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Beomgyu loved his boyfriend. With all of his heart did he love him, but god, was it hard dating a biology major. There were times when he regretted moving in with Taehyun, having to share a crappy student apartment with him, a single fridge, a washing machine, bathroom — he loved Taehyun, but what the fuck.
Freshly rolled out of bed at the glorious hour of 11.30pm, Beomgyu navigated his way to the fridge. He knew he shouldn’t have stayed out that late, but the party was cozy and the people were fun; Beomgyu had simply lost track of time.
So now, hungover and puffy-eyed, all he needed as cure was some good, microwaved pasta — courtesy of Yeonjun, who still insisted on bringing meals over; he knew his two favorite idiots would starve to death or have their organs fail with the amount of ramen they consumed.
Excitement bubbled in the pit of Beomgyu’s stomach as he pulled open the fridge. He could already smell that deep scent of agli’olio — or however the fuck that was spelled, Beomgyu was no chef — , and all the carbs and fats to cleanse his bloodstream from the alcohol.
Giddily he reached for his godsend of a meal. The excitement soon bubbled down in a dead simmer of shock. He froze. Not because of the cold. Stepping back, closing the fridge, it happened in slow motion. He blinked. There was murder on his mind.
Beomgyu inhaled deeply. “Kang Taehyun!”
A disheveled mop of blond hurried into the kitchen, glasses lopsided on his nose and his shirt crinkled. Clearly both of them hadn’t had an early morning.
“What’s wrong? Are you hurt?” Taehyun rushed to Beomgyu’s side, running every inch of Beomgyu’s body for injuries.
Beomgyu shook his hands, then pointed ahead almost theatrically. “Why are there bacteria samples in the fridge?!”
“Oh…” Taehyun scratched his neck. “Well, Collin needed somewhere cold to grow.”
“Co— Collin?!”
“Collin,” Taehyun echoed as confirmation. “Since E. coli… It was funnier in the lab.”
“Why our fridge?” Beomgyu sighed, anger fading away at Taehyun’s looks. He straightened his glasses.
“Wanted to see them grow. Watch their progress, see them evolve.”
With such a wholesome explanation, Beomgyu had to be a monster to scold him for it. Plus, it was not like Beomgyu was the neatest person out there anyway.
“Are they safe?” he asked.
“It’s an airtight container, Gyu,” Taehyun said. He rested his chin on Beomgyu’s shoulder. “I’d never poison you.”
“Remember when you cooked—“
“Intentionally. I’d never poison you intentionally.”
Beomgyu’s mouth stretched into a tight-lipped smile as he combed his fingers through Taehyun’s fuzzy hair. “Just tell me next time.”
He pressed a kiss on Taehyun’s forehead. “Collin’s becoming one big boy, by the way.”
The proud beam on Taehyun’s face that followed was priceless.
<><><>
Choi Beomgyu and Kang Taehyun were an unlikely pair. Whereas Beomgyu was loud and outgoing, Taehyun preferred the quiet. Whereas Taehyun was serious and focused, Beomgyu was a scatterbrained free spirit, never planning and always doing.
Beomgyu was a music major with a passion for artistic freedom, Taehyun majored in biology and swore by the dogmas of the science.
Taehyun liked structure, Beomgyu preferred chaos; dark and light, ice and fire, but still they worked together like the north and south of a magnet, like peanut butter and jelly. Opposites attract, they say, and Beomgyu couldn’t say they were wrong.
The way Beomgyu and Taehyun met wasn’t anything exciting. Well, to Beomgyu that was. Beomgyu had this habit, that upon seeing people wearing his college’s merch, he had to approach them. It was a rule, a form of brotherhood.
Taehyun, on the other hand, couldn’t give less of a shit. So, when he was chilling in a café on his third cup of coffee to keep his eyes open, being screamed at by a bubbly waiter was not part of his to-do list.
Overwhelmed, Taehyun had leaned back into his seat like a cornered kitten. Eyes big, palms pressed into the table as this weirdo was talking to him like they’d been elementary school friends.
He couldn’t even hear what the guy was saying. Pushing his glasses up his nose, he squinted at the name tag. It was hard to read, with how much the boy was moving; he spoke with his entire body. Choi Beomgyu.
“Excuse me, uhm, Beomgyu,” Taehyun said.
