After a solid twenty minute run, Wonshik keeled over in front of the door to his aparmtent, panting from exhaustion. Once he regained a steady breathing pace, he fumbled around in his pockets to find his keys, hands shaking in fear of what he would see once he opened the door. Trembling, he tried to unlock the door, but his hand was too shaky. Frustrated with himself, he grabbed his wrist firmly and steadied his hand, finally unlocking the door and entering the apartment. Nervously, he stepped inside, and found himself in a state of shock.

Taekwoon was sat on the couch, staring at the floor blanky as if he were in a trance. Wonshik noticed it was the first time he'd seen Taekwoon wear anything short sleeved, and the reason was now obvious. Scattered across his beautiful porcelain skin were a vast amount of scars, the majority of which were self inflicted. On the floor, next to his feet, was a razor blade. 

Wonshik gasped, dropping his rucksack on the floor in shock as he noticed the fresh streams of blood dripping down Taekwoon's arm. The sudden noise seemed to jolt Taekwoon out of his trance, as he flinched, looking up at Wonshik weakly. His face was wet, tears running down his puffy cheeks. This sight alone was enough to break Wonshik's heart, but what came next was somehow even worse.

"W-Wonshik?" Taekwoon whimpered, rubbing his eyes to try and clear the tears away. "W-what's wrong...? A-ah... I feel dizzy..."

"W-wait there," Wonshik mumbled, quickly locking the door before fumbling about in the kitchen. He rushed over to Taekwoon with a glass of water and a packet of cookies, kneeling on the floor in front of him. Wonshik handed him the glass of water as he opened the packet of cookies. "Here, drink this, okay? It'll make you feel better."

"O-okay," Taekwoon replied weakly, taking a sip of water. "...Are you okay? You look sad."

"T-Taekwoon..."

"W-whoa..." his eyes widened as he finally noticed the blood dripping down his arm. "B-blood... W-what happened?"

"...D-don't worry about it, okay?" Wonshik forced a smile, cupping Taekwoon's face gently. "Drink your water, okay?"

"O-okay," he nodded, blushing a little. He was already feeling a bit flustered about being so close to Wonshik, but having him hold him so gently made Taekwoon's heart flutter a little. Wonshik's so handsome, he thought to himself. And he's always so nice to me...

"Do you want some cookies?"

"O-okay."

Wonshik handed Taekwoon the packet of cookies with a smile, trying his best to stay composed and act normal. He wasn't sure why Taekwoon was so spaced out, or why he didn't remember cutting himself, but seeing him so vulnerable and childlike made Wonshik want to look after him the best he could. As Taekwoon drank his water and ate a few cookies to try and stop himself from feeling dizzy, Wonshik discretely picked up the razor blade and disposed of it. He went into the kitchen and took a deep breath, taking a moment to process what was happening and to figured out what to do next. 

He realised he needed to try and tend to Taekwoon's wounds, and so he looked through the kitchen drawers to try and find out their first aid kit. Wonshik was a bit clueless as to what he was doing and was largely improvising, but luckily it seemed to be working thusfar. He found the first aid kit out and put the kettle on before walking back over to Taekwoon and sitting on the floor in front of him again.

"Let's clean that up, okay?"

"Y-yes."

Wonshik opened the first aid kit, staring at the contents blankly as he tried to piece together what he had to do. Glancing back up at cuts on Taekwoon's arm, they appeared to be mere flesh wounds, which made him breathe a sigh of relief. He placed the kit down next to himself, getting out a piece of cloth and rubbing alcohol to clean up the blood and make sure the cuts were clean.

"A-ah, it stings..." Taekwoon pouted.

"I'm sorry," Wonshik apologised, smiling a little to himself because Taekwoon looked so cute when he pouted. "It's all done now. Uh... Now, I guess we need plasters...?" he trailed off, unsure. Looking through the first aid kit, the only plasters he could find were cute animal shaped ones that Hakyeon had purchased a while back because they were 'just too cute to resist'. Somewhat embarrassed, Wonshik hesitated, but noticed Taekwoon crack a smile as he looked at them.

