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When Namjoon had asked them to watch his place and his dog while he was away on a business trip, Hoseok knew that his best friend hadn't even considered that they might take full advantage of the fact that he lived in one of the most beautiful penthouse apartments in Seoul. And It wasn't to say he and Taehyung were throwing a raucous party, or defacing any of his stuff. No, moreso they were treating it like they were on vacation in some crazy hotel room they'd never be able to afford on their current income.
"Holy shit," Taehyung had breathed when they first arrived, "you sure this is Joonie's place….?"
It had occurred to him then that it was the first time his lover had ever been in his best friend's borderline ludicrous apartment. So Hobi had smiled a bit sheepishly and nodded. "This is it. Joon kind of hates how big and fancy it is, but he also wants his privacy and getting an expensive penthouse was the easiest way for him to get it easily while still living in Seoul for business."
Hoseok had thought the younger man crazy back in their college days when he had declared that he wanted to start his own record label. They were young adults, just getting their first taste of the true adult world that lingered just past the limits of their respective degree programs. It was exciting, new, challenging, and a bit eye opening to how tough the road ahead would be.
He was only a bit sad that he had kind of undermined Namjoon's bright idea back then. It had made him feel guilty for ages seeing some of that passionate light dim when he asked the other to consider all the crazy hoops he'd have to jump through to accomplish such a driven goal. Yet at the same time, his doubt had fueled Namjoon to push even harder to achieve his dream. Low and behold that over the years his created label, named Stretching The Boundaries or STB Entertainment, had quickly risen above other small name competitors and was prospering in the music and film industry.
It meant the times that he actually got to see his CEO friend were few and far between, but he cherished them all the same. And based on the way the few pictures Namjoon actually had printed out and framed contained them both, Hobi could tell Joon cherished his friendship too.
Taehyung let out a yelp from somewhere nearby, breaking his train of thought. "TaeTae?" He called. He wasn't entirely concerned, but the instinctive worry was there all the same.
"Sorry," his lover yelled back, probably from the bedroom, "Rapmonnie jumped on me and it kinda hurt."
Hobi trailed after the sound to find Taehyung laying on the floor of the hall being smothered by the cute white dog in question. "Aww Monie just wants cuddles and kisses~!"
Tae giggled from his position and rubbed frantically at the pup's back. "He's just so full of love, he doesn't know what to do with himself! Doesn't mean you need to throw yourself at me though y'know," he pouted, "I was getting ready to smother you."
Rapmon answered by licking a long stripe up Taehyung's face, tail wagging as he did.
"WHEW DOG BREATH BOY! Hobiiiiii we need to brush his teeth!"
Hoseok watched fondly, feeling entirely soft for his exuberant brunette. "Hey Tae-yah?"
Curious eyes met his, "Hmm?"
He laughed lightly and went to his hands and knees to hover over the younger's face. "Eh it's nothing, I just love you a lot I guess."
Taehyung inhaled deeply and put on an expression of mock outrage. "Bold of you to claim that a declaration of love is nothing, jagi. But I love you a lot too."
He could feel his eyes crinkle with the force of his smile. From the proximity, he realized Tae's hair had parted and left his forehead exposed. Hobi immediately decided it would be a crime to leave such a beautiful forehead left unkissed. So he bent further and planted a loving kiss right at Taehyung's brow line, laughing again at the way his face scrunched up cutely.
"Anything on our agenda tonight my love?"
The wide grin that spread on other's face was infectious. "You mean tiring out the fur baby with a long walk, and then us playing Just Dance again wasn't on your immediate schedule?"
Hobi rolled his eyes with a fond huff. "I mean it was, but I wondered when we were going to indulge in that VIP dinner service Namjoonie prepaid for us."
"Oh I forgot about it!" Taehyung shot up from his reclined position in excitement. "Can we do that tonight? Or should we wait… I don't wanna use it too soon."
"Jagi, he paid for us to have it for three nights of our choosing."
"...So we could totally order it these last three nights."
Hobi chuckled out a yes.
