Daniel felt dumbfounded.

He couldn’t believe it.

Was it finally happening?

No doubt, there on his skin, was a distinct black mark forming the number five. It took him a full minute to finally process that it was his counter, it finally showed up and the first thing he did was run to his only roommate, Ong Seongwoo.

“Seongwoo!”

“That’s hyung to you, you brat!” Though Seongwoo doesn’t really bare any annoyance towards Daniel’s usual slip of the tongue. Daniel never listened to that complaint anyway.

“Seongwoo, I got my countdown!” The young blonde excitedly said as he bounced onto spot next to Seongwoo on the sofa. “Just in time for my birthday too, wow” He mumbled to himself as he scooted closer to the older man with his wrist in full view. “See? Look! Three days!”

“Wow, you weren’t actually kidding!”

“I mean, it does count in days right?” Daniel asked out of sheer curiosity but Seongwoo felt equally dumb when he paused to think. “Well, that’s what I heard so yeah it must be days.”

“Oh god, this is actually happening,” Daniel felt like he couldn’t breathe. In their vast universe, the concept of soulmates has always been one that irked the curiosity of many. This wasn’t like the usual fairy tales where they end up happily ever after, this was where reality makes itself known for the countdowns marked on each person’s wrist can have their own flaws.

But that doesn’t stop an individual to dream. Dream what it would be like to spend your days with a person that was meant to be by your side all along or get to know each other better since they’ve been there all this time.

Finding your soulmate has always been one of the things people often pray for. In this time, a countdown appears on a person’s wrist to tell them just when they’ll meet their soulmate. When that day comes, the number transform into a name and the person you meet with that name on that day is your other half. As magnificent as it may seem, there will always be the unfortunate cases in every kind of story.

Some don’t find their other half.

Either they ended up dying or they ended up falling for someone else and neglected to look for the names on their wrist. To Daniel who’s countdown only appeared after 23 years, it was one he looked forward to and at the same time he feared.

What if he doesn’t find them?

What if they end up not loving him?

What if… he lost them before they even get to meet?

“You’re going to be fine,” A light voice ends his train of thought and Daniel blinked as he looked to the ravenette on his side. “You looked like you were about to faint with all these thoughts going through your head. You should be careful though, your brain can only handle so much,” Seongwoo cooed and even pinched Daniel’s cheek when he pouted in response.

“Why do I feel insulted with that line though,”

“Depends how you take it, Niel,” Seongwoo teased and jumped away before Daniel could even hit him. “So how long was it again?”

“Three days”

 

~ .oOo. ~

 

Time passed by faster than he could count. The next thing he knew, he already woke up to the third day since the countdown first appeared on his wrist.

Today was the day.

Was he even ready?

Daniel sighed, hands running through his face then to his already messed up bed head. “I’ll have to face this sooner or later,” He mumbled to himself before he finally pulled himself up to sit.

Daniel spared no glance to his wrist, his stomach could feel the butterflies fluttering about at every step he took towards the bathroom. He wasn’t ready in any way to know just who would his soulmate be and what they would be like.

When he reached the bathroom, he washed up first before he brushed his teeth to get ready for the day (Well, if he’ll ever be ready in the first place). No matter how many times he tried to ignore it, Daniel’s gaze would land on his wrist yet he would always lack the conviction to face it towards himself.

If he kept this up, Daniel felt like he was going to go insane. He’s had enough. With a deep and long breath, Daniel clenched his first and finally brought his wrist close to his face. There, across his wrist was a distinct decorative style of writing with only one name written across his skin.

 

~ .oOo. ~

 

Daniel could feel his heart race, his breathing stopped, eyes glued to that one name as he runs his fingers through the decorative calligraphy engraved on his skin.

 

Minhyun.

 

That was the only thing there but Daniel felt like the most blessed being in the universe. His soulmate was alive, a common name, but alive. Daniel couldn’t help but think, did he get his counter too? Would it have his name if they met? Is he going through the same dilemma as he was this morning?

The brunette sighed, either out of relief or exhaustion thinking of today, he wasn’t really sure. But one thing’s for sure, he can’t keep moping around in here any longer, he had to get out soon (Partially because he has a 7 am class and because he can’t lock himself inside forever).

After dressing himself in one of his ridiculously bright hoodies (the ones that Seongwoo often complained about), he finally stepped out and made his way to his first class of the day.

Though he lowkey hopes he’d run into Jaehwan today with a mixed feeling of anxiety and happiness.

 

~ .oOo. ~

 

Daniel loves to draw, it’s a hobby he picked up ever since he first picked up a pencil as a child and he has been drawing ever since. That was one reason why he decided to take up advertising in college. His parents weren’t too keen on his idea of taking up art as a career so they listened to their request of taking up something with a business course to get a win-win situation.

Too bad college finds a way to make it a stressful activity but he still loved his hobby nonetheless. Speaking of college, he had a marketing class to catch and that was why here he was trying to catch his breath after he finally sat on his designated desk in class.

They had a pair work to do today and the professor told them he’d be assigning them to their respective partners today. Daniel barely knew anyone in his class though so hopefully he gets assigned to one of those people who were willing to cooperate.

The project was like an advertising campaign, they had to come up with radio ads and posters too. Daniel had no issue with the poster, but the radio ad was definitely a struggle.

Please give me a good partner.

While Daniel was too busy chanting the said mantra in his head, he failed to notice another student take a seat across him where they were now face-to-face.

“Kang Daniel?”

The said boy whipped his head up at the voice, so melodic and soft he could practically melt into a pile of mush. But he didn’t expect his eyes to land on a man of that screamed beauty and elegance. Fox-like eyes and thin lips with a perfect bow by the center finished with the perfect symmetry of his facial features.

