No Regrets

[little_passions]

Title: No Regrets
Beta: haru_ran
Pairing: Yunho/Jaejoong
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Romance, Angst, Drama
Summary: Whenever they were together, Jaejoong made him feel free.

Prequel to Freedom in Speech ♥



It wasn’t supposed to be like this.

Yunho stared at the boy sitting on the bleachers, talking animatedly with the people that were in his group. He stared at him and quickly averted his eyes to walk over to the nearby bench to grab his things. He glanced back in the direction of the group, and his eyes met the gaze of that certain boy.

Kim Jaejoong was without a doubt, dangerous. Not just because he’d sent numerous guys to the hospital for calling him a fag, but also because he was who he was. He was completely unlike most - he didn’t walk on a path that’d been set for him, he didn’t care about what people thought of him, and he did what he wanted, whenever he wanted.

No one dared to do much about Kim Jaejoong - to Yunho, he was a personal threat that couldn’t be rid of. He couldn’t be thrown out because his parents were rich sponsors for the school, and aside from his occasional behavioral incidents which were usually provoked in the first place, he was a decent enough student.

But no, the real reason why Jaejoong was dangerous was not because he had a temper or because he was rich - he was dangerous for a completely different reason that had less to do with him and more to do with Yunho.

“Yunho!”

He averted his eyes away from Jaejoong quickly to see who had called him, and Siwon grinned at him. “Are you coming to my party later?”

Yunho swallowed hard and nodded. “Yeah, definitely.”

“Oh wait, Yerin’s coming…” Siwon trailed off and looked at Yunho, “You don’t mind, do you? I mean, I know you guys had something last year, but it ended amicably enough right? Would -“

He shook his head, “It’s no big deal. I’m sure she’s over it. I know I am.”

Siwon grinned, “Well, that’s good then…I guess it’s a good thing that she goes to another school. It makes the whole thing easier for you both…but anyway, do you need me to pick you up?”

“No, it’s okay. I’ll just drive over,” Yunho answered. He picked up his bag off the bench and slung it over his shoulder. “Make sure I don’t get too drunk though, because I have to get back home.”

Siwon walked beside him as they made their way off the pitch. “I thought your parents weren’t around though? You could just stay at my place if ever you get too drunk to drive.”

Yunho adjusted the way his bag was on his shoulder, “No thanks. I’d rather sleep in my bed than sleep on your floor again.” He glanced at Siwon, “So, please make sure I don’t get too drunk. I don’t want to end up doing something I’ll regret later on either.”

His friend laughed and slapped his shoulder, “Don’t worry. Jung Yunho, golden boy of the school, doing something that shameful? No way. It’s not going to happen - you’re too straitlaced for something to happen, and even when you are drunk, you’re pretty fame...same can’t be said for Heechul though.”

They both laughed, and Siwon smiled reassuringly. “Don’t worry, you’ll be fine. Nothing terrible is going to happen, and you’re not going to do something you’ll regret. It’s going to be just another party.”
o-o-o

Yunho could feel the alcohol flowing in his system, and he groaned before he let his face fall into his hands. He’d somehow been roped into a drinking game, and now he was sitting outside with a plastic cup of water beside him, in order to avoid being roped into another and hoping that water could somehow wash out the alcohol in him. Siwon had assured him that he was fine, but Yunho didn’t want to risk anything.

He’d never been much of a risk taker in his entire life, and one party was not going to change that for him.

The wind blew against his face, and Yunho let out a sigh. He rubbed his face and glanced at Siwon’s house, which wasn’t that far away from where he was on the sidewalk. However, he was halfway between thinking properly and dizziness, and in his perspective, the house seemed half a world away.

“Hey, are you alright?”

Yunho looked up, and his eyes widened when he saw the person standing in front of him. Kim Jaejoong looked down at him then squatted so that they’d be at more or less the same eye level. His eyes raked over Yunho’s body before they came back to his face then he tilted his head questioningly.

“Jung Yunho, are you okay?” Nothing came to mind, and before Yunho could even attempt to say anything, Jaejoong laughed. “I can’t believe the first time I actually meet you is just to ask if you’re not drunk off your ass.”

“I’m not drunk,” Yunho muttered as he averted his eyes from Jaejoong’s. He coughed and shook his head, “I’m okay.”

“So why are you sitting out here on the sidewalk then?” the other boy asked curiously as he shifted so that he could sit down beside Yunho on the concrete. He smiled teasingly, “Just because you’re a star, that doesn’t mean you can’t get drunk. It’s okay.”

Yunho’s head started to hurt, and he let his face fall into his hands. He could hear Jaejoong rambling beside him, and all he wanted was for the other boy to just get away from him. He didn’t want Kim Jaejoong around him, not when his guard was down and his mind was swimming with alcohol. People did stupid things when they were drunk, and Yunho didn’t trust himself.

He couldn’t trust himself around Kim Jaejoong, not when his heart was pounding so quickly in his chest and not when his mind was clouded with thoughts on how attractive the other boy was.

“Could you go away? I don’t need you here,” Yunho asked, his voice coming off as much ruder than he’d intended to sound.

Jaejoong stopped talking, and when Yunho turned to look at him, the handsome boy’s face was scrunched up into a look of disgust. He stood up abruptly and stalked off towards Siwon’s house, not bothering to say a single word to Yunho.

“Fuck.”

Yunho watched the other boy leave, and he let out a loud sigh. He shook his head and ran his hands through his hair irritably, regretting his actions already. Deciding to make up for his asshole behavior, he got up quickly and raced after Jaejoong.

“Hey wait!”

Jaejoong turned around and crossed his arms. “What do you want?” He glanced at the direction of Siwon's house then narrowed his eyes at Yunho. “What?”

Everything was spinning to Yunho because of his sudden movement, so it took him a few seconds before he could focus his eyes on Jaejoong. He swallowed hard and opened his mouth, trying to force the words he wanted to say out of his mouth.

“I -“

Jaejoong lifted an eyebrow, “You what?” he asked, his impatience obvious.

“Wait, just wait,” Yunho muttered as he steadied himself. He reached out and gripped a lamp post tightly and took a couple of deep breaths before he looked at Jaejoong, who was eying him warily. He could feel his nervousness building up in his gut, but instead of spilling out an apology, something else came out.

Yunho vomited onto the street.

“I knew you were drunk,” Jaejoong muttered as he crossed the distance between them and helped Yunho walk away from his vomit. Yunho walked along with him willingly, allowing Jaejoong to lead him away, his mind still hazy. He saw his car nearby, and he staggered towards it.

