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“You don’t have to wear that~ No one’s going to recognize us out here at this hour.” Siwoo says with a laugh as he grabs a hold of the mask that Wangho was pulling up to his face with careful fingers.
“You think?” Wangho questions, lowering his hands to his sides after Siwoo snatched the mask out of his hands, turning his attention to the support walking next to him.
“Who in their right mind would be out here at 2 am.” Jihoon chimes in, placing a hand on Wangho’s shoulder as he follows behind the two guys who were walking in front of him.
“Apparently us.” Hyeonjoon simply states with a sigh, wrapping the HLE worlds bomber jacket tighter around his body due to the night air that was gently blowing around them.
Wangho simply chuckles in response as he silently listens to his ex-midlaner and current top laner bickering behind him as the four of them make their way towards a nearby park that Siwoo suggested they go to in order to get some fresh air due to being stuck in the hotel with their respective teams all day.
“Would’ve been nice if Jaehyukie was able to be out here with us.” Wangho hears Siwoo say quietly as he looks up at the night sky with a sad smile.
Letting a sad and bitter smile play across his lips, Wangho simply nods in response, the park coming into view.
At the Gen G support’s statement, the two bickering behind them quieted down as they silently walked along the path with no particular destination in mind.
Wangho was simply enjoying the calmness of the night observing the night stars as he quietly listened to Siwoo and Hyeonjoon talk about nothing in particular.
“Is that Minseokie?” Jihoon questions, breaking the silence causing the guys to look over at where Jihoon was looking.
With a fast and sharp movement, Wangho turned his head over to the empty park in front of him, letting his eyes scan around the dimly lit area before he could feel his heart skip a beat as he noticed the T1’s white team jacket reflecting under the moonlight.
The fluttering in his heart didn’t last long before he could feel his heart tug inside his chest when he noticed Sanghyeok wasn’t alone on the bench. He was sitting next to the young T1 support with his arm draped behind Minseok on top of the bench they were sitting on.
Even though he couldn’t make out what they were saying, he could see the wide smile Sanghyeok had on his face as he carefully listened to what the young support was telling him.
Leaning over slightly, Jihoon could see the sad expression Wangho had on his face. He wasn’t entirely sure what was going on in the jungler’s head, but he had a rough idea.
Jihoon remembered the way Wangho’s eyes would light up whenever he got a chance to talk about the famous T1 mid laner or whenever he got a text from Sanghyeok. He remembered the way Wangho’s voice became brighter whenever he answered the phone and it was the T1 mid laner on the other line, even if Sanghyeok only called to ask a simple question. Throughout the years Jihoon knew him, he knew how, no matter how much the jungler tried to deny it, he was head over heels for the Sanghyeok, not because he was Faker, but because he was Lee Sanghyeok, Wangho’s favorite mid laner and first ever crush.
He knew that Wangho regretted not confessing how he felt back when he was on the team even though it seemed like Sanghyeok returned his feelings. Anyone who hung out with them could see the way that the two have always wanted more than just a simple friendship even though they never admitted it to anyone, let alone themselves, but seeing the way Minseok was joking around with Sanghyeok, Jihoon knew it couldn’t have been a sight that was pleasant to see.
The sight of the man Wangho ‘secretly’ pined over for years and loved from a distance being close and smiling the way he used to when Wangho used to be on T1 now being directed towards someone else, it was a sight that was probably heart shattering to see.
Letting out a sigh, Jihoon let a playful smile play across his lips, nudging Hyeonjoon’s arm slightly before he slipped past Wangho to start walking towards Minseok and Sanghyeok.
Partly to figure out what was so funny that Sanghyeok was smiling like an idiot, but partly to force Wangho to talk to the T1 mid laner in a kdrama like setting which screamed that it was a perfect and ideal set up for a heartfelt confession under the night sky.
“We should-” Wangho starts saying, eyes focused on Sanghyeok before his words get caught in his throat when he feels Hyeonjoon grab his arm.
Looking away from the T1 mid laner, Wangho’s eyes widened, jaw tensed and blood ran cold as he saw the way Jihoon was jogging up to Minseok with Siwoo following behind him.
Feeling Hyeonjoon pull him towards the direction that the two Gen G guys walked to, Wangho couldn't help but dig his feet into the ground, resisting the top laner’s movement.
“W-Wait! Hyeonjoon-ah!” Wangho exclaims as he leans back to the heels of his feet, causing Hyeonjoon to look over at him with a defeated expression.
