Final

When The Moon Is Big & Bright

I was going for a Teen Wolf-esque look in terms of the transformation, in case anyone wasn't sure. Anyway, I hope you like it and please tell me what you think ^_^


When Sunggyu first moved in with Dongwoo he expected some difficulty. Their personalities were complete opposites (while he preferred to keep to himself, the younger man didn't seem to know the meaning of boundaries) and their interests didn't seem to match either. But Dongwoo was incredibly nice and although he doubted if they could become close friends, Sunggyu could tell he would be a pretty decent roommate.

He was rather confident in his prediction until about a month later when he was woken up by a strange noise. He was still half-asleep, but Sunggyu swore he heard something that sounded very much like growling. His semi-conscious mind didn't consider the possibility of danger as he staggered out of bed to locate the mysterious sound. He found the source in Dongwoo's room and cautiously knocked on the door before entering. His roommate was not the most organized of people and the lack of light only made it harder for him to navigate his way through the room. Now that he was closer— and more awake— Sunggyu could hear soft whimpering accompanying the louder growls. As far as he knew neither of them had any pets (he didn't even think the building allowed animals), but whatever was making that noise had to be some kind of dog.

"Dongwoo?" Sunggyu uttered, inching further into the room; he was slowly starting to regret his decision to investigate. He could tell the sound was coming from underneath the bed though it was getting quieter the closer he got. He had seen enough horror movies to know this was the part where he should get the hell out of there, but he still found himself crouching down and peering into the darkness. "Are you okay?"

It all happened so quickly, but he mostly remembered glowing yellow eyes and a mouthful of sharp-looking teeth. Everything went black after that. When he came to it was morning and he was back in his room. Wiping a hand over his face, Sunggyu sat up with a groan; that was one of the weirdest dreams he'd had in a very long time. He should probably stop drinking before he goes to sleep.

"Hey, are you alright?"

Sunggyu nearly jumped out of his skin when he turned to find Dongwoo perched at his bedside looking more concerned than when he had rearranged the living room without asking his roommate. How long had he been there? Did he do this often?

"I'm fine." He kind of wasn't, but Dongwoo didn't need to know that. "But what are you doing here?"

Dongwoo had that guilty look on his face again, his eyes not quite meeting Sunggyu's as he fiddle with his fingers in his lap. "Um, I need to tell you something."

"Okay..."

"Well, you see— I—" Dongwoo stopped suddenly as if unsure of what to say. Still refusing to look at the man in front of him, he took a deep breath to steel himself before trying again. "I-I'm a werewolf."

"What?" Of all the things Sunggyu expected his roommate to say, that was definitely not one of them. Dongwoo could be a bit off the wall at times, but this was very close to sounding crazy.

Sitting there with his head bowed and his bottom lip between his teeth, Dongwoo looked like quite a pitiful sight and Sunggyu found himself feeling sorry for him, as if he was the cause of his doleful expression. "I know it sounds insane, but it's the truth. I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner; this isn't something you can just blurt out when meeting someone for the first time."

This was absolutely ridiculous; no sane person would say something like that and no sane person would believe it. But maybe they both weren't as sane as they originally thought because Dongwoo was completely serious and Sunggyu was feeling very inclined to believe him. He didn't really know what to say, however, so he settled for staring (perhaps too intensely) at the nervous man in front of him.

"Please say something," Dongwoo urged with a glance at his roommate when the silence stretched to an uncomfortable length.

"Show me."

"What?"

"I want to see your werewolf form or whatever you call it." Even if he believed him, Sunggyu still wanted some kind of proof.

"Are you sure?" Dongwoo asked, clearly doubtful.

"Of course. You don't have to get or anything, right?"

Dongwoo was quick to reassure him with a barrage of no's before taking another deep breath and closing his eyes. When he opened them again they were shining golden yellow, the same ones Sunggyu had seen the night before. It was odd, Sunggyu thought, the person in front of him looked very much like Dongwoo, except much hairier; most of his face was covered in wiry black hair, his brow molded into a fierce-looking scowl. It was like nothing Sunggyu had ever seen before, not even in movies or on TV, it was a fascinating combination of man and animal. Then the creature bared his teeth and he wasn’t quite so interested anymore. Letting out a film-worthy scream, Sunggyu threw his covers over his head and pressed himself as close to the wall as possible. It's all a dream, he repeatedly told himself with his eyes squeezed shut, everything that happened last night was just a figment of his imagination. Sometimes dreams felt very real and that was all this was— an extremely vivid dream.

It took twenty minutes of gentle coaxing before Sunggyu could even accept that Dongwoo was real and twenty more before he finally felt brave enough to poke his head out from under his blanket. Although his heart was still pounding, he tried not to let his apprehension show too much. "That's going to take some getting used to."