“Is the Audi yours?”

“Yeah,” Yunho muttered, his feelings of humiliation overwhelming his usual need to escape the other teenager.

Jaejoong pulled him a little closer, and Yunho could smell his cologne. He shut his eyes and breathed in deeply.

“You smell nice.”

“I wish I could say the same for you,” Jaejoong said with a laugh as he helped Yunho into the backseat of his car. As soon as Yunho was sprawled over the leather seat, he took a step back. “Well…”

Yunho shuffled so that he could vaguely make out Jaejoong’s face in the darkness. He blinked a little, his eyes adjusting to everything before he spoke, “Thanks.”

“Are you going to be alright here?”

“It’s better than sleeping on Siwon’s floor,” Yunho mumbled. “I’ll be okay.”

“Okay…” Jaejoong put his hands into the pockets of his leather jacket, “Well, I’m going to head to the party now. It was…nice, I guess, to finally meet you Yunho.” He chuckled and Yunho couldn’t help but notice how attractive the other boy was when he smiled.

Jaejoong shut the car door, and as soon as Jaejoong was gone, Yunho groaned and buried his face into the leather. His head was hurting, his pride was bruised, and his heart was racing.

He would never go to another party ever again.
o-o-o

His brain was telling him to pretend nothing had happened. It would be easier if he just ignored Kim Jaejoong - to let things go back to the way things had used to be. But while his brain was telling one thing, his heart was telling him another. It was telling him to go and approach the other teenager, to take advantage of what had gone on between them that night.

But would it be smart to head straight towards danger? Yunho groaned and rested his forehead against the cool metal of his locker. He was good at keeping quiet, but he wasn’t a good liar. If Kim Jaejoong approached him again, he knew he wouldn’t be able to deny anything. He didn’t know what to do, and all he could think of was how much he’d regretted getting drunk.

Now it was even more difficult to get Kim Jaejoong out of his mind, and the feelings that had been so troublesome for him to accept months prior were spiraling out of control and clouding his judgment. Jaejoong was making everything so much harder for him, and was ruining everything he’d so carefully built - the prison that was meant to keep everything under control and out of his parents’ watchful eyes.

First with his face, and now with a close up experience of his personality - the other teenager had Yunho spellbound, and it was getting harder to shut his feelings back in their usual containment. After one taste of what it’d be like to be near Kim Jaejoong, he’d all of a sudden turned into some junkie wanting for more.

“Hey Yunho?”

He turned around sharply, and Junsu raised an eyebrow when he noticed the tense expression on Yunho’s face. Yunho quickly placed a forced smile on his face when he noticed Junsu’s questioning look and spoke before the other could.

“Yeah, what’s up?”

“Are you…okay?” Junsu asked as he fixed the way his bag strap settled over his shoulder. He looked at Yunho in concern, “You look a little…tense.”

Yunho swallowed and nodded. “Just thinking…you know my parents, they’re a little strict. They...they found out I got drunk at Siwon’s party, and yeah -“

“Ah,” Junsu nodded in understanding before a frown came upon his face. “Oh wait, does that mean you’re grounded?”

“No, I’m not. I just got scolded and whatever,” Yunho lied, glad that Junsu was the person he was talking to, since the other was often too trusting to realize when he was being lied to. “But anyway, what does that matter? You want to go out or something?”

“Yeah. Park Yoochun invited Junho to a party, and he wants to bring me along. You know I’m not that comfortable at being at those kinds of things, so I asked if I could bring you along too and it was fine with Yoochun, so -“

The moment he heard Yoochun’s name, Jaejoong sprung to his mind, and he impulsively spoke his mind before he could rein back his thoughts.

“Is Jaejoong going to be there?”

Junsu studied him for a few seconds, and he replied before Yunho could attempt to change the topic. “Well yeah, I guess. He and Yoochun are best friends, aren’t they? He’ll probably be there,” Junsu answered before he quickly added, “Why? Do you have a problem with him? If you don’t like him that much -“

“No…well no, I mean, I don’t have a problem with him,” Yunho stammered, his cheeks heating up. He swallowed hard and met Junsu’s confused gaze. Yunho cleared his throat, “Sure, I can go.”

“You sure?” Junsu asked, and a smile lit up his features instantly as soon as he’d heard Yunho’s affirmative answer. “I wouldn’t want to get you into any kind of trouble with your parents.”

Yunho smiled, trying to hide any of the nervousness he felt. “No, it’ll be okay.”

He was possibly heading into disaster just for another shot at getting close to Kim Jaejoong, but that small glimpse of freedom was driving him straight to it. As long as he was careful about what happened, he’d probably be fine. He’d make sure to stay sober, and stay in control.

After all, what his parents didn’t know wouldn’t hurt them.
o-o-o

He’d kept his eyes out for Kim Jaejoong the entire night, but the other teenager was nowhere to be found. Yunho glanced over at the nearby cooler that was stocked up with beer and felt the urge to grab a can and chug it down. He was alone and getting restless, and despite Junsu’s excuse of not knowing anyone, his friend had left him behind an hour ago in favor of hanging out with Yoochun. Deciding to break his restriction of not drinking, Yunho left his spot on the couch and stood up to get himself a beer.

As he crouched down and rifled through the cans, he felt someone tap his shoulder. When he turned around, an amused Kim Jaejoong was looking at him with his arms crossed in disapproval.

“Are you looking forward to a repeat of last week?” Jaejoong asked teasingly as he reached forward to pluck the can of beer out of Yunho’s hands. He opened it up easily and took a sip. “It was kind of amusing to see the head jock slumped over a light post and drunk off his ass.”

Yunho stood up and grabbed his beer out of Jaejoong’s hand. He noticed the way the other teenager’s eyes widened as he took it away, and Yunho had to hide his smirk of satisfaction when he saw Jaejoong’s eyes become larger when he took a sip out of the can.

“I’ll be fine tonight.”

“Are you sure?” Jaejoong asked as he took the beer back out of Yunho’s hand. He held it up to his lips, his eyes watching Yunho carefully. “I wouldn’t want you to get into another unfortunate situation.” He licked his lips and raked his eyes over Yunho’s body blatantly, and Yunho had a feeling that the other teenager was wondering how far he could push him.

As for what Jaejoong wanted to push him into, Yunho really had no clue, but if there was one thing he’d told himself before heading over, it was that for this night, he’d go without limits. His parents were still gone, and majority of the people at the party didn’t go to their school - he was practically free to do whatever he wanted. He still had to be pretty quiet about things - after all, word could still head over to people who knew him, but his plan was to stick to Jaejoong, and he knew Jaejoong wasn’t the kind of person to speak nonsense.