“You can’t avoid him just cause he’s with Minseok.” Hyeonjoon says with a sigh as he stops his movements to turn around and look down at the jungler.
“I’m not avoiding him?” Wangho defends, trying to pull his arm free, but Hyeonjoon’s grip simply tightens in response.
“Then let’s go say hi. You guys have known each other for years. You literally talked to him earlier during lunch.” Hyeonjoon simply states with a sly smile.
“That was different.” Wangho replies, unmoving from his spot despite the pull of his arm.
“The only thing that’s different from then and now is that we’re outside and it’s the middle of the night and he’s sitting over there with just Minseok. He’s not going to mug you or anything. Come on hyung~” Hyeonjoon simply states as he pulls harder.
Chewing on his lip, Wangho allowed himself to be pulled in the direction where Jihoon and Siwoo walked off towards, following Hyeonjoon with heavy feet.
“Hyung wanted to go back to his room, but I wanted to come out for a walk so I dragged him out here.” Wangho could hear Minseok say with a chuckle as they got closer towards the two who were still sitting on the bench.
“The rest of the team didn’t want to come?” Jihoon questions, slipping his hands into his pockets.
“Well Minhyeong did, but I didn’t really want to go on a walk with just him so I just grabbed hyung after he was done with interviews.” Minseok replies with a light laugh, scratching his neck.
Jihoon was about to ask what Minseok meant by him ‘not wanting to go on a walk with just Minhyeong,’ but before he got the chance, he noticed Hyeonjoon coming around the side of the bench with a nervous jungler which caused him to take a step to the side to create room for the two of them to stand.
“Woah~ It’s like a 2022 Gen reunion~” Minseok points out, laughing as Hyeonjoon and Wangho come into view, standing in between Jihoon and Siwoo, choosing not to mention the way Hyeonjoon physically placed Wangho to stand directly in front of Sanghyeok.
Hyeonjoon releases his grip on Wangho’s shoulders as he bows slightly towards Sanghyeok to greet the older while tapping Minseok’s shoulder.
Noticing the way that Sanghyeok’s eyes were focused onto Wangho with an expression Jihoon couldn’t really make out, especially considering that the only source of light was from a lamp post a couple feet away, the Gen G mid laner gently slapped Wangho’s back to snap the jungler back into reality.
“Hi Hyung.” Wangho greets in a quiet voice, a nervous smile playing across his lips.
Sanghyeok simply smiles and lifts his hand in response, lips parting to greet the jungler, but before any words could leave his mouth, his attention was stolen by the support sitting next to him.
“I should’ve brought my jacket.” Minseok whines, zipping up his hoodie after feeling the night wind blow through the thin fabric of the T1 jersey and zip-up hoodie he was still wearing.
“You can have mine.” Jihoon starts saying as he unzips his Gen G jacket, but takes a step back slightly when Minseok shoots up from his seat.
“Nah~ I don’t want to be seen in a Gen G jacket. Come walk me to my room.” Minseok replies, grabbing Hyeonjoon and Jihoon’s arms to pull them back towards the nearby hotel without waiting for a response.
“I’ll come with you guys. I need to call Jaehyuk.” Siwoo says as he bows his head slightly towards Sanghyeok before patting Wangho on the shoulder as he jogs up to catch up to the three guys that were being dragged by T1’s support.
Being left alone with Sanghyeok, Wangho shifts the weight in his feet as he thinks of a reason to excuse himself and go back to the hotel as Sanghyeok watches him carefully with a soft gaze, but before Wangho could formulate an excuse, he feels Sanghyeok’s warm hand encase his own.
“Come sit with me.” Sanghyeok says with a smile, gently giving the jungler’s hand a light squeeze as he tugs Wangho’s arm.
His tongue darting out to wet his dry lips, Wangho slowly nods before moving to sit down next to the mid laner.
“It’s been a while since we’ve sat at a park like this.” Sanghyeok says with a smile, leaning into the back of the bench and tilting his head up at the night sky, his hand that was previously holding onto Wangho’s dropping back down to his lap.
“Yeah… I guess it has, hasn’t it…” Wangho mumbles, bringing his now cold and ‘bare’ hand back towards himself to slip it into his pocket.
The two sit wordlessly on the bench as they listen to the soft gusts of wind and the silence of the night.
Wangho was unsure what to make of the situation as he continued to watch Sanghyeok with curious eyes, observing the way that Sanghyeok was simply gazing at the stars.