“Oh, you know me? Even better—“
“It’s on your name tag.”
“Oh.” Beomgyu smiled awkwardly. “How rude of me. What’s your name?”
“Taehyun.”
“Hello, Taehyun,” Beomgyu greeted with a small bow. He glanced at the stack of files. “You seem to be suffering.”
“You know, reports.” Taehyun patted his trusted textbook. “Scientific experiment regarding enzyme expressions under different circumstances and it just took forever .”
“Sounds awful.” Beomgyu paused. “What’s your favorite cookie?”
“… Excuse me?”
Beomgyu grinned a million dollar grin. “It’s on the house. You deserve it.”
“Are you sure it’s alright?” Taehyun remained uncertain; he didn’t want to come off as a leech.
Beomgyu didn’t seem to be thinking of him that way, or maybe he was just too nice. He looked like am easily likable person; always smiling, easy to talk to and kind. Taehyun’s heart fluttered maybe just a little.
“Of course, otherwise I wouldn’t be offering,” Beomgyu said. “Worry not, Taehyun, it’s a noble gesture coming from the depths of my heart.”
“Oh, uhm, if you say so.” Taehyun’s eyes fluttered down. “Double choco chip.”
“A very good choice,” Beomgyu commended. “I’ll be back in a while. Keep up the good work, Taehyun! You can do it!”
Beomgyu shot him finger hearts, retreating back to the counter, little skip in his steps.
Yeonjun — co-worker and best friend — was already waiting for him, arms crossed. “Beomgyu, you can’t keep handing out free cookies!”
“But he’s cute. And Yeonjun… look at his stack of papers. Isn’t that just horrendous?”
Yeonjun’s lips pulled down in an unamused fashion. “Yes, very sad, but Gyu, you’re going to get fired one of these days.”
Beomgyu shrugged. “I’ll pay for it.”
He scanned their assortment for the biggest, prettiest and most perfect cookie they’d ever had. Though he didn’t know Taehyun, he had a strong feeling that the boy deserved all the best cookies in the world. A little sprinkle of sugar to his life and a bright smile. Taehyun would probably look gorgeous if he wasn’t frowning or looking lost and confused.
“Choi Beomgyu? Spending money on someone else?” Yeonjun gasped, clutching his chest like he was having a heart attack.
“Trust me, Yeonjun, it’ll all be worth it. Abso-fucking-lutely worth it.” Beomgyu grabbed a napkin and pen. “Quick, I need a biology-related pickup line.”
Yeonjun scrunched up his nose. “How do you even know his major?”
“Enzyme expression is something that happens during biology, right? Like, if I correctly remember, enzymes are proteins…?”
Yeonjun held up his hand before Beomgyu could continue. He didn’t need his last standing braincell to wither away. “Hold up, this isn’t my field of expertise. Let me pull out the good ol’ Google.” If their boss would see them this way, they’d be fucked. “Oh, got it.”
Beomgyu readied his pen. “Okay, keep it coming.”
“You’re so hot you make my proteins denature.”
Beomgyu shuddered. That was bad, even for him. “Skip.”
“I hope Rho protein is missing, because I don’t want this to terminate,” Yeonjun said, though Beomgyu could hear the question in his tone.
“Fun, but I have no idea what you just said.”
“Rho protein or not, I’ll work like a TATA box to always get you going…”
Beomgyu looked up, eyebrows knitted together. “….What?”
Yeonjun shook his head, scrolling further. “Are you a red blood cell? Because you deliver what my heart needs.”
Beomgyu hummed. “Creative and understandable.”
Yeonjun’s eyes sparkled. “Yes?”
Beomgyu licked his lips, taking a moment to think. He sighed. “No, too simple on the brain. Next.”
Yeonjun pursed his lips. He would complete his mission. He had to. “If I were a nucleic acid, I’d be RNA, so I’d have U in my life.”
It was as if the doors of heaven opened up on Beomgyu, springing some of their light on him like a blessing. He swore he could hear the choirs. “That’s it. That’s perfect.”
Beomgyu hastily scribbled it down, hoping he’d spelled it correctly. “Quick, Yeonjun, give me a good luck pat.”
Yeonjun slapped him on his shoulder with a cheer. “You can do it! I believe in you!”
