Reminder that I am making up my own timeline, this doesn’t coincide with any of their real schedules from that time. It’s just from my own mind. :) They go where I want them to ;) They have their own apartment now in my timeline.

~1 year after the start, a few days before Jiyong’s 27th birthday~

Seunghyun was scrolling through his search results for “surprise party ideas” on his laptop. He wanted to surprise Jiyong for his birthday. He just had no idea what to do for his lover. He sighed and closed his laptop. He stood from the desk and walked out of his and Jiyong’s bedroom. He found himself in the living room, looking out at Seoul’s skyline.

He contemplated being subtle and asking his lover about it, but decided against it because he knew his lover would play it down. He was also worried that Jiyong might be nervous about his birthday since it put him closer to enlistment. He frowned, which would seem comical if he didn’t look sad as well. He knew how he felt himself about having to enlist soon, and he knew that similar thoughts plagued his younger lover. It made his heart heavy to think about how long they’d have to wait to get married and have a family. 

The thought of marriage made him smile suddenly and he hurried back to the bedroom to call Youngbae. 

He hit the speed dial for the singer and listened to it ring impatiently. 

“Hey man. What’s up?”

“I have a plan for Jiyong’s birthday!”

“Finally! What are we doing?”

Seunghyun told the singer his plans, and they set aside time the following day to go get everything they would need to make this Jiyong’s best birthday.

        ^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^

The following morning after Seunghyun had taken his shower, he texted Bae what time to meet him so they could buy their supplies. Seunghyun was taking Jiyong out to lunch before the younger went to a photo shoot, which meant he’d have all afternoon to not worry about Jiyong getting suspicious about the surprise party. 

Jiyong was curled up on the couch, snuggled up in one of Seunghyun’s old sweatshirts. He was watching some talent show intently. When Seunghyun sat down next to him, he rearranged to be snuggled under his lover’s arm. 

“You ready for lunch, baby?”

“Yeah. Where are we going?”

“How about that French restaurant we went to last year?”

Jiyong smirked up at him. “You mean our unofficial first date day when we went to the butterfly exhibit?”

“Yeah, that one.”

“I’d be ok with that, the food was good and we were able to get a private booth.”

The younger stood up and pulled Seunghyun from the couch. “Get the car keys while I go change real quick.”

The elder gave him a kiss on the cheek as he walked to the front door. After a few moments, Jiyong walked into the small entry hall wearing basic skinny jeans and a grey v-neck t-shirt. He was carrying his sunglasses and mask, as well as Seunghyun’s. 

“Let’s go.”

        ^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^

The next morning, Seunghyun awoke filled with excitement. He woke his lover, knowing that Jiyong had to go help new trainees that day, and was happy to know that he and the other three could decorate the dining venue they had rented for the party. Jiyong burrowed his face into the soft fabric of the shirt Seunghyun was wearing. 

“Morning love.”

“Morning.” Was the muffled reply. 

“Did I tell you I made dinner reservations for us for tomorrow night at Soigné?”

Jiyong looked up at him with a sweet smile. “Birthday dinner?”

Seunghyun laughed and kissed his nose. “Yes, my adorable Ji Ji.”

The younger snorted. “You know what I’m starting to realize?”

“What?”

“I don’t mind you calling me that anymore.”

The elder laughed. “Took you long enough. What time do you need to be at the studio?”

Jiyong rolled away from his lover and stretched as he checked the time. “20 minutes.”

He stood up, yawning. “I’m gonna go take a quick shower and change so I can head out. What are you doing today?”

“Not much, my mom asked me if I could help her around the house today.”

Jiyong nodded, easily accepting the innocent little lie. He yawned again as he walked from the room. Seunghyun also got out of the bed and found what he was going to wear, taking out a pair of black pants and a dark grey Tom Ford cashmere sweater. He placed the items on their bed and walked to the kitchen to make himself a cup of coffee. 

        ^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^

Seunghyun walked into the dining area they had rented to find Youngbae directing the younger two singers on where certain things should be. 

“Hey guys. Looks great so far.”

The room had been decorated with red and white silk ribbons and there were places marked with painter’s tape where weights would go with the balloons the following day. There were red and white rose centerpieces on the tables and thin red satin table runners going down the middles of all the tables. 

There was a long table against a far wall that was full of hor d’oeuvre plates and elegantly rolled napkins. There were spaces where food and drinks would be placed the following day. 

Daesung stepped off a small ladder. “You think?”

