Bittersweet ‣ csb
‣ pairing: choi soobin x reader
‣ genre: fluff, implied f2l, 'drunken confessions' cliche
‣ wc: 2.6k
‣ summary: in which a very drunk soobin is not afraid to tell you how he truly feels about you
‣ warnings?: soobin is (really) drunk, sorta really cliche but I like cliches, mentions of reader being shorter than Soobin
‣ an: first soobin fic huhhh?? this is a product of my severe itch to write, so it's something short but sweet! idk how good this is but I guarantee something cute ˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶
There was a bittersweet feeling behind waking up in daze. On one hand, you knew you had enjoyed a good, deep sleep, leaving you blissfully unaware of the world. But on the other hand, that same grogginess leaves you clueless about what had transpired while you were out like a light.
But in this case, you could say that it was a lot more bitter than it was sweet, all because you were woken up from your phone being blown up by four different boys for no clear reason. In fact, if every single missed call and text message had rendered heat through your phone, you’re one-hundred-percent sure that it would have been blown to bits by now.
You sit up, head throbbing and fuzzy from the sudden change in position, and tap on the most recent caller. It was Beomgyu.
“Y/N! Finally!” You hear him sigh through the line. In the background, you can hear the other boys’ voices, accompanied by the bass of a song you couldn’t quite name.
Your brows furrow, blinking away the sleep. “Gyu? What’s up? Are you guys okay? I was taking a nap.” The mix of confusion and curiosity wakes you up.
There’s more ruckus on the other side of the line and you’re tempted to yell out for them to spill, only you’re sure that they’re not going to hear anything. You glance over at your clock through your pitch-black room and find that you’ve slept through dinner. It was nearing midnight. This only feeds your curiosity.
“Y/N are you able to come to where we are right now?” Yeonjun’s taken over the phone. There’s urgency in his voice and now you’re worried, “We’re at a club downtown.”
“Downtown?” You groan, “I’m not sure if…” To be fair, you’ve just woken up and now you’re being requested to drive down to the city on a Friday night? You were in no mood to—
“It’s Soobin.”
“Soobin? What happened?” You shoot questions, “Is he okay? What is he even doing at a club?” That should’ve been your first question. Soobin wasn’t one to tag along on trips to the club. Usually, he and Kai would opt to visit an internet cafe while the others drank like their lives depended on it.
“We’re… not sure,” Yeonjun retorts, “But he’s just asking for you. If we touch him, he starts yelling and there’s no way we’re getting accused of anything.” You hear a familiar voice start screaming in the background and then you hear Yeonjun’s voice scold someone, “Beomgyu, I literally told you not to touch him until Y/N’s here… I’ll send you the location?”
“Go for it,” you say. At this point you’re already grabbing whatever hoodie you can find and you’re making your way down the stairs, “I’ll meet you guys there.” Yeonjun sighs out a relieved ‘thank you’ before ending the call.
You hastily slip on your shoes and grab your car keys, your mind racing with concern for Soobin. The drive to downtown feels like an eternity as you navigate through the city streets, trying to make sense of the situation. The club they mentioned is known for its loud music and lively atmosphere, and you can't help but wonder what Soobin, usually the reserved and introverted one, is doing there.
Finally, you arrive at the club and park your car nearby. At this hour in the night, you don’t even bat an eye at the parking meter sitting right next to your car. As you step out onto the bustling sidewalk, the thumping bass and muffled laughter spill out from the club's entrance. A small part of you is afraid to even go in, but as you take a deep breath, you prepare yourself for whatever awaits you inside.
The club's neon lights cast an eerie glow on the people entering and exiting, almost creating a movie-like atmosphere. The first thing you notice in the second you enter is the change in humidity. The place was stuffy and filled with people. You felt sticky even though you haven’t been there for an entire minute and you didn’t like it.
With your heart pounding, you make your way through the crowd, following Yeonjun’s text that indicated they were at the far corner of the club. You’re relieved to see that it was in a quieter area of the club, away from the pulsating music and dancing bodies.
Taehyun notices you first, being the most sober out of all of them, he waves you over, calling out your name despite it being drowned out by the music. The other three look over, waves of relief washing over their faces when they realize that you’ve finally arrived.
As you reach the boys, they part to reveal a very drunk Soobin. He sits hunched over a table, his left arm propping up his head while his right hand draws doodles on the surface before him. He looks almost identical to a child being babysat.
“He said he wasn’t going to drink,” Taehyun explains, “Before we knew it he was all… like this.” He gestures to Soobin, scratching his temple.
You’re compelled to palm your face, sighing, “Is he sobering up, at least?”
