Work Text:
"Doyoung!" Jaehyuk shouts from the kitchen.
Doyoung yells from his room, "Yes?" He says as he fixes the collar of his shirt in front of his mirror. He's in the middle of getting ready to go to his part-time job.
"Hey," Jaehyuk says as he pops his head in the door of Doyoung's room. "Jeongwoo is moving-in today."
Doyoung looks at his roommate with his eyebrows raised, "Jeongwoo?" a questioning tone present in his voice. "Ah, it's our new roommate, the one moving in Jihoon's old room," Jaehyuk replies.
Doyoung nods in understanding. He checks himself out in the mirror one last time before getting his bag from his chair, "Okay, I'll get going now."
"Have fun at work!" Jaehyuk bids to Doyoung, and his roommate hums and closes the door of their apartment.
+
"Yeah, I'm here Mom, I'll call you back when I get settled in," Jeongwoo drops the call and pockets his phone.
He is standing outside the apartment building he's gonna move into. He grabs one of his boxes in his trunk and proceeds to go inside to meet his new roommates.
The apartment unit is located on the 3rd floor of the building. Other than knowing the floor number, Jeongwoo has only seen the place in photos as he didn't really have the time to visit the unit before choosing to rent it. He was busy juggling moving out of his old apartment and being a Third year Biology major at one of the top universities of the country who needs to write his research paper. Honestly, every day is hard work.
So really he didn't have enough free time to go check out the new room. He trusted his cousin Jihoon’s recommendation as he used to be the one living there with two other people.
Jihoon has recently graduated and moved to Geumcheon-gu together with his partner, Junkyu, who has also recently graduated and has found a job near the area.
The first roommate is a guy named Yoon Jaehyuk who, according to Jihoon, is a graduating Financial Business major student.The other roommate is Kim Doyoung who is in the same year as him and is studying liberal arts. They all attend Seoul National University.
Jeongwoo spoke to Jaehyuk on the phone when they went over the details of the rent.
On the other hand, he hasn't seen or spoken to Doyoung and only knows him by name and by what his cousin describes him as, "cute guy, with great manners".
The elevator door opens bringing him back from his musings, and he sees the big number 3 on the wall. He gets out and searches for the number 304 to which it didn't take him too long to find.
Jeongwoo rings the doorbell and hears an, “In a minute!” being shouted from the inside. He waits patiently until the door opens and reveals a man in a white shirt and washed out jeans smiling at him. “Hi!” the man cheerfully greets.
“Hi, are you Jaehyuk?”
“Yes! Wait, are you Jeongwoo? Jihoon’s cousin?”
Jeongwoo nods. “Yeah,” he answers.
Jaehyuk opens the door wide and invites Jeongwoo inside. “Come, I knew you were coming but I thought it would be later,” he says, “Oh, you can put your box there. the meantime, let me show you the place since you’ve only seen it in pictures.”
Jeongwoo places the box containing his books at the foot of the couch and follows Jaehyuk in the kitchen.
“Do you cook?” Jaehyuk asks. The other shakes his head no. “But I can make pretty good ramen,” Jeongwoo said, which made Jaehyuk laugh. “And that’s enough for us, we really don’t cook and we don’t really eat much here.”
Jeongwoo gets it. With how much time they spend on the campus for classes and going to libraries, he rarely even finds time to eat. It has caused him several headaches from the past but he’s getting better at it now. He learned how to balance his time studying and taking care of himself.
“And here’s my bedroom, you can just knock if you need anything.”
Jaehyuk then walks him to where his room is, which is at the right side and across the room of his other roommate.
Jaehyuk opens the door for him, “This is you, Jihoon’s old room.”
Jeongwoo goes inside and sees a table sitting at the corner and a big double bed which is perfect for him as he likes to roll around when he sleeps. He checks the closet and goes around the room.
The view outside is well, a typical view on the streets of Gwanak-gu.
“Jihoon-hyung is right about the room. It’s really nice.”
Jaehyuk laughs. “Glad the room is to your liking. By The way, Doyoung is across from you. He’s not here now since he has work but you’ll get to meet him later.”
“Okay, then I should probably get my other boxes from the car and get settled in.”
“I can help! I’ve got nothing to do anyway.”
ko
#
Doyoung comes home a little past eight in the evening. He punches in the code for their apartment and as soon as he walks in, he smells something good coming from their kitchen.
He has worked for 8 hours today when he normally only works for 4 hours. The other part-timer couldn't make it so he had to cover for her.
So he’s definitely hungry even more now. “Jaehyuk, what are you cooking?” he asks as he removes his sneakers and walks towards where the kitchen is.
“Uhm, spicy ramen.”
Doyoung was startled when someone else’s voice answered him. It's a lot deeper than his roommate’s.
He looks up and sees a man in a plain black shirt, a bit taller than him and with tan skin holding a pot of newly cooked ramen he places on the table.
"He's handsome," Doyoung says in his mind as he stares at the man.
“This is good enough for two we can share,” the guy that Doyoung has never seen until today says.
Doyoung remains standing from where he is at the entrance of the kitchen, watching him as he tries to navigate through their kitchen looking clueless. “The bowls are in the cupboard,” he says.
Jeongwoo chuckles and scratches the back of his neck. “Thanks,” he mutters as he gets two bowls and goes back to finishing setting up the table.
Doyoung walks further inside the kitchen. “You’re the new guy?” he asks and sits across from Jeongwoo at the table.
“Yup, I’m Jeongwoo by the way,” he says as he offers his hand for a handshake which Doyoung takes. “I’m Doyoung”.
Jeongwoo nods. “Well, Doyoung we can share this ramen,” he says as he pushes the bowl of noodles towards him. “Thanks, I’ve actually been starving,” Doyoung shares.
“Me too, I’ve only just finished organizing my room and I thought I deserve a bowl of ramen after all of my hard work today.” Doyoung agrees and they start eating the ramen together while making light conversation.
Doyoung takes one last sip of the hot ramen broth when he sighed with content. “It was pretty good huh?” Jeongwoo asks.
“Yes it was. It’s much better than the ones Jaehyuk-hyung cooks,” Doyoung says. “Thank you,” Jeongwoo replies.
Doyoung stood up from his seat and gathered their bowls to put them in the sink. “Did Jae tell you about how we do house chores?” he inquires.
