Meet Your

Gave Love

For now, he just needed to get rid of Howon. It had barely been a week since Dongwoo had cried his eyes out and he still needed some space to sort himself out. He knew what he needed to do, he needed to collect his thoughts and he needed to become stronger. Sunggyu couldn’t have such a control on him like this anymore, he hadn’t even seen him in months. 

With absolutely no solid plans in mind, Dongwoo left- by running to- his bedroom and locked himself in the bathroom. Seating himself down on the lid of the toilet bowl, Dongwoo tried to conjure up his best constipated voice.

 

“Howon- ah!” 

 

A faint response could be heard through the solid wooden door. 

 

“Howon, I think I ate something weird! You should head home first, I’ll probably take a while!” 

 

There was the sound of quick footsteps and Dongwoo knew Howon was definitely on the other side of the bathroom door.

 

“Dongwoo, are you okay? Maybe I should go and get you something to calm your stomach.” 

 

His voice was caring, and absolutely concerned. It made Dongwoo feel more than a little guilty about trying to chase Howon away. But he steeled his resolve; he needed this. 

 

“No, Howon, I think I just need to… wait this out. Why don’t you go home first, you have a class later.”

 

Howon had left, very hesitantly and only when he heard the front door shut did Dongwoo slowly peek out from the bathroom. Then he crept back into his bedroom, picking up the foot ladder he had stowed nearby in preparation. He stood on the ladder and slowly brought down all the boxes, piling them on top of each other in the narrow space of the closet. 

 

Dongwoo was glad he had a driver’s license, even if he didn’t have a car. He took the train down to his parent’s place, forcing himself to leave his phone at home. He knew Howon was probably calling him and sooner or later he would go to his apartment. But Dongwoo didn’t want to think about that right now. 

After barely even explaining, Dongwoo took the keys to his father’s decade old Subaru, driving back to his apartment. He was going to load all the boxes then drive to Sunggyu’s house, then he was going to drop them off and that would be the end of the story. 

 

He wasn’t sure if Sunggyu was still living with his sister at the moment, but he decided that even if he wasn’t, the boxes would get to Sunggyu eventually. He decided he would carry the boxes 4 at a time, knowing he would probably end up with some lower back pain sometime later. There were 8 boxes in total so he would only have to make 2 trips. 

 

The route to his ex- sister- in- law’s house was a little fuzzy in his memory but Dongwoo was pretty sure the house that stood just a few feet away was the one. Taking a few deep breaths, he tried to stop his heart from beating so quickly. Breathing in and holding it, Dongwoo turned off the engine and got out of the car. He started first by pilling the boxes on the porch, knowing that nobody was home. The house was dead silent, after all.

Dropping the last box, Dongwoo sighed. Finally. Now it would be easier to move on and he could get on with his life. He probably wasn’t so ready to start dating or anything yet, but he knew at least that he would try to stop the thought of Sunggyu when making new friends. Howon would be proud. 

 

As Dongwoo sat back down on the old cushy seats, he turned the keys in the ignition and was checking his side view mirror when he heard the sound of the front door opening. He regretted turning to look because as soon as he did, he saw Sunggyu.

 

Sunggyu still looked as composed as ever, although he was wearing extremely casual clothes. It was odd, Dongwoo thought he worked on weekends too. Dongwoo could see from his expression that Sunggyu obviously recognised the boxes and Dongwoo was just about to drive away before Sunggyu could see him when a figure arrived from behind Sunggyu. 

Curiosity piqued, Dongwoo leaned back as far as the headrest would allow and watched. 

Sunggyu grinned at whoever who had arrived behind him and Dongwoo felt his heart clench. His hands clenched on the steering wheel and honestly it could just be his sister calm down Dongwoo. But then a hand dropped itself on Sunggyu’s shoulder and it was definitely not his sister. Sunggyu only laughed harder and leaned down to some unknown place behind the door.

 

Then Dongwoo had sped away, controlling his speed only 3 kilometres later when he had calmed down. 

 

He hadn’t seen Sunggyu in months and he had expected, or hoped, that Sunggyu would look dreadful and even more mopey than him. But he had looked radiant. And worst of all, he looked happy. His eyes were stinging and Dongwoo didn’t even try to stifle his tears. He just let them run as he drove back to his apartment, entering and just laying on the bed. He just didn’t understand.