It took him a minute to realize why he looked up in the first place, and now he felt embarrassed for obviously being caught staring at his face. “R-Right, uh, yes. Kang Daniel. That’s me,” He replied with a sheepish scratch on his cheek.

“Great! I’m Hwang Minhyun, I just got assigned to you as my partner for the ad campaign,” Daniel unconsciously in a breath, eyes widening by a bit as the name rings alarms in his head.

 

~ .oOo. ~

 

“Seongwoo!” Daniel practically yelled as he barged into their shared room causing the said roommate to jolt awake from his nap.

“Seongwoo! Seongwoo! Seongwoo!”

“Dammit, Daniel this better be worth it ―!”

“I found him! And he’s hella gorgeous too!” The young brunette cuts him off and Seongwoo is suddenly silenced with his mouth left agape. “S-Seriously?” He stuttered out of surprise but Daniel nodded with plenty of enthusiasm.

‘That’s great! So you did talk to him, right?”

“Uhh…” Daniel instinctively froze, smile fading from his lips and Seongwoo could visibly see him deflate.

“Niel… You did talk to him, right?” Seongwoo said with a bit of emphasis on ‘did’ and suddenly, Daniel looked like a kicked puppy. “W-Well, I may have.. Uhh.. ran out the door?”

“Daniel, what the ?” Seongwoo let out an exasperated sigh and plopped back down on the bed, “You just said he was gorgeous! How could you not talk to him?!”

“Well, he was too gorgeous I couldn’t talk!”

“So you decided to run away?”

“W-Well I wouldn’t call it… uhh… running away,” Daniel kept fumbling with his words and wow, Seongwoo has never seen anyone so incapable of lying, “Okay, then what do you call running out of the door?”

“I was… late?”

“It’s lunch break, Dan”

“Okay fine! So I kinda did run away after we exchanged numbers so we could talk about the project next time!” Seongwoo has never felt more frustrated than now, “Did he at least react when you introduced yourself?”

“...”

“...You didn’t introduce yourself either, did you?”

“Uhh…”

“I have never felt so frustrated enough to punch you in the face,”

 

~ .oOo. ~

 

Daniel was on his way to a cafe across campus.

After being a wimp to contact Minhyun no matter how much Seongwoo insists, it was Minhyun himself who reached out to Daniel to meet up about their ad campaign. Though he couldn’t help but be nervous, Minhyun seemed like a wonderful person.

It wasn’t just his visuals that seemed appealing, his overall demeanor and how he carried himself had a certain elegance to it and Daniel couldn’t help but think how such human exists. But Daniel, still being the wimp he was, asked Seongwoo to go with him to the cafe. Lucky for him, their meeting time was actually in the middle of Seongwoo’s shift.

(“It just feels more reassuring to know I’m not facing this alone, okay?”)

Seongwoo reluctantly accepted with a sigh but that was enough to make Daniel happy. So here he was, now waiting by one of the tables while Seongwoo was behind the counter where Daniel could still see him if he wanted to. In this case, Daniel chose to make a small sketch of his roommate by the corner of his notebook while he waited for his partner.

It didn’t take long until the ‘god-like’ human (as Daniel described him), finally entered the cafe and instantly sat up and waved him over to their seat. “Sorry about that, did you wait long?” Minhyun asked as he settled down on the chair across Daniel.

“No, not at all. I just happen to be early,” Daniel smiled when Minhyun sighed in relief, “Sorry if I kept you waiting,” He said but the young brunette merely shook his head. “It’s fine, no worries,” He said just as he heard a familiar ding from his phone indicating he had a message.

 

From: OngOngOng Hyung

You didn’t tell me he was gorgeous!

Why is he so gorgeous?

You better not mess this up, Dan!

 

Daniel could practically scoff at the random text and glanced at the sender of said messages. Seongwoo was looking at them and even gestured to Minhyun as if he was urging him to talk to the said student. ‘Do something!’ He mouthed but Daniel secretly shook his head and it prompts Seongwoo to roll his eyes along with a facepalm.

“You okay?” Came a smooth voice and suddenly, he was reminded of the person right in front of him. “Oh! Uh, yeah! I’m good, just spaced out is all,” He said with an awkward laugh, luckily Minhyun doesn’t push it and excuses himself to go order.

The brunette lets out another long sigh as he slumped down onto the table. The only thing making him look up from his frustrated and embarrassed state was another ding coming from his phone.

 

From: OngOngOng Hyung

Did you check his wrist?

 

Well, he didn’t really think that far. Daniel hesitantly looked back up at Seongwoo from across the cafe and slowly shook his head. As expected, Seongwoo made an exaggerated sigh and facepalmed for what was probably the hundredth time that day.

 

From: OngOngOng Hyung

Then check it you idiot! >:(

 

Well, he does have a point. He mused to himself just as Minhyun came back with his drink. As Minhyun settled down, Daniel couldn’t help but let his gaze drift off to his wrist covered by the long sleeves of his sweater.

“Should we get started?” Gaze not once leaving Minhyun’s wrist, he absentmindedly nodded in reply.

 

 

 

 

“You didn’t see it at all, did you?”

“...No,”

“Idiot.”

 

~ .oOo. ~

 

Daniel and Minhyun were already close to finishing their ad campaign and he wasn’t even close to seeing what was on Minhyun’s wrist. It was frustrating, to say the least, why does he keep wearing sweaters and dress shirts anyway?

Today was his last chance.

After he and Minhyun pass their proposed ad campaign, then he wouldn’t have a reason to see or meet him anymore. And he wouldn’t want that. No matter what happens today, Daniel was going to take a look at his wrist.

Minhyun has been nothing but good to him. If he does end up being his soulmate, then holy he was truly blessed to be in the presence of such being. The two made their way to class going through the details of their presentation and to make sure that everything goes well. They worked hard for the project, after all, it was one they were immensely proud of since the outcome had minimal flaws and promising results.