Taehyung's face seeing the feast that was delivered to them had been so priceless that Hobi had been quick to snap a picture of the moment. They had given the delivery man a gratuitous tip and taken time to study the vast array of food in order to figure out how they'd approach eating it all.
Their days spent 'watching' the apartment were lazy, relaxing and stress relieving. They had been pretty busy with their respective creative jobs and hadn't had much time to really indulge in each other's company. Who'd have thought that their friend's business trip would be their vacation? One they were getting paid for nonetheless, because Namjoon was too nice for his own good and insisted on tossing money at them for their help.
Hobi found himself spending a lot of time watching his lover. Taehyung was pretty expressive in his reactions to things. The adorable wide eyes look of confusion when he simply couldn't wrap his head around something, the cute pout he'd sport when he things didn't go his way, the radiant boxy grin that broke through when he was so happy he couldn't hold it back. It was just one of the many things about Taehyung that he had fallen in love with.
At one point, his lover noticed and called him out on it with a teasing smile. He hadn't exactly been subtle in his potent gayness after all. It had led to a rather intense make out session and Hobi really wasn't complaining.
Over the course of the week Taehyung had quickly developed the habit of taking a nap with Rapmon draped over him after the long walk they did around the neighborhood. Afterwards they'd wake up, play for awhile and then eat dinner which led to Rapmon trotting off to Namjoon's bedroom for the night.
But as they napped, Hoseok found himself thinking about his life and how Taehyung fit in with his future. He really couldn't even imagine seeing it unfurl without his love beside him.
By the time their final evening in the grand apartment arrived, Hobi felt like he was just floating in a vast pool of adoration for his beloved Daegu boy. It was a beautiful but slightly dangerous feeling. Dangerous, merely for the fact that it made him want to be spontaneous about something he had considered only in passing previously.
After they had gotten their last prepaid dinner, they decided to recline out on the balcony and take in the view of bustling Seoul. They played soft music from Tae's phone and sat holding hands, occasionally sipping at their respective glasses of wine.
"Do you ever what your life would've been like if you had done something as ambitious as Namjoon-hyung?" Taehyung asked during one of their periods of silence. He looked at him with an even but curious gaze.
Hobi nodded. "I used to think about it a lot, especially in the beginning when I was struggling and Joonie's company was beginning to turn a profit. I got a little bitter about my choices, wondering why I hadn't tried to go after a more prestigious career path." He looked down with a smile. "That was until I got frustrated working on a freelance piece, and spontaneously went to visit a small and local art exhibition."
Taehyung smiled too then, squeezing slightly as their joined hands.
He glanced over at him with an affectionate gaze. "Ever since that fateful day, I started looking at everything different. And now? When I look at my life, I realize that I'm so happy where I am. I work a job that comes with challenges and tough times, but I still love what I'm doing. Plus, I have the love of my life at my side and I get to see the works of art his beautiful mind creates which still remains a source of awe for me."
"Ah yes, forever my number one fan," Tae mused softly, cheeks a bit pink.
He couldn't help but proudly confirm the fact - no one would ever take that title from him.
"I just, I'm really happy with life and I know I'm living things right. I look at things and realize this is what it's all about; finding happiness in your course through life. Finding happiness is easy with you being there for the journey with me, jagi."
"Hobi…"
It was no more than a whisper, yet so full of emotion it made his heart clench. Hoseok wasn't sure of a lot of things in life to be honest, but he had been sure of Taehyung as soon as he had laid eyes on the man. "I just love you a lot Tae," he said, voice thick with his own bout of building emotions, "so much that I want to marry you."
Taehyung laughed and brought him in for a hug, "Awww Seokie, you know I feel the same. I love you endlessly."
His heart was pounding as he shakily reached into his pocket and snatched the dainty ring that had been in whatever pocket he had for the past few months. "N-No Tae I mean it," he stuttered nervously.
The younger pulled back with curiosity plain on his face until he laid eyes on the silver band in his grasp. He stared for a long minute, bottom lip trembling progressively more during his silence. "W-Wha….. Seokie y-you…"
Hobi fumbled out of his chair and to one knee, eyes large and glassy. "Marry me, jagi."
