Work Text:
Wonwoo
If it’s not bothersome, I was thinking if you could pick them up at my apartment.
I’m going to have to attend a meeting until 9 PM, unfortunately.
The key is still in the same place.
Soonyoung was unconsciously chewing on his bottom lip when his co-worker suddenly nudged his arm lightly. He didn’t realize he’d been dozing off for about five seconds, staring blankly into his phone, completely oblivious of the still-yapping Mingyu beside him. They were both getting their things ready before going back home after their day in the office had ended, usually striking up a conversation filled with trivial questions such as “What are you going to get for dinner after this?” or “I am so going to go to a masseuse, my back is killing me!” to keep them ashore from the brink of their sanity.
Now, though, the unexpected had happened and Soonyoung felt like his whole night routine had been disturbed. A few minutes earlier, there was a text message that popped up from Wonwoo, his recent ex-boyfriend, who had broken up for almost two months and had just moved out from their apartment. Well, technically, it was originally Soonyoung’s apartment. Wonwoo had done tons of sleepovers when they were dating and he just stopped coming back to his own apartment one day. He already had his toothbrush next to Soonyoung’s, a pair of towel hanging in the bathroom, his clothes in Soonyoung’s wardrobe—and one night, over a ramen and a movie that they were watching at midnight, Soonyoung mindlessly blurted out, “What if you just move in with me here instead?” Which, much to his surprise, was replied by Wonwoo with a shrug of his shoulders and a smile on his face, “Haven’t I basically done that for the past few months, my love?”
Soonyoung shook his head, trying to bring himself back into the present. Mingyu was still talking as they walked together to the elevator. He liked hearing Mingyu talk, honestly. He had a lisp and he thought it made him cuter, and his heart grew warm when he registered how Mingyu was talking about cooking his boyfriend’s comfort food for both of them to enjoy after a long day at work. He’s a tall guy with a body figure that might have made you think of how intimidating and arrogant he would be, but he was actually the opposite of it all. He really did resemble a puppy and Soonyoung had grown to be fond of Mingyu because of how nice and caring and kind he was, just the perfect friend for him to dote on amidst the stressful hours at work, and Mingyu didn’t seem to mind either. Soonyoung thought he just liked to feel useful and to be able to provide for people.
“Aren’t you tired, though?” Soonyoung asked him when they were waiting for the elevator to go down, only the two of them were inside. “I mean, you must be tired at work, right? And the next thing you’re doing when you get home is cook. Like, I have never heard of you having a leisure time to just laze on the couch and let your boyfriend do the work.”
Soonyoung was hoping that what he had said didn’t offend Mingyu, because he was genuinely just being curious. A smile on the younger’s face when he understood the question then lifted up Soonyoung’s anxiety for thinking that he was being rude.
“Well, I am. Tired, I mean. But, the thought of Seungcheol hyung smiling out of relief and satisfaction at the sight of me waiting for him in the kitchen with his comfort food ready just, um, it’s like I know my tiredness is going to be gone for a second and that it’s worth it, you know?”
He gave Mingyu’s arm a friendly squeeze. “Oh, dear. He’s not smiling out of relief and satisfaction,” Soonyoung chuckled to himself, finding how adorable Mingyu was. “He’s smiling because he’s just so in love with you, I bet.”
Mingyu seemed to be too flustered from what Soonyoung had just uttered, obvious by how there were red tints on his cheeks now. Before he could open his mouth to reply, there was a sound of a notification that came from Soonyoung’s phone.
Soonyoung
alright!!
i’ll come by to your place to pick them up
just finished work so i’m omw :]
Soonyoung reread his own replies, mentally facepalming at the thought of how silly it was to be oversharing the fact that he had just finished from work. He could’ve just said that he’s on his way without telling his ex the unimportant detail, couldn’t he? It was a habit that he could never get to reduce, it seemed, telling Wonwoo everything about his day. He felt a weird pang in his heart when a flash of memories of the two of them talking about their day when their limbs were entangled, Wonwoo’s hand caressing on his hair and his soft, deep hum that vibrated through his chest where Soonyoung’s cheeks usually rested.
Wonwoo
Great, thank you. I’m so sorry to bother you.
You can take a breather in my apartment, if you’d want to.
Make yourself some tea or anything.
Don’t rush yourself.
“Are you okay, hyung?” Mingyu frowned, still clinging on Soonyoung’s legs when they walked out the elevator. “You’ve been, uh, your phone. Is someone bothering you in there?”
Soonyoung pushed the door open for him and Mingyu as he laughed to himself. “If the someone in question is my ex who bought our cat a whole bag of sand litter and some food stocks, then yes. He kind of is bothering my new usual night routine that I just built for myself recently.”
“Oh,” Mingyu perked up at the mention of his ex. He flashed him a huge grin, both of his fangs peeking out. “Are you going to meet Wonwoo hyung, then? And how is Chubby doing, by the way?”
Soonyoung, for once, didn’t really get about the whole ‘keep your personal life to yourself from your co-workers’ code. For him, sharing everything with Mingyu and receiving the same amount of stories from the younger guy seemed to be nothing out of normal. Perhaps he was just lucky enough to have Mingyu consider him as a friend, too. Besides, Mingyu basically came into his life with that bright smile of his when Soonyoung was a year into the relationship with Wonwoo. So, yes, he was also there when the breakup happened. Accompanied Soonyoung to the bar so he could drunk himself to total blackout, and was disappointed in the morning when he found out that Seungcheol, the star and the center and the love life that Mingyu talked about for almost everyday, was there after Mingyu called him to help him hauled up a drunk, sobbing Soonyoung into Seungcheol’s car.
Soonyoung did tell Mingyu how thankful he was until Mingyu felt like he was thanking his ears off, along with how shitty it was that he never got to make a good first appearance in front of Seungcheol’s face. He seemed like a respectable man that held his head high, he assumed from Mingyu’s stories. Although Mingyu told him that it was okay, that Seungcheol thought nothing bad of him, Soonyoung was still not satisfied until he got a second chance to prove himself better in front of Mingyu’s boyfriend. Kind of like, hey, I promise you I’m decent enough to be your baby boyfriend’s friend and that I’m not a guy who gets drunk occasionally!
