People think that finding their soulmate is the beginning of the story but it’s actually the end.

So the story always begins with something else. Sometimes it’s something mundane like a handshake such as when Siwon was introduced to Kyuhyun for the first time. It’s so commonplace and so ordinary that Siwon probably didn’t notice.

Or if he did, it would be more because Kyuhyun was his friend’s boyfriend.

“Hi! Nice to meet you!” Siwon smiles widely at the tall and pale boy. He notices the long and slender fingers of the other before he engulfs it in his own for a warm handshake.

“Likewise,” was the other’s almost lazy drawl and with a smile that had a more tilted turn on one side that it looked more like a smirk than anything else.

Zhou Mi beams at them, happy that his new boyfriend seems to be getting along with his friend. And Siwon dutifully asks where they were going since they just met by chance on the sidewalk, with tons of people milling around them, harried but merry with their last-minute Christmas shopping.

“Just going for some coffee, we’ve managed to finish our shopping early,” Zhou Mi chuckles as he puts an arm around the younger boy’s shoulders, who was visibly getting cold if the reddish tint to his cheeks and nose was anything to go by. “Why don’t you join us?”

“Sure,” Siwon agrees as all three of them start to manoeuvre their way through the crowd and manage to get inside the nearest Kona Beans shop. 

They stomp their feet on the welcoming mat, trying to shake off some of the lingering snow on their boots. Then Kyuhyun looks up and suddenly laughs as he lightly brushes off the snowflakes that managed to get on Zhou Mi’s hair. Siwon had to smile at the affectionate scene but then his smile freezes somewhat as Kyuhyun looks to him and grins as he points to his own head, probably because he had snow on his hair too.

He’s beautiful, Siwon thinks and ignores the fleeting feeling of regret because it was a useless thing to feel. Besides, thou shall not covet thy neighbour’s wife…or in this case, thy good friend’s boyfriend, right?   

So he just returns the other’s grin with a rueful smile of his own and left it at that.

And sometimes the story continues with a life-changing event such as when Kyuhyun’s father almost dies in a terrible car accident. His father miraculously survives and Kyuhyun decides that being the only son, he should start seriously getting involved in the family business to ease some of the burden off his father’s shoulders.

So he frequently goes out of the country, to Taiwan and Japan, to oversee their business interests there.

“Hey!” Someone calls his attention, “Kyuhyun, right?”

Kyuhyun looks up and sees Siwon, smiling warmly at him. The taller man slowly walks up to him, his hands inside the pockets of his jet black wool coat. “What are you doing here?”

“Work. I was on my way back home but I decided to pass through the park,” Kyuhyun answers, “I could ask you the same though.”

“My father was called to an emergency board meeting. They need to vote on a company merger and my mother insists we should all spend Christmas day together,” Siwon uncharacteristically explains in detail, “So here we all are in Tokyo. Are you spending Christmas here too?”

Kyuhyun smiles and shakes his head, “No. I’m actually flying out tomorrow night. On Christmas eve, would you believe?”

Siwon smiles in sympathy then they both remain silent for a few minutes as they look appreciatively around them. The park trees had been decorated for the holidays and the whole place was almost blazing with sparkling lights and blinking ornaments.

“How’s Zhou Mi?” Kyuhyun breaks the silence.

“Hmm? He’s fine and well the last time I saw him,” Siwon answers as he looks back at the other boy.

Kyuhyun nods, “I’m glad.” He had actually talked to his ex-boyfriend a few weeks ago but he wanted to make sure from his other friends that he was alright. He felt guilty that he had to break up with Zhou Mi but he knew he had to do it. He had been busy ever since he decided to take over most of his father's work and Zhou Mi deserved more. More than what he could give him.

The break-up was amicable. They still kept in touch and his friends didn’t seem to hold a grudge against him if Siwon’s behaviour was any indication. The older boy was looking at him, smiling warmly, dimples visible and eyes reflecting the glow of the lights around them as night starts to settle in.

Kyuhyun shivers and Siwon asks him if he was cold. Kyuhyun just shakes his head but suggests that they should probably get on home. So they parted ways as Siwon’s hotel was on the other side of the park and his apartment was on the other.

So maybe Kyuhyun noticed or maybe he didn’t. One thing’s for sure though, he had always thought the other was handsome.    

