Chapter Text
When Jihoon had prefaced that he wanted to introduce Wonwoo to Mingyu, Mingyu was skeptical. There were a bunch of reasons why it didn't seem like a good idea and very little convinced him it was. He liked people, really he did. They're fascinating and a pleasure to watch, and Mingyu always has a laugh while observing them. But, that's about it. Truth is, he's not as fond when they're talking to him and he could so easily nitpick the lies from the truths and the genuine from the insincere.
Jihoon knew that and yet, he'd arranged for their meeting anyway. Maybe he'd wanted to get rid of Mingyu, but then, Mingyu would know.
Mingyu gave him a look.
"What?" I know you're interested, just admit it . Jihoon was wearing a smile on his face that implied he knew something Mingyu didn't. But, at the risk of sounding condescending, there really wasn't much. "He's cool. Just give him a chance." You'll totally like him. And you'll thank me for it.
When Mingyu first met Wonwoo, the voices in his head buzzed down to quiet. For a brief moment, there was clarity, unlike Mingyu's ever experienced before. When Wonwoo talked, Mingyu found that they said the same things his thoughts did, and it left Mingyu feeling dumbstruck.
Told you . That was Jihoon.
See, Mingyu is, for the lack of a better term, a telepath. He could hear people's voices in his head, and sometimes, when he really concentrated, could converse with them in theirs, too. His head was a spider web of thoughts, not just his own but of others, as well. It was like his own, personal miniature Myeongdong crossing: busy, noisy, and chaotic.
But , when Mingyu first met Wonwoo, there was a stillness inside his head; a stillness that was so peculiar it disoriented him. When Wonwoo introduced himself, it was brief: "Hi, I'm Jeon Wonwoo. And you are?". The silence stretched.
Usually, people's thoughts would out themselves, tangling into their spoken words like an Asiatic bittersweet vine. When he was a kid, Mingyu would have trouble understanding what was being said. But he's got the hang of it now.
With Wonwoo, however, it didn't seem like it was necessary. Speaking with Wonwoo was like speaking with his thoughts. He spoke of only things he meant, and Mingyu, for the first time, felt like there was nothing to sift through: no lies or insincerity or even hidden agendas.
Wonwoo was simply Wonwoo.
He didn't take it too lightly when he'd found out Mingyu was a telepath, though. Mingyu could still recall all the things Wonwoo refused to say but thought anyway.
See, Mingyu adored Wonwoo. He was unlike anyone else Mingyu has ever met, and his straightforward demeanor appealed to Mingyu like flame to a moth or the sun to Icarus. Naturally, he gravitated to his thoughts like if one were fine-tuning the dials on their radio for a particular station. He couldn't help it. In a crowded room (heck, even when it isn't) Mingyu would search for that stillness, that quiet, as it would seem that he's found peace in Wonwoo's thoughts.
That's not to say Wonwoo was silent. No, not at all. Like the person himself, Wonwoo's thoughts were faint, like a whisper as though Mingyu had subscribed to 24/7 ASMR. Very much unlike the mayhem that usually goes on in Mingyu's head. He had once hypothesized that Wonwoo only spent time with him because of his innate ability to shut up; after all, there was already too much yelling in his brain. But, of course, Wonwoo's thoughts were always absent of prejudice. In fact, they were absent from Mingyu-related things, too. Most of his thoughts revolved around what he was currently doing: if he were reading, a hum of satisfaction for the book's catharsis; if he were hungry, a discussion about whether he was feeling noodles or rice bowl; or when idle, a monologue about the grocery he needs to be doing for the stray cats down his apartment complex. Mingyu cannot recall ever encountering a hostile or malicious thought coming from Wonwoo, in all the time they've spent together, and it has been quite a lot of time, Jihoon's presence notwithstanding.
But, when Wonwoo first found out, he was angry. He was upset and disappointed. People who knew about Mingyu's 'telepathy' had always assumed thoughts and feelings were separate. But, with Wonwoo's thoughts, they were one and the same. He hadn't wanted to be around Mingyu, and he made sure Mingyu knew that.
"What do you mean? Like he could hear my thoughts?" Wonwoo was still laughing then. But his face had morphed into something akin to hurt when he realized none of them were joking. To Mingyu he'd asked, "Have you been reading my thoughts all this time?" Is that how you knew when I was hungry or tired or how I wanted to spend my weekends? " Who gave you permission to my thoughts?" Those are private. Mine to know. How could you help yourself to them? I trusted you.
Mingyu hadn't offered an answer. Couldn't. He felt ashamed.
As a kid, the problem had always been to understand where the voices were coming from and how to make sense of them. At first, he tried to make them go away but it never worked. He couldn't shut out the streams of consciousness that invaded his own private space. Growing up, he'd only learned how to block them out given another noise he could concentrate on: another person's more relatively organized thoughts or the bustle of the environment if it permitted. Mingyu's attention could never hold onto a single one for long. The process, itself, was exhausting, and Mingyu had found himself easily fatigued during his early childhood. He supposes, even now, though it's relatively easier to manage.
Wonwoo had ignored Mingyu for 2 months, and it was around that time that Mingyu had invested in noise cancelling headphones with which he could listen to hard rock. Somebody else screaming and crying in his ears made for a less invasive resolution to the whole telepathy thing. This way, he heard no one and talked to no one, which alarmed Jihoon to intervene.
He had managed to convince Wonwoo that Mingyu wasn't trying to snoop into his thoughts, that it only came naturally, and that he meant no malice. And Wonwoo had responded with, "You realize you're vulnerable whenever you're with him, right? There are literally no barriers to what he knows about you. If you so much as think as fucking Soonyoung, he'd know." And Jihoon agreed, wholeheartedly. There had already been quite a number of incidents of that to date. But how bad could it be to be vulnerable with Mingyu?
Wonwoo eventually agreed to a truce, with the condition that Mingyu stopped listening to his thoughts. And well, Mingyu vowed he'd do anything. He kept his earphones on whenever Wonwoo was around and blasted music at 80% to ensure optimal discretion. Jihoon had been worried he'd go deaf. Thankfully, he didn't. But really, it wouldn't matter as he could hear enough.
That said, it was weird, the arrangement. When Jihoon wanted to talk to Mingyu, he'd text him even though they were sitting right beside each other. When Wonwoo talked, Mingyu could only slightly pretend he wasn't interested and then later, try to lipread.
That moment of his life taught him a lot.
Now, though, Wonwoo talks to Mingyu like this: he'd catch hold of Mingyu's wrist and write on his inner arm whenever they sat close together. When apart, Mingyu would just find his spot inside Wonwoo's thoughts and make his presence known, adding his own version of noise to Wonwoo's whimsical thoughts.
I'm thinking kimchi jiggae for dinner, how about you?
Mingyu, I'll only say this one more time. Please get out of my head, I'm trying to sleep.
Hyung, you didn't eat at all, today.
Wonwoo would open his eyes from where he is lying down beside Mingyu and glare at him, eyes a little bloodshot.
Thankfully, there is only one telepath between the two of them and it isn't Wonwoo. If he were, then he would know that Mingyu's thoughts have recently been louder than usual, sometimes, even drowning out the rest of the world's. And then, of course he'd noticed, that underneath the I'm thinking kimchi jiggae for dinner is a hyung, aren't you hungry? You haven't eaten anything today. You must eat. I can cook for you if you want. What are you feeling like eating today? You shouldn't be treating yourself like this. You deserve better. I like you. Ilikeyouilikeyouilikeyou.