Also, yeah, Mingyu knew about Soonyoung and Wonwoo’s cat, Chubby. The cat that they both adopted, since Wonwoo liked cats, missed his old pet back home and Soonyoung had always liked them but never got to have one as a pet. Chubby was the star of their problem when they broke up. Soonyoung didn’t allow Wonwoo to take her away from him, yet Wonwoo didn’t want to leave Chubby behind either. So, as silly as it sounded, they agreed on taking turns in taking care of Chubby. At the beginning, one of them gets to keep Chubby for a week before they had to drop him at the other’s apartment and leave her there for another week, and the cycle had been going well, not until Wonwoo told him that he wouldn’t be able to take Chubby in his apartment for awhile, due to the crazy workload he had at the office. He was afraid he’d leave Chubby unattended, and Soonyoung didn’t mind. As a way to tell him that he still cared about her, Wonwoo told him that he’s going to buy Chubby her needs with his own money.
Back then, when Soonyoung thought about it after he received that message, he almost laughed at how silly it was. With his phone in his hand, he leaned forward to give Chubby a kiss on her head. “I’m sorry. It must’ve been hard to be a child of divorce, isn’t it?” He cooed, while the cat only blinked at him. He added, then, to humor himself, “You won’t be seeing your Daddy until he’s got some free time in his hands, so, I guess you’re stuck with me for a while. That’s okay, right, Chubby? You love Papa just as much as you love Daddy, don’t you?”
And Soonyoung felt like his heart was going to burst when Chubby purred, as if she was agreeing with what he had asked of her.
“She’s fine,” Soonyoung told Mingyu as a matter-of-factly. “Yesterday, when I was watching The Fall of the House of the Usher, she sat and curled up in my lap before she fell asleep. It’s like she knew that I was scared shitless.”
Mingyu giggled. “That’s nice to hear,” he walked beside Soonyoung toward the benches that were empty in front of their office building, waiting for their bus to arrive. “You haven’t answered my first question, by the way.”
Soonyoung huffed out a sigh as they took their seats, his shoulders slumped. “I was supposed to go to his apartment to pick them up now, the new stuff. He’s going to be in a meeting until the evening, so he won’t really have the time to drop them off at my place.”
“Okay…?” Mingyu tilted his head, eyebrows knitted together. “And is the bus we’re taking heading toward his apartment, too?”
“No,” Soonyoung deflated like a balloon would. “His place is, like, the opposite direction of mine.”
“Well, then, go order an Uber or something!” Mingyu scolded, his lisp sounding clearer than ever. “Think of doing this for Chubby, because technically, you are. Besides, Wonwoo hyung won’t be there, either.”
After a few minutes of contemplating, Mingyu had finally succeeded in encouraging Soonyoung to order himself an Uber. Both of their rides arrived at the same time, and after Mingyu waved him goodbye and a “Be careful on your way, hyung!” he disappeared into the inside of the bus. Soonyoung didn’t have the time to say it back, so he decided he’d just have to wait until he arrived at Wonwoo’s place to ask Mingyu if he had arrived safely through his phone.
The ride didn’t last that long, it only took him around fifteen minutes to arrive in front of Wonwoo’s apartment building, standing tall and looming over him that he almost got on the motorbike and asked the driver to drop him back at his own office building. But, no, Soonyoung braced himself and headed up the floor where Wonwoo’s room resided after thanking the driver.
True to his words, Wonwoo still kept the key to his own apartment in the usual place he kept it hidden. With a quick murmur of Soonyoung apologizing, feeling like he’d breached a line where it shouldn’t be considered okay, remembering that they were now exes, he unlocked the door and pushed it open.
The first thing that hit him was a wave of nostalgia. The second thing, it was safe to say that Wonwoo’s apartment was kind of a mess, truly. Soonyoung gaped at the door, registering the whole room all at once before finally closing the door behind him gently. There were piles of discarded clothes scattered around the floor. Formal clothes, collared shirts, casual t-shirts—Soonyoung silently thanked God that he didn’t have to see underwear lying around somewhere or he could really pass out from the shock. There were some takeout foods that hadn’t been thrown out, but Soonyoung assumed that it was from last night and he supposed Wonwoo did regularly take his trash out since there was no foul smell at all in the air. It gave him some peace of mind, honestly, to know that Wonwoo was somehow still able to take care of himself and his place amidst all the business he had to deal with.
“Oh, God… What do I do with you?” Soonyoung sighed. He felt a sudden urge to tidy up this place, knowing Wonwoo would’ve appreciated it. It wouldn’t cross the line, would it? After all, Soonyoung just wanted to help. He checked the time on his phone and there were still two hours away before Wonwoo gets home.
So, tidied up the place he did.
He merely folded the discarded clothes before placing it on the laundry basket; he swept the floor and decided that mopping the place would be too much so he decided to leave it at that; he dusted off some dust from the bookshelves and tables; he took out the trash; arranging some stuff on the kitchen how he remembered it last. After all, this was Soonyoung’s second home after all, before Wonwoo started to spend more time in his place.
Now, he had exactly one hour left before Wonwoo gets home.
He took Wonwoo’s offer to let himself make some tea and get some rest on the couch. Soonyoung looked around, feeling quite satisfied with the cleaning work he had done, before his eyes sneakily glanced at the top of Wonwoo’s bookshelf. On top of that shelf, there were rows of framed pictures, and Soonyoung just had to do a double-take to make sure that what he really saw was indeed a picture of them together, one that they took in a self-photo studio when they were celebrating their third anniversary. Soonyoung gulped harshly, feeling anxious all of a sudden. Why hadn’t he thrown that picture out? The only sensible explanation was that Wonwoo had gotten too busy with work that he hadn’t gotten the time to really look around and throw out some stuff that was no longer necessary. Though, the thought of their relationship and the material things they left behind, being boxed as something that was no longer necessary, did make Soonyoung want to cry.
