Index:

(YJ) - Young Jae speaking
(DH) - Daehyun speaking
(HC) - Himchan speaking
(JU) - Jongup speaking

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I love you.

Three simple words that could mean a wide variety of things in today’s world. It could simply be a display of affection that showed that you were okay with that person, that you truly are close to that person, or that you are completely infatuated with someone. These words were strong and important, but if said often, then it may lose the passion behind it.

That’s why for Young Jae, he rarely ever said these words. They were far too important to just say on a daily basis. He reserved these words specifically for certain people and for certain times. After all, it was important to show just how much one feels towards another only when the moment is appropriate. The same thing goes for affection. It was only during certain moments, although he’s broken this one ‘few’ times, Young Jae preferred to show his love when the moment was right. At least, that’s how Young Jae saw it.

But, he may not end up following what he believed.

After those flashbacks that had ensued, Young Jae has been constantly eyeing both Daehyun and Jongup. He knew that they were still here and that they were alive and well, but who knows if it may happen again? Who knows if he may end up losing the both of them through unexpected circumstances once more. He didn’t want that and thus, he has been keeping a very close eye on the two.

For the first few days, Young Jae had only been keeping an eye on them. Nothing more and nothing less. Well.. at least, he had planned to do only that. Who knew that emotions would run a little higher than that?

The second he saw just how much Daehyun enjoyed Taeyeon’s cooking (although, Daehyun just about ate everything anyway), Young Jae got a little.. well, jealous. Could he help it? Seeing HIS husband enjoying someone else’s cooking isn’t exactly something he could just turn a blind eye to. Sure, it was just food related, but the way Daehyun just seemed to absolutely enjoy Taeyeon’s cooking was something that just felt completely unacceptable.

So, Young Jae took up the task of cooking for the household. It wasn’t difficult, considering he had been cooking for himself long before Daehyun moved in with him. It was just something that took up time, which he didn’t necessarily have much of at the moment. Still, if it made Daehyun happy, then it was worth it.

Which brought up another question... Why the heck was he so focused on trying to make Daehyun happy?! Daehyun’s happiness wasn’t the main objective when it came to their survival. What was necessary was that they produce enough money to make certain that they have the funds necessary not only to take care of the baby, but to also send Jongup to college as well as pay Taeyeon for her services once she starts working for them.

But.. something about those flashbacks just continued to gnaw away at him, continually making him want to take care of Daehyun. It was ridiculous, but he just couldn’t help himself. No matter what he tried, his mind thought of those flashbacks which in turn, made him think of Daehyun and Jongup.

Speaking of Jongup, Young Jae had actually ended up purchasing things for Jongup that he didn’t even need! Video games?! Why would he buy video games! They were unnecessary and yet, seeing the happy look on Jongup’s face made Young Jae... well, happy. Sure, he didn’t display it as well as someone like Daehyun, but the emotion was still there.

Sadly, that wasn’t the only thing different.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Who told you to let go?” (YJ) Young Jae had instantly turned to look at Daehyun, whom had just started to get up from his seat. Daehyun froze, his thoughts slightly fragmented from the sudden demand in Young Jae’s voice, before getting up to his feet.

“I have to go use the bathroom..” (DH) Getting up from his seat, Young Jae took hold of Daehyun’s hand and held it firmly. Daehyun looked down at their interlocked hands before looking back up at Young Jae in confusion. Young Jae returned Daehyun’s gaze with his eyebrows furrowed and a stern look on his face.

