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one.
Jeno wakes up with a headache from sleeping only two hours, since he had to stay up to finish homework. Procrastination is a bitch. When he trudges into the Great Hall, it’s louder than usual. He scans the tables for his friends and doesn’t find anyone but Mark and Donghyuck, who are about to leave and bickering. They’re being their disgusting couple selves, so Jeno figures he’ll just find a seat at the Hufflepuff Table, because it’s too early to deal with their aggressive flirting. Some second-year girls are tittering on and Jeno almost drones them out, until he hears his friends’ names.
“Who’s that Mark’s with?”
“Isn’t that Donghyuck Lee, that Slytherin who always pranks the teachers?”
“I didn’t know they knew each other.”
“Forget knowing each other, don’t they look awfully close? It’s weird. Why would Mark hang out with a troublemaker? Do you think Donghyuck is trying to sabotage his reputation?”
“Honestly, it’s weird because I think I’ve seen Mark and Donghyuck fight before? Like I remember this one time I was rushing to Potions, and the two were arguing outside the classroom. I thought they hated each other, because you know, Mark’s the perfect Gryffindor, and Donghyuck’s the perfect Slytherin.
One of the girls nudge the one sitting closest to Jeno, making very obvious gestures to ask him about his friends.
“Uhh, do you know what’s up with Mark and Donghyuck?”
Jeno wonders how they’ve never seen the two together, since they were practically inseparable. “Uh, yeah. They’re dating.”
“Dating?” The girl looks as if she’s swallowed a Puking Pastille. The other girls have similar reactions. Jeno feels almost bad for being the one to shoot down their illusions.
“But they’re so different? And my friend said that they fought?”
Jeno tries his best not to laugh. “Well, they say opposites attract, or something? Also, that’s just typical Mark hyung and Hyuck. That’s their weird way of showing their affection. But sometimes, they do little, cringey things. I mean, just look at them.”
Jeno cringes a bit as he watches his best friend adjust Mark’s tie. His fingers linger a bit, and they’re staring at each other in that secretive way where they hold entire conversations. Jeno hopes that him and Renjun and Jaemin have more tact than that.
Yeah, definitely whipped for each other .
two.
Jaehyun watches two figures huddled under blankets with a small smile as he makes his nightly rounds past the Astronomy Tower.
Jaehyun used to get his fair share of confessions on Valentine’s Day until he announced that he was dating Sicheng. He still kind of does get confessions, but they’re from people who know not to expect him to reciprocate their feelings.
So he does feel sympathy for his brother when he comes stumbling into the Gryffindor common room, hands filmed to the brim with presents that he asks some other Gryffindors to help him finish. Still, Jaehyun thinks that Mark couldn’t be any denser. He thinks of Donghyuck, who plays more pranks than usual around this time to vent his frustration about Mark being completely oblivious. Mark, for whatever reason, still thinks that girls are just being nice and accepts the presents with a smile, which makes admirers swoon over him even more.
Jaehyun also thinks of his admirers who decided that if Jaehyun was taken, that Mark would be the next best option. He thinks about his classmates asking him about his cute little brother, and the random girls who come up to him as he’s monitoring halls to ask him to pass on messages.
He always tells them that his brother is taken but shy to show it. They never believe him, and when he mentions Donghyuck, they think that he’s pulling their legs. After all, the two of them had a dramatic fight back in Mark’s third-year, and Mark always grumbles about Donghyuck (affectionately) in the common room. He supposes he doesn’t blame them, because Mark isn’t a very public person, and neither is Donghyuck, against other people’s expectations.
Still though, he thinks that subtlety has never been his brother’s forte. Mark and Donghyuck are always in their own little world, and if people just looked a bit past the whole “Slytherin and Gryffindor hate each other,” they’d immediately see just how close Mark and Donghyuck are.
Jaehyun decides (not for the first time), that he won’t reprimand the two and just lets them enjoy their date.
three.