He took a step forward, and Jaejoong stared at him questioningly. It was noisy, and he could feel a slight buzz in his system, so Yunho leaned down. “Are you going to finish my beer?” Yunho whispered huskily into Jaejoong’s ear before he gestured to the can that was still in Jaejoong’s hand.

Jaejoong smiled prettily, “I’m just trying to make sure you don’t end up with a terrible hangover tomorrow.” He leaned back slightly and took a sip of the beer, and Yunho couldn’t help but admire his pale, slender neck. The tempting display of skin had him itching to lean forward, and it filled him with regret to know that if Jaejoong had been a girl, he would’ve easily kissed him at that moment.

The other teenager handed the empty beer can to Yunho. “Aren’t I wonderful? I saved you from possible misfortune.”

Before Yunho could say something in reply, someone called out to Jaejoong. They both turned in the direction of the voice, and a girl with dyed blond hair beckoned him over. Jaejoong smiled apologetically at Yunho, “I’ll see you around. Have fun.”

And just like that, as quickly as he had come, Jaejoong slipped out of Yunho’s grasp and walked away, leaving him behind and wanting for more.
o-o-o

“Are you leaving already?”

Yunho turned around, and Yoochun abandoned the girl who’d been beside him on the sofa to walk up to Yunho. He grinned at Yunho, “You know, when Junsu said he’d bring you along, I didn’t think you’d actually come.”

“Well…”

Yoochun patted Yunho’s shoulder. “It was nice to see you around. I don’t usually head over to the kind of parties you’re at - not my usual crowd, you know?”

“Yeah, I can understand that,” Yunho said with a small smile, “It was nice to be here too. I had a good time.”

“Awesome,” Yoochun said happily before he glanced over at his date, who was pouting at her phone as she took a selca of herself. He turned back to Yunho and his grin grew a little wider, “You’re a pretty cool guy. I’ll invite you personally the next time I throw a party.”

“Sure.”

“By the way, have you seen Jaejoong around?” the other teenager asked as he looked around the room. “I haven’t seen him for most of the night…ah, but then again, he might be with someone, you know?”

Yunho felt his stomach churn at the thought of that, but he hid his jealousy and forced a smile. “He’s a good looking guy, that’s not too unlikely.”

“A bit too good looking if you ask me,” Yoochun said with a laugh. He patted Yunho’s shoulder again and took a step back, “Well, it was nice to talk to you man. I’ll see you around at school, and good luck with the football game next week. I’m sure you’ll bring us to victory and whatever.”

“Thanks.”

When Yoochun had returned to his seat, Yunho turned around and made his way out of the house. He quickened his steps to get to his car, which he’d parked in front of a vacant lot, but Yunho stopped in his tracks when he noticed there was someone leaning against it.

Kim Jaejoong was smoking against his car.

Yunho approached him slowly, his heart pounding in his chest. As soon as Jaejoong saw him, he tossed his cigarette under his foot and crushed it. His red lips formed a teasing smile, and he tilted his head to look at Yunho in the darkness.

“Why are you here?”

“Because I need to talk to you,” Jaejoong said as he crossed his arms in front of his chest. Yunho’s eyes were riveted to his lips, and when Jaejoong licked them, Yunho’s eyes darted upward, and he knew he’d been caught staring.

Yunho cleared his throat and stared back at the other teenager. “What are we going to be talking about?” he asked. “Just so you know, I’m not drunk tonight.”

“Neither am I,” Jaejoong replied. “I just wanted to talk to you about something.” He pushed off Yunho’s car and took a few steps forward, making sure to stop when he was only a few centimeters from the other.

“And what’s that?”

“Were you flirting with me?” the other boy asked bluntly. He kept his arms crossed in front of his chest and held Yunho’s gaze. “I’ve noticed that you stare at me sometimes too at school, so I want to know, were you flirting with me back when we were inside?”

Yunho swallowed down his nervousness, but he still wished he could have another beer so that it would be easier for him to speak. He averted his eyes quickly, cleared his throat, and then turned his attention back to Jaejoong.

“What if I told you I was?”

Jaejoong’s eyes widened slightly, “Well…I’d tell you to fuck off - that is, if you intend on playing games with me.” He took a step forward and reached forward to pull at the collar of Yunho’s shirt. “Have you ever kissed a boy before?”

“No.”

“What about girls?”

Yunho shot him a disbelieving look, and Jaejoong laughed. “I’m sorry.” He fingered the taller boy’s collar and chuckled, “I forgot, I’m talking to the star of the century - Jung Yunho. Of course he’s kissed girls.”

“Don’t talk about that.”

“About what?” Jaejoong questioned, his eyes lifting up from Yunho’s collar to meet his eyes. “Girls?”

“Don’t talk about me like that,” Yunho replied. “I’m no one’s star.”

Jaejoong laughed again, and he leaned forward, his hips brushing against Yunho’s slightly before he backed off. “Well, we’ll have to disagree on that one. Everyone at school knows who you are. They worship the ground you walk on.”

“And what do you think of me then?”

The shorter boy thought for a few seconds before he looked up at Yunho. “I don’t know what to think. I barely even know you…but, I do know you’re pretty hot, and if you were flirting with me back inside, I’d have to say that I approve of it.”

“What else would you approve of?”

Jaejoong laughed and licked his lips. “Well aren’t you interesting?” He leaned back and rested his body against Yunho’s car, an attractive picture that Yunho doubted he would forget. He smirked and placed his hands behind his head. “Are you trying to please me?”

Yunho took a step forward, “Not really.”

“I feel like you’re going to jump me,” Jaejoong teased before he moved away from Yunho’s car and began to head down the street. Yunho quickly followed after him, and Jaejoong began to walk a little faster.

Yunho followed Jaejoong, keeping a slight distance between them - one he could easily close whenever he wanted, but he felt a thrill playing Jaejoong’s game. He was completely entranced, and seeing as they were the only two out on the street, he wanted to indulge in his buried desires for as long as he could in public. The attraction he felt to the other boy was growing stronger by the minute, and when Jaejoong stopped in front of a tree, Yunho easily jogged up to him and pressed him against it.

Jaejoong’s back hit the tree with a thud, and he looked at Yunho in the darkness, his doe eyes not revealing a single emotion. Only their breathing interrupted the silence of the night, and their faces were so close that it wouldn’t take much effort on either of their part to close the distance between their lips.

