[DC17] Before The Sun Rises
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: HenHae
Genre: AU!Romance, Drama, Minor!Angst
Theme: Dew, Phrase to include: "something like a dream"
Summary: Things too good to be true often have a price, Donghae assumed it had long been paid. He thought wrong.
-
He was the story worth retelling, worth reliving every night he closed his eyes, something like a dream, only better.
Henry walked through the gently watered grass of the late evening, eyes searching endlessly through the darkness as he walked by the banks.
It was only then, in these times, when he could hold out a hand, and feel another tug it back. But tonight instead of that touch, he felt a brutal assault against his back.
Donghae nearly pounced on him, arms grappling tight around his waist.
"Donghae-"
"Don't leave that long, ever again." Donghae uttered, eyes closed shut.
Henry shifted his eyes behind him to the figure who hid his face in the crook of his neck, a small smile tracing his lips. Ending as Donghae opened his eyes and met his own. The younger teenager shifted his eyes when Donghae took the initiative, and placed a soft kiss on his lips.
It had been too long for either of them.
"Are you alright?" Donghae asked then, his grip unrelenting. Henry rested against him and nodded. "With all that time in the city, I thought that maybe the doctor had..."
"I'm fine, it was too bright that my parents didn't want to risk it. They waited until it rained." Henry explained. "I tried to convince them, but they wouldn't listen. As always." He exhaled irritably.
Donghae then noticed his empty grip, "You forgot your umbrella."
"It's alright." Henry assured, Donghae seemed unsure and took him to the shelter beneath the trees despite the dark skies. He wouldn't risk Henry's health.
Henry's skin was ghostly pale, almost glowing as the soft light from the waters reflected on his face and neck. A sight Donghae's eyes couldn't tear away from. Unable to stop him from leaving behind a mark that marred its fairness.
The night was too short as the skies lightened. Yet as a dense fog loomed in, they had to part, the fog only sparing him moments as it shielded him from the rising sun.
"I'll come tomorrow." Henry uttered. "My parents won't be home then, if you want, you can come by."
Donghae anticipated that, only a few times had they done so, their parents rarely leaving Henry alone.
Before the dew could settle on the grass, Henry had long left, leaving Donghae with his hands stuffed down his pockets, sighing as he glared at the skies.
The sun was his own enemy, and he too often reminded of that fact.
-
Donghae went through classes with ease, sitting inside his pick-up as he skipped the last class of the day. His thoughts drifted off the person who captured his attention.
Beginning the one night he strolled through the forest grounds. Surprised to see someone he couldn't recognize, an impossibility in this small town, sitting idly by the water with a black umbrella over him.
Henry declined every time he asked him to meet during the day but never explained why. It was when Henry had risked staying longer, did Donghae see the pain seer through his expression once the sunlight hit his skin that the umbrella couldn't protect.
The dark brown tint that followed the reddening made Henry embarrassed, almost refusing to see him again. Donghae wouldn't have that.
Allergic to sun, to light, his parents protective to the point that he couldn't risk going to school, much less meeting others in town. A loner by force, Donghae a loner by choice.
Despite their differences, that fact may have brought them together. Yet Henry scolded him often for it.
"You shouldn't only rely on me," Henry said, laying his back against the grass, umbrella over his face. The rest of him covered in black clothing. "If you bother to smile every once in a while, you might make a friend or two."
Donghae listened, his eyes intently on his face.
"You make it seem as if it's impossible to smile." Henry spoke afterward, stubbornly upset.
"It's not that it's impossible, it's just there was never anything worth smiling over." Donghae said.
And once Henry felt Donghae's head lay on his stomach, meeting his brightly lit eyes and soft smile, he felt the meaning come across. The paler his skin was, the easier it was for Donghae to see the slight red hue that rose.
"Maybe you aren't seeing a doctor in the city, maybe you're secretly meeting someone behind my back." Donghae randomly accused.
Henry widened his eyes, "I would never."
"How would I know? Your parents don't know about me, no one knows about us here nor there. You could easily live a second life."
"I swear! There's no one else but you."
