SO, this is fun because I think my CBX read (and also my [KJD x BBH x ZYX] thoughts) are all kind of similar with like, very mild differences? In this case, I actually think KJD takes on the more benevolent, mediating role between and [BBH x KMS] that aren’t totally familiar with one another/don’t totally understand one another.

My impression of [KMS x KJD] is two people who really /do/ understand one another. I think KMS needles KJD and pushes him in a way that can sometimes be uncomfortable for him, but I also think that’s a friendship where KJD feels comfortable in the discomfort? I think KMS is a little more explorative with gender/sexuality than KJD will ever be willing to be; I think he’s more explorative of boundaries and how they wax and wane; I generally just think KMS is a little more willing to experiment(?) just on the offs, because he feels like it and because he’s curious about something. Whereas I think KJD experiments more out of spite, or to prove something to himself? I think he feels as though he works himself into a creative hole and then needs to branch out lest he experience creative-atrophy.

I’ve talked a little bit about my impression of [KMS x BBH] and my opinions haven’t totally changed on them… I still think there is a fundamental gap in how they operate, in how they understand one another, but I /do/ think they’re not only more aware of one another now, but also a little more anticipatory of how each other are? Like they’re starting to get it, and kind of anticipate how one another react with a little more depth than just a surface-level presumption about the other. I think they’re just a little more comfortable now, and I think KMS especially is gentler with BBH because I think he’s more conscious of BBH’s insecurities and also the off-and-on tension between [BBH x KJD].

As a trio, I think CBX hinges around KJD (similar to how in the previous trio, it hinged around KJM)! My feelings towards [BBH x KJD] is that it’s playful (sometimes mean), “two people that Get each other, but in a way that creates just as much bad friction as it does good friction”, friendly in an easy, comfortable sense. My feelings inversely towards [KMS x KJD] position them as more of a playful (needling, but NOT mean/cutting), “two people that Get each other, but have different ways of Being” with a little more neutral/good friction than entirely bad friction. I think their dynamic as an OT3 is pretty healthy though, because KMS tempers BBH and vice-versa. KJD seems most comfortable between the two of them, probably because BBH is willing to go along with KMS in the things that KJD is less comfortable with, and KMS is willing to prod and poke and distract BBH from becoming too overbearing. CBX is like my ultimate, “dude all three of these guys together are like… functional” even with all the extra bits that Should complicate things.

UHM I really started having thoughts about [KJM x BBH] in a meta-sense at the end of 2019-Beginning of 2020. I think KJM and BBH had a lot of moments on the Exploration tour that made them appear closer than they had been in the past, though since looking back, I still think they’ve always been one of the closer pairs in the groups. I think BBH has always been conscious of the pressure KJM’s under, and tries to alleviate that pressure in his own way to some degree (eg. taking on a role as a “mood maker” or “glue” for the group; someone who’s friendly and gets along with everyone to help smooth out personality clashes, etc.) I also think KJM’s always been very conscious of BBH’s insecurities and nerves? I think he’s very conscious of everyone in the group, in that sense, and he often takes on the role of the martyr who suffers for the rest of them (eg. speeches after China-line exit, etc.) But the two of them, especially since 2020 have seemed to have gotten much closer and more comfortable with one another. I think part of that was BBH pursuing a more mature image through his solo, whereas KJM was almost loosening up, and both of them finding common ground in being out of their comfort zone, but enjoying it. 

I find that KJM and BBH seem more aware of their personal struggles, and more willing to challenge one another on them (both of their comments on dieting leap to mind; each of them seems to have a vested interest in encouraging the other to eat—probably because both of them have similar insecurities about it). I think BBH probably sought out KJM’s advice re: SuperM (because for what it’s worth, I do think he took his ‘leader’ role seriously for the duration of their promotion and tour). So, that aspect of the pair has always felt very mediating(?). I think KJM and BBH are learning from one another very frequently, and I think they’re choosing to notice aspects about one another that others would ignore, or otherwise glance over. My feelings on them are that they both humor one another, nitpick one another, and at the end of the day, confide in one another. I think they’re close enough that they feel confident/safe talking about their troubles, concerns with one another, BUT I also think they’re distant enough to do so as well. There isn’t so much fear that things might “change.”

