Decisions Made
Tell Me You ExistIndex:
(YJ) – Young Jae speaking
(DH) – Daehyun speaking
(JU) – Jongup speaking
(MJ) – Mrs. Jung speaking
(DJ) – Mr. Jung speaking
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Christmas has always been a very popular holiday. Whether it was because of the media, the presents, or religion, Christmas has always been the number one holiday to come. Of course, with most holidays, prices tend to end up soaring above everyone’s heads, thus making it a very expensive holiday. It may make things difficult for everyone, but people still ended up falling into the consumer trap every year.
Daehyun was no different. Since he’s been in a coma since middle school, his mind hasn’t necessarily had the chance to age alongside his body just yet. So, when it came to Christmas, he was definitely excited over the hype that Christmas came with. Christmas meant presents and presents meant free stuff that he would get, but he had already come to terms with the possibility of not getting presents this year. After all, he hasn’t gotten any presents for the past two years, so why would this year be any different?
Of course, he was spending Christmas with Young Jae this year. That was definitely a big change from the last two years. He did, however, want to get Young Jae something special. Sadly, he wasn’t going to be able to do something like that without any money and… well, he doesn’t have any money to begin with. So, the next best thing he could think of doing was bringing Young Jae out on a date, but again, he didn’t have any money.
As much as he didn’t want to do something like this, Daehyun knew that he was going to have to get the funds from somewhere. Yes, it was a bad idea and something he already felt guilty about, but there was nowhere else he could turn to to get money. After all, he couldn’t just let Young Jae pay for everything. He’s already done that way too often in the past. Daehyun wanted it to be different, at least just for today. With Grandma Yoo’s passing, Daehyun wanted to make Young Jae extra happy for even just a brief moment.
Standing in front of the familiar store, Daehyun stared up at the sign. His breathing was even despite his heart threatening to burst out from his chest at any moment. There was no chance of him getting caught, but Daehyun knew that this had to be done. He would just take however much was necessary then be on his way. Daehyun could pay them back, so… it shouldn’t be too much of a problem… right?
This was a bad idea, a very bad idea. What he was thinking of doing is illegal and he very well knew that, but… what else was he supposed to do? He couldn’t get a job without a phone number – yes, he’s tried to get a job before and without contact information, it almost always proved to be rather difficult. But stealing? Okay, so he’s stolen food from the school cafeteria before and he’s stolen from a number of people’s bags, but that was all based on survival! Daehyun didn’t understand why he needed to keep his spiritual form alive, but it was something that needed to be done. This, however, wasn’t based on survival. It was all based on personal gain and… it was wrong.
Still… if he wanted Young Jae to be happy, then it needed to be done. He just needed enough for their date and they shouldn’t notice… right? It’s not like his family was financially unstable or anything. Okay, sure, his hospital bills may have made things harder on them, but it should be alright if it was only a small amount that was taken… right?
Taking in a deep breath, Daehyun adjusted his bag a little before he began walking forward. Each step he took only seemed to get heavier and heavier as he drew closer to the bakery. Everything would turn out alright… right? It just had to turn out the way he hoped it would.
Taking hold of the door handle, Daehyun took in one last deep breath before turning the handle and pushing the door open. He quietly cursed when the bell jingled, so he quickly slipped inside before walking off to the side. Daehyun could hear footsteps approaching and despite knowing that he wouldn’t be seen by anyone here, Daehyun found himself facing one of the shelves, trying to act as if he was interested in one of the pastries on display. “Hello! Welcome to…” (JU)
Daehyun turned around just enough to see Jongup looking around in confusion. He watched as Jongup walked around the store a little, searching for the unknown customer that had set off the front bell. When it was evident that there was no one there, Jongup scratched his head for a brief moment before staring at the front door. Giving a slight shrug, Jongup smiled a bit as he ran off to the back once more.