“Not everything yet. Just That laundry days are every Tuesdays and Saturdays, no too much loud music, and that we take turns in cleaning the bathroom”.
“That, and whoever cooked has to wash the dishes he used. But since we shared the ramen you made, I’ll do the dishes and you can just clean the table”.
Jeongwoo smiles at Doyoung as thanks for washing the dishes on his stead as he cleaned the table. They continued their light conversation as Jeongwoo helped Doyoung dry the dishes before returning them to the cupboard.
“It was nice chatting with you, Jeongwoo. Hope you’ll enjoy your stay here with us”.
“It was nothing! You guys seem like a nice bunch and Jihoon-hyung did tell me a little bit about you so it’s nice to finally put a face into the name. a pleasure to meet you”.
Doyoung bids Jeongwoo a “goodnight” before he retreats to his room to shower before lying down on his bed and concluding the night.
#
It’s been three months since Jeongwoo has moved in and in those months the three of them have become closer. Jaehyuk and Jeongwoo share the same interests in games so they often play together.
And as for Doyoung and Jeongwoo they are especially close as they both share the same love for Pokemon so they sometimes play and watch it on tv together. Aside from that the two
share the same taste in music and even movies.
Which is why they sometimes watch a movie together as a sort of bonding between them.
Jeongwoo likes to cook ramen for him and Doyoung which became their own thing as well.
As they seldom meet at campus given that the three of them are in different programs, Jaehyuk suggested that they eat lunch together on the day that they're all at the main campus of their university. To which then developed into a routine.
On Thursdays, the roommates eat lunch together.
Today is Thursday. Doyoung's classes ended thirty minutes earlier than usual so as soon as they were allowed to go out, he went straight to the cafeteria and found a table for them.
He sends a message to their group chat, saying that he's already found a table and that he will be waiting for the both of them.
Doyoung pockets his phone and brings out his iPAD to check his schedule just to make sure everything is in place and he's not missing any deadlines this week.
"Hey Dobby," a new voice greets him and someone sits beside him.
Doyoung's eyes twitched upon hearing the voice that greeted him, a frown already present on his face. He breathed in and out to try to calm himself down.
He moves a bit on the side and he politely smiles. "Seo-An sunbae, do you need anything from me?" he asks.
Seo-An puts his chin on the palm of his hand. "Not really, I just saw you here alone and I thought you might need some company," he says as he moves closer to Dobby.
That made Doyoung bite his lips in annoyance.
"Uhm, I'm waiting for someone," he says as calmly as possible while moving a little bit again.
This made his senior curious "Oh, who are you waiting for? Your roommate?"
Doyoung was about to answer when someone sits beside him and puts an arm around his shoulder. "Sorry for making you wait, Babe," Jeongwoo says.
Doyoung looks beside him and sees Jeongwoo's toothy grin directed at him. "It's alright, I just got here".
"Classes ended later than usual. Had to run here to make sure you don't wait too long".
Doyoung chuckles, "Thank you."
The two were so engrossed in their conversation that Doyoung forgot that Seo-An was with them at the table. Not until he heard him clear his throat.
"Ah, sorry sunbae. Uhm, to answer your question I was waiting for him."
"I didn't know you're dating, didn't you say that you're focusing on your studies?"
Jeongwoo answers in Doyoung’s stead. "I am the exception," he says as he squeezes Doyoung's shoulder and smiles at him. And to Seo-An he says, "Park Jeongwoo, by the way" as he offers his hand.
Seo-An stands up from his seat and grabs the hand offered to him, "Kang Seo-An".
"Well, Kang Seo-An sunbae, do you need anything from my boyfriend?"
Seo-An shakes his head. "Nope, s'good. See you around, Dobby,'' he says as he walks away from the table.
Once they were sure Seo-An was out of sight, Jeongwoo immediately moves away and releases his hold on Doyoung's shoulders. “Sorry,” he apologizes as he scratches his nape.
"No, it's okay. You literally saved me," Doyoung says.
"Saw from across the room how uncomfortable you look so I just went ahead and pretended to be your boyfriend which seems like the best way to get him out of your hair."
Doyoung was about to tell Jeongwoo that it was fine and to thank him for what he had done when Jaehyuk arrives.
"Guys, I'm starving, let's go get something to eat now," he says as he drops his bag and grabs Jeongwoo by the shoulders.
Jaehyuk looks back and sees his roommate still sitting. "Dobby, come now," he shouts.
Doyoung stands up, follows his roommates, and makes a mental note to himself to thank Jeongwoo for his help today.
+
Doyoung is standing outside of Jeongwoo's bedroom door thinking if he should knock or just message his roommate. Dobby chose the former.
Two raps at the door and Jeongwoo opens it. He was fresh from the shower, seeing as how there are still droplets of water in his hair and a towel around his shoulders.Doyoung almost choked on his own spit when he realized that the towel is the only thing covering Jeongwoo's chest.
"Yes? Oh! Doyoung, do you need anything?"
Doyoung looks anywhere but at Jeongwoo. "Uhm,"
"Wait, why are you looking up?" Jeongwoo looks up to where Doyoung is looking and sees nothing interesting there.
Doyoung bites his tongue, "Uhm, your shirt" he says and that's when Jeongwoo realized that he wasn't wearing a shirt so he quickly grabbed the one on his bed.
"Sorry, I just finished showering. What's up?"
Doyoung finally looks at Jeongwoo. “Just wanted to say thank you for your help earlier.”
Jeongwoo lowers his head and chuckles, “It was nothing Dobby,”
“No really, I owe you. And if there’s anything that I can do for you, let me know!”
“It’s alright!”
Doyoung, with a determined look on his eyes, grabs Jeongwoo’s arms. “Anything, Jeongwoo, I’ll do it.”
Jeongwoo finds it amusing how determined Doyoung is. He rubs his chin and thinks.
“Anything?” he asks.
Doyoung nods. “Yeah, anything.”
“Okay, then would you be my boyfriend?”
Doyoung’s eyebrow arched in surprise that made Jeongwoo chuckle. "Uhm, boyfriend? Boyfriend like, date you?" Doyoung has to be sure that he heard his roommate right.
"Well, yes, but to be more accurate, if you could be my 'fake boyfriend," Jeongwoo explains.
