******

January 11, 2016

 

[NNNNN ☻]:

taekwoonie i’m going back to korea for lunar new year!

this might seem unexpected and sudden but…

do you want to meet up? 

[Jung Leo]:

Okay

[NNNNN ☻]:

OMG REALLY???

[Jung Leo]:

When are you coming back?

[NNNNN ☻]:

my flight is on jan 27

but when i get there it’ll be the 28th

[Jung Leo]:

Aww, I’m going to be busy that day so I can’t meet you at the airport :(

[NNNNN ☻]:

aww it’s okay!

my cousin is going to pick me up at the airport

are you free on our anniversary day?

[Jung Leo]:

I’ll make time for you

[NNNNN ☻]:

omg you are the best ❤

[Jung Leo]:

❤

  

Being in an online relationship was not easy. Hakyeon was in the U.S. for college, while his boyfriend Taekwoon lived in Seoul. They were the same age, but Taekwoon graduated from college a year early and was working already. The distance and 16 hour time zone difference made it difficult for the couple, but they both made time for each other. The couple did not always have a perfect relationship though. Since they were so far away from each other, Hakyeon sometimes doubted their relationship could last. They have had their fights, and one time they even almost broke up. However, they became much closer after that incident, and Hakyeon realized that he was really in love with Taekwoon. Finally, he had a chance to go back to his home country, and his boyfriend had agreed to meet him. He couldn’t believe that he was finally going to meet Taekwoon.

 

******

January 13, 2016

 

“Jaehwan-ah! I’m going back to Korea for lunar new year!” Hakyeon exclaimed to his best friend.

“Wow lucky! Take me with you!” Jaehwan pouted.

Hakyeon chuckled, “I’d love to, but I’m afraid it’s going to be difficult to sneak you through the security gates.”

“Yeah, I know.” Jaehwan laughed along. “Are you going back to spend time with your family?”

“Yeah, I’m planning to stay in Seoul with my cousin before I go back to my hometown though. I’m also going to meet Taekwoon for the first time!”

“Oooh, your online boyfriend?”

“Yep! We’re planning to meet on our two year anniversary.”

“Awww, how cute! Did you guys finally video call yet?”

Hakyeon sighed. “Nope. I know it’s weird that we’ve been together for so long and we’ve never seen each other’s faces. I know he’s shy and I didn’t want to pressure him into video calling with me, so it just never happened.”

“Are you sure it’ll be okay? What if he turns out to be some creepy old guy?”

Hakyeon gave his friend a neck chop. “Yah! I trust him! I’ve known him for three years. And I’ve video called with his younger cousin Sanghyuk, who told me that Taekwoon is uncomfortable talking through a camera.”

Jaehwan rubbed his neck. “Well, make sure to be safe okay? Meet at a public place with a lot of people.”

“Yeah, I know. I’m an adult, I can take care of myself! Thanks for looking out for me though, Jaehwan-ah.”

Jaehwan beamed. “Of course, hyung.”

 

******

January 28, 2016

 

Two weeks passed by quickly, and soon enough Hakyeon was already off the plane and looking for his cousin at the Incheon airport. It didn’t take long for him to spot the handsome young man waving at him excitedly.

“Hongbinnie!” Hakyeon rushed over and greeted his cousin with a hug.

“Hyung! Long time no see.” Hongbin cheerfully returned the hug. “How was the flight?”

“Ugh, it was too long and I didn’t have anyone to talk to! But I’m glad to be here safely. Thanks for coming to pick me up, Binnie.”

“Of course I’d come to pick up my favorite cousin.” Hongbin smiled, showing his dimples. “It’s been more than 3 years since I saw you!”

“Yeah, you haven’t changed at all! Still handsome as ever.” Hakyeon grinned.

 

The car ride back to Hongbin’s apartment was filled with chatter as the two cousins caught up with each other’s lives. Hongbin talked about his first year in college and his love for a certain male singer. Hakyeon shared some stories about his college life in the U.S. as well. It wasn’t long before they arrived at Hongbin’s place.

“Thank you Hongbinnie, for letting me stay at your place,” Hakyeon thanked his cousin.

“Oh, it’s no problem at all. I still have classes though, so I won’t be home all the time. Do you have any plans here before you go back to Changwon?”

“Yep, I’m going to hang out with my boyfriend!”

“What? You have a boyfriend? Here in Seoul?”