"What's up with those plasters?" 

"Hakyeon-hyung," he smirked. "Sorry."

"It's okay~"

"Good," Wonshik smiled, covering Taekwoon's cuts up with the cute animal plasters. "All done. Ah, the kettle boiled - do you want coffee?"

"A-ah, y-yes please."

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"Here you go," Wonshik smiled, handing Taekwoon his coffee before sitting on the opposite couch to him. "Are you feeling any better?"

"Y-yes," Taekwoon mumbled weakly, taking a sip of his coffee and letting out a content sigh afterwards. "T-thank you, Wonshik."

"A-ah... It's okay. I... I'm always here for you."

"...W-what happened, anyways?" he tilted his head in confusion. "I don't really remember."

"Oh, uh..." Wonshik looked off to the side, trying to figure out how to explain the situation. He didn't want to upset Taekwoon again, but he wasn't really sure how he could explain the situation without it being upsetting. He chose his words carefully. "...You, uhm. You rang me, and you were crying, and... you said something... about... blood. So, I, uhm. I ran home and I found you like... I dunno, you were really out of it," he frowned, nervously itching the back of his neck. "There... there was a razor blade on the floor, so I think you..." he gulped, looking over at Taekwoon to see his reaction. "I think you've been self harming."

"Oh."

"Taekwoon..."

"Oh," Taekwoon's face seemed blank as he leant forward and placed his cup of coffee down on the coffee table. He sat back, bringing his arm up a little to look at the plasters. His eyes widened briefly as he finally realised he was wearing a short sleeved shirt and his arms full of scars were on show. Feeling suddenly overwhelmed and vulnerable, Taekwoon burst into tears.

"H-hey, it's okay," Wonshik cooed, immediately getting up to join Taekwoon on his couch. He sat next to the older boy and put an arm around him to comfort him, but didn't expect what happened next. Taekwoon turned towards him and threw his arms around him, hugging him tight and burrying his face into Wonshik's chest. Flustered by their sudden closeness and unsure of what to do, Wonshik hesitantly wrapped his arms around Taekwoon, hugging him back tenderly as he reassured him. "I-it's okay, Taekwoon... Cry all you need to."

Afer a few minutes of crying into Wonshik's chest, Taekwoon calmed down, bringing an arm up to wipe away his tears. He felt so safe and warm in Wonshik's arms, that he almost didn't want to ever end their hug. He sat back, taking a deep breath to make sure he was calm before he spoke. "T-thank you. I'm... I'm sorry about that. I... I get overwhelmed, sometimes."

"I-it's okay, really. I don't mind at all."

"Wonshik, I..."

"...Y-yeah?"

Taekwoon shook his head a little, deciding that now probably wasn't the right time to confess his feelings after all. Instead, he offered a weak smile and repeated himself. "T-thank you."

"Y-you're welcome."

"...W-Wonshik...?"

"Yeah...?"

"Can we... Can we do something for a little while? It's okay if you don't want to..."

"...W-what something?"

"...C-can I... Can I..." he bit his lip nervously, looking down at his feet. "Can I... d-do this...?" he asked, as he shuffled closer to Wonshik and rested his head on Wonshik's shoulder.

"I-I..." Wonshik gulped. , Taekwoon is so cute...

"W-will you... Will you pet me?" he whispered. Taekwoon's warm breath against his neck made Wonshik tingle.

"P-pet you?"

"Y-yes," he bit his lip shyly. " my hair... P-please?" he looked up at Wonshik with doe eyes, making Wonshik's heart skip a beat.

! He's adorable!

"A-ah... o-okay," Wonshik smiled, hesitantly placing a hand on top of Taekwoon's head. He noticed Taekwoon was blushing. The older boy smiled at him sweetly, closing his eyes peacefully. Slowly, Wonshik built up the courage to begin petting the older boy as he requested, and found that he really enjoyed doing it. Taekwoon's hair was so soft and silky, and he looked so sweet and peaceful as Wonshik pet him. Both boys wished they could stay like this forever.