My feelings on BBH and KJD are pretty standard. I fall into a unrequited-love-relationship where BBH pursues a KJD that isn’t /totally/ interested. That said, I do think KJD feels very comfortable being loved by BBH, and loves him back in his own way. Unrelating to actual IRL barriers, I just think that KJD’s personality makes him the perfect best friend for someone like BBH, but probably not the best lover. KJD seems to seek out the praise/approval of people older than him, with a little more experience, a little more presence(?) because he sits so evenly (oftentimes at a higher skill level) than his peers(?). I also think KJD is reserved in a way BBH is not, but both of them compliment one another. KJD as the reserved extrovert and BBH as the unreserved introvert seems to suit them well. BBH overshares, KJD undershares—together they seem normal, LOL. I do personally like the idea of KJD feeling somewhat expectant of BBH’s love—in that, he knows of the crush, and while he doesn’t totally entertain it, he also doesn’t totally ice BBH out either (though depending on how closely you follow the BaekChen timeline, you could argue there was a period BBH got iced out, but that’s for another day). 

KJD and KJM are where I feel a little more blind in the canon-adjacent sense. I think my impression of the dynamic is influenced by my friends a lot, which Audrey’s given me the run down about KJM probably being pretty instrumental in acclimating BC to EXO since they joined SO LATE compared to everyone else, and also because of KJD’s habit for hyung-worship making KJM a natural obsession of his. I’ve noticed myself that [KJM x KJD] used to be SUPER popular in fanfic? I feel like I see a bunch of it when I sort for the older stuff… I think KJD and KJM are the most “righteously headstrong” members of the group, so I could see them clashing pretty frequently, but also understanding one another very well. 

In the OT3 sense, I really enjoy the idea of KJM softening out the ugliness of BBH being madly in-love with someone who isn’t madly in-love back. I like KJM as the cajoling “play nice” to [BBH x KJD]. I like [KJD x KJM] and [KJM x BBH] to be the sharper ends of the trio—KJM encouraging blunt honesty, including ugly feelings and insecurities. He’s the oldest in the trio, and I have always liked the idea of the older partner being more experienced, more willing to advise/to mediate. That’s just a me thing. In this trio, I like [BBH x KJD] to be ugly and hopeless, but fond in the very same sense. It doesn’t work if there isn’t some element of understanding between the two of them.

I think that’s my thoughts summed up. I really also just think all three of them are really sexy and I want them to kiss. They’re also all fucking insane in their own ways, and I love that.

One of my favorite food/cooking exo-fics is actually not really focused on cooking as a whole? But it’s an embellishment that made the story feel super real, and really touched ME and how I like to view food/cooking as a love language. That story is In the territory of the dragon king, by curledupkitten (https://archiveofourown.org/works/2160063/chapters/4722243) which is pretty much a fandom staple. It has the following lines:

"Let me watch the eggs. You always make the edges all weird and crunchy." / “You're hurt. And I like the edges crunchy." / “No you don't. You're just used to eating your mistakes." — Which is an exchange between Chanyeol and Baekhyun, and it’s followed later by an exchange between Kyungsoo and Baekhyun (the romantic couple of the story): "I can teach you the trick. . .for getting the eggs perfect, without the edges." / “If you can teach me to do it before the next time Chanyeollie drops by for breakfast," Baekhyun says, "you can stay forever." It’s actually this detail that I think really locked me in? Feeding someone is loving someone, in a lot of ways—it costs money, time, energy, and it’s not lasting in the sense that a single meal will last someone a lifetime. It’s one of those effervescent qualities of love. Cooking though helps marry the effervescence of the meals—the not lasting quality of them—and makes it something that lasts. In this particular story, Baekhyun eventually gets to the point where he’s able to make the perfect eggs. He has whatever technique Kyungsoo taught him learned and absorbed and applied. It’s the same way that, when I worked brunch at the restaurant, I made omelettes the way my dad taught me to make them (which, funnily enough is the “standard” training procedure for our sister restaurant, which is where my dad worked when he was in college—so he just passed that down to me). Cooking has a lot of tricks, and absorbing those tricks—remembering them—is just a very tangible way of someone lingering with you. My best friend checks that her pasta’s cooked using the way I taught her (checking the middle for a pale center). My mom roasts vegetables and glazes them with my recipe.