“It’s hard to see the stars in Seoul. It’s too bright.” Sanghyeok says in a soft voice.
Feeling the night wind blow through his hair, Wangho shivers at the feeling causing Sanghyeok to lower his eyes from the night sky, his hand reaching up to unzip his jacket.
“Didn’t I used to tell you to dress warmer? Does your team not remind you? You get cold so easily….” Sanghyeok questions, letting his words trail off as he slips off his jacket to drape it over Wangho’s shivering frame.
“Well… I don’t have a hyung on my team anymore.” Wangho responds quietly causing Sanghyeok’s eyes to widen in surprise before softening, giving the jungler a sad smile as he nods in response.
Wangho thought that Sanghyeok would simply leave his response in the air, but to his surprise he felt the mid laner wrap an arm around him and shift closer towards him on the bench.
“I’ll remind you when I can.” Sanghyeok says with a smile as he gently rubs Wangho’s arm in hopes to warm the jungler up.
“That’s what a hyung is for, right?” Sanghyeok adds, tilting his head back up to observe the night sky once more.
The jungler wasn’t sure if the sudden warmth that shot through his body was due to Sanghyeok’s jacket and embrace or if it was from hearing Sanghyeok’s caring statement, but he was pretty sure it was the latter.
Wangho wasn’t sure why he never confessed all those years ago, maybe it was because he was scared even though Sanghyeok made it pretty obvious that his feelings weren’t one-sided. The way Sanghyeok cared for him, the way the older would always invite him to each even if Sanghyeok already ate with the coaches, the way that Sanghyeok would let Wangho raid his hotel room or dorm room because the jungler just wanted the warmth the mid laner provided, all those things, Wangho knew were things that Sanghyeok only did for him.
He always wondered what could’ve happened if he simply confessed or if the world didn’t make them destined to be rivals, but what he did know was… no matter how hard he tried… no matter what he did… There was no denying that his feelings for Sanghyeok burned hotter and brighter as the years went by.
“Hyung…” Wangho starts saying, looking up at the night sky, trying to calm his beating heart from how nervous he felt.
“Hm?” Sanghyeok hums in response, his gaze not wavering despite Wangho calling out for him.
“You know I want you… right?” Wangho questions, jaw clenching and unclenching as he tries to calm his racing heart.
“What?” Sanghyeok questions, lowering his head to look over at Wangho who was still staring at the stars, avoiding his gaze.
“I mean… It’s not really a secret that I try to hide.” Wangho replies with a sad smile.
Lowering his gaze, Wangho carefully takes his hands out of his pockets to gently play with Sanghyeok’s jacket.
“I know you want me…” Wangho starts saying, his voice quietly trailing off as he takes a deep breath before raising his gaze to meet Sanghyeok’s intense eyes.
“You keep saying that it’s not in the cards and fate is pulling you away… out of reach from me, but you’re here.” Wangho continues, pausing briefly to place a hand on his chest.
“In my heart… So what's to stop me from deciding that you’re my destiny?” Wangho questions with a nervous smile, hand gently lowering to drop back onto his lap.
“W-Wangho-yah…” Sanghyeok stutters, his throat going dry as he watches Wangho tilt his head back up towards the sky, eyes sparkling under the moonlight.
“What if we… What if we rewrite the stars? Make them say that you were made to be mine? Nothing could keep us apart because you’d be the one I was meant and destined to find. No one would be able to say what we could be…” Wangho continues, but pauses for a brief moment to close his eyes to even out his breathing.
“Maybe the world could be ours..” Wangho finishes, opening his eyes to look over at Sanghyeok who had a sad smile plastered across his lips.
“You think it’s easy? You think I don’t want to run to you?” Sanghyeok starts saying, his voice quiet, but loud enough to pierce through the wind.
“But there are just some doors we can’t walk through…” Sanghyeok continues, looking down at his own hands, balling them into tight fists as he continues.
“I know you don’t understand because here, we’re able to be just Sanghyeok and Wangho… off stage… When it’s just us…” Wangho hears Sanghyeok say, his voice cracking slightly as he trails off.
“But when we go up and into the rift.. You’re going to wake up and see that it was hopeless…” Sanghyeok explains, taking a shaky breath.
“Wangho-yah…” Sanghyeok says in a sad voice, placing his hand gently on Wangho’s thigh.