Ah, nevermind. He really shouldn’t have thought of these kinds of things. As much as Soonyoung still loved him and was devastated when Wonwoo moved out, he couldn’t be that stupid to dig himself a new grave, right in his ex’s apartment out of all places. As Soonyoung sipped his tea to distract his mind, he heard a growl from his stomach. Now, that was rather embarrassing. He probably should order something for himself, shouldn’t he? He did have half an hour from ordering, to waiting, to eating, and to clean it all up. Besides, didn’t Wonwoo really tell him to take a breather? Why not take that offer’s benefit?
So, around ten to fifteen minutes later, Soonyoung had laid out all of the menus he ordered. It was enough for two people to eat, and he was staring at each of the dishes when he thought to himself, why on earth did I order for two? Perhaps it was done out of respect, since Soonyoung was literally eating at Wonwoo’s place. Even when the host wasn’t yet present, he could still buy him something as a way to show his gratitude, right?
Out of the blue, Soonyoung almost choked on his own spit when he remembered what Mingyu had been talking about. Preparing foods for his boyfriend to come home to so they could eat together was disgustingly adorable because they were disgustingly in love. But, what did you call this kind of situation, though?
Nevermind. Nevermind, nevermind, nevermind. Soonyoung shrugged his shoulders and decided to just fuck it, lifting up his chopsticks as he hungrily eyed the dishes before him. But, then, as Soonyoung was going to dig in, the door to the apartment was opened.
And at the door, Wonwoo stood with his hair a bit tousled, his long-sleeve white formal shirt was folded up to his elbow, a crooked black tie that hugged his collar and fell on the upper side of his stomach, a bit slumped posture, and his black-framed glasses that adorned his tired face.
Soonyoung held his chopsticks in the air, his mouth slightly ajar, as if he was at a loss for words. He really was. He thought he still had about half an hour before Wonwoo came back. Much to his surprise, though, Wonwoo didn’t react the way he thought he would. Soonyoung thought Wonwoo’s eyes would widen, before his face turned into a frown, before asking him sourly, “Why are you still here?”
Instead, Wonwoo smiled to himself, and perhaps to him as well, before closing the door gently behind him. He didn’t say a word as he loosened his tie, placing his bag on the kitchen counter, and then taking a seat in front of Soonyoung. They were both sitting on the floor now, separated from the table between them.
“I, uh,” Soonyoung started, putting down his chopsticks, feeling flustered all of a sudden. Wonwoo was surely going to hate him for doing whatever he pleased in his place, invading his home, and Soonyoung wasn’t sure if he could live with that. “I probably should, uh, go back.”
“Eat up,” was all that Wonwoo said, shaking his head gently before gesturing to Soonyoung to really do as he said. “It’s okay.”
“It’s not,” Soonyoung shook his head, clearly disagreeing. It was frustrating enough to see how calm and collected Wonwoo looked right now. He wasn’t sure if he still got that gentleness inside him after all this time, just exactly like how he always had been, or was it because Wonwoo was so tired that he didn’t have the energy to be upset, so he decided to just put up with him. “I’m really sorry. I shouldn’t have—”
“Soonyoung,” Wonwoo tutted, carefully placing his hand on top of Soonyoung’s that was still shamelessly holding his chopsticks. “Please, eat up.”
He felt like he had no other choice besides to eat. He did, though, grab the other chopsticks from the plastic bag and gave it to Wonwoo. A silent invitation to eat, right here, right now, with him. An invitation which Wonwoo indulged, accepting it from Soonyoung’s hand before splitting it open. They started to eat in silence. It was quite hard, being this awkward, but Soonyoung tried to loosen himself and enjoy the food, because Wonwoo seemed unfazed, seeing how the guy was munching his food happily right now. Or, if he was being honest, enjoying the view in front of him. A worn out Wonwoo, an exhausted Wonwoo, that if he was to backtrack his memories to when they were still dating, was the clingiest form of Wonwoo to ever exist.
“So,” Wonwoo said after he swallowed a spoonful of food. “You cleaned up.”
Soonyoung gave him a wince, shrinking his shoulder as if it could make him appear even smaller than he already was. “Couldn’t help it.”
The silence stretched into another minute. Soonyoung thought Wonwoo would bring it up again, but he didn’t. He only sat there, munching, keeping his eyes downward. Soonyoung wondered if he hated him now, couldn’t even bring himself to look him in the face as they ate in silence.
All the food was almost devoured by the two of them and Soonyoung silently triumphed for how he could go back to his place any minute now—but not until he heard raindrops that washed over the city in unison, and the rain got heavier as the seconds had passed.
Great. So this was the kind of shit the universe had decided to pull on him.
The rain was still pouring outside, it didn’t seem like it would stop in ten minutes, yet Wonwoo didn’t show any signs of objection to Soonyoung spending more time; at least until the rain had stopped pouring this hard, he thought to himself. They let the elephant in the room (Soonyoung being trapped in his apartment and he wasn’t sure if he could go back, this late at night, in the middle of the rain; but Soonyoung wasn’t sure either if Wonwoo would let him stay the night) hung in the air, and Soonyoung shifted clumsily in his seat. Just how long did he have to wait for the rain to stop?
“How did you get here?” Wonwoo asked after both of them cleaned up the plates and the table. Wonwoo placed another cup of warm tea in front of Soonyoung, and a coffee for himself. A questionable act, remembering how he should be resting and sleeping after a hard, long day at work. But here he was getting himself a cup of coffee.
“I ordered an Uber,” Soonyoung replied mindlessly, before leaning forward to rest his chin on the palm of his hand. “Now, why are you drinking coffee?”
Wonwoo tried a poor attempt at hiding his smile behind his cup of coffee, for it didn’t go unnoticed by Soonyoung who clicked his tongue in resignation. “I need to make sure there’s no error first before I go to sleep.”
“Well, that’s funny,” Soonyoung rolled his eyes. When Wonwoo raised an eyebrow as his only response, taking quite a big gulp of his coffee, he continued, “You sure do look like you don’t get to sleep at all.”
“It’s kind of hard to sleep when there’s no one to lull you to it, I guess,” Wonwoo said, like it was a matter-of-factly. He couldn’t say those things so nonchalantly like that, Soonyoung thought, feeling something dangerous started to bloom in his chest; hope. “I mean, uh, Chubby usually snuggles beside me. It’s like she’s asking me to sleep and just ditch work.”
