April

Hyukjae was woken up long before he hoped. He didn't have to leave for work until the afternoon, and he was looking forward to the much needed extra sleep. He glanced at his clock, which read 6:30 in the morning. Donghae would have to leave for work in an hour.

The man frowned and ruffled his raven black hair upon realizing the other side of the bed was cold. Donghae had gotten up quite a while ago. Dragging himself out of bed -- which took much longer than it should have -- he slipped a hoodie on over his t-shirt and made his way downstairs to the kitchen.

He had barely taken three steps away from the staircase and Donghae was already running in his direction with his bright and crooked smile adorning his face. He literally flung himself into his husband's arms before pecking his lips several times. "Good morning Hyukjae. Happy birthday," the brunet said cheerfully.

"Thank you love." His signature gummy smile was showing.

"I made you breakfast." Donghae took his husband's hand and led him to the dining room table to sit. "Your favorite." He set down a plate of Hyukjae's favorite breakfast -- strawberry pancakes with whipped cream -- followed by a cup of coffee, both made just the way he likes.

"Thank you babe," Hyukjae said again before digging in. Donghae sat down in his designated seat across from the raven head and silently observed him.

Morning Hyukjae was adorable, he had to admit. He was the most affectionate after waking up, always showering the brunet with kisses and lots of sweet and loving words. The morning was Donghae's favorite part of the day.

"Is it good?" Donghae asked curiously.

"It always is," Hyukjae replied before taking another bite.

"There's some leftovers in the fridge," Donghae said. "I added extra strawberries, just for you."

Hyukjae nodded in acknowledgement and took a sip of his coffee. "Did you eat?" he wondered.

Donghae shook his head. "No, I didn't." Before Hyukjae could ask why, he continued and said, "You know I'm never hungry this early in the morning. I'll stop and get something on my way to the police station."

"Don't forget. I don't want you to be skipping any meals."

"I won't," Donghae promised, beaming at his husband's caring nature.

After finishing his delicous breakfast and giving his husband a short thank-you kiss, Hyukjae and Donghae had a few minutes to relax and cuddle on the couch together.

"I made your lunch. It's in the fridge," Hyukjae told the brunet. Donghae grinned. Hyukjae's cooking was the best.

"I'll be taking you to dinner later tonight," Donghae announced. "But I won't tell you where. That's a surprise," he said playfully.

"Aw, why don't you tell me now?" Hyukjae pouted. "You know I don't like surprises."

Donghae shook his head. "Too bad," he said in a teasing tone before climbing off the couch and disappearing out of sight.

"Hey! Get back here, now I'm cold!" Hyukjae whined, curling up into a ball.

"Nope! I have to go!" Hyukjae heard footsteps getting further away from the couch, and he got up and followed suit.

"Come back!" Hyukjae called. "Don't I get a kiss before you leave?"

"Come and get it," Donghae said as he ran to the other side of the kitchen table, using it as a barrier between the two of them. He childishly stuck his tongue out.

Before Hyukjae could even come up with a plan, Donghae scurried out of the kitchen and back into the living room. "Hey!" Hyukjae said in protest and chased after the brunet.

Donghae laughed gleefully and swiftly climbed over the couch before hurrying into the kitchen again, almost tumbling to the floor when he lost his footing on the way down from the couch.

Hyukjae skidded to a stop. "Okay, okay. Don't do that. Dangerous," he said, slightly out of breath. He raised his hands in surrender.

Donghae chewed on his lip and the raven head took his chance, closing the rest of the gap between them and pulling his husband into his tight embrace. Donghae yelped and broke into a fit of giggles when his back met Hyukjae's chest and he was showered with kisses all over the side of his face. "Love you," Hyukjae whispered.

"I love you too," Donghae echoed. "I'll see you when you get home from work tonight, okay?" Hyukjae nodded.

This was how their day always went. Monday through Friday. First Hyukjae would wake up and be welcomed with cuddles and kisses from his beloved husband. Donghae left for work at the police station every morning at 7:30, and Hyukjae's shift at the restaurant started at 2:00 in the afternoon. Donghae returns home at 4:00 in the evening, and Hyukjae at 5:00. Hyukjae was really happy with the way their schedules meshed together and still left plenty of time for them to spend with each other. This was the way he liked it.

After Donghae had left, Hyukjae had some music and began to tidy up the house. Tomorrow they would have all of their friends over for a celebration -- or get-together, as Hyukjae had called it. Sure, it was his birthday, but they didn't have to use that as an excuse to see their friends. He straightened out the furniture, washed the tables and countertops and wiped down all the windows.

After the two hour cleaning spree, Hyukjae flopped down on the couch and pulled out his phone to reply to all of his happy birthday messages he had received during the morning. He had barely gotten halfway through when his phone rang, the screen displaying a number he didn't recognize.

He pressed the green button to answer the call and brought the phone to his ear. "Hello?"

"Um, hi," the person on the other and responded timidly. "Is this Mr. Lee Hyukjae?"

"Yes, may I ask who this is?" Hyukjae said politely.

"Lee Sungmin, sir. I work with your husband Donghae at the police station," the soft male's voice explained.

Hyukjae furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "Is everything okay?"

The man on the other end hesitated. "Our boss asked for you to come and pick Donghae up from the station. He's been fired."

Hyukjae stood up. "What?" he demanded. "What are you talking about?"

"He's not the only one, sir. There were four of them," Sungmin said, his voice even quieter and more shy than before.

"What the hell happened?" Hyukjae asked.

"Donghae arrived at work today with a brown paper bag from a liquor store. He told us that it was your birthday and that he wanted to buy you a bottle of wine. He had two bottles though, and he said that the other one was for all of us to try it to see if you would like it," Sungmin began.

"Go on," Hyukjae mumbled worriedly.

"I told him we shouldn't. I knew we could all get in trouble for doing that. But he insisted. He told us how much he loves you and how he wanted to make your birthday a very special one. So everyone tried the wine. I didn't have any, though. I couldn't drink at work. I need my job -- sorry, I'm rambling."

"It's alright," Hyukjae said.

After a short pause, Sungmin continued. "I don't even know what happened after that. Donghae... he drank too much, I think."

"Donghae doesn't drink," Hyukjae said worriedly. "He never drank a sip of alcohol in his life."

"He only had one glass, sir. Maybe it was two, but I can't really say for sure. Our boss came in and saw all of them with the wine, and he was livid. They all got fired on the spot. I'm so sorry Mr. Lee. Of course he shouldn't be driving, so you have to come and bring him home," Sungmin said