It had only been a few months since their divorce and Sunggyu already looked so happy. So recovered. Had Dongwoo not meant a single thing to him? He tried to catch his speeding thoughts, maybe that was just a friend or Sunggyu was just putting on a facade. But Dongwoo knew that smile, it was that smile he smiled when he was truly happy. When Dongwoo would surprise Sunggyu at work with lunch or when Sunggyu had a day off and they made plans to have a date together. That was the smile reserved just for that. So what was he doing showing it off to someone else? 

 

Dongwoo wanted to scream. 

 

How could he be so carefree? Dongwoo had practically spent months piecing himself back together and even now he still felt a little mopey. How dare Sunggyu? How dare he? 

 

It was nearing evening when Dongwoo heard the front door beep open. Just as Dongwoo had predicted, Howon was back and calling out for the elder. 

 

“Dongwoo? Guess what? The company is planning to open a new studio and they want the two of us to kick it off!”

 

Dongwoo wanted to smile. Not because he actually registered what Howon had said but because he sounded so happy. 

 

It took a second but what Howon said finally made sense to Dongwoo.

Howon was the most hard working person he knew- besides Sunggyu- and also the most competitive. The two of them had been trying to land a promotion or any kind of thing that held interest since Howon proposed it to get Dongwoo’s mind off of Sunggyu. They were sort of not really competing with a few other teachers from the company and Howon had shown the most competitive spirit Dongwoo had ever seen. 

 

Howon was pretty much talking to empty air as he unpacked a couple containers of take- out. He had gotten Dongwoo something clear, on account of his unwell stomach. He knew Dongwoo was listening though, somewhere in the apartment. 

After setting the table, Howon ventured to the bathroom to see that it was empty and that it smelled perfectly fine, even after a long sniff. Howon furrowed his eyebrows slightly. That was suspicious. Then he ventured to the bedroom and saw Dongwoo sprawled across the large queen sized bed. His head was facing the windows and he was half- glade he was fully dressed because Howon had stepped into the bedroom many times before, walking into a half- , or god forbid, a fully Dongwoo sprawled on the bed. He didn't like the awkwardness that came with seeing Dongwoo scarecely dressed but he wouldn't deny that he didn't enjoy it a little.

 

“Dongwoo?” 

 

The older hadn’t responded, so Howon called again. There wasn’t a response again, so he walked to the other side of the bed to get a look at Dongwoo. Maybe he was asleep.

But Dongwoo was only laying there, his hands folded under his chin as he pouted, seemingly unconsciously. This couldn’t be good. Howon took a seat by his head, pulling his legs up onto the bed and poking Dongwoo’s cheek.

 

“Dongwoo, are you okay?” 

 

Dongwoo only lifted his head slightly before using his chin to point to somewhere behind Howon. He turned around, his hand resting on Dongwoo’s hair. From the bed, he could see that the closet door was open but the lights were off. There wasn’t enough light to see anything in the closet. 

 

“I don’t get it.” 

 

There was a pained groan before a garble of words and sounds exited Dongwoo’s mouth. 

 

“Use your words, or are you really not human?” 

 

Again Dongwoo gestured towards the closet behind Howon, but this time using a foot. 

 

“I feel like I need to be checking for the bogeyman or something.”

 

Feeling slightly impatient, Howon got off the bed and headed over to the closet. Once there, he the lights. He looked behind the door before looking down the closet, then he looked up. And it was surprisingly empty. 

 

“Dongwoo, were you robbed?”

 

Howon had a nagging feeling that Dongwoo was responsible for this, though. It was weird to see it empty. He could actually see the white colour of the shelves for once, without the brown cardboard boxes taking up all the space. From the bedroom, Dongwoo spoke without mumbling. 

 

“I cleared it.” 

 

Howon froze for a second before he turned off the lights and left the closet, closing the door behind him. 

 

“What do you mean?” 

 

“I mean, I brought down all the boxes, borrowed my dad’s car, loaded everything into it, and dropped it all off at Sunggyu’s place.”

