Work Text:
Minghao and Junhui have been together for six years.
Domestic and bliss, even had the chance to smell each other’s morning breath and strong fart every morning which is indeed the full blown experience they both didn’t expect in a long term relationship. They both wake up in the same bed, shared clothes and tousled hair and then perform the same type of sweet endearments one does when they are in fact with someone they love (minus the times they argue about typical things amplified by rare mood swings).
They met at university during christmas break, where Minghao is a homesick newbie who’s stuck in the dorms because he can’t afford a ticket back home and there he encounters Junhui who’s eating away his sadness with a tub of ice cream.
To be honest, Minghao isn’t the type to hang out with strangers, especially people who eat ice cream in the middle of winter so it’s surprising how the young man stayed in the dorm’s public kitchen and initiated a conversation. It’s even more surprising how they both celebrated the day together with store bought cookies and a portion of sweet memories they’ve shared that they’ve encountered in their hometown which had led to a fruitful friendship no one expected.
With both of them having the same situation of being a foreigner in an unfamiliar country, they’ve decided to look out for each other. It is said that people are more attracted to familiarity, and the common standpoint that they have towards their situation is familiarity of where they were from itself. This proceeded to having the urge to be with each other during difficult times because of the comfort familiarity gives.
Their luxury during times of hectic projects and difficult exams is resting in the common room, mugs in hand with a small crease on both of their tired eyes. As their relationship progressed to sincere conversations, the familiarity that had brought them together kindled into love (with the help of Junhui’s flirty comments of course).
So one might wonder why there is a quick recap towards their relationship, which is understandable because no one needs to know how their love story bloomed at this point?
This is because a quick inspection of their loving relationship is required to prove that they are indeed together, very much together. But another question resurfaces, which is, why is there a need to prove that they are together?
Well, it’s quite an amusing story — considered as interesting if the story that is deemed worth anyone’s interest includes annoying co-workers and broken printers that barely help the office.
Minghao glances at his wristwatch, taking a gamble from accidentally hitting a random person as he jogged through the busy crowd. He hears Junhui’s footsteps beside him as they hurried down the sidewalk.
They aren’t late, they were actually 20 minutes early but it’s better to be there before a new wave of employees pass them inside the building and find themselves lining up for the elevators.
Minghao halts his steps when they are almost in front of the building’s entrance and hands Junhui his packed lunch. He bites the inside of his cheek and looks at his surroundings first before giving Jun a quick peck on the cheek, “I think I’m ready now.”
Junhui gives the man a reassuring smile, “Relax, it’s just your first day and if you need help just tell me.”
“Not tell you, I’ll text you,” Minghao corrects him and steps away from their close proximity.
Junhui frowns, he then gestures frantically with his hands showing him the awfully long distance (which is just two feet) that he had made, “I can’t get close to you or even talk to you!?”
Minghao shakes his head, “You can Junnie, but don’t make it—“
“Make it look like we’re together in a ‘lovey dovey’ way because we need to establish a professional environment when we are at work,” Junhui cuts Minghao’s response with his arms crossed as if he had heard and said it a million times.
“And?” Minghao gives him an expectant look.
The older man sighs but recites what his boyfriend had told him countless times,“Our manager might not like knowing that because work is work, no personal things should be shared in the workplace.”
Minghao finally nods in agreement, “That’s right, you’ve been here longer than I have, we don’t want you getting fired because of me,” He pauses for a brief moment, letting his nerves relax, “We’re not really keeping this as a secret, more like a low-profile relationship.”
If their co-workers realize that they were together then it’s not exactly the end of the world. However, it’s always better to keep personal things aside in a corporate setting.
It might seem like Minghao just doesn’t want the people in his workplace to know that Jun is his boyfriend which is a tad too unpleasant if you think it’s because he doesn’t want to be involved with him. However, it’s not because he’s embarrassed that Junhui is his partner, it’s actually because he’s too alert of any possible outcome that might result in getting them fired.
Not like he’s thinking it would be like a forbidden love filled with piles of paperwork and endless meetings but that is also what his first-day-of-work-thoughts were now predicting.
Well, it’s his first day anyway, so if he gets kicked out in less than a day then that’s quite a remarkable experience for a new employee. Jun is the one who he should be worried about, he’s the one who has worked for more than a year.
Why did he even apply to the same company?
