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The smell of pancakes wakes Taekwoon up that morning more than he would’ve liked to admit.
Softly wafting to his nose and basically drags the sleep out of his eyelids when he realises that he’s back in Hakyeon’s house and… This isn’t just a wonderful dream he’s having, because his toe accidentally hits the leg of the bed and does it hurt a lot.
Anybody would’ve cursed immediately from a toe throbbing with pain but—not Taekwoon, as he smiles widely, maybe a little bit wincing, as he reaches down to relieve his toe. It feels as real as it gets.
Shyly now, as if he hasn’t lived in this house for a long time and he hasn’t memorised every corner, he pokes his head down the stairs to see where the other person in the house could be. He smells the pancakes again, and he had to stop himself from charging downstairs with excitement when he remembers that he still needs to take a tinkle first.
After wobbling down the hall to reach the bathroom, he finds that Hakyeon has already placed a new toothbrush on the sink counter, and Taekwoon tries to fight another giddy smile that threatens to grow on his face. He probably never has brushed his teeth nor pissed that happy before.
Only when he’s done doing his morning routine he gains the courage to go downstairs, mouth drying up a little as he already sees who he’s been looking for, distracted trying not to burn the pancakes too much.
Taekwoon was about to gently greet him good morning, but the sight of the pancakes slowly turning into a deeper brown immediately sets him on his heels and takes the pan from the other’s grasp and away from the stovetop.
“Good… Morning, Hakyeonnie,” he chagrins, at the startled expression on Hakyeon’s face and the wild look in his eyes because Taekwoon seriously just appeared out of nowhere like that.
For a moment Hakyeon doesn’t know how to reply to him either, and Taekwoon wonders if it’s because he really just surprised him that bad or that he hasn’t fully taken in that they’re under the same roof as well.
“Good morning,” he finally murmurs after a few seconds of stunned silence, carefully watching Taekwoon flop the last pancake into his stack of pancakes. He sets off to slather as much butter and drizzle as much maple syrup he can that wouldn’t give him a heart attack, before doing the same to Hakyeon’s except, exactly just how he likes.
“Did you sleep well?” Hakyeon quietly asks him when they sit down at the dining table, the older sitting across from him and reminding him exactly how they were last night.
“Better than these last few months, yeah,” Taekwoon answers, just as short and brief. This really shouldn’t be as awkward as it should be, but then again, who really goes to have pancakes with their ex—ex- ex ?—at ten in the morning?
Hakyeon looks at him like he still wants to ask more things, and Taekwoon saves himself by taking a sip of the coffee Hakyeon gave him. When he brings the mug down he sees Hakyeon staring at him expectantly, and a small blush spreads on Taekwoon’s cheeks when he realises the coffee blend was exactly how he likes.
“It’s perfect, thank you,” he bashfully nods his head down, almost as if he doesn’t want Hakyeon to see how red he’s starting to become. It’s the coffee’s fault, he almost swears.
Talking didn’t happen much after that, as Hakyeon only nods to himself as well with a light red decorating the apples of cheeks too, and stuffs his face with forkfuls of pancakes he almost burnt.
It’s after breakfast—brunch?—that Hakyeon has his back on Taekwoon again, busy washing the dishes that Taekwoon finally lets loose and dares to hug Hakyeon from behind, smooshing his cheek against his shoulder as Hakyeon freezes in front of him.
“I’m sorry,” he softly mumbles, half of the words muffled by how his cheek is literally pressed against Hakyeon's shirt. "I'm sorry but… Can we have more mornings like this again?"
Maybe it's because it's so out of the blue that Hakyeon has stopped processing what's going on, or maybe it's because Taekwoon's reading into the situation too much that he stepped far over the line immediately—that he regrets what he just said and tries to remove himself on Hakyeon if it weren't for the other to swiftly turn around and place his hands in his hips. Firmly.
"I don't know," Hakyeon looks away from him, but his hands stay right where they are. "Maybe I'd prefer it more if you talked to me. Don't you know food tastes better when you're talking with the person you're eating with?"
It takes Taekwoon five, seven, twelve seconds to fully realise what Hakyeon has just said, and all the emotions that were welling up to his chest only comes out when he puffs out an airy "oh" in unadulterated realisation.
"Yeah, oh, " Hakyeon seconds, before reaching up to place a small kiss on the corner of Taekwoon's lips and it's hard for him to not to say that he's not relieved to see how all the relief washed all over the younger's face that moment, and a grin breaks out on Hakyeon's face, all of the stoic emotions from last night completely gone.
The relief stays only for a few moments, however, as Hakyeon finds himself unable to do anything when Taekwoon starts crying in front of him.
"Oh dear, Taekwoonie … love… " He gently calls to him, trying to soothe out whatever intense emotions Taekwoon's going through right now. Hakyeon is just about to open his mouth to calm him again, but all is lost when Taekwoon finally unabashedly kisses him, after months and months of missing pieces of each other, and of course, where else would they have their reunion kiss better than in front of Hakyeon’s kitchen sink?
Taekwoon tastes salty, of course, because he didn't even bother wiping his face free of tears anymore and decided that prolonging the wait will just make things even more painful. Even then, Hakyeon will never mind it.
Because even if his salty tears are all over his lips, Taekwoon tastes just as sweet as maple syrup and caramel coffee. No matter how much Hakyeon tries to rid himself from sweets, he'll always crave for one more press of Taekwoon's lips against his.
After all, nothing will be much, much more sweeter than this.
Later that day, when they've finally collected themselves and actually washed the remaining dishes Hakyeon abandoned that they both decided to take a walk and properly talk things through.
That is, of course, only wishful thinking, as the moment they stepped out of Hakyeon’s porch, droplets of rain began to fall down on Taekwoon's nose.
It never comes as a surprise anymore.
So they come back in, stumbling and laughing at how much rain loves and hates them at the same time. But it's okay, they both know.
Rain came by again, as always, pehaps to celebrate their rekindled love.
And as Hakyeon wraps his hand around Taekwoon's, and Taekwoon links their fingers together—they can always talk about it anytime.
So how perfect can it ever get, when they'll get to spend another rainy afternoon holding coffee mugs that'll almost burn their fingers, as the raindrops drum against the windows like a constant hum, listening quietly to them talk…
When Taekwoon left his house in the middle of the night, under heavy rain, only now he realises that it was only his body telling him to head back home.
Just how much more perfect can it ever be?