ways, but for now they were enemies.
Ten loses Jungwoo, but Ten has her.
She kisses him desperate and deep, as though they have no time left and this might be their last chance. Ten wonders if this is what Jungwoo felt before they broke up. Maybe these were the signs that Jungwoo saw and acted like he didn't notice, the way Ten was doing now.
A mixtape:
Apparently they wanted to ban music after the riots that they blamed on the rebellious music. At any rate, censorship laws were going to be stricter. Freedom of speech was being taken away one step at a time. AI existed for the purpose of music and entertainment, slowly replacing their human counterparts.
Ten wasn’t going to stop creating music, and Taeyong was already busy working on their new song. Donghyuck had only been motivated by the news. As for Doyoung, he thought it was more trouble than worth. Surprisingly, Jungwoo had volunteered to take his place. Taeil, Jaehyun and Johnny voiced their support though they still didn’t want to go on stage or in front of the camera.
Johnny takes off the headphones, leaning back in his chair as he gives his opinion on Taeyong’s latest track. “It sounds awfully similar to that song from the 2010’s. Remember what happened last time we released a song like that?”
It was kind of scary how so much had changed in such a short time.
AI music wasn’t supposed to take away from human made music. Yet it did. AI idols and bands could do what humans could and more. Sure, the AI revolution had brought plenty of positive advancement to society. It had its downsides too.
Like how they were essentially useless in a world that didn’t want them with their imperfections when they could have the perfect idealised versions. Besides, those who sought human music had centuries worth of music to listen to already.
Was that going to stop Taeyong?
Of course not.
"Listen to this one." Taeyong leans over to click on a different file. "I'm still working on it, but-"
Johnny's already listening to it, and from his expressions he seems to enjoy it more than the previous one. Taeyong smiles to himself, satisfied.
A sketch of apples:
She loved apples so much that she couldn't go a day without them. Doyoung had said it was her obsession, pointing out how she had decorated her room with apple themed memorabilia. Snow White, he called her. She'd retorted that it meant he was one of the dwarves. Jungwoo would call her Snow, while she'd call him Rose.
Ten thought she was straight out of a fairytale. What he'd forgotten was that Grimm Brothers' fairy tales were far more gruesome than the stories he remembered.
"If you had to give up on singing or dancing forever, which would you choose?" The question she asked Ten had been innocent enough. He hadn't known how damning it would be. "Which loss would haunt you greater?"
Her voice had suddenly turned serious, smile abandoned. He'd laughed it off, and changed the topic. It had been a bit strange, but nothing that would keep him awake at night.
The next day she’d vanished, taking a piece of Ten with her.
It had seemed like a normal day until they found Ten eating apples, almost as if it were an addiction. Like clockwork, a crunch could be heard every hour. Never more than a single bite. There was a bin filled to the brim with apples each day.
It wouldn't have been as worrying if Ten had been a person who enjoyed fruit. Yet he'd stayed away from fruits. Until now.
Ten didn't speak, simply staring into the distance, only taking a break when he needed to bite into an apple every hour. Breaking him out of the trance hadn't worked, so they'd taken to watching him in shifts.
There was no doubt that it had something to do with Y/N and her disappearance since that night they'd gone out together and Ten had returned alone.
Sicheng was convinced Ten was possessed and insisted on calling his exorcist friend. Taeil had taken one look at Ten's state, handed Jungwoo a business card and hastily walked out the door of the flat, muttering about cats and poisoned apples and curses.
No matter how many times they turned the card around, it had nothing but Club Nightmare embossed in gold on its sleek crimson surface.
Taeil said the club had the answers they sought but also begged them not to go seeking that place. As a last resort, if they had nothing left to lose- only then should they even think about it. According to Taeil, if anyone might be able to help, it would be Yuta .
Once Yuta had been generous and would offer help without even being asked, especially to old friends. Time had taken its toll on him though, turning him into a self-serving person who'd do anything to survive. Which meant his assistance came at a price.
"A favor for later," Yuta said with a shrug and smile that sent chills up Jungwoo’s spine. "That's all I ask."
Hidden behind Yuta's lies and tall tales were invaluable snippets of information. If that could help Ten, then they'd have to trust Yuta.
And that’s when Jungwoo had woken up.
In his dreams, Ten hadn't been the prince or the huntsman or a dwarf- he'd been the villain. And like the evil queen danced to her death in her hot red shoes, dancing had been Ten's undoing as well. At least in Jungwoo's mind it seemed fitting after all that had happened.
But lately Jungwoo had been helping Ten recover from heartbreak and curses and danger. The thing was, Jungwoo didn’t mind much anymore.
In his dreams, he had moved on and put his friendship with Ten first. Maybe it was time to do the same in real life.
A Planet of The Apes DVD:
The end of the world should have been more worrisome, but there'd been so many close calls already that the words had lost their threat.
The apocalypse news really shouldn't be compared to the boy who cried wolf. Yet after living through the pandemics, an alien invasion that never came, the floods and abnormal weather changes, well, Ten didn't feel fear like he would've years ago.
He wasn't the only one. People saw the news and just went on with their lives. There were some cults that insisted on making it a big deal, although they'd been trying to do that for ages with no success.
Maybe a big space rock would hit the Earth and change their lives forever. Maybe it would just pass by. Maybe Ten didn't care if humanity was wiped away like the dinosaurs once were. Maybe it was time for a new species to take over the world.
Voicing out these thoughts, had gotten a snort from her, "It's time for a Planet of the Apes marathon."