When they both reach the classroom, the previous pair was already finishing up so they also set up their presentation to make sure it goes smoothly as planned.

It did go smoothly as planned.

Minhyun was in charge of the radio ad and its context and what factors would pique the interest of the intended audience. Daniel, on the other hand, took control of the explanation towards the elements of their poster regarding the colors and its psychological effects and the overall appearance and how it appeals the eyes of the public.

But while Minhyun was in the middle of his explanation, Daniel only focused on his wrist. He saw it. There were traces of black and its silhouette was more than just a number.

It must be a name. He knew that distinct cursive writing anywhere as if the one on his own wasn’t enough proof. One thing’s for sure, Minhyun also has a soulmate and he’s known the name all along. Too bad Daniel was too far to make out the letters.

The panel was rather impressed and even asked if they could archive the proposal or maybe even present it to the brand itself. Of course, they were excited, it was something he’d gladly put on his resume in the future.

After the professor got a copy of their files and their presentation, they were both finally dismissed with confidence that they would both ‘A’s (and maybe a few ‘+’s too).

“Well, congrats to us. Looks like we actually did better than expected,” Minhyun started with that gentle grin and Daniel could only laugh, hopefully, it wasn’t as awkward as how it sounded to his own ears, “Yeah, pretty sure we're going to get high marks for that! I might just fight him if we don’t!” He emphasized as he raised his fists to his face and even did a few jabs with his own sound effects.

In the end, he was rewarded with that soft laugh that always sounded like music to Daniel’s ears. “Be sure to go easy on him!” He loved how Minhyun always went with his jokes.

“So... I guess this is it,” Daniel hesitantly starts, fingers fidgeting behind his back. Minhyun simply hummed with a simple nod, “Right, good luck with your other classes then. See you around?” The older student said with a raised tone at the end and Daniel merely smiled.

“See you around,” He said with an outstretched hand and Minhyun once again smiled before he pulled his hand back and slapped it across Daniel’s before he took his hand in his like how they often do during their late night sessions. For Minhyun, it was but a simple gesture. But for Daniel, it was his way of finally getting a glimpse of the other man’s wrist.

And there it was, laid out in the open. The familiar black calligraphy that wound around the man’s thin and delicate wrist where the name was etched onto his skin.

Daniel must’ve been too obvious since Minhyun followed where his gaze was directed at. “Ah, so you saw it,” He merely said with a fond smile at the name on his wrist. “So you already met your soulmate, how lucky!” Daniel said, albeit with a forced smile and what he hoped passed as an enthusiastic tone.

“Yeah, but sometimes I think I was the lucky one,” The brunette hummed, he just wanted to leave. “That’s great!” He once again said with a wide smile and checked his watch for the time. “Oh , I might be late for my late class! Gotta run!”

That was all he said before he ran away as fast as his legs could take him away from the man who stood in front of him. Away from the current cause of his pain.

Because the name on his wrist was not his.

 

~ .oOo. ~

 

“You did look at the name this time, right?” Was the first thing Seongwoo asked when he heard the door open indicating someone just arrived. He was too preoccupied with his book to look but he didn’t need to look twice to know that it was his roommate Daniel. But when the silence stretched on for too long, the older man arched a brow and put his book down.

Daniel merely stood at the doorway, head hung low and his fists tightly clenched at his side Seongwoo thought it might even bleed anytime soon.

“Dan?” The ravenette stood up, book now left abandoned on the coffee table as he made his way towards the slightly taller student. “Nielie, what’s wrong?” He said with that usual soft tone that prompted Daniel to let it all out, all the held back tears flow down his cheeks and Seongwoo could almost hear his heart break if he tried.

“Nielie ―”

“It wasn’t him,”

Seongwoo was instantly silenced, eyes wide in surprise but he doesn’t waste a moment to wrap his arms around Daniel’s shaking form. “It’s going to be okay, I’ve got you,” He whispered into Daniel’s ear as he rubbed circles on his back.

The ravenette guided Daniel to the couch and let him sit down, hands now covering his face as sobs wracked his body. Seongwoo rushed to Daniel’s room and brought with him his blanket wrapping it around his large frame along with his huge Apeach doll so he could hold something in his arms.

“Wait here,” He mumbled and made a last rush towards the kitchen where he grabbed a random number of Daniel’s jellies and dumped them on the coffee table. Finally, he plopped himself down on the space beside Daniel and even wiped off his tears using the tissues he got from the kitchen.

“It hurts, hyung,” Daniel mumbled as the other silently wiped away his tears. “I was so excited with the prospect of spending eternity with someone who was meant to be by my side, someone who was probably on the other side of my red string, but he didn’t feel the same. It was never mutual.”

Seongwoo let Daniel ramble on, he knew he needed to let it all out if he ever hoped on moving on from a painful revelation. “I just wanted to be happy,” Daniel finished as he once again curled in on himself. The entire situation was too foreign to the older man, Daniel has always been the happy pill, the person who couldn’t ever get mad at because he could never imagine hating Daniel or even getting angry.

And yet here he was, shrinking into himself as he moped around because of a man that wasn’t meant to be his. Unfortunately for him, he hasn’t always been good with words. He always tries, he really does but sometimes things just start to go downhill the moment he opened his mouth. But if it’s for Daniel, then he at least wanted to try.

Seongwoo held him close, Daniel’s head now leaning on his shoulder as the latter continues to run his hand through Daniel’s hair. “You this isn’t the first time it happened,” He hesitantly started, “This isn’t the first, I’ve heard of some cases like this before. Maybe there are just times that we’re really not meant to ― ”

“You wouldn’t understand!” Came Daniel’s sudden outburst and Seongwoo was dumbfounded.