“Hao, you’re stiff again,” Junhui points out.
Minghao doesn’t respond, the younger man looks too occupied with his own thoughts.
At the sight of Minghao’s lips forming into a tight line, Junhui pats Minghao’s back and smiles, “Don’t worry, everyone’s friendly and accepting so it’s okay for them to know about us,” Junhui then holds the man’s hand tightly before realizing what he was doing and releases it with a chuckle before continuing, “But...I do understand where you’re coming from. It’s your first day of being a corporate slave afterall!”
“Thanks,” Minghao finally glances at Jun with wide eyes, “I’m still nervous for some reason.”
“Breathe in and out, haohao!” Junhui moves his hands as he encourages the younger to take deep breaths.
Minghao does what he was told, and gives him a pleasing smile. “Let’s head up?”
Junhui takes a peek at his watch and nods. Before he moves from his position he draws a heart with the tips of his two fingers with a genuine grin plastered on his face. Minghao sneers at the sight — a well known reaction that means he loves him too. The simple gesture gives a massive reassurance to the younger, he doesn’t really understand how Junhui does that.
With a quick dash to separate elevators, they head up to the same office.
“So I’d like everyone to meet our new workers. Please welcome them and…” Jeonghan’s voice fades into the background as Junhui continues to gawk at Minghao.
There was something about Minghao that is quite different from when he’s in front of strangers; his hands tend to bend until it’s clasped, feet seemingly stuck on the floor and his mouth tends to purse until lines form near his cheeks. But he’s still the same even if he’s different; how he still manages to add a tinge of color on his tie to let his own personality adapt in a monotone office is such a Minghao thing to do. The younger man is nervous, but never when it comes to small details of clothing even if he’s in front of new people.
Fashion is what makes Minghao stand out but not because of what he wears but how he wears it. Minghao seems to be more confident when he’s proud of his outfit (but to be honest Junhui thinks Minghao would look good in anything).
Junhui looks back at the time when it was his first day of work: Minghao was clad in pajamas, drinking tea while eyeing him on the other side of the room. The younger man stands up and helps him with his tie while he eyes himself in the mirror.
Junhui looks at Minghao, hands smoothing out the small creases of his sleek suit pants “Do I look good?”
“You do.” Minghao finishes fixing his tie and looks at Junhui’s proud face which causes Minghao to sigh audibly because of his boyfriend's spontaneous mood shifts. “I’m not boosting your ego, I’m just telling you that you look good because I’m the one who chooses your clothes.”
Junhui jokingly pulls a frown. “Really? Isn’t my haohao so sweet?”
“Okay, you do look good. Always,” Minghao places his hands on the other man’s nape and gives him a peck on the forehead.
Once Minghao lets go, Junhui looks at the man for reassurance yet again, “Are you sure with the tie? And isn’t my watch too fancy?”
“First day of work is very important. Most co-workers view you as what you have appeared the first time they see you,” Minghao pauses for a brief moment and continues after giving Junhui a comforting smile, “So always go for a tailored look in a professional setting especially when you plan to remain as a constant employee.”
“Also, I’d never let you wear anything horrendous or out of place.”
Those words made Junhui feel confident on the first day of his work.
“So...you’re interested?” Junhui immediately comes back to reality the moment he hears his co-workers question.
He internally panics but manages to contort his face into a mix of confusion and uninterest all in one second.
“Interested in what?” Junhui lets his eyes trail back to his computer. He hides his face behind the monitor to avoid looking at his boyfriend any longer.
Seungkwan manages to scoot his four-wheeled chair to Junhui’s desk, an emerging smile casting on his face, “The new guy...Minghao?” The man points at Minghao with his lips, as the said man continues to stand on the side with the other new workers.
“Why’d you even assume that?” Junhui asked.
“You’ve been dumbly staring at him the moment the group entered the office for introductions,” Seungkwan simply gives him a plain look.
Junhui wasn’t aware that he was staring. Also, what’s suspicious about staring? It’s a completely normal action that isn’t implying anything— especially not relating to having a relationship with the guy he’s been looking at.
He looks at his blank monitor to prevent any more suspicion from his co-worker, “Nah, I think my eyes just didn’t move from their original position, which oddly seems to appear like I’m looking at him.”
“Mhm, you do say,” Seungkwan mumbled, a pensive look was shooting right at him, making Junhui’s whole body stiff.