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"I'm sorry I let it get cold," Taekwoon apologised as Wonshik handed him a fresh cup of coffee. Instead of sitting on the couch opposite him, this time, Wonshik sat next to him, with a cup of coffee of his own.

"It's okay, silly," he smiled, taking a sip of his coffee before setting it down on the coffee table. "Do you wanna talk about it, then?"

"Ah... I-I'm not really sure what to say," Taekwoon mumbled, pulling his legs up onto the couch to sit with his legs crossed. He took a long sip of his coffee before setting it down on the coffee table next to Wonshik's cup. "It... it's happened before."

"What did you say it was called again?"

"Dissociation."

"Right," Wonshik nodded, repeating the word in his head to try and remember it. "So it's like... you space out, right?"

"Yeah, it's like spacing out but... more... extreme? I guess? Ah, it's hard to explain," he replied. "It's kind of like a black out, like... when it happens, afterwards, I don't really remember what happened. I don't remember calling you or cutting myself at all."

"That... It sounds scary," Wonshik frowned. "I can't imagine how frightening it must be to space out and not remember what happened."

"Y-yeah... It is kinda scary," he bit his lip, fiddling with his earrings nervously. "Sometimes when it happens I wind up losing things, or doing things like... well, like that," he frowned, gesturing to the animal plasters on his arm. "I remember I had counselling today, but... I don't really remember what we talked about much. I think it was about my biological parents."

"That sounds rough," Wonshik frowned, empathising. "You know, Taekwoon, I think you're really brave."

"H-huh?"

"You've had to deal with so many scary things, but... you face them all. And you do it so bravely. That... it takes a lot of courage," Wonshik smiled warmly. "I... I really admire that about you, Taekwoon."

"...I... I-I think that's really sweet of you, but... I'm not brave..." he frowned, looking away from Wonshik from embarrassment. "I've been trying to hide... this... from you," he mumbled, gesturing towards all the scars on his arms. "...They're all over my body. I have these... ugly... marks all over me, because... I'm not brave. I'm... I'm pathetic-"

"Taekwoon."

"W-Wonshik?"

Wonshik gulped, just as surpised that he had suddenly grabbed Taekwoon's hands as Taekwoon was. The boys stared at each other wide eyed, both blushing as Wonshik cleared his throat and squeezed Taekwoon's hands lovingly. "Taekwoon, these... these scars aren't ugly. And... you're not pathetic, not at all. I think... Well, I think they just prove how brave you are."

"W-what...?"

"You've been through so much, but... you're still fighting. It's not a sign of weakness, it's... just a different way of coping when things get too hard, right? I mean... of course it would be better if you didn't do it, but... I can understand why you do. Honestly, Taekwoon..." he closed his eyes briefly, reconfirming in his head what he wanted to say before he said it. "....Honestly, I think you're amazing."

"W-Wonshik...." 

"Taekwoon, I... Uhm, yeah," he paused briefly, reconsidering his thoughts and deciding that now wasn't the right time to confess. "I think you're the bravest person I've ever met."

"...Wonshik," Taekwoon's voice broke a little, overwhelmed with happiness this time. "T-that's the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me..."

"W-well, it's true," Wonshik smiled, finally letting go of Taekwoon's hands and itching the back of his neck nervously. "You deserve to be told that."

"W-Wonshik?"

"Yeah?"

"Close your eyes."

"H-huh?"

"P-please?"

"...O-okay..."

Once Wonshik's eyes were closed shut, Taekwoon shuffled closer to him, making sure to be quiet so that he wouldn't notice. He leant into Wonshik, briefly considering kissing him on the lips like he had been longing to do since they first met. However, he decided against it, doubting Wonshik shared his feelings due to his low self esteem. Taekwoon smiled to himself, closing his eyes as he planted a sweet kiss on Wonshik's cheek.

Wonshik's heart skipped a beat as his eyes shot open. He wasn't imagining it after all - Taekwoon really did kiss him on the cheek! His face turned bright red as he looked over at the older boy, who was smiling to himself and biting his lip shyly.

