Title of Gift: Brighter than the Milky Way

Pairing(s): Leo x OC (Im Setbyul)

Number of Words: 2,708

Genre: Romance, Fluff, College!AU (is that a genre? haha)

Warnings: None (N/A)

Note to My Giftee: Merry Christmas! I hope this meets your expectations and that you enjoy reading this one shot! Happy Holidays!
 

Brighter than the Milky Way 

“Will you quit worrying already?” Hakyeon sighed for probably the hundredth time in just the past two minutes alone. Of course, that was an exaggeration- he was a history major, not a mathematician; although with a blatant hyperbole like that he might as well try theatre like Hongbin. However, a little exaggeration never hurt anyone. Plus, he felt like it was completely justified. After all, he had been enduring the anxious worrying and pestering from his best friend for over a week now, and while he wanted to reassure him, he also found the whole thing completely ridiculous.

“Look,” he sighed, closing his book and giving his nervous friend all of his attention. “You and Setbyul have been together for years now; you’re the perfect couple. There’s no way that she’ll say no, so there’s absolutely no reason for you to be nervous, okay?”

The quiet male that sat with him took a moment to process that. He knew that his friend was right; however, this was just the type of thing that he couldn’t help but be instinctually nervous about. Proposing was no small matter.

*
 

“Hey!” the cheerful girl greeted the rest of her friends brightly with a slight bounce in her step and a happy smile on her face. She was always energetic and playful, which made her extremely endearing to all of her close friends and family.

“Byul!” Jaewhan answered back immediately with just as much enthusiasm and a smile just as wide. Known to his friends as ‘Ken’, he was the other slightly hyper member of their little group and the two of them got along great. He had been sitting at a table in the Student Union, head bent over a ridiculously thick textbook with the word ‘Macroeconomics’ written in large white font on the front. Despite his usually laidback nature, he was a rather serious student. He was the type of friend that would scold you to do your homework on time and not skip your college classes just because you didn’t want to get out of bed that morning- and no, the fact that the syllabus stated you could have three free absences before it starts affecting your grade was not a valid excuse or a form of permission for tardiness. On the opposite side of the spectrum from his nagging, he liked to do aegyo and act cute. He was good at it too, tricking his friends into doing things for him often. Out of all of her friends, he was perhaps one of the ones she was closest to.

“Hey, Setbyul.” Ravi, the only other one there at the table currently, smiled at her as well. His real name was Wonshik, though hardly anyone called him that. She nodded to him as she took at seat their table, but didn’t bother saying anything else, knowing that he wouldn’t hear it. He had one of his headphones in and was frowning down at the page of a blank notebook. Tapping his pen rhythmically on the paper, his lips moved silently in thought. As a music major with a composition assignment due soon, his behavior didn’t come to her as a surprise.

“So, how’s your day been so far? Where’s Leo?” she asked, turning to Ken eagerly.

“Wow,” he scoffed at her with playful sarcasm, “straight to the point, huh? And to think you actually cared about my day.” He pouted. When she didn’t relent though, gaze expectant, he sighed and gave in. “Fine. Your boyfriend hasn’t showed up yet.”

“That’s weird,” she subconsciously frowned at his answer in confusion. “He usually beats me here since his class gets out first. Let me text him.” Pulling out her cell phone to do just that, she missed the fractional widening of Ken’s eyes and the panic that flashed across his face. Oh, Leo was totally going to kill him if he messed up the plan now. Thankfully, it was at that moment that their youngest friend appeared, effectively distracting the female for a moment and allowing him to breathe easy.

“What’s up?” Hyuk, full name Sanghyuk, tossed his wrapped sandwich down and shrugged his heavy backpack off his shoulders. Before she could say anything, Ken already answered, commenting on how it was strange that their quiet friend wasn’t there yet, all while shooting only semi-secretive pleading eyes at him. The Maknae blinked before finally catching on after taking a second to process what his Hyung was trying to tell him. Catching onto the situation quickly, he took a bite of his lunch as he thought over an appropriate response that would address the issue at hand without giving anything away regarding the surprise awaiting the girl sitting next to him. Once again, it looked like it was his job to save the day and clean up after his Hyungs’ mistakes.

“Oh?” Hyuk muttered, still chewing. “I saw Leo earlier today. He said that he would have to miss out on lunch today because he was helping Hongbin practice a scene or something at the library.”