 

There was a long silence as Howon processed Dongwoo’s words. The boxes were still there in the morning, and Dongwoo was supposed to have been sick in the bathroom when he left. Howon stared at Dongwoo’s back so hard, he should have burned holes. Then it clicked. Dongwoo must have lied to him about being sick and when Howon had left, Dongwoo must’ve cleared the boxes.

 

“But Dongwoo, why didn’t you tell me? I was planning to ask you about it, then we could have done it together. Why didn’t you tell me?”

 

Howon walked back to the bed and sat on its edge, mindful of how Dongwoo was beginning to move behind him. 

 

“It was something I needed to do by myself. And I’m glad you didn’t come anyways.” 

 

There was a short rustling before Howon noticed that Dongwoo had sat up and was next to him. Dongwoo took Howon’s hand and held it in his own before he sighed. 

 

“Sunggyu’s got someone else already.”

 

Howon turned to look at Dongwoo so fast and there was so many things he wanted to say that he was sure even his brain stuttered. 

 

“What?” 

 

More like how dare that bastard. If Howon had it his way, that piece of that wasn’t even worthy of a name would never find anyone to love ever again. 

 

“I was gonna leave as soon as I unloaded everything, but then the doors opened too fast. And I saw him smile, Howon, like really smile! I hate that the most, how could he be so happy like that? I want to steal that smile off his face and put it on my own face. I saw some guy’s hand on his shoulder and he looked so. Ugh.” 

 

The whole time, Howon hadn’t said a single thing. Dongwoo was constantly tightening and relaxing his grip on Howon’s hand but the younger only retuned the squeezes. Howon knew he didn’t have to say a single thing. It wasn’t that Howon thought the older man was weak, but he was surprised that Dongwoo hadn’t started crying or at the very least, tearing up yet. Howon just let go of Dongwoo’s hand and threw an arm around Dongwoo’s shoulders. 

Dongwoo leaned into Howon’s arm, resting his head on Howon’s shoulder. 

 

“It’s not fair. Why does he get to move on?” 

 

That bastard. 

 

“He’s not really a bastard, Howon,” Dongwoo giggled slightly, then frowned, “but he is kind of a jerk.” 

 

Howon wasn’t aware he had said that out loud but he didn’t mind sharing the truth with Dongwoo, anyways. 

 

“He kind of is a bastard, Dongwoo. Not only did he neglect you when you needed him, but tried to hit you and then he actually did. He was malicious, Dongwoo. He wanted to hurt you and he did. That makes him worse than a bastard, actually. And now, he’s able to let it go so easily which shows what a piece of he is. I can’t believe you ever loved him, god.” 

 

Dongwoo sighed. He knew why he loved Sunggyu. Howon was right, Sunggyu had been malicious but it wasn’t as if he always was.

 

This was stupid anyways, why was he getting angry? Sunggyu had a right to move on, just like Dongwoo did. It was high time he did, in fact.

 

“Howon, lets eat.” 

 

The younger expressed concern and confusion the same time his stomach rumbled and Dongwoo laughed so hard he fell onto Howon’s lap. 

 

While doing the little bit of washing up they had to do, Dongwoo decided to share his thoughts with Howon. 

 

“Howon, do you think I should move on too, like Sunggyu?” 

 

There was a soft clink as Howon accidentally jerked a plate onto the sides of the sink in surprise. Howon handed the rinsed plate to Dongwoo to dry as he thought for a second. Dongwoo should have moved on ages ago, to be honest. Naturally, his nighttime fantasies had hoped that someday Dongwoo would come to his senses and run into Howon’s arms but just having Dongwoo ready to look for someone new was enough for now. 

 

“Yes, you definitely should.”

 

Dongwoo dried the plate with the washcloth and turned behind him to place it back into its place amongst the other plates before closing the cupboard door. He supposed that he should, since Sunggyu already had. There was no point in moping or being hooked over the past so… 

 

“I will, Howon, I will.” 

 

That night, as Howon closed his book and took off his glasses, before placing both on his bedside table, he caught a glimpse of the face of his alarm clock. It was bright red and its face was actually a very embarrassing photograph of him and Dongwoo. It was custom made and Dongwoo had gotten it made on a whim, ing it into Howon’s hands and running away when they were eating out once. 

