“... Can’t you put it on hold for just a while?” he asks his friend over some snacks and beer one night.

Hakyeon stares at him, amused.

“Why?”         

Taekwoon shrugs. “Until I start filming for the new drama...”

His friend smiles, before he chuckles and spills some soju on the table.

“Yah, Jung Taekwoon. You’ll miss me, is that what you’re trying to get at?”

He looks down at his own cup of alcohol and doesn’t reply. It’s a habit for him to do that whenever he’s embarrassed, and he knows that Hakyeon knows that as well.

“Aish,” He feels a familiar hand ruffling his hair. “Never thought I’ll see this day.”

It is somewhat true, what Hakyeon had said. Taekwoon has never been one who knows how to freely express himself, not to the members who he’s been with for close to 8 years now and he was even pretty reserved when he’s with his family.

For the first time in the 12 years they’ve been together, Taekwoon was expressing his feelings openly.

“It’s just for two weeks, silly. I’ll be back in no time. Besides, you can still text me.” Hakyeon replies, eyes crinkling as he smiles affectionately at him.

The affection in his eyes made Taekwoon blush like it always had.

On the day Hakyeon leaves for Osaka, Taekwoon goes to his apartment to look for him.

“Oh, Taekwoon-ah.” Hakyeon greets a little hurriedly and lets him in.

He raises his brow at the sight of pieces of clothing strewn all over the room.

“What’s going on?” he asks as he watches Hakyeon rummaging through a drawer.

“Hm? I can’t find my diary...”

Taekwoon looks around for a moment before recalling what Hakyeon had said just a few nights back.

“Isn’t it in the drawer where you place your passport?”

Hakyeon turns back. “Really?”

He follows him into his room, and smiles when Hakyeon fishes the slightly tattered book from the bottom of the drawer.

“How did you know?”

He shrugs. “You were talking about it a few nights ago... you talk about weird things when you’re drunk...”

Hakyeon laughs, jumping over to hug him and pat his cheek.

“As expected, my pyeongsaengjiki knows me better than myself.”

And as cheesy as Taekwoon finds it, his heart still flutters like it had for all these years.

He was sitting on the couch (Hakyeon’s, to be specific) when he was reminded of the first time he’s met a certain Cha Hakyeon.

Taekwoon disliked his cockiness and confidence when he joined the company at first.

It was in the middle of spring in 2008, and this boy who’s been labelled as the star trainee of Jellyfish back then was standing in front of him, a bright smile plastered on his face.

“You’re Taekwoon, right? We’re the same age, nice to meet you!”

He had refused his handshake, only nodding and bowing slightly.

It wasn’t enough to falter that annoying smile of his.

But Taekwoon soon realised that no one can ever deny the friendliness and sincerity of the oldest trainee of the company, because he couldn’t.

They become one of the only trainees in the company together; Hakyeon helping Taekwoon with his dancing skills, Taekwoon helping Hakyeon with his singing skills.

When other trainees left, it’s Hakyeon who smiles sadly and tells him that he’s used to it, Hakyeon who reached over to him to hold his hand a little hesitantly and tell him, “I hope you’ll stay.”

And it’s then when Taekwoon promised him, in the dark and quiet practice room in the middle of autumn a year after they’ve first met, that he would never give up on this dream and that he’ll stick with him even if only one of them gets to debut in the end.

There are a lot of things that Taekwoon regret in his life, but he’ll never ever regret having promised Hakyeon that.

“Hyung, where were you yesterday? I went to your house but you weren’t there...” Jaehwan asks once he entered the recording studio.

“I’m staying over at Hakyeon’s.” He replies simply, eyes not leaving the score in his hands.

“Hakyeon-hyung’s? But he’s in Japan, isn’t he?”

Taekwoon shoots a look at the younger man.

Jaehwan blinks before realisation hits him. “Oh, you’re watching over the house for him?”

He sighs. “More or less...”

“Hyung, when are you going to just confess your love to him?”

Taekwoon glared at the younger main vocal.

“I’m serious!”

“Stop talking about it.”

Jaehwan jumps up from his seat. “Hyung, it’s been what, 6 years! You’ve been single since then, Hakyeon-hyung’s been single since then, what are you waiting for?”

Taekwoon groans. “I haven’t always been single, I had dated.”

“Oh yeah sure,” Jaehwan rolls his eyes. “The one that lasted for just a month?”

“We had different interests.” Taekwoon snaps.

“Exactly! Hyung, you’re only interested in Haky –”

“Jaehwan, do you want me to work on your newest album?” He waves the pieces of paper in his hands to cut him off.

Jaehwan shoots him a puppy look and fake whimpers softly.

“Fine, but you’re both close to thirty, hyung. Just wanted to remind you that.”

Hakyeon has always been the cleaner one out of the two of them.

He remembers when he’s first dormed with Hakyeon, he’s been nagged at every single day either for not folding his clothes properly, not making his bed, or just being less clean that he was.

Even now, his room is perfectly clean; bed made, clothes folded properly in his closet, belongings kept neat and tidily.

