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“Stop! Don’t move!” Joshua yells in an attempt at damage control once he hears steps approaching the kitchen. However, as he already expected, he fails.
“Something smells sweet,” Seungcheol leans against the doorframe. The smile on his face is much sweeter than the dumplings Joshua’s trying to make. It makes dimples pop up on his cheeks and his eyes soften. Like they always do whenever he smiles at Joshua like that.
And maybe Joshua would prefer it if Seungcheol teased him. He did swear off sweets until at least next month, yet here he is only three days later. To be fair, though, those three days were rough. With deadlines, unpleasant interactions, spilled coffees or worse - coffees he had to drink cold and miserable.
He deserves this - and he knows he doesn’t have to justify himself to anyone. Least of all Seungcheol. If anything his boyfriend will support him, be proud of him even for taking care of himself and doing something that will comfort him. But there’s that little voice in his head.
“Maybe I’m making these for you,” Joshua grumbles under his breath, turning his attention back to instructions lighting up his phone.
“No you’re not,” Seungcheol smiles as he pushes himself off and in just a few short steps clings to Joshua instead, wrapping around him from behind like they’ve been separated for eternity, “If you were, you’d be flustered and not embarrassed.”
And Joshua hates that he’s right. So he just huffs and tries to focus again on putting just the right amount of filling into the dumpling to make it round but not too much to make it pop once they’re boiling. It shouldn’t be as tricky as it is. Or maybe he’s just tragic at using the same amount of dough for each wrapper and that’s why he can’t seem to find a rhythm and work efficiently.
Seungcheol doesn’t seem to mind that he’s taking forever. Joshua has to admit his company, albeit silent, is really nice. He’s radiating warmth against his back, his arms hold him like he might disappear, grounding him and preventing his mind from wandering. After every dumpling Joshua finishes, he gets a kiss on his cheek that he pays back even though he knows Seungcheol doesn’t expect one in return.
The light above the counter hums quietly, illuminating only the area where Joshua’s getting the food ready. It hits him only then that there’s no music - of course there isn’t, Seungcheol was napping and Joshua didn’t want to risk waking him up.
His boyfriend’s had terrible sleep these days, waking at the smallest sound of movement. It got so bad he started leaving the bedroom during the night and Joshua had to find him on the couch in the morning, still half-awake and exhausted. So he hopes the successful nap was a sign of better times to come.
Though he definitely doesn’t mind how clingy Seungcheol is lately, guilty over not sleeping in the same bed as Joshua. Not like he himself minds too much - he’s asleep, after all. Even if he misses waking up and being able to pretend he won’t wake up his boyfriend with kisses just to get forcefully pulled against his chest.
“Will there be some for me?” Seungcheol suddenly murmurs against his ear. Despite being held so firmly against his body, Joshua still startles in surprise. His boyfriend only chuckles, his voice vibrating against the skin of Joshua’s neck. He sounds sleepy. Joshua takes that as a good sign.
“If you want,” he offers, “I can’t promise they’ll make it through, though. It’s kind of a mess.”
“You always say that,” Seungcheol reminds him, “And those are the best dinners.”
“Yeah, because I’m right half the time and we end up ordering,” Joshua rolls his eyes.
To Seungcheol’s credit, though, no matter how disastrous the meal ends up, he always tries to eat it - while fighting off Joshua’s attempts to throw whatever he tried to make into the trash if he must. It’s quite endearing.
“Nonsense,” Seungcheol dismisses him, but is smart enough not to push anymore. He knows better than anyone how stubborn Joshua can get.
And by not pushing, he gets to enjoy the younger melting into his embrace again. Seungcheol rests his head against Joshua’s and listens to him hum a melody for a while before taking the hint and breaking the hug for just long enough to pull out his phone and let the music fill the room. Not too loud, just perfect to wrap around them and match the calm atmosphere.
Still, once Joshua’s done with the dumplings, he stares at them for a moment before he sighs. Seungcheol squeezes him as soon as he feels his muscles tensing up again. It’s an everyday thing now, one that he hates from the bottom of his heart.
“It’s just tomorrow, baby,” he murmurs, nuzzling into Joshua’s hair, “Just tomorrow and it’s the weekend. We can go somewhere, we can explore the city. We can stay home. It’s your call, okay?”
Joshua nods, but Seungcheol knows he has to give him time to realize what he heard, to process the words. Until then, he just holds him tighter.
“Can you choose? Please?” Joshua’s voice is quiet, not desperate, just tired. Seungcheol kisses the top of his head.
“Of course,” he promises, “If you made some dumplings for me.”
Joshua chuckles, nodding again before untangling himself from Seungcheol to wash his hands.
There’s not much left to do now, so Seungcheol starts carefully putting the dumplings into the pot of boiling water and gets their dinner cooking.
Joshua comes to stand next to him, leaning his head on his shoulder.
“I really hope you’ll like them,” he sighs, “I didn’t expect it’d take so much time.”
“You did great,” Seungcheol’s hand finds its way around his boyfriend again, settling on Joshua’s waist.
“Did you sleep well?” he asks.
Seungcheol hums, shrugging. “Better than last night.”
Joshua smiles, his eyes sparkling in the dim light. Seungcheol would love to tell him he’s got it now and send him to rest until the dumplings cook, but it would feel like crossing the finish line after Joshua ran the whole marathon. So he at least pulls him to the side, helping him jump up to sit on the counter while he stands between his legs.
“I want to sleep next to you tonight. I miss you,” he admits quietly. Joshua hums as he wraps his arms around his neck.
“I miss you too,” he confesses, “I don’t like looking for you in the morning.”
“You know where I’ll be,” Seungcheol leans forward, resting his forehead against Joshua’s, “You’re not getting rid of me.”
He gets a kiss, soft and barely there right at the tip of his nose. He doesn’t know how Joshua’s mastered doing that in a way that has his knees growing weak, but his boyfriend is nothing if not a man of many mysteries.
“Even if the dumplings are no good?” Joshua teases.
“You’re sweet enough,” Seungcheol smirks. Joshua finally lets him claim his lips.