Chapter Text
The heat rose off the pavement. The weeds at the sides of the road whipped between the force of the cars and the wind that was blowing in another summer storm. It was early afternoon so there weren’t many people on the road, mainly moms who were trying to occupy their children during the long school-less summer months and teenagers who were trying to get somewhere else, someplace better. Chanyeol wasn’t a teenager, he hadn’t been for three years, but he was trying to get to somewhere better. He’d gotten there before. He’d worked tirelessly to earn a scholarship to a nice school far out west and had returned home for the summer. But, there hadn’t been anyone home for him, anyone who’d wanted him there at least. He honestly should’ve expected it, but some innocent, naive part of him gripped tightly to the hope that something had changed. He wouldn’t make that mistake ever again.
Chanyeol drove as quickly as the law allowed to get to Jongin.
They hadn’t seen each other in person in a long time. Too long of a time, they both thought but didn’t say. There’d always been something between the two of them, something unsaid but understood. They’d kept in contact, of course, because they couldn’t stand to not doing so. They’d managed to be there for each other, even while being 3 time zones apart. However, Skyping and Snapchatting could only get them so far. They missed each other deeply. Both of them had been greatly anticipating Chanyeol’s arrival home. They greatly anticipated finally being each other’s presence.
He needed Jongin , he realized with a vague notion of panic. As he drove towards Jongin, towards safety, towards love , he realized how much he truly needed the younger. He became more and more at peace with this fact the closer he got to Jongin.
The shadows stretched as Chanyeol got closer to the city. The storm clouds hung heavily in the sky and threatened to burst at any moment. Chanyeol hoped to get to Jongin’s place before the storm hit. But, of course, heavy raindrops started hitting the car’s windows as soon as he passed the city limits. To add to that, all the parking spots near the entrance were filled. On a sunny day, Chanyeol didn’t have any problem parking a farther away. He ran through the pouring rain. It was only around 85 degrees, so it wasn’t terribly hot for summer. However, the humidity was stifling, one thing Chanyeol didn’t miss about Georgia, and the rain only made it worse. Sometimes, they’re get lucky and the rain would cool everything down. This was not one of those times. The rain combined with the humidity made Chanyeol feel like he was swimming into to the complex. As he rode up the elevator, his heart was pounding a mile a minute.
He knocked on the door, hoping that Jongin was home. They had planned for Chanyeol to come over a couple days later but he didn’t exactly have a place to stay. He was already breaking his bank making the trip over here.
Chanyeol felt a wave of emotion overtake him when Jongin opened the door. Chanyeol was completely and utterly relieved to see Jongin. A weight lifted off his shoulders and heart. He felt lighter, freer. Free of his burdens, no matter how prevalent they were when he wasn’t with Jongin. They didn’t mean anything because Jongin was here, with him, now. Jongin meant warmth, safety.
“Jongin,” Chanyeol breathed.
Nothing was said by the younger. He jumped forward and wrapped his arms around Chanyeol, nuzzling his face into Chanyeol’s neck. Chanyeol smiled and squeezed Jongin, lifting him up a little. The younger squealed, standing on the tips of his toes.
“Nini, Jongin, I missed you so much,” Chanyeol all but croaked weakly, his voice-cracking.
Jongin pulled back, settling back down on his feet but with Chanyeol’s arms still wrapped around his waist, and looked his best friend in the eyes. He cupped Chanyeol’s face and wiped the older’s tears away with his thumbs. He sniffled and smiled at Jongin.
The younger returned Chanyeol’s smile warmly. “I missed you too. I don’t even have the words. There were so many times that I wanted to drop everything and fly over to Cali.”
“But we’re together now. Finally.”
“Yeah…” Jongin suddenly became achingly aware of the position they were in, achingly aware of his heart, which was longing for Chanyeol.
Chanyeol rested his forehead against Jongin’s. Jongin inhaled shakily, and slowly, he pressed his lips into Chanyeol’s. The taller leaned into Jongin. They stood like that for a moment in the hallway, wrapped together in their own little world.
When they pulled apart, not long after they’d started, Chanyeol’s heart was pounding and Jongin’s hands had gotten clammy. However, they were both grinning ear to ear.
Jongin chuckled, “You’re sopping wet. Let’s get inside and get you changed. You brought clothes right?”
Chanyeol stopped in the middle of the hallway into Jongin’s apartment, suddenly realizing where his luggage was. “Oh shit, I left my suitcase in my car.”
“It’s fine, you can just wear something of mine. I probably have something that’s too big.”
When Jongin pulled a huge pink sweater from his closet, Chanyeol had rolled his eyes. But when he put it on, he felt as if he was wearing a hug from Jongin. Jongin rummaged in his dresser for quite a while before pulling out a pair of black boxers.
“Is that underwear?” Chanyeol asked hesitantly.
Jongin scoffed, “Psh, what? No. They’re shorts.”
Chanyeol guffawed, “Where in the hell did you get underwear this big?”
He chucked the underwear shorts at Chanyeol and the older guffawed his way into the bathroom.
By the time Chanyeol returned from changing, Jongin had laid out on his bed. He could’ve squealed because of how cute Chanyeol looked in his sweater and shorts. It occurred to him that now they had kissed; to some extent, they understood they had feelings for eachother. He could tell Chanyeol what he truly thought now about him now. Jongin didn’t have to worry about whether Chanyeol felt the same way.
Jongin blurted, “Holy shit, you’re so adorable.”
Chanyeol turned as pink as the sweater he was wearing. He covered his cheeked with pink sweater paws which only made Jongin want to squish him more.
“Oh thank you,” Chanyeol mumbled shyly and then plopped down on the bed next to Jongin.
He wrapped his arms around his best friend as they both savored this moment. Chanyeol listened to the rain pound and watch as it trailed down the window. He was so relieved that Jongin had been there. Jongin didn’t even ask; he understood. All he knew was that things weren’t okay and that was the only thing he needed to know. He’d be there for Chanyeol regardless.
After a moment of silence, Chanyeol asked apprehensively, “It doesn’t bother you that I came early, right?”
“Awh, Yeol, it doesn’t bother me at all. I’m really glad I don’t have much to do this weekend, so we can spend even more time together. I’m usually super busy.”
“Oh? What do you need to do?”
“Boring adult stuff, you can do it with me if you’d like. I need to do laundry and dishes, go to the store. Also, I’m teaching a class at one tomorrow. You’re gonna have to deal with a bunch of desperate housewives.”
Chanyeol smiled, “I’d love to.”