Chapter Text
“Woong, please just get a chair.”
“I don’t need one, I can reach it!”
“You are going to fall and take the entire tree down with you,” Dongju stands with his arms crossed, watching as Hwanwoong tiptoes to try and catch one of the upper branches in the loop of the ornament.
The decorated tree stands lively in their living room, lit up by a colourful array of lights wrapped around; almost nearing completion, aside from the few empty branches near the top and lack of a star. The room is particularly warm, the radiators dutifully working to compensate for the December chill outdoors, added to the heat radiating from the oven baking up some sweets in the kitchen.
Too warm, actually, especially if one is working vigorously to circumnavigate the tree searching for the perfect placement for each ornament. It's practically a light workout - bending down or stretching up constantly, all the while avoiding getting pricked by the pointy needles. Hence, Hwanwoong's attire is a bit peculiar to an observer lacking proper context: a long-sleeved sweatshirt with a paint stain that never quite washed out, mismatched gardening gloves (because one always goes missing), and a pair of gym shorts to balance out the former two to prevent overheating in this rigorous task.
“No I won’t,” Hwanwoong refutes, finally succeeding in adjusting the ornament’s string far enough that it won’t slip off. “Mind you, I have two more years of tree-decorating experience than you, and I’ve never once messed up.”
“Uh-huh,” Dongju stares, unconvinced.
Not that Hwanwoong sees, or even needs to turn to know what the reaction is.
He shuffles past to take out another ornament, a tiny mushroom with a brown cap, and mentally assesses which branch would be optimal to hang it on. He decides on one near the very top, jutting out far enough and with adequate clearance below it to let the ornament hang freely. There’s a bit of trouble with the actual execution of it, however; even standing up on his toes, the branch is just out of reach, and the ornaments below gently clink together as his sweater catches on them. Just a little more, Hwanwoong lifts one leg up behind him to give him more leverage and balance, suddenly feeling a bit wobbly on his toes — a pair of hands quickly catches his waist to steady him.
“Quit trying to give me a heart attack,” Dongju scolds, and the hint of genuine concern makes Hwanwoong back off on his endeavour.
“Sorry,” Hwanwoong turns around in Dongju’s hold, giving him a quick peck on the lips to dissolve the frown. “Chair it is.”
Satisfied with the promise, Dongju gives a nod before disappearing into the kitchen again.
The delicious smell of cookies wafts from the oven, reminding Hwanwoong it’s been a while since he ate dinner. With darkness falling quite early, it’s too easy to lose track of time - what difference does 5pm or 8pm make, if it’s pitch black either way? He gives the tree a quick once-over, estimating it won’t take long to finish it off before the last batch of cookies is done.
Taking a look around the room, it almost feels like an entirely new house - Dongju had gone all out with stockpiling decorations as soon as they had gone on massive discounts the year before, and started planning everything out the moment Halloween passed. Battery-powered lights are strung along railings and over window frames, sparkling garlands accent the shelves, miniature decorative villages, and candles set atop every horizontal surface in their living room.
Following another few minutes of working to adorn the tallest portion of the tree, Hwanwoong steps back to admire the results. The colourful LED lights dim and light up softly in a pattern, an additional string of blue ones wrapped tightly around the trunk filling out the inner space with an enchanting mystical glow. The ornaments themselves are a mismatched, as expected; an aggregation of ornaments from both their households, various new sets bought over the years, a few they’ve received as gifts, or handcrafted ones (that are a bit ugly, but hold precious stories) - and maybe one that they stole from Geonhak’s apartment years ago of a hilariously buff chicken. Of course, they were never going for perfection anyway, and the tree is brimming with a charm unique to their shared life.
Their shared life, which took another leap forward when they finally got married in the spring of that year.
Technically speaking, it hadn’t actually changed anything in their dynamic, in the way they acted and felt towards one another - why would it? They’ve known for years they want to spend their lives with one another, for even longer than they’ve known they were in love.
And yet, it still held something precious for both of them; an acknowledgement, to themselves and to the world, that they’ve built this love and intend to keep it. That, whatever the future throws at them, they’ll face together - a promise from the bottom of their hearts to keep trying. And maybe - forgive Hwanwoong for being a sap once in a while - he still feels the warmth settle in his chest whenever he calls Dongju his husband, whenever he brushes Dongju’s hand with his own and feels the silver band around his finger.
Which is precisely why Hwanwoong hopes he can make their first Christmas celebration as husbands an extra special one, and he’s spent the months leading up deliberating how exactly to do it.
Throwing a surprise celebration would have been logistically challenging, and certainly not his forté, (not to mention, the chances of him being able to keep it an actual secret from Dongju would have been very slim). Dongju is usually the one who gets a head start on the planning anyhow, and every year Hwanwoong would hop in as second in command to realize the creative vision. Instead, Hwanwoong has settled on something that he can keep a secret - a gift.
