Work Text:
A box.
Jisung found a box in his walk-in closet. A box that doesn’t belong to him. A box he has never seen in his 12 years of shared home with Lee Minho, his husband. He could only draw the obvious conclusion. Anyone would have thought the same thing if one were in his shoes, right ?
His other half has been hiding things from him, and he doesn’t know what to make out of it.
That’s how Jisung found himself spiraling in their shared closet for 2 hours...
-- Earlier in the day --
At 37, Jisung couldn’t believe he would be this happy. Stray Kids, still quietly alive, lingered like an old song if you could say. Each member chasing their own rhythm now and building their own lifes. His days were filled with perfect balance between work and rest. His nights were filled with the steady joy of the man he had married , his first and only love, Lee Minho. He realized that happiness had never felt fuller than it did now.
Every day, Jisung found his husband more fascinating than the day before. Although now older and more mature, he sometimes still sees the silly but still very handsome man he fell in love with. The silver at Minho’s temples softened his features but deepened the charm that had always enchanted Jisung. It’s like even time has fallen in love with him. The gray that now framed his husband’s face only makes him more irresistible. Jisung still stares at his partner not believing that that kind of handsomeness exists.
Usually, Jisung would wake up around 10 am, have breakfast with his husband and proceed with his workout. After coming back home to get ready, he would leave for work around 1 pm until 7 pm.
But not today.
Today, Jisung has a slow day. He doesn’t have to go to the studio and his schedule is actually chill. It’s been a while since he’s had a day for himself. However, he doesn’t want to just sit at home doing nothing. He wants to have a productive day. He wants to get up, have breakfast, get the groceries, and finally clean their walk-in closet. Well…not all of it. Just his side. Minho’s side of the closet is clean and neat. It’s always been like this. His husband had always organized his clothes in a specific method. Each fabric has its own place and it never changed. On the opposite, Jisung threw his clothes in the nearest empty space available. That’s convenient and fast you would say… but not really. Because you see, nowadays, he can’t find his stuff anymore. And Minho has been nagging him to clean it for weeks.
Well today is finally the day. He’s going to prove to everyone (only Minho actually) that he can also have a nice and tidy space for his clothes. And he has all the time today to do it.
Minho left for the studio earlier. He has been giving guidance to a rookie group for a while now. They have been quite anxious about their upcoming performance. The company asked Minho for some advice regarding their dance. The members, still not cohesive enough, keep bumping into each other and there is no real dance leader among them to guide the dance lessons.
Minho told him he should be back in 4 to 5 hours, which was perfect for what he had planned.
So after lying in bed for a long hour, he finally got up to take a shower and to get ready for the day. Dressing up in casual clothes, he went to the kitchen to get some morning coffee. As he reached the coffee machine, his gaze landed on a small note pinned beneath a magnet on the fridge. He immediately recognized the handwriting. It was unmistakably his husband’s. He read it once. Then again. And again. And the more he read it, the more the smile tugging at his lips could be seen. His heart gave a gentle flutter as if the words themselves had reached out to hug him tight.
“Good morning, jagia. Don’t forget you’re the best part of my everyday life. See you soon, love <3”.
He kept reading that note while drinking his cold americano. For sure now, his smile would not leave his lips for the rest of the day. He carefully folds the note and tucks it into his pocket. It feels like he has a small treasure to carry with him throughout the day. He feels like the day could only get better.
He made his way to the grocery store and enjoyed the calm atmosphere in the aisles. Carefully choosing fruits (not forgetting some bananas his husband seems to be liking lately), vegetables, greek yogurt (Minho’s request), snacks and other ordinary errands. He likes that domesticity. He never thought he would love to go to the store to get groceries.
After paying, he packs everything and heads home to put everything in its place. He feels proud of himself. He judges he could use a pause before attacking the closet. Grabbing a snack from the kitchen, he heads to the living room to watch an episode of the reality tv show he’d been hooked on lately. Minho wouldn’t be upset if he watches without him. He doesn’t really like these shows anyway. He watches one episode and it’s more than enough because you see, as the credits roll half an hour later, he finds himself groaning at the screen. The contestants decided to be foolish and made stupid choices. Again. The kind that left him throwing his hands in the air. Thank god Minho isn’t here to see him. Although he would have loved to rant about it to him. He shakes his head and laughs at himself for getting so worked up over it. He wonders why these shows irritate him. Maybe it was because he hated the mess and the chaos people create for themselves.
With that thought lingering, he glances towards the bedroom where the closet has been waiting for his attention. Enough putting off, he decides. He stands up, brushes the crumbs from his hands and shirt (again, thank god Minho isn’t here to witness that) and makes his way to finally tackle it.
