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1. Cologne
The first time it had happened, Sunoo had lost his favourite cologne.
He usually considered himself to be mature and able to deal with his problems on his own, but that time he had decided to make his issue everyone else's problem as well.
Unfortunately for Sunoo, his friends couldn't have cared less.
As he sat at their usual lunch table with Jungwon and Ni-ki while they waited for the rest of their group, he couldn’t help the pout that had been on his face the whole morning.
“Hyung, come on. It’s not the end of the world,” Jungwon said.
“Oh? Then why does it feel like it?”
Jungwon sighed but didn’t reply to his friend as he focused back on his lunch. Sunoo’s pout only grew at the dismissal. While he knew he was being dramatic, he felt he had every right to be given what had happened to him. That cologne was precious.
“What’s wrong with you?”
Sunoo looked up at the sound of Sunghoon’s voice, taking note of the extra four people who joined them at the table, completing their group.
“He’s just upset because he lost his cologne,” Jungwon replied in Sunoo’s stead with a roll of his eyes.
“He’s been pouting about it all day,” Ni-ki added. He tried to subtly take a juice box from Heeseung's tray and pouted when the older boy smacked his hand away.
“It’s not just any cologne,” Sunoo said, slightly offended. “It was my favourite one.”
“You mean that expensive one your sister gave you?” Jay asked, looking thoughtful.
Sunoo nodded, ignoring the way his heart sped up at being addressed by Jay. One would think that he would have gotten used to it since they had been friends for years, but his crush proved to be as debilitating as ever.
“There’ll be other colognes, Sunoo,” Heeseung said sagely, which was funny coming from him considering the fact that he had almost had a breakdown when he thought he’d lost a jacket that Jake had given to him.
Before Sunoo could scoff, Jake spoke up.
“Yeah, don’t worry,” the werewolf said, flashing Sunoo a bright smile. “I’m sure everything will work out.”
“Thank you, Jake-hyung. You’re such a good friend,” Sunoo replied. He gave Jungwon a pointed look which the other fairy promptly ignored. The brat.
“Now that that’s over, who wants to lend me a notebook?” Ni-ki asked. Another brat.
“Don’t tell me you left yours at home again,” Jungwon said, exasperated.
“I was tired!”
“You’re a demigod. You barely get tired!”
Their bickering set off another discussion among the group as they moved on from Sunoo’s plight. The whole time, Sunoo was unaware of a certain werewolf staring at him thoughtfully.
It wasn’t until Monday the next week that Sunoo finally came to know what Jay was thinking when the older boy approached him with a gift bag.
“Here,” he said, unceremoniously shoving the bag into Sunoo’s hands before turning to walk away.
“Wait, hyung, what’s this?”
Sunoo quickly closed his locker and began to look through the bag. He let out a gasp when he saw a bottle of his favourite perfume, the very same one he had bemoaned losing.
“Oh, hyung, you didn’t have to.”
He looked up at Jay who shrugged with a painfully nonchalant look on his face.
“I wanted to,” he said simply. “I know how much you really loved the other one.”
Sunoo had to stop himself from cooing. Jay might have been older than him but the fairy couldn’t help but find him adorable when he tried to act aloof. Sunoo forced himself to calm down, however.
It was just a simple gift. Jay was only being a good friend. He’d done things like this with the others many times.
“Thank you, hyung. I really appreciate it,” Sunoo said.
He smiled at Jay, who returned the gesture before they were interrupted by the bell.
Jay looked around at the thinning crowd in the hallway, “Better get to class. I’ll see you later.”
He waved at Sunoo before leaving.
2. Mint choco ice cream
The second time was when Jay had been walking Sunoo home after a long day of school.
"Ugh, extra classes are killing me," Sunoo complained.
Jay frowned, "I know how you feel. I can't wait to get to sleep when I reach home."
Sunoo nodded in agreement, though he knew that he had homework to do before he could even think about sleeping.
Stifling a yawn, he glanced around at their surroundings and came to a stop upon noticing a convenience store across the street.
"I want to go inside there. I'm a little hungry," he said to Jay who had stopped to look at him curiously.