Oh.
Soonyoung suddenly launched to let out a laugh that sounded forceful, an awkward one. So, Wonwoo wasn’t being subtle in giving him hints on how miserable he had gotten since they broke up. It was just Chubby that he missed and that seemed fair enough. Although, Soonyoung did try to swat at the gnawing feeling of disappointment that started to creep into his heart.
“Right, yeah,” he nodded his head in agreement, trying to cover up the awkward laugh he just let out, only realizing it after he’d done it. “She does that to me, too.”
There went another fifth gulp of his coffee, and when Wonwoo put his cup down, Soonyoung peered down to see how it was now empty. “What coffee was that?”
“What, this?” Wonwoo pointed at the now empty cup before him. “Americano. Seungkwan recommended it to me. It really does help you stay up.”
Soonyoung didn’t know what to respond with, so he only nodded his head. The thing was, he didn’t know who the hell this Seungkwan guy was. After two months of breaking up, how could there be a new guy in Wonwoo’s life that he didn’t know of? Did life go on that easy for him? Meanwhile, Soonyoung was stuck with his current job and his only friend at work was Mingyu (not that he was complaining) and none of the guys he tried to hook up with from a dating app seemed to be working. Everything was a mess, and here Wonwoo was mindlessly mentioning a new name that Soonyoung didn’t recognize.
He seemed to pick up his confusion, though. “Seungkwan is, uh, he’s an intern in my division,” Wonwoo explained, like it was necessary to give Soonyoung an update about his list of friends—just like they always did. “He wouldn’t be able to function without a glass of americano.”
“He sounds cool,” was all that Soonyoung said. He circled his fingers around the warm cup of tea, looking down at his reflection in the dark brown liquid.
“I just told you that he wouldn’t be able to function if he hadn’t had his americano,” Wonwoo laughed, sounding incredulous. “And your take is that he sounds cool? Have you ever tried an americano before?”
He did, Soonyoung recalled. He did try it when they were at the cafe with their friends from college at that time. He remembered it was Seokmin who ordered an americano, and Soonyoung gagged from how bitter it tasted. When Wonwoo had his turn to taste it, Soonyoung also remembered how it wasn’t his taste, either. “To put it in a simple way, it tastes shit,” was what Wonwoo said.
So, why did he like it when this Seungkwan guy introduced him to americano for the second time?
Something seemed to click in Wonwoo’s brain, seeing from how abashed he looked when Soonyoung wasn’t saying anything for the next ten seconds. He cleared his throat, the tip of his fingers rapidly tapping on the wooden table before them, not in a rhythmical way.
“He’s not like that,” Wonwoo blurted out. “I’m his supervisor at work. That’s all.”
And why was he even doing this? Soonyoung didn’t want to know that. Because knowing how Seungkwan had no significant place in Wonwoo’s life after Soonyoung’s department had made the hope that still lingered in his heart grew even bigger. He wouldn’t want to afford not being able to move on. Could he even move on from someone like Wonwoo, was the real question he should be asking himself.
“Okay?” Soonyoung laughed. “What’s that got to do with me? Co-workers or not?”
“I’m just putting it out there,” he said, before slightly shaking his head with a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “You should get some sleep.”
Soonyoung shrugged. Alrighty, then. It was clear that Wonwoo didn’t want to prolong the conversation, so he took out his phone and opened his Uber application. “Since it’s still raining,” his thumb swiped over the phone, “It might took a little long to find an Uber driver who’s willing to—”
“Soonyoung,” upon being called, he looked up only to see Wonwoo staring at him in disbelief. “I told you to get some sleep, not to go back to your own place.” He then stood up from his seat, making his way toward the kitchen to place his empty cup in the sink. “You cleaned this whole place up and you bought food. This is the least I could do to repay your kindness,” he pleaded. Soonyoung could hear the edge of desperation in his voice. “Go on, then. I had the time to make my bed this morning, so. You go ahead.”
“Where are you going to sleep, though?” Soonyoung, too, stood up from his seat in a rushed manner. He wouldn’t lie, the invitation of being allowed to crash on a soft, comfortable bed was tempting—but this was Wonwoo’s bed they were talking about.
“What, is being in the same bed with me too revolting for you now?”
He knew that Wonwoo was just trying to pull on his strings. People who had only seen Wonwoo for the first time would’ve thought that he was a stiff guy who wouldn’t be able to crack or even take a joke. Soonyoung, though, he’d known Wonwoo since they were in high school. And believe him when he said that the joke Wonwoo cracked could sometimes be so much worse than the humorous people he was familiar with. For example, like the situation they were in now.
“Come on,” Soonyoung sighed in frustration. “You know that was not what I meant.”
“I know, I know,” Wonwoo laughed, holding his hands up in the air to show him that he’s found guilty. “I was just messing with you,” he said, not even a flash of lies were spotted in those cat-like eyes of his, so Soonyoung knew he really was joking; messing with him on purpose. “You can take yourself to my room, right? Haven’t forgotten the route or anything?”
“Oh, shut up,” Soonyoung bit back, clearly getting annoyed. “When are you going to go to bed?”
“Right now,” Wonwoo placed himself on his couch, appearing with a blanket in his hands from his wardrobe room. “I usually drank coffee at night, took a ten to fifteen minute power nap to let my body rest for a while, so I could feel fresh when I woke up. Because, you know, the caffeine.”
Soonyoung hesitated still. He hung around the door to Wonwoo’s bedroom, not sure if he was going to do this. It wasn’t until he heard Wonwoo’s exasperated sigh that snapped him out of his daze.
“For God’s sake, Soonyoung. Just go to bed, alright? I promise you, this is not weird. Crashing at your ex’s place for one night is not weird,” Wonwoo rubbed his face, taking his glasses off. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have made you come here in the first place.”
He pursed his lips, feeling bad all of a sudden. It wasn’t like he and Wonwoo were in a lost contact state after they broke up, was it? They did meet up every week to drop Chubby off at each other’s place, but that was it. Just two or three knocks on the door, a quick “Here’s Chubby. Take care of her for the week, yeah?” before leaving. But, still, it wasn’t entirely Soonyoung’s fault either if he thought that this was kind of weird, right?
