Work Text:
[From; My Boi RV🌹]: Hey baby, do you know if your gonna be off Tuesday night next week?
⬅️: Next Tuesday? Yeah, I have Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday off because I had so much overtime this week and Chris didn't want me overworked.
[From; My Boi RV🌹]: He's a good boss. I'm glad he took over.
⬅️: He is. He takes care of the employees very well.
⬅️: Why did you wanna know if I was off?
[From; My Boi RV🌹]: I wanted to spend some time with you.
⬅️: Next Tuesday? Youngjo, you literally have a show that night.
[From; My Boi RV🌹]: I know. It's fine.
⬅️: “It's fine”? Youngjo, what are you planning?
[From; My Boi RV🌹]: I don't know what you mean. It's just a backstage pass.
⬅️: Ravn!
You don't use your boyfriend's stage name often, it's usually reserved for moments like now when you want to scold him. You're certain he can hear your voice through your text after your time together. You've just gotten home from work, shaking the rain from your jacket and umbrella, changing into pajamas and making tea to warm you up. Your head shakes as you hit send, knowing full well Youngjo is planning something, but you can't figure out what.
[From; My Boi RV🌹]: It's not bad, baby. We get time together and the guys get to see you.
⬅️: Hwanwoong and Geonhak have been bugging you, haven't they?
[From; My Boi RV🌹]: Perhaps. But mostly I just miss you. We haven't been able to spend actual time with each other in over a month.
The message hits you hard, because you are very aware of how busy he's been in preparation. Add the long practices against your work schedule and there was hardly any time to meet for coffee pickups, let alone any quality time.
⬅️: I know. Gods, I miss you.
[From; My Boi RV🌹]: I miss you, too. We're making it work, though.
⬅️: Yeah, but that doesn't mean I don't miss the way you hold me, Youngjo.
[From; My Boi RV🌹]: I miss hearing you sing when you cook.
⬅️: Don't start a missing war with me.
[From; My Boi RV🌹]: Why? Scared I'll win this time?
⬅️: As if. How busy are you?
The smile on your face is obvious as you sit back, sipping your tea. The warmth is nice in your hands, and the liquid warms your body. Your cat hops onto the couch and meows, distracting you from the conversation to pet him. “I know, Hades. I miss daddy, too.” you muse, scratching the Himalayan between his ears. Your phone ringing makes you answer, smiling. “Well, speak of the Devil and he shall call.”
“I’m only a devil for you.” Youngjo teases from his end of the line. “We’re headed back to the dorm, and I figured you’d like to hear my voice.”
“Hyung, is that Y/N?” one voice asks, making you giggle when Youngjo tries to deny it. The others have picked up on what he’s saying, though, and it’s all for naught as someone else chimes in.
“Y/N-noona!” you hear another voice chime in. “Noona, we miss you!”
The laugh that escapes you when you hear Hwanwoong and Dongju, respectively, call out to you is undeniable. Soon there’s greetings from the others as well, and you can barely keep up with their excited words as they all try to talk to you over Youngjo. “Guys, guys, I can’t translate when you’re all talking so fast.” you manage to scramble out, and you’re grateful when Youngjo quiets them by reminding them your native language isn’t Korean. The group’s laughter makes you smile as Youngjo lets you know you’re on speaker.
“Hi, everyone!” you say, trying to get the conversation paced again. “Are you staying warm in the weather?”
“We are. We filmed a little in the rain.”
“Tell me you had jackets on.”
“Of course we did between shots. Seoho-hyung wouldn’t let us take them off.”
“It’s raining during a cold front, Geonhak-ah. None of us need to get sick from playing around.” You hear Seoho scold, and can’t help but remember why you (and several others that know the boys) consider him the mom of the group.
“You guys start a tour in two days, listen to your elders.” You tease, and the conversation turns to the looming excitement of seeing fans again, a few questions about when they’ll see you on Tuesday, and you are reminded of brothers excited to see their older sibling after a long time apart. You hear Keonhee say something about pulling in, and you give a sad smile. “All of you get rest, I’ll see you all soon, okay?”