Letting out a relieved sigh, Daehyun quickly made his way over to the back of the counter before standing by the cash register. He bit his bottom lip as he quickly looked over his shoulder to make sure that no one was currently there. When the coast was clear, Daehyun looked back at the cash register before putting his hand over it. “Now… how do you open this…” (DH)
He had to admit, he had no idea how to open the cash register. His parents had decided to wait until he was a certain age to teach him how to operate it and sadly, he had gotten into that accident before he could learn. So, he was basically left to his own devices. Well… that is unless he somehow got one of his family members to open it up. That would work, right?
But then… that would mean they needed a sale.
Looking up, Daehyun was rather surprised by the lack of customers. Usually, their bakery would be full of customers around this time. Christmas time was always their busiest time because of the amount of orders they would receive. Usually, it would be for cakes, cupcakes, things like that, but everything almost always ended up selling out fast. So… where were the customers today?
Walking into the back, Daehyun looked around before hearing his parents’ voices. Peeking his head from behind the corner, Daehyun looked into the living room before seeing his parents and Jongup currently wrapping up a few bundles. Were they going somewhere? Maybe they had a catering job to do, but… if he recalled, his parents didn’t do catering. Well… maybe it could be a delivery of sorts. “…-rything all ready?” (MJ)
“Yeah! Everything’s packed.” (JU)
“And do you have the addresses?” (MJ)
“Mhm!” (JU) So, it really was a delivery? But if it was a delivery, why would it require all three of them when just one or two of them would have been suffice? In fact, it was usually his father that would do all the deliveries since he had the upper body strength to carry the heavier deliveries.
“Good! Now, make sure we have the bundles for everyone. It would be terribly embarrassing if we were missing a bundle.” (MJ) Bundles for everyone? Daehyun didn’t necessarily understand, but maybe they were going around and just delivering free food to people. Does that mean he would get free food too? No, wait. That wasn’t the point. The point was that his family was heading out and there would be little to no way for him to be able to open the cash register on his own! Yes, it would have made things much more simpler to steal the money, but then he still would have to figure out how to open it without breaking it.
“Everything is there, honey. Now stop fussing and let’s load everything into the car before it gets late.” (DJ) Mrs. Jung smiled and gave a small nod before getting up to her feet. It would explain why there was a lack of customers today, but he couldn’t let them leave just yet. What could he do to get them to open the cash register, even for a brief moment?
“Did you already check the cash register and lock up the front door?” (MJ)
“Oh, I’ll do it!” (JU) Jackpot! Was this his lucky day or what? As Jongup ran back to the front, Daehyun was about to follow after him, but came to a stop when he heard his mother let out a small sigh. Looking back into the living room, he could see that his mother had adjusted her position a bit as she sat back down.
“Do you think Young Jae is alright…? From what he told us, he only lived with his grandmother.” (MJ) Mr. Jung chuckled slightly as he sat down next to his wife. Lifting the futon a bit, Mr. Jung stuck his legs underneath before setting it comfortably along his lap.
“He’ll be fine! He seems like a tough lad. Don’t worry too much about him. You should worry more about whether he’ll like his bundle or not.” (DJ) Mrs. Jung gave a brief laugh before nodding happily. Daehyun looked at the bundles on top of the table, a bit surprised that there was a bundle for Young Jae here. It made Daehyun feel rather… grateful to have such kind parents.
It also made Daehyun feel guilty about his intentions. Sitting down at the table, Daehyun lifted the futon before draping it over his legs. He missed this feeling of just sitting around with his family and having a nice conversation, though it didn’t help that he couldn’t exactly contribute to the conversation whatsoever. Maybe… he really shouldn’t go through with his plan after all. It may be better just to figure out something else. “Do you think that… Daehyun and Young Jae would have been good friends too?” (MJ)
“Hm? Maybe.” (DJ) Daehyun raised a brow in slight confusion, wondering why they had suddenly begun talking about him. There wasn’t anything from the conversation that had even remotely mentioned him, so why was he suddenly brought into the conversation?
