“Will you be able to make it?”

“Of course, I’ve got the flight ticket and everything set up. My manager cleared up the schedule just for those three days. I’m going to be there,” his voice emphasized the last statement because he meant it with his whole heart. He was going to be there.

The voice on the other end was quiet for a moment, but then he heard the smile in the male’s voice when he finally spoke again, “He messaged me last night that he missed us.”

He hummed, a sadden smile tugging at his lips, “One more week and he won’t have to miss us anymore.”

“But you’ll have to go back after the three days… I wish you could stay here… with us…” the pout in that voice was clear as day when he closed his eyes and envisioned those lips poked out. If he was there, he’d be tugging that bottom lip between his teeth for a chance to slip his tongue into that wet cavern.

He sighed heavily away from the phone, he knew this would always come up, he knew this would come up when they finally made it to the hotel to surprise their little solider upon his discharge. It was a subject that he tried to avoid but he knew that it was on the minds of both Junmyeon and Chanyeol when he parted ways with them. The look in their eyes, the longing, the sadness. He knew the question that hung in the air between them, and they knew the answer that he couldn’t give them.

This was how their relationship was ever since he walked away from the group, and said his good riddance to the company’s mistreatment.

“I will, Junmyeon, but we’ll make the most of the three days… I would say we could plan something again but you were lucky to get these three days approved.”

A small chuckle came across the speaker, “It wasn’t too hard. You know how much the company has been sleeping on EXO for the last few years.”

Kris did know, he’d seen the spats back and forth on social media about the treatment of EXO throughout the last few years. In a way, it left their schedules open for planning events like this, but at the same time, it was a bit worrisome. If EXO proved to be disposable by the company then it wouldn’t take much to make the group disappear. As the company had with several other groups throughout the years.

“You guys just need to break away from them,” Kris stated, but he wanted to get away from that subject as fast as he could. Any time his departure along with Luhan and Zitao’s was brought up, Junmyeon always ended up in tears, and Kris didn’t want that. Not right now, not when they were planning a celebration for Chanyeol’s discharge. “But enough about that, I just wanted to call you and tell you that we’re still on.”

Junmyeon laughed softly, “Okay, I’ll be there to pick up Chanyeol. His Umma and Appa are going to be there too, but afterwards, when everything is quietened down, we’ll be on our way to the hotel.”

“Should I have room service waiting for you guys?”

“Actually after my discharge, the only thing I wanted was a shower and to go to bed.”

“I can have that arranged too,” Kris replied, catching the small laugh from Junmyeon. “I’ll let you go now, and I’ll see you soon.”

“Okay. I love you, Kris,” there was that smile in his voice again that had Kris’s lips curling upwards, his eyes turning a bit misty at the words.

“I love you too, Junmyeon.”

He ended the call and stared at his phone for the longest. It was only one week away before Kris would be back in Seoul, under the radar as much as he could manage, to finally get to see Junmyeon and Chanyeol again. He’d kept up with the updates on Junmyeon’s enlistment and now he had been keeping up with Chanyeol’s.

Junmyeon’s discharge was earlier that year. It helped out that it was the day before Valentine’s Day, so Kris had already arranged a date for the two of them. He was busy welcoming his soldier back from the army, and missing his other soldier that was still in service. So now he was finally getting to see the two of them together.

After he turned his phone back on, he stared at his homepage, of the picture of Junmyeon and Chanyeol hugging. “It won’t be long now, Chanyeol.”

 

Junmyeon only had two schedules the whole week up until Chanyeol’s discharge and fulfilled those, it was just small interviews, nothing too big. Sehun and Jongin were already in service, the only active members for now were himself, Minseok, Jongdae, Kyungsoo. There wasn’t much activity going on right now for EXO.

After Chanyeol’s discharge and the usage of the vacation days he’d accrued, he hoped they’d get right back in the game. They would still be missing Baekhyun, but it wouldn’t be until the first part of next year. But it would still take a few more years before they were all back together… minus Lay. Hopefully the tensions between China and South Korea had eased by then.

But today was the day that he’d been waiting for. The twenty-eighth of September. This was the day that he’d witness that giant puppy of a dongsaeng darkening the door of the military base. All leading up to his way out and back home.

Chanyeol’s mother and father were there at the location, sitting in their cars until the time was right. He was still in his car, he knew that Chanyeol’s parents would take out their son for dinner that night to celebrate, and that would allow time for Kris to get all the arrangements in order at the hotel.  

