Cause of my Euphoria | Yeonbin ✓

【22】

"Good night, Soobin."

Yeonjun turned around, showing the younger his back. Soobin pouted. "Jun..."

"Hmm?"

"You know that I'm happy you're back, right?"

"Yes, I'm aware."

Soobin let out a whine. "So why do we need this pillow between us then?!"

Yeonjun turned around with an amused look. "You don't like it?"

The younger glared at the offending pillow separating them. "No. I hate it."

But his boyfriend shrugged. "Too bad. I'm not comfortable sleeping so close to you yet."

That had to be a lie, Soobin was sure. They literally just cuddled in the living room! So, he was sure that Yeonjun was just playing now... or really punishing him. Nonetheless, Soobin willed himself to be patient.

Besides, maybe he could get rid of it when Yeonjun was asleep, cuddle him for a bit, and put it back without the older knowing.

"Don't even think about taking it out when I'm asleep," Yeonjun chided. "I'm a light sleeper, I'll feel when it's gone."

Soobin whined again, throwing kicked puppy eyes at his boyfriend, hoping to gain some sympathy. But Yeonjun only chuckled.

"Or I can always sleep on the couch," he suggested.

No way, Soobin most certainly did not want that.

"What can I do to get rid of it?" he proposed, determined. "Name it, and I'll do it. I just want this pillow gone!"

Yeonjun blinked at him a few times before his lips quirked into a smirk. "Anything?"

"Anything!" Soobin would go to hell and back.

Yeonjun chuckled again. "I'm not asking for much."

Soobin nodded, encouraging the older to continue.

"Pillow talk."

There were a few beats of silence before Soobin voiced out a, "Pardon?"

Yeonjun shrugged. "Pillow talk. For at least 10 minutes every night before we sleep. It's supposed to help couples strengthen their communication skills for a more emotionally intimate relationship."

Soobin blinked at him, wondering where this was coming from.

"Chan told me about it," Yeonjun continued, nonchalant. "So, if you want this pillow gone, we pillow talk. Once I'm more comfortable with how efficient our communication skills are, we can get rid of the pillow."

Soobin hesitated. Not that he wasn't against pillow talks, it sounded really nice. "But... how do I know when that is?"

"I'll tell you."

"But that's not fair!" Soobin whined. "Can't I... cook for you for a month or something? Or do all the chores?"

Yeonjun laughed. "As nice as that is... I really want to do these talks with you. We used to do it a lot when we first moved in together, remember? But then, we kind of just... stopped. I really miss those."

And the sound of Yeonjun's voice was genuine longing and desire. How could Soobin deny him something so simple?

So Soobin tilted his head in agreement. "I'll do it. I'll talk to you so much that you'll get sick of me!"

Yeonjun laughed again and the younger loved hearing it so much today. He was determined to always make sure that the older always smiled and laughed. He was going to make sure that he never made him sad or cry or hurt again.

"Yah! You must let me talk too! Communication is a two-way street!" The older smiled. "Should we start?"

Soobin nodded. "What should we talk about?"

"Anything. Like, maybe how our day was? Yeah, let's start with that. How was your day, Binnie?"

Soobin's heart warmed at the use of his nickname. "My day was amazing. The best. Do you know why?"

"Why?"

"Because I finally have the man I love back. And I'm determined not to let him go ever again. That's a promise. No matter the problems that come our way or if I do something stupid again, I won't let him go, like I almost did."

At his declaration, Yeonjun's cheeks reddened slightly as his lips twitched into a shy smile. "I had an amazing day too. Do you know why?"

"Why?"

"Because the man I love promised not to let me go again. Because I don't want him to let me go. I want him to come after me, even if I try to run away again."

Rules be damned, Soobin reached over the pillow and took Yeonjun's hand in his, lacing their fingers together. Yeonjun did not pull away.

They kept at their pillow talk for more than ten minutes and fell asleep like that, separated by a pillow, with their hands interlocked on top of it.

+×+

After returning to Seoul, they pretty much fell back into a routine. Soobin used the rest of his week off to recover and bond with Yeonjun, who still had a week and a half left of his filed leave.

They spent their days talking, going on dates, and seeing their friends again (Taehyun, Beomgyu, and Kai were still a little suspicious of Soobin but since Yeonjun looked happy, they didn't say a word to compromise it).

Once their off days were over, they went back to work.

Yeonjun also pushed Soobin to start going out drinking with his co-workers again. He knew going out made the younger happy. And when Soobin wasn't home, Yeonjun spent his time with Taehyun or his brother or simply by himself at the library or at home. He no longer felt lonely because Soobin would always come home right on time to him.

The only difference now was that Saturday was their time alone with each other, no matter what. Instead of twice-a-week dates, they decided on a once-a-week date to relieve the pressure of date planning, both now taking turns in planning and choosing what they wanted to do.

Yeonjun now took some of Soobin's likes into consideration and took him to an arcade once. It wasn't his favorite place in the world, but his boyfriend loved it.

The younger was ecstatic, running around and playing games like he was a child again and Yeonjun realized how happy it made him seeing Soobin enjoying himself like that, but he especially liked the younger's pout when Yeonjun beat him at air hockey.

Not to be outdone, Soobin took him to a museum with an exhibit that he had been wanting to see. The younger stayed by Yeonjun's side, looking at the exhibit instead of just finding a bench and sitting.

Yeonjun had never enjoyed himself so much as he eagerly showed Soobin everything, talking a mile a minute. And the younger was rewarded with a long hug (still no kisses, to Soobin's chagrin).

And their pillow talks were fun. They talked about everything and nothing in particular and always fell asleep with huge smiles on their faces. Soobin had to admit, the talks were actually helping. It was easier to talk to Yeonjun and be honest with him about his feelings and apprehensions when they were lying down, face-to-face.

Things were starting to go back to normal, minus the kissing as well as the pillow in between them at night.

Don't get him wrong, Yeonjun knew that Soobin was sincere in his promises. But he couldn't shake off that underlying fear that if he let his guard down too soon, Soobin would falter. In a way, he was also testing Soobin, pushing him to see how far he would go to regain his trust. And Yeonjun was just waiting for the right moment.

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TBC~

Hope you are liking it :)