“We were… too hard on Daehyun…” (MJ)
“Don’t bring it up again. We’ve already discussed this.” (DJ)
“But dear…” (MJ) Mr. Jung let out a small sigh as he leaned backwards a bit, using his arms to keep himself propped up. Tilting his head a bit, he shook his head slightly before looking back at his wife. Mrs. Jung frowned a bit as she got up from her seat, the futon sliding off of her legs in the process. “I want my babies to be happy. Why won’t you let him go to public school when he wakes up?” (MJ)
“Do you not see the dangers that public school puts our children in?” (DJ)
“And our child getting into an accident over this argument is not danger enough?!” (MJ) Mr. Jung tilted his head upwards. Daehyun took note of the annoyance on his father’s face, but he knew his father would never do anything that would greatly upset his mother. “I just… want them both to be happy. Daehyun… has grown up so well behaved. He never complained, never showed any signs of disrespect… why can’t we let him decide his own path?” (MJ)
“I do-” (DJ)
“It’s all done!” (JU) They quickly cut off their conversation as Jongup came happily running into the room. Jongup didn’t necessarily understand the atmosphere currently looming around the room, but he dismissed it as he began to pick up the bundles. “Do I put the bundles in the middle seat or in the back seat?” (JU)
“Back seat, on the floor. Make sure they’re firmly on the ground so they don’t fall over.” (DJ) Jongup nodded before he soon left the room again. Mr. Jung got to his feet and let out a sigh as he picked up two bundles as well. “I do want him to choose his own path, but… when I know he’s ready.” (DJ)
“When will that be?” (MJ) Daehyun looked at his father, curiosity making him hang onto every word. Mr. Jung seemed to be deep in thought, but he let out a small sigh before shaking his head slightly.
“I don’t know.” (DJ) Daehyun slouched a little, slightly disappointed with his father’s response. He was certain that he was ready to find his own path; he just wished that he could show his parents that he was ready. Daehyun could already tell that his mother was ready to let him, so all he had to do was try to convince his father that he was ready. For now, though, he would have to wait until he woke up from his coma to show him.
Well… he hoped that he would wake up.
Getting to his feet, Daehyun was about to make his way out, but a gasp had escaped from his mother. He looked over at her to see a surprised look on her face with her gaze towards his feet. Since his father had already walked out with the bundles that he was holding, there was no one else to talk to at the moment over what had surprised her. Looking down at his feet, Daehyun attempted to find out what had surprised her, but there didn’t seem to be anything surprising there. He stood there, confused as he watched her get down on her hands and knees before lifting the futon on her side. She looked underneath the table, but when she didn’t find anything out of the ordinary, she slowly lifted her head before looking back over at Daehyun’s side with confusion. When Jongup came in, he looked at his mom with a confused look on his face. “What is it, mom?” (JU)
“Huh…? Oh, um… it’s nothing! Come, let’s get going before it gets too late.” (MJ) Mrs. Jung rose to her feet, though she took one last glance over at Daehyun’s spot, before picking up a few bundles along with Jongup. Daehyun didn’t necessarily understand what that had been about, but he quickly made his way over to the backdoor before they got there. Since Jongup had locked the front door, there was no way he was going to be able to make it out through the front without a set of keys.
Once at the backdoor, Daehyun grinned happily when he saw that Jongup had left it open. Just as he had made it to the doorway, he found himself passing through his father, whom had suddenly shown up from the side. He shivered for that brief moment, causing him to stop and turn around to see that his father had stopped as well. Daehyun watched for a moment as his father turned around, looking around for whatever it had been that had caused him to pause, but his attention was turned when he heard his wife’s voice. “Dear? What is it?” (MJ)
“What…? Oh, uh… it’s nothing! Hahaha! Let’s get going.” (DJ) As the three of them loaded into the car, Daehyun scratched the side of his head in slight confusion. What was going on today that made his parents react that way? He’s been here multiple times and not once had they reacted the way that they had now. Well, maybe it was a one-time thing. It shouldn’t really be all that important. What was important now was to figure out what kind of date he should bring Young Jae out onto. After all, without money, he couldn’t do anything fancy.