It wasn’t like he was acting odd because he’s mainly frightened of people knowing their relationship, no, not at all. He’s actually scared of how Minghao will feel knowing that he had exposed their ‘secret’ the first day of the younger man’s work. He respects Minghao’s decision of keeping all this hushed since he knows his boyfriend is just new in this working environment and, well, personal relationships are not needed to be shown or known while you're at the office.
He finally replies, “Well then if you truly assume that I am interested, which I am not, who wouldn’t be interested. The guy’s new and he’s good looking!”
He shouldn’t have said the last part.
“Okay then,” Seungkwan responded. The look on his face seemed like he didn’t believe him at all.
Jeonghan’s voice pierces over the conversation the two were having as their boss urges the newly hired workers to seek assistance from the other if it is needed. And with that, Jeonghan lets the newbies briefly introduce themselves.
Junhui, out of impulse, moves his head to see a closer look when it’s Minghao’s turn. He squirms a little then grins the minute he sees how adorable his boyfriend was with his styled hair and warm smile.
“I’m shipping you two,” Seungkwan blurts out, quiet enough for no one in the next desk to hear.
“What?” Junhui almost squeaked out his response.
Seungkwan raises his pitch, “You heard me! I’m shipping you two.”
“Why?” Junhui is absolutely confused as to why this sudden motive has been said by Seungkwan. He sighs and gives the other a quizzical look. “Is it because we’re both chinese?”
Seungkwan was now the one who looked confused; pouts before answering, “I didn't even know he’s chinese, he didn’t mention it did he? Wait… how did you know?”
Junhui slipped and forgot to think before speaking, but he can manage, “Uh, my senses… I mean you weren’t listening were you?”
Seungkwan’s face brightens, a thoughtful yet mischievous smile garners the other more attention,“See! Listening means you’re interested!” His co-worker pretends to clap as every word is spoken, “I see chemistry, I see good couple visuals and I see a good future for the both of you.”
“This doesn’t make sense at all. Is this really your reason for shipping me with someone?”
“I’m bored,” Seungkwan lets his face rest after all the excitement and plainly looks at his friend, “But my point still stands!”
Junhui shakes his head out of disapproval but lets it go. A simple shipping thing was harmless, especially when it’s Seungkwan who more or less tends to forget what he had said after a while. Heck, shipping won’t affect his work or the whole office anyway.
However, it seems like this time Seungkwan was not one to forget.
Jeonghan claps once to conclude the simple announcement and lets the new workers ask him questions. After a few answers Jeonghan retreats to his office, not without retracting his body an inch away to the door before asking the people in the room,“I almost forgot, but can someone give the newbies a tour?”
Seungkwan raises his hand, lips forming into a sneaky smile and glances at Junhui’s direction.
This isn’t good. Junhui thought.
“Junhui here would love to volunteer for the short tour!” Seungkwam’s smile was wide, eyes seeming to have a twinkle of mischief. His co-worker looks at Junhui pointedly, voice sweet, “Right Jun?”
Jeonghan looks at Junhui’s direction and gives him an expectant look.
“Of course. I would love to,” Junhui gives in to the request at the sight of his boss’s face and subtly pulls a small strand of hair near his friend’s nape as a way to berate him.
The moment he stands up he sees Minghao looking at him with a bewildered expression but with a pursed smile the younger would do whenever he’s nervous.
Ah, well, at least I get to see more of Minghao’s cute face today. Junhui thought.
“So do you find someone attractive in this office? Like, specifically a tall, almost 6 feet tall, Chinese guy with sleepy eyes?” Seokmin’s face inches closer to Minghao, the man’s lunch already forgotten.
Minghao tries not to laugh or even smile. He resorts to a dry response to immediately shut down the conversation.“No, not really.”
“Are you sure?” The man persists.
Minghao sighs, “Yes. Please stop asking that question every week.”
“I do not ask that question weekly!”
Hansol, a new worker as well, nonchalantly takes a bite before responding, “You do, you just rephrase the question every 2 weeks.”
“Yeah, but I didn’t technically ask the same question,” Seokmin quipped.
Minghao sighs but gives in to the overwhelming curiosity he has with Seokmin’s interest in setting them up, “Why do you even ask if I’m interested in Junhui?”
“Aha! I didn’t even mention his name!” Seokmin smiled widely.