“I’m coming with you.” (YJ) Using his free hand, Daehyun scratched the side of his head. Why was Young Jae so attached to him all of a sudden? It’s been nearly four days since all of this started and each day only seemed to get worse and worse. He didn’t know whether to be worried or to find it cute that Young Jae was like this. “Well? Let’s go. I thought you had to use the bathroom.” (YJ)

“I can.. uh.. go by myself.” (DH) They stood there awkwardly for a brief moment before Young Jae’s hand slipped out of Daehyun’s hand. When Daehyun assumed that it was safe for him to go, he barely took a step to the right when suddenly, a pair of hands grabbed his rather stretchy cheeks. “Y-Young Jae! Let go!” (DH)

“Let’s go.” (YJ) Young Jae pushed Daehyun as he kept a strong hold on Daehyun’s cheeks. Daehyun made it evident that he was in pain, but Young Jae didn’t seem to care as he continued to lead Daehyun towards the bathroom. The only time he let released his hold on Daehyun’s cheek was when Young Jae had to open the door.

Once inside, Young Jae released his hold completely before closing the door behind them. Locking it up, he leaned against the door and folded his arms as he looked over at Daehyun. “Okay, go ahead.” (YJ)

“Young Jae.. Are you alright?” (DH) Young Jae raised a single brow as he looked Daehyun over.

“What do you mean by that?” (YJ)

“I mean..” (DH) Daehyun let out a small sigh as he stepped closer to Young Jae. He did worry for Young Jae’s mental state, but it may not be anything too important. Coming to a stop just as the tip of his slippers touched Young Jae’s, he reached up as he caressed Young Jae’s cheek with the back of his fingers. “You’ve been acting strange lately.. I mean, you even hit Taeyeon with the spatula the other day!” (DH)

Young Jae turned red as he looked away, folding his arms. He mumbled his sentence, but it was still audible for Daehyun. “Well she wouldn’t let me cook..” (YJ)

“She insisted to let her cook because she knows how hard you have to work. Young Jae... Are you sure you’re okay? I mean.. You’ve been acting differently ever since last week.” (DH) Daehyun placed his hands on Young Jae’s shoulders as he held a worried look on his face. “I just need to know that you’re alright.” (DH)

Looking up at Daehyun, Young Jae softened his facial features as bit as he let out a small sigh. His arms loosened up a bit as he reached up with his right hand and placed it on Daehyun’s shoulder. “I’m fine, alright? So don’t worry about it. Now... Turn around.” (YJ)

“Huh..?” (DH)

“Turn. Around. Now.” (YJ) Young Jae brought up his other arm before turning Daehyun around for him. Moving Daehyun over towards the toilet, Young Jae lifted the toilet lid before pressing his body up against Daehyun’s. He, with unintentional eagerness, reached down as he quickly took hold of Daehyun’s pants. Just as he was about to pull it down, Daehyun quickly reached for Young Jae’s hands and held it in place.

“W-Woah there! What are you doing?” (DH) With his efforts now at a standstill, Young Jae let out a slightly irritated groan as he rested his chin on Daehyun’s shoulder. Daehyun turned his head to look at Young Jae and from what he could tell, he had a slightly annoyed look on his face.

“I’m going to help you pee.” (YJ) Again?! Although it had been a LONG while ago, it had still been a little over a year since Young Jae helped him pee and both time, Daehyun had been fully capable of helping himself. This time though, Daehyun hadn’t gotten himself drunk yet again.

“I don’t need help... J-Just.. Uh.. Wait by the door like before.” (DH) Slowly, his hands slipped away as Young Jae took a step back. Daehyun turned to Young Jae, noticing that Young Jae was staring at him with narrowed eyelids. He could tell that Young Jae wasn’t happy with him, but there were just some things that were out of his comfort zone. “Sorry.. I’ll finish quickly, alright?” (DH)

“Yeah yeah... I get it. Just hurry the heck up so that we can go back to the couch already.” (YJ) As Daehyun did his business, Young Jae leaned against the door. Why exactly was he standing here in the bathroom, waiting for Daehyun as he did his business? It was completely illogical and he could be watching the show that he was paying little to no attention to. He blamed Daehyun for all of this. If he hadn’t of died, then he wouldn’t be in this state!