"Lies." Donghae joked, but pleased with the sincere reply, the back of his hand caressing Henry's cheek.
Henry was his best kept secret.
If his parents had known of their relationship, then it would be forcibly cut short. If they had realized Henry had left the security of their house, Henry would be held back in every way possible. These risks, these consequences were forgotten the moment their hands intertwined.
Every night Donghae anticipated, awaiting to spend time in simplicity with the other. Their conversations often pointless, random, sometimes debatable, but it never failed to bring a smile to Donghae's face. They laid like that on the grass of every night when Henry snuck out to meet him. And he whimsically, foolishly wished these nights would never end.
-
The sun almost rose.
"No." Henry said, waking up Donghae who had rested beside him. To their horror, they could see the fog slowly lifting. Henry didn't have time to get home, no umbrella to shield him from the morning rays.
"Come with me," Donghae ordered, pulling Henry's hand to the nearest place by Donghae's small house.
They took shelter inside the wooden shed a long distance behind it, a place Donghae knew no one would walk in. The day was beautifully bright with clear blue skies, a sight Henry could never enjoy.
"Is your skin alright?" Donghae asked, Henry had cornered himself in the farthest part of the room, away from penetrating sun rays.
"I'm fine."
Donghae then stared warily, "You haven't drink your green tea yet either."
"What's the point of drinking it if I'm never allowed outside?" Henry countered lowly. Donghae examined his expression, attempting to read his thoughts.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing." Henry stubbornly answered, lowering his eyes. Donghae knelt down before him, checking his hands.
"Does it hurt?"
"No, it doesn't." Henry said icily, realizing his tone, he apologized as he closed his eyes. Donghae patiently placed a hand on his own that rested on his lip. "My parents protect me enough, my whole life has been secured that it's almost suffocating. I don't need to be protected by you too."
"I'm sorry. But not worrying about you would have happened even if you weren't like this." Donghae uttered, unfazed. "You could be the healthiest person alive, and I'd still make sure you were okay."
Henry narrowed his eyes, annoyed at that answer, but soon breathed out. He could never stay angry at Donghae for long.
It was with Donghae that he could experience freedom, to be treated normally, or as close to being so. Never having to think about the right light-bulbs placed in his room, the subjects he had to learn to catch up, the thought of what to do for university and other possibilities that may pass him by because of his condition. One he often told his parents others lived with just fine, enjoying their lives outside despite the risks, often telling them he would take caution if they gave him a chance.
They wouldn't hear of it.
"I'm sorry." Henry apologized. "If I wasn't like this, then maybe we could date like other people. Outside, in normal places like everyone else."
"Why must you be obsessed with normal?" Donghae prompted. "If you were like everyone else, I wouldn't be interested in you." Donghae said, earning a soft chuckle.
"My parents will know I'm gone." Henry said after a long silence, a light worry in the edge of his voice. Donghae didn't meet his eyes as Henry watched him, the older gently tracing his fingers on his palm.
Even at his home, Donghae never once did more than kiss him. He wasn't fragile, but maybe the other assumed so. Or maybe he wouldn't take the iniative.
Henry wanted to spontaneously do as he wanted, and not live life by a schedule, not having to think of the limits time placed on him.
He was tired of always having to consider the risks.
Donghae felt his lips meet his, hungrily as Henry leaned against him, soon his back meeting the ground.
To his surprise, Donghae stopped him. "We can't."
"Why not?" He asked, straddling his lap, arms around his neck. "I thought you wanted me." Henry said hesitantly. "Do you not... not want me?"
"That is easily the worst question you could ever ask me." Donghae uttered, Henry glowered. Donghae reached out to assure him. "I do want you, believe me. I'll even admit, not all my thoughts of you were the purest."
Donghae gently weaved his fingers into his hair. "I just don't want our first time on these floorboards." Henry didn't seem convinced, eyes lowered. Donghae then kissed him on the lips, smiling. "Don't worry, I don't have much self-restraint around you. I may regret it by tonight even."
To that, Henry laughed under his breath, leaning against Donghae's shoulder. They embraced each other, relaxed and at peace, awaiting for the day to end.