Beomgyu let out a yelp of a battle cry. “Onto the battlefield I go.”
Taehyun had a dead look in his eyes as he stared at what seemed to be a… beta-galactoside hydrolysis? Beomgyu only spoke notes and treble clefs, so what did he know?
“Taehyun-ah! I’ve come to your salvation!”
Taehyun ripped his eyes from the screen, immediately having them crinkling up at the corners. “Thank god, a distraction.”
Beomgyu feigned hurt, hands crossed over his heart. “Is that all I am to you? Even after my sacrifice?”
“That’s all you need to be, really,” Taehyun said. He ran his fingers through his hair. “You’re a hero, really. I’m going through a glucose crash.”
Beomgyu grinned, placing the cookie on the table. “Fuel up. I’ll be rooting for you.”
He hoped he at least looked cool while leaving, because he could feel a gaze burning in his back and blood rush to his face.
Thank god it worked, because it was the cheesiest, most embarrassing stunt he’d ever pulled. However, he’d been correct; it was abso-fucking-lutely worth it.
<><><>
There was a lab coat — a once white lab coat — in their colored wash. It was now smudged a tangy pink. Also it probably infected their clothing with a kazillion toxins. More often than not had Beomgyu seen it hanging from their indoor wash-line. Beomgyu didn’t even know what in the name of Hell Taehyun was researching, but if it required a wash after each use, it must not mean anything healthy.
Beomgyu’s face paled, knuckles paling around the fabric, Kang Taehyun embroidered into it with a curly font. Taehyun had been so proud of this lab coat; he’d received it for his thesis research. He remembered Taehyun’s sparkling eyes when he pulled Beomgyu along to unpack it with him. They’d sat down on their carpet as Taehyun ceremoniously snipped open the plastic — sorry, environment — wrapping.
“Look, Gyu! It’s my name!” he’d squealed, shoving the fabric in Beomgyu’s face.
Beomgyu, infected by Taehyun’s smile, cupped Taehyun’s cheeks and pressed a kiss to his lips. Taehyun’s joy was his, after all. “Congratulations, baby, I’m so proud of you!”
Taehyun’s face lit up like torches in the night. Of course a fashion haul was required, so Taehyun soon paraded around in it, strutting down their improvised catwalk and twirled it around like he was Cinderella after the Fairy Godmother had paid a visit. Eventually he’d picked Beomgyu up, spinning him around along.
Beomgyu had screeched in surprise, though it was quickly drowned by the shrieking laughter. What he’d do just to see Taehyun happy.
All of that, ruined by one stupid mistake. Taehyun rarely got angry, unless it was something he was very passionate about being ruined. And an angry Taehyun was an ugly sight.
He remembered the day Taehyun had come home from a long day in the lab. Muttering under his breath, he’d kicked off his shoes and slammed the door behind his back. He hadn’t bothered greeting Beomgyu, immediately opening his laptop as he installed himself at their dinner table. His eyes reflected the fires of the afterlife.
Cursing, his fingers had punched the keys. “Fucking asshole. Godfucking asshole.”
Beomgyu carefully slid into the stool across. “Hyun-ah, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Taehyun grumbled, glaring holes into his screen.
“Baby, your frown’s telling me otherwise.”
“You know when you work on something for four hours? Imagine this, you’ve been writing lyrics. It’s taken you all night. At last, you finish, and your work is marvelous. Yeonjun was your partner.
“He hasn’t been of much help, but it was okay, since he was good enough to bring you coffee every now and then.” Taehyun inhaled sharply through his nose. “Now, the sun is rising and your vision is blurry. Yeonjun’s awake as ever since he didn’t do shit.
“He bounces over to check out the work he’s going to take credit for. And boom. He knocks over his coffee. All over your lyrics, your soul poured out into physical form.” Taehyun rammed the enter. “All your progress, fucking ruined. And now imagine, the coffee’s cancerous. Naturally, you close the fume hood, but what does this idiot do? He opens it again and lets all the fucking cancerous dust spread into the air and starts it sniffing it like it’s cocain.
“It written on the fucking caution labels; ‘Cancerous if inhaled’! Does he not have a brain? If you want to die, sure, but don’t drag me along. Especially not if you’ve ruined my goddamn experiment.”
Beomgyu murmured in sympathy, “What happened next?”
