Half of the time, HakYeon felt like he knew what he was doing. The other half… self-explanatory. Part of it was that TaekWoon was still his mute self, and HakYeon never quite knew how to read the giant amoeba. Sometimes TaekWoon was clingy and minutely affectionate, but then he’d go to sleep and wake up distant and aloof. He grumbled sometimes when HakYeon had to shake him awake to take his meds; HakYeon had to wake up in the middle of the night, too, so maybe he shouldn’t be so darn selfish.

Of course, the family made their appearances, the mother being the obvious most frequent, often laden with bags of containers of food, enough to last them through a week. If TaekWoon was asleep when she visited, she fussed over HakYeon, insisting he sit down and eat while she ran the washing machine. If TaekWoon was awake, she obviously fussed over her son even more. When the sisters visited, they usually made a lot of noise, and TaekWoon would feign slumber just so they would go away.

He tried to at least make it seem like he knew what he was doing. HakYeon knew he didn’t have to keep up appearances in front of TaekWoon – at least, he thought he didn’t have to – but he still felt self-conscious, judging himself if he didn’t follow through with the haphazard promise he made. So he dutifully kept up with everything, consulting JaeHwan when something slipped his mind. Of course, he wasn’t a professional, so he slipped up every so often, but TaekWoon just patiently laid by until HakYeon stopped freaking out. The meds were easy to handle; the physical therapy, not as much.

And bathing. HakYeon had screeched like a little girl when TaekWoon first pitched the idea out loud, to which TaekWoon responded with a very healthy eye-roll.

“Grow up,” he muttered.

HakYeon continued to flounder even as TaekWoon managed to throw off his shirt, but he sobered up quickly at the sight of TaekWoon’s , the sight of the angry welts, still-fresh scars of bullet wounds. There was one certainly much too close to where his heart was. It was nothing like the burn scars that went up his left side. TaekWoon looked questioningly over his shoulder at HakYeon, realizing he had suddenly stopped fussing. HakYeon just shook his head and stood to help lift TaekWoon to his feet.

HakYeon was changing the water in the vases of the flowers when he heard a knock at the door. He didn’t think much of it, plucking up a towel to dry off his hands as he scooted across the room to open the door.

Someone he didn’t know was on the other side.

The stranger looked shocked to see HakYeon, as well. He seemed to be about the same height, posture awkward from the modest bouquet he cradled in one arm. His large eyes grew a bit wider, darting around confusedly.

“Er… Ah.” His voice was lower than what HakYeon expected. “You must be…”

“Cha HakYeon,” he offered. “You are…?”

“Ah, I knew it. I’m Lee HongBin.” He bowed immediately. “I work with TaekWoon-hyung.”

“Oh! Nice to meet you. Come in.” HakYeon stepped back to let HongBin in. “Is this from you?”

“What? Oh, this?” He held up the vase. “No, this is from someone else. The courier just handed it off to me since I was going to the same apartment. Lazy little…”

HakYeon peered at the card and almost burst out laughing at the name of the sender.

[HakYeon-hyung! Come back to work! Other-hyung, get well so HakYeon-hyung can come back to work… -Hyogie & HaRin]

He’d have to pester that kid later. “You came to see TaekWoon, right? I think he’s awake. Did you want anything to drink? Water or anything?”

“Ah, no. I was just dropping by on my way home from work. Thanks, though.”

He has a nice smile, HakYeon thought to himself, watching as HongBin easily maneuvered his way to TaekWoon’s lair. The vase SangHyuk had sent, at least, wouldn’t need watering; it was a bouquet of small balloons with stems of thin plastic. Where on earth did that kid even find this sort of thing? Ah, that reminded him. HakYeon tried to be as un-intrusive as possible as he slipped an arm (and maybe a cheekbone) in and out of TaekWoon’s room to quickly grab his phone. The low conversation between the two continued, uninterrupted. HakYeon didn’t think about the small smile that played on TaekWoon’s face as he conversed with HongBin.

< You goofy, > HakYeon texted. < Do you miss me that much? How did you know where to send it? >

To be honest, he never considered it, TaekWoon’s personal life. It should’ve been obvious. HakYeon himself has numerous friends, his own family, a job, and a life, so surely TaekWoon would have the same; HakYeon is best friends with TaekWoon’s sister, after all. He’s not sure why he’s suddenly thrown by the appearance of HongBin. If anything, maybe this person is TaekWoon’s equivalent to what SeJung is to HakYeon. Maybe HongBin knows everything about TaekWoon, contrary to anything HakYeon thinks he knows.

< Hyung, I’m tired ㅠㅠ Me and SungJae have been working double to cover for you, and SunHo-nim won’t let us off! Did you like HaRin’s bouquet? We had to go through a bunch of people before we figured out where to send it >

< Tell her it’s lovely, and thank you. I don’t really know when I’ll be back. >

Light footsteps brought HakYeon’s attention up from his phone. HongBin was quietly making his way out from TaekWoon’s room. He grinned when he caught HakYeon’s gaze. “I’m heading out now. I think he’s about to fall asleep. Thanks for taking care of him.”

“Ah, yeah. It’s nothing.”

He had a sort of mischievous glint in the way he smiled at HakYeon as he turned to leave, like he knew something HakYeon didn’t. Of course he did.