-
Donghae waited by the banks, eyes scurrying about at every angle, reacting to every sound of the forest. But there was no sign of Henry.
He daringly walked by the house that once had black curtains on every window, but to his surprise, the curtains were now bare.
It was through the gossip of the small town, did Donghae realized and face the brutal truth.
"His parents moved to the city to be closer to the doctors. They say his health got worse."
The young man could only pretend the news hadn't affected him, his already solemn expression didn't appear to change to his classmates or family. No one knew of their relationship, as if it had never happened.
At some point in Donghae's thoughts, did he question the reality of the nightly visits. That maybe he had dreamt it, and was still foolishly yearning for.
-
He opened his eyes, frustrated once more as he sat up, unable to sleep.
He threw off the covers despite the late evening, the now matured man putting on his jacket. He didn't care if he had an early shift tomorrow, he'd put another all-nighter.
He was never sure what to do during the nights insomnia affected him, jumping from place to place, from the quietest of still opened libraries to the noisiest of clubs. None of it made him happy, even with the countless names he now know, of faces he saw almost every day. His reaction remained the same, just as discontent.
"This was the life you wanted me to have right?" Donghae once asked, gulping down a glass of beer. His friends hadn't heard him, and brought him to another binge.
Parties were overrated in his mind. To think he craved for a simple evening, on a nightly stroll in aimless conversation. Most would think he was odd.
"It's already morning." His friend said drunkenly, falling off his chair. Donghae looked outside through the glass at the rising sun. By habit, he narrowed his eyes.
Even now, the sun was his own worst enemy.
-
Deciding to leave the club scene early one evening, debating whether to switch shifts with a co-worker the next day, he strolled through the sidewalks listening to music. His eyes on the ground until they noticed a figure in the distance, a sight he ignored temporarily.
It was then he heard a slight clack and turned his head, noticing a dark umbrella being picked up from the wet ground.
Donghae narrowed his eyes at the distant black umbrella, that despite the cloudy and dark starless night, where not a single drop of rain had fallen, the young man continued holding.
Donghae ran through the empty streets without question, hurrying as he jumped right before the figure, headphones lowered to his neck.
The umbrella lifted up, the brief light reflected off Henry's ghostly pale skin.
Donghae hesitantly reached out, so many years had passed, that he held it back. He wanted to embrace him as tightly as he could, that need never left him. But the nagging thought occurred where he wondered if Henry had moved on, he may have found someone to care about, who spent those days instead of Donghae yearned to live with.
The thoughts dug a dagger into his chest, but that could be the brutal truth.
"How... has it been?" Donghae struggle to ask, appearing nonchalant.
Henry gave a curt nod, seeming just as unsure of how to respond. The two adults resumed their youthful attitudes, almost shy.
They walked alongside each other until they reached the seats in front of a restaurant, one of the few still open within the darkness of the city. They sat beneath the darkest booth possible, awkwardly in silence.
"You're outside." Donghae noticed, Henry smiled.
"It took some convincing, but my parents finally let me try. They still call me often though to check up on me. I was too foolish back then, I never considered how scared they must have been that something would happen to me." He sighed, "A lot of things I did were hasty to say the least."
Donghae felt his throat tense. He wanted to ask if he had been one of the decisions Henry possibly regretted. But he was too afraid of the answer.
"What do you work as?"
"An engineer." Donghae said, "Automotive engineer specifically."
"That's exciting," Henry said with a slight smile. "You must meet a lot of people. Life seems to be going better for you."
Not really. Donghae's expression hardly hid his scowl. His familiar discontent made his eyes focus on the table, unaware of the man who recognized it, and smiled nostalgically.
"Has things changed?" Henry asked, the strange question made Donghae feel there was something underlying to it.
"Some things." To that answer, Henry tensed. "But I'm just as alone as I was before."
Henry pursed his lips. "I told you to make friends, don't always be alone." He lightly scolded.
"I was never afraid of being alone," Donghae uttered. "I was afraid of being without you."
Henry stayed quiet. Donghae clutched the seat beneath the table, "I doubt you think of me, as much as I had of you at least."
