Eight months later

Seokjin frowned when he realised he had run out of banana kick. He’d been sat in the airport waiting for Namjoon’s flight to arrive for approximately four hours. Namjoon had only sent him one message that told him that his flight had been delayed, so Seokjin shouldn’t wait for him. But Seokjin didn’t mind waiting for him. Which was precisely why he’d been sat in the airport for so long.

“Are they still not here?” asked a middle-aged woman who had been keeping Seokjin company. They were both waiting for the same flight. Both waiting for their significant others.

Seokjin shook his head. “I guess the flight must have been delayed for a while. . . I hope it gets here safely.”

“I’m sure it will, don’t worry so much about it.”

Seokjin smiled gratefully at the woman and threw his empty packet of banana kick in the bin. He wondered if Namjoon would still recognise him, or if he would still recognise Namjoon. It had been a long time since their ménage à deux at Seokjin’s apartment. Summer and Fall had passed since then, and now Winter had settled in. There were very few opportunities for the couple to reunite; only a couple of weekends during the summer and a four-day trip to Jeju at the beginning of fall. But they called each other frequently, and that was enough to keep them going until times like these.

Seokjin checked his watch, it was 11:36 p.m. His last packet of banana kick was enough to keep him going for another hour, at least, but hopefully Namjoon would arrive before he needed to buy another packet. All of this waiting and eating was tiring him out.

After another half-an-hour of waiting, Seokjin noticed a group of people crowding around the exit to gate 13, which he remembered was the gate Namjoon was supposed to be landing in. He stood up from his seat and bustled through the crowd, determined to find Namjoon after almost five hours of waiting for him. The profusion of people dispersed as passengers gradually flowed through the gate until Seokjin’s attention was snatched by a tall man with bright blue hair. He was wearing a face mask and sunglasses, so it was hard to tell, but Seokjin was almost certain it was Namjoon.

Seokjin pushed past the people in front of him and locked eyes with the man he fell in love with half a year ago.

Kim Namjoon.

“Namjoon-ah,” Seokjin said weakly. “Jagiya, it’s me – Seokjin.”

Namjoon accelerated towards Seokjin, letting go of his suitcase to embrace him. Seokjin placed his hands on Namjoon’s back, patting it gently.

“I missed you so much,” Namjoon said, his voice cracking. When he pulled away to get a good look at Seokjin, he pulled a face. “What happened to your hair?”

“I dyed it.” Seokjin proudly patted his brown mop of hair. “The stylist said that it was peru, so I’m sure she knew what she was doing.”

“Looks nice.” Namjoon pecked his cheek and picked up his suitcase. “But I told you not to wait for me, didn’t I? Why are you here?”

Seokjin was caught off guard. He blushed. “I missed you. And I would have stayed up at home, anyway.”

“I had a feeling you would, no matter what I told you. But I’m glad you did.”

Seokjin’s eyes glistened with tears of joy. He nodded and grabbed for Namjoon’s hand, interlocking their fingers as they left the airport.

In Seokjin’s vaguely familiar apartment, Namjoon let Seokjin take his suitcase into his room and settled himself in the living room. It definitely felt like Seokjin’s living space; everything was neat except for the odd book or empty wine glass scattered somewhere.

“I’m sorry,” Seokjin apologised suddenly as he walked into the lounge. “I didn’t have enough time to clean up after dinner.”

“I’m not bothered,” Namjoon said. “As long as you’ve eaten.”

They laughed together, for no particular reason, and Seokjin’s heart swelled at the sound of somebody else’s laughter overlapping his. He looked at Namjoon, studying his appearance again. His hair was the same. His fashion seemed more or less what it usually was – a suit. His dimples still flourished whenever he smiled. It was almost as if Namjoon had never left.

“Your hair’s falling out,” Seokjin mumbled, and pointed to the coruscating blue hairs that had molted onto his shoulder. “You’re stressed.”

“That’s what happens when you have a job.”

Good point.

“Well there’s no stressful work for you here,” Seokjin smiled. “Relax.”

Namjoon seemed to exhale out a wave of worry, feeling the heavy weights of work being eased off his shoulders when Seokjin replaced them with his warm, gentle hands. “I’m so tired. . .”

“Me too,” Seokjin said. “I’ll unpack for you in the morning. For now, let’s just sleep.”

“Good idea.”

Seokjin woke up earlier than usual. He poured his regular glass of almond milk, got dressed, and, although heavily distracted by Namjoon’s snoring, unpacked Namjoon’s clothes and personal belongings. His lips arched into a grin while he was unpacking Namjoon’s nonfiction books and science magazines, being mindful to put them beside the bed for when he eventually woke up. There was also a heavily creased newspaper dated for yesterday, which Namjoon must have picked up at the airport; untouched - except for the crosswords and sudokus at the back.

Just as Seokjin was about to pick up his bag and leave he noticed a sudden halt in Namjoon’s earthshattering snoring. His brow shot up, thinking Namjoon might be dead, and rushed into the bedroom.