Neither of them particularly cared for the franchise, and as it plays on the screen, they soon find other things to distract them. Like playing Tic Tac Toe until their hands and forearms were covered with X's and O's. Then moving on to the other kind of XOXO. Soon Ten finds himself drifting to sleep with her cuddled up in his arms.
The next morning when Ten wakes up, she is still snoozing against him, a blanket wrapped around them both that hadn't been there before. Gently slipping out of her grasp, Ten notices the TV had been switched off though he couldn't remember doing it.
"G'morning!" Taeyong holds out a warm mug for him which he gratefully accepts. “Have a fun night?”
Doyoung, who is slumped over the counter between the kitchen and the dining room, raises an arm along with his muffled greeting.
"Yeah, hey. Good morning, Taeyong. Doyoung."
Jungwoo wasn’t around, though that wasn’t unusual. He stayed away whenever Ten came to the flat.
“So which one of you tucked us in and turned off the TV?”
Taeyong and Doyoung exchange a glance.
“That wasn’t us,” Doyoung says. His head rests on his elbow now, his words much clearer than before. “We fell asleep long before you two yesterday.”
Ten gapes at them. “Wait. What?” There was one other person who lived here, but it couldn’t possibly be him, no way.
Jungwoo walks over and snatches the toast off Ten’s plate.
“You?” Any other day, Ten would have attempted to grab back his food. He’s a bit too busy putting things together to bother today.
Jungwoo raises a brow, glancing at Ten like he’s the one acting strange.
A dead cockroach:
The morning starts with shouts.
"Why won't you just die?"
Her face fills with disgust, nothing but loathsome hatred in her whines.
"Ten! Do something!"
Yeah, no. There is no way Ten is approaching that beast. No matter how little it is, Ten is not taking chances by going into a fight he knows he'd lose.
Cockroaches had wings. Which probably meant they could fly, jump high or something. Not to be underestimated. Ugh.
"You do something," Ten shoots back. The cockroach scurries across the room towards them and with a yelp Ten jumps onto the couch where he’s hopefully out of its reach.
In the end, she gets fed up and uses a broomstick to get rid of the creature.
Once he is certain it’s safe, Ten finally slides off where he was crouched on the couch. He heads over to the bathroom, opens the door and immediately slams it shut.
"Love, can you come over here?" Ten slowly pushes the door again to peer in and assess the situation.
There are cockroaches everywhere. Well not just cockroaches, there is a whole assortment of bugs, but Ten doesn’t know the names of them. Creepy crawlies is sufficient enough a word to call them all. He doesn’t particularly care what they are. He just wants to be as far away from them as possible.
"Ten? Darling, what's wrong?" She hurries over, radiating concern. Then she sees the problem and sighs. "Wait. I'll be back."
Ten tries to hide his nervousness but it still seeps into his voice. "H-hurry please."
"I think we should start naming these guys," she says as she shakes the bottle of bug spray. "Like look at that one. Doesn't it remind you of that guy who tried to scam you last summer?"
Ten's glance at the insect she points at isn’t long enough to see any sort of resemblance but he nods his head in agreement.
“Can you call Doyoung for me? And let him know about this.” She gestures at the insects, some dead and others still scuttling around. “Actually, maybe you should stay at their place until we deal with this. Taeyong invited us for dinner tonight anyway. You can go over early and help him out.”
“Ok,” Ten agrees. "Can we move somewhere else?"
"If it's about the bug problem, then no."
"But-"
"There's no point, Ten. Even if we move, bugs might appear there. We can't keep moving each time."
"The bugs are taking over the world,” groans Ten. He sounds way too serious for what he’s saying. “This is how my life ends."
"Ten. You'll be fine. I'll keep getting rid of the bugs for you, okay?" She wasn’t exactly happy about it, no, but she’d do it if she had to.
"I thought you were afraid of bugs," Doyoung says as he sets down the bag of bottles of bug spray and other equipment for the battle against the creepy crawlies.
"I am. But one of us has to take care of the creepy crawlies," she says with a grimace. "And you know how Ten is."
Doyoung smirks. “Ah, so it’s love.”
“Love?” She ponders it for a moment. “Maybe it is.”
A/N: I return from hiatus with the longest fic I've finished so far! The inspiration for this fic came from songs (plus the time I saw a cockroach on the wall) and it has come a long way from what I initially had in mind. At first I thought I'd write an angsty futuristic tale but somehow it turned into a fic about ordinary people living their ordinary lives with the possibility of the world as they know it ending in the background. This fic is the smoothie of all the ideas I had- take a bunch of different stories and mix them all into one.
Thank you for giving this fic a chance! As always, feedback/comments/likes/reblogs are appreciated!
I have to thank @ericssmile for reading this fic and reassuring me! Also extremely grateful to @hvae for the help and comments that made my day :')
Jia, I hope you enjoyed the fic! It is unlikely that I would've written this, if it weren't for the wonderful collab. Thank you ♡
DAILY DRAW: Connected. Who uses who? Is AI just us building God? A Celestial Chorus of zeroes and ones making our universe AND vice versa? Consumer solutionism made an altar? CONVENIENCE ISN’T PROGRESS That being said... happy hump day! 🤪 #cyberpunk #sketchbook #sketch #neotokyo #neofuture #futuristic #futurism #hack #shadowrun #hackers #ai (at Hialeah, Florida) https://www.instagram.com/p/BzdEoe-B9v9/?igshid=3efgpr1qlogi