“Daniel ―”

“This isn’t like one of those stories you read in your book, hyung. It’s my life, I was so ready to meet him, to get to know him better. But then― then…” Daniel couldn’t help but toss one of the throw pillows towards the wall. “Why… Why does it have to be me?”

“Niel, stop! Just think this through, please―”

“For ’s sake, hyung. You wouldn’t understand! You wouldn’t know what it’s like to know who your soulmate only to lose them in the end!” Daniel yelled out of frustration as he unconsciously stood up. When he finally realized what he’s done, it was already too late. By the time he looked back at his roommate, the man’s eyes glistened with unshed tears.

“You’re right,” Seongwoo tried to talk albeit in a small shaky voice with a small smile struggling to make its way to his lips. “You’re right,” He repeated as he slowly stood up and looked straight into Daniel’s own chocolate orbs.

“I wouldn’t understand,” He starts with a hollow laugh. “I’ve never met my soulmate after all. So what right do I have to talk to you about this, right?” Again, another hollow laugh and Daniel is left speechless. Not once has he seen Seongwoo look so sad and broken.

Before Daniel could even blink, Seongwoo flashed another small smile, “It’s getting late, I should probably buy some more milk before the stores close.” He said as he released another shaky breath, “Good night,” Was all he said before Daniel heard the door shut and only a deafening silence was heard.

What have I done?

 

~ .oOo. ~

 

Daniel doesn’t see Seongwoo the next morning,

Or the afternoon,

Or at night until he slept.

But Daniel can’t blame him, he’d feel equally upset.

 

Soulmates have always been a sensitive topic when it came to Seongwoo. Ever since they became close friends, Seongwoo has always told him about how he was afraid of being alone since a counter has yet to appear even after 24 years of living. To rub it in his face like that, Daniel felt like the stupidest person on earth.

Daniel doesn’t see him when he woke up the following day, or the day after that, and the following day after that. In a span of three days, Daniel has grown anxious. He hasn’t seen a hint of Seongwoo at all. He could only sigh, he figured the older man needed some space after Daniel made such an move.

Days without Seongwoo had been hard, the older always man took it upon himself to look after Daniel even though he never asked for it. On normal days when he woke up, Seongwoo would have simple breakfast items ready, he’d pack it in a small container if he ever woke up late.

When Daniel dashed out the door, he would automatically pick up his mess and by the time Daniel gets back, everything would be in place. If Seongwoo somehow came back earlier than he did, then he could expect some dinner or maybe some takeout so they could eat together. But he hasn’t had any of that for the last three days, not when the said person is the one missing from their ‘shared’ room.

The tall brunette lets out another exasperated sigh. As much as he’d rather think about what he could do for Seongwoo, he can’t neglect another drawing assignment for his major. With another heavy sigh, Daniel dragged himself to his desk sketchbook in tow.

He had to work on his sketches in human anatomy is he wanted to make accurate sketches in his poster drafts.

“Should I work on the face first? Or would the hands be better…” He mused to himself, pencil tapping away at the mahogany desk. In the middle of his thoughts, he absentmindedly scrolled through the previous pages. Maybe that could give him an idea what he needed to polish on.

The brunette leaned back, sketchbook in his hands as he flipped through the pages. Eyes, noses, lips, hand and finger positions, three-point moles, hair― Daniel does a double take at the three-point moles.

When did he ever practice those? They obviously belonged to just one person.

Daniel blinked and looked back at the previous pages. Amidst all the repetitive drawings of facial features and rough sketches, Daniel distinctively recognized one on every page. If they were things he saw every day, then how could he not recognize them? Familiar eyes, lips, hair, and nose…

They were all his.

They were all Ong Seongwoo.

Daniel didn’t need to put them together to be sure.

He knows those almond-shaped eyes underlined by those eye bags and topped by thick brows, those lips that were often slightly open when he stared into space, the barely distinct bow of said lips, and the uneven teeth that hid beneath them.

Every page he flipped he was there. When Daniel also flipped through his notebooks and looked at the random doodles on it, he was still there. Even the small smileys on the corner had those distinct three-point moles. Even when he drew out of his imagination, somehow there was always a feature of Seongwoo present no matter how small it may be.

Has it always been like this? Daniel thought to himself but his notebooks and sketchbook were already enough for an explanation. He’s been doing it ever since they started college, maybe even beyond that.

Seongwoo wasn’t just his friend after all. He’s known Seongwoo since they were freshmen in high school. Even when Daniel went to Canada during the summer before college, Seongwoo kept in touch. When he got back, it was as if they weren’t even separated in the first place. Right now, Daniel was close to finishing college and Seongwoo was already working in the said cafe across the street. For all he knew, he’s been doing this for the past eight years since they met.

And then it hit him.

Very hard like a ing truck, he ended up scattering the loose pages from all his notebooks.

There, his realization stared back at him in the form of lead sketches across the paper.

Seongwoo has been his friend, his best one for sure since they were hormonal teenagers. But after all these years, only then did Daniel realize that he has also been his motivation, his number one supporter, his muse .

That was the only logical explanation why he saw Seongwoo in every sketch he made because Seongwoo became his standard and his getgo for motivation.

Daniel wants―No, he needs him back. Because losing his friend, his muse, was like losing a part of himself and that was one he never wanted to experience

Not now, not ever.

 

~ .oOo. ~

 

Seongwoo hasn’t been doing any better.

He’s grown used to Daniel’s presence every day when he woke up but his words were too painful to bear. The soulmate issue has one he’s always been sensitive about. No matter how tough he looked, he’s always been sensitive on the inside regarding if he would ever have someone by his side or not.

Only Daniel knew about those thoughts and it hurt to hear it being used against him. Although it would be mentally painful to do so, he decided that distance may just be the best option. At least for now. Maybe someday when he found courage, he’ll talk to Daniel again. It’s not like he could stay mad for long anyway. It’s been three days since he last saw Daniel, maybe he can finally confront him and tell him he isn’t mad by the end of the week when he has no homework to work on. Yeah, seemed like a good plan.

