Won Ryu Hwan had a problem. 

His dreams were getting ridiculous and out of hand. 

In one moment, he was dreaming of Bang Dong Gu and his two comrades in the poor village town he lived in. In the next, he was locked in a back hug with Lee Hae Jin in the back alley of the village town. 

And the latter was the source of his problem now.

The problem that had rudely awoken him, and was currently building a tent under his sheets now. 

Shibbal. Won Ryu Hwan you are an animal. 

My practice is lacking, Ryu Hwan thought remorsefully as he threw his blanket roughly on his bedroom floor and glared at his growing problem. 

Urges like this was never a problem that could not be solved with a very cold shower,... or a very long one. But this time they were not enough. Nothing was enough. 

It didn’t help that the source of his problem, a person, was everything Master Jang said to find in a soulmate. And it didn’t help that that the person in question was more than a soulmate - he was that and more. It also certainly didn’t help that the source of his problem was his dueling partner, whom he sparred with on an almost daily basis. 

Ryu Hwan was painfully aware of Lee Hae Jin. He was aware of their closeness when they were sparring. He was aware of Hae Jin when he painted, cooked, blushed, fought, laughed, cried... He was aware that Hae Jin’s eyes sought for him during Taekwondo trainings, because his own would stray to where the younger one was. In fact, Ryu Hwan didn’t know when he hadn’t been aware of the younger boy. In retrospect, it might’ve started the moment his eyes landed on the boy when he willingly took the hit of the plate during the food fight. Because everything that happened after that day seemed to involve the boy in one way or another. 

Well it certainly didn’t help that the intuitive musician had picked up on his obsession with the boy very early on. 

“You don’t know if you like him? Are you serious? If only you could see how the two of you look at each other. Make him yours already, stupid.” Hae Rang had drawled one night during their playground conversations. Ryu Hwan could only sputter and insist that Hae Rang was getting too ahead of himself. For someone who had went all out to ruin his relationship with Suzy, Hae Rang was excessively encouraging this time. 

“I know you better than you know yourself.” Hae Rang had whispered sagely into his beer can. That was the only reply he got from the musician. 

That might have been true, but it surely didn’t help Ryu Hwan this morning, because all he wanted to do was to slam Hae Jin into the wall and... 

“!” Slamming his toothbrush onto the counter, Ryu Hwan wet his face with water for the third time and scrubbed hard. This would not do.

Throwing on his running clothes, Ryu Hwan grabbed his backpack and left his house 15 mins earlier than needed, without his bike.

He had to clean his thoughts. He had to face Hae Jin during sparring practice later, and he was in no mental shape to face the boy now.

Running might help.

--------

“Let’s spar.” Those were the first two words the Captain had said roughly when he first entered the dojang, panting heavily from his run to school. 

Strange, he usually says good morning and asks if I am well and whatnot before delving into training. Hae Jin looked over at the older boy with concern, “Hyung, did you not sleep well last night?” 

“Ani! I mean, ani, it wasn’t a good sleep, but it is nothing serious. Do not worry for me.” The captain had replied immediately, as he stripped out of his running clothes to put on his sparring attire. Hae Ji’s eyes follow the muscles on the older boy as they flexed while he was changing. Something primal, something animalistic part of Hae Jin wanted to purr appreciatively, but he did not. 

He did not deserve someone like the captain. 

“Ready? Let’s go. No weapons.” The older boy ruffled his head as they took their places inside the sparring ring. Hae Rang’s latest mid-term project music arrangement filled the dojang - another one of the Captain’s weird habits that he never questioned.

“Neh. I’m ready.” 

Won Ryu Hwan was on full offensive today, Hae Jin observed. His attacks were clean, accurate and severe. Ryu Hwan attacked with a flawless roundhouse kick, which Hae Jin dodged with a quick back kick. Quickly moving in for a surprise attack, Hae had Jin delivered a combination attack of a push and back kick, but Ryu Hwan had anticipated the move and defended immediately. He side stepped the kicks and delivered an equally strong back kick.