“Bye, Noona!”
“Bye, get rest, too Noona!”
“See you soon!”
When you don’t hear the echo anymore, you know you’re off speaker and give a chuckle as Youngjo speaks to you. “I’ll try to come by on Monday, that way we can go to the venue together.”
“I love you, Youngjo.”
“I love you, too, darling.” Youngjo replies. “I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”
“Okay. Goodnight.”
“Sleep well.”
Hanging up makes you a little sad, but you set your phone on the arm of the couch and return to petting the fluffball that is your cat. You turn on a drama you’ve been meaning to finish, letting the loud purrs from Hades become background noise as you watch. Your alarm for bed goes off and you put your now empty cup in the sink, walking over to once more pet Hades before turning the TV off and walking down the hall. The bell on Hades’ collar is heard as he hops down from his perch on the couch to follow you to the bedroom. You settle into bed, Hades curling up at the foot of the bed, stretching and purring as he curls into a loaf and dozes back off. The lamp is clicked off and you drift off to sleep.
A gentle nudge wakes you, and you groggily roll over to find Youngjo leaning over you, one hand on your side and the other behind his back. “What are you doing here?”
“Good morning to you, too.” Youngjo counters, kissing your forehead.
“What time is it?”
“Just about nine.”
“It’s my day off, Youngjo.” You half-whine, trying to tug the blanket back up over you.
“I brought you something, though. We can go back to bed after.” You can hear the pout in his voice and push the comforter back down, looking up at him before groaning and sitting up.
“What is it?”
“Well, for starters.” Youngjo pulls the hand behind his back out to reveal a bouquet of your favorite flowers. “From your favorite flower shop.”
“Youngjo…” You can’t help the loving pout as you take them and breathe in the fresh scent.
“Let's put them in water, hmm?”
You roll your eyes and carefully get out of bed, carrying the flowers out. “You purposely got up early?”
“It’s tour time, being up early is normal.” Youngjo replies. “It’s our last days before it starts, and I wanted some alone time with you, so I asked if I could just spend the day with you.”
“You’re such a romantic.” you tease, nudging him as you set the bouquet on the counter to get your vase. “Waking me up with my favorite flowers from my favorite shop.” You’re running water over the ends to trim the stems a little and put them in the vase and arrange them when there’s a knock on the door. You pause from moving the vase to look at your boyfriend, arching a brow at him even as he grins and goes to answer the door. A roll of your eyes starts you moving to put the gift on the table, and you’re too tired to listen to whatever your boyfriend is saying to the person at the door, moving to sit on the couch and pull a blanket from the wicker basket by the coffee table. “What is it?”
“Breakfast, obviously.” Youngjo replies, carrying the bag to the kitchen. “When was the last time you had an actual breakfast?”
“Too long. I’ve been working night shifts, so I’m usually asleep.” you answer, watching as he goes about taking food from the bag, and you’re aware of him plating food before bringing it over. Seeing the food on the plate makes your narrow your eyes at him in a playfully suspicious way. It’s your favorite breakfast plate from a place a few blocks away. “What are you planning, Youngjo?”
“What makes you think I’m planning anything?” he counters.
“You got the staff to let you have a free day less than a week before the group starts a tour. You got a backstage pass for me for Tuesday night. You wake me up with my favorite flowers and even my favorite breakfast from the shop down the road, and that’s just the start.” You watch as he goes to get his own plate and comes to join you.
“Maybe I want you to know how much I love you.”
“You do that all the time, baby.” You reply, moving to take a bite of your food.
“Not enough recently.” The tone of his words makes you pause, setting your chopsticks down to lean over and kiss his cheek.
“Don’t do that. You’re an idol, Youngjo. I knew that when I met you, and I knew what that meant.” Your voice is soft as you lean into him, reaching up to tuck your fingers against the other side of his face and make him look at you. “We make it work, and I’m very happy for it. I’m happy I have you in my life. That I know you and the guys. You make me happy, Youngjo, and nothing can change that.”