Once everything was done with in the bathroom, the two made their way out before making their way back towards the couch. Young Jae quite disliked the cold feeling of Daehyun’s hands after being washed, but he was just glad that Daehyun had enough hygiene sense to wash his hands after using the bathroom.

Daehyun was the first to sit down onto the couch before Young Jae sat down next to him. Settling his head on Daehyun’s shoulder, Young Jae reached behind as he moved Daehyun’s arm around his shoulders. With a satisfied sigh, Young Jae nuzzled his head against Daehyun’s neck a bit as he closed his eyes. “Don’t let go again, alright?” (YJ)

“Do you really like it when I hold you like this?” (DH) Young Jae let out a small scoff as he shook his head.

“Like? What’s there to like? It’s not like it’s anything special and anyway, you should be grateful that I’m even LETTING you hold me! Now be quiet and watch your cartoons...” (YJ) Although Young Jae hadn’t admitted it, Daehyun knew that he liked it. He smiled warmly as he reached up and softly Young Jae’s hair. Even with Young Jae acting like this, Daehyun still loved this man and he couldn’t wait to go to dinner with Young Jae tonight. Which reminded him..

“Hey.. I’m going out tonight.” (DH) Young Jae instantly sat up, his hair brushing against Daehyun’s jawline. He looked at Daehyun with his eyebrows furrowed as he quickly straddled Daehyun before grabbing his collar.

“What do you MEAN going out?! Where and with who?!” (YJ) Daehyun looked up at Young Jae in surprise. He hadn’t expected this kind of reaction from Young Jae from that simple sentence. In fact, this kind of reaction wasn’t something Young Jae usually did, but.. at least it was a new side to Young Jae.

“I’m going out to the bar with Yongguk.” (DH) Young Jae thought on it for a moment as he grip loosened up a bit. To the bar? With Yongguk? Why? They saw each other enough, so he doubted it was just simply to hang out. Were they going out for a night of drinking? Wait.. Drunk Daehyun.. That meant that he was easy to take advantage of and that was something he was NOT going to let happen. Looking back down at Daehyun, Young Jae shook his head as he closed his thighs tightly around Daehyun’s waist.

“Daehyun, you don’t have my permission to go to a bar! I refuse it! You cannot go, I will not allow it, and you will stay here under my watchful eye, do you understand me?!” (YJ) Daehyun stared at Young Jae with surprise still clear on his face. Why was Young Jae acting like this? With a small sigh, Daehyun reached up as he wrapped his hands around Young Jae’s hands. Slowly, he eased Young Jae’s hand away from his collar before lowering their hands down and looking back up at Young Jae.

“Young Jae.. Don’t be like this. I’m just going out for a little while. I’ll only be gone for about four hours.. Alright?” (DH) Young Jae bit his bottom lip as he looked off to the side. He didn’t like the idea of Daehyun being out of his sight. What if he ended up getting hurt? What if he died again? What if he ended up cheating on him?! Young Jae couldn’t bare the thought of either one of these possibilities happening.

“.. If you insist on going to the bar, then I’m accompanying you.” (YJ) Daehyun thought on it for a moment. Would it be best to just bring Young Jae out like this? But wait. If he did agree to let Young Jae come along, then Young Jae would dress casually instead of in the formal wear that he needed Young Jae to be in. As much as he hated to say it, he was going to have to make certain that Young Jae didn’t come with him.

“I uh.. Don’t think that’s a good idea.” (DH) Young Jae raised a single brow as he sat up. He kept his eyes glued onto Daehyun, practically trying to pierce its way through Daehyun’s head. Daehyun cleared his throat, his nervousness raising as he quickly tried to form a reason as to why Young Jae couldn’t come. “You see.. uh.. Yongguk and I are going to be talking some.. uh.. police stuff and it’s confidential.” (DH)

“Police stuff..” (YJ)

“Y-Yeah.. Police stuff.” (DH) Young Jae already knew that Daehyun was attempting to lie. If Daehyun hadn’t rehearsed the lie ahead of time, then it wasn’t all that convincing which was actually the case now. Slowly sliding off of Daehyun, he released his hold on his husband as he glared down at him.