He stared at the entrance of the base, it wasn’t that long ago that he was the one that was exiting it. Kris couldn’t be spotted in the parking lot due to noisy sasaengs, but Junmyeon received the text of the location to meet up at.

The Chinese star was only able to stay two days that time before he had to run off to one of the Porsche races. Junmyeon wanted to show his enthusiasm for the event but at the same time, it did worry him. A sport like that was dangerous and while he knew that Kris took precautions, it didn’t settle his anxiety when the taller man told him about his races.

The buzzing of his phone snapped him out of memory lane, he looked down at saw the name on the screen. He couldn’t stop himself from smiling when he answered, “Hello?”

“Hey, I’m here at the hotel. Room 503. Third floor,” Kris’s voice came across the speaker. “You got us a king size bed.”

“Of course I did, you two are giants,” Junmyeon chuckled softly. “Odds are, his parents will want to take him out for dinner. Do you want me to order you anything and we can bring it back to the hotel?”

“Sure, pork jjajangmyeon for me. And if you guys are going out for dinner, I’m going to get a small nap while waiting,” Kris replied. “I’ve got everything set up for a shower if that’s all Yeol wants.”

“Okay, I’ll give you a call when we’re headed that way, hopefully you’ll be up by then or maybe my call will wake you up.”

“Sounds good to me, I’ll see you then.”

It wasn’t long after the phone call that Junmyeon saw Chanyeol’s parents getting out of their vehicles. He slipped on his mask and pulled on his ball cap before stepping out of his car. They waited at the entrance, a few others gathering around as well, and then one by one, the discharged individuals started coming out.

“It’s nice to see you here to show support for Chanyeol, Junmyeon,” Chanyeol’s father commented, patting the younger male on the shoulder.

Junmyeon’s cheeks tinted slightly, a smile crossing his lips, “It’s nothing, Mr. Park, he’s like a younger brother to me. Of course I’d be here for him.”

Chanyeol’s mother reached over and slipped her hand in his, “You’ll join us for dinner too, won’t you?”

Her smile and her eyes reminded Junmyeon so much of Chanyeol. He always wondered if the woman would still smile and welcome him if she knew the depth of his relationship with her son. Would his father still be kind to him? Or to Kris… if they knew?

He tried not to dwell too much on that subject. Chanyeol said he was more than okay with keeping that part of his life hidden, as Junmyeon was as well, along with Kris. They were all each other’s secrets.

“S-Sure, I can.”

It wasn’t much longer until that tall, black haired individual stepped outside and headed past the gates of the base. Those dark brown eyes spotted Chanyeol’s mother first and then his father, and then they lingered on Junmyeon. The smile grew on his face, the corners of his eyes crinkled up, and it made Junmyeon’s heart swell in his chest.

He had been happy to see the other members when they were discharged, but Chanyeol… Chanyeol was his. It was always different when it came to Chanyeol, and it always would be. The same was said for Kris, Junmyeon just didn’t realize it at first.

Junmyeon felt stupid for not noticing the way that Kris was with Chanyeol at first, the closeness started during the Growl era. After they had more and more activities together instead of being split up. Junmyeon felt it was natural for Kris and Chanyeol to get along perfectly together, he just didn’t realize the extent of it.

That was until he had noticed the lingering gazes between the two, the small caresses here and there, and then the one instance where he heard two deep voices mixing in the shower. It was the early morning before anyone else was awake. Junmyeon wasn’t even fully awake, convinced that it was just his drowsy state as the reason for the noise he heard, but then the flushed faces that emerged from the bathroom told it all.

Junmyeon didn’t say anything at first, but the two knew they had been caught. He had adored Chanyeol for the longest before then, and he will admit that he felt jealousy that Kris had obviously laid claims to the giant pup. But that all resolved after the event of winning the award for Growl.

The hug shared between Chanyeol and himself felt different, and then the hand on his back from Kris. Junmyeon thought nothing of it at first, too hyped up on the adrenaline from winning the award and focusing on the acceptance speech. But that night after they made it back to the dorms, after everyone had settled in their rooms, Chanyeol was the one that led Junmyeon into Kris’s room.

Junmyeon expected something else to happen that night, but other than the kisses, it was completely innocent. It wasn’t until a few weeks later that it evolved into the things that he heard in the bathroom that morning.

