Chapter Text
It turned out that finding Hwall was easier than Juyeon thought.
Thankfully, Sunwoo didn’t lie to him. The pale boy really was in the library, which was surprising enough since it was such a quiet place for the usually hyperactive boy. Keeping Hwall there, though, proved to be the problem. Juyeon found him in the corner where people don’t usually end up at; the moment Hwall laid eyes on him, the younger boy made a move to pack his things and go, if it wasn’t for Juyeon holding his wrist to stop him.
Hwall stared at the fingers that closed over his the bandaid covering his soulmark—Juyeon didn’t mean to hold him there, really—jerking away after a few seconds as if burned.
“I’m trying to study.”
Juyeon took a deep breath, releasing it in a slight chuckle in an attempt to lighten the mood as he sat down next to the other boy, “exams just finished this week. Hwall, can I talk to you?”
“We’re talking right now,” Hwall noted, refusing to meet Juyeon’s eyes, but Juyeon could tell the younger got a bit flustered by his excuse failing. The slight flush on his cheeks said it all. He continued fixing his stuff regardless. “I don’t have anything to say anymore, hyung.”
“I do,” the older boy began to say, voice slightly raising before coming to a pause. There was no way they could have a proper conversation in the library; even in the secluded corner, any sort of loud noise would easily bounce against the walls and echo around. He needed to get Hwall out of the area, which shouldn’t be that hard since Hwall was close to running away, anyway.
Juyeon stood up, surprising Hwall as the pale boy looked up at him before catching himself and looking back down at his stuff, a slightly disappointed look on his face. The small gesture gave Juyeon the push he needed and the reassurance that things weren’t ending on a sad note just yet. He extended his arm towards Hwall, hand poised in front of the other boy.
“Come with me?”
Hwall stood up, but didn’t take his hand.
“I’ll follow, but I don’t need to be led there,” Hwall said softly.
Juyeon nodded. He’ll take what he can get, after all.
He left the library with Hwall in tow, looking back every now and then to make sure the other boy really was following and not escaping. Hwall’s movements were still on guard, still as if running away was the option he wanted to choose, but he continued to walk behind Juyeon. He always was too curious for his own good. Juyeon couldn’t help but smile at the sight as he walked towards his planned destination: the park, where everything went wrong just a few days before.
Hwall must have noticed, as his steps grew more cautious.
“Juyeon-hyung—“ He opened his mouth, possibly to complain, but Juyeon cut him off.
“A little bit further, Hwall,” the older boy said as they continued to walk, finally stopping at the same spot Hwall said they weren’t soulmates. Thankfully, Hwall did continue to follow, ever obedient even if the discomfort on his face showed clearly. Juyeon smiled a little, “we’re here.”
Hwall kept his eyes pointed to the ground, “why are we back here?”
“I wanted to make things right,” Juyeon said, heart suddenly hammering in his chest at the possibility that things wouldn’t be made right in the end. “If you’d let me.”
When Hwall didn’t say anything, he decided it was a sign for him to continue.
“Hwall, I like you,” Juyeon said firmly, noticing how a jolt of surprise ran through Hwall as the younger boy finally stared back at him. Encouraged, the older boy took a deep breath and spoke again. “I really, really like you. Whether we’re soulmates or not, please, give me another chance. Give us a chance.”
He stepped closer, taking Hwall’s hand in his as he did so, delighted when the younger boy let him.
“I love you.”
“Hyung, do you mean that?” Hwall said, voice barely a whisper.
“More than anything I’ve ever said before.”
Things happened almost too quickly, after that. Hwall went from frozen in shock to hugging him in mere seconds, allowing himself to melt into Juyeon’s touch as the older boy hugged him back. Instead of the guilt Juyeon was accustomed with, the gnawing feeling at the back of his head that whispered his soulmate’s name, he felt nothing but happiness as he hugged Hwall close. They stayed that way for a while longer before he felt Hwall’s body stiffen, making him release the younger boy.
“Hwall? Is something wrong?” Juyeon asked immediately, suddenly realizing that despite the hug, Hwall never said the three words back to him. Unwanted worry began to fill him up, but he pushed it down.
Hwall stared at him, sharp eyes meeting his as the younger boy began to bite his bottom lip, a habit Juyeon knew meant he was nervous about something.
“Hyung, call me by my real name.”
Juyeon blinked, “I don’t know your—“
“Hyunjoon. Heo Hyunjoon.”
Just like that, time froze. The voice in Juyeon’s head that chanted his soulmate’s name returned, except louder this time, just as loudly as his heart was beating in his chest. It’s always been familiar, of course, years of staring at the name marked on his wrist made sure of that. It was a name he would repeat to himself after every failed date. It was the name he ignored in favour of seeking Hwall. Except this time, he was hearing the name in Hwall’s voice—out of Hwall’s lips—and suddenly everything made sense.
The immediate attraction he had to Hwall just upon watching him dance, the ease of their conversations and moments together, sweet and perfect. The way Hwall’s smile was brighter than the sun, his chic outlook disappearing with every word he said. The moments they shared where time seem to stop and go too quickly all at once, the joy of just being near him, and the overwhelming sadness when Juyeon realized he pretty much messed things up.
He was too lost in thought to realize that Hwall was removing the bandaid that covered his mark, revealing a name that Juyeon was also familiar with.
His own.
“It was really hard knowing you’re my soulmate all this time and having to pretend I wasn’t already in love with you,” Hwall—no, Hyunjoon—said with a shaky laugh, obviously trying to hold back tears. “Even with my own mentality about soulmates. I didn’t want to like you right away, but you made it so easy. Then we took things slow, and it made me realize that it wasn’t a forced matter at all, but I just…”
He trailed off, voice quiet.
“I wanted you to be sure of me, too. I’m sorry, it was pretty selfish of me. I lied to you.”
Did it matter? A part of Juyeon wanted to complain about it. They could have gotten together way before today, since the first time they met, but that would mean missing out on how shy Hyunjoon was when they all began. The moments that lead to them getting together, falling in love with him because he was Hwall, just Hwall, and not his soulmate. In the end, he wouldn’t trade those for the world.
Besides, he did pull off a pretty bad move rejecting Hyunjoon. He rejected his soulmate just because he didn’t have visible proof, as if his feelings weren’t enough. Juyeon didn’t really have a right to be mad, if Hyunjoon’s mentality proved to be a valid concern.
The younger boy fidgeted, looking nervous as the silence continued, and Juyeon finally decided to ease the tension.
“Hyunjoon,” he said, testing how the name sounded from his lips now that he had a face to match it to, and the happiness that came with it. Juyeon grinned when he noticed the blush on the younger’s cheeks upon him saying so, “I’ve never been more sure of anything. I knew you were mine the moment you shone on that stage. Even if it took me a while.”
A smile slowly began to form on Hyunjoon’s lips, before breaking into a full out grin.
Juyeon couldn’t help but smile back, even as he closed the gap to plant a kiss on the other boy’s cheek, watching it turn an even brighter shade of pink. He continued to smile throughout Hyunjoon’s reaction—a delighted, surprised laugh that earned Juyeon a whack on his chest—and especially when the younger boy moved closer to do the same. The kiss was soft and sweet, and everything Juyeon imagined it to be with someone as equally soft and sweet as Hyunjoon, even if it only lasted a second.
“I’m getting more of that, right?” Juyeon asked teasingly.
Hyunjoon smiled, “if you’re good, sure.”
Soulmarks really did have a weird way of working out. In the end, if it’s meant to be, it’ll be.