Work Text:
The smell of laundry soap.
Soft music playing on repeat in the background.
Jeonghan just arrived home and is sure Mingyu is there.
~
Right from the moment he opened the door to their apartment and drew his first step inside he can sniff the fabric softener Mingyu likes to use, mixed with some lingering bit of laundry soap scent. He can hear soft tunes playing in the background, volume just high enough to only be listened in the inside of the flat.
Jeonghan takes off his coat and slips off of his shoes before beginning for the living room. He’d gone to work early that day, leaving his boyfriend who decided to take the day off sound asleep in the morning he'd made sure to bid his goodbye.
“I’m leaving, left some coffee done in the counter, get up when you feel like it”
A muffled mumble was the response, and Jeonghan got ready to leave. If Mingyu added anything else it was completely ininteligible. He'd left with that agreement in mind, but now Jeonghan got home to a slight change in plans.
That was exactly how his morning went, but apparently, said “I’m so tired i think I’ll take the day off” boyfriend dropped the idea of really taking a break, and decided to do some chores while Jeonghan was away. On his defense, Jeonghan had never really gotten mad, mad about it. Is just that Mingyu works a lot and all his pleads to Mingyu to take a break, a real one, came unattended every so often. “I don’t want to arrive to a full tidied apartment and a worn out boyfriend.”
Had happened too many times to count, it was better to just tease him afterwards and ask for some compensation perhaps.
For Mingyu taking the day off meant doing some chores at least.
“There are a lot things to get done here, just… if i have the time i want get some done”
“I get bored after a while you know” He’d tried to persuade Jeonghan, pouty mouth and everything. Sneaky of him Jeonghan decided.
“Well, there are other things you can do , many - we - can do, and i’m really not against the majority of those.” Jeonghan had said with a mischievous grin, raising an eyebrow playfully. He seldom drew upon his coyness, but he needed Mingyu to understand when to stop and take that necessary rest.
“Oh”
Mingyu might be stubborn but he is not dumb, so probably letting go this time doesn't sound that bad.
Jeonghan really never offered him anything, well he did, but it wasn't common. They worked the other direction around, Mingyu not doing as said, and Jeonghan asking for something in return.
Mingyu surely can’t let such offer slide.
Then, they’d brush it off. Living together being the only piece missing on their puzzle until they moved in together and made the most out of it. Nevertheless, they’d had the same conversation countless of times.
“If you’re taking the day off, just rest and treat yourself, We can do all this chores next weekend.”
“What will i get in return if I listen to you?”
“Oh god, erase that grin from your face.”
I love you.
Playful smiles and interesting proposals. Silent agreements and innocent playfulness.
In the end Mingyu would never listen and will end up more worn out from his day off. Yet Jeonghan couldn’t help to always give in.
“You really can’t take one day off” he scoffed under his breath, tone not exactly unkind but rather affectionate.
As he walked to the living room, his gaze aimed to a swirl of hair picking out from the top edge of the couch, brown locks pointing on every direction. Is a regular occurence for Mingyu to use the couch to take a break from his chores during his break. Seemingly just for a moment before moving on to something else. Pointless Jeonghan thinks.
He approached the room hastily when a soft chuckle escaped his lips at the sight of Mingyu sleeping absentmindedly on the couch, limbs hanging and mouth slightly agape. An image not uncommon to their cotidianity, to the closeness in which maybe the not so regularly referred as lovable images of any of the two were an every day occurrence.
How come he can never berate him over a thing Jeonghan thinks, is unfair of him to do that "sleeping peacefully and yet looking recklessly lovable" thing he does. Is impossible to say a thing.
Often times it would be Mingyu's turn tu tuck Jeonghan in. He’d bring a blanket whenever he'd fall asleep on the couch after working all day, and slide it over him, then softly kiss his hair making sure not to wake him up.
Sometimes Jeonghan wasn’t asleep enough to not notice the gesture. Slumber will knock him off again any moment, but he remembers, he remembers seeing Mingyu peeping over him and close to his head, he remembers the sound of a kiss.
Later Mingyu would be doing whatever thing on the kitchen or their bedroom the moment Jeonghan woke up, and he’d never mention a thing. And Jeonghan didn’t either.
It’s easy.