He’s quiet for a long moment, eyes darting as he looks at your face. After a moment, he leans in to kiss you like you're his lifeline, one hand resting at your cheek as he did so. You return the gesture easily, smiling until he draws back to look at you. “You're perfect, you know that?” he asks as he caresses his thumb over your cheek.
“So are you, and I don't want you to forget that.” You steal another kiss before pulling away to pick up your chopsticks again. “Let's eat, then we can figure out what to do with the day.” You eat breakfast together, put the leftovers away and wash the plates and such before deciding to stay inside. It's a welcome reprieve to your busy schedules to just enjoy each other's presence and you're pleasantly surprised when You go is able to spend the night. The next morning, the two of you leave together; Youngjo going back to the dorms while you make your way to the cat cafe where you work. The remaining time before the tour kickoff goes by far too quickly for your liking - hastily going through every possible inspiration for an outfit. The decision changes at least three times a day as you go through images from past music videos and photoshoots. You finally choose to draw inspiration from one of your favorite videos, and after some contemplation ask Hwanwoong for help in coloring your hair. It takes a couple of days to work around the rehearsals, but he manages to work magic and bleach the strands before adding in highlights of black and purple. It's a beautiful job and you're grateful to your friend. You make him swear not to say anything to Youngjo, which you know is a hard task for him but he agrees.
The night before you're supposed to be picked up, you're obviously nervous at work and your manager pulls you to the side on your way out to check on you.
“Is everything okay, yeobo?” Chris asks, making you laugh a little with the switch to his Korean term of affection.
“Everything is fine, I promise. Tomorrow I just have to be at the concert and I'm honestly nervous because Youngjo is planning something, I just know it.”
Chris visibly relaxes, giving you a bright smile. “Okay, good. I thought Minho and I were going to have to teach someone a lesson.”
“Oh my gods, Christopher!” You shove at him playfully.
“I'm protective of all of my friends.” He counters, clearly unapologetic about his words. “And you're an amazing employee on top of being my friend. Anyone who hurts you answers to me.” He taps his index finger on your nose and you can't help but laugh.
“I'll keep that in mind, Chris. You’re such a brother figure.” you promise.
“Tell your man and his boys we said to break a leg.”
“Of course.” You answer, rolling your eyes as you head out, waving towards Minho as you pass him. He's currently playing with one of the kittens, and waves back as the feline leaps up to grab onto his shirt with a soft meow. Your job is great, and the people you work with are a blessing for you since you're so far from home. Youngjo and the rest of the group have since been added to that list, but District 325 Cafe will forever have a special place in your heart. You make the short drive home to pack your bag, making sure your lightstick is also safely tucked into place. You know rehearsal is likely to run late, so you make dinner and eat while you watch tv, then shower and start your laundry from the week. You fall asleep on the sofa, waking up to your phone ringing and Hades curled on your side. Blindly reaching to answer, you're well aware that your voice gives you away as you speak. “Hello?”
“I didn't mean to wake you up, baby.” Youngjo’s voice is soft as he speaks, and you can hear the others in the background. “We're headed back to the hotel now, but I wanted to let you know the driver is going to get you at 2:30 tomorrow.”
“I totally wasn't asleep.” you lie, a smile in your voice. “I appreciate the heads-up, though. How was rehearsal?”
“Good. We're ready to start the tour. I just wish you could come with us.”
“I don't have that kind of vacation time, baby. You know I would love to see the world with you, though; with or without a tour.”
“I know. It just doesn't feel the same without you there.”
“I'll always be here when you come back, Kim Youngjo. You can't get rid of me so easily as following your dream.”
“I promise I'll take you everywhere you've ever wanted to go one day.”
“And when you do, I promise to never leave your side.”
“I love you, Y/N. Have I told you that?”
“Yes, but I'll never get tired of hearing it.” you reply. “Get home, get some sleep. You have a long day tomorrow.”
“Long day, yes. But we'll all have time for a group meal after dress rehearsal, so plan to come along.”
“You are very clearly up to something, Youngjo.”
“Not at all. The guys just want to spend some time with you before I have you to myself.” He teased, and you can't help the laugh that escapes you.