"Don't assume." Henry countered. Donghae raised his eyebrows as Henry turned away from his studious gaze, the familiar redden hue filling his cheeks, revealing his bare neck.
Henry met his eyes once he felt warm fingers tracing his skin, making his skin reminiscing his touch. It had been too long for each of them.
Donghae was one of the decisions in his life, he never once regretted.
"I want things to change." Donghae declared.
Henry remained silent, but closed his eyes as he pulled Donghae's hand downward onto the table, only to intertwine with his.
"I do too." Henry admitted shyly.
For the first time in years, Donghae's lips shifted upwards, a warm smile he couldn't resist.
-
They couldn't resume where they had last started, not with the time that passed between them.
Yet as the months went on, when they met up time after time, spending longer, anticipating each other's visits. It became like before, only now Henry could venture outside, Donghae often joining him.
Even if the fog had long lifted, after the dew had settled on the morning grass, they didn't have to part.
But despite the distance, the heights they can now go, nothing was better than laying down beside him. The umbrella shielded them from the moon's rays, against the blanket atop the grass. Donghae against his stomach, Henry on his back.
Donghae traced Henry's fingers, trailing down to his thin wrist, drawing circles on his neck until his hand rested beside Henry's cheek. Henry closed his eyes, enjoying his faint touch that brushed against his skin.
The reality of it settled in night by night, able to now meet him freely behind dark curtains, able to do as they wanted without watchful eyes. He could close his eyes and open them, relieved as he saw Henry lay down beside him, within distance. The familiar mark on his neck.
He was grateful.
Their story, the dream, hadn't ended just yet.
- ❄ Challenge 16 ❄ | ❄ Challenge 18 ❄ -
A/N: Green tea (Camellia sinensis Holy basil Ocimum sanctum) standardized extract, 400 mg daily, is for radiation protection. In case anyone wondered why Donghae brought it up ^^; Henhae is one of my biased pairings but hadn't written them in so long >< Going to abuse this challenge with every pairing I can.
Shall fix and edit later, have to wake up early >< Apologies for mistakes.
Check out henhaelove ^^
Pairing: HenHae
Genre: AU!Romance, Drama, Minor!Angst
Theme: Dew, Phrase to include: "something like a dream"
Summary: Things too good to be true often have a price, Donghae assumed it had long been paid. He thought wrong.
-
He was the story worth retelling, worth reliving every night he closed his eyes, something like a dream, only better.
Henry walked through the gently watered grass of the late evening, eyes searching endlessly through the darkness as he walked by the banks.
It was only then, in these times, when he could hold out a hand, and feel another tug it back. But tonight instead of that touch, he felt a brutal assault against his back.
Donghae nearly pounced on him, arms grappling tight around his waist.
"Donghae-"
"Don't leave that long, ever again." Donghae uttered, eyes closed shut.
Henry shifted his eyes behind him to the figure who hid his face in the crook of his neck, a small smile tracing his lips. Ending as Donghae opened his eyes and met his own. The younger teenager shifted his eyes when Donghae took the initiative, and placed a soft kiss on his lips.
It had been too long for either of them.
"Are you alright?" Donghae asked then, his grip unrelenting. Henry rested against him and nodded. "With all that time in the city, I thought that maybe the doctor had..."
"I'm fine, it was too bright that my parents didn't want to risk it. They waited until it rained." Henry explained. "I tried to convince them, but they wouldn't listen. As always." He exhaled irritably.
Donghae then noticed his empty grip, "You forgot your umbrella."
"It's alright." Henry assured, Donghae seemed unsure and took him to the shelter beneath the trees despite the dark skies. He wouldn't risk Henry's health.
Henry's skin was ghostly pale, almost glowing as the soft light from the waters reflected on his face and neck. A sight Donghae's eyes couldn't tear away from. Unable to stop him from leaving behind a mark that marred its fairness.
The night was too short as the skies lightened. Yet as a dense fog loomed in, they had to part, the fog only sparing him moments as it shielded him from the rising sun.
"I'll come tomorrow." Henry uttered. "My parents won't be home then, if you want, you can come by."