Doyoung frowns, he still doesn't get why Jeongwoo needs a fake boyfriend. "Why?" he couldn't stop himself from asking.
Jeongwoo opens his door wider, inviting Doyoung to come in,to which he does. He sits on the chair by Jeongwoo's study table and the room owner sits by the foot of his bed facing him.
"Well, two weeks from now, I'm going back to Iksan."
"Okay…"
"And my cousin… not Jihoon… Chanyeol-hyung, our older cousin, is getting married and we're supposed to spend the entire weekend there."
"And I need a date to take with me so my grandmother would stop pushing me to different people."
"I'm not sure, Jeongwoo. I mean, I thought you'd just let me take your turn in cleaning and not this” hesitation is evident in Doyoung's voice, it's rather an unusual request.
Jeongwoo is kind of desperate right now since he can't find anyone else that his family doesn't know. They know most of his friends and Doyoung would be perfect since only Jihoon knows him.
Jeongwoo shrugs."Well, as per your words, "I owe you one" and "Willing to do anything"...”
Doyoung bites his lips. Well it's not like he's gonna see the people from the wedding and the rest of Jeongwoo's family after the said weekend, and Jeongwoo did pretend to be his boyfriend to make Seo-An back off which is a huge relief for him.
"Okay," he says and he immediately sees how a smile breaks out from Jeongwoo's face as he stands from his seat. Which made him think about how handsome his roommate's smile is.
"Thank you!" Jeongwoo says as he pats Doyoung's back.
Doyoung just nods. It’s two weeks from now and he still has a lot of time to prepare himself to act like he's in love with Jeongwoo.
#
Two weeks passed by quickly that Doyoung actually forgot about the whole pretending to be Jeongwoo's boyfriend deal they had.
His courseworks and part-time job kept him busy the past two weeks and today is the day he can say he can finally breathe again and rest like there’s no tomorrow.
He just got back from his classes and immediately throws himself on his bed, not even minding the fact that he didn't even close his own bedroom door.
"Tough day?" a voice says. That made Doyoung jump a little on his bed. He turns to face the man with that deep voice and recognizes Jeongwoo who was grinning at him and crossing his arms over his chest.
As he steps into Doyoung's room, Jeongwoo chuckles as Dobby hides his face in his pillows in return.
Jeongwoo takes off Dobby's sneakers so he can lie comfortably on his own bed and taps Doyoung's shoulders to make him face him.
But then Doyoung resists, which forces Jeongwoo to grab him and roll him over, displaying Doyoung's pouting face and a furrow on his forehead.
Upon seeing his face, Jeongwoo snickers and says, "You're cute."
Doyoung pushes Jeongwoo's face away from him as he adjusts himself to lie down on his bed with Jeongwoo sitting by his side.
"Do you need anything?"
Doyoung briefly questions why his roommate is telling him the date for tomorrow when Jeongwoo says, "It's the 23rd tomorrow."
"Yeah because today is the 22nd."
"Tomorrow, we’re going to Iksan for my cousin's wedding, and are supposed to act like boyfriends, remember?" Jeongwoo laughs, throws his head back, and looks at Doyoung again.
Doyoung sits up from his bed,eyes going big while he looks at Jeongwoo. "That's tomorrow already?!"
"But I don't have anything to wear?"
"It's not too formal of a wedding, we just need to show up in a dress shirt and pants that aren't ripped and we're good."
"Okay, that's good to know! I totally forgot about it. Sorry"
"Nah, it's fine. I know how you've been busy the past few weeks."
Jeongwoo takes his leave after reminding Doyoung that they would need to be on their way early in the morning as there would be a rehearsal dinner before the wedding on Sunday afternoon.
And he wants him to meet his family before the ceremony.
Doyoung agrees as he watches Jeongwoo leave his room as the other still has one evening class to attend to. As for Doyoung, packing for the weekend trip with his ‘boyfriend’ would be his agenda for the night.
+
At eight o’clock the following morning, Doyoung has already gotten out of bed, showered, packed his bags, and is prepared to leave.
A moment later, Jeongwoo knocks on Dobby's door. When he answers, he sees that his roommate still has wet hair and is holding a bag in his right hand.
“Good morning,” Jeongwoo greets with his voice much deeper than normal since it’s early in the morning.
"Good morning," Doyoung greets softly.
"I can see that you're ready. Let's Go?"
They load their luggage into the trunk of Jeongwoo's car and Doyoung gets in the passenger seat to buckle up. However, no matter how hard he pulls, the seat belt won't budge.
Doyoung freezes in place as Jeongwoo reaches for the seat belt,their hands brushing. Goosebumps form on his arms at the sudden contact.
He observes how Jeongwoo quickly pulls the seat belt and fastens it for him.
“All good,” Jeongwoo says, patting Dobby’s arms which made his skin tingle.
"Thanks," Doyoung says quietly and Jeongwoo just hums as a response.
After turning on the GPS, Jeongwoo starts the engine and begins the two-hour drive from Seoul to Iksan.
#
It was quiet during the drive. But not in an awkward way, no; rather, it was something that was soothing. A comfortable silence.
Only the songs on the car stereo and Jeongwoo's occasional humming to the music can be heard.
Doyoung straightens up in his seat and turns to face the window as they leave the city behind and enter the countryside, which is dotted with trees and vast fields.
It has been a while since he traveled outside of Seoul, so he appreciates the expansive area of greenery that is rare to see in the city.
Jeongwoo glances at Doyoung and asks, "Do you want me to roll the windows down?"
Doyoung tells him with a “Yes, please" look.
Jeongwoo turns off the car's air conditioning and rolls down both of their windows. Doyoung closes his eyes to feel the wind on his face which causes his hair to fly and be messy. But he didn't mind because he enjoys the way it feels.
He blinks open his eyes and looks at the man driving beside him, one hand on the steering wheel and the other on the window.
Doyoung quietly gazes and takes in the view in front of him.
Jeongwoo is attractive with his tan skin, broad chest and long legs and he is aware of this.
He's not gonna lie and say he doesn’t find his roommate attractive because he really thinks he is. Like a picture perfect dream guy, it's not surprising if Jeongwoo has many admirers.