“You hopeless romantic.”
“Part of why you love me, dearest.”
“Only a part, though.” You tease, stretching. “Get some rest. I'll see you soon, okay?”
“You get rest, too. Have sweet dreams.” Youngjo replies, and you wish you could kiss him.
“I love you, Youngjo.”
“I love you, too. Goodnight.”
“Night.” You manage to get up, get your laundry in the dryer and migrate to your bed, falling asleep fairly quickly. Your internal clock wakes you around 10am and you start by making breakfast. You make sure your suitcase is by the door and Hades is fed before settling to play on your console while you wait. Just before 2:30, there's a knock at the door and you get up to answer it. You greet the familiar face of the driver with a smile, taking the envelope he offers you before going to pet Hades and grab your bag. You lock the door on your way out, tucking your keys into your jacket as you follow the driver to the car. Once seated in the back, which is more for the driver's comfort of routine, you open the envelope to find a card. It's a beautiful card of black with silver and gold stars and mini constellation designs on the cover, with a bronze script that reads ‘My soul found its mate in yours’ - which makes you smile as your fingers brush over the raised lettering on the card. Opening the card reveals a key card sleeve with a room number on it, as well as the remainder of the printed message for the card and the familiar scrawl of Youngjo's hangul in metallic to the left. The English printed on the right side is gold and makes you miss him a great deal despite having spoken to him just the night before. ‘I am eternally grateful that it did. I love you.’. Your eyes slip to the left to read the words Youngjo had written, tilting your head as you translate in your head.
‘My beloved Y/N,
You don't have to worry about checking in, you can just come up to the room. I put your key here to make sure you didn't need to ask because I know how anxious talking to strangers makes you. We're probably already going to be at rehearsal, so if you want to drop your stuff and come to the venue, just tell Georam and he'll bring you. If you'd rather stay and wait, that's fine, I’ll see you around seven or eight. Final dress rehearsal is tomorrow, so I hope you're ready for behind the scenes stuff, because we got it approved to have you there. I'm excited to have you at the show. I hope you're excited, too. I love you to the moon and back a thousand times.
Youngjo'
The words make your lips curve and you tuck the card into the pocket on the side of your suitcase, holding onto the key card as you watch the scenery go by.
“Are they treating you well, Georam?” You ask, looking up at the driver.
“Always, Y/N. They're good guys.” Georam answers, glancing at you through the rearview. “Did you want to go to the venue?”
“You know what…yeah. Let me drop my bag off and we can head over.” A nod moves your head as you lean back. You know the boys are expecting you to stay at the hotel after the trip, but you are excited to see them all. The last time all of you were together was months ago when recording for the new album began, and as much as you adore your boyfriend, you won't deny that you also miss the other five a great deal. After three hours of quiet music and chit chat with the driver, you walk into the lobby of the hotel, in awe of the place before you head up to the room and drop your bag off before returning to the car downstairs. The venue is barely a ten minute drive, and Georam pouts when you get out before he can get around, but you nudge him playfully and motion for him to lead the way. Backstage is crowded and you can hear the staff roaming around as they go over things, but the sound of music makes you pause in your trail behind Georam to follow the sound.
“Y/N?” Georam appears beside you as you near the shadowed area near the edge of the stage to watch, chuckling before giving a bow. “I'll leave you be.”
You nod in acknowledgement as he steps back into the fray, but your eyes are on the stage. The boys are mid-performance of your favorite song and seeing the new angle of them giving their all warms your heart. You stand quietly in the shadows as they go about rehearsal, content to just watch them go about their routine. To see the creative process is an experience in itself that you've never even said you wanted to witness out loud, and you don't want to ruin it. A tap on your shoulder distracts you as the boys go over the ment they plan to do, their laughter making you smile as you accept a bottle of water from a staff member before your gaze returns to the stage. It's akin to watching a masterpiece be painted, and you let yourself get lost in the moment. Time is lost as you take it in, and when the stage manager agrees the boys have done a great job, Geonhak is actually the first to notice you as he's the first to start towards the back.