Donghae anticipated that, only a few times had they done so, their parents rarely leaving Henry alone.
Before the dew could settle on the grass, Henry had long left, leaving Donghae with his hands stuffed down his pockets, sighing as he glared at the skies.
The sun was his own enemy, and he too often reminded of that fact.
-
Donghae went through classes with ease, sitting inside his pick-up as he skipped the last class of the day. His thoughts drifted off the person who captured his attention.
Beginning the one night he strolled through the forest grounds. Surprised to see someone he couldn't recognize, an impossibility in this small town, sitting idly by the water with a black umbrella over him.
Henry declined every time he asked him to meet during the day but never explained why. It was when Henry had risked staying longer, did Donghae see the pain seer through his expression once the sunlight hit his skin that the umbrella couldn't protect.
The dark brown tint that followed the reddening made Henry embarrassed, almost refusing to see him again. Donghae wouldn't have that.
Allergic to sun, to light, his parents protective to the point that he couldn't risk going to school, much less meeting others in town. A loner by force, Donghae a loner by choice.
Despite their differences, that fact may have brought them together. Yet Henry scolded him often for it.
"You shouldn't only rely on me," Henry said, laying his back against the grass, umbrella over his face. The rest of him covered in black clothing. "If you bother to smile every once in a while, you might make a friend or two."
Donghae listened, his eyes intently on his face.
"You make it seem as if it's impossible to smile." Henry spoke afterward, stubbornly upset.
"It's not that it's impossible, it's just there was never anything worth smiling over." Donghae said.
And once Henry felt Donghae's head lay on his stomach, meeting his brightly lit eyes and soft smile, he felt the meaning come across. The paler his skin was, the easier it was for Donghae to see the slight red hue that rose.
"Maybe you aren't seeing a doctor in the city, maybe you're secretly meeting someone behind my back." Donghae randomly accused.
Henry widened his eyes, "I would never."
"How would I know? Your parents don't know about me, no one knows about us here nor there. You could easily live a second life."
"I swear! There's no one else but you."
"Lies." Donghae joked, but pleased with the sincere reply, the back of his hand caressing Henry's cheek.
Henry was his best kept secret.
If his parents had known of their relationship, then it would be forcibly cut short. If they had realized Henry had left the security of their house, Henry would be held back in every way possible. These risks, these consequences were forgotten the moment their hands intertwined.
Every night Donghae anticipated, awaiting to spend time in simplicity with the other. Their conversations often pointless, random, sometimes debatable, but it never failed to bring a smile to Donghae's face. They laid like that on the grass of every night when Henry snuck out to meet him. And he whimsically, foolishly wished these nights would never end.
-
The sun almost rose.
"No." Henry said, waking up Donghae who had rested beside him. To their horror, they could see the fog slowly lifting. Henry didn't have time to get home, no umbrella to shield him from the morning rays.
"Come with me," Donghae ordered, pulling Henry's hand to the nearest place by Donghae's small house.
They took shelter inside the wooden shed a long distance behind it, a place Donghae knew no one would walk in. The day was beautifully bright with clear blue skies, a sight Henry could never enjoy.
"Is your skin alright?" Donghae asked, Henry had cornered himself in the farthest part of the room, away from penetrating sun rays.
"I'm fine."
Donghae then stared warily, "You haven't drink your green tea yet either."
"What's the point of drinking it if I'm never allowed outside?" Henry countered lowly. Donghae examined his expression, attempting to read his thoughts.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing." Henry stubbornly answered, lowering his eyes. Donghae knelt down before him, checking his hands.
"Does it hurt?"
"No, it doesn't." Henry said icily, realizing his tone, he apologized as he closed his eyes. Donghae patiently placed a hand on his own that rested on his lip. "My parents protect me enough, my whole life has been secured that it's almost suffocating. I don't need to be protected by you too."
"I'm sorry. But not worrying about you would have happened even if you weren't like this." Donghae uttered, unfazed. "You could be the healthiest person alive, and I'd still make sure you were okay."
Henry narrowed his eyes, annoyed at that answer, but soon breathed out. He could never stay angry at Donghae for long.
