23-22 

It was Sunday morning and rain was falling, but Youngjae kept the cold away by cuddling closer to Daehyun’s chest and sticking his nose in the warm juncture between his neck and shoulder, balling his fists in the front of his boyfriends’ sweatshirt. He can feel the older boy smiling into his hair and the quiet chuckle bubbling in his chest.

"Good morning, princess," Daehyun’s low voice greets him softly. Youngjae rolls his eyes so hard that his eyeballs almost disappeared into his skull forever, placing a soft kiss on the side of his neck.
“Good morning, idiot,” he replies as Daehyun’s arms tighten around him. The nickname ‘princess’ was coined a long time ago when they were both college students after an embarrassing encounter with a bug in the shower of their shared dorm room; Youngjae tried to shake the humiliating name off, but apparently Daehyun found it hilarious, and the nickname stayed.

They stay in bed for the rest of the morning, the rain knocking on the window and reminding them of the world outside while they were both too caught up in their little bubble of warmth. Youngjae loves mornings like this, when they were both too lazy and in love to get out of bed. He relaxes and breathes in the scent Daehyun had in the morning, a mixture of sleep and the leftovers of cologne from the day before.

"Hey," Daehyun says suddenly. "Remember when we went on a field trip and you cried because you missed your bed?"

Youngjae nods; how can he forget? It was the first time he realized that the feelings he had for Daehyun were a little more than just friendly feelings. “Weren’t we ten?” He wonders out loud, furrowing his eyebrows together in a genuine effort to try and remember. “That’s awfully young.”

"Thirteen years ago," Daehyun states matter of factly. It’s quiet for a while- Youngjae focuses on the steady rhythm of Daehyun’s breathing, feeling his chest rising and falling underneath his fingers. He can also feel his heart beating, matching his own pace. He smiles; they’ve been together for so long that even their heartbeats are synchronized.

"Thirteen years and I’m still in love," he says softly, internally flinching at his own cheesiness. Daehyuns’ heart stops for a moment and then speeds up, hammering against his chest. Youngjae looks up at him and their lips meet; it starts out innocent and sweet, but then Daehyun nibbles on his lower lip and Youngjae gasps. Daehyun smirks against his lips and moves to drag his lips along Youngjae’s jawline, and the younger starts to tremble slightly.

"D-Dae," he breathes out when his boyfriend starts on his neck, leaving red marks on his skin. The older hums in response and the vibrations make Youngjae whimper. He gives up- Daehyun was never one to leave things unfinished, especially not when Youngjae was one of those things.

"You better make me breakfast later," he mutters under his breath when Daehyun moves on top of him, his lips never leaving his neck. There’s a quiet chuckle and Daehyun nods.

"Whatever you say, Jae."

26-25

"What? What is it? Just tell me!" Youngjae whines, his hands reached out in front of him as he blinks under the black piece of cloth that was placed over his eyes. He feels Daehyuns’ hand on the small of his back and hears a door open, then close. A slight breeze hits him and he shudders; it was eerily cold for July, and he didn’t like one bit.

Daehyun’s hand was removed and he stumbles, feeling strangely alone in the dark. He hears a bit of shuffling something that sounds like… sand?

"Okay, you can remove it now," Daehyun says from somewhere in front of him. Youngjae unties the knot and removes the cloth, blinking around confusedly before letting out a small shriek.

"This place still exists?" He marvels, looking around at the preschool yard he and Daehyun played in so many years ago. Everything’s still there; the sandbox in which they’re currently standing in, the swing set, the slides. Daehyun looks down, shuffling his feet in the sand. Youngjae turns suspicious. "Why are we here?"

The older clears his throat and glances at him from underneath his bangs, his eyes shining brightly. “We’re here because I’ve been meaning to do this for a long time,” he starts slowly, and Youngjae freezes. “We met here, remember? I hit you on the head with my lunchbox.” Daehyun chuckles and Youngjae nods, a soft smile appearing on his lips.

"Yeah, I remember."

Daehyun takes a deep breath and looks straight into his boyfriends’ eyes. “I didn’t know back then, but even though it was really stupid and mean of me, that was probably the best thing I’ve ever done in my life.”

Youngjae raises an eyebrow. He doesn’t remember that lunchbox with much fondness; it was made of metal and it hurt him a lot, but Daehyun seems to be in the middle of a speech and he thinks he knows what’s coming, so he doesn’t say anything.

"Now I know," Daehyun continues with a nostalgic smile, "Now I know that that act was a milestone in my life. It gave me a friend, a partner, a genius to copy my homework from." That makes them both laugh for a second, but Daehyun stops quickly so Youngjae follows suit, seeing just how soft and vulnerable the look in Daehyuns’ eyes is. He reaches out his hand and Daehyun takes it, squeezing it slightly.

"It gave me you, Youngjae," he says softly, and tears spring into Youngjae’s eyes. "And that was the greatest gift I’ve ever received in my entire life."

The older takes another deep breath and kneels in the sand, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small black box. Youngjae forgets how to breathe.

“So…” Daehyun looks up at him, and a breathy laugh spills out of Youngjae, along with the first few tears. Daehyun opens the box and reveals a simple golden ring, glimmering merrily in the light. “Yoo Youngjae,” a wide smile appears on the older’s face as he swallows thickly. “Will you marry me?”

Youngjae’s never had a heart attack, and now is not the time to figure out what that feels like, so he forces himself to take a few deep breaths before nodding so hard his head almost falls off.

"Yes," he manages to say after quite a struggle. "Yes, of course."

His legs betray him and he sinks to his knees, holding his hand palm down so Daehyun can slide the ring onto his finger. It fits perfectly and Youngjae throws his arms around his boyfriend- no, fiancé- and hugs him tightly, laughing when they both topple over into the sand.

Twenty two years after they first met, and they’re still sitting in the sandbox, building castles in the sand and holding hands. Only this time, there’s something different- the golden glimmer that seems to promise that even though they may age and get older, they’re going to remain little kids that play in the sandbox.

holla. just a little sequel for ya'll, since i love writing daejae and i love you guys as well ♥

btw did you notice that i ran out of ideas near the end