Chapter Text
Mingyu fell for Wonwoo as soon as he met him.
Good lord, he was hopelessly in love with Jeon Wonwoo as soon as their eyes met in the supermarket.
Wonwoo was actually a member of staff at the time, and was in the process of stacking shelves. He'd been kneeling on a small sheet on the floor and was transferring each can to the shelf with such precision that Mingyu could barely bring himself to disturb him. He was focusing hard on the position of each of the cans so that he would have them all lined up perfectly, and it was strangely interesting to see how he managed to get the perfect gap between each of the cans without any of them touching.
Eventually, though, he grew impatient and ended up calling out to him. Then again, when there was no answer. Then once more, making sure to accompany it with a gentle shoulder tap to ensure that he was getting the boy's attention.
It didn't exactly go well. The boy jumped, his eyes snapping up to Mingyu's face, and as much as it was clear that he was panicked, Mingyu couldn't help falling for him instantly. There was something about his naturally beautiful features and rabbit-in-headlights expression that left Mingyu's heart beating faster. It was strange; he didn't think that he really believed in love at first sight and he knew that it was absolutely ridiculous to fall for a member of staff in their workplace, and he was absolutely certain that if he did try to make a move on the boy, he wouldn't get anywhere, but for the moment, he was intoxicated.
He didn't even notice that in the panic of the moment, the boy had completely destroyed his arrangement on the shelf. It took a moment for the boy to realise too, having been completely absorbed by the fact that he'd been touched without permission, and so when he glanced back towards the shelf, Mingyu was certain that his entire world came crashing down. He was quick to apologise to the boy, but the damage had already been done, and Mingyu absolutely regretted it more than anything in the world.
He ended up searching for someone who looked like a manager and apologising to her, before promptly informing her that he'd messed up and seemed to have upset one of their members of staff. He'd confessed to having touched the member of staff's shoulder without thinking, to which the manager responded by wincing as she seemingly guessed who exactly was affected by the incident. Mingyu ended up leading her straight to the aisle that the guy was on, and then watching the exchange that followed from a distance.
It went a lot quicker than he had expected, with minimal words between the two as the manager tried to figure out what the best response to the situation was. Eventually, she just gave a sigh and insisted that she would get someone else to finish putting the cans away. "Wonwoo, go and take a break in the staff room. Read your book for ten minutes, calm down, then come back out on the shop floor." She said something quietly under her breath before whisking the boy off towards the staff area of the shop, leaving Mingyu stood in silence in the aisle like a lost child or something.
All he could do for the moment was parade around the shop, getting a few items here and there but mostly looking out for Wonwoo's return from the staff room. He needed to check up on the guy as soon as he was back, since he was the person to put him in that situation and make him feel anxious. He felt bad about the fact that he'd left the guy feeling anxious, and he absolutely regretted the fact that he'd touched his shoulder. It wasn't something that he would usually do, even though it had come as a reflex response to get his attention in that manner.
On top of that, he really wanted to see Wonwoo again. Mingyu was the sort of person to jump into that sort of situation, snatching up the opportunity to make things happen when they were presented to him so perfectly. There was no point in leaving it to fate and just hoping that they would meet again. There was always a chance that they would never meet again - that this was his last day at work or he'd be let go for causing too many issues for the managers - and so he didn't want to leave it to chance like that. Even if Wonwoo rejected his advances, he would regret not trying more than he would regret an unfavourable result. It was what he needed to do, and nothing was going to stop him from giving it a shot.
The wait for Wonwoo to get back on the shop floor dragged more than anything. Mingyu tried getting the items from nearby shelves first, in hopes that he would still be close enough to watch the staff room door, but there was only so long that he could stare at various packets of rice before it was obvious that he was just stalling for time. There was no one to judge him, since the colleague who had gone over to fill the shelf with the remaining tins had been very quick with the job and wasn't at all looking for perfection, but he didn't want to seem as if he'd been waiting there for Wonwoo the entire time, especially if he did have issues with some form of anxiety.
Finally, he crept back onto the shop floor. It was clear that he was embarrassed about the entire situation, but he soon found other things that he could do with himself whilst he was there. Fresh medical gloves were slipped straight on, and he proceeded to take a crate of water bottles straight over to the fridge so that he could start filling in the gaps right away. He was just as focused on the presentation as he had been the last time, although this time it was clear that he was conscious of both time and the other people around him as well.-
"Are you feeling any better?" Mingyu asked as he approached Wonwoo. Those beautiful eyes moved back up towards his face, although this time, the boy seemed a lot calmer about their exchange.