Unsurprisingly, Namjoon was not dead. He was sat up in bed rubbing his sore eyelids.

Seokjin walked over to the bed and leaned over, pecking Namjoon’s forehead. “Something wrong, jagi?”

“Mph,” Namjoon groaned, and grabbed hold of Seokjin’s wrist. His face was caved so far into the pillows that Seokjin couldn’t understand a word of what he was saying. But when he lifted his head and grinned at him with his adorable little dimples, Seokjin felt like his heart had melted.

“Oh, Joonie,” Seokjin cooed, peppering a deluge of kisses all over Namjoon’s face.

Namjoon groaned. “Go away, I’m grumpy.”

Seokjin chuckled and left one last kiss on Namjoon’s mouth. Namjoon grunted and pushed at his chest.

“Fine, I will,” Seokjin said jokingly. “I’m going to work now and I’m never coming back. Goodbye.”

Namjoon grunted again and rolled over so he was face down on the bed, his face smothered by the pillows.

Seokjin chuckled again and left Namjoon to rest, leaving the apartment to go to work.

*             *             *

“Jinnie hyung, Namjoonie called,” Hoseok said as soon as Seokjin walked into the laundrette.

Seokjin really wanted to cringe when he heard Hoseok say that. Hoseok loved nicknames. He just couldn’t talk to anyone or about anyone without shortening their name or adding ‘ie’ on the end.

“Did he?” Seokjin chose to say.

“Yup,” Hoseok replied, really popping the ‘p’. “Your phone is on the desk.”

Seokjin walked over to the desk where they kept the finance papers for the hotel and picked up his phone. He switched it on and chuckled when he saw the forty missed calls from Namjoon. Hoseok nosily peered over his shoulder and laughed when he saw the alarming amount of missed calls.

“Ha.” He was clearly amused. “That seems like something you would do.”

“It does, doesn’t it.” Seokjin called Namjoon and shooed Hoseok away.

Namjoon picked up in a record-breaking millisecond. “Hi, Joonie!”

Seokjin heard the sigh of relief Namjoon emitted at the sound of his voice. “Hey, babe, I was wondering where you were.”

“Yes. I could guess that from the forty missed calls.”

“Oh. Right. Yes. Those. . . Um, I can explain.”

Seokjin rolled his eyes, despite Namjoon not being able to see him. “Well that explanation will have to wait.”

“When do you get home?” Seokjin could sense the slight disappointment in his voice.

“Whenever this shift ends.”

There was a pause. “You’re not running away with another man, are you?”

“Yes I am. We’re flying to Barbados in ten minutes. Sorry Joonie.”

“Shut up, no you’re not.”

Seokjin smiled. “I’ll be back soon. I promise.”

Namjoon hummed. “I love you.”

Seokjin pulled a face. God, Namjoon could be so ridiculously cheesy. He looked around to make sure no one was around to hear him before whispering, “Love you too.”

Seokjin hung up.

Hoseok wandered into the room again, an overflowing basket of laundry in his hands. He pointed to a washing machine in the corner of the room and said, “Hyung, could you open the machine and empty the clothes, please?”

“Sure.”

Seokjin grabbed a basket and started unloading the laundry. At some point he heard Taehyung and Jungkook walk into the room. While Taehyung started talking to Hoseok, Jungkook approached Seokjin and jumped up onto the washing machine next to him.

He snickered and poked Seokjin’s buttocks with his toe, making Seokjin jump in surprise and bump the top of his head on the door of the machine.

“Weren’t you supposed to have a half-day today?”

Seokjin brought his head out from the washing machine and puffed his cheeks. “Well, I was going to. That was until Hyemi said she had an 'emergency' and asked me to take over her shift.”

Jungkook’s face showed noticeable signs of irritation. “She has an emergency every week, I swear.”

“Seems like it,” Seokjin mumbled, folding white business shirts.

“Last week she told me to take over her night shift because her sister had broken her foot or something. But I asked Nayoung noona yesterday and she said that Hyemi doesn’t even have a sister.”

Jungkook gave one last annoyed pout and said no more.

Seokjin turned from folding the shirts and suddenly noticed that Hoseok was smiling. And he was smiling at him. Seokjin smiled back, his eyes curving into crescents, and Hoseok’s smile widened.

“Jinnie hyung has such a pretty smile, doesn’t he?” Hoseok said dreamily.

Taehyung finally looked away from Hoseok and focused his attention on Seokjin’s handsome face. “Hyung is always pretty,” he said.

Seokjin smiled at the compliment. He couldn’t help it, he always smiled whenever someone called him handsome or pretty. “I know,” he said, despite ‘thank you’ being the humbler thing to say.

Everyone in the room laughed at that. Not because it was wrong, just because it was such a Seokjin thing to say.