“I’m going to bed,” Soonyoung announced, and all he heard in response was Wonwoo’s soft hum. Alright, then. He turned his heels to walk into the bedroom when the other called out to him.
“Soonyoung,” Wonwoo propped his elbow and turned his head so he could look at him. “Change your clothes. Wear some of my comfortable clothes in the wardrobe, okay?”
He had been tossing and turning for almost two hours now. He dozed off for a few minutes before snapping his eyes open to consciousness again. Nothing was wrong, really. Wonwoo hadn’t made a sound since he closed the bedroom door, the white oversized shirt and short gray pants of Wonwoo’s that he wore was comfortable. And he felt so tired that he was one step away from dreamland, except he couldn’t seem to reach it in his grasp. He was getting bleary and it had gotten irritating and Soonyoung knew exactly what made him like this.
It was because of the thunder.
Soonyoung had never been fond of them. It scared him, really. Soonyoung used to snuggle his Mother so she could protect him from the blaring thunder outside, but his Mom was back in their hometown and he was now alone.
Unless, he wasn’t.
Soonyoung wondered if Wonwoo was still sleeping, taking his sweet time with his power nap, or if he was already up, clacking away at his laptop. He couldn’t clearly hear anything amidst the rain and thunder sounds that filled his ears. So, he did what he thought was best. He tiptoed, trying to be as quiet as possible, before finally opening the bedroom door.
The lights had been turned off, so it was quite dark. The lamp from the streets outside helped, though, faintly through the curtains. Soonyoung had to rub his eyes before he could continue to scan the living room, when his sight finally caught who he was looking for.
Wonwoo was sitting on the floor, in front of the sofa where Soonyoung had sat earlier, with his laptop before him. His face was illuminated by the soft light emanated from the laptop. He had his glasses on, his fingers delicately dancing through the keyboards with careful precision, and there was a can of Redbull beside his phone.
“Hey, why are you up?” Soonyoung blinked, a bit taken aback when Wonwoo had realized that he was now standing in front of his bedroom door. “Oh, you can’t sleep.”
“Mhm,” Soonyoung yawned. He pouted as he took a few steps closer, now standing beside the table. “Do you, uhm, you got any earphones I could use to block the sound out with music?”
Wonwoo clicked his tongue, tutting. “You know that’d be bad for your hearing, Soonyoung. We’ve talked about this.”
Soonyoung was about to whine his ass off, feeling so exhausted he just wanted to sleep, but this Mr. Smart Ass wouldn’t help him to get what he needed. But then, Wonwoo pushed the table softly so he could create a room between his body and the table, and Soonyoung was too dumbfounded to decipher what it meant when Wonwoo patted his vacant lap.
“Come here,” he said, gently. There was a small smile that bloomed on his lips when Soonyoung finally gave in, too tired to fight back.
Soonyoung was about to sit with his back to Wonwoo’s chest when the other suddenly halted his movement, fingers gripping softly around Soonyoung’s wrist.
“Hey, not like that,” Wonwoo turned Soonyoung’s still standing body to face him, now urging him to sit down. “You won’t be able to sleep if you’re facing my laptop. It’s bright.”
“Oh, right,” Soonyoung responded, too tired to think that he hadn’t even considered that. With the small amount of energy he was left with, though, he was a little bit hesitating. This position was too much, too intimate, but he would be lying if he said that he wasn’t comfortable. He had his arms wrapped around Wonwoo’s torso, his legs around the other’s hips, and his chin on his shoulder.
God, sitting on Wonwoo’s lap with his broad shoulders that he could use as a pillow? Soonyoung be damned if he didn’t find it comfortable.
“Soonyoung,” he heard Wonwoo’s low yet gentle tone, both of their chests rumbled with the vibration it caused. Soonyoung felt a soft caress on his hair for a brief moment, “Don’t think too much. Sleep.”
So, with Wonwoo’s steady breaths, the warmth of his body radiating, and accompanied by the faint rain sounds and soft clicking sounds of him typing on his laptop’s keyboard on the background, Soonyoung soon fell asleep with his head tucked safely in the crook of Wonwoo’s neck.
He forgot when was the last time he slept this well.
“Okay, spit it out.”
Mingyu yelped in excitement when Soonyoung finally let him utter what he had in mind. Because, how could he not? Just this morning, Soonyoung walked into the office in a white collared t-shirt paired with black slim fit pants that seemed too big for him and a scent of body wash that was different from how he usually smelled. Yes, go get yourself a friend like Mingyu who notices even the smallest details about yourself—in a situation like this, Soonyoung wasn’t sure if he’d consider it a blessing rather than a curse.
“You spent the night,” Mingyu couldn’t even restrain himself from grinning, too giddy from it all. “You did, didn’t you!”
Soonyoung shushed him, pushing Mingyu’s chair so they wouldn’t get caught chit-chatting in the middle of work. As much as he wanted to just say yes and let Mingyu talk his ear off about how adorable they both were, Soonyoung couldn’t bring himself to admit it that easily. He was embarrassed, he really was.
“Only because it was pouring hard last night,” Soonyoung rolled his eyes, trying to play it cool.
“I know, I’ve been telling you that the forecaster could never go wrong when it’s about to rain, and I did tell you yesterday!” He chided, talking with a pout. “How did you get here now, though?” Mingyu suspected, squinting his eyes to add some dramatic effects.
“Uh,” Soonyoung shrugged. “His car.”
“See! Oh, wait, sorry…” Mingyu trailed off into a whisper after he accidentally got too worked up, raising his voice and all, earning some looks from the other workers near them. “See!” He hissed, half whispering, though his excitement didn’t wane. “You could’ve gotten back to your place if you asked him to drive you, but none of you had the idea!”
“Oh, come on,” he sighed, exasperated. He didn’t need Mingyu rubbing it into his face at 8 AM in the morning, really. “He was dead tired last night. I didn’t want to trouble him.”
