merry christmas, meanie

I love you

Dinner was mostly Mr. Kim enthusiastically catching up with the boys, and Minseo showing off her latest cooking skills earlier. Wonwoo was visibly impressed, and although Mingyu was too, he kept his thoughts to himself. "She doesn't need another ego boost," the younger had whispered in Wonwoo's ear when they began eating.

Jieun was back to her normal self, as she insisted on being seated on Minseo's lap throughout dinner. Minseo was more than happy to comply, and she spent the entire time fawning over the toddler.

Right now, Wonwoo's laying on the bed in the Kims' guest bedroom; he can't fall asleep. Maybe because he's gotten used to having Mingyu's warm presence next to him in the past week, he thinks. Minseo, unlike Bohyuk, wants nothing to do with her older brother's room. Hence Mingyu's absence beside him, especially since the boys have no idea of Mr. Kim's opinion on their relationship.

He toys around with his phone, scrolling aimlessly through all of his socials. He comes across Mingyu's most recent post. "When did he even post this?" Wonwoo wonders, as he likes it and swipes to the left on the post. He's surprised to see most of it being his candid shots. How did Mingyu manage to snap so many? The comments are flooded with cheers from a few of his and Mingyu's mutuals, these eight other guys Wonwoo has hung out with earlier. Seungcheol, as well, left a comment saying 'y'all look cute tgt'; he was the last person Wonwoo expected to come across Mingyu's post.

Wonwoo wishes Jieun was here with him right now, but no, she demanded she slept beside Minseo for the whole time they were planning to stay. After all, Minseo and her have always gotten along well, with their matching, chaotic energies.

Wonwoo slumps deeper into the fluffy bed, after getting bored and throwing his phone to the side. His glasses are off, so he can't even see shit around him. Wonwoo finally grumbles and lifts himself from the bed, puts his glasses on and moves to the window in the bedroom. He unlocks the window, causing cold draught to flood inside - which makes Wonwoo shiver.

He looks out into the night sky, and the part of the neighbourhood he could see from the open window. It's pretty, with abundant flora around, covered in snow. Wonwoo finds it interesting how these plants stayed mostly green even in such harsh weather.

Wonwoo loses track of time staring outside. His legs haven't given out yet. He's sure his cheeks have gone red from the cold, his numb nose adding onto the suspicion.

He turns back when he hears the door creak open. His gaze flickers to the bedside clock - which reads 00:46 A.M.

Mingyu steps inside the room with just a hoodie over his T-shirt. Wonwoo wonders if he doesn't feel cold despite recovering from a fever. "Mingyu?"

"Yeah?"

Wonwoo just knows, in the dim lighting of the room, the boy has been crying. "Are you crying?"

Mingyu sniffles, "No..."

"Shut up, it's okay if you are. Wanna talk about it?" Wonwoo opens his arms wide, as Mingyu runs right to him and wraps his arms around his waist. His heads rests on Wonwoo's shoulder, and Wonwoo mutters quiet reassurances in his ear, while rubbing his back.

Mingyu stops crying after some time. Wonwoo leads him to the bed, making him sit up facing him. He gently thumbs the tears away and holds Mingyu's face in his hands. "What's wrong, Gyu?"

"I miss mum,"

Of course. Mrs. Kim passed away this day, when Wonwoo and Mingyu were in their last year of high school.

"Aw, Gyu, I can't say much because I don't know how it feels, but if you want, we could go see her tomorrow?" Wonwoo offers. That's the best he could do currently, seeing his boyfriend's state. "Thank you," Whispers Mingyu, burying his face in Wonwoo's thigh immediately and sprawling on the bed.

"There's no need to thank me, Gyu, it's nothing." Wonwoo runs soft hands through Mingyu's hair.

"You know," Wonwoo begins a while later, "I miss her too. I miss how she always used to favour me over you," He hopes it lightens the mood by a bit.

Thankfully, Mingyu chuckles as he snuggles more into Wonwoo's hands. "She did. I used to feel so betrayed." He finally turns and looks upwards, at Wonwoo's upside-down face. A slow smile forming on Mingyu's face assures Wonwoo that he did a good job of shifting the mood.

He returns the smile, and leans down to leave kisses on Mingyu's forehead, nose, and finally lips, catching the younger off-guard. "I love you," Wonwoo whispers, still looking at him.

Okay, that's not what Mingyu expected him to say, but he definitely loves it. He himself doesn't know when he began feeling this way towards the boy above him, but when he realised, it didn't feel foreign in the least bit.

"I love you too,"

Maybe, that kiss they shared on the day of reaching Changwon-si wasn't meant to be accidental at all.