Jay glanced over at the convenience store and nodded before he followed a newly excited Sunoo across the street.
It was only a few minutes later after Sunoo had grabbed a few snacks that he realised he was missing the most important snack of all; his beloved mint choco ice cream.
He quickly counted the money he had on him, his shoulders deflating as he realised that he didn't have enough to buy it. Of course, he could just put back some of the snacks and take the ice cream instead, but he didn't have much to begin with and he was actually hungry.
'It's not good for your health,' a voice that sounded suspiciously like Jay said in his head.
Sunoo sighed, staring forlornly at the ice cream in the freezer. The voice was right anyway. The ice cream wouldn't be better than the ramen or bread he had already taken up if he was hungry.
"What's wrong?"
Sunoo jumped and turned to look at Jay who was standing nearby with his own snack haul in his hands.
"Oh, hyung, you scared me," he said. "I was just looking at the ice cream. I wanted some but I don't have enough money for it."
Jay glanced over at the ice cream, a flavour that he and the others swore up and down was horrible despite Sunoo's protests.
"Oh, okay. You can go pay. I still need to grab a few things."
Sunoo nodded, sparing another glance at the ice cream before he left. Thankfully, it didn't take him long before he paid for everything since he didn't have many items.
He decided to wait outside the store for Jay, shivering a little in the autumn air. The sky was already dark as it was nearing winter. Sunoo huffed, realising that he would soon have to start wearing a coat to school as their blazers only did so much.
He turned around when he heard a door open and saw Jay stepping out of the store. The older boy came up to him, pulling something out of his bag.
“Take this,” he said, putting whatever it was in Sunoo’s hands. “Let’s go.”
Sunoo hurried after him, looking down at the item he was holding. It was a container of mint choco ice cream.
Sunoo smiled, putting the ice cream in his bag before he caught up to Jay.
3. Sweater
The third time was when the whole group sans Sunghoon and Ni-ki met up at the mall to buy their missing friends birthday gifts.
“Okay, we’ll split up and meet up in an hour at the food court,” Jungwon explained. “Everyone got that?”
“I don’t think so. Could you explain what the plan is again?” Heeseung said, raising his hand. Jungwon scowled at him as the others snickered.
“Come on, hyung. He’s stressed enough as it is,” Jake scolded albeit with a smile.
Jungwon glared at Heeseung, resembling an angry kitten, “Yeah, what he said. Let’s go.”
He set off towards the escalators as Heeseung and Jake scrambled to go after him. Jay shook his head at their retreating figures before he and Sunoo began to roam downstairs.
“Where do you want to go first?” he asked.
Sunoo hummed, looking around at the stores. A sporting goods store caught his eye and he pointed towards it.
“Let’s try here. I remember Sunghoon-hyung saying something about needing new skate guards.”
Jay agreed and off they went. They spent the next hour picking out gifts for Sunghoon and Ni-ki, traversing the mall as they ducked in and out of several stores. They came across the others a few times but other than that, it was just them for that period. Sunoo hadn’t even been able to enjoy the alone time with Jay as they were both so focused on finding the perfect gifts. It didn’t help that he wasn’t the biggest fan of shopping, unlike Jay.
As they were headed for the food court, they passed by a clothing store where the window display caught Sunoo’s eye. He hadn't realised that he had stopped to stare until he heard Jay calling him.
“Sunoo? What is it?” Jay asked, stepping closer.
“Just this sweater, hyung. It looks so nice,” Sunoo replied, still looking at the said sweater.
“Yeah, it does,” Jay agreed. He paused for a moment as if hesitating before he spoke again. “It would look nice on you.”
Sunoo’s heart jumped in his chest and he laughed, hoping that he wasn’t blushing too obviously.
“Do you think so, fashion-hyung?” he teased. Jay rolled his eyes, the smile on his lips betraying his emotions.
“Yes, I think so. You can always come back to buy it another time, though. We should go.”
Sunoo nodded and left for the food court with Jay, taking a glance at the sweater over his shoulder.
About a week later after leaving the joint party that they had planned for Sunghoon and Ni-ki, Sunoo was getting a ride with Jay back home. While Jay had his licence and a car, it wasn’t often that he drove since there wasn’t really parking at school for students and it was easier to take public transportation most days anyway.