With a sigh, Daehyun began making his way home.
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“Young Jae! I’m home!” (DH) While Daehyun was taking off his shoes, he could hear the sound of rushed footsteps drawing close. He had managed to get one of his shoes off when Young Jae peeked his head out from behind the corner. With a smile, Young Jae emerged from the hallway before rushing up to him. With a sudden stop, Young Jae turned a little red as he kept his gaze low while fiddling with his fingers.
“W-… Welcome home…” (YJ) Daehyun raised a single brow as he managed to get his other show off. Why was Young Jae so embarrassed about welcoming him home? There wasn’t anything embarrassing about it since people did it all the time. Of course, he wasn’t really complaining. Although a bit happy to see Young Jae embarrassed, he was still confused about it.
“Why so embarrassed? You should be happy!” (DH)
Young Jae lifted his gaze as his eyes widened a bit. “B-But I am happy!” (YJ)
“Are you really?” (DH) Young Jae nodded, determination clear in his eyes. Daehyun grinned before he pulled Young Jae into a tight hug. Young Jae gasped a bit and he soon found himself stumbling backwards as Daehyun moved forward. Just as he was certain that he was going to slip through Daehyun’s grasp, he found himself dropping and suddenly landing onto the couch. “Take a breather! I’ll go prepare you something delicious.” (DH)
“Um… L-Like what…?” (YJ)
“Surprise. No peeking! You’re not allowed in the kitchen until I’m done.” (DH) Daehyun grinned and gave a thumbs up before he made his way into the kitchen. Since he couldn’t bring Young Jae out for their date, then the next best thing was to create a romantic candle-lit dinner like in the movies. He wasn’t certain how this would turn out, but Daehyun was determined to make it extra special. Now… he just needed to make certain that he made delicious dishes.
While Daehyun was busy in the kitchen, Young Jae sat there on the couch with his curiosity threatening to reach its peak. This was probably the first time that Daehyun has actually opted to cook for him and Young Jae already couldn’t wait for the outcome. After all, if Daehyun could bake well, maybe he could cook really well too. It was just a matter of patience and whether that patience ended up turning out to be worth it or not.
Though, Young Jae would gladly wait for anything that Daehyun made. Even if it turned out bad, Young Jae knew that Daehyun had put forth his best effort to make it for him. Being able to date someone like that seemed to bring forth so much happiness into Young Jae that he couldn’t help but smile with glee. “Young Jae! Go take a bubble bath or something while you wait.” (DH)
Young Jae turned his head towards the archway, where Daehyun was currently standing with a grin on his face. Young Jae had a confused look on his face as he tried to think, but he didn’t necessarily understand why Daehyun specifically asked him to take a bubble bath. Before he could say anything though, Daehyun chuckled a bit as he continued to stir the concoction within the bowl he was currently holding. “You don’t have to take a bubble bath if you don’t want to. Just… do something to occupy your time. It to be bored, right?” (DH)
“O-Oh… um… okay then.” (YJ) Daehyun gave Young Jae a brief flash of his smile before disappearing back into the kitchen. Looking forward, Young Jae furrowed his eyebrows a bit as he tried to think of what to do to pass the time. Maybe a bubble bath would be nice, but… how was he supposed to set it up? He’s never had a bubble bath before and it sounded kind of… difficult to set up. Still, he wanted to try it out at least once.
Getting up to his feet, Young Jae made his way to the bathroom.
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It seemed like everything was set up. The water was an appropriate temperature, the water was at a set level, and the soap had been set up to where it was nice and bubbly on the surface. Young Jae had even found some scented candles and set them up in key places where they wouldn’t fall off. In a way, it was like a scene in a movie, and Young Jae kind of felt out of place here.