But that day had remained one of his favorite days.

“I missed you, hyung,” Chanyeol’s voice broke him from memory lane, his arms coming around to pull Junmyeon to him. It had to be an innocent hug for now.

So Junmyeon patted his back, a grin coming to his face as he breathed in the scent of Chanyeol, “We missed you too, Chanyeol.” He pulled back and saluted, “Welcome back, solider.”

The laugh that fell from Chanyeol’s lips was small and soft, there was a longing in dark eyes, but there were witnesses around so he left it with a small, “Thanks, hyung.”

 

The four of them ended up in one of the small restaurants, hoping to stay under the radar for now without any interruptions with fans. Junmyeon had saw the way everyone on Instagram and Twitter about Chanyeol’s discharge, so he knew that they would be hoping for some kind of update. To appease them, while they were waiting for the food to be delivered, he snuck a small selfie with Chanyeol.

He posted it onto his page and tagged Chanyeol, hash-tagging good food before putting his phone away.

Chanyeol was currently engaging in a conversation with his father while Junmyeon had with his mother. He made sure to request a to-go order of pork jjajangmyeon before the waitress left to retrieve their food. The perfect excuse for that was that Sehun wanted something for when they went back to the dorm.

In moments like this, while it was nice between Chanyeol and himself with the younger’s parents, he couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like if they were actually out and with their other half here as well. Would Chanyeol’s mother still smile at him like he was one of hers? Would she feel the same towards Kris if he were here?

Their relationship wasn’t exactly normal… he knew that not many people would understand it. And while Junmyeon wanted to believe that it didn’t matter what others thought as long as they were happy with one another, it didn’t stop him from wishing that things were different. That society was more open minded.

Because he couldn’t stop his heart from beating for the two taller individuals.

“It’s good to have you back, baby,” Chanyeol’s mother said as she hugged her son close.

Junmyeon had elected to drive Chanyeol back to the dorms, or so he informed the younger’s parents. Even though that’s what Junmyeon had told Chanyeol’s parents, the younger male didn’t look quite convinced. Plus he knew that Sehun typically didn’t care for pork jjajangmyeon.

After they had bid Chanyeol’s parents goodbye and gotten into the car, Chanyeol couldn’t stop himself from reaching over to grab Junmyeon’s hand, intertwining their fingers as it rested on the gear stick.

“I missed you, hyung,” Chanyeol squeezed his hand softly. “It’s good to be back.”

“It’s good to have you back, Chanyeol,” Junmyeon glanced over at him. “Now I have my favorite dongsaeng back.”

Chanyeol laughed, “Your favorite dongsaeng is Sehun, what are you talking about?”

Well, Chanyeol wasn’t wrong about that, Sehun was Junmyeon’s favorite, “Okay, you got me there.” He glanced over at him as they came to a stop at the red light, “Someone else is excited to see you back too.”

“Who?” Chanyeol questioned, because even though they were talking about Sehun, it was more than obvious that Sehun wouldn’t be waiting to see him. He was still doing his service.

The smile just grew on Junmyeon’s face, he wanted to surprise Chanyeol with the individual that was waiting to see him but the more that Chanyeol stared at him in waiting, he couldn’t resist. “Someone special.” His thumb caressed Chanyeol’s knuckles, he winked, “Special.” He started down the road again after the light turned green, taking a right here and another right on up the street.

But Chanyeol was still drawing up blanks. Who else would be excited to see him? If it had been Minseok or any of the others, they would’ve just joined Junmyeon in meeting at the military base.

He repeated, “Who, hyung?”

“Think, Chanyeol,” Junmyeon glanced back over at him and winked again.

It was already dark by the time that they’d gotten out of the restaurant, and the only lighting in the car came from the soft glow of the dash lights and the streetlights here and there. Chanyeol eyed Junmyeon, wracking his brain over who the older male was talking about.

He was running through all the possibilities, but still coming up with blanks.

“Don’t tell me you’ve done forgotten about him,” Junmyeon chimed in, taking another turn, leading them in the opposite direction of the dorms.

Frowning slightly, Chanyeol was still drawing blanks, who was he forgetting because he was running every friend and family member through his head. He’d already seen his parents, and his mother informed him that his sister had to work that evening so she couldn’t have joined them. Junmyeon was here, and that was his special someone that was here. In South Korea… in Seoul…

His eyes widened when the name popped in his head. His other special someone… but he was in China… or L.A., he would’ve been too busy to come back to South Korea just for Chanyeol… wouldn’t he?