“Are you drunk?” Jaejoong whispered softly, his breath ghosting against the skin on Yunho’s face. “If I try to approach you in school, are you going to pretend I don’t exist? Are you going to beat me up? Are you going to have me silenced in some kind of way?”

Yunho set his hands on Jaejoong’s waist, and Jaejoong wrapped his arms around the other’s neck. He leaned forward, inhaled the scent of cigarettes and cologne that lingered upon Jaejoong’s skin. His heart was pounding so hard in his chest, and he could hardly breathe. There was just something so right about this - a hard body against his own, the alluring temptation of kissing a man not a woman, and it all the more solidified the realization that he’d come to nearly a year ago.

He was gay, and he wanted this - but more than anything else, Kim Jaejoong was dangerous because he wanted him. The other teenager didn’t know, but it was because of him that Yunho had realized something that he’d tried denying for years. It was because of Kim Jaejoong that Yunho had realized that the demon he’d tried locking away wasn’t really a demon, but instead, a part of him.

It was something that he wasn’t supposed to be ashamed of. “I want this,” Yunho murmured, “I want you.”

Jaejoong’s eyes met Yunho’s in the darkness, “If you really want me, then do something about it.”

He’d pushed Yunho off the edge, and Yunho willingly succumbed to the desires that he’d kept stowed away. His eyes fluttered shut, and for the first time ever, he kissed a boy. Jaejoong tasted nothing like he was used to but he tasted wonderful, and Yunho pressed Jaejoong up roughly against the tree, hungry for more.

Jaejoong broke away from him with a surprised gasp, and he blinked at Yunho in the darkness. Yunho’s heart was pounding in his chest, and as he glanced down at Jaejoong’s wet lips, he could feel his desire heighten. They stared at each other in silence, but Jaejoong broke it off first.

“…are you sure?” Jaejoong whispered, his voice soft.

Yunho nodded and pressed his forehead against Jaejoong’s. His eyes fluttered shut, and he breathed in deeply. “I’m sure.”

“Alright then,” Jaejoong murmured before he closed the distance between them and pressed his lips back against Yunho’s.

As they kissed in the darkness, Yunho became all the more sure that he’d done the right thing.
o-o-o

He’d been sitting alone in the library when Jaejoong came over. Yunho was more than aware of all the people’s eyes that were suddenly drawn to them, but he ignored the obvious looks and kept his eyes on the boy in front of them. After they’d made out, Yunho had softly told Jaejoong that he’d see him at school. They hadn’t discussed what they were, and Yunho had been too caught up in the moment to acknowledge what he’d stepped into.

Yunho had spent the entire weekend mulling over his decision on what to do next, but it was still difficult for him to voice out what he wanted in front of so many people. In all his years of growing up, he’d been so used to keeping silent about what he wanted.

Jaejoong looked at Yunho questioningly and waited for the other to acknowledge his presence. Yunho however, kept quiet, flipped the page of his book, and gathered his thoughts, unaware of the fury that had come upon the other boy’s face. When he looked up, he saw Jaejoong’s anger, and before the other teenager could say anything, Yunho spoke up first.

“Do you want to come over later?”

Jaejoong looked surprised, then calmed down and watched him carefully, “Why don’t you come over to my place instead?” he suggested as his fingers drummed softly upon the wooden surface of the table. “I’m usually the only one there.”

“Sure.”

Silence fell between them, and Jaejoong let out a nervous breath before he spoke again, “Can I sit here?”

“You’re already seated,” Yunho commented idly as he held a page of his textbook in between his fingers. “Why would I ask you to leave?”

“Because you’re Jung Yunho and I’m Kim Jaejoong,” the other boy replied softly, making sure that no one could overhear. “You know what you are…and, honestly, I’m starting to -“

“Regret what happened?” Yunho questioned, his voice tight. He looked down at his book, and his stomach churned. He’d assumed that Jaejoong wouldn’t have any problems trying something out with him, but as it turned out, he’d thought wrong. Yunho looked up, “If that’s -“

“No, I don’t regret it,” Jaejoong replied, a look of conviction on his face. “I was just starting to wonder if you did.”

“Well I don’t.”

Silence fell between them again, and Jaejoong stood up. Yunho looked at him, and he watched as Jaejoong held his book close to his chest. “Are you going?” Yunho asked softly, “You just got here.”

“I only came here to see you. I’m supposed to be meeting with Yoochun right now.”

“Oh.”

They stared at each other, and Jaejoong’s lips quirked into a small smile. “You have practice later, right?”

“Yeah, I do.”

“Should I wait for you?”

“I’d like that,” Yunho breathed out, and as soon as he saw the beautiful smile that graced Jaejoong’s face, he could feel his heart race in his chest. Jaejoong seemed pleased with him, and Yunho felt happy.

Jaejoong blushed slightly and looked down, “Well, I’ll see you later. I’ll meet you at the parking lot.”

“Okay.”

Once again, they fell into silence, and Jaejoong shot Yunho another smile before he quickly walked away. Yunho turned his eyes back to his book, and although he could hear faint whispers, he ignored all of them and tried to get back to reading. However, after five minutes of trying to read, Yunho gave up and settled for just staring blankly at a page.

His mind was too filled with Jaejoong to think about anything else.
o-o-o

Yunho was sitting awkwardly on Jaejoong’s bed, waiting for the latter to come back. He wasn’t surprised that no one was home. He’d heard that Jaejoong’s parents were constantly gone from his mother, and whenever she brought that up, she’d talk about how that was why their son had become so messed up. Yunho never commented on anything during those one-sided conversations, and while she talked, he wondered what she would say when she found out just how messed up he really was.

“You’re so quiet.”

He looked up, and Jaejoong was leaning against the doorframe. He’d gone to his bathroom to change, and had changed out of his uniform into a loose shirt and inappropriately short shorts that had Yunho staring at the other boy’s legs.

“But you’re more expressive than you think…or well, maybe just around me,” Jaejoong murmured as he walked over to pick something off the floor. Yunho watched as Jaejoong bent down in front of him, and he was well aware that Jaejoong was teasing him.

When Jaejoong turned around, he smirked. “You liked that, didn’t you?”

“Yes.”

Jaejoong laughed and sat down beside Yunho on his bed. Yunho watched as Jaejoong stared up at the ceiling, and he slowly moved to lie down beside Jaejoong. He didn’t know where to place his hands, so he kept them away from Jaejoong. He could feel nervousness creeping upon him, and his heart was pounding in his chest as he waited for Jaejoong to help him out.