“Y/N, hey!” He greets as he spots you, reaching to scoop you up into a hug and squeeze. You squeak in response, laughing a little as you hug back. “Missed you.”
“Missed you, too, Geon-ah.” You reply. “You guys look amazing.”
“Stage outfits are going to look even better!” Dongju chimes with a grin, and you don't hesitate to hug the maknae, back shifting to the stage in the action.
“I can't wait. I'm so excited for you guys.”
“You're not excited for yourself?” Youngjo asks, arms looping at your waist as he dips his head to nuzzle your neck. The gesture makes you lean into him, eyes closing for a moment before you turn in his embrace to face him and tuck your face into his neck, not caring about the sweat that sheens along his skin. “You smell delightful.”
“Thank you.” You muse, pulling back to pull him down for a kiss. The ‘aws’ and ‘cutes’ don't go unnoticed, but you don't care, the staff is used to your presence at the dorms so they're familiar with you. “And to answer your question, of course I'm excited. But seeing you guys go through rehearsal just makes it surreal for me.”
“You liked rehearsal?”
“I've always wanted to see a rehearsal process.” You admit.
“Why didn't you tell us? Youngjo-hyung could have had you picked up this morning!” Hwanwoong pouts.
“It's okay, Woongie. Just getting to see the second run through was amazing.” You promise, releasing Youngjo to hug the member closest to your height. “I can't wait for tomorrow.”
“Guys, I hate to break up our family reunion,” Seoho speaks up, a cool towel drapes at his neck. “But we should really get cleaned up so we can go to dinner.”
“Oh, dinner sounds amazing.” Geonhak agrees. “You're coming with us, right?” He asks you, and you arch a brow at him.
“No, of course not.” You say drolly with a playful look, trying to reach up and ruffle his hair, but he moves out of the way. “I'll wait outside the dressing room for you guys to finish.” You move to lean against the wall with your bottle of water, laughing as Youngjo steps close to steal another kiss before disappearing behind the door. You wait patiently, sipping at your water and scrolling through your phone, playing a little on your Tetris app while you wait. You can hear the six men inside talking, and it dawns on you how much they really do mean to you. Not just as someone who enjoys the music they work so hard on, but as family. You'd left a lot behind when you'd moved here, but you'd found so much more. You look up as the door opens, and you reach out to ruffle Hwanwoong’s hair. “You guys ready?”
“Almost.” Hwanwoong grins as he speaks, moving to hug you. “We love you, noona.”
“I love you guys, too.” You chuckle, and the familiar feeling of a hand between your shoulders makes you look up and you turn into Youngjo on instinct to hold him close. “I love you most of all, though.” You muse to him.
“I'm glad you feel that way, jagiya.” Youngjo replied, tilting his head to lay a kiss to your hair. “Because there's something I want to tell you.”
There's a ball of panic in your gut, not sure what's about to happen. “Is everything okay?”
“Everything is perfect. You're perfect; my moon and sun. I don't know what I'd do without you. You filled a place in me that I didn't even know was empty, and every day I love you more than I thought I could ever love someone.”
“Youngjo…” the words have emotion trapping in your chest as you look up at him, lower lip tugging between your teeth as he speaks.
“I want to take care of you, Y/N. I want to make you feel special and for you to know I would do anything for you. Anything.” One hand finds your cheek and his thumb caresses over your skin. It's not an uncommon gesture, but you can read his face very well.
“Baby, are you okay?”
Youngjo laughs a little, leaning to kiss you gently, resting his forehead on yours as he replies. “I'm great, I swear. But I would like to know if you would give me the highest honor of being your husband.” The words take a moment to process but when they do, you pull back to look up at him, eyes then going to the members nearby to make sure you haven't misheard. In the brief moments it takes to turn away and then back, Youngjo is kneeling with a small velveteen box of emerald green in his hand.
“Oh my gods, Youngjo…”
“Will you marry me, my beloved Y/N?* He asks properly. “Will you let me take care of you until my dying breath?”