“Yeah, online boyfriend. I met him online over three years ago and we’ve been together for almost two.”

“Wow that’s cool! Where are you guys gonna meet?”

“He wanted to bring me to his favorite coffee shop called Heaven Café. It’s pretty close by, do you know it?”

Hongbin’s eyes lit up in realization. “Oh, I know that place! They have great coffee, and my boyfriend works there too.”

Hakyeon gasped. “Hongbinnie has a boyfriend? Wow, you're all grown up now!”

“Hyung! I’m only three years younger than you!” Hongbin whined.

Hakyeon smiled fondly. “You will always be my baby cousin.”

 

******

February 1, 2016

 

Hakyeon and Taekwoon agreed to meet in front of Heaven Café at 2pm. Hakyeon was so nervous and excited that he arrived 15 minutes early. As he waited, various thoughts ran through his mind. What are we going to do or talk about? What if it’s super awkward? What if Taekwoon doesn’t like me? What if he doesn’t even show up? Or even worse… what if Jaehwan is right and he’s actually an old creepy guy? Hakyeon fidgeted nervously and checked his phone, which read 1:48pm. There was still some time, so he decided to play a game on his phone to push away the worries. A few minutes later, he was interrupted by a soft voice calling his name. “Cha Hakyeon?”

Hakyeon looked up to see a very handsome guy standing in front of him. He was a few centimeters taller than Hakyeon, and dressed very nicely. He had parted blonde hair and a piercing gaze, but he appeared to be a bit nervous. Hakyeon was speechless. This hot guy is my boyfriend? The other gave him a questioning look.

“Um… sorry, did I get the wrong person?” the taller asked.

Hakyeon shook his head and blinked a few times. “Leo? Jung Taekwoon?”

The other male nodded. “That’s me.”

“Oh my gosh… you’re so hot,” Hakyeon breathed out.

Taekwoon blushed and took Hakyeon’s hand. “Let’s just go inside.”

 

The person behind the counter greeted Taekwoon when he and Hakyeon went to order drinks. “Hey, Taekwoon! Wow, you’re here with someone today.” the worker said, looking at Hakyeon curiously.

“Hi Wonsik,” Taekwoon greeted. “This is my boyfriend Hakyeon. And Hakyeon, this is my friend Wonsik.”

Wonsik’s eyes widened in surprise, “What the heck? Since when did you have a boyfriend?!”

Hakyeon shot him a small smile and answered, “Since two years ago.”

Wonsik stared at him in shock, “Two years?! Wow, this hyung never tells me anything! Anyway, what would you guys like?”

“The usual, but make it two since Hakyeon wants one too,” Taekwoon replied.

Hakyeon nodded in approval. He had always wanted to try Taekwoon’s favorite drink.

“Ah yeah, of course.” Wonsik entered the order for two lattes in the cash register. “That’ll be 7,000 won.”

Hakyeon pulled out his wallet, but Taekwoon stopped him and handed his card to Wonsik first. “Don’t worry about it,” he said.

Hakyeon pouted but he didn’t say anything. He noticed Wonsik holding back a laugh.

“Alright, guys,” Wonsik said. “You can go get a seat first, I’ll make your drinks and bring them over to you in a bit.”

Taekwoon nodded. “Thanks, Wonsik-ah.”

 

The couple took a seat at a small booth by the window. “You didn’t have to pay for me…” Hakyeon started off.

“It’s okay, I wanted to. Don’t worry about it.” Taekwoon smiled.

Hakyeon couldn’t help but smile too. His boyfriend had such an adorable smile. “Okay then. How has your day been?”

“I worked half day today, and it was okay. I’m happy now because I can be with you.”

“Awwwwww, I’m happy to be with you too! By the way, you never told me what exactly you do for your job. I know you graduated as a music major so I’m guessing it’s something related?”

At that moment, Wonsik came to deliver their drinks. “He composes music,” he answered while setting the lattes down on the table. “You should hear his songs, they’re really good! He’s good at singing too.”

Hakyeon’s eyes lit up. “Really? I want to listen!”

“He’s exaggerating. I’m still a beginner,” Taekwoon said.

“Still, I want to hear your songs! Sing one for me, please?” Hakyeon batted his eyelashes at Taekwoon.

“Later,” Taekwoon said. “I promise you’ll get to hear one later today.”

“Okay, you promised!” Hakyeon took his boyfriend’s hand and linked their pinky fingers together.