Minghao stiffens up when he realizes his mistake but tries to act unbothered with his slip of tongue.
“Why are we even talking about this?”
Seokmin swallows a mouthful of rice before answering, “Because soulmates exist, and it’s likely you have found your soulmate.”
“Seungkwan’s delusional spiel must have gone through you huh?” Hansol looks amused at Seokmin’s interesting friendship with the said man.
“A little. But! I don’t know… I have a feeling you’ll hit it off,” Seokmin looks at Minghao directly in the eye, “Some office love, am I right?”
It was completely odd how his two officemates assumed that the two Chinese men looked fitting for each other. It’s as if they miraculously saw the couple’s compatibility and deemed it suitable. Nonetheless, it’s extremely weird and amusing at the same time how he plans to try to pretend like Junhui is a newly met co-worker and not his long-term lover.
The conversation was cut short when the door creaked open with Seungkwan and Junhui heading to the long table, which was where the other three men were currently sitting.
Seokmin cheered when he caught sight of the two men. He looks encouragingly at Minghao’s direction, “Seungkwan, sit with us!”
Seungkwan gladly takes the seat and blocks the remaining two beside him. Their coworker points at the empty seat beside Minghao and instructs Junhui, “You sit next to Minghao.”
Junhui looks at Minghao’s face, a hint of bewilderment casting on his face. The said man turns to the other side of the table and carefully sits down next to him.
It wasn’t supposed to look awkward, but the small creak of the chair as Junhui scooted slowly away from Minghao made it an unpleasant scene to witness.
After a couple of minutes of chatting, most of the talking coming from Seokmin and Seungkwan’s side of course, Seungkwan rushes over packing up his lunch and casts a knowing look at his friend, “Ah, Seok, I think I’ve left something near my cubicle,” Seungkwan then looks at the man sitting on Minghao’s left side with an urgent face, “Hansol, come with us.”
Seokmin nods and quickly clears away his lunch while telling Hansol to join him.
Minghao looks at the three men, face devoid of any emotion. He can tell what’s happening, a classic move of setting people up: isolate the targets for them to initiate a conversation. This tactic can be useful if he and Junhui weren’t dating already.
But he has to give kudos to Seungkwan for trying so hard to initiate random interaction every chance he gets.
“Why do you even need the two to accompany you?” Minghao asked.
Seungkwan smiles weakly and places a hand on his nape, “I need helping hands to get the items.”
“Which is?” Junhui asked.
Seungkwan stiffens a little but manages to fix his composure. The man looks at them with wide eyes and points at the office door, “Got a couple of staplers that I stole..which are many by the way, yeah.” Seungkwan maintains his gaze at the table and he grabs his lunch box.
As the three went back to the office, with Hansol getting dragged by the two, silence finally envelops the room.
Minghao stretches his arms and turns his head to the other man with a small smile, “This is entertaining.”
Junhui laughs as a response, he places his hand and cradles his face. After a moment of silence he looks at Minghao, “So…”
“Hmmm?” Minghao doesn’t spare a glace as he clears out his lunch.
Junhui’s cheeky grin and restrained snicker garnered Minghao’s attention.
“Do you like 6 feet tall Chinese guys with sleepy eyes?”
As time passes by, Minghao slowly gets used to his new job. He’s well adapted enough to be comfortable with everyone in the office, know what each floor of the building was for and even got used to the odd system and format of the company’s data gathering,
Of course he’s now closer to his co-workers which leads to the lack of introversion and sudden quips now and then. Jun says it’s normal — it’s truly a laid-back workplace as long as you get your job done as his boyfriend has reassured him countless times. Sometimes he’s the one who gets rammed over by their weird humor and antics but, hey, at least he wasn’t like Seokmin who tends to lose bets and buy the coffee during the gust of wind this November (may god bless his soul).
Also, there’s always a downside of being new other than being confused of how the system works; it’s when you don’t have the power to say no to anyone. It’s easier for older employees to instruct him with tasks because they lack the apprehension especially now that they’re used to saying his name. It’s not that he abhors it, it’s a part of his job. However, they use this power for a different reason.