You see, Destiny has already set up the main characters of the story, the setting, the time. All that’s needed is for the right, auspicious moment when all three come together. Sometimes only two of these elements are present so that’s why some people don’t realize they’ve already met their soulmate if the timing isn’t right.

Or the place is off.

Or when two people get together because they were at the right place at the right time but because it wasn’t the destined person, it doesn’t last.

“Great party, Mi!” Kyuhyun approaches his host, his stance a little bit more awkward as usual and his eyes a bit glazed.

Zhou Mi frowns suspiciously at him, “You’re not driving yourself home, are you?”

“No, I’ll take him home,” Sungmin chimes up as he wraps his scarf around his neck.

“Thanks, hyung,” Zhou Mi smiles in relief then frowns again, this time at the sight that he beheld from his vantage point from the hallway. “They’ll probably regret this tomorrow morning.”

Sungmin follows his gaze then laughs, “Well they’re not drunk I can assure you. Maybe they fell in love at first sight?”

Zhou Mi just snorts, “They just met today and they’re already eating each other’s faces?” He was a bit aghast at Siwon’s behaviour. He had expected it from Heechul but he had thought his more staid friend had more sense. Then again, this was Heechul and he somehow regretted inviting the unpredictable male to his party. 

Heechul had taken one look at Siwon and snatched a piece of mistletoe from the doorway and dangled it upon the other’s head. That was two hours ago and Zhou Mi could swear that their lips hadn’t parted company since then. Probably the only thing he was grateful for was that Heechul arrived late because who knew how many of his other guests were scarred for life when they entered his living room and were treated to that sight?  

“Hyung, are we going home now or are we staying to watch?” Kyuhyun whines from the door and Sungmin just rolls his eyes as he pats the car keys in his pocket, making sure they were there before he and Kyuhyun say their goodbyes to Zhou Mi and bid each other Christmas wishes.  

“You seemed to have drunk a lot. I mean a lot more than you usually do so…ow!” Sungmin pretends to be hurt as Kyuhyun punches his arm.

“I didn’t. It was just a great party and drinks were free flowing,” Kyuhyun shrugs nonchalantly as he leans lazily on the elevator wall.

Sungmin presses the button to go down before he answers in a tone of disbelief, “Great party?! You hardly talked to anyone for the most part. Well you did chat to Siwon before his mouth got claimed by someone else and could hardly talk again. Anyway, you spent the better half of the party chugging down wine as if it was water. Though I don’t blame you, it was good stuff. But I hardly think you were that aware that there was a party going on around you.”

Kyuhyun just smiles lazily and shrugs. He meekly follows the other to the basement parking lot and gets in the car. As they drive in silence to his home, Kyuhyun settles back comfortably in his seat. He was happy he came. Zhou Mi and him were still good friends and if his guess wasn’t wrong, then a certain bright-eyed and charming young man was going to make his ex-boyfriend extra happy soon.

That was why he had loosened up and drank to his heart’s content. He was celebrating his ex-boyfriend’s happiness.

And then there was Siwon. Who knew that Siwon was fated to meet his special someone at that party? They had been talking and then came the beautiful and quite late stranger with mistletoe in his hand and demanding a kiss. Siwon had been amused and gamely agreed. And that was that.

Kyuhyun squeezes his eyes close. He was surprised at the sudden prickling of tears and he didn’t want Sungmin to see. He didn’t want Sungmin to ask him what was wrong because he didn’t know himself. There was nothing wrong. It was going to be Christmas and he was just probably emotional that his friends found love at this time. Even if he hadn’t.  

So Destiny’s path still continues. It surges forward, always flowing, just yearning to be at that pre-arranged moment.

That pre-arranged moment when the story ends.

“We should stop meeting like this,” Siwon grins as he steadies Kyuhyun with a hand. They had literally bumped into each other in front of a milk tea stall in Taipei. It was understandable though since there was a large crowd of people on the streets, hurrying back and forth on the day before Christmas, meeting friends, shopping or just eager to get home and get warm.

 “You here on business?” Kyuhyun asks him.

“Yes and no,” Siwon replies as he inclined his head towards a table not far away. There was a handsome, Chinese man sitting there, smiling faintly at Kyuhyun when he noticed that the other was looking at him. “That’s Hangeng. I’m consulting him on updating our company’s database systems. He’s also Heechul’s new boyfriend.”