It was with Donghae that he could experience freedom, to be treated normally, or as close to being so. Never having to think about the right light-bulbs placed in his room, the subjects he had to learn to catch up, the thought of what to do for university and other possibilities that may pass him by because of his condition. One he often told his parents others lived with just fine, enjoying their lives outside despite the risks, often telling them he would take caution if they gave him a chance.
They wouldn't hear of it.
"I'm sorry." Henry apologized. "If I wasn't like this, then maybe we could date like other people. Outside, in normal places like everyone else."
"Why must you be obsessed with normal?" Donghae prompted. "If you were like everyone else, I wouldn't be interested in you." Donghae said, earning a soft chuckle.
"My parents will know I'm gone." Henry said after a long silence, a light worry in the edge of his voice. Donghae didn't meet his eyes as Henry watched him, the older gently tracing his fingers on his palm.
Even at his home, Donghae never once did more than kiss him. He wasn't fragile, but maybe the other assumed so. Or maybe he wouldn't take the iniative.
Henry wanted to spontaneously do as he wanted, and not live life by a schedule, not having to think of the limits time placed on him.
He was tired of always having to consider the risks.
Donghae felt his lips meet his, hungrily as Henry leaned against him, soon his back meeting the ground.
To his surprise, Donghae stopped him. "We can't."
"Why not?" He asked, straddling his lap, arms around his neck. "I thought you wanted me." Henry said hesitantly. "Do you not... not want me?"
"That is easily the worst question you could ever ask me." Donghae uttered, Henry glowered. Donghae reached out to assure him. "I do want you, believe me. I'll even admit, not all my thoughts of you were the purest."
Donghae gently weaved his fingers into his hair. "I just don't want our first time on these floorboards." Henry didn't seem convinced, eyes lowered. Donghae then kissed him on the lips, smiling. "Don't worry, I don't have much self-restraint around you. I may regret it by tonight even."
To that, Henry laughed under his breath, leaning against Donghae's shoulder. They embraced each other, relaxed and at peace, awaiting for the day to end.
-
Donghae waited by the banks, eyes scurrying about at every angle, reacting to every sound of the forest. But there was no sign of Henry.
He daringly walked by the house that once had black curtains on every window, but to his surprise, the curtains were now bare.
It was through the gossip of the small town, did Donghae realized and face the brutal truth.
"His parents moved to the city to be closer to the doctors. They say his health got worse."
The young man could only pretend the news hadn't affected him, his already solemn expression didn't appear to change to his classmates or family. No one knew of their relationship, as if it had never happened.
At some point in Donghae's thoughts, did he question the reality of the nightly visits. That maybe he had dreamt it, and was still foolishly yearning for.
-
He opened his eyes, frustrated once more as he sat up, unable to sleep.
He threw off the covers despite the late evening, the now matured man putting on his jacket. He didn't care if he had an early shift tomorrow, he'd put another all-nighter.
He was never sure what to do during the nights insomnia affected him, jumping from place to place, from the quietest of still opened libraries to the noisiest of clubs. None of it made him happy, even with the countless names he now know, of faces he saw almost every day. His reaction remained the same, just as discontent.
"This was the life you wanted me to have right?" Donghae once asked, gulping down a glass of beer. His friends hadn't heard him, and brought him to another binge.
Parties were overrated in his mind. To think he craved for a simple evening, on a nightly stroll in aimless conversation. Most would think he was odd.
"It's already morning." His friend said drunkenly, falling off his chair. Donghae looked outside through the glass at the rising sun. By habit, he narrowed his eyes.
Even now, the sun was his own worst enemy.
-
Deciding to leave the club scene early one evening, debating whether to switch shifts with a co-worker the next day, he strolled through the sidewalks listening to music. His eyes on the ground until they noticed a figure in the distance, a sight he ignored temporarily.
It was then he heard a slight clack and turned his head, noticing a dark umbrella being picked up from the wet ground.
Donghae narrowed his eyes at the distant black umbrella, that despite the cloudy and dark starless night, where not a single drop of rain had fallen, the young man continued holding.
