They were about 14 when Hakyeon dared Taekwoon to kiss him, and they were about 16 when Taekwoon finally did. It was nothing big, just a quick and gentle kiss, but it still made Hakyeon stop and stare at him.

            “What was that?” Taekwoon didn’t look up at him.

            “Nothing, nevermind.” Hakyeon smiled at him though.

            “Well, if you say so.” He said, but at the same time he reached for Taekwoon’s hand and laced their fingers together.

            Neither of them knew exactly what they were doing, but whatever it was, it worked. Hakyeon was loud and passionate and his personality complemented Taekwoon’s quieter disposition. Taekwoon was the one who sighed and helped Hakyeon dye his hair for the first time, dying it a dark shade of purple, because Taekwoon had refused to help him with green. It turned out as a much brighter purple than either of them thought, but Hakyeon was delighted so Taekwoon decided it fit him well. They made a mess of the bathroom though, and had to spend the rest of the day cleaning the bathtub, but neither of them really minded.

            Taekwoon went to school with Hakyeon eventually, and everyone started to just associate one with the other. Hakyeon had plenty of other friends, knowing just about everyone he came in contact with, while Taekwoon was less social. The elf liked to introduce him to his friends, and it was nice to meet new people, but Taekwoon was always more comfortable staying with the people that he knew well.

            They didn’t really tell anyone about his cat side, but sometimes when Taekwoon didn’t feel like having to be open and friendly he would just shift and then spend the day riding on Hakyeon’s shoulders, or in his bag. When they were alone at home, he liked to stretch out on Hakyeon’s big bed and nap in the sunlight, and Hakyeon would sometimes relocate him when the sunlight would move around the room. Taekwoon would sit on Hakyeon’s desk while he tried to do schoolwork, playing with the elf’s pencils and erasers until Hakyeon finally would just laugh and pet him. He liked head scratching, it was a weakness that Hakyeon liked to exploit when he wanted to get his way.

            When Taekwoon was human, the two of them would go outside and Hakyeon would talk about nothing in particular, but it was always interesting and Taekwoon always paid attention. When Hakyeon suggested that they start a garden, Taekwoon readily agreed. It was cool, to see something come to life and flourish under your hands, and he had to convince Hakyeon not to use any magic to help it grow. Hakyeon wasn’t as patient as he was, so the garden was mostly taken care of by Taekwoon. The other elves in the house were delighted, and always thanked Taekwoon when he would bring a new basket of tomatoes to the kitchen, even though they all knew it wasn’t really necessary. They helped to teach Taekwoon all kinds of recipes, and showed him how to cook and bake.

            When he made Hakyeon a batch of his favorite cookies, Taekwoon saved his smile and hug and little kisses to memory, deciding that he would keep doing it. Some people were confused by the two of them, and how their relationship worked, with them being so different. Some people asked if they were dating, and Hakyeon would always just shrug without any sort of response, and Taekwoon was fine with that. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to date anyone anyways. But what they had was nice.

            Hakyeon was full of affection that he loved to share. Taekwoon sometimes had to tell him when it was too much, when he just wanted some space. Which Hakyeon always respected, or usually did. It was rarely a problem though.

            Taekwoon could remember their first big fight, too. Little arguments were common, but they never escalated. He couldn’t remember exactly what started it, but he could recall the hurt feelings, and the anger, as well as the expression on Hakyeon’s face when Taekwoon yelled at him. He felt bad immediately after, but couldn’t bring himself to apologize just yet. But he didn’t have to fret for long, because the next morning Hakyeon came to wake him up with a small smile on his face, offering Taekwoon his hand. And Taekwoon could remember pulling the smaller boy into his arms, whispering apologies in his ear. Hakyeon had just told him that it was alright, that he didn’t need to worry about it. That morning was another time when Taekwoon decided to kiss him.

            They grew older, until Hakyeon decided to move to his own home, and Taekwoon was almost afraid, irrationally, that he wouldn’t want Taekwoon with him anymore, but Hakyeon had just laughed at him when he voiced his fear and told him to start packing, telling him that of course he was coming, who would take care of the mice? To which Taekwoon reminded him that he didn’t kill mice anyways, and that Hakyeon hated it when anything was hurt or died, but if he really wanted Taekwoon to get rid of them he would. Hakyeon hit him on the neck lightly, telling him no, he would just have to be the one responsible for cooking.

            When they got to the new place, Hakyeon immediately claimed the bedroom down at the end of the hall, his reason being that if he was at the end he would always know which direction he needed to go to get out. Taekwoon just picked the one next to his. He asked about the empty room, and Hakyeon had shrugged and told him that he’d probably find something to do with it. It was a couple of days later that Hakyeon finally showed him what was behind the other door, explaining that he didn’t want to show it to anyone until it was ready. Taekwoon remembered climbing up the steps, complaining about his legs, and then he could almost feel the air and atmosphere as it was on that evening, standing on the balcony of his big tree. Hakyeon excitedly showed him the telescope, and gave him books on astronomy, saying that he knew how much the stars interested Taekwoon.

            He did like the stars, he liked looking up at places he would never see in the same way ever again, and that he probably would never be able to completely understand. So he liked to spend time up there, curled up in one of the chairs, reading. Sometimes Hakyeon would be in the chair next to him, but they didn’t talk much, and Taekwoon was fine with that too.

            When Sanghyuk showed up, he was surprised. The young vampire was in a bad place, and Taekwoon wasn’t sure if he was supposed to try to help or not, so instead he just made him some cake, and brought him towels for his wet hair. Sanghyuk had grinned at him, and Taekwoon decided that he liked the boy, even if he was a vampire. It was hard at first to get used to another person living with them, but it turned out well. Hakyeon was still just as affectionate, and was always just as close to Taekwoon as he’d always been, but it was changing, slowly, and Taekwoon was pretty sure that he was okay with how things were going, and that he knew he was still just as important as he always had been.

            When Hakyeon met Wonshik, and invited him to the bakery, Taekwoon was pretty sure that Hakyeon was just going to keep bringing people in along with him, so he made his apple pie and accepting the satyr into the mix as well. And then they met Jaehwan, and Taekwoon was happy with the new group of friends, even if he didn’t express it all the time.

            When he first met Hongbin, he could tell that something about this one was different for Hakyeon, he could tell by the look in his eyes when the elf looked at the human over the table at dinner, and the way that Hakyeon wouldn’t stop talking about him the rest of the night.

            But he was still happy, and now he could be happy for Hakyeon too.

            “Taekwoonie!” He turned around to face the elf, who had Hongbin’s hand in his.

            “Hongbin’s moving in!” Taekwoon smiled, and nodded.

            “Welcome home then, Hongbin.”

well

here's about how i think taekwoon and hakyeon progressed? like a really close friendship? i dunno exactly what i want it to be but however you want to interpret it you should do that :3

this is the least amount of dialog that i have ever put into a chapter

so

lots of story telling!

if you have any questions feel free to ask bc if i can clarify something i totally will

also! keep in mind that i love to get suggestions, and it's usually easiest for me to work on something when i have an idea of what someone wants to read!

if you want to contact me off aff, my tumblr is realminhyuk, as well as my kakao id :)

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~Win