All that was left was to get in and… enjoy the bath. Biting his bottom lip, Young Jae hesitantly stripped his clothes away and set them into a neat pile on the floor before slowly stepping into the water. When he was firmly in the bathtub, Young Jae carefully sat down into the water before leaning against the bathtub’s slant. He felt a little awkward just sitting here in a bathtub full of water, but oddly enough… he actually felt relaxed.
Minutes ticked by before finally, Young Jae let out a small sigh. As relaxing as a bubble bath is, what was he supposed to do? Is he supposed to just sit here the entire time? If that was the case, then… it was kind of boring. Young Jae wished that he at least had some toys or something to keep him occupied, but alas, he didn’t have any bath friendly toys to play with.
Well, there technically was one other thing he could do, but… it was a little embarrassing. Still, even that thought was already starting to get him worked up and he didn’t know if he’d be able to resist the temptation, even if he had wanted to. His face turned a little red, but Young Jae decided that maybe… it wouldn’t be so bad an idea. It was… kind of a new way to do it since his body is currently submerged in water, so… maybe it would feel good this way too.
Lifting his head a little, he looked down a bit and attempted to move away the suds with one hand as he took hold of his equipment with his other hand. Sticking his tongue out at the corner of his mouth, he had just started working when suddenly, the bathroom door swung wide open. “W-Woah! Sorry! Didn’t know you were in here.” (DH)
Young Jae had instantly sat up and covered his private area, his face a deep shade of red as he stared up at Daehyun with wide eyes. Daehyun was about to step back out, but he paused when he realized what Young Jae was currently doing. “How’s the bubble bath so far? Do you want anything to play with or something? I know Jongup gets bored whenever he takes a bubble bath.” (DH)
“U-Um… I-I um…” (YJ)
“Is that a yes?” (DH) Unable to form the right sentence in his head, quickly nodded as he shut his mouth to keep himself from saying anything wrong. Daehyun grinned as he gave a thumbs up before walking off to look for something for Young Jae to play with. Young Jae frowned though, staring at the door that had been left wide open. How was he supposed to do what he had thought of doing now? He already felt uncomfortable being with the possibility of being exposed to other people, so there was no way that he could do his previous actions now.
“D-Daehyun…?” (YJ) No answer. Young Jae let out a small whine as he sat there, his wide eyes pleading for the door to somehow close. Of course, when he realized how creepy that would have been, he instantly stopped pleading for an idea like that before his eyes show up to the towel currently hanging on the towel rack. If he could just get up, wrap himself in the towel, and then close the door, he wouldn’t have to worry too much about being so exposed.
Was it worth it though? Would it not be better for him to just wait for Daehyun to come back and close the door after retrieving the item that he was looking for? Though… how long would that be? For all he knew, Daehyun could end up taking much longer than just a minute or two. Yes, they did live alone here, but that didn’t mean that he was okay with Daehyun seeing his body! Heck, they haven’t even fully held hands with one another nor have they had their first kiss yet, so why would he want Daehyun to see him ?!
