He had always loved the smell of tea. It relaxed him, releasing the tension that his nerves and muscles held. The taste invaded his senses as he sipped on the hot fluid from the porcelain cup, the hands of his magical Rolex watch slowly moving as he waited for his guest.

It had been difficult to set an appointment with this man for he had been quite the talk of the world since his recent accomplishment. An accomplishment that annoyed Yongguk greatly, if not angered him.

He looked up from his cup to see a man in front of his table, cheeks bunching up as his lusciously thick lips spread into a smile. “Hi! The waiter said you’re Bang Yongguk?”

It took a few moments for Yongguk to regain control on his gaze— his eyes fell on the other’s lips—and when he did, he feigned a cough and looked at the other straight in the eye, mustering authority in his voice.

 “Yes. I am Bang Yongguk, Jung Daehyun-ssi?”

---

Yongguk heard his guest click his tongue yet again, the third since he arrived merely 20 minutes ago. This habit seriously ticked him off. It reminded him of a clock with dysfunctional gears, stuck and not well lubricated.  However, no emotion was showing on his otherwise stern face, in spite of how the man in front of him was managing to both annoy and fascinate him.

He knew what brought this about.

"I can't do that Yongguk-ssi," his guest declared again.

Yongguk sighed. "And why is that?"

Yongguk found the other man hard to convince. Yongguk rarely had to go beyond his usual persuasion tactics. Unless this could be solved amiably, he would have to resort to threats, and the thought didn’t thrill him much. It wouldn’t be pretty. It never was, at least for Yongguk.

"That's gonna lose me my job," Daehyun's voice was exasperated and when he continued, he took a deep breath and looked Yongguk in the eye. "That's gonna lose me my everything."

"And that would be all irrelevant," Yongguk deadpanned.

Daehyun was clearly becoming aggravated. "Irrelevant?!" His face reddened. He had quite a short temper, Yongguk noticed.

"Yes."

"And how is my job and my everything," Daehyun emphasized, his index and middle fingers folding and unfolding, his voice unstable, " irrelevant?"

The man was fuming and he tried to keep it down, which he was failing quite miserably at. Yongguk was amused, though he kept it to himself as he took a sip from the porcelain cup.  

"Time is not an element to thwart and play with, Daehyun." Daehyun only glared at him, so he took this as a signal to go on. "Doing that brings serious consequences. Everything is rooted in Time."

Daehyun let out a snort and jokingly asked, "Like what?"

"Like karma."

Daehyun rolled his eyes. "Karma is not real."

Yongguk raised his brows. "Oh?" Daehyun looked at him questioningly, egging him to go on. "You certainly don't look like a person who doesn't believe in karma, Daehyun."

It was Daehyun's turn to raise his brows, a smirk playing on his lips. "Why? What do I look like to you?"

Good. "Like someone who believes in karma, that is. And I would stop thwarting with time by ridiculously time travelling if I were you."

Daehyun stared at him to the point that Yongguk thought he had spaced out. "Who are you, Bang Yongguk?"

Yongguk only smiled.

---

Yongguk didn't expect to end up meeting the man again, at least not for a long time. But he was and it was too soon.

He sat with his legs crossed on a chair in the same café, sipping on hot tea again. He closed his eyes, his body humming of clock ticking and blood flowing at the same speed with time.

He took a deep breath and felt the element matching his emotions. He was unsettled - angry and unsettled. The poor humans must have been puzzled of the pace of their time. For sure, they found it ridiculously fast.

It was not long until Daehyun arrived. A smirk played on his thick lips which puzzled, but also ridiculously mesmerized Yongguk.

When the man sat down, Yongguk looked at him intensely, trying his best to not stare at his lips. His voice was low when he spoke, command evident in it, "Stop what you're doing."

Daehyun raised his brows, feigning innocence, "I'm not doing anything yet."

Yongguk had to physically stop himself from rolling his eyes. The man was stubborn. Really stubborn. "Stop your ridiculous experiment."

Daehyun's face showed that he understood what Yongguk meant. "I can't do that." His words were meant to put an end to the argument and if Daehyun had been talking to another human, it might have worked. But he wasn’t. "And it's not an experiment anymore. It's an accomplishment."

Yongguk only glared venomously at the man but Daehyun proved unmoving.

"You know, you seem very concerned with the element of time." Daehyun's voice became surprisingly curious.

"I am."

"Why?"

"Because I'm Cronus."

The blank expression Daehyun made with his "What?" while he raised his eyebrow almost insulted Yongguk. Almost. He only stared at the man, keeping his serious face in check.

When Daehyun finally realized he wasn't joking, he asked, "What is that? A Greek god or something?"

"No."

"Then what?"

Yongguk clenched his teeth in hopes to stop his verbal outburst. He was glad it did. "Daehyun." Daehyun looked at him and he took this as his cue to continue, "Did you even consider researching anything about time before you did your experiment?"

Daehyun looked confused, but answered nonetheless, "I did. It’s dynamics and characteristics. All of it."

"Not all."