“Daehyun... You’re clearly lying to me. I do not know the reason behind this fib of yours, but I want to know it now. Either tell me, or you will have to face my punishment.” (YJ) Daehyun attempted to swallow the lump in his throat as he stared up at Young Jae. He didn’t want to ruin the surprise, but nothing was coming to mind. Though, as he thought on it a little more, an idea finally came to him as he cleared his throat.

“W-Well... You see, uh.. I didn’t want to ruin the surprise, but.... Himchan actually told me that he was going to bring you to some fancy party tonight. He just wanted to keep it a surprise, but uh.. I don’t really know why.” (DH) Young Jae could see the slight nervousness still in Daehyun’s eyes, but.. the rest of him made it seem like he was defeated. Had Daehyun really given him the truth or was he lying yet again? Well, he would trust Daehyun’s word for now. It seemed like it was the truth, but just to make sure..

“Okay.. Then when is Himchan going to bring me to this party?” (YJ) Daehyun looked downwards, his eyes searching for the answer. When it finally came to him, he looked back up to Young Jae with a bit of hope in them.

“Six ‘o clock.” (DH) Young Jae would have questioned why it took Daehyun some time to think of the answer, but it was understandable. When one doesn’t necessarily have their schedule memorized or written down, then it does become rather difficult to remember the times and dates that were created. Wait..

“Six?! That’s four hours away! Why is he waiting until last minute to tell me this?!” (YJ) Daehyun merely shrugged as Young Jae quickly turned and made his way towards the bedroom. Daehyun heard Young Jae mumble to himself and although it wasn’t all that clear, he already knew that Young Jae was mentally going over what he needed to prepare.

With a small smile, Daehyun let out a relieved sigh as he got to his feet. Turning, he looked over at Jongup and Taeyeon, whom quickly looked away in order to avoid eye contact. Daehyun chuckled a bit as he took his phone out before he began texting someone. “Will you two be okay while we’re out?” (DH)

“Yeah. I just hope it goes well!” (JU) Daehyun looked up at Jongup and grinned before looking back down at his cell phone. In all truth, he had been texting Yongguk and Himchan the entire time. He would have had Jongup and Taeyeon help him with the surprise, but it might have given away his surprise.

With the last of his texts sent, Daehyun put his cell phone away before stretching. Everything seemed to be going according to plan and he was rather enjoying it. He just had to make sure that Young Jae left first before he did. That way, he can get ready too without Young Jae questioning why he was dressed so nicely.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Young Jae was slouched in his seat with his arms folded and his eyebrows furrowed. Why exactly had he agreed to attending this so called party with Himchan anyway? In fact, WHEN had he agreed to attending it? Young Jae knew that he had gone into the bedroom to get ready, spent an unnecessarily long amount of time with the preparations, and then left to go when Himchan got to the apartment.

Now, he was regretting his decision.

Here he was, overly dressed for an occasion he knew nothing about, and Daehyun wasn’t here to see him. Wait. Why did it matter if Daehyun saw how he looked? He didn’t care! Daehyun saw him all the time, so why should it matter how differently he looked? Sure, he put far too much effort into looking his absolute best only to be wasted with complete strangers... and Himchan, but that doesn’t mean it would be special if Daehyun saw him this way anyway.

All he had to do was make small conversation whenever it was necessary. This party was Himchan’s idea and thus, Himchan should be the one to converse with everyone. If anything, Young Jae had little to no role in this fancy party. Had it been some sort of science-related convention, then there was a possibility for him to converse with the other attendees, but so far, it does not seem to be that way. Well, it didn’t matter. What’s done is done and he is stuck attending this party until Himchan has had his fill.