! Taekwoon is precious! 

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"Woonie, I'm sorry I didn't answer earlier-"

"It's okay," Taekwoon smiled, answering his phone to a worried sounding Hakyeon. "There's nothing to worry about."

"A-ah, are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure," he reassured his best friend. He was in such a good mood all thanks to Wonshik, despite the pretty awful day he had. Wonshik had just popped out to get them both something to eat for dinner, so Taekwoon took the opportunity to try and be open about his feelings. "Yeonie, can I tell you something?"

"Of course," Hakyeon smiled. He was speaking much quieter than usual, because Jaewhan was asleep next to him. "Whats up?"

"I... I... I don't really know how to say it," Taekwoon hesitated, realising that Hakyeon might not react well to the news he had a crush on someone. He bit his lip, briefly considering dropping the subject, but he concluded that he would have to know sooner than later. Hakyeon was his best friend, and the only person he could really talk to. "I... I uhm, I... I like Wonshik..."

"Oh, that's great, Woonie~ I'm glad you're getting along so well-"

"No, Hakyeon, I mean... I like Wonshik," he explained, biting his lip nervously. "Like... a lot."

There was an awkward silence between the two that lasted an uncomfortable amount of time. Hakyeon was so taken aback by this revelation that he was at a loss for words. He had never known Taekwoon to take an interest in anyone before.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have said-"

"N-no, I'm sorry," Hakyeon interrupted. Despite how jealous he felt, he wanted to support his best friend. "I'm just... It's just a bit of a shock. I've never heard you say you liked someone like that."

"Well, I never have..." Taekwoon admitted, itching his shoulder nervously. "It feels weird, Yeonie. I don't know what to do. When I'm with him... It feels like my heart's going to burst."

Hakyeon sighed, a small smile tugging at his lips. The way Taekwoon described his feelings was so innocent, it was simply adorable - Hakyeon couldn't help but smile a little. Despite how much it hurt hearing confirmation that he really didn't have any chance, he tried his best to help out his friend.

"Have you told him, Woonie?"

"No... I... I-I don't think it's the right time, yet," he mumbled. "I... Thank you, Yeonie. I mean... I imagine it's not easy hearing this-"

"Woonie, the only thing that matters to me is that you're happy. Does Wonshik make you happy?"

"Yeah, he really does," Taekwoon smirked, closing his eyes as he thought about Wonshik's smile. "He makes me feel really good, Yeonie."

"Then that's all that matters," Hakyeon smiled sincerely. "Hey, I'm sorry to cut this short but I gotta go," he mumbled, noticing Jaewhan waking up. "We'll talk about it sometime soon, okay?"

"Oh, yeah... Okay," he responded. "Thank you for listening to me. Talk to you soon."

"Later, Woonie. Love you~"

"Love you too," Taekwoon smiled as he hung up, grateful for how understanding his best friend had been. He felt somewhat relieved to have finally shared how he felt with someone - it allowed him to clear his head a bit. 

"I'm home," Wonshik announced as he entered the apartment with a couple of shopping bags. "I'm not really that great at cooking, so... I got us pizza," he admitted with a smile, locking the door before he walked over to the kitchen and began to put the shopping away. 

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Wonshik wasn't sure why Taekwoon was being so physically affectionate, but he was definitely enjoying every second of it. The two had wound up eating the pizza Wonshik had heated up for them and cudddling whilst they watched the TV.

"Wonshikkie~?"

He just called me Wonshikkie... Wonshik grinned ear to ear, his heart melting because Taekwoon was just too cute. "Yeah?"

"Do you wanna go for a walk?"

"Hm? Uhm, sure, I guess. It's a little late though - are you sure?"

"Mhm, it's nice going for walks at this time of day," Taekwoon inisisted, sitting up straight and stretching - he had been cuddled up to Wonshik, resting his head on the younger boy's shoulder again. "There's not as many people out so it'll be quiet."

"Alright," Wonshik nodded, getting up. "Let me go get a jacket."