While Seongwoo was now wiping the recently used table, the bell by the entrance rung and it has him snapping out of his train of thought. Right, he was in the middle of his shift. He should really stop getting distracted.

“Good morning! Welcome to―” Seongwoo froze on the spot, eyes widened by a fraction and mouth left agape as he came face-to-face with the last person he wanted to see today.

There by the doorway stood his young roommate, Kang Daniel. Currently out of breath while holding onto his knees, probably ran judging by the shortness of breath. “S-Seongwoo,” Daniel wheezed as he tried to catch his breath. The older man felt rather dumbfounded at the sudden turn of events but he figured he might as well help Daniel out first.

“U-Um, just a sec,” Seongwoo excused himself and quickly ran back to the kitchen to hand him a glass of water. “Here, you need to sit down for a bit,” He mumbled as he guided Daniel to the nearest table.

It was rather silent after that, with Daniel still trying to catch his breath as Seongwoo awkwardly fidgeted with his fingers.

“We…” Another gasp, “We need to talk,” Daniel tried to say in between breaths and Seongwoo couldn’t help but chuckle to himself. “I have another thirty minutes before my shift ends,” He said with a small smile playing along his lips, “Maybe you should try catching your breath by then,” He finished as he placed the glass in front of Daniel.

“R-Right,” The brunette said after he took in a long breath, “Yeah, I’ll do that,”

With one last smile, Seongwoo stood up and went back to his spot behind the counter.

Daniel was just relieved he looked fine, all the more relaxed because Seongwoo was also willing to talk.

Hopefully, he just doesn’t screw up this time.

 

~ .oOo. ~

 

True to his word, Seongwoo does come back after half an hour dressed in his usual all-black ensemble. “Feeling rested yet?” Was the first thing he said, Daniel already has a bad feeling about this.

“A lot better at least,”

“Good, because we’re going to walk,”

Daniel was right to trust his gut feeling.

“What? Don’t look like such a kicked puppy! It’s nice to walk in the evening breeze!” Seongwoo defends as he pulled on Daniel’s wrist with a whine. “Alright, Alright! I’m up!” The tall brunette chuckled at the adorable display before he finally got up and made their way towards the door.

The first five minutes were just silence, them walking side-by-side with nothing but the breeze and sounds of the city compensating for the awkward lack of conversation. Seongwoo must’ve picked up on Daniel’s nerves (as in nonstop fidgeting and awkward glances weren’t enough) but he chose not to act on it. Daniel was the one who wanted to talk so he’ll wait when he’s ready.

Daniel took a deep breath, hands interlacing themselves behind his back as he looked away towards the cars driving past them.

“I’m sorry,” He breathed out, Seongwoo finally looked at him but chose to remain silent, “I know I’m the only one you told the soulmate thing about, I know how sensitive you are towards the entire thing, yet I still used it against you and wow that really made me feel like such an ,”

“No kidding,” Seongwoo said in a flat tone Daniel instantly whined and clung on the shorter man’s arm, “Stop~ I’m trying to apologize!” The older man merely laughed but Daniel doesn’t let go, he only clung a little tighter.

“I’m sorry for rubbing it in your face, it’s not like I was a successful soulmate case anyway,” He said in a rather sardonic tone that made Seongwoo frown, “But you of all people don’t deserve to be on the receiving end of what I did. I was stupid and childish and I wish I realized sooner before I even opened my stupid mouth, so…”

Daniel stopped walking and let go of the older man’s arm. Before Seongwoo could even ask, the brunette unexpectedly bowed complete with a formal ninety-degree angle that instantly has Seongwoo flustered.

“W-what are you doing! Get up! You’re embarrassing!” He stuttered and kept on trying to pull Daniel back up.

“I won’t, not until you forgive me”

“I was never mad you idiot! I was just disappointed! Now get up!” With that, Daniel finally stood up straight with a satisfied grin on his face. Though he couldn’t help but giggle when he saw the tint of pink dusting the older man’s cheeks.

“Cute, but that was really embarrassing,” Seongwoo mumbled while Daniel only had that laidback grin on his face. “We should get going, it’s getting pretty late out here,”

“But I still have things I want to say,”

“It’s still a long walk, Niel” Though Daniel felt happy seeing Seongwoo give him his natural smile, “We still have plenty of time before we get there,” Daniel happily jogged over to Seongwoo’s side as they continued to talk about the most random things regarding the people and the things around him.

When a comforting silence looms in the air. Daniel is once again taking in a deep breath as he braces for what he wanted to say next.

“You know, if you keep doing that, then I might just develop an automatic nervous reaction whenever you sigh,” Seongwoo jokingly said and it has Daniel pouting.

“Well, this isn’t anything important but… I just wanted to tell you,”

“Then shoot,”

“Well,” Daniel started, eyes flittering about at whatever they see, “This could come out as cheesy, but I just really wanted to say thank you,” Seongwoo couldn’t help but arch a brow in curiosity.

“For what?”

“For… For always being there for me,” Daniel stated with one of his blinding smiles, “In the three days that you were gone, it made me realize how much you would always watch after me. Although I never asked you to, you would naturally think about me and my wellbeing and I really wanted to thank you for that.” The latter merely chuckled, “And here I thought I’d never get to see the day I get thanked for putting it up with your ,” Daniel huffed and even puffed his cheeks as a fake tantrum.

“But there’s also one more thing,” Daniel continued when their laughter finally died down, “This isn’t anything cliche like thanks for exiting, is it?” Seongwoo jokingly suggests, Daniel shook his head with a small smile, “It’s not, don’t worry”

“This is going to sound cheesy though but…” This time Seongwoo couldn’t help but look curious, “I just wanted to say, thanks for being my inspiration, like a muse,” For a moment, Seongwoo tripped on his own feet but Daniel was quick enough to catch him.