“Helping Hongbin?” Setbyul repeated with a tilt of her head. How odd. Didn’t Hongbin have a class during this time? Maybe it was canceled today or something. She hummed softly to herself and then stood up, gathering her things.

“Where are you going?” Ken asked, curiously looking up at her.

“To the library,” she answered immediately, causing the two males to freeze. “I love watching Hongbin practice, and I don’t think either of them will mind the company.”

“Wait-!”

But it was too late; she was already gone, bag swinging behind her as she disappeared around a corner.

“Why’d you lie?” Ken scolded the youngest once the reality of the situation set in. It was nothing more than a panicked shift of the blame, but the Maknae still pouted at the unfair treatment.

“What was I supposed to do? Tell her the truth? It’s supposed to be a surprise.”

“What happened?” Ravi’s deep voice suddenly cut in. He glanced around, just now noticing the absent of their female friend. “Hey, where’d Setbyul go?”

“And you!” Ken suddenly directed his scolding to the confused musician, shocking him by shoving an accusing finger in his face. “You were no help at all! Pay more attention to your surroundings next time.”

“Huh?”
 

*

To say she was disappointed was an understatement. When Setbyul arrived at the campus’ library, she found neither Hongbin nor Leo. Even Hakyeon, their studious friend that always seemed to be drowning in work that practically lived at the library, wasn’t there. Of course, she hadn’t expected him to be since she knew for a fact that he at least had class during their lunch hour. But still, the fact that her friends were missing wasn’t met with happiness. She shrugged it off though, figuring that she might have missed them or that they had decided to go somewhere more secluded in order to run lines better. However, when she tried texting them, she didn’t receive a reply from her boyfriend. The only thing he got from Hongbin was a confused message, as if he had no idea what she was talking about.

To make matters worse, she still hadn’t gotten a response from her boyfriend after having texted him multiple more times once her final class for the day got out. It was strange, since he usually responded right away. Plus, she hadn’t seen him all day, which was more than just a little unusual. A little upset by the turn of the events and his ignoring her, she couldn’t help but pout at her phone as she ate dinner alone, depressed.

As if knowing her thoughts and wanting to cheer her up, her phone buzzed at that exact moment. She had never scrambled to pick it up so fast in her life. “Hello?”

“… Do you think you can come meet me at the planetarium?” It was impossible for her not to recognize the gentle, soft spoken voice of her significant other. However, there was a faint hesitant tone in his words that made her suddenly feel cautious. Yes, he had always been a bit shy and introverted, especially when compared to her own normally outgoing nature, but he was usually more open with his feelings when talking to her. Of course, he was still shy, despite how long they had been together as a couple at this point -something that she found absolutely adorable beyond words or comprehension-, but he was also more playful and affectionate in how he interacted with her. Yet, he had basically ignored and avoided her all day, and now he was asking her to meet him at the campus’ planetarium, abuilding that neither of them usually entered.

“Sure,” she answered automatically, not giving herself too much time to think about it, although the butterflies that filled her were undeniable. “I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

And just like that, he hung up. Well, that wasn’t like him at all.

The planetarium was technically a part of the building that housed the college’s science department, but most of the students considered it separate. It was comparably small compared to some of the other buildings that sprawled across the large expanse of their campus. She had only been there twice, but both times were enjoyable. Although not her major, astronomy was a hobby of hers, something that she had always been vaguely interested in since she was a kid. After all, who didn’t like looking up at the night sky filled with beautiful, shining stars? Why Leo had decided to meet up with her there now though, she had no clue. Feeling incredibly nervous, she took a deep breath, wiped the sweat off her palms onto her jeans, exhaled, and pushed open the doors to the planetarium.

There, in the middle of the circular room, was her beloved boyfriend. He looked stiff, a little fidgety, and just as nervous as she was, although she couldn’t imagine why. Immediately, and without her consent, her mind starting jumping to conclusions, running through a billion different worse case scenarios. It looked like she didn’t have to worry though, for the second Leo heard the door open and his eyes met hers, a small, sweet smile crossed his face, the same one full of love and quiet devotion that he always gave her.

“Leo? What’s wrong?” she asked after approaching him. Instantly, she was wrapped up in his arms, held in a warm embrace. She could feel the soft edges of his hair brush against the side of face as he shook his head, murmuring a quiet ‘nothing’.

