a/n: something that no one asked for.  it turned out longer than i meant it to.

//deleted scene: destiny//

Taekwoon sits next to Sanghyuk on the edge of the couch.  He doesn’t really know how his best friend will react to the news, but Taekwoon has been holding on to this for two days.  He’s bound to need Sanghyuk’s help with this predicament either way, so it’s best to just tell him now.

Taekwoon clears his throat loudly, catching the attention of the man sitting next to him.  His headband has bells on it that jingle as he turns to face Taekwoon.  He’s interrupted Sanghyuk’s sulking; Hongbin is playing host and waiting attentively for some college friend to pop up so he can introduce “Leo” to a fan.  That means he's not glued to his soulmate's side.

“I met Hakyeon,” Taekwoon murmurs, picking at his cuticles with his lips pressed firmly together.

“What?” Sanghyuk asks, placing a hand on Taekwoon’s shoulder and gripping it to turn his friend’s shoulder.  “When?  Where?  How?  Did you invite him our party?”  Sanghyuk shakes his head, “Wait, wait, wait, what’s he like?”

Taekwoon dreads what he has to tell Sanghyuk.  For the sake of the singer's sanity, Sanghyuk kept Taekwoon’s name a secret in order to prevent people from trying to pose as his soulmate, knowing that it might create an obstacle to Taekwoon finding Hakyeon.  It wasn't unheard of for a die-hard fan to tattoo their idol's name on their wrist and legally change their own name in order to be with their idol, so Taekwoon played it safe.  Still, Sanghyuk was his biggest supporter; Taekwoon knew that he felt guilty about meeting Hongbin so quickly when there was virtually no way for Taekwoon to find his soulmate.  Now he has to turn around and tell Sanghyuk that his soulmate slipped through his fingers before Taekwoon could tell him about their fate.

Taekwoon bites his lip, “I met him two days ago.”

Sanghyuk immediately interrupts, “And you waited until just now to tell me?!”

Taekwoon holds his hand up as a sign for Sanghyuk to wait until he finishes.  (Sanghyuk has known Taekwoon long enough to pick up on the plethora of nonverbal cues that he uses in everyday conversation.)  Grimacing, Taekwoon continues, “I was taking the train home, and he sort of saved me from these girls that were going to harass me.”

Taekwoon finds himself feeling fuzzy because he’s thinking about Hakyeon literally saving him.  Hakyeon is perfect and adorable, and, good God, Taekwoon just wants to hug him all the time even though they’ve only spent ten minutes together.  Smiling softly, Taekwoon presses his hands against his burning cheeks, “He has the prettiest smile I’ve ever seen.”

“You’re really blushing.” Sanghyuk teases, bumping his shoulder against Taekwoon’s.

He slowly withdraws his hands from his cheeks, clearing his throat from embarrassment.   “The thing—the thing, um, the thing is that I kind of, sort of, maybe didn’t tell him my name.”  Sanghyuk gasps, but Taekwoon still has more that he needs to confess, “And the other thing is that I do not have any contact information for Cha Hakyeon.”

Sanghyuk stares at Taekwoon with his mouth wide open.  “You met your soulmate, and he has no CLUE?”  Sanghyuk’s volume increases as he forms more words.

He threatens to smack Taekwoon upside the head, but Hongbin mercifully enters with a lone man.

Hongbin looks between the two men with a suspicious glint in his eye.  Taekwoon can practically see him choosing to let it go.  Hongbin plasters on a smile to introduce the man next to him, “Sanghyuk, Leo, this is my beloved Kim Wonshik.”

Taekwoon can see Sanghyuk frown slightly in the corner of his eye.  Hongbin continues, “He was supposed to bring his soulmate, but evidently, he’s snowed in across the country.”

“Right.” Sanghyuk scoffs, earning a piercing glare from Hongbin.

“So, Leo, you won’t be meeting Jaehwan…” Hongbin trails off, unsure of where to go from here.

Unexpectedly, Wonshik takes a step forward to offer his hand to Sanghyuk.  “Hongbin talks about you a lot.”

Taekwoon can see Sanghyuk soften up a bit; he wonders if he’ll ever get possessive of Hakyeon the way that Sanghyuk does of Hongbin.  (He wonders if he’ll ever see Hakyeon again in general.)  Sanghyuk shakes Wonshik’s hand, albeit, begrudgingly.

Hongbin looks out of the open door, “Where’s the guy that you brought with you, your roommate?”  The question is aimed at Wonshik, but it piques the interest of both Taekwoon and Sanghyuk.

Wonshik responds, “Hakyeon?”

Taekwoon’s heart stops beating.

Wonshik scratches the back of his head, blowing some of the air out of his lungs, “I don’t know.  He’s probably wherever the food is.”

“His name is Hakyeon?” Sanghyuk asks, clearly following along the same vein of thought that Taekwoon is on.  The world can’t possibly as small as Taekwoon wants it to be.  Then again, it’s his destiny.  Or maybe he missed the chance that fate handed to him.

Wonshik seems mildly surprised that anyone is at all interested in his guest but responds to Sanghyuk’s question regardless, “Yeah, Cha Hakyeon.  He’s Jaehwan’s best friend.  He was supposed to meet Leo for Jaehwan, but he seems to have wandered off.”

“Taekwoon, isn’t your person named Cha Hakyeon?” Hongbin asks from across the room, accidentally addressing Taekwoon by his real name.

Wonshik looks at Taekwoon with wide-eyes, interested in the new information.  “Your name is Taekwoon?  Your real name?” 

Hongbin grimaces at the ground; he really couldn’t be trusted with anything secret.

Taekwoon groans. He has to own up to his name, especially if Wonshik might have brought his soulmate to straight to him.  He nods without saying anything.  “Is it Jung Taekwoon?” Wonshik asks.

Taekwoon nods again, trying to control his face.  He’s pretty sure that his soulmate, his Cha Hakyeon is here.

A smile breaks out on Wonshik’s face.  He jumps vigorously for a few seconds before getting his act together.  He spins around, trying to find the exit.  “I’ll be right back.”  He says as he rushes out of the room.  A moment later, he pokes his head in the room, “Don’t move, Jung Taekwoon!”

Taekwoon blinks, looking between Hongbin and Sanghyuk.  There’s an awkward silence between the three men, despite their normal comfort in silence.  Taekwoon's anticipation hangs thickly in the air.

It takes less than a minute for Wonshik to return, herding a confused Cha Hakyeon into the room.

Taekwoon has to remember how to breathe.

It’s his soulmate.

His destiny.

//the beginning//

a/n:

it didn't really fit anywhere in the story so...
i apologize.
merry christmas?
what am i?