“What do you want to happen here?” Jaejoong asked, as he turned his head to look at Yunho.

Yunho rested against Jaejoong’s bed and held his gaze. “I told you, I -“

“You want me, but…I’m not a thing,” Jaejoong said softly as he looked up at the ceiling. He took a deep breath, and Yunho watched as the other’s chest rose then fell. “I’m a person, with feelings…that you may hurt in the future.”

“I’m sorry.”

Jaejoong glanced at him, “You haven’t even done anything to me yet. Why are you apologizing?”

“I…” Yunho shook his head and sighed. “I’m terrible at talking. I’m not used to it, I guess.”

A small smile crossed Jaejoong’s face. “I talk even if no one’s listening.” He reached out to intertwine his fingers with Yunho’s. “Oh God, I feel like you’re going to be the end of me. We’re rushing into everything, and I wouldn’t be surprised if this ended up being a disaster.”

Yunho was silent, and Jaejoong studied his face.

“So you really don’t talk much, huh?” He tilted over to his side so that he could face Yunho properly and used his other hand to comb through Yunho’s hair. “Well…I guess I could do the talking most of the time…but I have a question for you though.”

“What is it?”

“…are you gay?”

Yunho felt his throat close up. This would be the first time he would ever speak about his sexuality, and he could feel his heart racing in his chest. Jaejoong was watching him carefully, and it was like it was becoming difficult for him to breathe. He shut his eyes, gathered himself and opened his eyes once more.

His world wouldn’t end if he said yes. All he had to do was affirm something that he’d known for months, but why was it so hard? Yunho didn’t know if his interior struggle was showing, but he could see Jaejoong look at him worriedly.

Jaejoong opened his mouth to speak first, but Yunho beat him to it.

“Yes.”

Yunho waited with abated breath for Jaejoong to speak, but instead of speaking, Jaejoong leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. He drew back before Yunho could deepen the kiss and pressed their foreheads together.

“Okay then…me too, but I guess you already know that.” Jaejoong chuckled against Yunho’s skin and kissed him chastely once more. “Aside from me, does anyone else know?”

“No,” Yunho whispered.

Silence fell between them, and Yunho felt ashamed of his cowardice in front of Jaejoong. He averted his eyes and tried to move away, but Jaejoong reached out and held him closer.

“It’s okay,” Jaejoong murmured encouragingly. “One step at a time…I can be here for you...to help you, if you want me to.”

Yunho nodded and pulled Jaejoong closer, his heart fluttering in his chest. “I’d really appreciate that.” He could feel Jaejoong smile against his skin, and Yunho inhaled deeply. Yunho hugged Jaejoong tightly, and when they were settled, he decided to ask a question.

“What about your parents?”

Jaejoong chuckled, and Yunho couldn’t help but notice the trace of bitterness in his voice. “They don’t care really.” He murmured, “Their marriage has been dead for ages, and they fight like crazy. I don’t even know why they’re together anymore, and they’re hardly ever here at the same time. It’s fucked up. They’re too busy doing other things to care about what I’m doing.”

Yunho hugged Jaejoong tighter, and Jaejoong leaned into him. He felt Jaejoong’s lips press against his neck, and his heart fluttered. Jaejoong whispered softly against his skin, his voice so quiet that Yunho almost hadn’t caught the words that had come out of his mouth.

“I don’t want to end up like them. I want real love.”

It turned out his heart had chosen correctly after all.
o-o-o

When Yunho came downstairs, only Jihye was around. His parents had been back for a couple of weeks now, and everything was back into place. His father had interrogated him about his studies and sports, and his mother had commented about how nice it would’ve been for him to get a girlfriend. Needless to say, his brain had been numb during the entire conversation, and he’d spoken his usual answers, resulting in momentarily content parents.

Both he and Jihye were not looking forward to the next interrogation.

He sat down beside his sister, and she pushed a plate that had eggs, bacon and toast upon it towards him. Yunho glanced at her, “You made this for me?”

Jihye nodded. “Yeah,” she flipped a page of her book then turned her attention back to him. “Mom and dad fought again. I’m glad you missed it. I don’t know what they fought about, but they’re both gone now.”

Yunho sighed and took a bite of his toast. He chewed silently and swallowed before he spoke. “Do you know what they fought about?”

“Nope, and I really don’t care,” Jihye commented idly. She’d always been the more rebellious one out of the two of them, and Yunho admired her for that. They both shared a disdain for the way their parents acted, but only Jihye was the one who was more obvious about it. She never spoke back to their parents, but she was more open and revealing to her close friends and to him what she felt about them.

Yunho however, kept everything shut up inside…or at least he had, until he’d met Jaejoong.

“Thanks for breakfast,” Yunho said lightly as he peered at Jihye’s book. “You’ve saved me once again from the risk of burning the house down. It’s really good and -“

Jihye looked at her brother. “Actually, I wanted to talk to you about something.”

Yunho inched away from her and raised an eyebrow. “Go ahead.”

“You’ve been…happy.” Jihye said slowly, “And you don’t stay at home as often as you used to. Are you seeing someone?”

He choked on his toast, and Jihye smiled knowingly. She smiled to herself and flipped through her book, “I thought so.”

Yunho cleared his throat and stared at his sister. He studied her carefully, and he could tell that she was genuinely happy for him. Even though he loved and trusted his sister, he still felt like it was too early for her to know about what was going on between him and Jaejoong. After all, they’d only been seeing each other for a bit over a month.

“You won’t tell…right?”

Jihye scowled, “Of course not.” She turned her eyes back to her book, “But I want to meet this person someday, alright?”

“Of course.”

She looked at him and smiled. “Promise?”

“I promise.”
o-o-o

“Yunho honey, I think we have to talk.”

He looked up from his math notes, and Yunho watched as his mother sat down anxiously upon his bed. She wrung her hands together tightly, and he had more than a feeling he knew what she would talk to him about. Seeing as he never really went out with anyone after school or football practice, no one really noticed how much time he’d actually started spending with Jaejoong, but he knew that people still talked about their newfound relationship.

His friends had been surprised by the fact Yunho had started saying hi to the other student, and so Yunho had told them that he’d met and become friends with Jaejoong at Yoochun’s party. Seeing as majority of them, except for Junsu and Junho, hadn’t been there, they accepted his answer easily and didn’t press any further. Most of his friends preferred to keep Jaejoong at an arm’s length, and seeing as Yunho kept cool about everything, no one questioned his answer.