"Okay~"

Taekwoon smiled to himself dreamily as he watched Wonshik retreat to his room, soon realising he would need to get a coat too. He went into his room, picking the long dark coat he had worn earlier in the day up from his bed and slipping it back on, patting down his pockets to make sure he had his essentials with him.

He couldn't help but smile to himself as he recalled the events of the day - sure, the middle of it wasn't great, but the time he had spent with Wonshik was lovely. He had really, really fallen for Wonshik, hard.

Even before he met him, he had a feeling that Wonshik would be something special. The way Hakyeon had described Wonshik had peaked Taekwoon's interest, and from the moment he met him, he was struck by how kind he was. Despite the icy reception, Wonshik had gone above and beyond to make Taekwoon feel welcome straight away.

He always waited for him to collect his thoughts, never pushed him into anything, always tried to be understanding. Wonshik was so thoughtful, so caring, and it helped that he also happened to be incredibly attractive.

From his deep voice to his toned arms and his handsome smile, Taekwoon couldn't help but swoon whenever he was close to Wonshik. And after everything that had happened today, Taekwoon came to realise that he actually felt safe for the first time in his life, all thanks to Wonshik.

When he was wrapped in Wonshik's arms, head burried in his chest listening to his heart beat, Taekwoon felt... protected. He felt like things would actually be okay for once and it was all thanks to Wonshik. The way he smiled, the habit he had of nervously itching his neck, how cute he was when he was shy, the way he Taekwoon's hair so gently... Taekwoon could feel himself falling for Wonshik, more and more.

He was completely smitten.

He sighed happily, smiling to himself as he left his bedroom and joined Wonshik in the living room again. "Ready to go?"

"Yeah," Wonshik smiled at him. "Let's go."

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The boys walked together by the river bank, the cherry blossom petals raining down on them as Spring was soon drawing to a close. As they walked, Wonshik kept glancing at Taekwoon's hand, trying to build up the courage to hold it. The more time he spent with Taekwoon, the more he came to realise his crush ran deeper than he had initially suspected.

"Wonshik! Look~!" 

"Hm?" 

Wonshik glanced over at Taekwoon, who had the same childish excitement painted on his face that he had the day they met. He followed Taekwoon's hand to see what he was pointing at, and realised it was a little puppy. 

"Ah~ So cute..." Taekwoon muttered excitedly, kneeling down on the floor and beckoning the puppy over. It was a small white puppy, with a very excited and wagging tail. It ran towards Taekwoon and straight into his arms, recieving a lot of pets and cuddles from the very happy boy. The way Taekwoon smiled as he fussed the puppy was so sweet, so pure, and so beautiful...

Wonshik realised, he was falling in love with Taekwoon's smile.

Being a fellow dog lover, Wonshik kneeled down on the floor next to him and reached out to pet the puppy too. 

"He's adorable," Wonshik grinned as the puppy his hand. "I wonder where his owner is, though."

"Oh... Wonshik, I think it's a stray," Taekwoon looked up at the younger boy with a worried expression. The puppy didn't have a collar on, and once the initial excitement subsided a little, they noticed it's fur was slightly dirty. "Poor little baby..." he frowned, petting the puppy lovingly.

"Ah... What should we do...?"

"...Can we take him home?"

"Ah, but our apartment doesn't allow pets-"

"Please Wonshik? I can call my mom to pick him up in the morning, she's a vet," Taekwoon pleaded. He looked so sweet and desperate, that Wonshik couldn't say no. Despite his better judgement, Wonshik smiled and nodded, giving in to Taekwoon's adorable begging. "Thank you Wonshik," he smiled brightly, picking the puppy up.

As the two walked home together, Wonshik found himself captivated by just how beautiful Taekwoon really was. It was beginning to get quite dark outside, and the way the faint streetlights captured and illuminated Taekwoon's sweet smiles made Wonshik swoon. 

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After arriving home, Taekwoon immediately began doting on the puppy, giving it water and cooking it some meat which it happily ate. The speed at which the puppy devoured its meal indicated that it hadn't eaten in a while, which made both boys all the more pleased with their decision to take it in. Once it had been fed, Taekwoon decided to try and give it a bath.