The reason: Junhui
At first he chalks it up as a coincidence since why would he think his co-workers other than Seokmin and Seungkwan would do this. However, it’s been too repetitive, too obvious with how their eyes beam when they order Minghao to do random tasks. From making him gather green rubber bands that Seungkwan claimed only Junhui has that specific shade of green to letting them permanently sit next to each other during lunch it’s become a sudden thing inside the office that even most workers were amused by it.
He recalls that time where the root of almost all the buffoonery of this ‘ship’ from everyone in the office began. It’s when Seungkwan asked him to help someone from the back to retrieve a stack of files with someone who’s already in the room. It was the regular type of errand, no harm done.
So he went straight to the room, well, a dim room as big as a janitor's closet filled with dusty files and extra scratch paper. He manages to scrunch his nose because of the dust before entering and leaving the door closed.
Minghao sees Junhui. He knew it would be him, it’s Seungkwan who asked him to do this after all.
It doesn’t really bother him that it’s Jun. It’s actually nice to see his boyfriend from time to time. He had been tense in the first month but as time gradually passed, he found himself in a calm state whenever they found themselves alone in one room.
Junhui was unbothered, perhaps preoccupied with the task: his body hunched with his butt out in the open. It was too tempting not to pause for a moment and appreciate his boyfriend’s ass. So after a moment of silence on behalf of Jun’s peaceful moment of rummaging files, Minghao carefully creeps by and smacks the man’s bottom.
Unsurprisingly, Junhui yelps at the sharp pain followed by a frown. He finally looks at Minghao with a dry look, dismisses his search and frantically pulls Minghao onto a tight hold and tousles his hair. The younger man groans, hating the way his hairstyle is getting ruined by Jun’s dust filled hands.
“Okay, stop, you’re ruining my hair,” Minghao whines, he grabs Jun’s hands and pushes him away with a frown.
“Why are you here?”
Minghao tries to fix his messy hair but the intricately styled hair was now similar to a bird’s nest, “Seungkwan asked me to assist you with the files.”
“Why?”
Minghao shrugs, “Maybe you need a helping hand.”
Junhui smiles widely, he traps Minghao with both of his arms causing the younger to bump his head on the shelves. Jun eyes him up and with a suggestive tone he asks. “A helping hand yeah?”
Minghao is tempted to roll his eyes, but the emerging smile on his face keeps him from doing so. He wills away the incoming blush. Junhui is acting flirty as always, and even though they’ve been together for the past few years he is still not used to any suggestive comments his boyfriend makes.
“Maybe later,” Minghao finally muttered, cheeks flushed.
He swats away Junhui’s arms and shakes off the dust that had clinged on his clothes.
Just like nothing happened, Junhui resorts back to rummaging the boxes on the bottom shelf. “I just need to find that one blue folder...nothing else,” After a short pause Junhui cheers, “Oh, here it is!”
“I’ll be going then,” Minghao said.
“Wait for me hao!” Junhui quickly clings to his side, even if their close proximity from a while ago was enough to appear like they’ve merged into one entity. The older man persists to place his arm on Minghao’s shoulders, “Give me a kiss baobei!”
Minghao scolds him in a not so quiet whisper, “No, not here!”
Junhui complies but still keeps his arm around him. There is a sudden pause between the two with Minghao being the one who felt guilty — overthinking about his actions that leads to him trying to predict that the outcome of his simple behavior would lead to a disaster is his specialty.
There is a possibility of Junhui being fed up with his controlling nature of having limited contact at work. And if that happens this might affect their relationship and cause them to drift apart. But Junhui isn’t that narrow minded, especially when it comes to his new work which turns Minghao into a bundle of nerves every once in a while.
Suddenly, Junhui pinches his cheeks adoringly, letting Minghao slip away from his thoughts.
“Don’t think too much about it,” Jun lets go of pinching his cheek and smiles, “I know I’ll get to kiss you later at home.”
Minghao smiles softly at Jun’s action. The man’s comforting smile was enough to make him feel better.
When they opened the door they were greeted by the amused looks of their co-workers. Minghao spots Seungkwan and Seokmin huddled in one cubicle snickering.
“So…” Joshua was the one to break the silence, he gave them a warm smile before asking, “Did you enjoy assisting Jun?”
Before the two can even respond Hansol intervenes,“I think Jun’s loud yelp and Minghao’s messy hair is enough for us to know so let’s just spare the details.”
Minghao purses his lips and tries not to look as if he was affected by the giddy reactions of their co-workers.
