acceptance
u-kiss ; eli/jun
1205 words ; pg
prompt: meeting the parents
Eli is taking Jun to meet his parents and worries a lot.
Jun honestly didn’t know who was more nervous, him or Eli. The American wouldn’t stop moving around in his seat and had trouble sleeping on the long flight to the states. He looked exhausted and the bags under his eyes were more evident than when they departed.
He and Eli had been dating for a while now, a little over 200 days, and were slowly beginning to pass some important relationship milestones. It wasn’t long ago when Jun had invited him over to spend Chuseok with his family. All of Eli’s family was in the U.S. while he lived alone in Korea, training under one of his family’s friends to become a chef. He couldn’t stand the thought of his boyfriend being by himself on such an important holiday, and somehow gathered the courage to ask his parents if he could invite a guest.
Things went a lot better than Jun initially thought. Of course his parents still hadn’t adjusted to the thought of their only son dating other men, but after Eli assisted his mother with various kitchen tasks and discussed his purpose in Korea with his father, Jun could tell that with more time they would come to accept the older man. (Though as far as his grandmother knew, Eli was just a friend.)
Now the couple was currently on their way to Eli’s home for a whole week to spend Thanksgiving with his family. Jun knew he shouldn’t be too nervous about everyone but he couldn’t help it. Even though Eli had told him that most of his family could speak Korean, he was still determined to practice English and even learned some basic phrases. He was worried about making a good impression, being well received, and it didn’t help that he wasn’t too much older than his boyfriend’s little sister.
The announcement over the speakers stated that they would be landing in about 15 minutes. He glanced at Eli to see the older man as stiff as a board. He was clutching the armrest so hard his knuckles were losing color. “Eli, please calm down. It’s going to be fine,” he said in a low voice as he pried his death grip off the poor plastic. Jun took his hand and entwined their fingers together. Wide eyes stared back into his, displaying every emotion rushing through him. Fear. Anxiety. Love. Hope. Eli looked down at their hands and squeezed. “But what if he doesn’t accept this? Who I am? What we have?”
Jun bit his lip in thought. He knew how much Eli loved his father. The man was his hero, his role model. Whenever they talked about Eli’s home, he never failed to mention his dad without a smile brightening his features. It was because of his father that he was even in Korea, because he believed in son and wanted the best for him.
Eli’s mother had found out about their relationship by accident during her surprise visit to Korea, and while surprised, agreed not to say a word so he could tell the rest of the family himself. Jun knew that if his father couldn’t accept their relationship, it would ruin Eli.
He leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss against his cheek. “I don’t know what’s going to happen,” Jun whispered into his ear. “But I do know that you’ll always be his son and he will love you. And no matter what, I’m going to be by your side.”
Eli said nothing as he pulled him into a strong embrace and waited for the plane to land.
-
It wasn’t long before they were off the plane and on their way to pick up their luggage. Eli’s parents would be there to greet and escort them back to the house where his sisters were getting things ready for their arrival.
The couple left the terminal with their bags in hand and waited by the entrance as dozens of people wandered in and out of the building. “Do you see them anywhere?” Jun asked, moving slightly closer to Eli. There were so many people rushing around and he thought if he didn’t stick by Eli he would get swept away into the crowd.
The older man squinted as he looked around, standing on the tips of his toes to peer over random heads. “Not yet, they could be running behind. We’re at the right exit so it shouldn’t take too long.”
It wasn’t a minute sooner before they heard “Ellison!” They turned around to see and older gentleman and a short woman waving enthusiastically in their direction from a less packed area. Jun watched as Eli’s face lit up instantly and couldn’t help but smile at his reaction.
They made their way quickly through the crowd and Eli dropped his carry-on to hug his parents. Jun stood back with the baggage to let the family have their moment together.
"Dad, I want you to meet someone important," Eli said as he pulled Jun to his side. "This is Lee Junyoung. We’ve been seeing each other for about seven months now." He stared his father in the eye.
His father looked to Eli’s hand on Jun’s waist, and remained silent as he glanced back and forth between the two and then to his wife. Jun could feel Eli’s hand trembling and rubbed his back in a subtle motion.
"It’s about time I met this young man. I was wondering how much longer I was going to have to wait. It’s very nice to meet you Junyoung, and welcome to America," Eli’s father said in Korean, taking Jun’s hand into a firm grip. "I-it’s very nice to meet you too sir, and your wife," Jun stuttered and made a deep bow.
"Wait what?!" Eli and his mother stared at his father in shock. "You knew?" He stared with his mouth gaping like a fish.
"Of course I knew," he chuckled. "You’ve been working under my old friend for a while now and didn’t think he’d tell me about how you were doing? He had a lot to say about a young man that would wait for you every day you worked at the restaurant. And whenever I asked about a girlfriend, you would try to change the topic quite quickly. I figured your mother must have found out when she went for her visit. It took me a while, but it all came together with some time," he said. Jun felt his face heat up and noticed the tips of Eli’s ears turn a bright red. Were they that obvious?
"Does this mean you’re not upset with me?" Eli asked in a quiet voice, still trying to process what was happening. His father smiled and pulled him into another hug. "Son, I thought you knew that as long as you and your sisters are happy, we’ll support and love you all no matter what." His mother nodded and took Jun’s hand into hers. "I think it’s about time we get going now, boys. Your sisters must be wondering what’s taking us so long."
"So Junyoung, tell me a bit about yourself," Eli’s father said, taking one of his bags as the four of them walked to the parking lot.
a/n: ehhhhh. another one that i wrote a while back that i forgot to share. i could be happier with this but idk. i'm just happy i could write junli (aka the ship i never knew i wanted til it happened)
1205 words ; pg
prompt: meeting the parents
Eli is taking Jun to meet his parents and worries a lot.