“I kicked him out of the way and closed the fume hood again. I’m filing a complaint to our tutor now. If I have to redo this experiment, I’m definitely not letting him lift along with me again.”
Beomgyu reached out, but Taehyun flinched away. Immediately, Beomgyu’s heart dropped. He’d never seen Taehyun in such a bad mood. It must’ve been one hell of a day to see him angry.
“It’s not that I’m avoiding you, Gyu, I just need to shower first.” Taehyun smiled apologetically. “I’d never poison you, but I’m loaded on toxins right now.”
Taehyun fired a heart at him instead. After hitting send, his mood had definitely improved. He retreated to the shower and was back within 20 minutes. He crashed down next to Beomgyu, curling up into his side, instead letting Beomgyu talk about his day. About how he was invited by the jazz musicians to come along to a night out, about how Yeonjun had offered to take cooking classes together.
Taehyun hummed along, nuzzling Beomgyu’s neck. Days like these required physical comfort to heal the emotional discomfort. After ranting, a good cuddle session was what sealed the deal. Listening to some of Beomgyu’s latest tracks, Taehyun gushed about how talented and hardworking Beomgyu was and that he’d definitely listen to him on Soundcloud.
That would all be a fond memory now, Beomgyu bitterly thought. There wasn’t a chance Taehyun would forgive him for this. He better start packing up and check if his old dorm would still be available, and otherwise Yeonjun’s couch would be the alternative — even if it absolutely sucked and killed his back. He wouldn’t be living anyway, if Taehyun wasn’t by his side.
He chewed his lip, lab coat in his hands. He knocked on the door. “Taehyunnie, baby?”
Taehyun’s soft voice invited him inside. He was seated at the desk, watching a drama. ‘Break time’, he’d argued, the first time Beomgyu had found him that way. It was during midterms, and both were so busy studying, they’d hadn’t had the time to visit each other. Beomgyu had decided to surprise his boyfriend.
He hadn’t expected to meet said boyfriend wrapped up in a blanket, tears streaming down his face as the roll credits played. Wether it was stress, the ending of the drama, or both factors combined, Beomgyu couldn’t tell.
“You never knock,” Taehyun said, eyes glued to his screen. What’s wrong, was almost added.
Beomgyu hid his hands and faults behind his back. “You know how much I love you, right?”
Finally, Taehyun spun around. “Spill.”
“I love you so, so much and I’d never do anything to hurt you. I’m really sorry. I never meant to—“
“Beomgyu, what is it?”
Beomgyu’s head dipped, revealing the lab coat. “I’m sorry.”
“Oh, so that’s where it went. Thought I’d lost it.” Taehyun glanced the lab coat with nonchalance. “Must’ve put it in the wrong laundry basket.”
Beomgyu’s heart rate sped up. “I didn’t know. I should’ve checked better before washing— Why aren’t you yelling?”
“I like pink,” Taehyun stated. “It’s okay.”
“But it’s special to you!” Beomgyu argued. “You even had it personalized and all that!”
“And you added a little extra touch to it,” Taehyun said. He took it from Beomgyu’s hands and cuddled it. “Now I can finally differentiate it from all the others. Nice pop of color.”
“You’re not mad?” Beomgyu managed to ask in a small voice.
“It was already stained, what harm is a whole new shade?” Taehyun’s eyes flickered with fondness and amusement. “Lab coats aren’t made to stay unscathed. Gyu, I promise it’s alright.”
Beomgyu didn’t speak, flabbergasted. He was nailed to the ground. Even when Taehyun called his name, he couldn’t move. This was worse than any stage fright he’d ever experienced. He was in shock. This had to be shock.
A soft touch pulled him out of his trance. Arms wrapped around his waist, he was seated in Taehyun’s lap.
He melted into his boyfriend’s chest.
“Gyu, it’s okay. I promise. Stop panicking,” Taehyun murmured into his ear. “I’d never get mad over something so trivial.”
Beomgyu’s eyes prickled, heavy pressure building up behind them. He was an emotional guy, sue him.
Voice cracking, he said, “Hey, Tae, if we were chromosomes, you’d be my homologous pair.”
Taehyun groaned, pulling Beomgyu in for a kiss. It was to shut him up, he argued, but judging from the way he’d smiled against his lips, Beomgyu could tell he was loving every second of it.