Chenle is happy to meet Guanlin from Durmstrang, because it’s rare to meet someone who is the same age as him and speaks Mandarin. He’s describing to Guanlin his friend group, and he praises each one. He must have mentioned Mark more often though, because Guanlin asks him carefully, “Do you have a crush on Mark?”
Chenle is taken by surprise, because when he thinks of Mark, all he sees is a dependable hyung who’s also really naive, which is why Chenle finds him cute. Though Chenle thinks he’s also a bit lame, especially with how whipped he is for Donghyuck, but that adds to his cuteness.
“No? Why would you think that?”
Guanlin shifts a bit uncomfortably, and Chenle hopes he didn’t come off too mean. He’s used to more mean jokes because of his friend group, and he spends most of his time with Jisung, who he shows affection for by roasting.
“Well, it’s because the whole time you kept talking about how cute Mark ge was….So I just thought that.”
Chenle laughs at that. “Mark ge is someone I really look up to, but he lacks common sense a lot, so it feels like he’s the youngest out of my friends a lot. I think that makes him very cute, like a little brother to dote on. Still, he’s very dependable! Besides, I’d rather like someone who I have a chance with. Mark ge is so into Donghyuck ge that it’s a bit disgusting. They’re basically always flirting, even if they don’t mean to.”
Guanlin looks a bit puzzled. “Donghyuck ge, as in the one you told me has the auburn hair and is in Slytherin, right?”
“Yeah, him!”
“But you said Mark ge is in Gryffindor. Don’t Gryffindors and Slytherins hate each other?”
“Well, that belief is kind of out-of-date now. Mark ge and Donghyuck ge are proof of that, I think. Like they still bicker between each other a lot, and the only one who gets on Mark ge’s nerves super quickly is Donghyuck ge, but they also care for each other so much. I remember this one time, Donghyuck ge was really sick, and Mark ge, who’s known to be an overachieving student, skipped classes so he could take care of him. He even went out of his way to pack him food from the Great Hall. He would have cooked, if he knew how to, I bet. Good thing he didn’t though, or he would have blown up the kitchen. Actually, there’s this funny story where-”
four.
Renjun has a reputation as the typical Ravenclaw (his friends argue that he should have been in Slytherin, with how cunning he is) with excessive knowledge, so many fellow students come to him to ask for advice. A bunch of people started asking him to help them with potions (another reason his friends claim that he’s actually a Slytherin), so Renjun figured that he could make extra money by charging for his services. After all, having two boyfriends doesn’t help his allowance.
So when some other Gryffindor girl comes up to Renjun asking him to make a week’s worth “love potion”, Renjun doesn’t think much of it.
What he does think about though, is why Mark is suddenly being annoyingly affectionate with Donghyuck. The boy spent all of Transfiguration class whining about how much he misses his Hyuckie, and how all he wants to do is cuddle with his Hyuckie at the Astronomy Tower, and how beautiful his Hyuckie is. Renjun thinks that in moderation, cheesiness can be cute. Mark is being excessive, and it’s distracting and irritating.
It’s the weekend, and the group is spending their day near the Great Lake. The temperature is perfect for lying down on the grass, with warm sunshine and lazy breezes. It would be a restful afternoon, if it weren’t for the fact that Mark keeps on making little whining noises, and he keeps trying to get Donghyuck’s attention every time he turns away to talk with anyone else. It’s a sight to behold, Mark Lee practically grovelling at Donghyuck for his full attention. Renjun does think it’s funny, except it’s getting kind of old, now that Renjun has three full days worth of blackmail material. Jaemin and Jeno look just as confused and amused, and Jisung and Chenle are getting a huge kick out of the situation. Donghyuck is eating up the attention, and Renjun’s pretty sure he has the most blackmail material. Still, he sees the little flicker of worry in Donghyuck’s eyes. Renjun figures he should actually try and figure out what’s up with Mark. He excuses himself to go to the library.
On his way, Renjun’s stopped by the same Gryffindor girl who asked him for a love potion. She looks angry, and Renjun is lost.