The way most people saw it was that Yunho was a good guy who was trying to change Jaejoong for the better, and both Yunho and Jaejoong were fine with that. However, he knew that his mother would probably have a different opinion on things. She was probably worried that Jaejoong would taint the reputation their family had for being upright characters in the neighborhood.

“What about?”

“Well…I heard something during the PTA meeting,” his mother started, and she cleared her throat before she continued. “Mrs. Choi told me about how you and that…that boy, Kim Jaejoong have become friends. Is it true?”

“Yes mom, it’s true.”

Mrs. Jung glanced down at her hands, “Honey…you do know that…that your dad doesn’t like him, right? And…you know why, right?” Yunho stared at his mother and nodded. He wasn’t surprised that his mother had brought up his father. All of them knew that his father was the dominant force in the household - if anything went wrong, his father was quick to put things back into shape through any means possible.

“I don’t want you to be like him honey.” Mrs. Jung said slowly, “You don’t want to become such a disgrace -“

Yunho felt his anger rise up to this throat, but he knew lashing out would be of no use whatsoever. He listened to his mother talk about how disgusting Jaejoong was, and as soon as she was done, she smiled.

“I know you’re trying to help him honey, but I hope that one day, you realize that some people can’t be saved.”

She smiled at him and hugged him, but he remained unmoving. His mother turned the room, and as soon as she was gone, Yunho laughed bitterly to himself. He looked out the window and shook his head.

If only she knew how wrong she was about everything.
o-o-o

Just as Yunho was putting his things into his car, he heard someone clear her throat behind him. He turned around, and when he saw Yerin standing in front of him. She shifted awkwardly in front of him and spoke.

“Hey.”

Yunho closed his car door and looked at her carefully before he spoke, “Hey.”

They stood in an uncomfortable silence for a few seconds, and Yerin bit her lip. She let out a sigh and rubbed at her arm. “Can we talk somewhere? In private? I…I just wanted to uhm, talk.”

“Oh yeah, sure.”

Yunho opened the backseat door of his car and transferred his things over to the passenger seat. He took a step back, and Yerin slid in before he followed in after her. The tension was stifling, and just as Yunho was about to roll down a car window, Yerin spoke.

“…are you seeing anyone?”

“What?” Yunho questioned, as he turned to look at her. She stared back at him, and he could tell that she was serious about her question. “Well…” Jaejoong came to his mind immediately, and so he spoke as truthfully as he could. “I kind…of I kind of have something going on with someone.”

Yerin nodded slowly and stared at her hands. “I heard…my friends told me you weren’t seeing anyone.” She whispered, “I regretted that things ended the way they did, you know? Our relationship…it just sort of died out.” She turned her head and looked at Yunho, “I really liked you.”

Yunho swallowed hard. “Oh.”

“But…you didn’t really like me, did you?” Yerin questioned.

When Yunho didn’t reply immediately, she let out a sigh. Yerin opened the car door and stepped out, “This was stupid of me.” She headed out of the car, and Yunho quickly followed after her.

“Yerin! Wait, I’m sorry.”

She turned her head to look at him and shook her head. “You were just being honest. I’ll be okay. Bye Yunho.”

Yunho watched her walk away, and as soon as she was merely a small figure in the distance, Yunho sighed. He turned around and slammed his car door shut loudly. He didn’t know why he was frustrated, but he just was. When he looked away from the ground, he raised his eyes and saw that Jaejoong was staring at him from afar.

Jaejoong quickly stalked away, and Yunho had to run after him. He was glad that no one was around anymore because of how late it was, and he caught up to Jaejoong easily. He held onto Jaejoong’s wrist and pulled back, but when he pulled Jaejoong, the other quickly aimed a punch for his face which he luckily managed to dodge.

“What the fuck Jaejoong!”

Jaejoong shoved him, “What the fuck Yunho?” He pushed Yunho again, “Who the fuck was that? What were you doing with her, in your backseat of all places? I’m not fucking stupid okay. I know the kinds of things that go on there. I’m not some play thing -“

“She’s no one important.” The seriousness in Yunho’s tone made Jaejoong stop shouting, and so Yunho took advantage of Jaejoong’s silence to speak. “I had something with her last year, and I promise you, it’s over now. If I felt anything for her, it doesn’t come close to what I feel for you.”

Jaejoong fell silent, and a guilty look came across his face. “I’m sorry.”

Yunho couldn’t even muster up an attempt to get mad at Jaejoong. He could understand what the other was feeling after all. With the kind of society they lived in, he was sure that there were people who did the exact thing that Jaejoong had suspected him of. After all, they’d gotten together in a manner that was highly out of the ordinary for most people - Yunho had rushed everything, and he could see why Jaejoong had thought that he was suddenly backing out.

Although Jaejoong was a strong person, and Yunho admired him for that, Yunho knew that the other teenager had his own fair share of fears as well. He could understand why Jaejoong felt the way he did, but he didn’t want him to feel that way for much longer. He was sure of what he felt, and Yunho wished that one day, Jaejoong would trust him enough to realize that Yunho wasn’t going to be changing his mind any time soon.

He had no regrets.
o-o-o

He was serious about getting Jaejoong to trust him more, and Yunho could tell that Jaejoong was appreciating each gesture. Yunho started to approach Jaejoong more in school, and he’d even gotten the responsibility of becoming Jaejoong’s assigned Math tutor, courtesy of their shared math teacher. However, most of the sessions ended up with barely any studying being done at all.

Yunho also had more than just a feeling that Jaejoong was amused by his awkwardness when it came to almost everything that required romance or charm. The first time he’d gotten an erection in front of Jaejoong, the other had laughed at him while he’d blushed to death. There’d been so many moments that Jaejoong had laughed at him in private, but now...

For the first time ever, they would be going out together in public, and Yunho was more than sure he’d end up ruining everything. He took a deep breath and held the steering wheel tightly. His heart was pounding in his chest, and he didn’t really know what to do. Their plan was to drive out to the beach, have dinner there, and then go back to Yunho’s place after, since Jihye was at her friend’s house and his parents were at Gwangju for a distant relative’s wedding.

Were they going to have sex? He honestly didn’t know, but the idea wasn’t something that he was against. Yunho shook his head and sighed - he was getting carried away. He’d let things end up wherever they led to and just stop thinking so much.

Someone knocked at his car window, and Yunho unlocked his car. Jaejoong slipped into the passenger seat, a traditional picnic basket in his hands. There was a happy smile on Jaejoong’s face, and Yunho decided to keep quiet about the cheesiness of getting an actual picnic basket.