Daehyun seemed perplexed and for once since their meeting, Yongguk felt satisfied. "You didn't research about its history. I am Cronus, the god of Time."

---

There were a lot of things that Daehyun could do to insult Yongguk, the god realized.

He was insulted by his blank expression when he told him he is Cronus. Who doesn’t know Cronus? He was insulted by Daehyun’s snort when he told him he is the god of time. He was insulted by the man’s laugh when Daehyun asked again and again if he really is the god of time and the answer was always yes. He was insulted that the man took all of it lightly and used the fact that he wanted him to stop to get Yongguk to go out on a date with him. And most of all, Yongguk was insulted that he, himself, didn't even think twice and just agreed without even holding back and what was worse, he wasn't even regretting. Well, damn those lips!

"Go out with me and I'll stop," Daehyun's voice was the opposite of his lips. It was full of sincerity while his lips were forming a smirk, a smirk that put Yongguk in a trance. How he was doing this, Yongguk was completely clueless.

"Deal." The word was out of Yongguk's mouth before his comprehension caught up to him and he realized what he just got himself into. The smirk on the other's lips just became more evident (and hypnotizing) and Yongguk just found himself staring.

"Okay. Meet me here on Friday, 8PM." Then the man stood up and marched his way out of the café.

Yongguk sat there, only realizing just what an idiot move he had made.

---

Yongguk is a god of his words. Hell, he is a titan god and titans were in the second generation of divine beings of offspring of Gaea and Uranus and ruled in the Golden Age, of course he is a god of his words! And so, because he is, he sat there at the same table from their first two meetings, at the same café, sipping on tea again..

It was weird, but he was feeling giddy and excited, and he saw the people come and go from the café in a fast pace, as though they were on fast forward. He sighed when he saw how fast the arms of the clock on the wall were moving..

It was five past 8 when Daehyun arrived and when he sat, a string of apologies poured out from his mouth. "I'm so sorry. I had to go fix something before coming," he said, his head slightly bowing.

"You didn't stop."

Daehyun looked at him, his face showing amazement, possibly because of the fact that he knew. "I will. I just didn't think it would be this hard."

"The consequences would be harder," Yongguk warned him again, looking at the man’s slumped body.

"I know. But when I told my colleagues I plan to stop they basically went berserk on me and I think the media would surely flip and think I'm a crazy scientist with commitment issues and the public would think I actually am and get weird looks while walking along the streets and probably get sympathetic looks and messages from the company I work in-" Daehyun was cut short from his complaints and what if's when Yongguk let out a laugh and for him, Yongguk knew, it sounded like little bells chiming, as though the clock struck midnight but way softer and less distracting.

"What?" the man asked, looking at Yongguk's shaking figure.

"Petty concerns," Yongguk said at the end of his soft laugh.

Daehyun's brows creased. "Petty?"

Yongguk only hummed.

"And why is that?"

"Such human concerns."

"I am a human, in case you forgot."

"And I am a god."

"A titan."

Yongguk looked at the man, his face painted with a small smirk. "So you've done your research."

"Yes I did. All about Time."

Yongguk's smirk widened. "That's good. Now you're going to believe me and stop before I resort to any actions other than talking."

"Maybe. I wouldn't unless I confirm it's you," Daehyun crossed his arms on his chest, "and you understand that my concerns aren't petty."

Yongguk raised his brow in question and in annoyance at the man's unbelieving nature, "How do I do that?"

"Show me your true self." Daehyun was serious. "And don't laugh at me when I complain."

---

Yongguk didn't know how he got himself in Daehyun's house, with the promise to never laugh at his petty concerns again, and the mind set to show the man who he really is and how he really looks like.

It was dangerous. He had rarely shown himself to humans. It was dangerous and threatening to them, because only the brave could do it and accept their true appearance. But he somehow convinced himself that maybe Daehyun could do it—he thwarted with Time after all—and maybe that would be what it took Daehyun to stop his experiment and to stop from going any further with Yongguk. After all, a relationship between them would be impossible and prohibited. Time is interconnected with his emotions. And having any kind of connection with Daehyun, a human,  would doom the mechanism of Time. It would be bad for everyone. It would be bad for Daehyun.

Rhea would laugh at him and surely say, "I told you you're stuck with me."

He was only set to stop him, not form any connections and feelings for him. Gaea must've hated him for destroying his father to allow the birth of someone like Daehyun.

"So? How will you show me?" Daehyun's voice was full of enthusiasm as he stood a few feet away from Yongguk in his living room.

His house was cosy and clean, Yongguk noticed. Not bad for a man living alone.

"You will regret this," Yongguk forewarned.

Daehyun rolled his eyes and Yongguk found that he could add this to his list of Things-Daehyun-Can-Do-To-Insult-Him.

"Go on. Do it." The man was getting impatient.

Yongguk muttered an, "I warned you," before slowly transforming into his true self. His suit burned away from his body, replaced by a dark silk slung over one shoulder, flowing down to cover his limbs and his lower body. A dark cloak covered his form but revealed his front torso. A scythe materialized in his hand. His face and body slowly hardened, forming a well-built body - more built than his disguised human form. His hair turned platinum blonde, matching the beard that grew on his jaws and chin. His height added up making him taller than Daehyun for a good few feet. And he internally thanked that the apartment's ceiling was high.