Kai shakes his head, eyes wide, “No. He keeps finding ways to get more drinks.”
“Yeah, he finished all mine,” Beomgyu pouts. He was sitting across from Soobin, arms crossed. There’s a line of empty glasses sitting right in front of him as evidence, “We’re just glad you’re here though. We were being serious about this.” You watch Beomgyu reach out to touch Soobin’s elbow with his index finger. Right at contact, Soobin scowls and starts yelling as if Beomgyu had just threatened to slice his skin with his fingernail, “He’s been doing that all night. He keeps asking for you, too.”
“He’s so far gone that he doesn’t even realize you’re here,” Yeonjun remarks, blinking at Soobin. "Hey, Soobin!" Soobin's ears perk up at the sound of his name, and he turns his head towards you, resembling a curious meerkat.
Soobin’s eyes meet yours and his face lights up, “Y/N, you’re here!” The lanky boy pushes himself off the table and tries to regain his balance before stumbling over to you. Without hesitation, you rush to his side and throw his arm around your shoulder, attempting to steady him. Being shorter than him, you're not sure if it's working perfectly, but you do your best to provide support.
You suck your teeth, “Choi Soobin, who told you to drink this much? Why aren’t you letting the boys help you?”
Soobin’s in a daze. He's not really catching on to the fact that you're talking to him. All he sees is your lips moving as you scold him. He reaches out to poke your neck and then your cheek.
“I guess it’s a good sign that he isn’t screaming,” Yeonjun points out, “Let’s go, then?”
You nod and then jut your head toward Soobin, “Can you help me out with him?”
Yeonjun gives you a nod and moves over to grab Soobin's other arm, assuming that he would no longer scream. But the moment his hand touches Soobin, he starts yelling just as expected. “Okay! Okay!” Yeonjun steps back and gives Soobin a blank stare, completely done with the younger boy.
You stifle a laugh, “Binnie, can you let Yeonjun help me please?” Soobin nods and watches Yeonjun repeat his actions, taking his arm to support him. This time he doesn’t start yelling.
The six of you navigate through the crowd, keeping your gaze fixed on the exit at the far end of the room. Once you finally make it outside, you direct everyone down the street, gesturing towards the direction to go, "My car's parked over there."
They simply nod and follow you, piling into your car without hesitation as you all get ready to leave. Soobin’s slumped in the passenger’s seat, his head wobbling side to side. He’s muttering words under his breath but you can’t quite make them out.
You’re driving them back to their house, which was conveniently on the way back to your home. Everyone was too exhausted to make small talk, so a playlist you’ve chosen and Soobin’s murmuring fills the silence.
“Thanks, Y/N.” Taehyun speaks up as you near their house. From where his voice was coming from, you can tell he was sitting directly behind you, “We owe you.”
“It’s nothing,” You hum, “I’m just… trying to figure out why Soobin got drunk today. It’s out of character.” You knew your best friend, Soobin, inside out. He was the kind of person who would take a sip of alcohol and be satisfied, not really needing more than that. But then again, he could have just wanted to do it for fun. He didn’t need a reason to drink.
“I think it’s because Taehyun gave him a drink that tasted nothing like alcohol,” Beomgyu says, “Then it went downhill from there.”
“You’re so nice, Y/N~” Soobin giggles, “You’re so so so so nice! The nicest of all persons I know.” He points out the window and continues, “See? You’re driving us to our house! That’s so nice! That’s why I really like you.”
You breath hitches in your throat, eyes widening at Soobin’s comment. Unbeknownst to you, the other boys exchange alarmed glances, silently pleading for Soobin to stop before he reveals more than he intends to.
“You’re a funny drunk, Binnie,” you say, trying to swat the comment away, regardless of the meaning. You turn into their street and park along the curb once you’ve reached their house.
Soobin pouts, his expression displaying a mix of confusion and disappointment. "Funny how?" he persists, his drunken state causing his emotions to be more apparent.
You quickly recover, mustering a playful smile to cover up any potential awkwardness. "Just funny in the way you talk and act," you reply, hoping to divert his attention from his previous statement.
Soobin's pout slowly turns into a small grin, satisfied with your response. "I guess that's a good thing," he muses, his words slightly slurred. "As long as I can make you laugh, Y/N. I like when I make you laugh. I like seeing your pretty smile."
Your heart skips a beat and you quickly turn the car off. Has Soobin always been a flirty drunk? You try to shrug it off, getting out to help the drunk boy from his seat. The others are already out of the vehicle and Yeonjun’s waiting for you to pull Soobin out of his side.