If Doyoung’s gonna be honest, the thing about Jeongwoo he really likes is his eyes. The one thing that he really likes to look at whenever they are spending time together, or when Jeongwoo is telling a story.
He just can’t help himself to admire the sharp eyes that literally light up when he talks about his favorite things, and how it crinkles when he laughs so hard.
The fact that his roommate is driving with one hand while allowing the wind to mess up his hair right now is probably one of the most attractive things Doyoung has ever seen him do.
Jeongwoo interrupts, "I can feel you staring," and Doyoung hurriedly averts his gaze, saying, "Sorry."
"You don't need to be, I just hope you were thinking how good I look right now."
Doyoung laughed at the remark and Jeongwoo joined him in doing so.
While Jeongwoo continues to look forward at the road and Doyoung is taking in the view, Doyoung shakes his head and looks at Jeongwoo, who in turn looks at him. They then laugh together once more.
##
When they arrive at their destination a quarter before eleven in the morning, Jeongwoo parks his car in front of a white house with a brown gate.
He turns off the engine and looks at Doyoung. “Okay, once we get out of this car we’re dating. I’m your boyfriend and you’re mine. Just follow my lead, okay?” Jeongwoo says.
“Okay,” he answers. Jeongwoo taps his shoulders as a gesture of thanks.
As they get out of the car, a woman wearing white clothing and a red apron emerges and quickly hugs and kisses Jeongwoo on the cheeks.
"Ahh, my son is finally home! I missed you," the woman says. "You never even call me these days," she says dramatically.
"But I text you Mom, I've been busy."
Doyoung is standing behind Jeongwoo as he watches their mother and son exchange.
Jeongwoo's mother and Doyoung make eye contact and he immediately bows as respect. Jeongwoo offers his hand for him to take which he did. "Mom, this is Doyoung,'' he introduces.
"My boyfriend."
"Oh my! Jeongwoo he's so handsome!" exclaims Jeongwoo's mother. Doyoung bows again and was supposed to shake the hand of Jeongwoo's mother but she immediately hugged him and patted his cheek. "My, my Jeongwoo sure knows who he likes."
"Come here, Doyoungie, let's go inside." Jeongwoo's mother grabs him and guides him inside their house. He looks back and sees Jeongwoo standing there and mouthing, "Go." He waves at him as he is taken inside the house.
When Doyoung enters the house, he notices the picture frames of Jeongwoo's family that hang on the walls. He also notices a photo of Jeongwoo that was probably taken in elementary school, he was likely wearing trunks, goggles, holding a trophy, and a medal. "He looks so cute," Doyoung thinks to himself.
"That's me when I was 8, won first place at our school's swimming competition."
"I didn't know you swim."
"Well, now you know," Jeongwoo says with a smile as he leads Doyoung further into his home and into the living room, where the rest of Jeongwoo's family is.
An elderly woman is seated on the couch and he notices Jihoon chatting with a man who doesn't appear to be family, which is correct because as soon as Jeongwoo recognizes the man Jihoon is speaking to, the two embrace. "Anton!" Jeongwoo exclaims excitedly.
"What's up, Woo?" Anton asks. "It's been awhile, I thought you were in the US!?" Jeongwoo replies.
"Just got back last week, it’s our term break there and I had to go back here for vacation as always."
"Nice to see you again."
Anton looks at Doyoung who is quietly waiting by Jeongwoo's side. "Oh, who could this be?" he asks curiously.
"Doyoung, my boyfriend."
And Doyoung has to admit that Jeongwoo comes across as very natural when introducing Doyoung as his boyfriend.
"What?!" Jihoon says, as he didn't notice Doyoung when he was talking to their uncle. "Dobby, are you sure about Jeongwoo? Because he grinds his teeth in his sleep," concern can be heard in Jihoon's voice.
Doyoung laughs. It’s been a while since he saw Jihoon. "Hello, Jihoon-hyung, and I can live with it," he says laughing.
"I made you move in that room, so you didn't have to stress over finding a new place only for you to date Doyoung. I knew you were gonna fall for him, he is so your type!" Jihoon rambles at Jeongwoo.
Jeongwoo just laughs and grabs his cousin by the neck to playfully wrestle with him.
"Hey Doyoung it's nice to meet you," Anton says as they shake hands and exchange light conversation.
In elementary and high school, Jeongwoo attended the same school with his childhood friend Anton. Before Jeongwoo quit swimming in his sophomore year of high school, the two of them were members of the same swimming club.
"I guess he realized being a pro-swimmer is not his dream after all, though before that's what he wanted," Anton shares.
Doyoung learned another fact about Jeongwoo, and mentally notes to ask him more about it when he can.
"Love," Jeongwoo calls out, and Doyoung was a bit startled hearing the endearment from him.
"C'mere."
Doyoung excuses himself and goes to Jeongwoo. "Nana, this is Doyoung," he introduces.
"My boyfriend."
"Oh, Jeongwoo,'' his grandmother says as she holds Doyoung's and Jeongwoo's hands, one hand on each of hers, and looks at the both of them.
Jeongwoo's grandmother pats both of their heads and exclaims, "You two look perfect for each other." A smile appears on her lips.
When Jeongwoo hears what his grandma said, he grins and turns to look at Doyoung who is sitting next to him. They both gaze at each other in the eyes and smile. "Thanks, Nana," Jeongwoo says as he stares at Doyoung.
His grandmother glances at the two in front of her with a knowing smile on her face.
##
The rehearsal dinner went smoothly. Doyoung got to meet the rest of Jeongwoo's family and they had to share the story of how they met and got together.
They decided to stick to some semblance of truth about how they met and added some details here and there to make it more believable which seems to have worked because everyone believed them including Jihoon.
After they got back home from dinner they retreated to Jeongwoo's bedroom where they would be staying for the rest of the weekend.
Doyoung sits at the foot of the bed and collapses into the bed as Jeongwoo closes the door. Doyoung's social battery has run out.
"Tired?" Jeongwoo asks as he lies down beside Doyoung. "Yeah, almost half of your family asked me the same thing.”
“Yeah? What did they ask?”
“If I'm sure about you."
"Well, what did you say?"
"I said yes," Doyoung answers as he turns his face towards Jeongwoo.
He also notices how close they are to one another and how their hands are touching.
Jeongwoo can see how long Doyoung's eyelashes are and how adorable his button nose is, and he is once more in awe of how gorgeous the man next to him is.