It was 11:11 PM and Howon blew a sigh before gingerly closing his eyes. On this night, at 11:11 PM, I wish that Dongwoo will see me as more than a friend. Hesitantly, Howon mumbled a thank you before quickly turning off the bedside lamp and diving into his sheets, embarrassed by himself. 

 

Dongwoo sat in the cafe where Sungyeol worked one Saturday afternoon, watching Sungyeol work and smile at the customers that trickled in. The cafe was pretty busy and Dongwoo occasionally sniggered when someone threw him a peeved look when they realised that he had was just lounging and taking up space even though he had already finished his drink. He had his phone by his tall, empty glass of iced coffee, and a plate of what- used- to- be lemon pie in front of him. 

He was just casually watching the customers. Howon was busy today, and Dongwoo didn’t know with what, which was really quite weird but he decided not to dwell on it. He had made plans to hang out with Sungyeol and Myungsoo after Sungyeol’s afternoon shift. He had been here since 2 PM in the afternoon, and it was now 4 PM. Myungsoo would be here at half past 4 PM, after his normal pop- in- the- office on Saturdays. 

 

Since deciding that he should move on, Dongwoo found himself watching people around him more often. He deduced that it was his subconscious looking for potential partners, and he congratulated himself on being discreet when he did it. However, no matter how discreet he was, Sungyeol had noticed him checking out customers around 3 PM. The younger male had smirked but had no time to respond and had now taken to gesticulating wildly when he served or saw a particularly attractive customer. 

 

But nobody really caught his eye. Sure, there were lots of attractive people in Seoul, lots of deep voices and pearly skin. Lots of perfectly tousled hair and loosely ruffled curls. But Dongwoo just wasn’t feeling it.

 

It wasn’t until Myungsoo had come in, almost running into a female customer that Dongwoo saw someone who made him raise his head off his open palm. Myungsoo was apologising with small nods and an embarrassed voice as Dongwoo watched. He noticed that Sungyeol was watching as well, his hands stilling from where he had been wiping the counter. 

 

The woman that Myungsoo was currently apologising to was definitely an angel. There was no doubt about it, as she smiled and repeatedly told him it was okay. Her smile was nothing short of radiant, and the action made her eyes curve slightly. Her hair was the perfect mix of caramel and russet of soft curls that flowed halfway down her back. Her slight chuckle as Myungsoo bowed one last time had Dongwoo giving his heart out. 

Myungsoo looked up and saw Sungyeol first, immediately weaving his way through all the tables to where his boyfriend stood, waiting. 

 

Dongwoo wasted no time in watching them greet each other, as it was the same every time, they would kiss lightly for a second then either Sungyeol or Myungsoo would pull the other in for a deeper kiss. Instead, he quickly got up from his seat and headed over to where he saw the angelic woman take a seat. Much to his dismay, she sat near the counter, so his friends would definitely be able to see what was going on. 

He was going to play it cool, just approach her and hope he didn’t accidentally pour her coffee onto her. As he got closer to the table, it seemed like she could feel his intentions because she looked up almost expectantly. Dongwoo almost wanted to just spin on his heel and turn away; even looking at her face made him blush. But he steeled himself, the first step to getting over Sunggyu was moving on. 

 

“Hi, I’m Dongwoo.” 

 

She looked a little surprised but she only smiled wider and reached out a hand.

 

“I’m Amy, but you can call me Yejin if it’s easier.” 

 

Dongwoo grinned and when she smiled wider in response, Dongwoo took her outstretched hand and shook it. She nodded in the direction of the chair opposite her and Dongwoo is pretty sure this is all he can take in a day. 

After he took a seat, Amy took a sip from her cup of coffee and casually asked if she could help with him anything. 

 

“Not really, I just wanted to further apologise for my friend for bumping into you and um-“ 

 

There were some suspiciously familiar- sounding whispers from behind him and Dongwoo is almost a hundred percent sure that it’s Sungyeol and Myungsoo. Blushing at the thought of them talking about him, he thought he might as well just get it over with. Although he put on his most charming smile, he’s sure his legs would never stop bouncing from nervousness. 

 

“I think you’re really pretty and if you’re alright with it, I would like to take you out on a date.” 

 

He hadn’t faltered the whole sentence but he was starting to feel afraid of an impending rejection right about now. He kept up the smile, though he was sure it would look a little more like a grimace soon. 