“No one can rewrite the stars.” Sanghyeok starts saying, tilting his head up to the sky with tears in his eyes, understanding the harsh reality that comes with their jobs.
“How can you say that you’ll be mine when everything is keeping us apart?” Sanghyeok questions, lowering his gaze back down to meet Wangho’s tear-filled eyes.
“I’m not the one you were meant to find… It’s not up to you.. It’s not up to me… It’s not up to us when everyone is telling us what we can be. How can we rewrite the stars… How can you say…” Sanghyeok continues, trailing off before taking a deep breath as he tries to push the tears that were welling in his own eyes away.
“How can you say that the world could be ours?” Sanghyeok finishes with a sad smile.
Hearing Sanghyeok’s question, Wangho couldn’t stop the tears from falling down his cheeks. As much as he hates to admit it, he knew Sanghyeok had a point. He knew that no one could rewrite the stars and no matter how hard he tried, Sanghyeok understood the pro scene better than everyone so if he was implying that starting a relationship would be close to impossible, Wangho knew that Sanghyeok was probably right.
“You know that I want you… It’s not a secret I try to hide either…” Sanghyeok starts saying, reaching up to carefully wipe the tears off Wangho’s cheeks with his thumb.
“But I can’t have you… We’re just.. We’re just not meant to be.” Sanghyeok finishes his thought, letting his hand drop to his lap.
Silently patting Wangho’s shoulder, Sanghyeok moves to stand up and turn around, but he freezes before he could even take a step at the sight in front of him.
Noticing the way that Sanghyeok was frozen in place, Wangho cautiously turned around to find Jihoon and Minseok with irritated expressions on their faces.
“Who’s telling you what you can and can’t be?” Jihoon questions, frowning as he stares at the two guys who were in front of him.
“The fans? The players? The coaches?” Jihoon continues as he takes a few steps closer so that he was standing directly behind the bench that Wangho was still sitting on.
“No one needs to know.” Jihoon simply states, answering his own question.
“The guys? Our friends?” Jihoon questions, shifting his gaze from Wangho and up at Sanghyeok who had a startled expression on his face.
“You should know that they would support you guys together. Most of them want you guys to get together. They’ve been wanting that for years.” Jihoon states, finishing his thoughts, stuffing his hands into his pockets as he feels Minseok walk up to stand next to him.
“Sanghyeokie-hyung…” Minseok calls out, causing Sanghyeok to shift his attention towards the support.
“You know fully well that I would give you the world if I could. In game and in real life, but hyung.. We’re done watching you pining and longing for Wangho-hyung.” Minseok continues.
“You guys have suffered enough… don’t you think?.” Minseok adds with a smile, his eyes softening.
“You say that everyone’s telling you what you can and can’t be, but you forget that the people who actually matter… All we want is to see you guys happy.” Jihoon starts saying as he glances over at Wangho before returning his gaze towards the T1 mid laner.
“Who said rivals can’t date? Look at Siwoo-hyung and Jaehyukie-hyung.” Jihoon points out, causing Minseok to nod in agreement.
“Show me the rule in the LCK rulebook that says you can’t date a rival.” Jihoon continues.
“You guys are the ones who are keeping each other apart. No one else… No one.. is keeping you guys apart.” Minseok adds with a gentle sigh.
Looking down at Wangho who was still staring at the two standing behind them in surprise, cheeks stained from the tears that fell, Sanghyeok let a gentle smile play across his lips, slipping his hands into his pockets, he turned back around to look up at the night sky.
He knew the two of them were right. He knew that no one who actually mattered to them would care if they were to get involved with another. Maybe it just took them a while to figure it out, but he always liked the saying, ‘it’s better late than never.’
“Wangho-yah.” Sanghyeok calls out the jungler’s name causing Wangho to look up at the mid laner who had his back towards Minseok and Jihoon with his head tilted up at the stars.
Looking back down with a smile, Sanghyeok took his hands out of his pockets as he knelt down in front of Wangho, grabbing a hold of the jungler’s hand to run his thumb over Wangho’s soft knuckles, the knuckles he’s felt against his own numerous times on stage.
“You’re right. No matter what we do, nothing can keep us apart cause you were the one I was meant to find.” Sanghyeok starts saying, looking up at Wangho with a bright smile.
“Wangho-yah.” Sanghyeok calls out once more, patiently waiting for Wangho’s response.
“Y-Yeah?” Wangho answers with wide eyes.
“Let’s rewrite the stars and change the world to be ours.”