HakYeon quickly turned to check on TaekWoon. He seemed to have drifted off, stirring a bit when HakYeon settled on the floor next to the futon.

What am I doing?

In the end, when TaekWoon was finally well enough to be self-sufficient, what would happen to them? Would it just be everything all over again, the random silences of a month or more with the occasional coffee break? It had seemed like they had gotten closer in the last few months, but… was that just HakYeon’s selfish thinking? In the end…

HakYeon almost didn’t catch TaekWoon’s gaze. Just as he looked down, TaekWoon’s head turned away, eyes closing.

In the end…

HakYeon couldn’t rid the poisonous thoughts from his mind. His head hurt when he wasn’t doing anything, so he bustled about the apartment even more, trying to get chores to numb his mind. It didn’t work when he was with TaekWoon.

Session of the day was TaekWoon’s left hand. JaeHwan had told HakYeon something about damage in the something tissue in his hand from the burns, so he would need to work on getting the muscles to wake up again. The easiest thing HakYeon found was to press his palm and fingers flat against TaekWoon’s and slowly pull away, encouraging TaekWoon to keep his hand splayed open. Some days it worked. Others… self-explanatory.

“Yah,” HakYeon sighed. “Are you even trying?”

“Of course I am,” TaekWoon grumbled.

He sighed again and pushed up the curled fingers to point up. “Okay, we’ll try again.”

He knew TaekWoon was trying. It was very obvious from his expression, concentration causing his brow to furrow. But apparently the muscles were against him that day. He only managed to hold his hand open for a millisecond after HakYeon pulled his hand away before the fingers curled in again, an exasperated sigh falling from TaekWoon’s lips. HakYeon kept his own sigh in.

“It’s just a bad day,” he offered brightly. “We can try again later.”

His voice didn’t match his mood, though. The poisonous thoughts had been brewing harder, and HakYeon almost wanted to run from the apartment, maybe dunk his head in the river to wash out his brain.

HakYeon’s mind snapped to as TaekWoon’s fingers slipped past his own, TaekWoon’s hand closing around his own. He stared at their entwined hands for a second, looking up to glance at TaekWoon’s face, and he froze at the expression he saw.

“I’m sorry…” TaekWoon mumbled.

“Eh? What for?”

TaekWoon kept his gaze down, looking guilty for one reason or another. He didn’t speak for a bit as he searched for the words to say. “I used to think… this whole Mono and Poly business was stupid. What deity had the right to decide these things for us? What if… two people who were meant to match… weren’t meant to be matched? I wondered if everyone in the world was really happy with this set up. And I think I ended up convincing myself that maybe the system was wrong. Somewhere down the line, someone would be matched to the wrong person.

“I ended up convincing myself that everyone else had this mindset. I thought the same thing about you. I thought you were only humoring it because it’s what was to be expected, so I tried to keep away just so you wouldn’t feel obligated to stick with me. But there were times… when I wasn’t sure. I didn’t know if you were just trying hard or genuinely…”

TaekWoon finally looked up into HakYeon’s eyes. “So… I’m sorry… that you ended up like this. I don’t know how you must be feeling right now, skipping out on your own life because you have to be tied to mine.”

HakYeon took in a slow breath, processing TaekWoon’s longest speech ever. “So… even through all this, what is your honest feeling about being matched with me?”

“I…” TaekWoon paused, seemingly suddenly very conscious of their hands still intertwined.

“Because honestly,” HakYeon lifted his other hand to push back long bangs from TaekWoon’s eyes, “even if I met you a million times in a million different lives, I would want to be matched with no one but you.” TaekWoon tensed at his words, and HakYeon laughed, feeling like he’d probably jumped in the river and washed his entire being clean. “I really do love everything about you, TaekWoon, even if it’s just fate saying so.”

TaekWoon didn’t answer, but HakYeon could see his own burdened expression melting away. He was too tickled by the whole development that he barely noticed himself slowly leaning in towards TaekWoon. For a moment, it almost seemed like TaekWoon would go with it, but he suddenly flushed and recoiled back. HakYeon burst out laughing as he ruffled TaekWoon’s hair. He didn’t stop himself from pressing his lips to the top of TaekWoon’s head, though. And TaekWoon, still blushing, closed his hand a little tighter around HakYeon’s.

A/N: Yohoho I haven't updated since 2014 alalalalala~~~~~ /runs

Much apologies for the longggg wait. First it was Christmas and then New Years, and family was over pretty much every day for two weeks. And then I got sick, and I was away from my computer for the longest time. And then I went into a slump cuz I couldn't figure out how to get from one point to another. TL;DR I have a lot of excuses.

In any case! HongBin's cameo completes OT6, there's no shower scene, and TaekWoon finally tells HakYeon "btw not actually straight just scared". Y'all, you may not really believe it when authors say so, but we really do get a lot of motivation and inspiration from comments. Tbh, half of my content is actually conjured from comments because I realize what readers are thinking and how they see the story. I'm not pressuring you into leaving a comment jk I actually am, but I'm just saying for the comments that are left, authors 6000% appreciate it :)

TL;DR THIS FIC IS ENDING SOON AND THERE'S A TEASER FOR THE NEXT FIC IN THIS CHAPTER CAN YOU FIND IT?