Cha Hakyeon woke up to the sound of his alarm clock being heaved across his bedroom. Hostile murmers followed the solid thunk and clattering noises of a shattered object falling to the floor, most likely his clock. A frown formed on his dark lips as he felt the person on the bed beside him move. The loss of his primary source of warmth caused him to let out a hushed whimper, rolling onto his back.

"Taek, those things do have off switches, you know." Yawning, he opened his eyes to gaze up at his boyfriend, whom was sitting up in bed, sleepily rubbing his head. Early morning sun peeked through a gap in the curtains, playing across his lover's messy black hair and exposed chest.

"Well it's annoying. How do you sleep through it?" Taekwoon lowered his hands from his face to glare at Hakyeon, causing a smile to spread over the tan man's face.

"You exhaust me." Winking, he chuckled as Taekwoon rolled his eyes. "Regardless though, we can't afford to keep buying those things. So learn to work the off switch."

"Maybe we should get one with headphones so only you can hear it." Taekwoon poked him in the forehead, glowering down at him. "Maybe you'll wake up to it then."

"You'd sacrifice my ability to hear just so you didn't have to listen to the alarm clock?" Hakyeon raised an eyebrow, lips forming a small pout.

"Maybe you'd talk less." The dark haired man shrugged and Hakyeon could see the hint of a smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

"I would talk more. And louder." Hakyeon insisted with a wide grin. Stretching out, he playfully shoved Taekwoon's thigh.

"So you're going to buy a non headphone alarm clock when you go shopping today right?" Posing his question, Taekwoon gently nudged Hakyeon's forehead with the palm of his hand.

"How rude. Get out of my bed. Go to work. Shoo." Shoved his boyfriend again, Hakyeon giggled, being rewarded with a rare, genuine Taekwoon smile that made his heart flutter and a blush to rise to his cheeks.

"At least you won't be talking to me there." His lover laughed, something even more rare than his smile, as he got out of the bed to get dressed.

"One of these days, Taekwoon, I'm going to go to your work and bother you all day." Hakyeon threatened, sticking his tongue out. Grabbed it with the tip of his fingers, Taekwoon recieved a glare from his lover. Laughing, the younger man released him, wiping Hakyeon's saliva on the blanket. More than anything, he enjoyed his playful early morning banter with Taekwoon. The times when his boyfriend would actually and play with him were beautiful reminders of why he fell in love with him in high school.

"I know you would, baby." Finishing pulling on his clothes, Taekwoon bent over the bed to kiss Hakyeon. "Go back to sleep. We'll have lunch together okay? The usual cafe? You can show me the new alarm clock."

"Wouldn't miss it for the world." Smiling, he kissed the other man back before Taekwoon straightened himself and threw a blanket over the still stretched out Hakyeon. "I love you, Taek."

"You too, baby." Giving him a soft smile, Taekwoon grabbed his car keys and cell phone, leaving their apartment. Sighing as he curled up under the warm blanket, Hakyeon allowed sleep to reclaim him, left with a sinking feeling deep in the pit of his stomach. Though he missed his boyfriend already, Hakyeon knew the feeling was more than that. Impossible but to feel anything more than hurt, he reminisced on the fact that in the whole five years they had been dating, Taekwoon had never once actually said he loved him. Hakyeon knew Taekwoon had issues expressing his feelings but it didn't lessen the sting the absence of those words left behind.

~~~

Jung Taekwoon had come so close to saying it that morning. I love you. Three simple words that, when he said them separately, he had no problems, they should have been easy to say together... But they weren't. It wasn't like he didn't love his beautiful, crimson haired boyfriend, because he did. Hakyeon was his whole world. So why was it every time he tried to express as much, his heart beat too fast and it hurt to breathe until he backed out? Maybe it scared him to maybe Taekwoon felt like, by admitting to his feelings, he would be giving Hakyeon bullets to a gun aimed at his heart.

Smacking his forehead against the steering wheel in aggravation before starting his car, Taekwoon couldn't understand how Hakyeon had stayed by his side for five years without so much as a single 'I love you' in any form. He lived in fear that every fight they had would be their last because Hakyeon would realize he deserved someone more emotionally available.

Half the time Taekwoon was so nervous about blurting out a confession he barely even spoke to Hakyeon at all. was a dangerous activity as well, practically begging him to say what he couldn't. It probably made him really closed off in bed. Taekwoon made a mental note to buy Hakyeon flowers on his lunch break, not that some flowers could make up for anything.

Putting his car into gear, he backed out of the parking lot, heading for his office. Determination filled him, he would be a better boyfriend. Even if it killed him, he would tell Hakyeon he loved him. As soon as he could figure out how to do so without causing himself a panic attack, that is.

~~~

Kim Wonshik stepped into the airport, breathing in the air of his native country. It had been five long years since he had been home to Korea. Departing after high school to attend college in the United States, he was happy to finally be home in the land he loved. The only reason he had stayed away so long was so he wouldn't have to face the thing he left behind... A funny, vibrant boy that never loved Wonshik quite as much as Wonshik loved him.

He was ready now, though. After all, five years was long enough to convince himself that he had moved on. Pushing any thoughts of his past from his mind, he picked up his luggage and went to a pay phone to call home. Receiving no answer and with great confusion, he called his mother's cell.

"Hello?" A cheerful voice answered the phone, the murmur of people and music in the background, even possibly what he could only describe as a seagull.

"Mom? I'm at the airport. You were supposed to pick me up." Wonshik sighed, already guessing what had happened.

"Oh, Wonshik. Honey, we forgot. Your father and I are on a trip right now and won't be back for a week." His mother hadn't sounded bothered by the fact she had forgotten her only son's homecoming. Groaning, he wondered if sometimes she forgot she even had a son. She had always seemed to forget him places, even as a child.

"It's fine, mom. I'll see you when you get back. Tell dad hi." He hung up before the conversation could get any more awkward. The excitement of being back in Korea had quickly begun to ware off as he left the airport to hail a cab. Now he would have to spend the next week living in a hotel room, eating take-out, like some tourist instead of in his own bed, making his own food.

A growl of frustration left him as he ran his fingers through his blonde hair. What kind of welcome home had this been? Desperately, he wished he could call his friend, the reason he had been away for so long, but he figured the man had probably forgotten him by now, happily moved on. That particular thought made his heart drop.

Remembering a time where that boy was always the first person he called, the person that had his back no matter what and comforted him when he felt abandoned and unloved, filled his soul with an icy pain. Shaking his mind free of the depressing thoughts, he instructed the taxi driver on where to take him, determined to make the best of being back.