You open the door and a pout has returned on Soobin’s face, “You keep ignoring me… Do you not like me?” Yeonjun tries to speak to Soobin using his eyes, but obviously, with the intoxicated state that Soobin is in, the signals completely fly past his head.
You groan, helping him up, “Let’s get you some water before you go to bed.”
“I don’t want to go to bed,” Soobin whines. He looks over at the older boy and frowns, “I don’t need your help.” He shrugs Yeonjun off and uses both of his arms to cling onto yours. Yeonjun lets the boy be, walking ahead to hold the door open for the both of you.
Soobin kicks his sneakers off out of habit, shifting a bit of his weight onto you in the process, “Do you want to play animal crossing or mario kart or—”
“Soobin, you need to go to sleep,” you say, “We can play tomorrow.” Together, you both ascend the stairs and eventually arrive at Soobin's room. He sighs at the sight of his bed, plopping onto his neatly fixed bed. The intoxicated boy lays down with his legs hanging off the edge. He swings them playfully and you can’t help but giggle at his state. You’ve rarely seen Soobin drunk, but now you know that when he’s drunk, he was like a 6-foot-tall toddler.
You turn to grab water, but you’re met with Kai, who was already at Soobin’s door with a cup filled to the brim, “Do you want anything, Y/N?”
You thank him and think, “Maybe tea would be nice before I leave.”
He nods, “I’ll prepare that for you.”
You thank him again and bring the water to Soobin, who is now sitting up. He's slumped over, head looking too heavy for him to handle, “Drink up.”
Soobin squints at the beverage, leaning forward as if he were trying to read the non-existent writing on the glass. "Water is boring. I want... yakult and sprite... with soju," he declares, giggling at the thought of alcohol. As amusing as it is to see him so enthusiastic about alcohol, you shake your head in disagreement.
“That’s fair,” you sigh, “But I know you’ll regret not drinking this when you wake up tomorrow with a bad headache.” You urge him to take the cup. And after a few moments of deciding, he sighs and shakily takes the cup from you.
Soobin takes a few long sips before he looks up at you, his gaze intense. "Don't... don't tell you that I told you this, but..." He glances around cautiously to make sure no one else is listening, "But... I love how you always look out for me." His words hold a hint of vulnerability, as if the alcohol has loosened his inhibitions enough to reveal his true feelings, “You take care of me, too. And…” Soobin takes another sip of his water and smiles.
You wait for him to continue but he looks up at you, waiting for a response, “Well, it’s what friends do.” You don’t even need to think twice when it comes to Soobin.
"Friends," he repeats, almost as if testing out the word on his lips. "Yeah, we're friends, right?"
You raise an eyebrow at his question, finding it slightly odd that he would question your friendship. "Of course. We've been friends for a long time," you reassure him.
Soobin chugs down the rest of the water and holds the cup out for you to take, “You’re right… but…”
You gently take the empty cup from him, setting it aside. The need for sleep is finally reaching Soobin’s eyes and you can see the way his eyes flutter shut before he forces them open. He scooches closer to his pillow and pouts. You give him the look for him to continue.
“Don’t tell you I told you this but…” he repeats his actions from earlier, looking around, “I think I have feelings for you.” A giggle slips out of his lips and he nods in satisfaction.
You freeze in place and blink at the drunk boy in front of you, “Soobin, you’re drunk.”
He shakes his head, eyes half closed and practically begging him to sleep, “I just drank water, I’m not drunk!”
“You are,” you sigh, trying to dismiss his earlier confession.
“I…may be drunk, but I still have feelings!”
He’s right. When you’re drunk, your emotions are simply amplified, but they are still your real emotions. Surely, this could be the case with Soobin. But then again, not everyone was the same when they were intoxicated, “Soobin, I’ll make a promise with you, okay?”
At this point, he’s being lulled to sleep by the alcohol, but he still nods and his words are coming out mumbled, “A promise?”
“We’ll talk about this tomorrow. When you’re sober and when I’m not tired. I want to hear what you have to say.” And, frankly, you had things (that were far overdue) to say too.
“Promise?”
The moment feels dreamlike, standing in Soobin's room with him being so vulnerable and open about his feelings (even if it could be the alcohol talking). You can't help but wonder if he'll remember any of this in the morning.
You nod. “Now go to sleep, dumbass. I know you want to.”
“I do,” He laughs, “Goodnight, Y/N.”
“Goodnight, Binnie.”
°•. ✿ .•°
on to another story ༎ຶ‿༎ຶ if I'm able to miraculously think of something... anyways thank you for reading! pls support the post by leaving a like/rb!