It sounded reasonable, for Mingyu didn’t pry him further. He only nodded in what seemed like satisfaction, going back to his cubicle.
So, okay, Soonyoung did spend the night. With him sleeping on Wonwoo’s lap for God knows how long, because he woke up on Wonwoo’s bed while the owner himself was sleeping on the couch. What time was it? Was it 5 AM? The sun hadn’t even shone, but Soonyoung was already walking to the kitchen. He knew it by heart. So, he did what he usually did back then; made breakfast. He made both of them some tea, toasted some bread and spreaded whatever flavor of jam that Wonwoo had in his drawer.
Wonwoo must’ve been spent, for he stayed asleep the whole time Soonyoung was busy in the kitchen. Soonyoung felt bad, but he lightly tapped Wonwoo’s shoulder to wake him up from his deep slumber, so he could get some breakfast before he went to work.
“Oh, you made breakfast?” Wonwoo yawned, rubbing his bleary eyes. He let himself be guided by Soonyoung since he wasn’t getting up from the couch, letting Soonyoung curled his fingers around his own wrist as he pulled him softly toward the kitchen table. “You really didn’t have to do this.”
Soonyoung shushed him and proceeded to ask Wonwoo if he could be a dear and drive him back to his place so he could feed Chubby since he was sure that she must’ve ran out the food that Soonyoung gave him yesterday morning, also to get ready for work and all, but Wonwoo said that’d be too much of a hassle.
“Why don’t you take a shower here?” Wonwoo suggested between his munchings. “Wear my clothes so you don’t have to get ready at your place, it’ll take a long time. I could drive you to work, maybe we could stop by at your place first, but only, only to give Chubby her refill of food. How’s that sound?”
Okay, Soonyoung had to admit that it was a pretty efficient way. Which was why he ended up wearing clothes that were twice size bigger than him, why he smelled different than he usually was, and why he kept staring at his phone, waiting for a message from Wonwoo for no absolute reason.
“You did get the sand litter and stock of food back with you, right?” Mingyu popped his head up again from his cubicle, his fangs peeking out. Soonyoung thought his cheeks might’ve cramped from smiling too much this morning.
“I did,” Soonyoung deadpanned. “Now, stop bothering me!”
Thankfully, Mingyu didn’t bring it up again for the rest of the day. He launched into a series of rambles about the horror series Soonyoung mentioned yesterday, telling him that he’d tried to watch it and found it intriguing. Soonyoung was tuning in until a ding from his phone snatched his attention.
Wonwoo
Can I pick Chubby up tomorrow?
Soonyoung decided he should reply right away.
Soonyoung
yeah sure!!
are you not busy anymore though?
Wonwoo didn’t give him a reply after that, and Soonyoung had to stop himself from checking his phone every five minutes. He hadn’t even replied when it was time for Soonyoung to go home, complete with small, trivial talks with Mingyu again. This time, Mingyu asked him something that had taken him aback.
“Does it ever cross your mind to, like, get back together with Wonwoo hyung?”
Did it? Now that someone had asked him directly about that, Soonyoung didn’t know what to answer. He shifted in his seat on the bench where they usually sat, fumbling with the sleeve of his—well, technically it’s Wonwoo’s—shirt.
“I don’t really know,” he mumbled. “Nowadays, when I think about it, I feel like—God, this is embarrassing. I felt like our fight that day could’ve been resolved nicely, you know? Like, it didn’t have to end with a break up. Like we could’ve just talked.”
“You know,” Mingyu trailed off, staring absentmindedly into the street before them. “It wasn’t entirely your fault either, for being jealous. We all had our insecurities and whatnot, but yeah, I wished both of you could’ve sorted it out nicely.”
If he was to be honest, Soonyoung really did feel silly for making such a big deal out of their last argument that had happened before the breakup. Wonwoo had been out all night drinking with his co-workers that one night, and Soonyoung had been somehow furious when the name ‘Jeonghan hyung’ slipped out of the other’s mouth. It was unfair, honestly, to turn one of their best hyung in their circle of friends as a weapon, when it was Soonyoung that got too clouded with anger at that time. He’d always known how reliable Jeonghan hyung was, and was actually really happy that Wonwoo got to work with him, a familiar face in the crowd, since they all knew each other since highschool. But, Soonyoung was worried sick and Wonwoo came home reeking of alcohol and a phone that ran out of battery.
And like a rooted vine, it breached everywhere. To little things that had irritated other parties, using them as a weapon and turning it against the other; you rarely picked up the phone when I called you either! You always leave wet towels on our bed! You won’t even wash the dishes if I hadn’t told you to! It’s annoying that you can’t stand cold, I get hot when we sleep! The fight got kind of huge until the point where Wonwoo had to ask Soonyoung to sit down and just please take a deep breath and calm down, but he was having none of that, at all.
So, one thing led to another, and they decided to break up. They didn’t really part nicely, after all. Wonwoo was holding his hand when they were both sitting on the couch, but Soonyoung—and he admitted this himself—wasn’t thinking clearly, too ashamed of his own self, that he’d told Wonwoo that maybe it was just best if they break up right now, and no, no, he didn’t want any further explanation from Wonwoo.
Was their relationship beyond saving at this point?
Soonyoung hated himself for having the guts to hope, knowing damn well that his immaturity was the one that caused their relationship to an end.
Damn Mingyu and his questions. Soonyoung couldn’t get it out of his head. Even when the supposed tomorrow had come, that was today, a Saturday, and Soonyoung spent the whole day lazing around, not knowing what to do. He promised himself he wouldn’t count the seconds until Wonwoo arrived, he wouldn’t. So he watched the TV with Chubby laying beside him on the couch, a forecaster on the news saying that it might be pouring hard again this evening. Oh, well, that was boring. He mindlessly changed the channel until he’d decided to continue watching the horror series he mentioned to Mingyu at the beginning, still accompanied by Chubby. He’d cooked for himself as the rain started to pour, and was contemplating whether he should continue watching the horror series amidst the horrifying rain sounds and soon the thunder, if he wasn’t feeling lucky tonight.
