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“To Taesan!” five voices cheer loudly with one embarrassed spectator, before clinking their glass together and taking a drink.
They’re at a Japanese-style BBQ restaurant not far from their hotel, a suggestion from Woonhak. Having spent all day filming for their comeback in October, the six guys were exhausted and hungry, and all they wanted was to stuff their mouths with copious amounts of meat. Aside from the obvious reason of wanting to commemorate their hard work, they were also there to celebrate their resident emo’s birthday. Technically, it wasn’t his birthday yet where they were, but it was in Korea, which they considered more.
Despite having had a packed schedule all day, they all still had enough energy to go out together to celebrate the special day. After their toast, Jaehyun goes ahead and orders more food, despite there already being around 10 dishes on their table. Riwoo and Leehan continue to grill the meat that they still have, and Sungho scolds Woonhak for having spilled his drink while taking a sip. Taesan sits in the middle of it all, looking down at his drink quietly, letting the moment wash over him.
It’s his first time celebrating his birthday out of the country, and he would be lying if he said that he wasn’t a bit sad. Usually, despite how busy their schedules are, he’s able to at least spend a few hours celebrating the day with his family. Even during his trainee days, he would always make an effort to meet up with his family either for a meal, or even just spending the night home. This year, though, due to their Lollapalooza performance and scheduled shoots in America, he wasn’t able to make any of his usual plans.
It’s not like he’s being ungrateful for the opportunity given to him, either. Performing at Lollapalooza has been a dream that their team has shared forever, and being able to meet Onedoors is always the highlight of any performance. Still, he can’t help feeling homesick on such a special day.
He continues to stare down at his drink, swirling the ice around with his straw, when his attention is drawn up.
“Taesan-ah,” Sungho calls out from across the table. It causes Taesan to snap out of his daze, and he looks up to see the older member give him a concerned look. “Are you ok?”
Crap, I made him worried. Taesan silently reprimands himself, and then he realizes that he still hasn’t replied to the man across from him.
“I’m fine, hyung. Don’t worry,” Taesan tries to reassure, putting a smile on his face. Unfortunately, his reply does little to comfort Sungho, who’s still giving him a worried look. It gets Taesan to shift to a more earnest expression, as he tries once again to reassure his boyfriend. “I promise I’m ok, hyung. I’m just feeling a little sentimental since I won’t get to see my parents till we get back.”
The more genuine answer gets Sungho to relax a little, as he reaches over to grab the younger’s hand, squeezing it.
“Did you want to FaceTime them when we get back to the room?” Sungho asks gently, and the care in his voice causes Taesan to smile.
“Yeah, I would like that,” Taesan replies, and the two smile at each other, keeping their hands together for a moment before someone clears their throat loudly.
It’s then that the couple suddenly remembers that they aren’t the only ones sitting at the table. Beside Sungho, Woonhak makes a dramatic gagging gesture, with Leehan and Riwoo giggling and smirking at them. Jaehyun, following Woonhak’s reaction, also makes it a point to act disgusted, though it is done with platonic affection.
“Ugh, get a room, you two!” Jaehyun exclaims jokingly, while also rolling his eyes for some extra dramatics. Sungho actually has the decency to at least look embarrassed, with a quiet apology being muttered. The same can not be said for his boyfriend, who simply laughs fondly at the sight, giving the other’s hand one last squeeze before letting go to continue eating.
Aside from a few other teasing comments, the group doesn’t linger much on the topic after more food arrives. They continue to dig in, and with everyone too busy eating, nobody notices the couple playing footsie under the table.
It’s relatively late when they finally arrive back at the hotel. All of them are exhausted, having been busy all day, and after saying their goodbyes and greeting ‘happy birthday’ once again to Taesan, they split up in pairs and go to their rooms.
The day prior, the group had decided that since they were going to be in the U.S for a while, that it would probably be better for them to switch roommates every few days. It was a way to prevent any fights from breaking out, while also giving certain people some much-needed privacy.