“Seatbelt,” Yunho said softly, and Jaejoong handed him the picnic basket so that he could put it on.

As soon as Jaejoong was done, Yunho handed him back the picnic basket. Jaejoong smiled happily, and he frowned when he noticed that Yunho was still looking at the picnic basket.

“You don’t like it?” he questioned.

“It’s…” Yunho stared at it. “Nice?”

Jaejoong scowled, “You don’t appreciate anything but football, do you?” he sighed and leaned back into his seat. “Well, I raided a supermarket after school today to get food, and you’ll have to appreciate all of it or else I’m not even touching you with a ten foot pole today.”

Yunho laughed and started his car’s engine. “I’m not a picky eater, so I guess we should be good tonight.”

“Good,” Jaejoong said happily as he took out a bag of chips and then placed the picnic basket in the backseat of Yunho’s car. He opened the bag and grabbed a large chip to feed Yunho with.

Yunho stared at the chip for a few seconds before he looked at Jaejoong. He didn’t move his mouth forward to eat it, so Jaejoong quickly retracted his hand, a hurt expression on his face. He looked out the car window, and Yunho quickly spoke in order to make things right again.

“I hate Doritos.”

Jaejoong turned his face to look at Yunho. “Are you serious?”

“Yes.”

The older teenager rolled his eyes and punched Yunho’s shoulder. He shook his head, but Yunho was relieved to see a smile come back onto his face. “You should’ve said something you idiot.” He scowled and looked at Yunho, “How can you hate Doritos? No one hates Doritos!”

Yunho smiled, “I just do.”

“Well…fine, more for me,” Jaejoong muttered as he stuffed some chips into his mouth. He chewed noisily on purpose, and Yunho merely laughed at him. As soon as he was done chewing, he glanced at Yunho. “So…can I play music?”

Yunho bit his lip, “You could turn on the radio...if you want.”

“You don’t have music?”

“Usually Jihye just plugs in her iPOD, and I just listen to whatever she listens to.” Yunho replied. He looked at Jaejoong, “Uhm, if you have your iPOD -“

“I didn’t bring it…” Jaejoong trailed off then stuck his tongue out at Yunho. He turned away and looked forward, “I don’t want to listen to the radio. All they play are the annoying mainstream songs -“

“Hipster.”

Yunho chuckled at the shocked look on Jaejoong’s face. He gripped the steering wheel a little tighter, and Jaejoong pushed his arm.

“I am not a hipster, okay? I swear, you…it’s like all you do is study and play football. You need to get into other things,” Jaejoong muttered, and Yunho glanced at him with an amused look on his face. “I’m going to make you a mixtape. I don’t care if those things are old fashioned, but I’m going to make you one, and you’re going to like it.”

Yunho laughed, “Fine then.”

Jaejoong leaned his seat back slightly and propped his legs up onto his seat. He hugged his knees and looked at Yunho. “Why are we going to the beach anyway? Isn’t it kind of cold?”

“I like the beach.”

“…are we going skinny dipping? I kind of want to know what little, or well, big Yunho looks like. It hasn’t been that fun just feeling him rub against me -“

“Jaejoong!”

Yunho blushed a dark red, and Jaejoong burst out into laughter. His laughter resounded in the car, and Yunho couldn’t help but laugh with him. He smiled happily, and when he glanced at Jaejoong, he caught the other smiling brightly at him.

“I just want you to know,” Jaejoong said softly, “These past few months have been amazing. I…I’m happy, you know? I haven’t told anyone about us…but Yoochun said I’m different lately. Yunho…”

Yunho glanced at him. “Yeah?”

“Are you happy too?”

He was silent for a few moments, and Yunho took the time to reflect. He mused over the numerous hours he’d spent at Jaejoong’s house doing anything and everything, and if it made him happy. There was only one answer - yes. He knew his parents and most of his friends would disapprove strongly, while maybe Jihye and a few people wouldn’t but he was happy with who he was and who he was seeing.

Whenever they were together, Jaejoong made him feel free.

They were in front of the beach, and Yunho parked the car. He kept the doors locked and looked at Jaejoong.

“I don’t regret anything,” Yunho said seriously as he held Jaejoong’s gaze. “I’m happy Jaejoong, and…I want…someday, I want to be free of everything and to just tell everyone, but…not now, okay?” He looked down and let out a heavy breath, “I’m sorry I’m like this, that I don’t have the same courage you do, that I come with so much baggage you have to -“

“Stop, just stop.”

Jaejoong unbuckled his seatbelt, and he reached forward to hug Yunho tightly. Yunho pulled him closer, and they stayed that way for awhile. When Jaejoong pulled away, he cupped Yunho’s face and pressed their foreheads together.

“It’ll be okay,” Jaejoong whispered. “I can wait for you. I’ll be here.”

“Thank you,” Yunho whispered back before he expressed his gratefulness in the only way he knew how. He kissed Jaejoong and poured all his gratitude, love and joy into the kiss. When he pulled away, Jaejoong drew him back.

“Don’t worry,” Jaejoong whispered. “One day, I just know it, you’ll be free.”
o-o-o

Yunho chuckled as he pulled Jaejoong upstairs, the other boy drunk from all the alcohol he’d consumed at the beach. Jaejoong held onto him tightly, and they got upstairs noisily with Jaejoong hitting the stair railing every once in a while. As soon as they got into his room, Jaejoong fell onto Yunho’s bed and spread his arms out.

There was a delicate expression on Jaejoong’s face, blissful and subtly lustful as well as he met Yunho’s gaze in the dark. He stretched his arms out further, and Yunho silently made his way over to him. He cupped Jaejoong’s face and kissed him passionately, their tongues intertwining and sliding against each other’s. Yunho could feel Jaejoong’s hands fumbling with his belt buckle, but he pushed them away.

“Not yet,” he whispered as he helped Jaejoong out of his jacket. “Not when you’re drunk.” He kissed Jaejong’s neck, and he saw Jaejoong pout in the darkness.

“I’m not that drunk,” Jaejoong murmured as he wriggled underneath Yunho. He lifted his arms up and looked at his boyfriend expectantly, “Can you help me out of my shirt at least then?”

Yunho chuckled and helped Jaejoong out of his shirt. He admired the soft glow of Jaejoong’s skin in the moonlight and ran his hands over the other’s chest, and he could feel Jaejoong shiver from the contact. He leaned down slowly and began to suck and bite at the juncture between Jaejoong’s shoulder and his neck, and Jaejoong moaned softly underneath him.