Since it was a rather small puppy, it managed to fit in their kitchen sink quite well. Wonshik grinned as he sat on the couch, watching Taekwoon gently wetting the puppy's white fur and using hand soap to clean him up. Just watching Taekwoon do the most mundane of tasks filled Wonshik up with an indescribable feeling of happiness. 

"Wonshik, could you get me a towel?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah, of course," he replied, a little embarrassed that he had been caught grinning like an idiot. He headed into the bathroom and retrieved a towel, walking over to the kitchen to hand it to his hyung. "Here you go."

"Thank you," Taekwoon smiled shyly, wrapping the puppy up warmly in the towel so that it's fur could dry. The tiny animal was clearly exhausted from it's long day, and soon fell asleep. "Ah... he's so cute..."

Not as cute as you, Wonshik thought.

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Once he had changed into a white vest and grey sweatpants, Taekwoon emerged from his bedroom to get a glass of water to take his medication with. After Wonshik's kind words earlier in the day, he had made the decision to try and become more comfortable with his body. Since he'd already seen some of the scars that covered his arms, he figured that Wonshik wouldn't be bothered by him wearing his usual bedtime clothes.

Wonshik was, however, very bothered by Taekwoon's bedtime clothes - just not for the reason Taekwoon would have expected. Once he had caught a glimpse of Taekwoon's toned arms, Wonshik's eyes widened. , he has really y arms...

He gulped, fanning himself to try and avoid becoming too flustered as he continued to check out his crush, who was completely oblivious to the fact he was being ed upon. If he had known, he probably would have become just as - if not more - flustered than Wonshik was.

"Wonshik, I think I might sleep on the couch to make sure our little friend has company."

"H-huh?" Wonshik stuttered, caught off guard. He had been too focused on Taekwoon's body to noticed he was talking. Somewhat embarrassed, Wonshik itched the back of his neck with a goofy smile on his face. "Aha... Yeah, that sounds like a good idea."

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, sorry," he smirked. "Just spaced out a little."

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After taking his medication, Taekwoon gathered a blanket from his room and got comfortable on the couch. Realising he didn't have classes until the afternoon tomorrow, Wonshik figured he could get away with a late night. He retrieved a couple of DVD's he had borrowed from Sanghyuk that was scattered around his bedroom, deliberating over which one to watch with Taekwoon before settling on some mildly exciting action flick.

Wonshik barely paid any attention to the movie, as his mind was preoccupied. He was trying to build up the courage to ask Taekwoon out on a date, but he just couldn't find the words. Wonshik had always lacked confidence when it came to dating, which was only amplified by the fact he really liked the person he wanted to ask out this time round. Crippled by self doubt, he sighed, giving up on the idea for the time being.

"Is something wrong?" Taekwoon asked, noticing Wonshik was troubled by something. "Do you wanna talk about it?"

"Oh... no, it's nothing," Wonshik looked over at his hyung with a weak smile. "I'm fine. Just tired, I think."

"Wonshik, I... I don't really know how to put it into words," Taekwoon mumbled, looking down at his lap as he bit his lip. "...I don't know if there even are words for it. So... I guess I'll just say... Thank you. Thank you for today. For everything. I don't know what would have happened if you weren't here."

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Roughly an hour into the movie, Wonshik noticed that Taekwoon had fallen asleep. He smiled to himself, noting that Taekwoon looked particularly beautiful as he slept. 

He's an angel.

Not particularly interested in the movie, Wonshik turned it off. After switching off the TV and quietly maneuvering his way around the sleeping puppy on the floor, Wonshik carefully pulled Taekwoon's blanket up so that it was covering him properly.

Wonshik kneeled down on the floor, smiling dreamily as he gently brushed a lock of Taekwoon's soft black hair behind his ear. His lips look so soft, he sighed, longing to feel them pressed against his own. 

He tenderly planted a sweet kiss on the sleeping Taekwoon's forehead before heading to his room.