Surprise meeting
Love Rekindled
Heechul sighed as he followed his manager out of the dressing room and down the hall. It had been a year since he’d finished his service, and he was still trying to get used to being back in the public eye. Not that he didn’t like being there, social as he was. Still, there were the mornings when he’d jolt awake with his alarm, fully expecting to find his uniform waiting for him. Those were the mornings when the shock of being with s in the dorm was the greatest, and took hours to adjust to.
Seeing Siwon and Henry together was another adjustment. He was happy for them, of course. Siwon smiled a lot more with the maknae, and Henry had the uncanny ability to make him seem more human. Besides, the relationship between Siwon and Heechul had never been that serious. It was more for comfort than any real love. That was probably why they’d been able to remain such close friends without arousing jealousy from Henry. The younger man knew there was nothing to worry about.
“Good work today, Heechul-ssi!”
He nodded and smiled in the direction of the voice, but wasn’t entirely sure which staff member had said it. There were so many milling around outside the studio it would have been a miracle for him to know who spoke.
The trek to the van was a long one. The studio he’d been filming in was on the second floor, and the van was waiting out front. However, there was a large collection of fans outside, all bunched together and just waiting for the chance to scream their support for their idols the instant they appeared. The journey through the throngs would be slow and very loud.
He kept his head bowed for the most part once they were outside, following behind his manager while other members of staff and security created a path through the screaming fans. Most of them were girls, which meant their cries were ear-piercing. Heechul glanced up now and then with a small smile and head nod in acknowledgement, but he didn’t dare stop or the staff would have a hard time.
Once in the van, he rolled down his window and buckled his seatbelt before smiling and waving a couple of times. Overall, he was pretty tired from filming, but it had been a great day just the same. As they pulled away from the curb, he leaned his head back and sighed, closing his eyes.
“Donghae texted your phone again while you were changing,” his manager said, barely managing to veil the tension in his voice as he spoke.
“Mm.. He’s such a worrywart,” Heechul murmured lazily, then chuckled. It was so like his dongsaeng to text again even after Heechul had reassured him that filming was going well and he would see him at home. How Eunhyuk never got irritated by his constant worrying was something Heecul would probably never figure out.
Still… it wouldn’t do to have Donghae so concerned. Heechul opened his eyes and looked at his manager. “Can we stop somewhere, hyung?”
---
“Here you go, sir!”
Heechul took the bag and smiled his thanks at the girl behind the counter. It was obvious she knew who he was considering her overly bright smile. Then again, it was hard for anyone to mistake an idol these days. “Thank you.”
“Oh! Your milk!” The girl held out a couple of the plastic bottles, looking sheepish as he took them from her. “Sorry about that.”
When he turned away to head for the door and get back out to the van, he bumped into a solidly built body. Immediately backing up a step, Heechul bowed a little and murmured an apology before looking up to see who he was apologizing to.
In moments, the hum of activity in the little café ceased as those present realized the kind of showdown they were privy to. Behind him, the girl gasped.
Heechul stared silently into the face of his former boyfriend.
“Hankyung says you’ve been teaching him curse words again.”
“I am not!” Laughing incredulously, Heechul looked over at his roommate.
“Did too! You taught me-”
“YAH!” Leaping onto the couch beside the younger boy, Heechul clapped a hand over his mouth and turned his head to smile winningly up at Leeteuk.
The group’s leader shook his head. “Don’t you smile at me like that. You’re not out of trouble, Heechul.”
“Jungsu-hyung!”
Donghae’s call had a familiar whine to it, and had the leader scurrying away without a second thought to the two boys who still sat on the couch.
Heechul slowly took his hand away from the other boy’s mouth, pouting as he looked over at him. “That wasn’t funny.”
Han grinned smugly. “Maybe next time you’ll share your ramyun with me.”
“I said I would!”
“I know,” the younger chirped, shrugging one shoulder. He watched the television for a few moments, then sighed and leaned over, snuggling into Heechul’s side.
Heechul blinked and looked down, effectively drawn out of his pout. “What are you doing?”
“I’m cold.”
“Grab a blanket.”
“Don’t wanna.”
“Well maybe I’m cold. Ever think of that?” Heechul asked, frowning a little as his pout threatened to come back.
Han looked up at him and sat up slowly, expression turning skeptical. “You want a blanket?”
“Nope.”
When the older boy dove for him, Han let out a surprised yelp, but Heechul just settled in against his side and smirked. Han looked down at him and chuckled when Heechul grabbed the remote. “What are you doing?”
“Keeping you warm.”
“Heechul?”
Han’s voice snapped him out of the flashback, and Heechul was suddenly all too aware of the eyes on them. The bottles of milk had made his fingers cold, and beads of condensation popped up on the outside of the plastic. In his other hand, the bag of cookies was clutched tight enough to make his fingers ache.
The Chinese singer frowned, looking every bit as uncomfortable as Heechul. “Are… Are you okay?”
“He’s fine. Hyung, we’ve been waiting for you for ages!” Henry’s voice cut through the quiet. In seconds, he was at Heechul’s side, grabbing the milk from his fingers and taking hold of his arm.
“Henry?” soft and a little shaky, Heechul’s voice was barely audible.
The maknae just smiled at him briefly before turning his gaze onto Han. “Good luck with your debut.”
“Thank you..” He murmured, frowning.
Henry’s smile lasted only a few seconds before he tugged Heechul by the arm, heading right for the door. Heechul followed quietly, feeling oddly numb as his dongsaeng hurried him to the van and climbed in behind him. He barely heard the manager’s worried inquiries, and was still staring at the café as they pulled into traffic.
Han was in Korea?!
chapter "rekindled love" is screwy because I had to post from my phone. sorry for the wall of text!!!
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