The timing of the jumpscare and the knock on his apartment door was perfect, because even Chubby gave him a cold stare for jumping out of his seat with a yelp that sounded quite unmanly. Patting his chest as he puffed a sigh, Soonyoung walked to the door, opening it to a sight of a drenched, soaked Wonwoo before him.
“Oh my God,” Soonyoung widened his door, ushering him inside. He was freezing and he didn’t even have a single dry spot left in his clothes. Wonwoo was soaked to the core and it was reasonable that the man was now trembling with his teeth chattering. “Did you run all the way here from the parking lot?”
Still with his teeth clacking and whole body shuddering, he managed a sheepish grin and a nod. “Y-yeah,” he said, as he took a seat on Soonyoung’s toilet seat. The host himself ran out of the bathroom and came back with a pair of comfortable and warm clothes (turned out they belonged to Wonwoo himself) for him to wear, closing the door gently behind him to give Wonwoo some privacy. The bathroom was the fastest thing he could think of, since the guy was soaking wet, and Soonyoung wasn’t in the mood to have wet trails all over his apartment.
Wonwoo came out of the bathroom a few minutes later, wearing the new pair of warm clothes (it was his clothes, one that was left behind) with his hair still wet and his foggy glasses on his face. He stood there, not really knowing what to do, because Soonyoung was back on being comfortable on the couch with Chubby, watching the horror series.
“I, uh,” Wonwoo began, his hands occupied by his wet clothes. “Is it okay if I put this in your bathroom for now?”
“Yeah, sure,” Soonyoung nodded his head, he got up from his seat and took Wonwoo’s wet clothes from his hands, placing it himself in the bathroom before he went back to face the other, a grin on his face. “Have you eaten?”
“No, not yet,” he shook his head. When Soonyoung took a stride toward the kitchen, Wonwoo tailed behind him. “But, you don’t have to, though. I can eat later when I’m back.”
“Yeah, and risking Chubby and your warm clothes you just got in to get wet all over again? Not on my watch,” Soonyoung chided, pulling out some ingredients to make a simple dinner for Wonwoo, since he’d eaten himself. “Just sit down and wait.”
“So, like,” Wonwoo, for once, finally gave in and obliged to what Soonyoung had said. He sat on the kitchen table, watching Soonyoung’s back, propping his chin on his palm. “If there’s a big chance that I could spend the night here, because of the rain and all, I’m allowed?”
“Well, you did me a favor, like, two days ago,” Soonyoung said, busy with the cooking. “So, don’t be weird about it.”
Not long after, he placed a plate of pasta before Wonwoo and a can of coke. After he thanked him, Wonwoo dug in and savored his time eating what Soonyoung had cooked for him. It all felt normal, scarily normal—like it was a habit and routine they had never gotten out from. And it scared Soonyoung because of how big the hope in his heart had grown.
“You know you haven’t replied to my message, right?” Soonyoung took a seat in front of Wonwoo, tilting his head with a pout. “You know I hate being ignored.” That’s what made us break up, by the way.
“I’m sorry,” Wonwoo dabbed the corner of his lips with a tissue. “I was out drinking with my co-workers yesterday. Also spent the whole day polishing some documents, so. What was your question?”
Soonyoung felt like he was in a deja-vu. Wonwoo ignored him because he was out drinking with his co-workers. Was Jeonghan there, too? He mentally slapped himself for thinking so.
“My question was, um, are you not busy anymore?” He repeated calmly. “If you feel bad for leaving Chubby with me for a while, it’s really okay. You can pick her up when you’ve nothing on your hands.”
“No, no. It’s okay. I think my schedule has been loosening, so. I miss her, too, anyway.”
Soonyoung said nothing to that. Fair enough, fair enough. It must’ve been Chubby that he always missed. He chided himself for wanting the most impossible thing in the world, but it wasn’t until he heard a laugh from Wonwoo.
“You can stop beating around the bush and just ask me,” he prompted, smiling his damned crooked smile that Soonyoung hated so much.
“Ask you what, exactly?”
“‘Is it just Chubby that you’re missing?’”—a shrug of his shoulders, a mocking but not unkindly kind of smirk—“‘Don’t you miss me, too?’”
“I forgot how annoying you could sometimes be,” Soonyoung scoffed, ignoring the wild beating of his heart for being spotted on.
“For the record—I do, too,” Wonwoo said, finishing his dinner as he stood up, walking around the table and stopping right behind Soonyoung where the sink was located.
“You do too, what?”
“Figure it out yourself, smart guy,” Soonyoung felt a friendly pat on his shoulder before the hand slid off, and now Wonwoo was in front of him again.
So, was it true? He did miss him, too, and not just Chubby? Soonyoung tried to bite back the smile that was about to come up to the surface, so he tried to change the subject while he watched Wonwoo sipped his warm tea. “Was it fun?” He continued when the latter didn’t respond to the ambiguous query. “The drinking last night?”
“Nothing out of the ordinary,” Wonwoo said, stirring his tea using the small spoon. “Seungkwan was there. Jeonghan hyung, too. Junhui got so drunk he almost picked a fight, but Minghao stopped him from it. And then—”
“Look, I’m sorry,” Soonyoung’s shoulders slumped as he leaned back on his seat, looking dejected. He didn’t—couldn’t—manage eye contact with the man in front of him, so he casted his eyes downwards the whole time. “I shouldn’t have launched into a jealous maniac.”
“We could’ve reacted to it better,” Wonwoo, surprisingly, reached out to hold Soonyoung’s hand. “I should’ve comforted you back then.”
“Would you?”
“Would I what?”
Soonyoung gulped, this time lifting his head ever so slowly, feeling his breath hitched when his eyes met Wonwoo’s. Well, he’d gotten his feet wet, so why not throw himself into the water instead?
“Would you do that? If given a second chance?”
The eyelids of Wonwoo’s eyes fluttered for a brief second, like he wasn’t sure if the offer served in front of him on a silver platter was real, and if he should take it. But with Soonyoung’s hand in his, and the reassuring, gentle squeeze, Soonyoung let himself hope.
“I would,” he said, breathlessly. “I would take every second chance you’d give me.”
Outside, the rain had started to recede.