But also, I just generally love meals and cooking as a writing device to show depth in characters or in scenes. I have a few dining scenes in my WIPs—most of which you’ve read—that have purposes ulterior to just waxing about food. Situations like having Jongdae indulge on stuffed quail and a full-glass of wine vs. Baekhyun with a single filet of fish and a hardly filled glass of wine, or having Kyungsoo cook a meal intuitively, but having Minseok require a recipe. It’s an easy way of adding details that a lot of readers are going to pick up subconsciously even if they don’t take the time to really unravel the choices made in each scene because cooking/eating has so much weight in our lives. I suppose, it’s one of those actions that is just so integral to our daily life, it becomes pretty lackluster in many ways. It doesn’t feel like it should be the focus of a story. It doesn’t feel like its an aspect of plot. It doesn’t feel revealing of the characters, and yet—I think a good cooking/eating scene is all of those things. I think it achieves a lot, despite it mostly being used for filler from experience OTL. It’s the perfect sort of filler you can have, though, if you really pay it mind and give it time.

bear with me, i ult bbh and my approach to fic and fandom is kind of centered around him? and i just enjoy all the ppl that come along with him? i LOVE exo music and everything but the brainworms and the inspiration is def bbh rooted ;; hes just a silly little guy so a lot of my fav pairings include him,,,, im sorry LOL
kms - i rly like kms in ot3s and ot4s bc i think he is most fascinating in between two other people—it brings out the more contrasting elements of his personality/dynamics. if i had to pick a pairing, i like xiuchen but mostly bc i think kms challenges kjd's comfort zone regarding masculinity and idoldom and whatnot. or xiubaek bc i think they have similar views on masculinity and idoldom and probably get along in many ways, except for the fact that bbh is Like That and i think it drives kms crazy LOL
zyx - baekxing ;u; THOUGH i also really like suxing and xingdae. i started stanning stanning right at the tail-end of zyx being with the group still, and the award season for monster and all that, which is kind of home to a lot of baekxing moments. i also just think both of them are very ambitious, very image-aware, etc. and i think those aspects of them and how they contrast in those similarities is really delightful to play off in fic. this is also a case of making two pretty ppl kiss just bc theyre hot LOL
kjm - subaek is my fav kjm ship, and was one of the og ships i rly liked. back then it was a little more surface level, guy who has to be serious/responsible to some degree meets resident goof. now its developed a little more. my impression of bbh is a little sharper—though still very heartfelt? and my impression of kjm has also sharpened a bit—i think he's still sweet and kind, but i also think my old impression of him was very flat, one-dimensional. i think i find him more ambitious, more ruthless (not sure thats the word im looking for) now in a curious little way. if NOT a bbh ship, i like suxing—i find them playful in the same vein as baekxing, but kjm responds to zyx's playfulness differently.. its very fresh.
bbh - oh god. when i get Really wormy its baekchen—but most of the things that rly make me go insane about them probably would not get posted OTL. i would say baek + zyx/kjd/kjm all sit on the same level for me. i really like them for different reasons. zyx and bbh get more au leaning things, and i like them pushed individually? whereas baekchen and subaek are fascinating to me more when theyre paired (though each of those three Do fascinate me individually) bc i think those dynamics have a lot more friction in them? this is coincidentally my "bias line" — i rly only follow these four's solo work and variety content OTL
kjd - baekchen, but i like xingdae too. another case of baekchen i like bc of the friction in the Pairing, and xingdae bc im fascinated by how the individuals are in the pairing. idk if im making sense with that distinction but,,, u know.
pcy - i like sechan; im not crazy about it? but i like it enough to read fic of it and enjoy it. some of my fav fics are chenyeol though...
dks - baeksoo is my fav but thats probably bc i watch the two of them together pretty often? other than baeksoo, probably xiusoo? ive been really liking the idea of minseok and dks together—i think they're mellow together, but have a nice awareness of one another despite seeming to be intentionally distant bc of their age difference? but im drawn to baeksoo bc i find it really fascinating that on paper they seem pretty different, but in interviews theyve said that they go to one another for advice bc they think similarly, or feel similarly about a lot.
kji - ,,,, i dont rly ship him with anyone OTLLL i like him in harem, as everyone's comfortable partner. i think kji in general strikes me as very level-headed, healthy, and thoughtful, and my fic interest def skews towards the ppl that come off batshit crazy beneath their image LOL, if i had to pick someone i actually like kaisoo and sekai! probably bc both can skew towards that same-age friend pairing that i tend to rly like.
osh - sechan! or sekai! i dont have strong opinions though sorry!! sebaek was the first exo pairing i wrote fic for though!!

