Hi guys!
New drabble for you! This one is a little different, but (hopefully) you'll like it :)
Proof-read this but I'm sure there's still typos in there... Sorry about that!

 

Drabble four: A Step Forward.

The hallways were filled with loud and cheerful students, some chatting as they walked out of their lecture theatre, some others rushing to their next lesson, while a few others exited the teaching room with hazy eyes and sleepy pouts, obviously freshly awoken from some little nap they had taken in there.

Hyukjae threaded his way between the mass of human beings, ruffling his hair tiredly as he tried to snap out of the three hours long lecture he had just endured. The day had been long and exhausting, but luckily his classes were over and he was finally able to go home.

He waved back to some of his classmates biding him goodbye and glanced around, looking for Junsu. He wanted to tell his friend that he was leaving, but the guy was flirting with two girls a few meters away and Hyukjae just shrugged, giving up on warning him.

He walked down the noisy hallway, taking out his phone to check if he had any new message. As he was heading out of the building, he heard someone shout his name. He stopped and turned around, surprised and curious. A smile ghosted over his lips as he watched a girl walk up to him with a large smile.

“Hi!” she grinned happily. “I wasn’t sure if that was really you! It’s such a surprise, isn’t it? It’s been a while!” she chirped.

“Indeed”, he said back and let his smile stretch his lips a little more. He remembered the girl from high-school – the one Donghae had dragged him to – and he was quite glad to meet her again. Even if they hadn’t been close, she had always been nice to him. “How have you been?”

“All good”, she replied. “And you? It’s such a surprise, I didn’t know you were studying here!”

“I’m in Law department”, Hyukjae explained. “I’m in my third year.”

“How nice! I transferred last year, I’m into Finances and stuff”, she giggled. “So you want to be a lawyer?”

“Yeah, that’s the plan”, Hyukjae nodded. “I want to work in a law firm taking care of kids and teens, and, well, yeah”, he added and rubbed his nape a little awkwardly. Even after all these years, he still wasn’t a very talkative person.

“That’s nice!” the girl only commented with her wide smile. “And how’s Donghae?”

Hyukjae nearly snorted, amused by the fact that the girl wasn’t even doubting or questioning the fact that he was still dating Donghae.

“He’s fine”, he softly replied. “You know, he’s been accepted in this Art school he absolutely wanted to join, he’s doing great”, he felt his heart swell with pride and adoration as he spoke about his lover. “He’ll perform in a musical in February, as a background dancer.”

“That’s awesome! Though, I’m not surprised. He was such a good dancer, back in high-school”, she sweetly said, making Hyukjae’s smile grow wider. “I’m glad everything is going well for both of you!”, she went on, her voice and eyes nothing but sincere. “I think I’ll never forget about you two. You were so cute together!”

Hyukjae muttered a shy thanks, but he couldn’t help feeling quite happy about her words.
They chatted a couple more minutes, before she told him she had to go to her next lecture and left. Once she walked away, Hyukjae proceeded to get out of the university, a soft smile dancing on his lips. The encounter had been unexpected but a nice surprise, bringing back memories he was actually glad to recall.

His last year of high-school had definitively been different. So much had happened during those few months, so many things which had changed in his life and given him the chance to be happy again. It was all thanks to Donghae, of course. Before meeting his mate, he wouldn’t have imagined himself being happy at school, wouldn’t have imagined he could befriend his classmates. But it had happened. Thanks to Donghae, everyone had quickly integrated him and had kindly welcomed him.
They had always been nice to him and Donghae, even when they all knew about them dating. He had feared rejection, to be honest, and had been extremely wary of the other teens the first month. Since everyone knew they were a couple, he had been expecting to be bullied, but instead everyone had quite easily accepted the situation. Most of them had actually spent the whole year playfully teasing him and Donghae, obviously greatly amused to see Donghae being all lovey dovey, and Hyukjae being shy about it.

In the end, months had run without Hyukjae really noticing it. He had worked hard to catch up his gaps and his backlog, attending the tutoring classes Mr Lee had paid for him, and eventually he had graduated. Donghae had been by his side the whole time, never leaving him, always supporting him and cheering him up. He had held his hand and been his guide back into the light, back to a balanced and healthy life.
He would never be able to express how grateful he was for everything his lover had done for him.