His true appearance was a lot more mature and strong than his human form and when he saw Daehyun squinting from the light he emanated while transforming, he thought that the man wouldn't make it and just drop dead. But when he saw Daehyun's open-mouthed face after his transformation was done, he internally felt happy and satisfied that the man was strong. Daehyun was brave, that he confirmed.

“Daehyun." Yongguk's voice was a rumble in the room, like thunder claps of a forthcoming heavy storm.

Daehyun's body shook and Yongguk presumed it was because of him and of the fright he caused him.

"You are brave to have made it alive through my transformation." Yongguk wasn't feeling angry, but it was hard to say because of his monotonous voice. In his true self, it was hard to differentiate any emotions from his voice and his face and that was what made him more dangerous.

Daehyun only stood there looking bewildered.

"Do you believe me now? I'm Cronus. The god of Time!" Yongguk said looking down at Daehyun. He felt mighty towering above him, satisfied that the man was seeing his true power. He is the ruler of the Titans, after all.

When Daehyun nodded, his body shook more and when he spoke, his voice was so small, Yongguk wouldn't have heard it if he was in his human form, "Yes. I believe you. Can you go back to your human form now?"

Yongguk stared at the man for quite a while, observing his shaking figure, but then obliged. When he transformed into a human again, he was for his suit burned away, and he had to turn his back on Daehyun to grab a nearby bathrobe hanging on the wall to cover himself with. Not that it was that big of a deal, but he would rather not show anything else to Daehyun.

Daehyun slumped to the floor with a loud thump, undoubtedly tired. It took the man a whole lot of courage to brave through the transformation of a god.

"Do you believe me now?" Yongguk asked when he turned, towering over the man. He refused to help him so as to cement his godly personality, even though his mind told him to help Daehyun up.

The mortal's body heaved up and down as he tried to catch his breath, "I do. But why the hell am I so tired?" He touched his chest and let his hand stay there.

Yongguk smiled unknowingly. Daehyun is unique, that he was sure of. He had just faced something that could have been fatal to him and could have changed his whole perspective on Yongguk, but now he was back to how he usually was with the god. "You're casual. You were way too polite when I showed you my real appearance."

Daehyun was quick to answer, "You were terrifying! But you're good this way."

Yongguk's eyebrows rose, but he did not comment.

"Why am I so tired?"

"Only the truly brave can withstand watching a god's transformation. And you watched two of them. I guess you are brave." Yongguk smirked.

"I am." Daehyun grinned and with this grin, Yongguk expected something crazy out of his mouth again but nothing came.

Daehyun did his best to stand and after exerting great effort and willpower, he was able to. He made for the couch and sat. Yongguk followed him..

"You're ," Daehyun pointed out.

“Yes I am. The suit burned out when I transformed into my god form," Yongguk explained and saw the mortal nod.

It was unusual, but he stayed a while longer with Daehyunl instead of just telling him off after showing himself. The bravery Daehyun had exhibited awed Yongguk and maybe that was the reason why he stayed. Or maybe that was what he tried to convince himself. For his bravery, nothing else.

"Were you always that tall?"

"I'm taller with the complete transformation."

Daehyun's eyes widened, "That was not all of it?"

Yongguk only shook his head. He stood a few feet away from the couch, his eyes not leaving the man. Despite the usual behaviour he couldn't be sure of what was going through Daehyun’s head, so he kept a good distance between them, even though the mortal stood no chance against him and even though frightening the man was actually his goal, or at least the goal that was best for the well-being of everyone, especially Daehyun's.

"I will stop." Daehyun's voice, for once since the first time they met, was quiet. Yongguk could sense he was serious.

"Good." His voice came out indifferent, just like how he wanted it to be.

"But I don't want to stop seeing you. If I stop, I won't see you ever again. That was the reason why I didn't stop the first place." Daehyun’s voice was sad. And it affected Yongguk. His heart slowed down, his blood flow languid and time matched his emotions. It slowed down and Daehyun’s breathing did too, his actions unhurried.

He willed himself to stop feeling, he had millenniums after millenniums of practice to do so, and everything went back to normal. "You won't see me again. We should have never even met, Daehyun."

"I know." Daehyun's head was down but when he asked, he turned and looked at Yongguk in the eye, "Will you stay longer for now?"

Yongguk didn't know how Daehyun developed such feelings. Maybe because he's a god that even in his human form, he still emanated a certain aura that screamed he is. The look in the Daehyun’s eyes was a mixture of sadness and expectation. This would be the last. He knew that the man would be true to his words. He knew.

So he looked at Daehyun, came closer and sat beside him, "Yes. I'll stay longer."

---

A/N: I haven't posted something for 2 years and when I finally came back, I just cross-posted something old lol sorry ToT but anyway, I hope you enjoyed this nevertheless. Don't hesitate to leave a comment!

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