Dongwoo looked completely perplexed by his roommate's words, his eyebrows scrunching up rather cutely. "You say that like you're okay with this. Aren't you scared of me?"

"Honestly, I'm terrified," Sunggyu confessed, finally sitting up and coming out of his blanket cocoon. "But not of you. This isn't a situation anyone ever imagines will happen to them and there's still so much I don't understand. But I trust you and I'd like to think you wouldn't do anything to hurt me."

He could almost see the tension flowing out of Dongwoo, a relieved smile slowly spreading on his face. It was a captivating sight that distracted him long enough for the other man to tackle him onto his bed in a tight hug. After being peppered with never-ending thank you's Sunggyu finally kicked Dongwoo out of his bed so he could call out of work. There was no way he could focus on his job while he held the knowledge that werewolves existed and he had been living with one for three months already. He had accepted it almost immediately, but a little extra processing time couldn't hurt; he didn't want to go around blabbing about it to anyone who looked at him.

Sunggyu expected things to change after he found out Dongwoo's secret and they did, just not in the way he thought they would. He had expected awkwardness and discomfort; there were so many things about his roommate's condition that he didn't know or understand and he never knew how he was supposed to react. After walking around on egg shells for about a week, Sunggyu tried acting like he used to. It started out rather forced and he knew Dongwoo knew he was having a hard time, but he still tried.

Things eventually went back to normal— well, a new kind of normal. While he was used to Dongwoo's human habits like forgetting his keys or putting the empty milk carton back in the fridge, Sunggyu had yet to grow accustomed to his more beastly habits. He found himself at quite a loss when he stumbled upon his roommate huddled under the kitchen table chewing on what looked to be an old boot. Dongwoo looked positively pitiful as he crawled out from under the table, his eyes never leaving the floor. Not having the heart to be angry with him (truthfully, he didn't know what to feel), Sunggyu could only run his fingers through the other's dark hair as he assured him with a smile that it was alright. However, the next time it happened he wasn't quite so forgiving.

Sometimes Sunggyu liked to think of Dongwoo as the puppy he never had; he was always so full of energy and always seemed to be in awe of everything around him. It was unbelievably endearing and brought out his protective instincts. So much so that he sometimes forgot that Dongwoo was a grown man with supernaturally-enhanced senses. But Dongwoo was amazingly good at controlling his abilities; the night Sunggyu found him was the first time in years that he had lost control, even if it was only just a little. He had promised after that to never transform in front of him and although Sunggyu appreciated his thoughtfulness, his curiosity only seemed to grow when he thought back to the way his roommate’s features had morphed right before his eyes. He waited until it got to be just shy of unbearable before he finally cornered Dongwoo in his room and asked him once again to show him his other form. The younger man was quick to refuse, but he assured him just as quickly that it was okay and that he could handle it; he really hoped Dongwoo couldn’t hear how hard his heart was beating, though he was almost certain he could.

Despite his reluctance Dongwoo eventually gave in and Sunggyu could only stare in awe at the incredible transformation in front of him. There wasn’t quite so much fear this time and he found himself reaching out with a tentative hand to touch the younger man’s face. Sunggyu nearly pulled away when Dongwoo flinched at his touch, but continued brushing his fingers over the soft fur on the other’s cheek. It was a lot smoother than he had expected and it only piqued his interest further as he ran his hand over the other’s protruding brow and down the bridge of his nose. Dongwoo shivered under the older man’s touch, his eyes fluttering closed briefly; in that moment there was nothing fearsome about him and Sunggyu felt his need to protect him grow even stronger than before.

As he learned more about his roommate's condition, Sunggyu wasn't surprised to find that they had grown a lot closer. They had been pretty comfortable with each other before, but now it had turned into something else. Sunggyu wasn't quite sure; there was definitely affection, but could he call it love? His friends certainly seemed to think so. Although he couldn't really blame them after they witnessed the two of them snuggled rather comfortably on the couch, Sunggyu's hand absentmindedly scratching Dongwoo's chin as they watched TV. He then had to suffer through the embarrassing ordeal of being asked if that was the only kind of petting the two of them were into; he was just grateful that his roommate wasn’t around to hear that. His denials fell on deaf ears and Sunggyu decided to let them think what they wanted, he knew what it was. Maybe.