He's always known that Doyoung is pretty. And handsome. And gorgeous. And all things nice. One would be lying if they didn't find him beautiful. And one thing is for sure, Jeongwoo likes to look at pretty things.
Be it the sky or the tall buildings, the list could go on and on. He likes to look at pretty things. Like Doyoung. Especially Doyoung.
“You’re gorgeous, did you know that?” He blurts out. “I am?” Dobby murmurs.
Jeongwoo nods, and they share a quiet moment where they just stare at each other's eyes, both admiring one another.
The silent stare-off between them was broken by Jeongwoo, who adds, "I should shower and get changed," before getting up and looking through his closet for something to wear.
"Okay, I'll go after you," Doyoung answers.
Jeongwoo sends him a thumbs up before going out of the room. Once the door closes, Doyoung puts his hand on his chest and can feel the light thudding of his heart.
"What was that?" he whispers to himself as he tries to recall how close he and Jeongwoo were a moment ago.
+
The next morning, the sun is already up, causing Doyoung to stir in his sleep as the sun directly hits his eyes.
He carefully opens them, he squints, and closes them again as he turns away from the direction of the window. When Doyoung opens his eyes again, he is met with Jeongwoo’s sleeping face.
‘Ah right,’ he remembers. Last night he insisted that they share the bed since Jeongwoo planned to sleep on the floor with only one pillow and a comforter to use as his bedding which didn’t sit well with Doyoung.
“Jeongwoo, just sleep here,'' he whispers as the lights are turned off, not wanting to disturb anyone sleeping in the house. “I’m fine here, don’t worry.”
Doyoung tried to sleep. He really did, but he kept tossing and turning. So he peeked at Jeongwoo again who had his eyes closed. He carefully pokes Jeongwoo’s cheek which happens to be the nearest thing he can reach.
“Woo,”
“Woo, are you still awake?”
Jeongwoo answers, “Yes, I am” with his eyes closed but opens it to look at Doyoung who is already looking at him. “I can’t sleep knowing you’re down there. Just come up here, we can share your bed.”
Jeongwoo sits up and Doyoung follows him, “You won’t stop until you get me to sleep beside you huh?”
Doyoung nods. He really can’t bear to have Jeongwoo sleep on the floor, seeing how the weather is colder nowadays.
“Okay, you win,” Jeongwoo says as he gathers his comforter and pillow and goes to the other side of the bed to lay down. He places a pillow in the middle. “What’s this for?” Doyoung asks.
“Just in case you don’t want me taking up all your space,” Jeongwoo answers.
“Okay,” Doyoung finally lies down facing the ceiling. He closes his eyes and tries to sleep for a few minutes until he opens them again and releases a breath.
"Can't sleep?" Jeongwoo chides beside him. "Yeah," he answers.
"Are you cold?"
"No."
"Is there something bothering you?" he continues.
"Well, not really," Dobby says.
Silence. And then Doyoung remembers what Anton told him earlier today.
"I heard from Anton that you wanted to be a pro-swimmer before," he starts.
Jeongwoo hums. "Yeah, I mean it was what I'm good at and what my Dad wanted."
"Then how come you're studying Biology now?" Dobby questions him. "Well, nothing really grand except that I know I wanted it. Maybe I could become a scientist or I can even go to Med school after. Who knows, I'm not really sure yet," he explains.
"How ‘bout you, why liberal arts?" It was Jeongwoo's turn to ask a question.
Doyoung yawns. "Because I wanted it. And so I can go to law school. Being a lawyer has been my dream," he finishes.
"That's nice," Jeongwoo says. He was about to ask what law school he plans to apply to when he hears the light snores coming from his side. He turns and looks at Dobby who has finally fallen asleep.
Jeongwoo whispers, “good night”. Before he himself falls asleep.
After recalling the events from last night, Doyoung gulps looking at how close Jeongwoo’s face is to him. Just like what happened yesterday in the car and last night when they both lied down on the bed and quietly looked at each other.
Doyoung uses his finger to lightly trace the slope of Jeongwoo’s nose, careful not to wake him up. “You have long lashes as well.” Doyoung absentmindedly whispers, “Pretty,” as he observes his roommate’s sleeping face.
After a few more minutes of admiring Jeongwoo with the sun lightly hitting his face and making his tan skin glow more, he gets up and goes to the bathroom to get ready for breakfast.
Once Doyoung closes the door to the bedroom, Jeongwoo opens his eyes, a smile blooming on his face as he recalls how Doyoung whispered “pretty”, not knowing he had been awake the moment he touched his nose.
##
The wedding ceremony starts in less than an hour but Jeongwoo’s still at their house waiting for Doyoung, his mother and his grandmother. The venue is just a twenty-minute drive from their place so he’s not exactly in a hurry.
Jeongwoo was on the phone with Anton when Doyoung came down from his room wearing a white dress shirt with the top buttons unbuttoned, black slacks, and a jacket that Jeongwoo let him borrow.
Doyoung has his hair parted in half, not his everyday look where he mostly has his hair down.
"Yeah, I'll see you in a while Anton. Bye," he drops the call as he takes in Doyoung's beauty that is displayed in front of him.
"Well, don't you look so dashing today, love," Jeongwoo says. He was so into the whole fake boyfriend thing that when Dobby is within his reach, he circles his arms around his waist and gives Doyoung a quick peck on the cheeks.
His grandmother was in the living room watching them.
"Thank you, you don't look so bad yourself, babe," Dobby compliments as he looks at his 'boyfriend' who is sporting an almost similar look as him except he's wearing a black necktie and his hair slicked back.
Jeongwoo smiles, the one where his eyes also turn into crescents, and Doyoung thinks how cute he is when he does this kind of smile. He can feel how his heart skipped a beat upon seeing it.
Not long after, his mother comes down and makes them hurry up so they won't miss the ceremony.
##
The ceremony went smoothly, some of the guests shed a tear upon hearing the couple's vows to each other.
Doyoung tried his hardest to not cry but there's just something about a bride walking down the aisle and seeing the groom at the end waiting that you can see the love radiating from both of their eyes when they finally reached each other.
At the reception, he's sitting amongst the Park family and they eat and converse and tell stories.