After an awkward amount of staring at his group of co-workers they both went separate ways with Minghao going straight to his desk while Junhui approached the opposite side of his cubicle.
Minghao thinks he was set up, that this simple scene on a particularly normal working day is what led to the whole office agreeing to the ‘shipping’ Seungkwan is talking about.
It was obvious that Seungkwan was responsible for this incident. Minghao wasn’t even needed for the errand let alone get a stack of files, their co-worker just wanted them to meet up in a cramped up dusty room. Nonetheless, the two of them were messing around that made them conclude that they had a heated make-out.
It’s Seungkwan who sets them up most of the time and they unknowingly acknowledge it and go with the flow. But this time they just had to fall into the young man’s trap which incidentally led to their demise of their colleagues getting amused with the turn of events.
It wasn’t troubling, it was actually beneficial for the both of them since they know that everyone was fine with them being together. Minghao didn’t feel uncomfortable when they teased him. He actually feels happy when Seungkwan and Seokmin constantly tell him how good they would look as a couple. But, now that everyone seems to be in it for Seungkwan’s odd interest either for the joke or for their own entertainment between him and Jun it would lead to a lot more antics just to set them up.
Junhui wasn’t the type to talk about his life, specifically his private life.
Well, he rambles about good food he had eaten from that one specific occasion, talks about that one adorable cat that continues to meow at him before he comes to work and even shares a weird incident he had experienced during a videoke session. All this information that he had shared to his colleagues shows that he thrives outside of his workplace which satiates their curiosity. However, that wasn’t exactly private information.
He’s been working in the company for a year now, slowly forming a good relationship with his co-workers. As much as how boring his job is, they make it entertaining, albeit annoying when he’s the butt of the joke.
Junhui isn’t really open to everyone, it’s just how he is and he can’t change that. But it has been a proven trait of his to gradually open up about things that are considered private to him which can be observed with his early relationship with Minghao. From being strangers to best friends to lovers it was an uphill climb that took a while for them to reach.
His relationship with his co-workers is now on the point that he considers them as friends and he wants them to gradually know more about him just as how Joshua, Seungkwan or anyone in the office would share their experiences openly.
And what better way for him to talk about his life than to introduce to them the person who takes up a huge chunk of his heart, his one and only love, Xu Minghao!
Aside from his family, Minghao is the ever present being that resides within his heart. It’s a huge leap since only his relatives and old college friends know about their loving relationship. So when he heard that Minghao got the job he was ecstatic to introduce his boyfriend to his friends.
However, he has to put into consideration Minghao’s feelings. Especially when he’s in a new environment and meeting new people, his boyfriend has been adapting for three months. Junhui doesn't want to disregard the feeling of nervousness he once endured when meeting his co-workers that he will have to work with for the long term.
It can wait. Obviously.
But he can’t help but feel giddy when everyone in the office finally realizes that they are actually together.
“Why are you smiling?” Minghao asked him, his book now closed and placed on the desk near their bed.
Junhui scoots closer to the younger and places his head on the man’s chest, “Nothing really, I’m just happy I get to be close to you.”
“Is that so?” Minghao combs through Jun’s hair making him close his eyes and lets out a contented sigh.
“Mhm, seeing you at work makes me feel special.”
“Why?”
Junhui covers his hand as if there was someone watching them. He ushers Minghao to lean closer as he lets out a giggle, “It’s like we have this little secret that we have to keep.”
Minghao nods, he looks down on Junhui’s face and smiles,“Funny how you say that but that ‘secret’ is pretty much out in the open. The only difference is that they think it’s a theory, not a fact.”
They welcome the silence that accompanies them as Minghao continues to comb through Junhui’s hair. This was the most relaxing part of their day; lying down after a busy day, backs stiff after sitting down on hard chairs for a couple of hours.
It’s truly rewarding, especially when he gets to go home with Minghao. Junhui’s thankful that he wasn't needed for extra help with proposals or else he’ll still be stuck in his cubicle until late at night.
“How’s work?” Junhui asked.
Minghao sighs in a joking manner as he recounts what happened at work. “Oh nothing, just Soonyoung asking for me to use a broken printer.”
“Ah so that’s why they told me I should help you fix the paper jam!”
Minghao hits Junhui weakly in contrast to his soothing brushing just a second ago, “It took us 2 hours but you didn’t even tell me there was a working printer on the fourth floor!”