oh fascinating!! in the fic sense i like seho when it leans into age-gap and manipulation/co-dependency, and thats most of the thinking i do on them (i also like both of them in relation to bbh, but not as a super strong ot3? i like them as tangentially connected/sexually connected, but not necessarily all romantically connected). i have blinders on for bbh and kjd when it comes to dissecting them so UNFORTUNATELY i dont super look into sehun? and how he Is, but i think the positioning of kjm and he in the group and how theyre Perceived by the others, and the way they've been publicly (weird) is very interesting, it just doesnt key the part of my brain that really goes batshit.

theyre one of those pairings that i Understand ppl rly liking, but personally i skew each of them towards having moved on from one another... kjm to bbh mostly and osh to pcy mostly

into the pit, my king was originally capped out at 50k—it ended with the big battle in hell, and didn't include the last 20k or so of trying to resolve the war in the mortal world. i think the choice to keep going, and add resolution was good, but looking back i think i would have made a more concentrated effort for that last segment to hit hard, to really pull each character's development and tie it up in a neat little bow. i think in its current state it lacks a bit of oomf, a bit of strength come the end. the battle in hell is the Climax, but the falling action doesn't feel Right—but that could just be me. adding that last portion Was a huge change though.

As for changes while drafting (less an addition of things, and more the actual structuring?) dog gospel had a few big changes, which i talked about at the end of the fic. it was originally an ot3 told from zyx's pov—and he was removed from the story as a character entirely by the final draft. then it started after kjm's dad's death (bc of the prompt's wording) but that didnt feel right either—i felt that if the dad's death was going to cause upheaval, we had to know the type of person he was. hence starting the fic Way in the past.

a prophecy of storms also has a pretty detailed document that explains my process, but i think its probably the most complete remnant of a Really Really old wip of mine (that i ended up deleting almost entirely bc of frustration with it) called Colossus in the Cut. in that sense, the changes would've been the positioning of the characters and the genre of story. colossus was a high-seas, pirate quest(?) featuring a captured potionmaker skilled in reality manipulation and creation magic, aristocrat turned pirate (searching for the keys to godhood), and minseok was a mage who knew the location of one of the items needed to champion the gods? IIRC? in APOS minseok and bbh actually swapped plots (minseok gets captured by kjd and bbh, rather than the other way around), but bbh retains the same magic he'd possessed in colossus. kjd kept his personality, but his quest changed, and his character became more at odds with minseok than bbh!

This is! A great question, but I’m worried about unintentionally spoiling parts of the story, so forgive me if it’s not quite what you’re looking for~ I think it would be interesting to talk about how the developed from the original draft of the story to the one they are now, and their character backgrounds and concepts (so much as it doesn’t spoil the story)!