Soothing.
Familiar.
Unspoken gestures with no need of an explanation .
So Jeonghan swiftly leaves the room to go grab a blanket from their bedroom.
To the touch of the fabric, Mingyu stirred and adopted a more comfortable position, shuffling a little and tugging the edge of the blanket in his hands, head still resting on the backrest of the couch.
He might have been really busy today, can’t he stay still and actually relax?
At this point it was useless to bring back the topic to the table, he would get the chance to tease him up with the issue later. Wheedle him maybe, to do something for him.
The only sensible thing left to do now, wait.
He found endearing how Mingyu managed to look so effortlessly tender, his breath getting more even with slumber and light soundly gasps escaping his mouth.
Jeonghan sat on the other side of the couch just a palm away, placing his elbow on the backrest and resting his chin on his hand, prepared to ogle him up. Tan skin and captivating in features. From Mingyu's lips and the line of his jaw, to the view of his dark lashes, and the mole on his cheek.
Jeonghan felt the urge to trace his features with the tip of his fingers, trace from the top of his eyebrows to the bridge of his nose, warm skin almost palpable under his light touch. His fingers at enough distance to sense the warm coming from Mingyu but far enough to not fully touch his face.
He wanted to smother his locks, but he knew the moment he touched his hair, he most likely would wake him up. When he gets the time to appreciate him like this, it's easy to think about how comfortable he makes him feel, how safe and reassured. How good his life had become.
Luck or destiny, it doesn’t matter anymore.
Jeonghan recalls the moment they saw each other for the first time at the store he used to work in, to the very first time they actually had a conversation, discussing everything and nothing, silly bickering and chitchat.
The moment when Mingyu asked him out.
Written down from the beginning or a matter of time, Jeonghan doesn't know if he ever thought about any of that at the time. He just enjoyed talking to the customer who’ll always brought something new to talk to him about.
“Do I have something on my face?” he’d said after some awkward staring that went over the limit of comfort.
It was his morning shift and even tho it wasn’t an occurrence to spot Mingyu that early in the morning, that day he was there.
“Ah.. eh.. em.. no, not at all... eh.. sorry” Mingyu retorted with a light chuckle that made Jeonghan feel somehow self conscious.
He’d tried to brush it off when he noticed his hands started to feel clammy, Jeonghan had tried to move out from that awkward moment as fast as he could. “Oh, okay, is that gonna be it then, would you like me to put it in a bag? Or —
“I was wondering” Mingyu had cutted him up mid sentence “There’s.. We.. Are you available this weekend?”
I love you.
Jeonghan was taken off from his daze of memories when he felt Mingyu stirring again.
The tip of his fingers still absentmindedly tracing his features. The touch light and caring, when Mingyu let out a mushy groan and frowned. Heaving, he just had opened his eyes and turned to look lazily at Jeonghan, his gaze softening hastily with familiar endearment.
“You came home early,” voice raspy still muffled with sleep, drowsy.
“Is almost noon” Jeonghan got a little bit stunned - hoping it wasn’t his fault waking Mingyu up with the yearn of his hands - “I turned off the washing machine”
With you is always simple, effortless.
“I forgot i left it on, I did some of your laundry too” Mingyu yawned airy, eyes filling with sparse slumber tears that started gathering on his lashes. “I used your favorite softener”
“It is your favorite softener” Jeonghan retorted, shameless accusatory tone. "Ah, what will I ask to get in return this time?"
“I lost track of time, how was your day?” Mingyu giggled at the statement, and tried to slip away.
Maybe I was worried about everything and nothing but at this point I can’t tell.
They function like this, simple and always slotting effortlessly.
If Jeonghan had come to love the smell of this specific fabric softener because it reminds him of Mingyu, he never mentions it.
It was one day he was wearing a sweater he found at their dresser, not so long after they’d move in together. A quick stroke to the fabric and the scent was there, a swirl of fondness growing on the pit of his stomach.
He’d wear his boyfriends clothes before, his scent mixed with the aroma of recently done laundry. The image of them living together, comfort and care.
If Jeonghan had come to love the smell of this specific fabric softener because it reminds him of Mingyu, he thinks, as of right now he doesn't have to let him know.
With you I'm all in.
~