Jun recalls what happened, with him and Minghao agitated with the printer eating the paper. That printer is the menace of their floor, always eating the paper as if it was made to be fed. You’ll never know when it’ll act up but luckily after two hours they managed to print the documents Minghao needed.
“They told me you just wanted to fix the printer,” Junhui countered.
“They’re getting more creative with setting us up.” Minghao said, as he recalled that Seokmin told him to find Jun since his friend claimed that the older man got to fix the printer last month.
Junhui hums, “I think their antics are working though.”
“How can you say that?”
Junhui smiles cheekily, the familiar twist of his lips makes his boyfriend predict what he's going to say. “I’m falling harder for you every single day.”
“I think you’re tired, you’ve been flirting the whole day.”
Junhui takes Minghao’s hand and places it on his cheeks. He rests his cheeks on the man’s palm. “And my flirting is not enough, I want you to know that I love you so much hao!”
Minghao sighs for the nth time, not out of annoyance but out of love.
“I love you a lot too, Junnie.”
It was past 8 in the evening, the first floor was barren of any workers, receptionists with their bags on hand ending their shift. One by one, the main lights of the building began to close.
Minghao remained seated on the bench, eyeing the security guard who was sleeping near the side of the entrance. He then checks his phone for any texts and emails but after a few taps he turns it off and sighs as he looks at the plastic bag of takeout food he ordered. It’s gone cold now but it’s fine they can just heat it up when they get home.
He’s been waiting for Junhui for almost an hour but it seems like he’s still not done with the report. This was the first time Jun had finished late. Well, witnessing Junhui finishing late throughout Minghao’s working experience here.
Suddenly, he hears the elevator open and sees Joshua’s figure approaching him.
“Minghao, it’s closing hours. Why are you here?”
Minghao stands up to greet the man and tries to formulate a response. “I’m just waiting for someone to pick me up.”
“Ah, I see,” Joshua looks at the takeout bag placed on the bench. He glances at Minghao before speaking,“You’re the only one from the office I’ve seen tonight aside from Jun.”
“Jun’s still there?” Minghao asked with an innocent tone.
“He’s working overtime as usual.”
Hearing Joshua’s response, Minghao scrunches his face. “What do you mean as you usual ?”
“Most of the time I go home at this hour since Jeonghan asks me to and during Jun’s first year here he tends to stay late, especially during our annual busy season.”
“He’s working overtime a lot?”
Joshua nods, “A perfectionist at its finest, even Jeonghan is impressed.”
There was a sudden realization that went past Minghao’s thick skull. Last year, Junhui often comes home late at night, waking Minghao up when he feels a weight dipping on their bed late at night. The first time he asked Jun why, he didn’t understand the slur of words Junhui was saying because of his half conscious state pulling him to bed to sleep.
After that night he assumed that maybe he went to visit his college friends or ate with his co-workers. Minghao would sometimes get upset when Junhui would come home late, their promised take out night cancelled because of his boyfriend’s late appearance.
He’d always remember waking up with leftover takeout on the fridge and washed dishes next to the sink. It wasn’t really a big argument that takes a chunk out of their harmonious relationship but it shows how much he needs to take care of Jun as much as he cares of him.
Minghao hears a ding on his phone displaying a text from Junhui telling him to go home. Joshua sneaks a peek, he grins the moment he finished scanning the younger man’s screen and gives him a pat on the back.
Joshua’s smile widens and lets out a laugh, “Looks like you’re the one who’s going to pick him up,” Minghao didn't know how to respond, letting Joshua continue their conversation, “Don’t worry I won’t tell anyone. Have a good night, Minghao.”
As he sees Joshua’s retreating figure he decides to might as well accompany Junhui. He takes the elevator and after a quick press on the third floor he sees the dim hallway and a few lights illuminating the room from the glass wall.
Minghao stops his tracks the moment he’s behind Junhui. He gently wraps his arms around the man’s back causing Jun to whip his head around. Junhui’s stiff posture loosens when he sees Minghao’s familiar face pressing onto his cheek.
Junhui holds Minghao’s hands then resumes to stare at his monitor, “Sorry I texted you late, I got caught up with this proposal.”
“It’s okay.” Minghao muttered.
“You should go home, hao.”