His phone buzzes with a notification in perfect timing, a text from the delivery service. Perfect. Hwanwoong gives a tiny fist pump, careful not to draw too much attention and questions from Dongju, who is now milling about with sorting plates of cookies.
"Wanna help me apply the icing?" Dongju calls through the doorway, holding a bag of blue icing, with some of it mysteriously having ended up at the corner of his mouth.
"I thought you always make fun of me when I do it," Hwanwoong puts his phone away and walks towards him, not at all thinking deviously about just how to clean that icing off…
"Exactly, I could use a good laugh," Dongju sticks his tongue out and Hwanwoong rolls his eyes affectionately.
"Oh, so my dear husband wants me to make a fool of myself," he sighs dramatically, quickly closing the distance between them.
Dongju tries to respond but is cut off by a kiss, one that strays a little too far to the corner of his mouth, Hwanwoong swiping his tongue to lick off the stray icing. He lets out an indignant gasp, but his face can't help but settle back into a fond smile.
Hwanwoong has thought about this gift for a while, and the idea itself had roots far deeper than a Christmas present: A delicately hand-crafted glass statuette of a deer, situated neatly on a circular platform and embedded with all kinds of shimmering purple gemstones. The same one that had caught Dongju’s eye in a storefront years ago, long before they even started dating, and yet it had cemented an impression into Hwanwoong’s memory that he’s never quite been able to let go of.
Isn't it the most beautiful thing you've ever seen? Dongju marveled at the piece, breath fogging up the glass from the outside with how close he brought his face up to the storefront.
It was pretty, certainly, but Hwanwoong had to put it as number two - the most beautiful thing in the world was Dongju, obviously. And yet, even as they left the vitrine behind on their winter promenade, Hwanwoong could not forget the sparkle in Dongju’s eyes when he had gazed upon the glass figurine in wonder. Dongju couldn’t get it out of his mind for weeks either, though sadly an expensive limited-edition ornament wasn’t exactly a luxury that the two university students with no income could afford. The way Dongju kept bringing it up with such reverence, such wistfulness - it tugged at Hwanwoong's heart in ways he couldn't yet explain, and he swore to himself to one day gift that happiness to Dongju.
The notification from the delivery service continues to burn a hole through Hwanwoong's pocket as he excuses himself for a moment to fully read it. He ducks behind a tree, mentally plotting out a route to inconspicuously open the door and sneak the package in without suspicion. Hwanwoong unlocks his phone and swipes over to the text messages in anticipation, with giddiness and satisfaction that he’ll finally be able to give the perfect gift.
Less than a second later, his eyes land on the latest message and his stomach drops.
Delivery Update Status for Tracking Number: 26109800 - Undelivered.
A delivery attempt to the indicated address was made on December 22nd, but was unable to be delivered due to:
- Customer not present to receive package.
Your package will be forwarded to our closest location for pickup near you in the next few business days. Please follow the provided link to see the location and pick-up time: (X)
Hwanwoong blinks, re-reading it for the third time just to make sure he understood everything correctly. Customer not present?
"But I've been home all day," Hwanwoong exclaims, freezing when he realizes he had said it out loud.
"Huh?" Dongju calls from the kitchen.
"Nothing!" Hwanwoong shouts back too quickly, scrambling to process the information and find an excuse as heart beats faster in his chest.
To his relief, the prolonged silence is broken by the clatter of a baking tray over the stovetop, a clear indicator Dongju has moved on. Hwanwoong releases the breath he was holding, but it doesn't release the tension in his chest. He had been home all day, in fact, spending most of the time in the living room putting up decorations - there was no way he could have missed the delivery person. Sweat begins to form on Hwanwoong’s forehead, no longer a result of the physical exertion. Nagging thoughts start to surface and swim through his mind, scenarios he doesn't want to consider - had he somehow, despite triple-checking, typed the address incorrectly? Maybe the message was about a different package altogether? But he hadn’t ordered anything else, and there was no way Dongju would have cut it so close with his own purchases. Shit, this was not the time for things to go wrong, not when he had ordered the last one he could find at a reasonable price that would arrive in time.
Hand shaking slightly, Hwanwoong taps on the link and waits for it to load.
The circle in the middle of the screen spins for what feels like an eternity before the page is displayed out before him. Sure enough, the same offending 'unable to be delivered' status is hovering above the tracking information in bright red letters. Below it, in the grey box of detailed instructions, Hwanwoong sees a glimmer of hope; an address, and a note that indicates it can be picked up starting from 10am the next day.
Hwanwoong swallows. Okay, he has work tomorrow, but based on the address, he estimates that the delivery hub is not too far from it. If he leaves for lunch a little early, he could probably make it back there and back on time - or just stay behind for a bit at the end of the day to make up for it.
Okay. He will not panic, he will shelve this thought in his mind until he can act on it tomorrow.
He takes in a deep breath, exhaling slowly, and forces himself to smile before heading back to the kitchen to join Dongju. His special gift for Dongju is still safe, everything will work out, and they will have the best holidays yet.