Sunoo tried to hide his excitement at being in the front seat of Jay's (very nice) car, but judging by the older boy’s chuckle he wasn’t doing a good job at hiding it.
“You okay there?” Jay asked as he pulled out of his parking spot.
“Yeah. I’ve just never been in your car before, hyung,” Sunoo said, feeling a little embarrassed. Could he have made his feelings any more obvious?
“Maybe I should take it out more so you get the chance,” Jay said casually as if he wasn’t causing the butterflies in Sunoo’s stomach to do somersaults.
“Maybe.”
They made casual conversation the whole drive and when they finally arrived at Sunoo’s house, there was a pause as neither of them moved for a moment.
“Before you go,” Jay started, looking oddly nervous, “there’s a present in the back for you.”
“What? Why? It’s not my birthday,” Sunoo said, his eyes wide.
That only made Jay look more sheepish.
“I know that, but I saw how much you looked at it in the store and I figured it wouldn’t hurt to let you have an early Christmas present.”
Sunoo wondered for a moment what Jay was talking about before a gift bag was placed in his lap. He reached inside, feeling something soft at his fingertips before pulling it out. He couldn’t hold back his gasp upon seeing the sweater that he had admired in the mall.
“Oh, wow,” was all he could think to say before his brain finally started to work again. “Now I want to know how you’re going to top this for my actual Christmas present.”
Jay laughed, “So you still want more? How greedy of you, Sunoo-yah.”
Sunoo giggled, stuffing the sweater back in the bag.
“Really though, hyung. I love it. Thank you.”
“It’s no problem,” Jay replied with a shrug.
Sunoo smiled at him and for one brief moment, the thought of kissing Jay on the cheek popped into his mind. He was tempted, but he quickly chickened out of the idea. It wouldn't do him good to make things awkward between them after Jay just gave him a nice gift.
“Thanks for the ride, hyung. I’ll see you later,” Sunoo said before stepping out of the car. He waved at Jay who waved back, not driving off until Sunoo entered his house.
4. Scented candles
The fourth time it happened was with Sunoo's actual Christmas present.
The last day before winter break was an anxious one, the hallways buzzing with excitement as everyone couldn’t wait for the day to be over. The seven of them were at their usual lunch table discussing plans for their break.
“I can’t believe it’s the last day already,” Jake said, practically vibrating in his seat.
“Yeah, I couldn’t wait,” Sunghoon said. “I don’t know why though. My coach is only going to want more hours of practice.”
“Aw, poor Sunghoon. Woe is him,” Jay teased, fake sympathy painting his face.
Sunghoon glared at him, “You could at least pretend to pity me.”
“Wasn’t that what I was doing?” Jay said with a shrug.
Sunghoon opened his mouth to retort but Jungwon quickly changed the topic before they could start bickering, much to Ni-ki and Heeseung’s visible disappointment.
“So, what do you guys want for Christmas?”
“I hope I get a new soccer ball. Mine is basically falling apart,” Jake said.
Sunoo saw Heeseung perk up out of the corner of his eye and held down a snicker.
“I need new candles,” he said instead.
Ni-ki’s eyebrows furrowed, “Candles?”
“Yes, candles. Scented candles. The ones I have are almost burnt out,” Sunoo explained.
“Maybe you can ask your sister for some,” Jungwon suggested. “That reminds me. Mine keeps hinting that she wants a toiletry kit.”
“Knowing your sister, she probably isn't too subtle,” Sunoo said with a laugh.
Jungwon rolled his eyes, “Not at all. She just keeps sending me links to the kit she wants.”
The others chuckled at that as Heeseung leaned back in his seat.
“Lucky for me, my brother doesn’t care about that. I don’t think he wants anything this year,” he said, earning raised eyebrows from everyone around the table.
“That’s what you said the last time and he got pissed because you gave him an empty box,” Jay countered.
“It was a prank! I gave him a real present after that,” Heeseung protested.
“After I made you.”
“You make me sound like a bad brother.”
“You are a bad brother.”