“Almost there. You excited? I heard there’s going to be some really good food there.” (HC) Himchan had his usually grin on as he glanced over at Young Jae. Young Jae only rolled his eyes though as he turned his head towards the window.

“Do I seem excited to you? I am already regretting my decision, but.. I will attempt to show a positive attitude.” (YJ) Himchan reached over to Young Jae before giving him a playful push. Young Jae shot a glare at Himchan, but Himchan’s gaze was focused on the road before him.

“That’s the spirit, Young Jae! Just make sure to have a big smile on your face, okay? Wouldn’t want to be scaring anyone off now.” (HC) Young Jae let out a small sigh before looking back out the window. He was NOT going to give a smile just because Himchan didn’t want him scaring anyone away. If they were even going to attempt a conversation with him, then they needed to accept him for who he was. Was he a smiler? Nope. Not in the slightest. Did he care? Nope. Not really and it was as simple as that.

Once they arrived at their intended destination, both males stepped out of the car before making their way towards the building where the ‘party’ was supposed to be. Himchan couldn’t help but hold a grin on his face as he constantly glanced over at Young Jae. He really couldn’t wait to see the expression on Young Jae’s face one he saw the surprise that Daehyun had worked so hard to create.

Entering the building, Young Jae and Himchan both looked around for any signs of where this ‘party’ would be. While Young Jae searched vigilantly, Himchan just simply held his smile as he took in the sights. When it was clear that there was no obvious sign, Young Jae furrowed his eyebrows as he turned to look at Himchan. “Well? Where’s this damn party of yours? I want to get it over with and then go.” (YJ)

“Oh, relax. Hey.. You know what? You wait here and I’ll go ask them for directions. Okay? Okay!” (HC)

“Hey, wait!” (YJ) Young Jae let out an irritated groan as Himchan continued walking off to god knows where. He folded his arms as he turned away, trying once again to locate the party. Why was it difficult to find something that should be blatantly obvious?! After all, most parties were obnoxiously loud and filled with all kinds of people.

When he couldn’t locate the party for the umpteenth time, Young Jae merely let out another sigh as he looked over in the direction that Himchan had ran off to. Where had he gone to anyway?! It shouldn’t take THIS long to ask for directions from the front desk!

Though, those thoughts were practically thrown out the window the second he felt an arm wrap itself around his waist. He tensed up as blood rushed to his head, but.. it wasn’t exactly the type of blood that would cause him to be embarrassed. Oh no. This was the type of blood that made him quite known to be the hot-headed male that he could prove to be.

Turning, he quickly elbowed his ual assailant in the gut as hard as possible before taking a few steps away. However, his eyes instantly widened the second he realized just who he had exactly attacked. “Daehyun?! What the heck?!” (YJ)

Why the heck was Daehyun here?! If he knew that Daehyun had been the one to hold him like that, he wouldn’t have attacked him in the first place! Though, he was a bit surprised to see Daehyun okay, almost as if the attack hadn’t phased him at all. Sure, he was rubbing his belly a bit and he was wearing a rather thick jacket thanks to the weather, but his elbow should have done some sort of damage to him. “Hey..” (DH)

“Don’t HEY me! What the heck are you doing here?! I thought you were going to go to the bar with Yongguk!” (YJ) Daehyun smiled a bit as he rubbed the back of his head. How exactly was he going to explain it?

“Well... this was sort of... my idea.” (DH) His idea? It was Daehyun’s idea to bring him to a random place just to get him all dressed up?! Wait. Why was Daehyun dressed up too? Why did he look unbelievably attract- No. No. No. No. Daehyun was NOT unbelievably attractive. Sure, he looked just like how he had looked on their wedding day, granted Daehyun’s hair is a little lighter at the moment, but still.. that didn’t mean that Daehyun was practically the only thing on his mind at this very moment.