The thought of seeing Junhui alone, eyes stuck on the monitor makes him feel guilty over being unappreciative of his loving boyfriend from time to time. Junhui is so caring, so supportive with everything Minghao does. The older one would always tell him not to overthink and relax, he’d show Minghao his love to him everyday.
He holds Jun tighter, he hides his face on the juncture of the said man’s neck, “No, I want to stay here.”
“The takeout is getting cold and I know it’s past your dinner time.”
“I’ll wait for you to finish.” Minghao whispered, “I want to eat cold chicken with you.”
Junhui laughs, causing Minghao to stir a little. His boyfriend caresses his hands, warm and soothing as always. “That’s the most romantic thing you’ve ever said.”
Minghao grunts as a response, standing up and taking a chair so he could sit next to Jun to keep him company.
Well, at least now he knows Junhui won’t be coming home alone late at night after working overtime because he’ll now always be there waiting for him to finish.
He will be there by his side; eating cold takeout and dipping the bed at the same time.
Minghao thinks it’s time to tell his co-workers, scratch that, his new friends.
As much as they’ve been stubborn and sometimes overbearing with setting them up he thinks it’s good for them to know. He feels welcome, even if he’s been working here for the past few months. Even Jeonghan showed his support one time by reassuring him it’s fine to date workmates. So how could he even say no if his boss is okay with it?
Also, Junhui is someone he’s proud to be with. Yes, the statement is pretty cheesy but he knows how excited Jun is to tell his friends he's dating someone, or let alone be comfortable looming behind Minghao during break.
So when the time came, he held Junhui’s hand and went with him on the same elevator. Junhui looks at their close proximity and gives him a confused look.
They were alone yet he chose to stick beside Jun. Minghao tightens his grip when he sees Junhui looking at their intertwined hands then back to him.
“Let me hold your hand for now,” Minghao insisted.
As they enter the office, Soonyoung greets them with a cheery face. Before their co-worker could even saunter onto his own desk he whips his head around to double check the surprising sight of their two co-workers holding hands.
Soonyoung’s eyes widen and gives them a cheeky smile, “So….” Their friend eyed them curiously, “When did you start dating?”
The moment the word ‘dating’ went past Soonyoung’s mouth their officemates looked at them expectantly, especially Seungkwan whose hands are clasped together, mouth wide open.
Minghao turns to look at Jun whose face is surprised with the sudden predicament he was in.
“6 years. We’ve been dating for six years.” Minghao proudly announced.
Surprisingly, everyone frowned and went straight to Joshua handing him cash as if the man was collecting their monthly rent.
Minghao looks at Joshua’s proud face and sighs as well, “Why am I not surprised.”
Joshua counts his prize after winning a wad of cash for the bet. “It isn’t as entertaining as it should be when your money isn’t on the line.” He winks at the couple, “I’m the one who got it right, a bet is a bet after all.”
“Your bet was extremely ridiculous! Who would have thought that they were already dating.” Seungkwan points at the two, “It doesn’t make any sense.”
“Well, Shua’s ridiculous bet was right and so was I.” Jeonghan stalks up to them and smiles when Joshua hands him half of the winning prize.
“Well, that’s more surprising,” Seokmin said as he came closer to Seungkwan’s side.
“How did you get it right boss?” Hansol asked.
“I interview potential workers right?” Jeonghan places his arm on the cubicle and continues, “So when I interviewed Minghao I found out that his address is the same as Jun and let’s not forget that they have the same lunch everyday.”
“You know what...I feel dumb,” Seungkwan said, face blank of any emotions.
“Not really...you were the first to think we might look good as a couple. You were just about 6 years late to set us up.” Junhui jokingly said.
Everyone howled at the statement, telling Seungkwan that the inaccuracy of his dating prediction is truly a gift.
As jokes were made left and right, the office turned into utter chaos. From Seokmin and Soonyoung blaming Seungkwan for losing their money to Hansol asking for Jeonghan and Joshua to treat the employees for a meal — it truly was a comical sight for the couple.
Minghao curiously looks at Junhui’s face to see the man’s reaction. He smiles wide as he sees Jun’s crinkled eyes and huge grin casting on his face.
Junhui suddenly looks at him with the same smile Minghao always sees first thing in the morning before work.
With just a glance, Minghao concluded that he doesn’t mind seeing his boyfriend’s heartwarming smile for as long as he can.