“He’s just nice to you. You guys don’t know what he’s like at home.”
As Heeseung and Jay continued to bicker over who Heeseung’s brother liked more (obviously Jay), the others let them go on as they changed the topic to meeting up over the break.
When that day finally came - just three days before Christmas - Sunoo had found himself getting a ride home from Jay for the second time.
“Thanks for the ride, hyung,” he said, still shivering slightly from the cold. He lifted his hand to the vent in front of him, sighing with relief from the heat blasting out.
“No problem,” Jay replied. He carefully checked his mirrors before pulling away from his parking spot.
When they arrived at Sunoo’s house, the fairy thanked Jay again before moving to step out of the car.
“Wait,” Jay suddenly said, making Sunoo pause, “before you go, I have something to give you.”
He reached into the back seat and took up a large gift bag before giving it to Sunoo.
“I’m getting deja vu,” Sunoo joked.
“This is your actual Christmas present,” Jay announced, piquing Sunoo’s curiosity and excitement.
He was about to look in the bag but Jay quickly stopped him.
“Not yet. Wait until Christmas.”
Sunoo pouted, “Can’t I just take a peek?”
“No. Just wait,” Jay said firmly before turning Sunoo’s tactics on him as he pouted. “Please? For hyung?”
Sunoo was nothing but a weak man.
“Okay, fine. I’ll be tempted though and it’ll be all your fault,” he said. He was weak but that didn’t mean he couldn’t be a brat about it.
Jay chuckled, “That’s a risk I’m willing to take.”
Sunoo smiled and after they wished each other goodnight, he left the car.
True to his word, for the next few days he had to fight the temptation to open the present; so it was with great relief and excitement that he finally woke up on Christmas morning after the near agonising wait.
He jumped out of bed and immediately went to look through the gift bag. A smile grew on his face when he saw a box of scented candles alongside an adorable fox plushie.
Jay really wasn’t helping Sunoo’s crush, but that was okay with him.
5. Food
The fifth and final time was when exams were around the corner.
It was a huge contrast to the days leading up to winter break when in the weeks following school reopening had most, if not all, of the students stressed.
Their group of friends were no different as their spare time was soon taken up by studying for their upcoming exams. With this taking priority, it wasn't unusual for a lot of students to neglect their basic needs in favour of having a chance at passing their exams.
Sunoo just so happened to be one of those students and, although they didn't like it, his friends all knew and had adapted to it.
"Hyung, remember to finish your lunch," Jungwon's voice cut through Sunoo’s thoughts.
He looked up from his notebook, taking note of his almost full tray.
"Oh, thanks," he said. He reluctantly set aside his book and began eating once more.
"You need to remember to take care of yourself, Sunoo," Jake gently scolded him.
"Yeah, we don't want to have a repeat of last time," Heeseung added.
Sunoo nodded, feeling properly chastised. He never wanted to worry his friends, especially when they already had their own stress to deal with. He picked at his food as they continued to talk around him and ended up meeting Jay's worried gaze when he absently began to look around the cafeteria.
He smiled at the werewolf, knowing that Jay was probably fighting his mother hen tendencies. His smile involuntarily brightened when Jay smiled back. He was soon distracted by Ni-ki trying to show him something on his phone, but for a moment he had felt considerably better.
That weekend found Sunoo's stress returning, however, when he was once again studying for his exams. He wasn't a fan of all the work he had to do, but if he wanted even the slightest of a fighting chance to get into a good university then he had to deal with it. It was only a small comfort to know that he was not alone in his suffering as the school year began to come to a close.
Sunoo sighed as the words in his textbook began to blur together as he lost focus. He sat back against the headboard of his bed, rubbing his eyes furiously. He sat there for a moment in the silence of his bedroom and was about to start reading again when he heard the doorbell ring.
He reluctantly got up and headed downstairs. Peeking out of the living room window, his eyes widened when he recognized Jay's car parked in front of his house. He rushed to open the door and saw Jay standing there while looking more put together and handsome than Sunoo could have hoped.
He silently bemoaned not checking his appearance before opening the door, hoping that he didn't look like a troll in front of the other boy.