Taekwoon thinks that he should just disrupt this cleanness for two weeks by sleeping in his bed.

Before he falls asleep he thinks of how Hakyeon would just nag at him again when he returns from his trip to find a mess of his bed. He smiles.

After the dating ban on them has been lifted off on the fourth year after VIXX debuted, Taekwoon had dated. Just once.

It had only lasted for a month, like what Jaehwan had said, because as much as he hates admitting that Jaehwan is right about things, he was only interested in Hakyeon.

After he realised that what he felt for the girl wasn’t even close to how much he felt for Hakyeon, he had called for a break up immediately.

The members about it for a whole month after that, calling him a heartbreaker and a cold-hearted man.

He had tried to confess to Hakyeon after that, but it wasn’t easy, not when he still found it incredible that he’s fallen in love with his best friend, who was of the same gender as him.

Taekwoon also found it incredible that he had tried to confess over texts.

hakyeon-ah.

hm? @.@

... i like you.

... what is this, hidden camera? or did you finally realise that you love me. ♡♡♡

... taekwoon-ah.

yah jung leo. reply!! :(  

jung taekwoon!! is this some kind of joke. you really at making jokes, dont even try.

... i dislike you.ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

Safe to say, it completely failed.

He tossed and turned in Hakyeon’s bed, scrolling through Hakyeon’s messages in his phone before tapping on the box at the bottom to type something.

hey. was all he could manage.

Somehow, even being enveloped by the smell of Hakyeon’s vanilla shampoo that he’s always found comforting that night couldn’t bring him to sleep as well as the goodnight message he received from Hakyeon himself.

tch go to sleep jung leo. i know youre in my bed, my room better be as neat as i’ve left it last week. n-night! ㅎㅎ ♡

Hakyeon was right, two weeks was pretty fast. With the meetings with the production crew of the upcoming drama he’s acting in, and the work that needed to be done for Jaehwan’s second studio album, he only has a little time to think about Hakyeon, to miss him.

Though when times like that comes about he could only feel extremely uneasy and nothing else.

He meets Sanghyuk in the company lounge half way into the second week.

“How’s university?”

Sanghyuk groans. “Same old... but I like it.”

Taekwoon nods, understanding where their youngest member came from. People like them come to appreciate the life they have away from all the cameras and make-up and dazzling costumes.

“Ah, but without Ravi-hyung and Hongbin-hyung everything is so boring...” Sanghyuk complained, pouting slightly.

Taekwoon hit his head softly. “Are the three of us that boring?”

The youngest one giggles slightly, Taekwoon knows he’s trying to up to him again.

“Of course not, it’s just that you guys are so busy...” Sanghyuk sighs. “I should have just enlisted into the army with them...”

“Don’t worry, it’ll be your turn soon.”

Taekwoon laughs when Sanghyuk glares at him.

“But speaking of the hyungs,” the younger male leans in with a teasing smile. “How are you and Hakyeon-hyung getting along?”

Taekwoon groans and pushes him away to plop his head on the table.

“Stay away from Jaehwan.”

Sanghyuk shrugs. “I don’t know, Jaehwan-hyung was telling me that Hakyeon-hyung wants to move on from you.”

“He what?!”

He shoots his head up defensively. “Not me, hyung. That’s what Jaehwan-hyung was saying...”

When Taekwoon groans and hides his head in between his arms, Sanghyuk grins.

Gotcha’, hyung.

He calls Hakyeon the day before he gets back.

“Taekwoon-ah!” He smiles when he hears the familiar shout. “I miss you so much!”

The whining doesn’t help with the flutter in his heart.

“How was it?” he asks softly.

“The tour? It all ended well, I just finished the last round in Tokyo!” Hakyeon sounds as thrilled as ever.

He hums an agreement. “Did you do well?”

He hears cackles on the other side. “Of course, Jung Leo. I’m Cha Hakyeon!”

Taekwoon shakes his head, Hakyeon’s bursts of confidence at times like these never fails to amuse him. “Are you tired?”

“Nope, not at all. I’m still bursting with energy. Ah, I wish I could go home now though.”

He holds the ‘I wish you could too’ back.

“Hey, Hakyeon.”

“Hm?”

“I have something to tell you.”

“Mm, go ahead.”

There’s your chance, Jung Taekwoon. Go for it.

“I like you.”

He holds his breath after he says it, staring hard at the picture of them on Hakyeon’s bedside table.

The only thing he could hear was the pounding of his own heart before Hakyeon asked quietly, “Are you joking around again?”

Taekwoon inhaled sharply and replied with a hurried, “N-no, I’m not.”

His palms were clammy, and heck he hasn’t felt this nervous since the first time they were nominated for number one on Music Bank so many years ago.

And with a choked sob, he gets his answer.

“... you idiot, I’ve been waiting for you to say that since you texted me that night.” 

(*pyeongsaengjiki means lifelong friends, it's what hakyeon calls taekwoon irl. taekwoon's 'name' for hakyeon is his heart's friend.)

i wrote a really really short bonus for what happens after they get together..? i hope it's fluffy enough hehe ^^

comments are loved~