In the original concepts, Baekhyun was more of an adventuring type—he stowed away on the ship leaving Vahyína before the port closed of his own volition—and then met Minseok in Matté and settled for the time being. In that initial concept, there was going to be a lot more anxiety that Baekhyun’s wanderlust would take him opposite Minseok’s (which was more southward facing, whereas Baekhyun wished to go to the lands beyond Rothí). In that original concept, Minseok—though enchanted by Jongdae—would have been most at odds with Jongdae (while Baekhyun actually retained a sense of familiarity with him). Elia and Vahyína are both cities of the same empire (the Zíhada Empire), and were sister cities before history rended them apart. In the current work, Minseok and Jongdae have the most friendly chemistry (though even that has its Moments, as we’ve already seen) and Jongdae and Baekhyun have the most outright aggressive.

Each character was meant to have a strong loyalty to their birthplace, and that loyalty has extended to the concepts you’d be familiar with, just the way it shows is a lot more different (and time will reveal those LOL)! Jongdae is meant to represent Elia: untouchable, cutthroat, artistic, charismatic. Baekhyun is meant to represent Vahyína: timeless, curious, stubborn, familial. Minseok is meant to represent Matté (as we currently know it): stubborn, egotistical, judgmental, incautious, but as each of the cities develop with the reader, so to do the characters! In the same way the journey will unveil forgotten histories, it’ll unveil unrecognized truths about each individual and ways for them to grow~

i actually really, really /like/ xiubaek BUT they totally confuse me, and i have a lot of difficulty articulating my thoughts. my impression is that minseok is not very lenient with baekhyun (at least, not in the same way as kjm or even kjd or kji—all of whom def give bbh pushback when he's getting to be Too Much), but he's very accepting of the way bbh is? he's very aware of the type of person baekhyun is, and he kind of matches snark with snark? he's a lot less giving with baekhyun, but still leaves just enough room for baekhyun to carve out a spot/a dynamic between them.

i think with kjd he's way less rigid (and in truth, i think there are varieties where kms is very not rigid with bbh—the drinking one for example is one where he seemed super tense but got to relax bc of bbh, despite bbh technically being the one out of his element in that situation. he seems very conscious and appreciative of that role bbh takes on in the group), but with kjd he kind of allows himself to be more gummy, silly, and like cute!

but i do find him more similar to bbh in other ways—i think both of them are very firm in their sexualities/gender in such a way that it allows them to experiment more freely with style, fashion, etc. (bbh crossdressing in the one and kms mothering during cream soda) than kjd who seems more rigidly masculine of everyone in cbx. i also think both of them are very conscious of image and know how to play with it, while not controlling it nearly as rigidly as kjd who has no socials (or had none in the past). i think kjd is core to xiubaek (and its why cbx makes SUCH a great ot3) as mediator (both bbh and minseok are at their silliest, most unguarded when kjd is between them LOL) but i like the ship on its own. i just dont find it nearly as functional as i do with the ot3. i think bbh and minseok would consider themselves opposites, and while i think there's physical attraction i dont think either of them would flourish without a buffer in that relationship LOL but thats just me? i would love to hear someone else's take, esp someone more familiar with minseok bc ive only ever really sourced out bbh interviews (and kjd more recently) and would love to know more!!

ooo! from all of my wips, my favorite character is kjd in,,, three of them! in one, he's a guy who wakes up out of cryosleep feeling guilty for the choices he made in life and the story follows him finding his peace (aliens r involved too LOL); in another, he's bbh's childhood bestfriend but they stopped talking during a war and then afterwards were reconvened by kms, but its not as chipper as they would hope; and in the last he's a mob boss whose kid goes and falls in love with the opposing mob boss's son, and he's pretty mellow in that one—more reserved than in the other two—but he's still very sharp and cunning and cut-throat. im very excited for all of those wips for a multitude of reasons, but esp because of the flavors of kjd in them!

the one who gives me the Most trouble is normally minseok, but thats just bc i worry that i get baekchen goggles and dont rly develop him to the degree i want? i find him fascinating, love reading meta about him, love him in cbx, but i think he's one of the more enigmatic guys to me.

the one currently giving me the most trouble is ksoo in the same wip as the one above where baekchen r childhood besties. his motivations got murky somewhere, so im having to go back and really expand a lot of background things OTL