"Jay-hyung? What are you doing here? Come inside," he said, stepping aside to let Jay enter.
"Thanks. I know this is sudden but I tried to text you and you didn't answer me so I decided it might be better to come over anyway and I - wait, what are you doing answering the door before asking who's there?"
Sunoo couldn't help but roll his eyes even as a smile began to grow on his face.
"I saw your car through the window. I have at least some survival instincts, you know," he said.
"Alright, alright," Jay conceded, holding his hands up in defeat. It was then that Sunoo noticed the thermal bag that he had in one hand.
"What's that?"
He pointed to the bag and Jay, who had begun to take off his shoes, followed his hand.
"Oh. It's food," he said, before holding out the bag. "Can you hold it for me for a second?"
Sunoo took the bag, stepping back to let Jay take off his coat before they exchanged items. He quickly hung up the coat before rushing after Jay as the werewolf found his way to the kitchen.
"You bought food?"
"I cooked it."
"Oh."
Sunoo could only watch as Jay set the bag on the counter and began to unpack it. The fairy couldn't stop the butterflies in his stomach if he wanted when he saw that most of the dishes were his favourite. Jay had taken time he could have spent studying to cook Sunoo his favourite foods and bring them to him.
Distantly, Sunoo noted that it was reminiscent of a fairy custom to make something for a potential mate to show them that you adored them and would take care of them.
He pushed the thought away as soon as it came. Jay wouldn’t have known about fairy courting customs and even if he had, then he certainly wouldn’t have intended to make it seem like he was bringing Sunoo food to court him. Right?
"You didn't have to, hyung," Sunoo said, dismissing his thoughts. He took out dishes and utensils for them to use and started to help Jay to set the table.
"It's the least I could do," Jay replied. "You've been studying a lot and I know you probably forgot to eat."
He gave Sunoo a disapproving stare at which the fairy could only smile back sheepishly. When they sat down to eat, Sunoo finally felt his hunger hit him like a truck and before he knew it, he had eaten half of the dishes that Jay had brought.
"This is all so good, hyung," he gushed. "You should be a chef."
Jay shrugged, his ears turning red, "Maybe. I'm glad you like it though."
Sunoo smiled at him, his cheeks full.
"By the way, where are your parents? And your sister?" Jay asked. He looked around the kitchen as if he expected them to jump out from somewhere.
"My parents are on a business trip and my sister is at a friend's house."
Jay frowned, "So you were by yourself?"
"Yeah but I was fine, hyung," Sunoo tried to reassure Jay. The werewolf didn’t seem to believe him but let the topic go.
"Either way, I'm glad I came over. I like taking care of you.”
And if Sunoo kissed Jay, what then?
The courting idea came to mind again and he bit back a sigh.
Gosh, his crush was embarrassing at times, but Sunoo had never thought that he would be so delusional. As he continued to eat, he resolved to talk to someone about it. Maybe it would help if someone else could tell him he was crazy too.
+ 1. Flowers
Mythical creatures were the norm in society and had lived amongst humans peacefully for decades. While mythicals tended to gravitate towards their own species and as a result, mated with them, it wasn’t unusual for people to enter mixed relationships. Hybrids were beginning to become more normal and while there were some old fashioned elitists, most people didn’t care about it.
Because of this, common facts were known about different mythicals. Just as the sun shined, it was known that vampires drank blood, werewolves could transform into wolves, and mermaids had tails. There were some facts that weren’t common knowledge, however.
Things such as courting rituals and customs, for example, were not well known amongst species outside of the one they belonged to. With so many different mythicals wandering about, it was impossible to touch on everyone in schools. Topics such as that were expected to be taught within their own circles.
The problem with that, however, was that Sunoo was clueless about werewolf courting.
Ever since Jay had come over to give him food, he hadn’t been able to shake the thought that it was very much like fairy courting. He still doubted that Jay knew about that, but it was getting harder for him to believe so. When their exams were finally over, he took the opportunity to take advantage of their free time by inviting Jake and Jungwon to hang out.
“So, what’s this about?” Jake asked.
Sunoo looked up from his cake, confused, “What?”
