Alexander is lying in bed. It’s early morning and rain is lightly pattering on his window, the sun occasionally and briefly sliding out from behind the clouds to shine through his window. Dongho is sleeping next to him, facing him, giving him a full and perfect view of his face.

Air sighs past his slightly parted lips and his face is smooth and relaxed. His skin is flushed slightly pink from the heat of dreaming and his eyelashes are fanned out over his cheeks as he sleeps through Alexander’s thorough inspection.

Alexander, in all his 22 years, has never beheld a more beautiful sight; not in his homeland of China, not in his adopted home of Korea, and not looking out from any stage in the world has he seen something he cherishes more than this.

His own eyes are drifting shut and he’s close to falling asleep again when Dongho shifts and moves closer, a small hum rising from him as he wiggles under Alexander’s arm, curling closer to his body as his hands go to hold lightly onto his shirt, pulling him closer.

He settles and breathes out the simplest of phrases – and Alexander’s heart stalls. His breathing stops. His body freezes, stock still, as he lets a shiver run through his body from the dropping of his stomach.

Dongho, half between waking and dreaming and unaware of the utterance’s importance, whispered out in the peaceful morning air, “I love you”

And Alexander is freaking out.

Everything they’ve done together rushes past him, all the glances, grins and laughs, all the secret gifts and dates, all the rushed, dangerous quickies backstage, and all the times they got the chance to take it slow and enjoy themselves; all of this crystallizes in his mind, to the rhythmic chanting in his head of “16, 16, he’s only six-ing-teen”, and it finally hits Alexander just how much trouble this could get him in. And even worse than being arrested, there’s another mantra in his head that says “U-kiss, U-kiss, what the will happen to U-kiss if we get found out?”

He realizes that everything they have together in this room is putting everything they have together out there in the world at jeopardy.

Guilt and fear wash over Alexander as these thoughts pump through his head and breathing gets harder the more it all sinks in. He is terrified and it isn’t just because Dongho loves him.

He realizes, it’s because he loves Dongho back.