A Long Night In New York City
Title: A Long Night In New York City
Author: annyongpussycat
Genre:Romance, AU
Pairing: Nichkhun x Wooyoung (khunyoung)
Rating: PG-13
Summary: A chance meeting on a regular, uneventful night- Wooyoung learns that fate works in mysterious ways.
It had been a long day to say the least; the kind of day filled with fake smiles, false pretenses, and a whole lot of nothing. Life is so monotonous, Wooyoung thought to himself as he walked down familiar streets to the subway stop, briefcase in hand- evidence of his all too normal, 9 to 5 life.
He made his way down the stone steps to the underground, swiped his card, and walked on auto-pilot to the usual platform to wait for his train. He felt his phone vibrate in his back pocket, and sighing, he took it out to read the text message. Wooyoung already had a feeling of who it was from and what it would say.
"If you're late again, Wooyoung..." it read.
He sighed again. 'Great,' he thought. 'Can't wait to get home to my controlling boyfriend.' He wondered why he put up with him sometimes. Maybe it was for the same reason he'd done most other things in his life- convenience. Working two minimum wage jobs and living in a shitty apartment so he could afford to keep dancing wasn't convenient; he took the first steady, boring job offered to him by a marketing firm. Searching for the love of his life wasn't convenient, and neither was keeping the hope that he was actually out there somewhere; that's how he'd ended up with Taehyun. At least he paid half the monthly rent for their average apartment off 28th Street.
He looked up as the train slid to stop in front of him. Stepping carefully into the car, he settled himself in a seat near the back, next to the window. There were only a few other passengers.
Wooyoung let his mind drift as stop after stop slid by, the car slowly emptying, passenger after passenger, until it was just him. He sighed again.
He didn't look up this time as the door slid open. "West 4th Street," the electronic voice announced. Four more stops until his own, he mentally noted, looking again out the window at nothing.
"Excuse me," he heard a quiet voice say, "is this seat taken?" Wooyoung's mind snapped back to reality, back to the beautiful eyes that met his when he looked up. It was a man, about his age, maybe a little older...but Wooyoung had never seen anything like him. Long, dark eyelashes framed wide, chocolate eyes; flawless, pale skin, and disheveled auburn tresses that stuck out randomly in an endearing way. He was beautiful.
Wooyoung realized he'd been staring when the stranger smiled cutely and cleared his throat. He glaced quickly around the car and realized they were the only two passengers. Nevertheless, he shook his head, forgetting how to speak.
"Thanks," the stranger said, dropping his bag lightly on the floor and sitting in the empty seat. "I'm Nichkhun, by the way."
Wooyoung smiled, happy at being able to attach a name to this beautiful, mysterious person. "Wooyoung," he replied, offering a hand to shake. Nichkhun smiled and took it; as he did, Wooyoung's phone vibrated. He sighed, exasperated as he drew it from his pocket and flipped it open.
"Do you know what time it is??" the digital display read.
"Shit," Wooyoung said under his breath, starting to type out a reply.
"Something wrong?" Nichkhun asked. Wooyoung actually briefly considered telling him the truth, but then realized the last thing someone he didn't even know would want to hear about is all of his problems.
"Um...it's nothing," Wooyoung said, shifting uneasily in his seat. Though he'd known him only moments, Nichkhun did something funny to his heart.
"It's okay. You can tell me. I won't tell," Nichkhun said, smiling reassuringly. Wooyoung wondered for a moment why he even cared. But he shook the doubt from his mind and slowly exhaled. "I'm probably crazy for telling my problems to a complete stranger..." he started, looking down, "but I just feel like life is supposed to be so much more. I live a completely boring, average life with an average job and an average boyfriend in an average apartment. I just hate it. I feel trapped," he said in a rush.
There was silence. 'I've said too much,' Wooyoung thought. 'He probably just thinks I'm crazy now.' But a moment later, Nichkhun replied.
"Wooyoung," he said softly to the other, who'd kept his eyes directed at the floor. "Don't ever think you're trapped."
"Well, that's easier said than done, I mean- " Wooyoung started.
"No, I mean..." Nichkhun interrupted, "I mean, you shouldn't have to feel that way. Nothing in life is set in stone. There's nothing that says you have to keep living the way you're living...if it makes you unhappy."
Wooyoung looked up into the other's dark eyes, trying to read him.
"You shouldn't have to be unhappy," Nichkhun said quietly. Wooyoung cleared the message, pressed 'off' on his phone and smiled.
--
The two talked for what seemed to Wooyoung like hours. Talking to Nichkhun was like talking to an old friend, Wooyoung thought, as if they'd known each other in another life. He marveled at how easy it was to share things with him that he'd never told anyone before. Wooyoung had long forgotten than he was supposed to get off the subway four stops ago.
"I don't think you should give up on dancing yet," Nichkhun said, nudging him with a smile, bringing him back to their conversation.
"I know, it's just- it's just not a practical goal to have," Wooyoung said, sighing. "Oh god, I sound like my father now."
Nichkhun laughed. "Dreams and goals are two different things, I think. And a dream's never practical, but it's also something you can never fully give up on," he said, looking wistful.
"What's your dream, Nichkhun?" Wooyoung asked quietly.
"I'd tell you, but it's embarassing," he said, laughing.
Wooyoung smiled. "You can tell me."
Nichkhun took a deep breath. "Honestly?" He asked, raising his eyebrows. Wooyoung nodded. "It was always that I'd meet someone like you." He looked up slowly, meeting Wooyoung's hopeful eyes. There was a comfortable silence that stretched on for a few seconds until Nichkhun slowly leaned forward until their lips met, under the dim glow of the lights in the subway. Wooyoung couldn't imagine a more unexpected twist of fate, but he knew he'd never felt anything so perfect. He smiled as they broke the kiss.
"I really like you, Wooyoung," Nichkhun said softly.
Wooyoung looked up. "Good. I like you too," he said, a smile in his voice and lighting up his face.
They looked up at the digital screen above the doors as an announcement was made.
"End of the line. Forrest Hills Avenue," came the electronic voice over the speakers. They glanced at each other as they stumbled, unsure, out onto the unfamiliar platform. The doors slid closed behind them with a sense of finality. Wooyoung looked quickly around the almost empty station, feeling vulnerable.
"Where are we?" he asked softly, looking into Nichkhun's eyes for reassurance.
"I have no idea," Nichkhun said, a grin lighting up his face as he took Wooyoung's hand in his.
It was a chance meeting on a regular, uneventful night. Wooyoung smiled as he tightened his grip on Nichkhun's hand, on reality. Fate worked in mysterious ways.