“You didn’t invite us here to just hang out,” Jake said, giving Sunoo a pointed look.
“There’s clearly something bothering you, hyung,” Jungwon added. He took a sip of his drink as he waited for Sunoo to reply.
Sunoo sighed, glancing around at the cafe that they had met up in. He knew that he was caught and he figured it would be best to explain anyway.
“Well, you know how we have different courting customs, right?” he started.
Jake nodded, “Yeah, so?”
“Well, there’s this fairy custom to make your potential mate something, usually food,” Sunoo explained.
“To show them that you can take care of them,” Jungwon pitched in. Jake made a little ‘ah’ sound as understanding came over his face.
“What about the custom though, hyung?” Jungwon asked.
Sunoo bit his lip as he contemplated how to put his thoughts into words.
"Well, a few weeks ago before we had exams, Jay-hyung came over to my house. He brought me food that he'd cooked himself because he figured I was studying too much."
It was quiet for a moment as neither Jake nor Jungwon responded at first. Eventually, Jungwon spoke up, a cautious look on his face.
"Are you trying to say that Jay-hyung might be courting you?"
Sunoo nodded, glad that he didn't have to say it himself, "Yeah. Emphasis on the might. I don't know if I'm just being delusional because it might just be a coincidence. I mean, Jay-hyung is usually pretty caring, right?"
"He is," Jungwon said then paused. He seemed to think about what to say before speaking again. "You're right that it might just be coincidence that what he did matches a fairy custom, but it's not as if he couldn't do his research."
"So, there's a chance that he did it on purpose?" Sunoo asked, desperate for confirmation that he wasn't crazy.
"Well, I can't say it would surprise me if he liked you back," Jungwon replied. He took another sip of his drink before a look of realisation came over his face.
"Jake-hyung, you've been pretty quiet," he noted.
Sunoo looked over at Jake who had indeed been quiet ever since Sunoo had brought up the possibility of Jay courting him. The older boy looked nervous as he tried to avoid Jungwon and Sunoo’s eyes.
"You know something," Sunoo said matter-of-factly.
Jake laughed nervously, "What? Why would I know something?"
Jungwon rolled his eyes, "Come on, hyung. You're one of Jay-hyung's best friends. Besides, you're terrible at keeping secrets."
Jake didn't reply at first as he continued to look around the cafe in a poor attempt at avoiding an answer. Eventually, the combined weight of his friends' expectant gazes broke him down.
"Okay, okay. I can't tell you everything because I promised Jay I wouldn't say anything, but what I can tell you is that there's a similar courting practice for werewolves," he explained.
"Werewolves give each other food when courting?" Jungwon asked, looking curious.
"Yeah, we do. It’s usually homemade, although some people do just buy food nowadays. It's for the same reason that you guys have; to show the person that you can take care of them."
Sunoo’s mind was reeling. Did that mean what he thought it meant?
"Oh, that's interesting," Jungwon said. "Is that all?"
Jake glanced over at Sunoo, seemingly hesitant to explain, but he answered Jungwon eventually.
"No. Usually, we give the person we're courting gifts. It's expected that you put thought into it and the gifts would be things that the person would appreciate. It's not random."
Suddenly, the look on Jungwon's face turned sly.
"You mean like the jacket you gave Heeseung-hyung for his birthday?"
Jake's cheeks turned pink and he looked away before nodding at Jungwon's question. Satisfied, Jungwon turned to another victim.
"And Sunoo-hyung, doesn't Jay-hyung give you gifts all the time?"
It felt like something had clicked into place at those words, but Sunoo didn't want to jump to conclusions just yet.
"I mean, yeah, but he…he gives us all gifts, doesn't he?"
He looked back and forth between Jake and Jungwon, neither of whom looked convinced.
"Not as much as he gives to you," Jungwon pointed out.
Sunoo looked at Jake who only shrugged before quickly averting his gaze before he gave away any more information.
Well then.
Sunoo had certainly come away from the conversation with more than he had imagined, but it wasn't a bad thing at all.
It was a few days after the meet up with Jake and Jungwon that Sunoo finally had a plan for what to do.