Wonwoo could’ve walked out of his apartment anytime soon now. He could’ve stood up, took Chubby on his way and said, “That was a nice talk. I’ll see you next week,” and Soonyoung would have to live with the almost.
He wouldn’t be able to.
“Stay the night,” Soonyoung’s eyes widened at that. It was as if his own mouth had betrayed his brain that was still contemplating the endless possibilities, had he really asked him to stay the night, to talk about it, to fix what was still able to be fixed. This time, it was Soonyoung who tightened the grip of their jointed hands, though not suffocating.
Warm and certain, were two things that Wonwoo had in mind the second he felt Soonyoung squeezing his hand. Perhaps it was the soft, gentle caress of his thumb, circling around the web of skin between Soonyoung’s thumb and finger, that had prompted the other to take the leap.
So, stayed the night Wonwoo does.
It felt like being back home, a smile on his face as he rested his aching bones on Soonyoung’s comfortable mattress. The host joined not long enough, looking fuzzy and cuddly; his black hair that looked soft swaying slightly to his movements, his bangs that had gotten long almost covering his eyes, his plump cheeks and lips the only thing that Wonwoo’s eyes were fixated on, that it almost took all of his willpower to not bring the other’s face closer by cupping his jaw and pepper him with kisses all over.
Wonwoo knew Soonyoung wouldn’t mind. There wasn’t a time where they didn’t long for each other’s touches, the ones that were light as a feather and the ones that burned. But he also knew that he wanted to take his time carefully, that they had all the time in the world, all cuddled up like this in bed, with Soonyoung resting his head on his chest, using his arm as a pillow, listening to his steady breath. Wonwoo would take his time taking care of Soonyoung tonight.
“I’m sorry,” Wonwoo began, treading his fingers through Soonyoung’s hair, combing it mindlessly as he trailed on. “I should’ve told you that I was going out with my co-workers that night. And I shouldn’t take your jealousy issue towards Jeonghan hyung lightly. It didn’t matter that we both knew him since highschool. I should’ve eased your insecurity and assured you that; no, you’re the only one I love, you always have been.”
Soonyoung sniffled. Wonwoo didn’t know if it was some kind of flu or if he was crying, because he didn’t dare move a single muscle beside his fingers that were still combing the latter’s hair. “I’m sorry,” he managed to croak out. Okay, maybe he was crying. “I really shouldn’t have lashed out like that. You were tired and I was going around the room like some ticking-time bomb. It wasn’t your fault that you couldn’t put up with me at that time.”
“Hey,” Wonwoo chided, stealing the chance to pinch Soonyoung’s chubby cheeks. Oh, how he missed doing that. “We’ve talked about this, too. I never considered it putting up with you.”
“Okay, fine,” Soonyoung wiped his nose, earning a soft laugh from Wonwoo. “You couldn’t, um, deal with me at that time?”
“That’s better, I think,” Wonwoo shrugged.
“Yeah, the point is; I’m sorry,” Soonyoung closed his speech with a sigh, nuzzling his cheek that was now being patted by Wonwoo onto the other’s palm.
“We’re sorry,” Wonwoo took his turn to speak again. This time, Soonyoung could tell that he was smiling, so he looked up because he didn’t want to miss it. He’d been dying to see this kind of smile from Wonwoo again. The vulnerable one, the sincere, genuine one. He loved the cheeky smiles from him too, though. Well, alright, fine—he loved all kinds of Wonwoo’s smile. There. “We’re sorry because we lashed out on each other. Turning against each other, jabbing against each other using the mundane lackings that we promised to love, despite.”
“It was horrible,” Soonyoung sniffled again. A hiccup had escaped him and Wonwoo had to cool him so he would calm down by ruffling his hair affectionately. “Never do that again. I promise I’d never do that again.”
This time, Wonwoo shifted his palm to cup Soonyoung’s jaw, tilting the other’s head as he turned his own, and then placing a soft kiss on his plump cheeks. He could feel Soonyoung turning his body so he could feel comfortable while he had his cheeks kissed, wrapping his arm around Wonwoo’s torso absentmindedly.
“I promise I’d never do that again, too,” Wonwoo repeated, smiling as he nuzzled his nose against Soonyoung’s, now that the other was facing him. “I could elaborate on how sorry I was, but I think telling you this one event where Minghao had been telling me that I looked like the walking dead, repeatedly, since our break up would suffice, at least for now.”
Soonyoung giggled, stealing a kiss on Wonwoo’s sideburn. “I did tell you how you looked like you got no time to sleep, like, two days ago.”
Now, this time, it was Soonyoung who leaned forward, turning Wonwoo’s jaw so he could reach and slot their lips together perfectly, closing their eyes the second their lips touched. It was a slow one, though passionate. It was like them telling each other about the amount of love they stored, still, even after two months of being apart, only seeing each other from when they picked Chubby up when it was their turn.
It was beyond perfect, it was everything they would’ve asked for.
Soonyoung was the one who broke the kiss when he let out a surprised yelp mixed with a groan, when he felt something had just jumped onto his tummy. When they pulled away, their smiles had gotten bigger, knowing that Chubby had just joined the cuddle party.
“It seems like you’re no longer a child of divorce, Chubby,” Soonyoung said, ushering the cat to settle down between them, which she did, taking her sweet time to find a comfortable position.
“You’ve been calling her that?” Wonwoo asked, sounding incredulous. Although the huge, idiotic grin on his face couldn’t betray his emotions. He was happy and it warmed Soonyoung’s heart. “That’s a bit on the nose, isn’t it?”
He groaned, but not complaining either—for how could he complain when he loved the playful side of his dearest Wonwoo so much?
“I know I’m not good with words, but,” Wonwoo tried to steer the topic back to what it was, despite Chubby kneading her paws on his chest. “I hope you know how, um, happy I am. Delighted, even. Elated, I mean.”
Soonyoung just giggled, nodding his head. Wonwoo and his big vocabulary, he sighed affectionately, twinkling stars of adoration in his eyes.
“I hope you know how my cheeks are hurting from smiling,” Wonwoo added, like his previous confession wasn’t enough.
It was enough, Soonyoung told him as he reached for another kiss. It was always enough.