“You guys are cute,” Wonsik commented. “How old are you?” he asked Hakyeon.

“I’m 23, same age as Taekwoon!”

“Oh, you’re older than me too. Are you in college?”

“Yep, I’m in my last year of college! What about you?”

“I’m a first year student, but I work here part time too,” Wonsik answered, and he noticed some customers entering the store. “Speaking of, I gotta get back to work so I’ll leave you guys alone to enjoy your date. It was nice meeting you, Hakyeon-ssi! Look after Taekwoon well!”

The couple said goodbye to Wonsik, and he left their table. Hakyeon started drinking his latte. “Hey, this is really good! No wonder you like this place so much,” he said to his boyfriend.

Taekwoon nodded in agreement and continued to sip at his drink. The two of them talked comfortably, much to Hakyeon’s relief. Although Taekwoon had always been the quieter and more shy of the two, he spoke a lot to Hakyeon. They chatted as if they were old friends meeting again after a long time, and Hakyeon couldn’t be happier at how their first meeting turned out.

 

---

 

After they left the coffee shop, Hakyeon and Taekwoon went to a shopping plaza nearby. They bought snacks at street food stalls, and went into several stores. Mostly it was Hakyeon who dragged his boyfriend around into different clothing and accessory stores. He ended up buying them matching hats and scarves for the cold weather. Hakyeon was overjoyed to be on a date with Taekwoon. His boyfriend was real, and it was hundreds of times better being with him in person than messaging him online. Hakyeon was smiling while thinking of these thoughts when he was interrupted by his boyfriend tugging at his sleeve to get his attention. “Hakyeon-ah.”

“Yeah?” Hakyeon responded.

“Let’s go in there,” Taekwoon pointed to what appeared to be a pet shop.

Since Hakyeon had been the one who led Taekwoon everywhere, he readily agreed, letting his boyfriend take his hand and lead him inside the store.

The first thing Hakyeon saw when they stepped inside the store was a cat. In fact, there were several cats roaming around the store. Taekwoon immediately walked over to said cat and picked it up, smiling with affection.

“Leo-hyung! You didn’t tell me you were coming here today!”

Hakyeon turned towards the sound of the familiar voice, and to his surprise he saw a teenaged boy whom he recognized. “Hyukkie?”

“Whoa, N-hyung is that you?” Sanghyuk walked over to Hakyeon from his spot behind the counter.

“What are you doing here?” Hakyeon asked.

“I should be the one asking you that!” Sanghyuk exclaimed. “I thought you were still in school!”

“I’m on break right now, and I decided to come back for a visit since I’m graduating next semester. And so I asked Taekwoon if he wanted to meet,” Hakyeon explained.

“Wow, I’m surprised he agreed.”

“Me too, but I’m glad he did. Anyway, I didn’t know you’d be here! Taekwoon didn’t say anything. Do you work here?”

“Yeah, my mom owns this store and I help out sometimes. Leo-hyung comes by sometimes to play with the cats.”

“Oh, I see. No wonder he’s so comfortable with the cats. He forgot all about me.” Hakyeon pouted.

Sanghyuk laughed. “He’s always like that around animals. You’re free to go join him, the cats are all really friendly and they don’t mind being petted by strangers.”

“Yeah, I’ll go do that. I’ll come by and talk to you again before we leave.”

 

Since Taekwoon wasn’t in the same spot anymore, Hakyeon walked around the store to look for him. When he walked to the beds section, he found his boyfriend sitting on the floor, petting some sleeping cats. “There you are!” Hakyeon called out.

Taekwoon looked up, and signaled him to be quiet because of the sleeping cats. Hakyeon frowned. “Wow Taekwoonie, do you like me more, or the cats?”

He stared at Hakyeon for a while, as if he was pondering the question. When he didn’t answer, Hakyeon burst out, “Leooo! Is this supposed to be that hard to answer?”

His boyfriend simply smiled at him, and Hakyeon was not happy with the lack of response. He started to walk away. “Fine, I see how it is.”

Taekwoon stood up and hugged Hakyeon from behind, effectively stopping him from leaving. “It’s cute seeing you get jealous over cats,” he whispered in Hakyeon’s ear.

“Jealous? I-I’m not jealous!”

“Good, because you shouldn’t be. Of course I like you more, silly.”

Hakyeon turned around and buried his face into Taekwoon’s neck. For some reason he felt a lot warmer than before. Did Sanghyuk turn up the heater?  