But Dongwoo didn’t have to worry because Amy had only laughed before she agreed and gave his phone a miss call. 

 

Sungyeol and Myungsoo hadn’t shut up the whole time since they’d left the cafe and even though they were all already sharing a cab back to their homes after dinner and a movie, Sungyeol was still sharing his amazement regarding what he liked to call “Dongwoo’s shameless flirting”. Myungsoo was giggling the whole time and Dongwoo knew that it only fuelled Sungyeol to continue teasing him. 

 

Dongwoo’s home was the first stop, and as he started to climb out of the cab, Sungyeol yelled out: 

 

“Hyung, I’m gonna get Myungie to call Howon and tell him about your amazing feat today!”

 

Before Dongwoo could turn around and tell Sungyeol a desperate NO, Myungsoo had already pulled the door shut and the cab was beginning to drive away. Sighing, Dongwoo could only laugh in response to his friends. He didn’t mind Howon knowing all that much anyways, so he wasn’t sure why his first instinct was to beg Sungyeol not to tell Howon. In fact, Dongwoo would probably tell the younger man about it himself. 

 

Dongwoo and Amy had, had a long- ish conversation spanning about 20 minutes and Dongwoo had found out that she was born in America but she had come back to South Korea to study, and that was why she had both an English and Korean name. Both her parents were Korean and she was studying literature. 

 

As he unlocked the door to his apartment, Dongwoo tried to keep the smile off his face. He didn’t want to seem like a complete lunatic by smiling so widely as he rode the elevator up but now that he was in the privacy of his own home, he couldn’t help it. Amy was just so pretty and wonderful and she’d been so nice. She could have easily shut him down, considering Dongwoo didn’t think he was much of a catch but she had given him a chance. She had given him a chance!

Now they were going to have dinner tomorrow and Dongwoo was as excited as he was nervous. He hadn’t dated in a long time and he wasn’t really sure how to flirt. Though, he was sure that if he asked Sungyeol and Myungsoo, they would tell him that what he did today could be considered flirting. Maybe he should call Howon, but the young man hadn’t dated in a while either. 

 

Sighing, Dongwoo decided to resign himself to the fact that he would probably totally ruin his date with Amy. 

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i-wunai
Woohoo! Update!!!!! I hope you guys like the newest update! ^^

Comments

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Min_Dongwoo #1
Chapter 14: What? Is that it? What is going on I want to know more!!! Arrrhhhh!! I'm dying over here!
Jaydreamer
#2
Chapter 14: Awww yes now I want to see Dongwoo's entire reaction :) such a heartwarming chapter
rugpiweir2 #3
Chapter 13: I really love your story! It's so good, but I feel a little confused about the ending of this part. Because Dongwoo was so excited that he set up a date with Hoya and Jieun, and than suddenly he realized just like that that he is in love with Hoya. It was a little bit fast and sudden to me, but it's ok. I still really love the story. It's great! And I really can't wait for the next chapter. I want to know what Dongwoo will do after realizing his feelings for Hoya. Hope he will go more into action than Hoya, who was afraid to tell Dongwoo about his feelings. Since Dongwoo is bad at lying, Hoya should notice the difference. ;)
dismay #4
Chapter 13: Man woohyun how could you do that to your friend tsk tsk. And hoya why did you say yes you I bet you were getting dongwoo s present that morninghuh where did all the pics go where's stalker hoya lmao
miciatoby
#5
I love your story too much. My favourite one *__*
Justhere
#6
Chapter 12: I see hope for howon! I'm excited about how they will get together (because I know they will). This story is so real, I like how Dongwoo didn't go straight for Howon after the divorce. That only happens in idealistic fiction, but I like stories that replicate real life because I can feel more of a connection with it. Good job!:)
burdenheart #7
Chapter 12: thanks for the update! i appreciate it. and this chapter was good - as always!
xdark_blue
#8
Chapter 12: please make some progress dongwoo!
candypunch #9
Chapter 12: Lol I laughed at the dinner scene... I'm. So Glad Dongwoo is okay! I'm need Howon to get it together and confess Lol
Great chapter!!!!
dismay #10
Chapter 12: Prince charming is on his way dino babe, just look next to your side lol I laughed so loud at the date scene dongwoo being a total spectator Lmao xD