His kisses were slow and languid, nervous discoveries of Jaejoong’s body. It was obvious that they weren’t going to have sex tonight, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t appreciate Jaejoong’s body in a different way. Their hips rubbed slowly against each other, providing delicious friction, and Yunho hissed as Jaejoong grinned at him in the darkness.

“Yunho…”

They were caught up in the moment, and Yunho pressed his forehead against Jaejoong’s and ran his hands through the other’s hair. They smiled against each other’s lips, and were absorbed in their own private little world. Slowly, they resumed their kisses with equal fervor, but they were too consumed with one another to hear the door open.

The lights were flicked on, and Jihye let out a loud gasp.

“Oh my God.”

Yunho broke away from Jaejoong immediately, and he stared at his sister. She stared back at him before her eyes darted to look at Jaejoong, quite obviously male and quite obviously aroused underneath her brother. It was a tense moment, and Yunho could feel his heart thudding in his chest. Nothing was coming to his mind, but the way Jihye was staring at him scared him.

Was she going to reject him?

“I -“

Jihye took a step back and quickly rushed out of the room, and Yunho stumbled over Jaejoong to get to her. He tripped over Jaejoong’s legs and fell onto the floor, but he quickly got up and ran out after his sister. He looked around wildly and paced down the stairs, taking two at a time.

Just as he was about to head out the door, he stopped when he saw his sister sitting on the couch. She raised her eyes off the floor and looked at him, and he approached her slowly. She made no move to leave the room, and it didn’t seem like she was going to speak, so Yunho knew that he would have to be the one to speak first.

“I didn’t know you were coming home,” he whispered.

Jihye swallowed and looked away for a moment before she met her brother’s careful gaze. “I…I didn’t want to leave you alone tonight. I figured that we could have uhm, a midnight snack or something…”

“Jihye, I…”

“Does he make you happy?” Jihye asked softly. She held her brother’s gaze, “Is…is he the person you’ve been seeing for the past couple of months?”

“Yes.” Yunho swallowed hard and stared at Jihye. She was the only one who truly loved him in their entire family. If she rejected him, if she were disgusted by him - he would be devastated. His heart clenched painfully in his chest, and he knew that his pain was visible on his face. “Please, don’t…please…” He couldn’t stammer out the next words, and before he knew what was happening, Jihye had gotten off the couch and wrapped her arms around him tightly.

He hugged her tightly and could feel the tears leaking out of the corners of his eyes as he sobbed against her much smaller frame.

“I’m gay,” he whispered brokenly against her hair. “I’m -“

“I love you,” she spoke, her voice firm and warm. Jihye pulled away from him, and she held his arms tightly. “I don’t care about who you love, as long as he treats you well and makes you happy. You’re my only real family. I love you. Just as you’ve protected me through the years…I’ll protect you.”

Her smile was watery as tears rolled down her cheeks, “I hate you, you know?” She whispered, “Your boyfriend’s so much cuter than any of my past boyfriends. Does he have a brother?”

The siblings laughed, and Yunho held his sister tightly once more. His heart was overflowing with emotion, and he could feel Jihye’s love radiating off her in waves. He felt so much stronger, knowing that she supported him, and even though he would still have to keep things hidden, at least now he knew that not everyone would be against him when the truth would come to light.

There was a sound from the stairs, and the siblings broke apart to see Jaejoong, timidly standing at the foot of the stairs. He’d put his shirt on, and he was eying them warily, unsure of what to do. Yunho smiled reassuringly, but before he could say anything, Jihye spoke first.

“Do you like ice cream?” she asked as she wiped her tears away. Yunho watched as she approached Jaejoong and held out her hand. A small smile came to his face, and he was reminded all the more of why he loved Jihye so much. She was always so open with people - always so willing to love despite the loveless parents they’d grown up under, and he had never appreciated her loving nature more than he had at that moment.

“Oh wait, sorry. Hi, I’m Yunho’s sister, Jihye. I…haven’t heard much about you, but I guess I could get to know you better tonight…if you’re staying over.”

Jaejoong bit his lip and shook her hand. “I’m Jaejoong…” He kept his eyes focused on the younger girl and asked, “Would it be okay if I stayed over?”

“Sure,” Jihye said happily as she turned away and began to make her way to the kitchen, “It’ll be fun, I promise. It’ll be nice to finally meet my brother’s boyfriend.” She disappeared into the hallway, and the two boys stood quietly in the living room.

Jaejoong looked up at Yunho. “Is…is it okay with you if I stay?”

Before Jaejoong could say anything more, Yunho crossed the distance between them and kissed him. When he pulled away, Jaejoong looked up at him worriedly, so Yunho soothed those fears by running his hands through the other’s hair. He smiled and hugged Jaejoong tightly.

“I think I love you,” he whispered as he pulled Jaejoong closer, “I really do.”

His heart was pounding in his chest as he waited for Jaejoong’s reply, He could feel Jaejoong sink deeper into his embrace, so he said nothing further and simply waited for the other to reply. After a few more seconds of silence had passed, Jaejoong finally spoke.

“I think I love you too,” he murmured.

They stood in a comfortable silence for a bit longer before Yunho pulled away. He reached out and held Jaejoong’s hand tightly, a smile on his face. As he stared at the face of the boy who’d come to mean so much to him - love, hope, freedom, and so much more, Yunho couldn’t help but feel a wave of peace wash of him.

He couldn’t help but feel all the more sure that his heart had chosen correctly. This boy standing in front of him, so filled with love and life, was the one. One day, when he was strong enough and ready to do so, he’d take the leap and risk everything to be with him.

They’d face the future together, and everything would be alright.

Author’s Note: A huuuuuuuuge thank you to gu2duck, because without her, I honestly would’ve just left this plot behind. This whole plot + Freedom in Speech were actually supposed to be combined into one oneshot, but because I had difficulties writing this, I ended up scrapping it. It was because of her comment in Freedom in Speech that inspired me to pick up on this plot and just go ahead and write it, so, thank you so much for that unintentional push into writing this. :) In terms of inspiration, the song that I have listed in this entry Delicate by Damien Rice, was just loads of help as well in getting me to write. If you guys want, do check it out. It’s an incredible song. ^^ Also, I hope that this whole fic…I don’t know, touches you guys? I can honestly say that this is one of my favourite things that I have ever written, so I hope you all feel the same. Also, I do hope you guys like the similarity between the ending line of this fic, and the last line of Freedom in Speech. XD I hope you guys all enjoyed this, and thank you so much for reading and commenting. ♥