For this next roommate arrangement, Taesan and Sungho were put together. Although they had decided on roommates by pulling names out of a hat, Taesan couldn’t shake the feeling that it was a tad bit rigged— if the sneaky expression that Woonhak wore was anything to go by. Purposeful or not, Taesan was just happy to be able to spend time alone with his boyfriend on his birthday in a fancy hotel room. Sungho seemed to have had the same idea, as evidenced by how red his face was when it was revealed.
When the couple finally gets to their room, Taesan taps the key card against the sensor and is about to open the door when he’s suddenly stopped by Sungho.
“Wait!” Sungho yells out, shutting the door and startling Taesan. The sudden action gets him to turn around and give the other a curious look.
“Is… everything ok, hyung?” Taesan asks gently. While his boyfriend does usually have a lively attitude, it’s odd to see him still so energetic this late.
The question seems to throw Sungho off, for whatever reason, and he avoids making eye contact with Taesan as he picks at the skin around his nails. The latter catches Taesan’s attention, and he makes note of the nervous habit before looking back up, still awaiting an answer.
“It’s– It’s nothing! It’s just– um,” Sungho stutters, focusing his gaze on the floor. Taesan frowns as he continues making notes of all of the nervous signs that the other is giving him. Still, he doesn’t push him to talk, instead waiting patiently, before Sungho finally gulps and looks up at him. “Do you mind waiting here for a bit? I just have to do something first inside.”
The question gets Taesan to raise a brow, but he doesn’t question the request; instead, he simply nods. It gets Sungho to smile brightly, and the sight causes Taesan’s heart to beat a bit faster. No matter how long they’ve been together, Sungho’s smile will always make his heart skip a beat. He’s still distracted by said smile when Sungho goes to move again.
“Great!” Sungho exclaims excitedly, before pulling out his own keycard and opening the door. Taesan simply stares as Sungho opens the door just enough to slip into the room, before turning back around. “It won’t take longer than 5 minutes. I’ll call you once I’m ready.” And, before he’s able to respond, Sungho shuts the door on him.
Taesan is left in the hallway, bewildered by what just transpired. It takes a beat before the situation really sinks in for him, and once it does, he frowns. Letting out a sigh, he goes to lean against the wall with his arms crossed. He’s long since grown used to his partner’s somewhat weird schemes, and he’s usually willing to indulge in whatever he suggests. But he was extremely worn-out, and he still had the birthday livestream to do, so he hoped that whatever it was this time, it wouldn’t take too long.
Around five minutes pass before Taesan decides to knock on the door again. He lightly raps on the door before calling out.
“Sungho hyung?!” he calls out after knocking. There isn’t a reply right away, and after a few seconds, he’s about to knock again before he finally hears Sungho’s voice.
“Come in!” Sungho calls from the other side of the door. Taesan huffs out an amused laugh before pulling out his keycard once again and opening the door with ease.
The first thing that he notices as soon as he opens the door is that the lights are off. The second thing that he notices is that the only source of illumination in the room comes from small electric candles that line the walls of the hallway leading further into the room. The third thing that he notices is the faint sound of music coming from further in.
The entire situation gets Taesan to grin, as he follows the lights to the center of the room. There, he’s met with an even bigger sight. On the beds are rose petals in the shape of a heart, along with a multitude of balloons decorating the walls. The source of the music seems to be coming from a Bluetooth speaker on the side table between the beds. It would have been romantic if it weren’t for the fact that he couldn’t see his boyfriend anywhere.
He looks around a bit, and with still no sight of him, he’s about to call out his name before hearing footsteps behind him. Turning around, he’s met with another surprise in the form of Sungho emerging from God knows where, with a birthday cake in his hands, singing.
“ Happy Birthday to you,” Sungho sings while approaching him. “ Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday, Han Dongmin. Happy Birthday to you~”. He stops just two steps away from him with a bright smile on his face. In his hands is a small, store-bought birthday cake with candles that say ‘21’, along with a silly party hat on his head. The whole get-up gets Taesan to let out a laugh, which the older takes no offense at. Instead, his expression morphs into a smaller, yet fond smile as he pushes the cake a bit forward. “Happy birthday, my love. Make a wish!”
Taesan grins at his boyfriend before bending down to blow out the candles. Once he’s done that, Sungho lets out a cheer, which he laughs at, before putting down the cake on a nearby table. He’s about to say something else before getting cut off by Taesan tipping his head to kiss him.