He heads to the bedroom and walks into the closet and immediately sighs. The view is familiar after all. Not pretty. On his side of the closet at least. Shirts hang half-slipped from their hangers where pants somehow could also be found among them. His drawers are half open and he can see a few boxers and pajamas hanging out of them. It isn’t really that terrible but a lot of work still has to be done.
He starts small. He pulls out a few jackets and folds them neatly. Slowly, a little order returns. He sorts a pile of socks, pairs them and stacks them together. The work is easy and soothing. Pick, fold and tuck away.
With a smile gracing his lips, he thinks how strangely pleasant it feels. As though cleaning his closet isn’t a chore anymore but a moment to himself. Cleaning up his closet was like cleaning up a small part of him. It makes him feel better. He feels like it’s a gift he can give himself.
After an hour of cleaning, he can see that he is nearing the end. He can do this, he’s almost finished. Only his bags are left to organize. Minho’s bags and his are in the same place in the closet. Just a few of his bags need to be sorted and dusted. So there isn’t much to clean.
As he reaches the far corner of the closet to access his bags, something unusual catches his eye. A small box tucked behind one of Minho Gucci handbags. He finds it strange. Why would a box be behind a bag? He gets curious (shockingly out of his character, right?). He kneels down to inspect it, giving it a gentle shake. Something rattles inside. He frowns.
After inspecting the outside of the box for a few more minutes, he is now sure of it. He has never seen this box in his life. It doesn’t belong to him. So it must belong to Minho, right?
At that moment, he begins to question his whole life. Does Minho have something to hide from him?
Because usually, when you find a box you have never seen in your life, hidden behind a bag in the far corner of the closet, it doesn’t look good. When you find a box your partner has been hiding from you, it doesn’t look good. Let’s be honest. It most probably hides something your other half doesn’t want you to see. Right? Like… that’s how reality tv shows portray that kind of situation.
The wife, while cleaning, finds a box beneath the bed… It’s a small wooden box. It’s heavy. Tension and suspicion could be felt through the screen. She opens it and finds photographs, letters, postcards and a ring she has never seen in her life. Does her husband have a double life? Suddenly, she doesn’t know who she married anymore. Who does she make breakfast every morning for. Who does she kiss goodbye every time he leaves for work and hello every time he comes back from it. Who has she been sharing her whole life with.
Jisung is an expert in tv shows. He knows that’s exactly how it goes. It does not look good. He looks down. His box isn’t wooden. No, it’s just an old Gucci shoe box. His husband does wear baskets a lot…But it’s heavy. He gives the box another tentative shake…. You can hear different types of content knocking against the walls of the box. He freezes. He doesn’t know what to do.
What could possibly Minho have to hide from him ? He can feel his heart suddenly starting to beat very fast. Minho has never hidden anything from him. From the moment they got together, Jisung could swear on his life that he knew his husband the best. He knows everything about him. He has done everything with him. So that box that lays on his lap does not make sense.
Jisung sits back on his heels with the heavy box resting on his lap. He needs to think logically. He’s absolutely sure he has never seen it before. That fact alone makes him feel like there’s something cold at the base of his spine. In their home, in their closet and yet utterly unfamiliar. His husband must have put it there. Hidden it there.
And with that realization, he knew he was finding it hard to stay logical. The spiral began as he contemplated multiple scenarios over the hour.
Maybe it’s just old photos, letters from before. But then…. Why hide them?
Could it be pills ? Bottles ? Something Minho doesn’t want him to see ? Less likely. Minho isn’t like this. But then again… Minho wouldn’t hide anything from him and yet, here we are.
What if it’s from someone else ? A lover perhaps ? Someone he doesn’t know? No. There’s no way Minho would do something like that. That, he can absolutely be sure of.
Maybe it’s not even about him. Maybe it’s about his family? Like family papers or something. Possible scenario.
It does feel heavy. Could it be … what … a weapon ? No. He’s starting to be ridiculous, right?
Or maybe, after all, it is for him? A gift or a surprise ? But then, why hide it here? Arghhhh…
He realizes that he’s been contemplating scenarios for more than an hour now. And he feels like he’s losing it. He wants to know what’s inside the box. No. Scratch that. He needs to know what’s inside of it. And right now.
Does he open it? Can he ? He knows he trusts his husband. Minho has only ever had eyes for him since the moment Jisung glared at him on the 5th floor of the JYP building. Minho told him he immediately knew Jisung was it for him. And it never changed. So what is this? Has something happened along the way? Did something shift between them without him noticing? Has Minho been more distant? More questions flooded his mind for quite a while.
What does he do ?
Does he confront his husband before or after opening the box? Because putting it aside and forgetting about it isn’t an option. He knows he will spiral about it if he doesn’t know what it contains.