He pulled away, remaining silent as he gently gripped her hand in his own and pulled over to the front row of seats next to the control panel for the planetarium’s projector. Trusting him, she followed, not saying anything herself. If there was one thing she knew about her boyfriend, it was that he was a man of few words; she had no problem with this though, having long since grown used to his quiet nature. Besides, there were times when words didn’t need to be spoken, when people just understood each other implicitly and emotions were conveyed stronger through a fond touch or a genuine smile or a look of adoration.

“Watch.” He pressed a button to the panel, causing the lights surrounding them to dim and the display to flicker on. Suddenly, the ceiling was filled with tiny, sparkling stars, a perfect imitation of the night sky she loved so much. Gasping inaudibly in amazement, she couldn’t help but allow her lips to quirk up at the corners as a warm sensation began to bubble up inside of her chest, heart pounding.

“Do you see that one?” Leo’s question abruptly broke through her daze, causing her to blink as she turned to look at him. He didn’t face her, gaze still stuck on whatever he wanted her to see. To help direct her attention to whatever it was, he leaned closer to her, almost resting his chin on her shoulder, and stretched out his arm to point at a specific spot in the vast darkness. Following his finger, she was met with the sight of a particularly bright star. It seemed to almost outshine all the others around it, standing out on its own easily with its larger size and dazzling brightness. It was honestly breathtaking, and she told him so.

“That’s you.”

“W-what?”

“That’s not a star,” he shook his head, the hints of a smile on his lips. “It’s Venus. That’s what your name means- Setbyul.”

“Venus?” she echoed, feeling dumb suddenly. It wasn’t that she was ignorant or stupid, but his words had seemed to catch her off guard. Her heart was now beating so loudly that her pulse was the only sound she could hear resonating inside her head- that, and his voice. It didn’t help that she could feel her face getting warmer either, her mind feeling with a pleasant fuzziness that prevented her from thinking properly.

“To me, you’re just as bright and magnificent as that star,” he confessed. “No, you’re more than that. Did you know that Venus is also the Roman Goddess of Love? It’s amazing how accurate your name is.” He laughed softly at that, taking her smaller hands in his and intertwining their fingers together tightly. At the contact and the wonderous sound of his laugh, she flushed even darker. Sometimes he could be so romantic that she was afraid that her heart would literally stop- not that she was complaining though.

Staring straight into her eyes, Leo let out a shaky exhale, gathering up all of his courage. Gripping her hands just a little bit tighter, he finally said the words that he had been practicing relentlessly for the past week straight. Of course, he had been dreaming of this moment for far longer than that. It was crazy to think that it was finally here, so unbelievable in fact that it felt like the world was spinning; he was nearly nauseous from all of the nerves.

“Im Setbyul… will you marry me?”

Okay, her heart might have actually stopped this time. Her breathe most certainly did, the air getting caught in so that she nearly choked when she tried to speak around it. “W-what?”

Time was frozen.

It was then that she seemed to noticed the sharp edge of something cold and metal pressing uncomfortably against her palm. Gaze swiftly darting downwards to their connected hands, she felt strange, like she was floating, experiencing some kind of out of body experience. As Leo slowly removed his hand from hers, revealing the small, delicate object she hadn’t felt until then, it finally seemed to hit her that this was real. It wasn’t a dream.

A ring. There was really an elegant, sparkling diamond ring resting perfectly on the palm of her hand. It was real- this moment was real.

“It shines almost as brightly as you,” he whispers, drawing her attention back to him. Stunned is the word that best describes how she feels. It’s then that he delivers his final promise to her, the most angelic smile she has ever seen clearly present on his face.

“I love you, Setbyul. I promise, that I’ll gather all the stars in the dark night sky for you if you want. I want to make you dazzle even more than the entire Milky Way. I want to make you happy.”

No, stunned may be close, but it isn’t entirely accurate. Insanely happy is perhaps a much better description for what she’s feeling at the moment.

“Yes! Yes!” She tackles him in a hug, ring gripped firmly in her closed hand to the point where it digs into her skin and actually hurts. However, there’s not time to think about that; the distant pain barely registers, the happiness she feels eclipsing everything else in that moment. Tears prick her eyes and a watery laugh erupts from as she repeats the same word over and over again.

“I love you.”

“I love you too, Taekwoon.”

It was a dream come true for both of them, a love that was written in the stars.