“Aren’t love potions supposed to make the person fall in love with the person who gives it?”
Renjun nods in affirmation, still bewildered.
“Then explain to me why Mark Lee isn’t in love with me?”
Suddenly, Renjun connects the dots. “Oh, if you had told me that you wanted to get Mark’s affections, I could’ve told you already that it wasn’t possible and saved you some money. I kind of don’t brew actual love potions, since that’s kind of illegal. The potions I brew are more for enhancing attraction, so that whoever you give it to will be more likely to like you. But in Mark’s case, his head’s so full of Donghyuck, you basically just wasted money.”
“Donghyuck? The Slytherin? Why would Mark be so preoccupied with him.”
Renjun laughs a bit. “I’m not sure why it’s so hard to realize it, but those two are madly in love. Honestly, I’m betting with Jeno and Jaemin when one of them are gonna propose.”
(Needless to say, Renjun thinks that Mark has suffered enough and makes an antidote. Mark refuses to talk to any of them for a week, too embarrassed. Donghyuck manages to drag him out of his moodiness though, and if the two come out of the corridor with swollen lips, Renjun wisely chooses to withhold comment.)
five.
Jaemin personally thinks that the Gryffindor versus Slytherin match is always the highlight, if not for the intense rivalry, then for the high class drama between Mark and Donghyuck. There’s a group of fangirls with obnoxious signs cheering on Mark, and Jaemin can tell that Donghyuck’s getting irritated by their swooning. He purposely flies at a high speed past some of the girls, the wind knocking some of the smaller signs away. The girls angrily jeer at Donghyuck, some of them screaming, “What a hater!”
Jaemin holds back a chuckle, turning his attention back to the game as he gets tossed the quaffle. He nimbly dodges past the incoming bludger and manages to score amongst loud cheers. Jaemin is generally more focused on the game, but it’s distracting, the way that Mark and Donghyuck chase each other, with a sort of playful vibe to it. Yuta flies past him, aiming a bludger at Taeyong, grumbling all the while about “disgusting young love.”
It seems that Mark spots the Snitch, because all of a sudden he accelerates at breakneck speed towards the ground. Donghyuck is right there beside him, and both of them are going too fast. Mark shoots past the Snitch and takes a millisecond to adjust himself so he can reach it. Meanwhile, Donghyuck lets go of him broomstick and reaches for the Snitch, and Jaemin wants to laugh and cry at how crazy Donghyuck can be. He sees Renjun in the stands with a wand already out, ready to cushion Donghyuck’s fall.
It’s Mark who catches Donghyuck though, his broom dropping a few more feet from the additional weight. Jaemin can’t help but think about how amazing the two of them are. Donghyuck, with his unwavering trust in Mark, even when he’s on the opposing side, and Mark, who always has Donghyuck’s back, no matter what.
Mark looks torn between screaming in anger and beaming with pride. He chooses to berate Donghyuck with loud whispers, and Donghyuck looks apologetic. However, when the two teams line up and shake hands, Jaemin overhears Donghyuck say, “But I only did it because I knew you were there for me.”
Jaemin thinks that those girls are really blind, if they can’t see the way Mark seems to come alive when he’s with Donghyuck, a scowl on his face but blushing cheeks.
(plus one)
Mark isn’t surprised when he gets placed in Gryffindor, and is even less surprised that when Donghyuck arrives the following year, the Sorting Hat immediately declares “Slytherin!” as soon as it touches his auburn hair.
Mark isn’t surprised that Donghyuck, despite the year difference and different schedules, still manages to pester him endlessly, with pranks every week and loud jibes ringing throughout the halls. He’s obnoxious, in a way that is so achingly familiar to Mark, fondness bubbling in his chest into full-bodied giggles, and he shines so much that Mark can’t help but sneak glances every second.