“Explain. Now.” (YJ) Daehyun smiled as he stepped closer to Young Jae. Reaching forward, Daehyun took hold of Young Jae’s hands before holding them gently in his grasp. Looking up at Young Jae, Daehyun’s smile grew a little as he looked at Young Jae. He looked so magnificent, so handsome, so.. perfect. Sure, Young Jae always looked perfect, but today was Young Jae’s special day and something about today just made Young Jae glow with radiance.

“Happy Birthday.” (DH) Birthday? What did Daehyun mean by birthday? Whose birthday was i-

Young Jae pulled his hand out of Daehyun’s grasp as he quickly smacked his forehead with the palm of his hand. How had he forgotten that today was his birthday?! Of all things to forget, it was just simply ridiculous to forget one’s birth! But wait... That meant that..

“Don’t tell me..” (YJ)

“I’m taking you out on a dinner date. Our table’s waiting for us.” (DH) Young Jae turned a little red as he looked off to the side. It had been a while since they’ve been on a date and it was a rather.. nice gesture, he will admit that, but.. did Daehyun even think about the costs? The fact that they dressed so nicely must meant that this place was fairly expensive.

“I don’t like this Daehyun. We don’t have the money for-” (YJ)

“Don’t worry. I saved some money on the side just for this occasion. I just want this day to be special for you..” (DH) Young Jae rolled his eyes before finally making eye contact with Daehyun. Why was the man that he married such a cheesy romantic? Well.. it was working and Young Jae was starting to question his sanity for marrying this man in the first place. However.. he just couldn’t help but think that maybe it would be a nice change of pace. After all, if Daehyun did save money off to the side, then that meant that it was money that wasn’t coming from their savings.

“Fine.. I’ll give this dinner date a chance. You better wow me.. Okay..?” (YJ) Daehyun grinned as he quickly began leading the way.

“Okay. I’ll make sure to give you the best date ever.” (DH) Daehyun looked over at Young Jae, flashing a bright grin, before looking back forward to where they were walking. Young Jae turned red as he looked away, his eyebrows furrowed. Why did Daehyun have this kind of effect on him? It never made any sense.

Ascending the floors, the duo stepped onto the floor before making their way over to the host. Young Jae looked around as curiosity soon got the best of him. This place definitely looked nice, but it wasn’t exactly tux worthy. Still, none of that mattered. The fact that he was with Daehyun was good enough, right? Here, he could keep a close eye on Daehyun and make certain that he remained safe.

“I was here and already checked in for my table. I just had to go pick up my date.” (DH) Young Jae looked up upon hearing Daehyun’s voice. The host simply nodded before looking back down at whatever it was that they were doing. Young Jae thought that it was rather rude of the host to do something like that, but Daehyun just simply seemed to brush it off as he walked Young Jae towards the table that he had reserved just for the two of them.

Passing the many rows of tables that seated all kinds of people, the two finally came to a stop to a table right next to the window. Daehyun pulled out one of the chairs before motioning for Young Jae to take a seat. Young Jae raised a single brow before taking a seat in the chair. “I can pull out my own seat you know..” (YJ)

“I know, but I wanted to help a little.” (DH) As Daehyun went around to his own seat, Young Jae picked up the menu in front of him as he opened it up and began looking through it. His eyes instantly widened as he saw the prices for everything. Just the appetizers alone were expensive! Fifteen dollars for onion rings?! Who would pay that much for onion rings?! “Hey.. I uh.. Got you something.” (DH)

Young Jae looked up as he blinked a few times. Setting the menu down a bit, he eyed the box with suspicion as he reached forward and took it into his hands. Setting the box down on top of the menu, he began to open it up when he paused for a moment. He didn’t know why his thoughts suddenly decided to think about this, but...

“Why did you decide to ride the bus that day?” (YJ)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[[ My Own Thoughts: 

Annnnnnd.. Cut!
Sorry, next chapter will be the date. x3
I actually don’t even remember what I typed this chapter..
So I apologize if it wasn’t all that eventful. @_@ ]]