Then he looked around at their surroundings, they were in one of the secluded areas of Seoul where there were multiple hotels. So that meant…

His bottom lip slightly wobbled when he finally murmured the name, “Kris?” The soft glance from Junmyeon had Chanyeol’s eyes turning misty, “B-But he…” he cleared his throat, “he’s busy… yeah?”

“He’s not too busy for welcoming you back home,” Junmyeon replied. “We put this together for you a few weeks ago. You’ve got him for the next three days.”

Chanyeol wiped at his eyes then, trying to keep himself from crying, but his bottom lip was still trembling. Kris was here? For him? Kris was back in Seoul, he was back here just for him. That kind of information had a lump forming in Chanyeol’s throat, the urge to smile and to cry was something he had to choke back down with a hard swallow.

He stayed quiet the rest of the ride as they pulled into the parking garage of the hotel. His mind was swirling with everything going on right now. Kris was back here, for him, for them. Junmyeon was here. Chanyeol felt guilty for a moment because he was more emotional over Kris being here than Junmyeon but he figured the older man would understand.

Junmyeon was always there for him, but Kris… ever since he’d left the group, the times they met up was so rare and tended to be cut so short by this or that.

There was the few times when they got lucky enough to be in Japan together. After a few text messages between the two, they’d ended up in a secluded hotel here or there, intertwined in one another. Junmyeon was missing then. So even though Chanyeol was happy to see Kris again, a piece of the puzzle was missing.

As soon as Junmyeon put it into park and shut off the engine, Chanyeol cleared his throat, “No one else knows, right?”

Junmyeon smiled and shook his head, “No one else. I’ve cleared up my schedule for the next three days, and you’re still on vacation leave from the military. The company won’t be a hindrance.”

“It’ll be the first time we’re all three together again… since-”

“Since he left,” Junmyeon finished for him. “It’s hard to get us all together, but hopefully this won’t be the only time in the near future. Our contracts are almost up, and Kris does have a lot more free time now too.”

Chanyeol was quiet again for a moment, staring down at his hand intertwined with Junmyeon’s still lingering on the gear stick. The sight of their hands turned blurry for a moment before he blinked back the tears, a soft smile crossing his lips, “That’s who the pork jjajangmyeon is for?”

Junmyeon laughed softly, “It is. He’s in the room, waiting for us.” He lifted up his phone and checked the time, slowly realizing that he had forgotten to call or text Kris that they were on their way. Hopefully the older male had woken up by now though. He did say he had an alarm set for time to wake up from his small nap.

“Let’s not leave Kris waiting too long then?”

 

Luckily they’d managed to get inside the hotel and up the elevator to the room without anyone recognizing them. Even the clerk at the desk didn’t seem to recognize who they were when Junmyeon went to get the key. At least now they wouldn’t have to worry about Dispatch drawing up conclusions or suspicions.

It was definitely a good thing because as soon as they entered the room and the door was shut and locked, Chanyeol was already pulling Junmyeon into a warm kiss.

“Well, that’s a nice thing to wake up to,” Kris’s voice broke the two apart, their gazes falling on the black haired individual that was sitting up on the bed. Kris’s gaze lingered on Chanyeol, “Welcome home, soldier.”

Junmyeon took Chanyeol’s bag and let go of his hand for the taller to cross the room and pull Kris into a tight embrace.

 

“I can’t believe you’re actually here,” Chanyeol sniffled into Kris’s neck, holding him close.

Kris laughed softly, pulling back from Chanyeol slightly, “We wanted to surprise you. I welcomed Junmyeon home after his discharge and there wasn’t anything that was going to stop me from being here for you when you discharged too.”

Chanyeol couldn’t resist the urge to pull Kris into a kiss then. It was much like the one that he shared with Junmyeon. There was longing in it, a desperation. He had missed Kris so much, the small texts between the two during Chanyeol’s hiatus before enlistment was all that the younger had to keep moving on. Junmyeon was there, behind the scenes, he had the support of the two, but it was so much more different with the two men being there, within reaching distance.

They were finally together again.

For three days, Chanyeol had them both to himself, and he was going to make the most of it.