He suddenly heard said boy’s voice. “Hyung! If you guys are going to get intimate, please leave the store.”

The couple flinched and quickly moved away from each other. Sanghyuk was laughing and skipping away already, but Hakyeon yelled out to him, “Yah! It was only a hug!”

Taekwoon twitched in irritation. “I’ll get back at him.”

The couple continued to walk around the store and play with the cats. Taekwoon seemed to be very drawn to the cats, as his attention was focused on them almost all the time. Occasionally, Sanghyuk would come by to bug them.

“Taekwoonie, this cat looks like you. I’m going to name him Leo.”

“N-hyung, that cat is a girl.”

“Stop ruining my hopes!”

 

By the time the couple left the store, it was already dark outside. They definitely had spent at least a hour inside. “Sorry we spent so long in there,” Taekwoon apologized. “I often get carried away when I come here.”

“It’s okay.” Hakyeon smiled. “It was nice seeing Hyukkie, and the cats were cute. But you know… you’re even cuter than the cats.”

Taekwoon covered his face in embarrassment. “Stop…”

“You love it,” Hakyeon teased. He happily took the other’s hand and they headed off to eat dinner.

 

---

 

The couple’s last destination for the day was the Han River. They were extremely full after eating dinner, so they decided to take a walk. After walking for a bit, they took a seat at a bench to enjoy the peaceful night setting. Hakyeon leaned against Taekwoon’s shoulder. Neither of them talked, but it was a relaxing silence. Taekwoon suddenly pulled out a pair of earphones and his phone. “I promised you’d get to hear my singing,” he said as he handed the earphones to Hakyeon.

“Yay!” Hakyeon cheered. He put on the earphones and looked at the other’s phone curiously.

Taekwoon seemed to be a little bit shy. “Um… I actually composed this song just for you. Just listen, okay?”

Hakyeon opened his mouth in surprise, but he couldn’t find any words to say. He simply nodded and Taekwoon tapped the play button on his phone.

 

Even if I’m not good with words, please understand me.

I will tell you all of the truth I’ve been keeping.

 

It was only the beginning of the song, and Hakyeon already felt tears forming at the corners of his eyes. Taekwoon noticed, and he reached over to wipe the tears. “I’m sorry Hakyeon-ah, don’t cry. I wasn’t trying to make you cry,” Taekwoon said softly.

“No, it’s not that,” Hakyeon sniffled. “Your voice is so beautiful... thank you Taekwoonie.”

Taekwoon held his hand and Hakyeon continued to listen to the song.

 

Saying I love you with words might not be enough

But still I will confess to you today.

I wanna be with you,

Always from a step behind you.

Don’t forget that there’s a person who will protect you.

 

Thank you so much for waiting for me until the end,

For looking at me without shaking.

Lean on me, believe in my love.

Let’s be together always, forever.

 

I love you, I need you.

I love you, I need you.

It’s only you for always.

 

Stay by my side,

I’ll comfort you.

Let’s love as if the world stopped like this.

 

Thank you for being you.

 

As the song ended, several tears trickled down Hakyeon’s face. He leaned in to kiss his boyfriend on the cheek, but Taekwoon happened to turn his head at the same time, resulting in their lips touching briefly for an awkward kiss. Hakyeon pulled back in surprise and he felt his cheeks heat up. “Sorry,” he mumbled shyly while wiping some of his tears.

Taekwoon didn’t say anything, and instead he pulled Hakyeon close again for a real kiss. Hakyeon melted into the kiss, and moved his lips against Taekwoon’s. Taekwoon pulled back first and gazed into Hakyeon’s eyes. Hakyeon felt as if he was getting lost in the depths of his boyfriend’s black eyes. “Happy anniversary, Hakyeon-ah,” Taekwoon whispered. "This is really a miracle."

"What is?" Hakyeon whispered.

"Us."

And really, Hakyeon couldn't agree more. He never could have imagined that everything would turn out so perfectly.

Taekwoon was his miracle.

 

---

 

a/n: i smiled so much while writing and proofreading all of this :) the song lyrics at the end are from vixx's love letter (i love that song ♥)

i marked this as completed but i'm considering writing a prequel and/or sequel since i really like this AU. let me know what you think!

thank you for reading!

also... VIXX'S SONGS FOR MOORIM SCHOOL'S OST ARE SO GOOD!!! i'm so happy that "the king" got released today ♥