10 years ago.

10 years ago, on September 20th, 2004, Hyukjae met Donghae in their last year of high school.

And instantly fell for him.

They became the best of friends over the course of the year, and were practically inseparable. They graduated and kept in contact before figuring out that both of them were soon going to be a part of one of the most popular groups of all time, with fans all over the world.

Hyukjae and Donghae debuted as a part of Super Junior in November of 2005 after they graduated, and they developed a special relationship with the other 11 members. But their relationship was even more special. 

A few years after they debuted, Hyukjae finally mustered up the courage and confessed his feelings to Donghae, once a minor issue between Donghae and Dara was resolved. After this misunderstanding, Hyukjae was almost positive that his best friend would never return those feelings, but he was tired of waiting for something that might have never happened.

But he was wrong.

5 years ago.

5 years ago, Hyukjae and Donghae went on their first date.

Three nights after Hyukjae confessed, the two snuck out of Super Junior's dorm at 1am and went to the nearest park to look at the stars. And from that point on, nobody, not even the other members, knew that the two were together. They vowed to keep their relationship a secret, for who knows how long, and they liked it that way.

They had been through so much. The worst parts being when Hangeng and Kibum left the group and gone their separate ways. All of the members were such close friends, and seeing the two walk out of the dorm for the last time was heartbreaking. Then there was the accident in April of 2007, where a few of the members were badly injured and close to possibly dying. The members had been through literal hell, and it made them all so happy that they managed to stick together through everything.

But there were good times, too. Meeting Henry and Zhoumi. Fanservice. Dance duos. The D&E subunit.

After Hangeng and Kibum left, the members seemed to all have an empty feeling without their two friends. Not long after that, Henry and Zhoumi both moved from their home countries, Canada and China, and debuted with Super Junior M.

Everyone thought the simple hugs and holding hands onstage was just something to make the fans in the audience that much happier. But Hyukjae and Donghae both knew that it was so much more than just fanservice. They were showing their love openly to the fans, who just haven't figured out the true meaning yet.

Dancing with Donghae was Hyukjae's favorite part of every concert. Super Junior had a few songs where there was a short dance solo, just the two of them, and Hyukjae loved that he got to spend just a little bit of that extra time with Donghae.

The D&E subunit was undoubtedly Hyukjae's favorite thing about being in Super Junior. The alone time they get to spend together on airplanes and in hotels was the perfect escape, and it was everything they could have asked for. 

One morning in the dorm, Donghae woke up his lover the usual way, by jumping onto Hyukjae's bed and tearing the blankets away from him. "Wake up, sleepyhead!" the brunet called.

The blond just barely opened his eyes to see Donghae smiling down at him before turning over onto his side, his back facing the brunet. "Go back to sleep," he muttered sleepily.

"Get out of bed," Donghae beckoned. "We have to leave to go to the airport in six hours."

"Which means I can stay right here for five more hours."

"If I make you breakfast will you get up?" the brunet wondered.

"Nope." Hyukjae opened his eyes and smirked when he sa