With his average grades, he had managed to get into a good college. It wasn’t the best but it didn’t really matter. He was doing his best and he knew his hard work would eventually pay.

He had been surprised when Kyuhyun had decided to attend the same college as him. He had joined the Marketing department. The two boys were still close as ever and used to hang out together as much as they could, usually eating lunch or studying at the library together. He had made new friends, like Junsu, but Kyuhyun was still the closest to him.

Much to his surprise, he was actually popular among the other students. He wasn’t sure why, because he was still sort of quiet and reserved, not expressing much of his thoughts and feelings -except in front of Donghae and Kyuhyun, of course. He had this reputation of being cool and a bit mysterious, like a cold prince, and yet people liked his genuine kindness.
When the rumour of his ‘soul-mate story’ had spread among the students, he had thought he’d be rejected and bullied for his homouality again, like he had been back in high-school. But, quite ironically, the whole issue had only made him more popular, especially among the girls.
Weirdly enough, Donghae had had this smug expression plastered all over his face when Hyukjae had told him about it.

As he got into the bus and sat in the back, Hyukjae’s mind went to his lovely boyfriend. He missed him, a lot. Donghae had been busy with practices for his upcoming exams, and Hyukjae had been taken by his part-time job and his studies. They hadn’t been able to see each other for a few days, and now Hyukjae just wanted to hug his little fish and hold him against him.

Donghae still lived with his parents, because his school wasn’t too far from their house and it was convenient for him to just walk to his university everyday and come back after his practices. On the other hand, Hyukjae had his own flat nearby his college. It was a little far from Donghae’s house, but he didn’t mind taking the bus to come and see his lover several times a week. Donghae also came all the way to see Hyukjae, so it worked not too bad so far.

He climbed out of the bus about forty minutes later. The sky was getting dark and the air chilly, causing him to duck his head into his jacket. He quickly walked down the street and it took him only a few minutes before he found himself in front of Donghae’s parents’ house. He went straight to the front door and opened it without knocking. He sneaked inside and pulled off his shoes and jacket.

“I’m here!”, he declared, glancing around to see if anyone was there. There had to be someone home, since the door wasn’t locked.

“Welcome back”, Mrs Lee’s voice echoed in the house. A second later, the woman’s head peeked out of the kitchen and she grinned to the young man. “Hyukjae, darling, I missed you. How are you?”

“I’m fine”, Hyukjae smiled back and walked towards his lover’s mother. He entered the kitchen and found Mrs Lee in the middle of preparing dinner. “How have you been yourself?”

“All good as well”, she beamed as Hyukjae silently went to wash his hands. “Donghae’s not home yet, but he’ll be back for dinner.”

“Okay”, Hyukjae nodded. “Do you want me to cut those?” he pointed at the carrots on the table.

“Yes please”, Mrs Lee said and casually gave him a knife. It wasn’t rare for Hyukjae to come and help her in the kitchen. “I’m making some chicken stew.”

“That’s great”, Hyukjae smiled. “It’s getting cold outside. Donghae will be happy to eat something warm when he comes home.”

She giggled. “I think he’ll be more happy about you being here, and not so much about my stew”, she sweetly laughed, and Hyukjae chuckled at her words, knowing she was right.

She asked him about his classes, and about college and work, and Hyukjae quietly told her about the things he had done these past few days. They casually chatted for a while as they prepared dinner. The atmosphere was nice and peaceful, and Hyukjae liked how comfortable their relationship had become with time.

In almost four years, he had changed a lot. He was still shy and a little timid, but he was nothing like the fierce and lost teen he had once been. He talked a lot more, and smiled too. He had learned to open himself more, to Donghae first, then to his lover’s parents. They had been insanely patient with him, never rushing him, and doing everything to make him feel part of their family. He adored the feeling of being loved like a son again, adored the affection and the care they gave him.

He was still on bad terms with his parents, and he knew that the conflict wouldn’t be easy to solve, but at least he had Donghae and his parents to make him happy. He didn’t need more. Donghae was everything he needed now.

Half an hour later, the front door was opened, and Hyukjae’s head snapped up at the sound. For a second, his heart thumped with hope that it was Donghae, but Mr Lee’s voice came from the hallway and Hyukjae sighed quietly. He had to be patient a little longer.