The rapper nodded. “Yeah. Were you thinking of doing anything else?”

Seungri moved the ladder to a space that was devoid of ribbon. “We were thinking of seeing if we could find some red and white ornaments to hang from each spot on the ceiling where the ribbons meet. The only issue we’ve had so far is that the ornaments we’ve found are Christmas ornaments, which we do not want.”

Seunghyun laughed. “My mom might have something. I’ll go call her.”

The others nodded and got back to finishing the ribbons as their elder stepped out into the hall, taking out his phone. His mother answered on the third ring. 

“Hello?”

“Hey mom. I have a question.”

“Ok, I have an answer.”

Seunghyun chuckled. “Do you have any ceiling ornaments that are red or white that aren’t Christmas?”

“Hm, that’s a good question. I would imagine that I did. Final touch for Jiyong’s party tomorrow?”

“Yeah, they aren’t a necessity, but they’d be a nice touch. If you find any, will you bring them tomorrow and give them to Daesung?”

“Of course. What time do you want us there again?”

“Well, I told Ji that I made reservations for 6, so maybe an hour early?”

“Sounds good honey. We’ll see you tomorrow.”

“We?”

“Your father decided to come. I think he’s coming around to the idea of you two together.”

Seunghyun felt his eyes burn. “Really? That makes me really happy.”

He could sense his mother’s smile. “Me too. He does love you, your relationship threw him off a little. He wants to be there tomorrow.”

“Well, I’ll see you guys tomorrow.”

After saying their goodbyes he walked back into the room to see that the others had finished the ribbons. When they looked up at him, they looked concerned.

“What’s wrong?”

“What? Nothing.”

Daesung looked skeptical. “Your eyes are a little red.”

“Oh!” The rapper laughed. “I am amazing. My dad’s coming tomorrow.”

“Wow! That’s amazing hyung!”

They all patted his shoulder and continued going on about how happy they were for him. 

^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^

The next day, Seunghyun awoke with a nervous flutter in his stomach, but his excitement overpowered it quickly. Jiyong was sleeping peacefully, snuggled into the elder’s side, snoring softly. Seunghyun smiled  at him, thinking as he often did how lucky he was that he could call the younger his. 

He carefully untangled himself from his lover and quietly left the room to make breakfast. He wandered into the kitchen and gathered ingredients to make chocolate chip pancakes. 

As he mixed everything together, Youngbae walked in. 

“Hey.” The singer said quietly. 

“Morning.”

“We got everything else set up except the food, that will get set up around 5:30. You guys will get there around 6, right?”

The rapper nodded. “My mom should be there around 5 ish. If she found any ornaments things she’ll give them to you guys.” The rapper turned from the pancake mixture. “Thanks for helping me get all this set up.”

Bae smiled at him. “I was happy to help. Tonight will  be amazing. Jiyong won’t be able to stop smiling.”

Seunghyun smiled. “I hope so.”

“Excited?”

“I don’t think I’ve ever felt quite like this.”

The singer smiled again. “What are you guys gonna do to kill the time before the party?”

“I think we’ll probably just hang around here. We might binge watch some Supernatural or something.”

“Well, before you know it, you guys will be on your way to the party.”

The rapper chuckled. “I don’t have any doubts that today will go too slow and too fast. It will feel like we’re never gonna get there, and then suddenly we’ll be there and I won’t know how we got there.”

The singer smirked. “You’re a dork.” He checked his watch. “I’m gonna head out so you can get breakfast made. See ya later.”

“Later.”

The singer walked out of the kitchen and Seunghyun turned back to the pancake mix. He finished stirring the ingredients together. He the stove and dropped a small amount of butter into a skillet. Once it began to melt, he carefully poured the mixture into the skillet. After a few moments, he flipped the pancake over before setting the spatula down and walking over to the cabinet to pull out a glass and a plate. 

He set the plate on the cool burner next to the skillet and placed the first pancake onto the plate and smearing butter onto it. He made a few more pancakes and stacked them onto the dish. He turned the stove off and turned to the fridge, opening it to pour orange juice into the glass. He got a bed tray and placed Jiyong’s breakfast onto it, with a knife, fork, and a small ramekin of syrup.

He walked back to their bedroom. “Ji Ji?”

The younger rapper rolled onto his back and stretched. “Morning.” He smiled and sat up. “Breakfast in bed?”