"I'm sorry for how I handled the situation earlier," he said quietly. It was clear that he was being made to apologise by his boss, now that he was back on the shop floor. His forced voice was telling Mingyu that he wasn't the sort to want to apologise over that sort of thing, and frankly, Mingyu was rather glad about that. "You're welcome to tell my boss what really happened. Maybe let her know if you want me to be fired for my behaviour."
"Actually," Mingyu said to him with a smile, "I overheard your boss suggesting that you take a reading break to calm down. What sort of books do you like to read?"
Suddenly, his eyes lit up. Wonwoo was staring at him with genuine gratitude in his eyes, and he was very clearly interested by the conversation now. Mingyu guessed that he hadn't really been shown much kindness when he had moments of high anxiety, and so he decided to push it a little further by bringing up what his own favourite books were, in hopes that it would encourage a genuine reply. "I've recently read Sweet Hereafter and Kitchen by Yoshimoto Banana, and one of my friends recommended The Seventh Day by Yu Hua. Have you read any of those books?"
It was a safe guess; Wonwoo enjoyed all of them. He began to blurt out the details of his other top books, including several Shakespeare plays and a few very indie-sounding novels that Mingyu had never heard of in his life. The interest that he took in Wonwoo's words seemed to have him completely drawn in within minutes, and suddenly he was very aware of the fact that the boy was all his for the moment. It had happened even quicker than he'd imagined, but he supposed that if Wonwoo struggled with social interactions, as he appeared to, any bit of kindness would probably go a long way with him.
"I can write you a list of the books, if you're planning on coming back into the store at any point," Wonwoo suggested quietly, allowing his lips to twitch towards the comfort of a smile. "I know of a good bookstore nearby that will either have them in stock or will have them delivered to your house for free."
That was where Mingyu was going to slip straight in. He wanted to be able to start making ground now that he'd established a sort of bond between them, and he was good enough at flirting to be able to get things running smoothly. "I was thinking that maybe I could take you out for coffee or something, and either you could tell me more about some of the books or we could start reading a new one together. I'll even pay for the entire thing, if you'll let me do that."
Okay, maybe it wasn't going to work quite as smoothly as he'd hoped for. There must've been some mixed signals going on between them or something, as Wonwoo's face immediately dropped. He seemingly didn't know what to say in response to the situation, as he suddenly withdrew into himself again, but then after a minute or so, he dared to make eye contact once again. "I'm sorry, I appreciate the gesture but I don't drink coffee from shops."
Mingyu wasn't sure of whether it was just an excuse to reject him, or whether the comment about the coffee was key. He'd never heard that sort of excuse before, after all, but from what he'd learnt about Wonwoo's mannerisms already, he wasn't massively surprised. He was very deliberate and particular when he was putting the stock on the shelves, so Mingyu figured that he was probably the same when it came to other aspects of his life, like his routine and favourite places.
"Be honest with me," he said with an awkward smile, "Are you not interested, or can I convince you to go on a date with me by skipping the coffee?"
He had to know. Wonwoo was probably one of the most attractive people he'd ever seen, and missing out on that beauty would be something that he would regret for the rest of his life if he didn't find out whether or not he could be wedging his foot in the door still. He wasn't the sort to be too pushy about it, especially not in a person's workplace where they would probably feel trapped if he was to push his affection onto them, but he was well aware of his general boundaries and was more than happy to take a step forward or back, depending on the response.
Wonwoo seemed to seriously consider the proposal. He was left stood there in complete silence for a short while, seemingly not sure how to respond exactly, but on the bright side, he didn't seem to be out to reject Mingyu. It was a bit awkward to be stood there like that, especially when Wonwoo was so quiet, but then eventually the boy let out a soft sigh and ran a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry, I don't think you would like me if we went on a date. I'm not exactly the most dateable person in the entire world. I really, really can't stand the thought of being in dirty environments, and I don't really like to leave the house. And I think that that's an issue when it comes to relationships, so I would rather just avoid dating people altogether."
Mingyu didn't know how to take it when he heard the reply. He'd been absolutely certain that he would be getting a positive answer, especially seeing as Wonwoo seemed to be so impressed by his book knowledge and was interested when he mentioned going on a date where he would get free books, but he did sort of understand that the shop assistant probably wasn't all too happy to go on a date with a stranger like that. He didn't know whether Mingyu shared his feelings about dirt, which was quite clearly something that meant a lot to him, and so it was understandable that he would get hypervigilant about that sort of thing. Mingyu supposed that he would probably be worried about holding a relationship if he was preoccupied with that sort of thing - which he probably was, if he was bringing it up like that - and frankly, Mingyu couldn't really blame him for that sort of response.