“D-Don’t I get a warning next time?” Seongwoo whined as Daniel held him up, but Daniel doesn’t miss the visible pink hues that dusted his cheeks. Cute.

“I mean it!” Daniel laughed as he pulled the older man back up, “It took me a while, but I instantly understood why. Because you’ve always been there, ever since we were teens, you were in every notebook I owned.”

“But then I flipped through my sketchbook, you know how important that is to me, but then you were still there on every page. The next thing I knew, although bit by bit, I’ve already drawn your entire face even if you weren’t present,”

Daniel finds it cute how the blush seemed to spread further down to his neck, “I realized then that we’ve always been around each other for how many years now. And in the time we spent together, you somehow became my standard. And I gotta say, it’s a pretty hard one to match,”

Seongwoo couldn’t help but hit him out of embarrassment, Daniel merely laughed at the childish act. “Every artist has their muse. And for that, I just wanted to thank you for being both my friend and my muse,”

The older man was left speechless, mouth slightly agape as his widened eyes looked back at the younger man who only smiled. Before Seongwoo could even reply, a stray drop of water lands itself on their cheeks. “Wha ―?!” The next thing they knew, the droplets multiplied until it transitioned to a stronger downpour.

 

In between laughs and wide smiles, the two ran to the closest shelter they could find and decided to wait for the rain to stop. They were both too idiotic to not bring an umbrella with them just when the weather predictions hinted sudden downpours.

“Well this was unexpected,” Daniel giggled at their now drenched clothing, hopefully, they don’t end up getting sick because of it. “It kinda was, I just didn’t think ‘sudden downpour’ was literally going to be this sudden,” Seongwoo mumbled as he runs a hand through his hair to push it away from his face.

But it wasn’t the visuals that made Daniel’s gaze linger, definitely not that.

It was his wrist, the wrist that used to be clean were now showing traces of black and Daniel couldn’t help but feel elated.

“S-Seongwoo! Oh god, Seongwoo!”

“What? What!” Seongwoo suddenly felt panicked, what’s Daniel being so loud for?

“Your wrist!” The ravenette instantly froze, once again with widened eyes but the small tremors in his hands have gone unnoticed. “What about?” Voice suddenly turning small compared to the explosion of excitement in Daniel’s.

“There was a mark, hyung! A mark! You might just have a soulmate!” He couldn’t help but bounce on the spot not noticing the tension in Seongwoo’s movements.

“What do you mean? There’s nothing there, maybe you just saw my watch―”

“Hyung, it’s right there! See? Look―” Daniel excitedly reached out but Seongwoo pulled his wrist away before he could even touch it.

“Daniel, what the heck? Stop―”

“No, seriously! I’m not kidding! I wouldn’t joke about this!”

There wasn’t really too much room, to begin with, the two were merely running circles around each other and Seongwoo just kept slipping from his fingers. After a few more rounds of running away, Daniel managed to wrap an arm around Seongwoo’s wrist. The brunette didn’t expect to see a flicker of fear to flash through the older man’s eyes.

“Hyung, I’m not going to hurt you. Just look―” Daniel’s smile instantly faded the moment he looked down at the said wrist.

No doubt, there was a black mark with the familiar curves of calligraphy on his wrist. But what bothered Daniel was the thin cover that layered the mark, a smudged layer of concealer and foundation.

“Seongwoo, what’s that?”

“...”

Although the silence was making him nervous, Daniel held Seongwoo’s wrist and smudged the makeup off with his thumb.

He was never prepared or he never knew what to expect. But he most definitely did not expect his name written in such intricate calligraphy across the man’s thin wrist. Daniel unconsciously loosened his hold and Seongwoo instantly took the chance to pull his hand back and held it protectively over his chest.

“What…? Daniel was speechless, who wouldn’t be when all your life you knew your best friend never had a soulmate? “S-Since when..?”  Seongwoo was visibly hesitant, eyes darting all over the place for the sake of not meeting Daniel’s own.

“... Before you came back from Canada,” It was Daniel’s turn to have his mouth agape in shock, “You… Did you keep this from me? For that long?” He couldn’t help but feel a bit betrayed,

“You were still Euigeon that time! How was I supposed to know you legally changed your name to Daniel while you were in Canada? You left as Euigeon and I got my mark when you were already on the way back, I was supposed to tell you when we met.” Seongwoo defends.

“But then I saw you, taller, with broader shoulders, and brighter then you used to be. It’s like you transformed into a better form of yourself. But then… then people called you Daniel and I―I just froze, I instantly covered the mark with my long sleeves and thought that― that it was wrong, that couldn’t possibly be you.”

Seongwoo let out a shaky breath, “But then I thought you’d feel uncomfortable seeing your name on my wrist. It just… didn’t seem right…”

“How about when I got back? Why didn’t you tell me then?” Daniel just couldn’t understand, maybe it was just his frustrations clouding his judgment.

“ What did you expect me to do? Prance around throwing petals in celebration and just blurt out ‘Hey Euigeon! I finally know who my soulmate is and it might just be you!’ is that what you want?” Seongwoo didn’t notice how he was slightly raising his voice.

“We’ve known each other for years! I at least deserved to know, don’t I?”

“Maybe you did, but I didn’t want to risk the friendship we had… Not when you’re the only friend I have left.” Daniel was instantly silenced as he was finally snapped out of his stupor, only then did he notice their raised voices and the glint of unshed tears in Seongwoo’s eyes.

“Seongwoo…” Before he could utter another word, Seongwoo suddenly ran back into the pouring rain leaving Daniel.

 

~ .oOo. ~

 

What should have been them making up, turned into an even bigger mess and Daniel was just glad it was already Friday so he didn’t have anything else to think about.