The sudden action causes him to still for a moment, before fully relaxing as he wraps his arms around his neck to deepen it further. Taesan simply lets out a pleased hum as he, in turn, wraps his hands around Sungho’s waist.
The two kiss for what seems forever, and when they finally separate for air, they leave only a breath of room between them. Their foreheads are touching, and the two are left smiling contentedly, as though the touch is refueling them with energy. With the music still playing in the background, Sungho goes to lean his head against Taesan’s shoulder, as the two sway lightly to the rhythm.
“When did you plan all of this?” Taesan asks softly, making sure not to disturb their dance.
Sungho merely hums before replying, “I already had most of this set up before we left this morning, so that I wouldn’t have to rush.”
Taesan suddenly gives Sungho a twirl before arranging back into their previous position.
“Oh? Is that why you were late coming to the car?” Taesan teasingly asks with a raised brow. Sungho scoffs lightly, and due to their proximity, Taesan’s able to feel the trickle of air against his neck.
“Yeah, well, it’s not like it was an unusual occurrence,” Sungho states, a bit defensively. Taesan simply laughs.
“Ha! Well, that’s true. You really need to start having a better sense of time, hyung.” The comment gets Sungho to gasp dramatically before pulling back to slap Taesan’s shoulder in mock offense playfully. It gets Taesan to giggle a bit, and it doesn’t take long for Sungho to join him.
The sound of their conjoined laughter loops alongside the still playing music before eventually fading once again into silence. Sungho’s hand is still on his shoulder, which prompts him to grasp it before bringing it to his lips, giving it a peck. When he looks up at his lover, Sungho’s cheeks are colored with a nice flush, and his lips are slightly parted. Paired with the warm lighting, the sight causes Taesan’s heart to swell with love as he bends down to give a kiss to his lips as well.
When they part this time, Taesan pulls the other in a tight hug, which Sungho doesn’t mind. Due to their slight height difference, Taesan’s able to snuggle properly in the other’s hair before saying something in his ear.
“Thank you,” Taesan mutters, which causes Sungho to shiver slightly, the warm breath hitting his ear. “You didn’t have to do all of this.”
That, causes Sungho to shift a bit before bringing up one of his hands to stroke Taesan’s hair.
“Of course I did,” Sungho huffs. “I wanted to make today special for you, even if we aren’t in Korea for it.” He says that last part a bit more softly, and instead of a verbal response, Taesan simply hums and snuggles a bit more into his neck. As they say, actions speak louder than words.
Eventually, the two get tired of standing and move to lie on the bed closest to the hallway. They each lay on opposite sides, and while there is some space between their faces, they’re still connected by their intertwined feet. The music’s off by this point, and instead of soft jazz, the room is filled with quiet conversations.
It’s already well late into the night, and Taesan was supposed to start his birthday live at least half an hour ago, but he doesn’t dwell on it. Instead, all of his attention is focused on the pretty boy in front of him, whose eyes flutter heavily, fighting to stay awake. Due to his fatigue, Sungho doesn’t notice his bangs falling on his face, which Taesan doesn’t hesitate to brush away.
His hand lingers behind Sungho’s ear, which gets the other to become more awake. The couple stays like that for a moment, staring at each other with contented smiles.
“Hi,” Taesan eventually says, which gets Sungho to laugh and brings his hand to overlap with his.
“Hi,” Sungho returns with a dopey smile.
“Thanks again for the birthday surprise,” Taesan says. It gets Sungho to sigh dramatically.
“You don’t have to keep thanking me, you know?” Sungho starts, furrowing his eyebrow. “But, you’re welcome.”
“I know, but I just want you to know how much I appreciate you and your efforts,” Taesan confesses, and that gets Sungho to soften. “I love you.”
Sungho smiles softly, before shuffling a bit closer.
“I love you, too,” Sungho responds, before a frown suddenly appears. “I’m sorry that you can’t have your birthday with your family. I know how much that means to you.” Taesan shuts that down real quick.
“Stop, don’t apologize for something like that,” Taesan starts. “Besides, I am with my family. You and the rest of the members are my family.” The statement causes Sungho’s face to contort.