The captain fought like he lived - Ryu Hwan was stoic and calm, he was self-aware, and  he guarded his loved ones with the quiet strength of a warrior.. Very much like his personality, Ryu Hwan’s fighting foundation lay in his rock-solid defenses. He attacked minimally, but when he did, it was lethal. Hae Jin, of course, already knew of the captain’s fighting habits, but experiencing them first-hand in a duel was truly a different story. Lee Hae Jin might not fight like the captain, but he could keep up. Years of training with Master Park were not for naught.

Flashing the older boy a sharp smile, he matched him kick for kick, swing for swing. It felt like they were dancing across the dojang, neither of them letting the other gain the upper hand, but neither of them falling behind the other. Their language was fierce, but they melded seamlessly. 

Hae Jin did not defend as much as he did, Ryu Hwan noticed. However, as the fight progressed, Ryu Hwan realized the younger boy didn’t need to. Because Hae Jin was a cunning and intuitive fighter. His attacks were pre-meditated but not lethal - they were meant to pull you into a false sense of security. He was sly. All the younger fighter needed was a flicker of complacency from him, a loophole exposed, and Hae Jin would swoop in relentlessly. Like the painter he was, Hae Jin was a natural at catching details - details like an exposed weakness. Ryu Hwan let out a knowing grin of his own. He had to be on his guard, he wasn’t going to give himself away that easily.

Sweat dripped off both their faces, and drenched their training uniforms. Neither of them knew how long they had been sparring, but both knew they were reaching the of the fight. The rhythm of their dance was faster, their exchanges were faster, and even Hae Rang’s recording in the background was getting tensed. 

Just then, Hae Jin’s fate was decided as he delivered a roundhouse kick. A normal way of blocking was to block the kick, punch, and deliver the same kick back to the opponent. In that moment, Ryu Hwan blocked the younger boy’s kicks, and instead, pulled Hae Jin’s raised left leg with his right hand, and did a left leg sweep on the boy’s right - both boys fell to the floor, with the captain effectively keeping the younger boy in a leg lock, and using his arms and body weight to push the Hae Jin’s arms to the floor.

Hae Jin had forgotten, that Won Ryu Hwan was trained strictly in orthodox, but he was also known for his brilliant unorthodox executions in matches. 

The match ended. 

Both boys were panting heavily, the adrenaline rush had them grinning at the good fight they put up against each other. 

But as the initial rush of the fight died down, both boys slowly became aware of their positions. Ryu Hwan was on top of Hae Jin, and their faces were barely inches away from each other. The captain lost his grin, as he studied the younger boy’s face up close. The energy around them was changing, the severity of their fight now melting into something more dangerous. 

When Ryu Hwan exhaled, Hae Jin inhaled. 

There was something so intimate about inhaling each other’s breaths. 

Hae Jin exhaled, Ryu Hwan inhaled. 

Ryu Hwan could almost taste Hae Jin in his breath. 

Ryu Hwan couldn’t help but admire the young man who was breathing heavily underneath him. Hae Jin was even more beautiful up close.

Ryu Hwan wanted.

Lee Hae Jin the figher. Strong, graceful and disciplined. Hae Jin was agile, and powerful. He fought with cunning, and fought with the discipline of a seasoned fighter. Hae Jin matched him in every way as a fighter. He was a force to be reckoned with.

Lee Hae Jin the friend. He fought like he lived, and lived like he fought. Ryu Hwan knew it. This man was the closest possible to a soul mate. If he ever fell, he knew Hae Jin would be there to pick up the pieces. And Ryu Hwan knew he would do the same. 

Lee Hae Jin the man. Ryu Hwan had fallen. Very hard. The fighter in him now acknowledged it. His heart had spoken, since the very beginning. He wanted to be more than this. He wanted to make Hae Jin his. He wanted to love Hae Jin as would a man love his lover. 

Too close.

If they continued this for any longer, Ryu Hwan knew he would be crossing lines he could not redraw. 

He had to move off the boy.

He his lips to steel his resolve and exhaled shakily. 

Wrong move.

Because Hae Jin his own in response. 

Ryu Hwan’s iron will broke. Letting out a growl, he moved in to seal the distance between their lips, only to be stopped by the lazy drawl coming from the dojang doors. 

“I don’t know what turns me on more. Seeing you two like this, or that you two are doing this with my music playing in the background.”