Hoseok jumped up from his place on one of the washing machines, exclaiming that he simply must take a selca with Seokjin’s pretty face. He came bounding back into the room, the front-facing camera already up on his phone. He twisted himself around so both him and Seokjin were in focus, but then Taehyung leapt onto Seokjin to get in frame and Jungkook just so happened to be in the same shot too. Hoseok snapped the photo and took a few seconds to evaluate their group photo, the other three crowding behind him to get a good look at the photo as well.

“We look so great!” grinned Hoseok, very pleased with himself. “Especially you, hyung,” he said to Seokjin before pinching his cheek and shoving his phone in his pocket.

Seokjin glanced at his watch. “Right, I think I should be setting off. Namjoon’s getting pissy with me because I won’t come home.”

“Sure,” Hoseok grinned. “Good luck with that.”

Seokjin was only feeling a little worried as he unlocked the door to his apartment. Namjoon might have starved without him. Either that or he would have obliterated his kitchen trying to cook something.

He didn’t know which was worse.

“Jagi,” Seokjin called, shutting the door behind him, “I’m home.”

No response.

Okay, now he was really worried.

“Namjoon,” he called out in a louder voice this time. “Namjoon-ah!”

Suddenly, two arms wrapped around his torso and pulled him backwards. Thinking that he was being kidnapped (in his own home, how humiliating), Seokjin instinctively swung his leg backwards, kicking whatever his foot came into contact with first.

There was a whine as the arms retracted from his body.

Seokjin’s face sprawled into a victorious smirk, and he turned around to face his kidnapper. Unfortunately, there was no kidnapper, just Namjoon writhing on the floor with his hands between his legs.

“Oh my – Namjoon, are you okay?” he panicked, rushing to the floor to Namjoon’s aid. “I’m really, really sorry! You see, I thought you were trying to kidnap me because I couldn’t see you because you were behind me so I didn’t know that it was actually you and I ―”

“No. . .” Namjoon wheezed. “It wasn’t your fault. I shouldn’t have scared you.”

“Are you okay?” Seokjin mumbled guiltily.

A smile from Namjoon was all it took to reassure Seokjin.

Namjoon sat down on the couch first, and Seokjin after, swinging his legs up to lie on top of Namjoon’s.

“How was work?” Namjoon asked. He lifted his hand up so his fingers brushed faintly over Seokjin’s face, and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. “It took you long enough to get home.”

“I had to take over someone else’s hours. It was exhausting. But I guess it was worth it, I got a lot done today.”

Namjoon’s hand inched closer to Seokjin’s neck, massaging the exposed skin there. “Make sure you sleep well tonight, then.”

“Oh? Did you have something else in mind before that?” Seokjin asked, bouncing his eyebrows suggestively.

“Maybe.”

Seokjin, very aware of the hand on his neck, shuffled closer to Namjoon, opting to sit on his lap. Namjoon wriggled in his seat to get more comfortable and began playing with Seokjin’s hair.

“But we could just sit like this if you want,” he whispered in Seokjin’s ear. “I don’t mind.”

Seokjin leaned into the crook of Namjoon’s neck to hide his smile, but the way he curled his fingers around Namjoon’s hand gave him away. Being a very affectionate person himself, Seokjin was always one to value affection. And the affection, the little touches and kisses, that Namjoon gave him never failed to make him feel fuzzy and warm inside, similar to the way he felt when they first met.

Seokjin abruptly wriggled out of Namjoon’s arms, and the latter was quick to respond. Before Seokjin had even taken a single step, his wrist was swiftly grasped hold of.

“Where are you going?” he asked.

“Nowhere, apparently.”

“I wouldn’t go in the kitchen, if that’s what you were thinking.”

Seokjin’s left brow shot up, and a playful grin spread across his lips. “Should I ask why?”

“No. Not until I think of a way to make it up to you.”

Namjoon grinned at him, and Seokjin knew that he had lost. He’d been thinking to himself recently that he should teach himself to stop giving in to Namjoon’s dimpled smile. Looks like it needed some work, because next thing he knew, he was being pulled back into Namjoon’s arms.

He’d like to provide the excuse that he always tended to gravitate towards Namjoon, was attracted to him like a magnet. When two magnets are too far apart, they don’t react with each other, but if you bring them closer together, you can feel the forces pulling them together. And the most powerful magnets cannot be separated by human hands once they’re together.

And Seokjin liked to think of love in this way.

Especially the love he had with Namjoon.

a/n: tfw you haven't updated in over a month......

anyway, jokes aside, i'm really relieved to get this off my chest. i kept writing it, deleteing what i'd written, only to rewrite it again because it didn't sound as bad as it originally did in my head

i don't know if you actually liked this or not (personally, i think i could've done better, but i didn't want to keep everyone waiting for too long), so please tell me if you did, i'd appreciate it ^^

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaanywho, i'm done rambling, thank you again for putting up with the wait, i understand the struggles of having no namjin to read for bloody ages, bai :3