Chapter Text
It was time to switch things up after a long time of shared rooming at the EXO dorms, and the manager in charge of it assembled the nine members together in the living room to tell them about the new arrangement. As they all sat down on the couches he cleared his throat and as soon as the lively chatter died down he began to speak.
"I know that you think this is rather a hassle to do after such a long time without change, and especially now when you're promoting your new song," he said and looked apologetically at all of them. "But we've discussed it for a while and came to the conclusion that we really do benefit from this. I hope you remember that this isn't more permanent than the other times we've changed rooms, so if someone is dissatisfied we will do what we can to fix it as soon as possible. Does that sound alright to you?"
Everyone nodded, some more enthusiastically than others, but all of them were fairly positive to this as they had gone through this multiple times since their debut and the manager continued a little more relaxed than before.
"Then let's start, shall we?" He motioned towards a whiteboard he had brought with him and began to write on it. "First out is Sehun. You've been rooming with Junmyeon for quite a while, but we'll try having you sharing rooms with Jongin now, okay?" Sehun squeezed Junmyeon's neck in some sort of consolation before taking Jongin's hand in his. He obviously had no problems with this change at all, much to Junmyeon's obvious disappointment.
"Baekhyun and Chanyeol, you up for sharing a room?" Hoots and laughter and some moans of despair were heard as the two best friends high-fived each other, and the manager felt a fond smile pull at his lips. He wrote some more names on the board and drew lines between them.
"Minseok and Jongdae, I hope it's alright if Yixing joins you, or Yixing could have his own room if he wants it that way." He finished the picture and put the lid on his pen before he turned around and looked at the two remaining members who were, quite conveniently, sitting next to each other.
"And that leaves us with Junmyeon and Kyungsoo." Kyungsoo rolled his eyes as Baekhyun's shrill laughter resonated through the room, but his face softened when their leader put an arm around his shoulders. He really couldn't be mad at his best friend, even if this was going to be hell for quite some time until he got Junmyeon to do his chores.
"Time to get things in order, leader-nim?" the others teased, making Junmyeon laugh awkwardly and scratch his neck.
"I guess... I hope Kyungsoo bears with me..."
The manager took the whiteboard and left after telling them to rest before practice, and the boys started to mingle and do whatever they wanted. Junmyeon watched his fellow band members play around for a little while before noticing something was off, and after sharing a parting smile with Kyungsoo he stood up and approached Minseok on the other couch.
"Hey, Minseok," he said and the older boy looked up at him. "Where's Jongdae?" Minseok eyes darted around the room before returning to him and he shrugged his shoulders.
"He told me he was feeling unwell, so I guess he left to rest. Why? Would you like to check on him?" But Junmyeon was already on his way, and (unsurprisingly) he found the lead vocalist buried under the covers in his bed. Junmyeon stepped closer, hesitated, then sat on the bed and started petting Jongdaes hair.
"Is everything all right, Jongdae?" he asked quietly. Jongdae grunted into his pillow. "Do you feel sick?" Another grunt and a small twist, and Junmyeon suddenly got an idea.
"You're mad, aren't you? About the rooms." Jongdae snorted, and Junmyeon began to smile. "You are the one who complains the most about having to share a room with me, so I thought you didn't want to do it. Seems like I was wrong, though." He ruffled Jongdae's hair. "You know that my door will always be open for you if you want to sleep in my bed, right? Even with the new arrangement?"
Finally Jongdae looked up at him, and he answered in that typical sarcastic way that belonged to Jongdae and Jongdae alone.
"If you think I'm mad because of that, you're pretty stupid." But Junmyeon could see his eyes glittering and his own smile got even wider. He got up to leave, and when he turned around in the doorway he found his dongsaeng shooting him a wine grin. It made him feel a little embarassed and he quickly began to walk back to the others while muttering to himself.
"You're lucky my offer still stands even after being trolled and insulted by you for the uptenth time. I guess I really am too nice for my own good... " Jongdae's laughter accompanied him on his way back to the living room, and that night he left his and Kyungsoos' door open a fraction more than usual, only to feel a body slipping into his bed after just ten minutes of silence and darkness.
"You're so easy to read," he whispered, careful not to wake his new roommate, and he could hear Jongdae's smirk in the whisper he got back.
"It was your offer. You opened the door for me, and I would never let an action like that pass me by." Junmyeon snorted.
"I guess I should feel very lucky you came in then."
"You sure should."
"Shut up and sleep." Kyungsoo groaned and changed position in his bed, and Junmyeon whispered a goodnight to him before doing the same to Jongdae, who encircled his waist from behind and touched his shoulder with his forehead.
"Soo is right. Shut up and sleep, hyung."
So Junmyeon did just that - he fell asleep with a smile on his face, and the morning after he woke up to both Jongdae and Kyungsoo wishing him a good morning, and he thought to himself that this new arrangement might turn out pretty well after all.