Jihoon was beside him so he tells stories about Jeongwoo and how he used to be at Jihoon's beck and call and even begging him to make him his Watson whenever they play pretend as Sherlock Holmes.
Which made Doyoung laugh. "You were cute back then huh?"
"I'm still cute till now."
Doyoung puts his hand on top of Jeongwoo’s and rubs it as he giggles. "Sure you are," he says.
Jeongwoo rolls his eyes and drinks the flute of champagne that is given to him by the waiter, stands up and taps Dobby by the shoulders. "I'm gonna go see Anton," he whispers in his ears.
Doyoung replies a quiet "sure" and lets go of Jeongwoo's hand when he is out of reach.
"Is he good to you?" Jihoon inquires and he looks at the exchange in front of him.
Doyoung thinks about how Jeongwoo has treated him over the months they have known each other, it's funny to think that right now he considers Jeongwoo as one of his closest friends.
And Doyoung is honestly the type to not let a lot of people within the tiny social bubble he created for himself. It’s probably a thing he has developed over the years with having parents who move from place to place because of their jobs. He chose to keep his circle small.
But Jeongwoo has worked his way through Doyoung's life.
Maybe it's because of his smile, or how he laughs at his stupid jokes.
Or maybe it's the ramen that Jeongwoo cooks for them when they reward themselves for doing a great job for the day.
Doyoung isn't entirely sure, he just knows that Jeongwoo is someone he considers important.
"Yeah he is," a smile present on his face.
Jihoon nods. “Then that’s good,” he says.
##
The celebration continues, and Doyoung may or may not have had a few glasses of champagne.
He excuses himself and goes to the veranda for him to sober himself up with the cold bite of the wind.
Doyoung rested his elbows in the rail of the balcony and closed his eyes as the wind blew that made him shiver.
A heavy weight falls on his shoulders and he quickly feels the warmth of the coat.
"You shouldn't go out without a coat on," Jeongwoo adds as he stands beside Doyoung.
“Thanks,”
“Why aren’t you inside?”
Doyoung turns to Jeongwoo and gives the question back to him.
“Because my fake boyfriend isn’t inside,” Jeongwoo answers and watches Doyoung’s reaction.
Doyoung laughs and scrunches his nose at him. “You’re taking this whole fake boyfriend thing really good.”
Jeongwoo does a one shoulder shrug. “Well we have to be convincing so they can get off my back about getting a partner. Nana, especially Nana. She makes me talk to her friends and granddaughters and grandsons.”
“Is that why you even kissed me on the cheek when your Grandmother was there?”
“That, and cause you really looked handsome today. I couldn’t stop myself.”
“Sorry if it made you uncomfortable,” Jeongwoo adds.
Doyoung purses his lips. “It’s fine… And I wasn’t,” he says as he rests his head on his arms and turns his gaze towards Jeongwoo.
Jeongwoo tilts his head and sees a slight red present in Doyoung’s cheeks.
He shifts closer and presses his palms to Doyoung’s face. “You’re warm,” and drops it just as fast.
Doyoung’s eyes wrinkle as he looks at Jeongwoo.
He raises his head and invades Jeongwoo’s space.
Dobby tilts his head and their faces are closer than it was when they were in the car. Closer than when they were lying side by side on Jeongwoo’s bed. And closer than when he woke up this morning with Jeongwoo by his side.
Doyoung is someone who thinks things through before he does something, his friend (Seunghan) knows that, which is the reason why he comes to him when he needs a logical mind to help him make his decisions.
So if you ask Seunghan if he thinks Doyoung would initiate a kiss to his supposed “fake boyfriend”, he would confidently tell you ‘No’.
And that’s the only time he is wrong about his friend.
Doyoung leans forward to catch Jeongwoo’s lips. He can taste the peach chapstick that he also uses on his lips and their lips move together in-sync as if they have done this multiple times already.
Dobby’s arms circle on the back of Jeongwoo’s neck while Woo places his hand at the small of his back. They continue kissing. This is not the first time for Doyoung to be kissed by someone, even a boy.
But it feels like it is because of how his heart is leaping on his chest.
Dobby is not the first boy that Jeongwoo has kissed but it’s the first time that someone has made him feel butterflies fluttering in his stomach as they do And that thought made him smile.
They pull apart, Doyoung tries to catch his breath when it dawns on him what he has done.
He pushes Jeongwoo away from him. “Uhm sorry, I need to go,” he says as he quickly walks away.
Jihoon sees Dobby walking away and looks at his cousin who is standing with his back turned.
“Where’s Dobby going in such a hurry?” Jihoon asks as he comes closer to Jeongwoo.
"We kissed," Jeongwoo murmurs.
"Well yeah, isn't it normal? You guys are dating," Jihoon says as he looks at his cousin with a puzzled expression. It's normal for couples to kiss. Even he and Junkyu do it a lot.
Jihoon checks on his cousin and can see an unreadable expression on his face. It's like a mix of rejection, annoyance, and whatever it is his cousin was feeling that moment.
"Well, that's the thing. We aren't really dating."
"Huh? But then why is Dobby here and why did you say he's your boyfriend?"
"I asked him to, since I didn't want Nana to set me up. I asked Dobby if he can pretend to be my boyfriend," he explains as he sits in one of the chairs in the veranda.
"Well, you guys were pretty convincing. Because, Jeongwoo, the way you look at him? And the way he looks at you?"
"It's the same way Chanyeol-hyung looks at his wife,"
"You're saying that I'm in love with him and he's in love with me?"
Jihoon sits on the other chair. "Yeah, because you look at Dobby like he holds your entire world.And if only you could see how your mouth lifts up at the mention of him, how your eyes sparkle,"
"Not to mention the looks you give to each other, the silent conversation you guys have just by staring at each other's eyes. If that isn't love then I don't know what else to tell you."
Jeongwoo groans and puts his head on his hands. "What do I need to do?" he asks Jihoon.
Jihoon hooks his arms around him "Well first things first, you gotta be sure about your feelings for him."
"Then once you are, you go and tell him."
Jeongwoo turns to his cousin. "Just like that?"
Jihoon in turn looks at him as well, nods his head and says, "Just like that."
"You make it sound so easy."
"Because Woo, it should be easy. Telling someone you like them, that you're in love with them."