Mark is surprised though, that Donghyuck could be just as shy as himself, with eyes flitting away when Mark catches him staring, a small, bashful smile with red dusting his cheeks to his ears. Mark, for all the times he groans with Donghyuck about how disgustingly cheesy their friends are, can’t help all the cheesy similes in his head comparing Donghyuck to the sun, his smile made of sunshine and his personality just as warming. It makes Mark want to woo him, flirt to throw him off kilter just a bit, with some Gryffindor boldness reflected in the way Mark suddenly takes his hand. He loves the way Donghyuck bows his head a bit, uncharacteristic but still shining as brightly as ever.
Mark isn’t surprised that when they start dating, their relationship doesn’t change much, because the basis of their bond has always been their long-time friendship. Donghyuck is still as snarky as ever, taking every opportunity to jab at Mark and his dumb actions, his Slytherin personality evident in the way he drags Mark into his schemes, but manages to slither away from trouble, leaving Mark to clean up the mess (the professors always go easy on him, anyways). Mark wouldn’t have it any other way, because that’s the way their dynamic has always been. Donghyuck always makes it up in small ways, like when he manages to convince the kitchen elves to lend him the kitchen so he can make some homemade Korean food, just the way Mark’s mom makes it, and invites him out to the top of the Astronomy tower as an apology.
He knew that his and Donghyuck’s relationship seemed mostly friendly because the most Mark did was lay his hands on Donghyuck’s thigh. But Mark knew that there was always the discreet smiles, shared glances. They had known each other so long that the small things had a different weight compared to more grand romantic gestures, and it was enough for both of them. Those were enough proof to Mark that he was special to Donghyuck, and he wasn’t planning on changing that.
Mark is surprised though, that he ends up a bit jealous. He knew, of course, that Donghyuck was attractive and charming and perfect, but he hadn’t counted on one of the Durmstrang boys becoming completely infatuated with his boyfriend in the span of a couple months, enough to the point that the guy - Woojin, was it? - wanted to ask Donghyuck to the Yule Ball.
Mark’s so used to everyone around him knowing that him and Donghyuck are going to stick together, whether or not they think they’re just friends. So when this random dude comes around and asks out Donghyuck in the middle of dinner, with a (tacky) poster that says, “Yule Ball?” charmed to flash different colors and a flashy dance performance and , Mark is a bit irritated. Just a bit.
So even though Mark is generally the most rational person in his friend group (except when it comes to Donghyuck. Hyuck’s always been an exception, after all), he ends up stalking across the Great Hall amidst loud whispers to the Slytherin table and pulling Donghyuck up for a kiss. It’s chaste (because Mark isn’t that petty), but long enough to get the point across.
“I’m not sure if you knew, but he’s taken.” Mark feels satisfaction first for saying it out loud, then the embarrassment (because really, this wasn’t some 90s high school drama) hits him, and he hopes his ears aren’t a deep red. The whole Great Hall is silent, and Mark hopes those big spider things would just come and eat him up.
Woojin looks a bit flustered, too, and his mouth is gaping. Mark does feel a bit bad, but then Donghyuck reaches for his hand and squeezes it in reassurance. He looks just as embarrassed but also a hint pleased and amused. Mark already knows that, from the small glance and sly smile, that Donghyuck is going to tease him about this for the rest of the year.
“Well, sorry to be the heartbreaker, but you heard my man. But don’t worry, there are other pretty boys who would be willing to give you a chance, like my friend here….” And then it’s chaos as one of the boys from the Slytherin table lunges at Donghyuck, and the event is soon forgotten beneath the chaos.
Mark trudges back to the Gryffindor table with his ears still burning, and he’s met with loud cheers. He still wants to die, even more when his brother Jaehyun tells him, “Well, at least everyone knows for sure that you guys are dating, right? No more random confessions from girls outside the classrooms?”
Mark just groans.
(Secretly, he thinks it’s worth it later when Donghyuck invites him to the Astronomy Tower, waiting with cup ramen and blankets. He doesn’t mention it, but his boyfriend is even more affectionate than usual).