Sure, he liked Dongwoo— who wouldn't? With his eternally bright smile, his contagious but refreshing laugh, and his enormously kind heart it would be a sin to dislike him. But Sunggyu had to admit, as time went by his thoughts changed from that of a friend to something else. His mind often wandered back to the way Dongwoo's hand felt in his as the younger man dragged him out of their apartment in one of his many attempts to get him to stop lazing around. Or the way Dongwoo felt curled up next to him in his bed because the rain and wind against his window was giving him bad dreams; Sunggyu still had no idea how the other man managed to sleep through all the other thunderstorms by himself when they first started living together, if he did at all.

Whatever he was feeling, he was sure he was the only one. Dongwoo certainly would've said something; he could never keep his emotions hidden for very long. And since he wasn't saying anything Sunggyu decided he shouldn't say anything either. Well, that was the plan anyway; it seemed he wasn't as good at holding it in as he had thought.

They were lounging on the couch (as they often did), Dongwoo's head in Sunggyu's lap while the latter ran his fingers through his hair (as he often did). It was all rather perfect so, of course, Sunggyu had to ruin it by blurting out the thought that had been rolling around his head for the longest time.

"Do you think it's weird how close we've gotten?"

"Not really," Dongwoo replied, shrugging slightly.

That answer wasn't very useful to Sunggyu; he needed a bit more than that. "What if people thought we were a couple?"

"I wouldn't mind." Eyes still trained straight ahead, Dongwoo's voice gave nothing away.

That answer was even worse than the first one; did he not mind because he didn't care or was it that he did care and this was his way of showing it? Sunggyu's internal debate was interrupted when his roommate finally turned to look at him.

"Why are you asking about that stuff anyway?"

This was a bad idea; he should've just let it go after the first question. He couldn't possibly tell Dongwoo about the feelings he thought he might have for him, not when he was gazing up at him looking so adorably lost. "Well, I just— never mind, it's nothing."

"It's okay, you can tell me," Dongwoo offered as he sat up to face his roommate. Smiling encouragingly, he reached for the older man's hand, interlocking their fingers without hesitation.

Staring down at their clasped hands, Sunggyu began regretting ever opening his mouth. This wasn't the right time for this discussion; he didn't know when or if that time would come, but he knew for sure that it wasn't that moment. Perhaps if he distracted him he could avoid that dreaded topic. "Why haven't you tried to eat me yet?"

"Why do you keep asking me that?" Dongwoo chuckled a bit, playfully nudging his friend's shoulder with his own. "I already told you we don't eat humans."

"Not even a little taste?" Sunggyu teased, a small smile pulling at the corner of his mouth.

"Do you want me to eat you?"

"Of course not."

"Well, I don't want to either. I don't think I could live without you."

Okay, that had to mean something— Sunggyu was sure of it. But maybe he was reading too much into it. "Are you just saying that because I make sure the bills are paid on time and that we never run out of toilet paper?"

"I'm trying to say I care about you." Dongwoo's eyes were locked on their joined hands. "And I don't want anything to happen to you, especially not before I get to tell you how much I love you— how in love with you I am."

Sunggyu's breath hitched at his roommate's sudden confession; that was the last thing he expected him to say. He wanted to say those same words back to him— there was no point in hiding it now— but he could hardly breathe, let alone, speak.

"I'm sorry. Just pretend I didn't say anything." Dongwoo seemed to take his silence as rejection, his grip loosening as he moved to stand up.

Finally breathing again, Sunggyu tightened his hold on the younger man's hand and pulled him back down next to him. He didn't want him to leave feeling hurt. He wasn't thinking about very much else as he unclasped their hands and reached up to press his palms against Dongwoo's cheeks. It was now or never; Dongwoo's eyes looked like they were about to pop out of his head, but Sunggyu needed to do this before he chickened out. Wasting no more time, he leaned forward and pressed their lips together. For a terrifying moment Dongwoo remained still, but then he was kissing him back and Sunggyu was flushed with relief, which quickly turned into desire. Much too soon, the need to breathe overcame them and they broke apart, panting softly.

"I love you too," Sunggyu murmured, his thumbs gently caressing the younger man's face.

"Even though you know what I am?" Biting his lip, Dongwoo kept his eyes downcast.

"Do you trust me?" Sunggyu didn't like the expression on the other's face; he looked the best when he was smiling. Dongwoo managed a small nod and Sunggyu continued, "Then you can trust that I am 100% okay with what you are because it's one of the million reasons why I'm in love with you."

The tiniest of smiles stretched its way across Dongwoo's lips and he leaned in for a quick kiss. "Only a million?"

"It's barely been a year." Chuckling slightly, Sunggyu moved in for a kiss of his own. "Give me some time— I'm sure I can come up with at least another million."

 

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885020
#1
Chapter 1: Cute!
Blue82 #2
Chapter 1: Aww so sweet
Hanaakarii
#3
Chapter 1: So cute;;;