Jihoon pats him on the back. "Think about it then talk to him once you're ready," he tells his cousin before leaving him with a mind full of what ifs and the feeling of Doyoung's lips on his.
##
When Jeongwoo returned from the reception, Doyoung was already sleeping in his bed.
So as to not disturb him any longer, he decided to sleep in the guest room, so he can also do what Jihoon has advised him to, which is to carefully think about the obvious feelings he has been harboring to his roommate / fake boyfriend.
Jeongwoo cannot pinpoint the exact moment that he can say he started to have feelings of romantic attraction to Doyoung when the past months of living together have been really going well.
He admits that the very first night when he saw him standing by the kitchen door, he already found him attractive.
There seems to be something different this weekend they have spent together.
And maybe it has been going on for a while now and maybe, he just didn't notice it until this weekend. Maybe not until they started to pretend that they were hopelessly in love with each other.
Maybe Jeongwoo is already hopelessly in love with Doyoung.
Jeongwoo chuckles at himself. "I'm so fucking dumb."
Jeongwoo releases a heavy sigh. “Tomorrow,” he tells himself. Tomorrow in the morning he'll tell Doyoung how he feels.
He just hopes that Doyoung will be here till tomorrow.
##
Jeongwoo wakes up a little past seven in the morning, he forgot to change clothes so he's still wearing the dress shirt from last night.
He takes in his surroundings before he realizes that he slept in the guest bedroom so he stretches a bit before getting up and going to his room.
He's standing outside his room, hand hovering over the door knob. He doesn't know if he should knock or just come in. It is his bedroom, still, but he didn't want Doyoung to feel uncomfortable or whatsoever especially with what happened last night.
He knocks. Once and then twice but there was no answer.
Jeongwoo opens the door and sees that his bedroom is empty. His bed is made though, he checks the bags and sees that Doyoung's things are still there.
He released a sigh of relief, he thought Doyoung would run off on him and go back on his own to Seoul.
He grabs a pair of sweatpants and shirt from his closet and proceeds to go and shower to get ready for breakfast.
##
Doyoung, after running off from Jeongwoo last night, hurriedly came back to the house and packed all of his stuff.
He was in the middle of putting his shirt inside his bag when his phone rings and he picks it up right away. "Hey, what's up with your message? Is Everything alright?" Seunghan, one of Dobby's closest friends, says on the other line.
Doyoung releases an exasperated sigh and sits on the edge of the bed. "Seunghan, I think I screwed up."
"Context Dobs, I need to know what happened," his friend says.
"So remember I was telling you about my new roommate? Jeongwoo? Well things happened and I'm with him in his hometown attending his cousin's wedding. Pretended to be his boyfriend and I kissed him." Dobby says all of this without even taking a breath.
"Woah, stop right there! You pretended to be his boyfriend?"
Dobby nods and belatedly realizes that Seunghan can't see him. "Yes."
"And now after spending the weekend with him, you realize that you're actually in love with him and kissed him?"
"Do you really have to say it like that?" Dobby says as he collapses on the bed and groans out of frustration.
"Well how do you want me to say it?"
"I don't know maybe change the part about being in love with my roommate"
"Why would I when you are?" Seunghan sounds smug that Doyoung wants to wipe the sneer on his face because he's sure he is sporting one right now.
And Seunghan is probably right, maybe he is in love with Jeongwoo and that he only realized it now. Maybe it's the way his eyes turn into crescents when he laughs at one of his jokes.
Or maybe the way the corner of his lips turn up when he gets something right, or how his hand feels whenever it brushes up against his when they walk side by side finding pokemons.
It could've been a lot of things. ‘Cause in the past three months of knowing Jeongwoo, he has fallen in love with his roommate without him knowing until now.
And right now, Doyoung is afraid that this may all be temporary, and perhaps Jeongwoo might not feel the same, and it would be awkward in the apartment.
"Dobby, you're quiet. You're probably overthinking and making all the worst case scenarios possible," Seunghan says. Typical of Doyoung, his friend thinks from miles away.
"Listen to me. Are you listening?"
"Yes."
"Okay, don't overthink it. Just tell him how you feel and go from there.”
“But what if it gets complicated?”
“Why would it?”
“Seunghan, I’m his roommate and fake boyfriend, don’t you think everything is too complicated? What if he doesn’t feel the same?”
“Well you wouldn’t know if you don’t talk to him. And Dobby, feelings are never complicated. You just have to be honest about it.”
Doyoung takes a deep breath. “Okay,” he answers. “I’ll talk to him,” he adds.
“Good, now don’t go running off from him now.”
This made Doyoung laugh. “How do you even know I’m about to run off back to Seoul?”
Seunghan scoffs. “I’m literally your best friend, they say you’re the logical one but right now I am that and not you.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, now call me when you guys finally date,” Seunghan says before bidding goodbye and reminding his friend one last time to talk to his roommate.
Doyoung closes his eyes and decides that tomorrow morning when he wakes up he will talk to Jeongwoo.
##
Jeongwoo comes down from his room after taking a hot shower. He goes straight to the kitchen where his mother is standing behind the stove cooking with her red apron on.
“Hi Mom, Good morning,” he greets as he walks towards her and presses his cheeks against her own.
“Good morning, Woo.”
Jeongwoo looks around. “Have you seen Doyoung?” he asks as he opens the fridge to get a bottle of water. He opens the cap and roams his eyes around again.
“Oh, he’s at the back with your Nana, helping her tend to the plants.”
That makes Jeongwoo smile, it’s nice to know that he’s getting along with his family.
“He’s a really sweet kid, honey. I’m glad you brought him here for us to meet,” his Mom says.
“I’m glad that you’re with him, he seems like a keeper Woo. Make sure you don’t let go of him,” his mother adds.
“I won’t, don’t worry.”
##
Doyoung and Jeongwoo’s grandmother were sitting in one of the chairs at the back, talking amongst themselves when Jeongwoo arrives.
He greets his grandmother and looks at Doyoung “Good morning.”
“Good morning,” Doyoung replies.
“Nana, Mom is looking for you,” he says as he assists his grandmother to stand up and walks her back in the house.
Doyoung is left in the backyard and shortly after, Jeongwoo returns.
He hurriedly averts Woo's gaze when their eyes meet. Instead of looking into Jeongwoo's eyes, he decided to focus on the grass under his shoes.
