[DAY 1467]

If he was honest with himself Sungmin was more than nervous, his two years of enlistment passing faster than he ever thought possible. Standing in the lobby of the military office he could here the low murmurs coming from outside the building as he waited for his discharge to officially be finalised.

Thanking the woman who sent him on his way, a soft congratulations voiced as he smiled at her, Sungmin made his way towards his awaiting manager who stood just by the buildings front doors. The manager looked at him, clapping Sungmin's back lightly to soothe the nervous expression on his face.

“You ready Sungmin?”

“As ready as I'll ever be” he sighed, taking a deep breath before moving forward, the automatic doors opening in front of him.  

Stepping out of the building Sungmin plastered a wide smile on his face, bowing to the row of press snapping pictures of him. He continued down the path past of the small group of fans, stopping to wave at them as they screamed his name, wildly waving posters welcoming him back to the idol life [he had to give it to them – they certainly were dedicated, waiting all these years for him]. After a minute of interacting with the fans his manager grabbed his shoulder, guiding him into the awaiting van to take him home. 

Staring out the window as the van weaved through the streets of Seoul he listened to his manager talk about a range of musical and emcee opportunities waiting for him, nodding at the surprising number of projects available to him. As their small talk died off Sungmin thought back to the past couple of years he'd been absent from Super Junior. Following the rest of the boys in the news it had been a bumpy road for the band, groups numbers continuing to slowly dwindle as the likes of Siwon, Hyukjae and Donghae enlisted. 

The car pulled up outside the dorm building, manager handing Sungmin a key with a smile as he stepped out onto the pavement. Wishing him a nice night Sungmin shut the door, watching the van drive away before he made his way up to the eleventh floor. He was shaking as he unlocked the door, nervously pushing the door open before shutting it behind him, leaning his body against it as he took everything in.

A bright smile lit up his face as he stood in the hall, immediately being hit with the feeling that he was home after two long years. The smells of Ryeowook's cooking wafted in from the kitchen, scent of Hamburgers making him grin [trust Ryeowook to cook his favourite food for him]. The sounds of swearing and laughter along with loud video game noises came from the lounge, Heechul and Kyuhyun arguing over something or the other. 

Sliding off his shoes he placed them alongside the row of others as he sighed, thankful to finally be home with the people he loved. A hand suddenly landed on his head making him jump, turning around to find himself face to face with a large grin. Kangin laughed, ruffling his hair as he took in the sight of his dongsaeng.

“Well aren't you a sight for sore eyes!”

“I could sat the same for you.” Sungmin smiled, pulling Kangin into a friendly hug. As they pulled away from each other Kangin gave him a knowing look, gently pushing him further down the main hall.

“The others can wait, how about you go have a look in your room.”

Nodding Sungmin made his way down the hall, butterflies filling his stomach in nervous anticipation as he reached the door to his old bedroom. Taking a deep breath he pushed the door open, taking in his surroundings. The first thing that came into view was a large pile of presents and letters that were obviously from fans during his absence, the stack littering his desk and the floor beside it. Looking past them, he grinned at the figure standing at window, sunlight illuminating his slim figure.

Closing the door with a small click the man turned around, grin lighting up his face. The two stared at each other, grinning widely before the older took quick steps towards him, lifting Sungmin into the air before spinning him around the room. Giggles bubbled out of Sungmin, shrieking for his hyung to put him down while Leeteuk just laughed gleefully.

Landing on his feet he looked up at his hyung, dimpled grin wide as Leeteuk looked at him.

“Hey”

“Well hey to you too.”

Leeteuk chuckled, pressing a light peck to Sungmin's nose. 

“It's good to have you home Sungminnie” Leeteuk whispered, before he pressed their lips together in a searing kiss, the two of them finally home together as one after four long years. 

---

April, 2005

“Hyung do you really think that this is all going to turn out?”

“Whats going to turn out? The pancake? I'm not that much of a disaster when It comes to cooking Sungminnie give me a break”

Sungmin let out a loud laugh, watching as his hyung awkwardly flipped the pancake over on the small stove top in front of them. Jungsoo had invited Sungmin out for a lunch on him, deciding that they both needed a break from the intense training the company had them under recently.

“No hyung this idol thing! We've already dedicated all these years to this, do you really think it's going to pay off in the end?”

“Aaahhh” Jungsoo sighed, nodding his head in understanding “you're finally having doubts after all this time? It normally happens earlier than this.”

Sungmin sighed, small smile not really reaching his eyes as his hyung chuckled to himself. “We've already been dumped out of debuting as one group hyung – who is to say this new group we're training for will turn out any better? Do you really think in ten years time we'll still be around, let alone remotely popular?”

Jungsoo looked up at his dongsaeng, looking at him curiously before a large grin broke out on his face, familiar dimples present. “I think we'll still be around in thirty years, the two of us old grandpas still performing on stage together!”

Sungmin giggled, watching his hyung flail his arms wildly in excitement, “really hyung?”

“Really! And you know how I know that?”

“How do you know that hyung?”

Jungsoo's smile softened as he looked at his dongsaeng, taking his hand gently. “Because no matter what, as long as I have my Sungminnie beside me I know everything is going to turn out perfect.”