Jun honestly didn’t know who was more nervous, him or Eli. The American wouldn’t stop moving around in his seat and had trouble sleeping on the long flight to the states. He looked exhausted and the bags under his eyes were more evident than when they departed.
He and Eli had been dating for a while now, a little over 200 days, and were slowly beginning to pass some important relationship milestones. It wasn’t long ago when Jun had invited him over to spend Chuseok with his family. All of Eli’s family was in the U.S. while he lived alone in Korea, training under one of his family’s friends to become a chef. He couldn’t stand the thought of his boyfriend being by himself on such an important holiday, and somehow gathered the courage to ask his parents if he could invite a guest.
Things went a lot better than Jun initially thought. Of course his parents still hadn’t adjusted to the thought of their only son dating other men, but after Eli assisted his mother with various kitchen tasks and discussed his purpose in Korea with his father, Jun could tell that with more time they would come to accept the older man. (Though as far as his grandmother knew, Eli was just a friend.)
Now the couple was currently on their way to Eli’s home for a whole week to spend Thanksgiving with his family. Jun knew he shouldn’t be too nervous about everyone but he couldn’t help it. Even though Eli had told him that most of his family could speak Korean, he was still determined to practice English and even learned some basic phrases. He was worried about making a good impression, being well received, and it didn’t help that he wasn’t too much older than his boyfriend’s little sister.
The announcement over the speakers stated that they would be landing in about 15 minutes. He glanced at Eli to see the older man as stiff as a board. He was clutching the armrest so hard his knuckles were losing color. “Eli, please calm down. It’s going to be fine,” he said in a low voice as he pried his death grip off the poor plastic. Jun took his hand and entwined their fingers together. Wide eyes stared back into his, displaying every emotion rushing through him. Fear. Anxiety. Love. Hope. Eli looked down at their hands and squeezed. “But what if he doesn’t accept this? Who I am? What we have?”
Jun bit his lip in thought. He knew how much Eli loved his father. The man was his hero, his role model. Whenever they talked about Eli’s home, he never failed to mention his dad without a smile brightening his features. It was because of his father that he was even in Korea, because he believed in son and wanted the best for him.
Eli’s mother had found out about their relationship by accident during her surprise visit to Korea, and while surprised, agreed not to say a word so he could tell the rest of the family himself. Jun knew that if his father couldn’t accept their relationship, it would ruin Eli.
He leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss against his cheek. “I don’t know what’s going to happen,” Jun whispered into his ear. “But I do know that you’ll always be his son and he will love you. And no matter what, I’m going to be by your side.”
Eli said nothing as he pulled him into a strong embrace and waited for the plane to land.
-
It wasn’t long before they were off the plane and on their way to pick up their luggage. Eli’s parents would be there to greet and escort them back to the house where his sisters were getting things ready for their arrival.
The couple left the terminal with their bags in hand and waited by the entrance as dozens of people wandered in and out of the building. “Do you see them anywhere?” Jun asked, moving slightly closer to Eli. There were so many people rushing around and he thought if he didn’t stick by Eli he would get swept away into the crowd.
The older man squinted as he looked around, standing on the tips of his toes to peer over random heads. “Not yet, they could be running behind. We’re at the right exit so it shouldn’t take too long.”
It wasn’t a minute sooner before they heard “Ellison!” They turned around to see and older gentleman and a short woman waving enthusiastically in their direction from a less packed area. Jun watched as Eli’s face lit up instantly and couldn’t help but smile at his reaction.
They made their way quickly through the crowd and Eli dropped his carry-on to hug his parents. Jun stood back with the baggage to let the family have their moment together.
"Dad, I want you to meet someone important," Eli said as he pulled Jun to his side. "This is Lee Junyoung. We’ve been seeing each other for about seven months now." He stared his father in the eye.
His father looked to Eli’s hand on Jun’s waist, and remained silent as he glanced back and forth between the two and then to his wife. Jun could feel Eli’s hand trembling and rubbed his back in a subtle motion.
"It’s about time I met this young man. I was wondering how much longer I was going to have to wait. It’s very nice to meet you Junyoung, and welcome to America," Eli’s father said in Korean, taking Jun’s hand into a firm grip. "I-it’s very nice to meet you too sir, and your wife," Jun stuttered and made a deep bow.
"Wait what?!" Eli and his mother stared at his father in shock. "You knew?" He stared with his mouth gaping like a fish.
"Of course I knew," he chuckled. "You’ve been working under my old friend for a while now and didn’t think he’d tell me about how you were doing? He had a lot to say about a young man that would wait for you every day you worked at the restaurant. And whenever I asked about a girlfriend, you would try to change the topic quite quickly. I figured your mother must have found out when she went for her visit. It took me a while, but it all came together with some time," he said. Jun felt his face heat up and noticed the tips of Eli’s ears turn a bright red. Were they that obvious?
"Does this mean you’re not upset with me?" Eli asked in a quiet voice, still trying to process what was happening. His father smiled and pulled him into another hug. "Son, I thought you knew that as long as you and your sisters are happy, we’ll support and love you all no matter what." His mother nodded and took Jun’s hand into hers. "I think it’s about time we get going now, boys. Your sisters must be wondering what’s taking us so long."
"So Junyoung, tell me a bit about yourself," Eli’s father said, taking one of his bags as the four of them walked to the parking lot.
a/n: ehhhhh. another one that i wrote a while back that i forgot to share. i could be happier with this but idk. i'm just happy i could write junli (aka the ship i never knew i wanted til it happened)