“That was sooo cringy,” Sungho laughs, and Taesan follows.
“I know, but it’s true,” Taesan grins, and silence falls upon them once again. It isn’t uncomfortable or awkward, and there isn’t a need to fill it in with conversation.
Eventually, their exhaustion takes over them, as Sungho yawns behind his hand. Taesan giggles, finding the image especially endearing. He shifts his position, choosing to lean up on his hand, the other one still in Sungho’s hair.
“How about you wash up and get ready for bed?” Taesan asks softly. Sungho rubs his eyes, attempting to wake himself up a bit more.
“What about you?” Sungho asks in return. “Don’t you still have your birthday live to do?”
“Don’t worry about that. I’ll set up for it when you’re in the shower, and I’ll do it quietly so that you can rest.” He says it as a way of assurance, but telling by Sungho’s frown, it seems he still has some protests.
Taesan sighs before trying again. “I promise that it’s fine. It’s just a live and then, when I’m done, I’ll join you in no time.” He ends it with a smile, which finally gets Sungho to let up, who lets out his own sigh, before sitting up too.
“If you say so,” Sungho groans, stretching his arms a bit.
He’s about to head to the washroom when he freezes upon remembering something. Then, without saying anything, he scrambles to the side table where the speaker was, and opens the drawer. He does all of this with a confused Taesan still on the bed, choosing not to disturb his search. Eventually, it seems that Sungho finds whatever he was searching for, pulling out a small box triumphantly. It gets Taesan to huff out a breath of laughter.
Abruptly, he turns to where Taesan is sitting and gingerly holds out the box with a bright, but almost nervous smile on his face. Taesan eyes the box for a second before grabbing it and looking back up at his boyfriend.
“What’s this?” He asks before going back to examine the small box.
“It’s your gift,” Sungho states a bit nervously. Taesan simply nods before finally opening it up.
Inside is a ring. It’s not anything intricate or huge— simply a silver band about half an inch thick. The moment he sees it, his eyes widen, and his head snaps up to look at his boyfriend, who avoids looking at him directly. His face is once again a nice shade of pink, and he looks almost nervous, as though he’s afraid that Taesan won’t like his gift. Which is ridiculous, by the way. Sungho could’ve given him a rock, and he would still treat it as though it were the most valuable thing in the world.
“Is this your way of asking me to marry you?” Taesan asks teasingly, as a way to loosen up a bit. It works, as Sungho huffs out an annoyed laugh, finally looking at Taesan.
“With a ring this small? Who do you think I am?” Sungho asks, pretending to be offended.
“Who knows? You are more minimalistic when it comes to jewelry.” The comment gets Sungho rolling his eyes, and the reaction gets a laugh out of Taesan.
Soon after, Sungho begins to look nervous once again.
“But, how is the ring?” He questions, looking a bit unsure. “Like I said, I know that it’s small, but–”
“I love it,” Taesan interrupts, causing Sungho to look at him. He gives him an honest look, trying to convey his appreciation as much as he can through just one glance. Luckily, it works, since Sungho finally releases the tension in his shoulders and smiles.
“I’m glad,” Sungho sighs before springing up, suddenly excited. “Oh! There’s also something that I engraved on the inside.”
Taesan gives him a curious look before inspecting the inside of the ring. Once he reads it, he practically melts on the spot.
On the inside is the date when they first met along with one of Taesan’s favorite sayings. “Be Happy”.
When he eventually looks back up at Sungho he’s met with a fond look, which he mirrors. He then puts the ring on before going to interlock his hand with the other. Sungho’s smile widens as he squeezes Taesan’s hand lightly.
“Happy Birthday, my love. I hope that you’ll always find happiness,” Sungho declares, which gets Taesan to bring Sungho’s hand to cradle his own cheek, giving a smile peck to his palm.
“I already have,” He replies simply and leaves it at that.
Bonus~
When Sungho finally finishes up in the bathroom, he wastes no time before jumping into bed. The action barely phases Taesan, who’s just sitting on his phone, lifting a hand only to ruffle Sungho’s freshly washed hair. The other looks at him through his bangs for a moment before suddenly remembering something.
“Hey, weren’t you going to do a birthday live?”
“Crap!”