It’s been days since Seongwoo’s revelation in the rain and Daniel has been nothing but confused. Who else could he possibly tell about his problems if his usual go-to person was his very problem? The brunette sighed and ran his hands over his face (for what was probably the nth time that day).

He really needed to vent this out.

Daniel doesn’t know how the idea popped into his head, but it’s not like he had another choice either. After fiddling with his phone for another five minutes, Daniel sighed and dialed the number before he could take it back. After two more rings, the gentle and familiar voice floods his ears.

“Hello?” The familiar voice of Hwang Minhyun.

“Yeah sorry if this is a little too sudden… are you busy?” He wanted to just facepalm himself right there, how could he forget to consider if Minhyun even had the time?

“I was just reading, something wrong?” There was really something about Minhyun’s voice that just made him feel comfortable. “Do you mind if I um… vent for a bit? I’m kind of in a situation…”

“I’ll do what I can,”

That was more than enough for Daniel and so he sat up to lean back on the couch.

“Well, you see… it’s kinda complicated. I just found out my best friend had me as a soulmate? And he’s been hiding it from me for like… seven years now,” Well, that was an awkward start . Daniel thought to himself. “And I just find felt kind of betrayed, we’ve known each other’s secrets for like forever now but then… there’s this huge bomb dropped onto me and it just made me… completely lost”

“When you said ‘kinda complicated’, I think you meant to remove the kinda,” Minhyun simply commented, Daniel kind of felt embarrassed to spill everything to a man he barely got to know better. “I think I’m feeling a little lost myself,”

“Ahh, why did I even think of doing this in the first place,” Daniel mumbled but Minhyun caught on to some of his words.

“Did you talk to him about it?”

“It’s not as easy as it sounds, I went to talk to him about something I did so we were supposed to go back to being friends. Then I found out about the soulmates thing and things were back to going downhill from there,”

“You know there’s no other way to resolve this but to talk face-to-face, there’s literally going to be an invisible wall between you too unless you do something about it,”

“But he won’t listen!” Daniel was frustrated.

“Maybe you’re being too pushy,” Minhyun suggests.

“It’s… It’s complicated,” He sighed and fell back down on the couch, “It’s so hard, no one else usually understood but somehow he always read me as if I was just an open book to him as if I was so easy to read.” Minhyun remained silent and Daniel took that as an okay sign to ramble

“Some people think I’m a complicated person and I could be a handful at times. But when I’m with him, he never complains. He does what he does and somehow it jives with what I do and with what I usually need. I never asked for his help because he’s somehow always there whenever I need  it.”

“Sound like something a soulmate would be like,” Minhyun interjected, somehow Daniel couldn’t help but let out an empty laugh, “It’s funny really you also find it hard to understand me when you should have been the one who understood me the best,”

“What do you mean?” Daniel could feel his confusion all the way from the other side of the line, “My mark says you’re my soulmate,” He finally laid out in the open, “But your wrist obviously says otherwise,” He finished with a sad attempt of a laugh while Minhyun remained silent.

“This Seongwoo,” Minhyun slowly started, “He seems to understand you a lot. Maybe it’s the years you both spent together but you’re really lucky to have a friend who cares for you the way Seongwoo does.” Daniel merely hummed as he turned to his side.

“Quite incredible actually. He’s almost got you figured out, it’s almost similar to how I treat Jaehwan,” Daniel was instantly reminded of that name written on Minhyun’s wrist after their presentation.

“Your soulmate?”

“Yeah, he was quite a handful too. But I’m trying to get him used to cleaning, hopefully, he picked up the habits before the year ends,” Minhyun mused out loud. Daniel couldn’t help but sigh, was he ever going to experience that domestic kind of feeling too? He kind of envied that scenario, Minhyun teaching his soulmate his habits on cleaning. He couldn’t help but think what would him and his soulmate be like.

“Sorry, Daniel. Something just came up, I’ll have to hang up now” Minhyun said over the phone and Daniel hummed in reply, “I hope the soulmate issue gets resolved soon,”

“I hope so too,”

“Who knows, maybe one of you just so happens to have a flawed mark,” Minhyun jokingly replied with a small laugh, Daniel blinked in thought, “Anyway, I gotta go now. Bye,” Without another word, Minhyun hang up on the phone. But Daniel doesn’t move a muscle.

“Maybe one of you just so happens to have a flawed mark,”

Minhyun’s words echoed through his head.

Hwang Minhyun already has a soulmate, Jaehwan. They already met and they were together. Daniel had Minhyun’s name on his wrist, was it because it could be another Minhyun? Or was his mark wrong all along?

 

“This wasn’t like the usual fairy tales where they end up happily ever after, this was where reality makes itself known for the countdowns marked on each person’s wrist can have their own flaws. “

 

Was it possible?

If his mark was the flawed one, then…

 

Oh .

 

Daniel quickly sat up almost giving himself a whiplash before he bolted out the door.

He needed to find Seongwoo.

 

~ .oOo. ~

 

Seongwoo spent his free time by the nearby park on the same bench situated under the tree with a lamp post on its side. He avoided going home the moment work was finished. Instead, he passed time reading some books (sometimes poems) on the same bench until he was sure Daniel would be asleep.

It was a tiring routine, really. But he didn’t want to make it any more awkward for Daniel. He didn’t intend to let him know about his mark, but there was nothing he could do about it now.

Maybe he should let him be?

The ravenette let out a heavy sigh, he’s always gotten an idea what to do when Daniel felt frustrated or distressed. But what could he possibly do if he himself was the cause of the distress? Before Seongwoo could even ponder further, the very source of his frustration was there right in front of him. Once again, he is left dumbstruck...

“S-Seongwoo…” Daniel wheezed as he held on his knees while he tried to catch his breath.