Kyuhyun’s eyebrows shot up, “What? And you’re doing business with him? How does that work?”

Siwon just chuckles, “Heechul and I are still friends you know, just like you and Zhou Mi. We just weren’t meant to be.”

Then Kyuhyun’s phone starts to ring.

“Hold on,” Kyuhyun says to Siwon as he answers his phone, “I’ll be back soon. I’m just picking us up some milk tea. You like them, don’t you?”

“New boyfriend?” Siwon teases as Kyuhyun hangs up.

Kyuhyun just smiles. “None of your business,” then he immediately explains, “No, not really. Not yet, I guess. We’ve only went out a few times.”

Siwon’s smile was still in place, “Well, you’ll know if he’s the one.”

“Maybe,” Kyuhyun nonchalantly agrees and they fall in line to order their drinks.

There was no snow falling but it was still cold even as the sun shone brightly. Siwon notices how the sun beams seem to make Kyuhyun’s hair golden, his skin paler, his eyes brighter. He is mesmerized for a moment before he recalls himself and returns Kyuhyun’s goodbye and Christmas greeting when they got their drinks.

He wonders why he always meets Kyuhyun only during this season when they now have the same set of friends. He wonders why they only meet during this season yet never see each other on Christmas or on any other day. He wonders why his heart always beats in anticipation whenever he sees the younger boy. As if he was waiting for something. And then it clenches when he finds out that of course, Kyuhyun has someone already or always busy or was content with the way things were.

Kyuhyun was not interested, not jealous, not his.

He also wonders, as he stared into Kyuhyun’s eyes before the younger boy turned around and walked away, if he had a soulmate in this lifetime because surely if he was sure he had found the one, then the other should also know, shouldn’t they? And he had already waited too long, surely it was time.

But the time doesn’t start there. The ticking of the clock doesn’t start when your eyes meet and you realize that person is the one. The timer had already started long before and that’s when it should stop. Because that’s when you’ve arrived at the end of your journey. That is the Zero Hour.

It was precisely ten minutes after 10 o’clock in the morning when the church bells chimed the hour that Kyuhyun pulls off his gloves as he makes his way to the church. There was no service but he had already attended Christmas mass earlier with his family. He just wanted to go again alone. It was another year, another Christmas to be thankful for.

And another chance to pray and perhaps, hope. Because Christmas was precisely the season of hope, wasn't it?

He didn’t know why he suddenly felt the urge to go to church again and this wasn’t his usual church. He just happened to pass by this one and he suddenly remembered that this was the church that Siwon belonged to. The one where his father and mother were married. The one where Siwon said he wanted to propose to the person he was going to spend the rest of his life with.

Kyuhyun could hear singing inside the building and he guessed the choir was practicing for the evening service later. He glanced at his watch. He still had plenty of time before he met up with his friends for lunch.

It was only 10:13 on his watch.

Then he glanced up and saw Siwon exiting the church. The other boy was also apparently surprised to see him as Kyuhyun saw Siwon’s eyes widen and his step falter. Kyuhyun found his own breath hitch.

They stared at each other for some moments. Neither of them saying anything, just looking at each other.

Then Kyuhyun wondered why it was suddenly so… noisy. True, the choir was singing inside but he didn’t know how they got that loud. And were those birds chirping? How could that be? Weren’t they all supposed to be in the warmer regions at this time? And did those bells just chime again? Well they weren’t chiming; they were more like clanging than anything else.

Slowly, Siwon started walking towards him; he was smiling strangely and there was an odd, expectant light in his eyes as he held Kyuhyun’s gaze with his own.

And that’s when Kyuhyun finally understood even as he scoffed at all those people saying that realizing you’ve found the one was a very peaceful and calm affair. It was all a lie.

Because it was actually very, very noisy. There was a giant, roaring sound in his head; it was as if all those noises were heralding a triumphant discovery.

“Can you please-…” Siwon began to ask, his voice almost breathless, “Can you please be finally mine?”      

That was the Zero Hour.

The End.

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A/N: I have to admit this was rushed and has a more serious tone than what I usually write and it’s really just fluff? ;_;. But I hope, hope you still liked it and Merry Christmas! :)