If it was one thing that fairies had an affinity for, it was flowers. Being nature spirits, they all had some connection to plants and could tell the difference and meanings behind each one more than any other species.
Sunoo figured it wouldn't hurt to involve this natural gift in confronting Jay.
That was how he found himself wandering about the park near the Han River with a bouquet in hand while looking for Jay. Sunoo knew that the werewolf usually went there in his downtime to relax and with school just ending it was the perfect time to go.
He finally spotted Jay’s familiar figure seated on the steps near the bank of the river. He let out a sigh of relief before approaching the other boy.
“I knew I’d find you there,” he said in lieu of a greeting.
Jay turned around, looking surprised to see Sunoo.
“Oh, Sunoo,” he said, shifting to get up but Sunoo gestured for him to keep sitting as he took a seat beside him. “What are you doing here?”
“I came here to give you this. Don’t worry, there's no pollen.”
Sunoo held out the bouquet that he had made to Jay and watched as the werewolf’s face lit up with surprise for the second time. He slowly took the bouquet, staring at it for a moment before he looked back at Sunoo.
Sunoo hoped he wasn’t imagining the pink blush beginning to touch Jay’s cheeks.
“Thank you. It’s very pretty,” Jay said. “What is it for though?”
“It’s…it’s a confession,” Sunoo admitted.
For all his bravado in approaching Jay, he couldn’t help but wither slightly under the other boy’s shocked and curious gaze.
“A confession?”
Sunoo nodded, avoiding Jay’s stare, “Yeah. You know that flowers have meanings, right?”
He waited for Jay to nod before continuing.
“Well, the white one is a gardenia. Gardenias mean secret love. The long stalks are ambrosia or ragweed. They stand for reciprocated love. The red flower is a carnation. Red carnations symbolise love and affection, and solid colour carnations mean ‘yes’.”
It was quiet for a moment and Sunoo’s heart pounded in his chest.
“What are you saying yes to?” Jay asked eventually, and Sunoo could hear the hope underlying his voice. It gave him the courage to look the werewolf in the eye.
“To your courting, hyung. I know that the gifts you’ve been giving me the past few months have been courting gifts. You should have just said so.”
Jay looked down, his cheeks definitely red as he suddenly seemed to find the bouquet very interesting.
“I know. It was kind of weird for me to be courting you without you knowing but I guess I just…chickened out of telling you directly and hoped that you’d figure it out,” he said before looking up at Sunoo. “Which you did, so I guess my plan worked out.”
He laughed as Sunoo merely shoved him in response, the fairy rolling his eyes at the other boy’s antics.
‘Of course, this is what I picked,’ he thought as a begrudgingly fond smile came on his face.
“Whatever you say, hyung. This is me courting you back, by the way,” he said.
Jay smiled at him, “So, I take it this means we’re dating?”
“I’d sure hope so after the work I put into that bouquet.”
Jay chuckled, looking down at the said bouquet.
“It is really pretty,” he said softly.
Sunoo couldn’t hold back a smile at the compliment. He really had spent a bit of time on perfecting the bouquet, so it was nice to hear that Jay liked it. Besides, any fairy would have loved to be complimented on their floral arrangement. It was a pride thing.
Deciding that they needed a treat after all the pining they both did, Sunoo suddenly stood up and held out his hand to a confused Jay.
“We should go get ice cream,” he said.
Jay nodded, taking Sunoo’s hand as he stood up as well. He held on even after they started walking and Sunoo felt giddy as he realised that he was holding hands with his boyfriend .
“Ice cream it is. I’ll even get you that atrocious flavour you like so much.”
Sunoo scoffed, “Mint choco is not atrocious! All of you just have bad taste.”
“You might be the one with bad taste, Sunoo-yah. You just won’t admit it.”
“Don’t make me take back my confession,” Sunoo threatened, no heat to his words.
Jay gasped, clutching the bouquet to his chest.
“You can’t! You’re stuck with me now.”
“Oh, woe is me.”
“You’re such a brat,” Jay said, shaking his head. He had a fond smile on his face despite his words.
Sunoo laughed, his heart feeling light as he and Jay continued to bicker as they went for their ice cream.