Jisung sets the box on the floor. But it was useless, his eyes keep finding it. He tries to distract himself. He refolds shirts he has already folded. Shifts a pile of jeans back and forth. Even whips down the closet shelves he knows he already did an hour ago. But no matter what he does, the box waited for him.
He leaves the closet for a while, telling himself he needs a break. He makes some coffee, scrolls on his phone and tries to focus on anything else but that box. Nothing works. Every thought leads back to the box sitting on the floor, daring him to touch it.
Unable to resist any longer, he returns to the closet, crouches back down and stares at it. Should I open it? He asks himself again and again. But every time, something in his chest pulls him back to no. Not yet. He can’t. Not without Minho. Not before talking about it with him. It’s the right thing to do.
At that moment, he hears the distinct beeping sound that the front door is being opened.
“I’m baaack” Minho calls from the other room. The warmth in his voice isn’t doing much to calm Jisung’s nerves.
“Jisung?” his husband asks.
“In the closet” he replies. His voice is a tad higher than usual. A feeling of anxiety settles in his stomach. He tries to calm himself.
Each step that echoes in the hallway quickens Jisung’s heartbeat.
“You in here or are you hiding from me?” his partner’s voice calls again, a bit playful. You can even hear his smile.
“I’m just cleaning a bit” Jisung replies. His tone was too monotone and didn’t play back. He shifts slightly trying to make himself appear casual. Even though he is crouched on the floor with his eyes glued to the box.
He feels Minho behind him. His partner leans in with his eyebrows raised.
“Cleaning ? On the floor? With … a … box?”
Jisung blushes up his neck. He tries to play it casually and not make a big deal out of it.
“Yeah… just… organizing”.
Minho steps fully inside the closet, staring down at him.
“You look… serious. And a little weird. Are you okay? Should I be worried?”.
Jisung swallows hard. “No! I’m fine ! Really, don’t worry ! I’m fine... I just got a bit ... curious ... I guess”.
A smile tugs at Minho’s lips. “Curious, huh? About the closet ? Or about the box ?”. He crouches beside Jisung peering down at the box like him. “You look like someone just announced the apocalypse” he says with a grin.
“I…. I just didn’t expect that” Jisung stutters. Fingers nervously hovering over the lid. “I mean… why are you hiding a box? And… and what if….”
“What if it’s a secret weapon ? or a bomb?” Minho teases, eyes already smiling.
Jisung’s jaw drops. “I didn’t say bomb! But you… you know….” he pouts.
Minho thought he looked so cute. Even at 37. He laughs and shakes his head.
“You’re dramatizing for nothing, jagia. Go ahead and open it”.
Reluctantly, Jisung looks at Minho then at the box. He lifts the lid and his breath catches instantly. Inside are little pieces of their shared life. He can see photobooth strips, post-it notes with their shared love messages over the years, restaurant tickets from their date nights out, old matching bracelet he remembers they got when they were in their early twenties. Each item is recognizable, each memory hits him.
His heart pounds loudly in his chest and he feels tears pricking at the corners of his eyes. He laughs shakily and smiles. He welcomes the warmth swelling inside of him. He can feel it. He’s falling for his husband all over again and more fiercely than ever. All thanks to this box. He can’t even remember why that box drove him crazy for hours.
“Oh…. that’s it?” he whispers with a voice trembling.
Minho nudges him gently. “Yep, jagia, that’s it. And yes, you’re allowed to cry”.
Jisung smiles softly. “But … why were you hiding it?” he asks.
His husband shrugs his shoulders. “I don’t know. Just a sentimental value I guess. There are pictures of us when we were so young. I treasure them. I just wanted to keep them safe and private for a while.”
Jisung laughs again and leans back on his heels. Relief, joy and an aching kind of love find him. The box isn’t just memories. It is a reminder of everything they’ve built together. In that instant, he loved his partner more than he did this morning. He couldn’t have thought that was even possible.
He suddenly reaches into in his pocket and takes the post-it note from this morning. He looks at Minho who is already smiling at him. He nods his head to tell him to go ahead and put the new note in the box. Jisung gently places the note inside and smiles.
He looks up, eyes still shining with happy tears. His husband’s smile melts something deep inside him. Without another thought, Jisung leans forward and softly presses a lingering kiss to Minho’s lips. Gentle, full of warmth and love he can’t quite put into words right now. Maybe later in some lyrics. For yet another love song about his husband.
His husband chuckles quietly against him. “That’s one way to say thank you for the box” he whispers.
Jisung just grins, heart still pounding as he lets that moment settle around them.
That’s how today, Han Jisung fell a little more for his partner.