Jeongwoo takes the chair next to Doyoung. No one is speaking. It was complete silence. Both are at a loss about where to begin.
“I’m sorry,” Doyoung starts. “For running off last night, after you know.”
“After kissing me?” Jeongwoo says. “Yeah," Dobby replies. "And you actually kissed me back,” he adds.
This caused a laugh to come out of Jeongwoo. “Well only because I've been wanting to kiss you since you walked down the stairs yesterday."
“Or maybe since I put your seatbelt on for you, on our way here.” He adds, “Probably even before that.”
Doyoung finally glances up and looks at the man beside him whose eyes have been focused on him ever since he sat by the chair. “I think it's the same for me,” he admits.
Jeongwoo smiles upon hearing Dobby's confession.
"I think, no. I actually like you Jeongwoo. I may even be in love with you."
Doyoung sighs. "Last night, I was afraid to admit it to myself."
"Because it's only been a few months and I've never really felt like this in a long time. And I thought of all the possible outcomes when I tell you about my feelings,"
"It's scary how much I feel for you, Jeongwoo. Because I never knew I could actually like someone to the point that I've already thought about what to name the pet we're going to adopt in the future."
Jeongwoo smiles. "We're gonna adopt one dog and one cat," he interjects.
"I was thinking of a bunny, but a dog and a cat works also," Doyoung retorts, chuckling.
"So what I really want to say is that, this whole fake dating thing, I want it to stop… because I want it to be real," he says.
With his free hand, Jeongwoo cupped Doyoung's face. Using his thumb, he gently caressed the apple of Dobby's cheeks which were getting warm by the contact.
"I'm in love with you," Jeongwoo declares.
"And I was scared, too, when I realized that maybe from the very start I haven't been pretending."
"Because I liked the way your hand fits mine and how you look right next to me,"
"And how you say my name in the morning and the smile you give whenever we eat the shitty ramen I cook for us."
"It's not shitty, I told you it's better than Jaehyuk's," Doyoung says, giggling.
Jeongwoo has to bite back the smile appearing on his lips, he is still not yet done confessing.
"Last night I was at a loss when you left me at that veranda. But Jihoon told me to be honest. And here I am being honest with you."
"I'm in love with you, Dobby. And all of your quirks and your stupid jokes and your beautiful smile."
Doyoung holds Jeongwoo's hands that are on his face and he can feel the tears starting to pool on his eyes.
"So I agree that we should stop pretending and make it real."
Doyoung didn't hesitate for a second to lean in and close the gap between his and Jeongwoo's lips.
Dobby stands up from his seat, Jeongwoo following suit. He wraps his arms around him and Woo's hands drop from his face, immediately wrapping them around his waist.
Jeongwoo pulls him closer, prompting Dobby to open his mouth which he did, and runs his tongue along the seams of Doyoung's lips which made his roommate let out a soft groan.
They continued kissing until they heard Jeongwoo's mom calling for them to come inside so they could finally eat breakfast.
Doyoung pulls away but not until Jeongwoo steals another peck that makes them both chuckle. With foreheads pressed together, "We should get inside," Dobby whispers between them.
Woo leans in again and leaves a soft peck on his lips. "But I've already had my fill," he says as he touches the side of Dobby's swollen lips.
Doyoung scrunches his nose. "You're corny," he giggles. He completely pulls away from Jeongwoo and starts walking back inside.
He noticed that Jeongwoo wasn't following so he looks back and sees Jeongwoo with a pout present on his lips, as if he's sulking and Dobby shakes his head and walks back to where he is.
Dobby offers his hand for Jeongwoo to reach. "Come on," he says, but Woo wouldn't budge. "Boyfriend," Doyoung adds, which makes the young man perk up from where he is standing, a smile breaking out from his lips.
"Okay, '' he says as he grabs hold of Doyoung's hand and drapes his arms over his shoulders. He pulls him closer and kisses him on the cheek.
Doyoung rounded his arm around Woo's waist as they walked back together inside Jeongwoo's house.
Epilogue:
Jeongwoo turns off the engine of his car and he breathes in and out again. He checks his hair in the rearview mirror for the nth time.
Doyoung laughs at his boyfriend's antics. "Baby, why are you so nervous?" he asks as he grabs hold of Jeongwoo's hands which were fiddling with the necktie.
Jeongwoo lets his boyfriend fix his tie as he answers, "I'm meeting your family."
"But you already met my Mom and my brother."
"Yeah, but this time I'm also meeting your Dad and the rest of your family."
Doyoung slides his hands down to tap on his boyfriend's chest. "Relax, Dad is really nice and my Grandma will like you."
"And my cousins? They will only ask you questions and probably tell embarrassing stories about me."
"You really think your Dad will like me?"
Doyoung grabs hold of his face, caresses his cheeks and kisses him on the lips. "Yeah, I do."
"How sure are you?"
"Because you make me happy. And Dad likes whatever or whoever makes me happy."
Jeongwoo smiles upon hearing what Doyoung said, ‘cause it's the same for him.
Doyoung makes him happy. And two years ago he wouldn't have imagined that they would get to this point but they did.
After graduating, they moved in together. Doyoung is currently going to Law school while he, on the other hand, is in his first year of Med school.
Jaehyuk wasn't even surprised when they shared that they started dating after spending that weekend at Iksan. "I was kind of expecting it. I'm living with you two, I can always see the heart eyes you guys were both shooting at each other whenever we eat together or hang out."
And here they are two years later, still together. Jeongwoo has met Doyoung's Mom and brother but not his Dad yet given that he's always away on business trips and that they never really got the chance to meet until today.
Today is Doyoung's brother's wedding. And they are to spend the weekend with his family, kind of like what happened when they pretended to be boyfriend in his cousin's wedding.
Except this time they aren't pretending.
"I love you," Jeongwoo says as he leans in to kiss Doyoung. "And I love you more," Dobby replies.
They get out of the car and start walking towards Dobby's family home.
They are greeted by Doyoung's mother who hugs them both tightly and a man behind her who is standing tall and looking at them.
Doyoung walks towards him and hugs his father. As he pulls away, he faces Jeongwoo and stretches his hand for him to hold.
"Dad, this is Jeongwoo. My boyfriend."