Taking in a deep breath, Young Jae carefully got up to his feet, making sure on hand was covering his private area while his other hand began to reach for his towel. Just as he was about to successfully grab hold of his towel, a voice caused him to quickly caused his to cover his private area with both hands. “Hey Young Jae! I don’t know if… this…” (DH)
Daehyun had turned the corner, walking halfway into the bathroom while holding one of Young Jae’s action figures, when he came to a complete stop the second he found himself staring at Young Jae’s hands. Could he help it? He thought Young Jae would still be sitting, but instead, he was standing there with suds covering various areas on his body. Though… his eyes were glued to Young Jae’s hands and for whatever reason, Daehyun just couldn’t bring himself to pull his eyes away. “I… uh… um…” (DH)
After a few more seconds of awkwardness passed, Young Jae finally pulled himself out of his embarrassment before his eyes finally moved over to the nearby towel. Leaning towards it, he attempted to pull the towel off of the towel rack, but his feet somehow ended up slipping underneath him. A small yelp escaped his lips and he shut his eyes, his hands stretched out in front of him in an attempt to catch himself. However, a pair of arms had hooked underneath his own arms, causing his eyes to shoot open before slowly lifting his gaze. Daehyun had a worried look on his face, but after making eye contact with Young Jae, Daehyun soon gave a smile. “You alright?” (DH)
“M-Mhm…” (YJ)
“You should… be more careful.” (DH) Young Jae gave a small nod as his cheeks resumed its red tint. Daehyun slowly eased Young Jae back into the tub, making certain that his eyes were carefully glued on Young Jae’s face, before pulling away. Luckily, the suds continued to cover most of Young Jae’s body, so there wasn’t too much for him to see. Of course, Daehyun did get to see something that he hadn’t expected to see when Young Jae slipped, but he would keep that as his own little secret for now. “Ah… um… is that alright for you to play with?” (DH)
Young Jae looked up at the action figure before smiling a little. He nodded a little, raising his hand as he reached out for the action figure. Daehyun was about to hand it to him, but he pulled the action figure away before kneeling down by the bathtub and resting his forearm on the bathtub. “Um… Can I… have a kiss on the cheek before I finish cooking…?” (DH)
His eyes widened, but despite his own embarrassment, Young Jae instantly noticed the blush creeping up on Daehyun’s cheeks. Daehyun wasn’t even making eye contact, which showed that Daehyun may have truly been embarrassed with his own request. Taking in a deep breath, Young Jae pursed his lips as he leaned forward. While Daehyun wasn’t looking his way, Young Jae shut his eyes tightly and ignored his flustered self as he puckered his lips and leaned forward as quickly as possible.
Daehyun’s eyes widened with surprise as his jaw dropped. The feel of Young Jae’s soft lips and warm breath felt so… nice against his skin. When Young Jae began to slowly pull away, Daehyun turned to face Young Jae before reaching up and caressing Young Jae’s jaw line. He couldn’t help but smile as he leaned forward, their noses barely touching before he stopped himself. This would be a rather… awkward first kiss, wouldn’t it? Young Jae was just sitting here in a bathtub. Was this considered romantic enough for a first kiss? “I, uh… I better get back to the cooking. Thanks for the kiss.” (DH)
Daehyun smiled before standing up and holding out the action figure to Young Jae. Young Jae blinked a few times, a little confused by this turn of events before nodding and carefully taking the action figure into his hand. With a small wave and a grin, Daehyun turned and made his way back to the kitchen.
With a slight frown, Young Jae looked down at the action figure. Once again, he was actually disappointed that they hadn’t had their first kiss yet again. At the same time, what would he tell anyone if they asked what his first kiss had been like? Now that he was paying more attention to his surroundings, it would be relatively embarrassing to try and explain how his first kiss had involved him sitting in a bathtub with only suds covering him.
Wait! How much did Daehyun see when he fell?! Young Jae face turned a deep shade of red as his hands instinctively went to cover his private area. What was he supposed to do?! There wasn’t any way that he could make Daehyun forget what he saw and he was far too embarrassed to ask Daehyun about it. Looking up, he even realized that Daehyun had forgotten to close the door again. Why did today have to turn out so weird?
Letting out a small whine, Young Jae turned around to where he fit into the bathtub comfortably. He left his action figure on the edge of the bathtub as he sunk into the water, leaving the top of his head above the surface. Hopefully… the food that Daehyun cooked would make things alright.
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[[ My Own Thoughts:
Mwaha >3<
They aren’t going to have their first kiss just yet. X3
Sooner or later it’ll happen, so don’t worry. X3
Comments are loved!
I love talking with everyone. X3
It’s also nice to know how I’m doing with each chapter. -/nod- ]]
So... I don't know if I should edit Ch. 18 & 19 or not. It's pretty angst and I cry.
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