Seunghyun walked over to the bed and set the tray over the tattooed man’s lap. “Of course.” He smiled as Jiyong began to pour syrup onto the cakes. “What do you want to do today?”

The younger shrugged as he took a bite.

“Do you just want to sit around here and watch TV, or do you want to go out and find something to do?”

Jiyong thought for a moment as he ate the food. “Well, if we’re going out later, we should stay here. We’re behind on some shows anyways, so it might be fun to catch up.”

The elder nodded and smiled at his lover. “Sounds perfect.”

After Jiyong finished his breakfast and they took a shower, they cuddled up on the couch and began to watch Supernatural.

        ^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^

By 5:15, they were dressed and getting ready to leave. Seunghyun was standing by the door waiting as Jiyong finished getting dressed. The elder was wearing black dress pants, a white silk button down top, and a red satin blazer. His hair was slicked up. Jiyong walked into the hallway and Seunghyun whistled, causing the younger to laugh. He was wearing black pants, a black satin shirt, and a white blazer. 

“We ready, Ji Ji?”

Jiyong smiled. “Yeah.”

They left their apartment and went to the parking garage, the elder got into the driver’s side. 

As Seunghyun drove, he felt his excitement grow. After driving for almost 30 minutes, he pulled up to a building next to the restaurant he’d told Jiyong they had a reservation at. They exited the car and Seunghyun gestured for the younger to follow him. 

“What are we doing? Shouldn’t we get in there a little early.?”

Seunghyun smiled. “This will just take a second. Come on.”

The younger man followed him up the stairs into the building. Jiyong followed him down a hallway, feeling confused. They stopped in front of a door for a second. The elder looked at Jiyong and smiled at his confused expression before opening the door and leading his lover into the room. 

“Surprise!”  People shouted as the lights came on. 

Jiyong jumped before he began laughing. He looked at Seunghyun. “You are such a liar!”

People laughed and came forward to begin talking with the couple. After a few hours of socializing and telling Youngbae, Seungri, and Daesung they had decorated the room beautifully, Jiyong and everyone else’s attention was caught by Seunghyun when he cleared his throat and tapped his glass of wine. The room fell silent as everyone’s eyes turned to him.

“First of all, I would like to thank all you for being here with us tonight. This evening has been amazing, but I wonder if there’s anything that could make it better?”

He looked around the room. Youngbae gave him an encouraging smile. 

“Jiyong, our one year anniversary is just a few days away, and let me just say that I have never felt so much happiness in all of my life. You have made me stronger and you have shown me how to see the joy in the little things. We belong together, and I think everyone in this room can agree that sometimes we are overwhelming in our love for each other.” A few people laughed in agreement. “I used to be afraid. I was afraid of messing up everything we’ve worked for. I was afraid of my own feelings. My heart and my brain were at war for a long time. My heart yearned for you, but my brain told me to just stay friends with you, because I was afraid I would destroy our friendship. The night we shared our first kiss, you almost left because I was hiding my feelings, and by doing that, I was growing distant. I’m glad that my heart won that fight, because I get to have you by my side.”

People smiled when Jiyong laughed shyly and wiped away a tear of joy. Seunghyun walked closer to him and grabbed his hands. “A few months ago, you told me about what your mom said about the stars being your dreams, and how you thought it was sad that there didn’t seem to be as many, so you felt like dreams had died. Well, I think you were wrong. I think they were dreams that came true without you knowing it. The sky is dimmer than when you were a kid because that light and strength went into you. You’ve fought tooth and nail to get to where you are, and you’ve held your head high when everyone tried to tear you down. You are the strongest person I know, and you inspire me to face each day with more bravery than the day before. I know that I love you more than anything, including coffee,” Jiyong laughed and looked at the elder tenderly. “And I have one question to ask you.”

“Ok?”

Seunghyun got down on one knee and pulled a small black box from his pocket, opening it. Everyone in the room gasped and some people put their hand over their mouth. 

“Kwon Jiyong, will you marry me?”

Tears welled up in the tattooed man’s eyes. He put his right hand over his own mouth as he nodded, unable to speak. Seunghyun slid a thin silver and gold braided ring onto the rapper’s left ring finger. He stood and the shorter man kissed him. Everyone in the room began clapping, and a few people whistled. 

Dear god, I made myself smile like a fool at how domestic and fluffy and cute I made this chapter. Please let me know what you thought? I’d really appreciate it. I am kind of in love with this chapter haha and it’s hella long, so I hope you guys enjoyed it :)