"No worries. If you do want me to get you a book or anything without the need for a date - and maybe even without the need to actually meet face-to-face - I can always give you my phone number so that you can message me. Even though you're probably not that into me, I do find you very attractive still, so I'd like to do something that would make you happy and would make up for any hard feelings that I might've caused by scaring you earlier." He was rather surprised to find that Wonwoo's eyebrows shot up in response to the comments. He figured that Wonwoo was probably used to being hit on but hadn't necessarily had everyone accept the rejection so readily, and so he was probably expecting Mingyu to fly off the rails with it. That response seemingly scored him some points, luckily, as the shop assistant gave a little nod before taking a notepad out of his pocket. His grip on the pen showed Mingyu that he was going to write it down himself - it was to be expected, given his response to everything so far.
He gave his number slowly, in groups of three numbers at a time, and then allowed Wonwoo to repeat it back to him. He recited it once to himself, a second time directly to Mingyu, and then a third time just to be sure, and then stuffed the notepad back into his pocket so that he could get on with his work. He thanked him, then wished him a good day as he began to put the bottles into the fridge again.
And then Mingyu simply continued with his shopping trip.
He was satisfied with the outcome, frankly. He didn't really expect anything to come from it, especially seeing as Wonwoo didn't immediately strike him as the sort of person who would abuse someone's kindness by requesting a free book, but he was glad to have been able to tell a person that he was attracted to them like that. He hoped that at the very least, it would make Wonwoo feel a bit better about himself, and would come to show him that he was genuinely sorry for disrupting his day with an ill-placed touch. It was something that was going to play on Mingyu's mind for a long time after their initial point of contact, and as much as he hated the fact that he would be thinking about it so much, he knew he deserved it. After all, he should've seen the signs that Wonwoo wasn't going to take the contact too well right from the start, and so there was no excuse for the moment of negligence.
But then again...
"Sorry, I didn't catch your name earlier, but I just wanted to thank you for how nice you were to me. I suppose you already guessed this from the way I handled the situation, but I have obsessive-compulsive disorder and I've never had a successful relationship before. I don't usually like being around other people, and I struggle when it comes to romance because of it. My symptoms get worse when I'm nervous, and so I'm particularly worried about this coming out if I was to go on a first date with someone. I thought it would be best to let you know this, just in case you wanted to back out, but I didn't want to tell you it in person in case it made things awkward.
I wouldn't mind going to a library with you or getting a book and sitting at home, but I would have to request that we go to very particular places. My favourite bookstore has made sure to disinfect the book covers for me since my diagnosis, so I know it's safe to be there. Likewise, if we were to stay at home with the books, I would have to request that you come to my house. However, I would appreciate it if you were to run your clothes on a hot wash before you come over and use the disinfectant that is provided at the door when you arrive. It would mean that we would be able to sit close to each other and it would probably feel more like a proper date, and I suppose that that would be something that you're looking for.
Unfortunately, I would have to reject direct physical contact, such as hugs, handshakes and kisses. In particular, kissing is where I draw the line completely; I wouldn't be able to kiss a person unless I knew that they'd taken all appropriate measures in order to avoid contamination. I suppose that this will probably put you off, since it's seen as a fundamental in relationships, so you're more than welcome to reject me for this alone. I would completely understand if that was the case.
If you're still looking to have this date, please text me back with a date and time. I would prefer it to be in three days time, if possible, or on a Wednesday if that's not a convenient day for yourself.
I hope that you enjoy the rest of your day.
From Jeon Wonwoo."
Mingyu felt himself smiling wider and wider as he read the text. He reread it several times, just to ensure that he was interpreting it correctly, and despite the confession of his mental health concern, he felt a strange feeling that he could handle the situation pretty well. Admittedly, he was a messy person, but he did have high hygiene standards and that seemed to be one of the main components of Wonwoo's obsessions, so he didn't really have to change all that much about himself if they did go on a date together. He would just have to be somewhat more sensitive to different aspects of the environment that might make Wonwoo uncomfortable. After all, Wonwoo was just like any other person that he could possibly date in his lifetime, but he simply had a few different needs here and there that needed to be addressed. It was nothing that he wouldn't do for any other partner, having had boyfriends in the past who always went to the same restaurants or were insistent on having dinner with their parents every two weeks.
He had no issue whatsoever in replying and made sure to keep it as short and sweet as possible, as not to make him any more anxious about meeting up.
"Hey, it's Mingyu. Sorry, I forgot to tell you my name earlier.
I'd love to go on a date with you in three days. I don't know if you realised, but it's actually a Wednesday in three days, so we're hitting two birds with one stone. You're welcome to choose the best time for yourself, but I was thinking that somewhere between midday and four o'clock would be best. I'll make sure to wash my clothes on Wednesday morning. Should they air dry or is the tumble dryer okay to use?
I hope the rest of your evening goes well.
From Kim Mingyu."