… With a bit of deja vu in between.

“We…” Another gasp, “We need to talk,” Daniel tried to say in between breaths and Seongwoo couldn’t help but chuckle to himself. “Is this going to be a norm everytime we fight now?”

“What?”

“You know, me lounging around at some spot and you running all the way from god knows where trying to apologize while you catch your breath, this might just become the norm for us,” Although he successfully made the mood lighter, he still couldn’t help but feel nervous.

“W-Well hopefully not,” Daniel sputtered and cleared his throat before straightening up. “Right, so, uh, we need to talk” He awkwardly cleared his throat with a sheepish scratch to his cheek.  Seongwoo scooted over to one side of the bench to let Daniel sit down.

Before things could get any more awkward, Seongwoo decided to speak up first. “So what did you want to talk about?” He said in the calmest tone he could muster, seemed to have worked though judging by how Daniel was now fidgeting his fingers in thought.

“...Did you conceal your mark?” Daniel said with plenty of hesitation but Seongwoo is still caught off-guard anyway. “Y-Yeah, I did.” Well, that was an unexpected start. “Can I see it?” The brunette asked, voice barely going over a mumble. Good thing Seongwoo was close enough to hear it. Without another word, Seongwoo raised his wrist to Daniel’s line of vision while the younger man held the wrist in his hands.

Indeed he did cover it up like how he usually did, with thick layers of foundation and concealer. Suddenly, Daniel pressed down his thumb and started wiping the makeup away. Seongwoo’s eyes merely widened a fraction but he doesn’t pull his hand back. Soon, Daniel completely got the makeup off and there on Seongwoo’s skin was the unmistakable cursive of Daniel’s name.

“That’s better,” Daniel mused to himself as he traced the decorative curves with his fingers. Seongwoo was just becoming more confused by the minute. “Daniel?” The brunette looked up and gave him a reassuring smile.

“I talked to Minhyun over the phone,” He started and Seongwoo just looked confused. “I tried to vent a bit, told him about how you were my friend and how we usually understood each other well, and how I had to turn to him because you, my go-to person, was the source of my frustration,” Seongwoo couldn’t help but fidget with the end of his shirt.

“The conversation wasn’t much, but it did make me realize two things.” To Seongwoo’s surprise, Daniel looked back up at him with a smile. “One was how this world has its own imperfections. And that doesn’t exclude the counters we have.” He emphasized his point by brushing his thumb against his name across Seongwoo’s skin.

“And second, is how I’m sure that that flawed counter is mine,” Seongwoo’s eyes widened in shock at how Daniel interlaced his fingers around Seongwoo’s own when he confidently proclaimed his last statement.

“What makes you so sure?”

Daniel merely smiled, “I already confirmed that Minhyun has his own soulmate. They met, and they’re happy. He was the only Minhyun I met that day. But you,” He started as he admired the mark on Seongwoo’s wrist, “Met me on the day you got your name,”

“That doesn’t really mean ―”

“You also understood me the best,” Daniel cuts him off before he could continue, “You could read me so easily, you often know what I need, and you would understand me in a heartbeat before I could even tell you what it is,” Daniel looked straight into his eyes, a wide grin spreading itself onto his face.

“So I thought maybe… maybe it’s because you were meant to be for me from the start” He said with that oh-so-bright grin on his face, Seongwoo could go blind. “It’s funny, really,” Daniel continued as he raised Seongwoo’s wrist to his face, “I tried to look so hard for someone that’s been with me all along,” He finished with a quick peck to the soulmate mark.

Seongwoo but his quivering lower lip in hopes it would stop its tremors, “I-I’m sorry,” He wasn’t quite sure what for, “Why are you apologizing? If anything, I should be the one saying sorry,” Daniel couldn’t help but chuckle despite the tears that were threatening to fall from Seongwoo’s eyes.

In the end, the tears did end up sliding down the older man’s cheeks and Daniel helped wiped them off with his thumbs while he whispered comforting words in his ear. For a moment, they stayed in their little bubble of giggles and blushes until Seongwoo calmed down from his surge of emotion.

“It’s getting late,” Daniel said as he stood up and tugged on the older man’s hand, “We should go back home now,” The ravenette, despite having dry tear stains on his face, still looked beautiful with the simplest of smiles dancing along his lips. “Alright,”

“So… no more secrets?” Daniel hesitantly suggests, Seongwoo pretended to contemplate the thought, “Then I can’t hide how I steal Thomas at night anymore?”

“Wait― What?”

“Nothing!” Seongwoo smiled at the younger man before skipping on ahead leaving Daniel looking ridiculous. “Hey! Get back here!” The brunette called out albeit with a smile as he jogged over to Seongwoo.

“H-Hey! I was just kidding!” Seongwoo weakly defends as Daniel wrapped him in a hug. “You better be! I can’t believe you’d steal Thomas from me when you already have Ongnable to sleep with!”

“Thomas was soft, okay?”

“I bought him because I was jealous of how soft Ongnable was, they’re the same”

“I can’t hug Ongnable when he’s clinging to my waist,”

“You’re the one who makes him cling to your waist!”

Daniel doesn’t know how long their banter went on for, it was pretty ridiculous. But he was happy with how tonight’s events turned out. He finally got Seongwoo back, not just as his best friend, but as his soulmate.

Finding your soulmate has always been one of the things people often pray for.

Daniel often dreamed what it would be like to spend your days with a person that was meant to be by your side all along. But in his case, he couldn’t help but wonder what tomorrow and the following days would be like with his soulmate, Ong Seongwoo, by his side.

---

  Notes:

ohmyghod it's finished *wheeze* and so is Ongniel week :(((
I hope this puts a good end to this wonderful week filled with content and various contributions c:
**ending wasn't really the best, but I hope its enough :<

#ongnielweek_day7