"Y-You're serious," Taehyung said in disbelief, voice catching on a sob.
"I don't know a lot of things about life, TaeTae," he said, trying to prevent himself from rambling too much in his nervousness. "I don't know what the weather will be like tomorrow, I don't know what I'll eat two weeks from now, I don't even know if I'll still have this job ten years from now… But I know that I want to have you with me through it all. I-I wanna marry you Tae."
The brunette cried quietly into his hands, obviously shocked by the sudden turn of the evening. "Y-You can't just spring this on me," he said eventually, pouting spectacularly despite his tears and trembling lip. The expression soon melted into tearful happiness however. "Of course I will," he murmured, "because I know I want that t-too."
He let out a surprised laugh, staring up at his lover in bewilderment. "R-REALLY?! You will? I-..." Hobi put a hand on his head, "C-Can you say it again…?"
Taehyung gave a wet giggle and joined him on the balcony floor. "Yes I'll marry you, Seokie."
It was in a state of awe that he managed to slide the ring he had gotten onto Taehyung's right ring finger. The ring was a perfect fit and looked so lovely on his hand. Hobi eventually looked up from his intent gaze on the ring to beam tearfully at his love. "We're engaged now," he giggled breathlessly.
Tae nodded and kissed him with blazing intent. "Uh huh and now I'd really like to express how very much I love you right now."
"Only right now?" he teased despite the sudden intense kisses he was receiving.
Taehyung nipped at his lip in response. "I always love you, it just really strong right now okay? You really know how to make me especially gay for you, jagi."
"I love you too," he managed to sneak in somewhere between their locked lips.
It was the sound of the apartment door opening that eventually awoke them the next morning. They looked at each other in relative confusion before looking dazedly towards the front door.
Namjoon appeared with suitcase in hand and froze as he took in the scene.
Taehyung grumbled something about it being too early and tucked his face back into Hoseok's neck with a deep inhale.
Hobi had the decency to send his best friend a sheepish grin. "H-Hey Joonie, how was the trip?" He thanked any deity he could think of that they had somehow found a blanket to cover up with sometime during the night.
The CEO downright pouted at him. "Seriously? On my couch? Did you even put a blanket underneath you?"
The exclamation stirred more tired grumbles from Taehyung and an increased sheepishness obvious on Hobi's face.
Namjoon ran a hand down his face in evident tiredness. "Ugh whatever. I'm going to bed - I assume my dog is in there?"
"Uhh yeah," Hobi managed to utter, fixing the blanket covering him and his fiance a bit to make sure they were properly hidden. "We didn't want to have him watch or uhh be subjected to things," he said with a nervous chuckle.
"Little mercies," his friend muttered. "Was there a particular reason that spurred on the event or were you both just feeling particularly gay and frisky?"
Hoseok bust out laughing at the phrasing, rubbing apologetically at Tae's back when he let out a low whine. "I mean we don't usually have a reason - but it was kind of impromptu because we got engaged last night."
Namjoon nodded at the information and tossed his jacket on his dining table. "Cool, well guess you're getting that couch as my 'happy engagement gift'. I'll have it shipped to you sometime this week."
Taehyung perked up slightly at that, "Wait seriously..?"
"Guys, no offense, but I'm not particularly fond to keep around a couch that has had your engagement consummated on y'know? I've been wanting a different one anyways. So uhh congrats. I'm tired and going to bed now. Please no more while I'm here."
Hobi flushed and quickly assured him they wouldn't.
"Leave whenever you want, I'll probably be sleeping jet lag off for most of today."
They absently watched the exhausted man disappear into his bedroom with his suitcase in hand, then looked at each other.
Taehyung grinned tiredly, "Guess we'll have to clear room for this monster."
He rolled his eyes with pink tinted cheeks, "You're incorrigible, Jagi."
"I'm a happy engaged gay man, what do you want from me?"
Hobi smiled, "Your heart?"
Tae smiled back and kissed him, "You have it for life, Seokie."
He really liked the sound of that.