Of all the possibilities your mind has gone through trying to figure out what your boyfriend and his members have been up to, this was not even remotely close to making the list. For a moment you can only stare, emotion in your chest keeping your words from breaking through as tears bristle in your eyes. All you can do is nod and when Youngjo opens the box, the ring is perfect, the band inlaid with leaves holding a single gemstone accented by a small diamond on either side. The moment he stands and pulls the ring from the box, Hwanwoong and Dongju cheer, which soon causes a ruckus of cheers and applause as Youngjo wipes the tears away and kisses you deeply, one arm secured at your waist as you kiss back enthusiastically with your arms around her neck.
“I love you, Kim Youngjo.” You whisper against his lips.
“And I love you, jagiya.” He answers. “Let's go have dinner, yeah?”
“I hope it's not too fancy. I'm not dressed for that.”
“You're beautiful, baby.” Youngjo promises, kissing you again. “And if anyone tries to say otherwise, Mrs. Kim, they'll have to deal with me.” The sound of it makes your face heat up and you tuck into him. “You like the sound of that?”
“Very much.”
Dinner is wonderful, filled with laughter and storytelling paired with delicious food, great company and pure joy. You ride back to the hotel with the boys and greet the staff still trickling on as you all head up to the floor where all the rooms are. Walking down the hall you say goodnight to Dongju, Seoho and Keonhee at one room, then Hwanwoong and Leedo as Youngjo stops at the room the two of you have. Hwanwoong and Leedo give one last congratulations and round of hugs before continuing down the hall to their own hotel room. Youngjo lets you go in first, allowing the door to close behind him as he walks over to join you on the balcony and wrap his arms around you from behind. He places a kiss on your temple, then rests his chin on your shoulder.
“I love you,” he whispers, nuzzling you gently.
“How long have you been planning this?” You tease, content to stand in his embrace as you look out over the city.
“A few months. Still didn't do it how I originally thought to.” He answers.
“What do you mean?”
“I originally was going to do it during the show tomorrow. Have you come out during one of the ments, show you off like you deserve to be.”
“What happened, then?”
“I saw you with Geonhak and Hwanwoong after practice. You were so relaxed and happy. The way you're so at home with all of us, with the staff. I needed the moment to be perfect, and that moment made me realize that it didn't need to be extravagant. It just needed to be the important people in our lives.” The words make you gasp a little, a hand covering your mouth.
“Oh, shit. I'll have to tell the guys at the cafe.”
“They already know. Seoho video called Chris.” Youngjo replied, which finally makes you pull away to turn and look at hi,.
“Wait. How did he-” you cut yourself off as your brain starts catching up. “What did you do?*
“Your family is all really far away, and you don't really talk to them, anyway. But I was going to do it the right way, and the closest thing to family you have here is the guys at the cafe. So on one of your days off, I went and asked Chris and the others for their blessings.”
“So they knew all this time?”
“I'd say about three weeks, give or take.” Youngjo confirms. “Why?”
“I just…they never even slipped. Not once.” You laugh a little, leaning back on the rail to look at him. “And I never thought anyone would ever-”
“You are a treasure and every person who didn't see that and treat you right deserves to be in your past.” Youngjo cuts you off, reaching up to run his hand through your hair. “I will do everything to make sure you know how important you are to me, how much I love you, every moment I can. I'm sorry you had all that pain before you came here, but I am making it my job to make sure you don't feel the way they made you feel ever again. I am yours, and yours alone, Y/N. Nothing could make me happier than being with you as we take this next step in our journey together.”
“I couldn't be happier that you chose me.” You admit. “And I'll be by your side for the rest of my life.” You pull him in for another kiss, your fingers carding into his hair. “Sooo, am I supposed to move into the dorms now?”
“Let's get through tomorrow and then we'll start moving my stuff.”
“Wait, will they let you move out of the dorm?”
“I don't see why not. I’ll have an apartment to move into, and it isn't like it's far from HQ anyway.” He mused. “Let's get some sleep. We start early tomorrow so we're ready for sound check.”
“As long as I get cuddles.”
“At any time you want, beautiful.”