Donghae ran through the empty streets without question, hurrying as he jumped right before the figure, headphones lowered to his neck.
The umbrella lifted up, the brief light reflected off Henry's ghostly pale skin.
Donghae hesitantly reached out, so many years had passed, that he held it back. He wanted to embrace him as tightly as he could, that need never left him. But the nagging thought occurred where he wondered if Henry had moved on, he may have found someone to care about, who spent those days instead of Donghae yearned to live with.
The thoughts dug a dagger into his chest, but that could be the brutal truth.
"How... has it been?" Donghae struggle to ask, appearing nonchalant.
Henry gave a curt nod, seeming just as unsure of how to respond. The two adults resumed their youthful attitudes, almost shy.
They walked alongside each other until they reached the seats in front of a restaurant, one of the few still open within the darkness of the city. They sat beneath the darkest booth possible, awkwardly in silence.
"You're outside." Donghae noticed, Henry smiled.
"It took some convincing, but my parents finally let me try. They still call me often though to check up on me. I was too foolish back then, I never considered how scared they must have been that something would happen to me." He sighed, "A lot of things I did were hasty to say the least."
Donghae felt his throat tense. He wanted to ask if he had been one of the decisions Henry possibly regretted. But he was too afraid of the answer.
"What do you work as?"
"An engineer." Donghae said, "Automotive engineer specifically."
"That's exciting," Henry said with a slight smile. "You must meet a lot of people. Life seems to be going better for you."
Not really. Donghae's expression hardly hid his scowl. His familiar discontent made his eyes focus on the table, unaware of the man who recognized it, and smiled nostalgically.
"Has things changed?" Henry asked, the strange question made Donghae feel there was something underlying to it.
"Some things." To that answer, Henry tensed. "But I'm just as alone as I was before."
Henry pursed his lips. "I told you to make friends, don't always be alone." He lightly scolded.
"I was never afraid of being alone," Donghae uttered. "I was afraid of being without you."
Henry stayed quiet. Donghae clutched the seat beneath the table, "I doubt you think of me, as much as I had of you at least."
"Don't assume." Henry countered. Donghae raised his eyebrows as Henry turned away from his studious gaze, the familiar redden hue filling his cheeks, revealing his bare neck.
Henry met his eyes once he felt warm fingers tracing his skin, making his skin reminiscing his touch. It had been too long for each of them.
Donghae was one of the decisions in his life, he never once regretted.
"I want things to change." Donghae declared.
Henry remained silent, but closed his eyes as he pulled Donghae's hand downward onto the table, only to intertwine with his.
"I do too." Henry admitted shyly.
For the first time in years, Donghae's lips shifted upwards, a warm smile he couldn't resist.
-
They couldn't resume where they had last started, not with the time that passed between them.
Yet as the months went on, when they met up time after time, spending longer, anticipating each other's visits. It became like before, only now Henry could venture outside, Donghae often joining him.
Even if the fog had long lifted, after the dew had settled on the morning grass, they didn't have to part.
But despite the distance, the heights they can now go, nothing was better than laying down beside him. The umbrella shielded them from the moon's rays, against the blanket atop the grass. Donghae against his stomach, Henry on his back.
Donghae traced Henry's fingers, trailing down to his thin wrist, drawing circles on his neck until his hand rested beside Henry's cheek. Henry closed his eyes, enjoying his faint touch that brushed against his skin.
The reality of it settled in night by night, able to now meet him freely behind dark curtains, able to do as they wanted without watchful eyes. He could close his eyes and open them, relieved as he saw Henry lay down beside him, within distance. The familiar mark on his neck.
He was grateful.
Their story, the dream, hadn't ended just yet.
- ❄ Challenge 16 ❄ | ❄ Challenge 18 ❄ -
A/N: Green tea (Camellia sinensis Holy basil Ocimum sanctum) standardized extract, 400 mg daily, is for radiation protection. In case anyone wondered why Donghae brought it up ^^; Henhae is one of my biased pairings but hadn't written them in so long >< Going to abuse this challenge with every pairing I can.
Shall fix and edit later, have to wake up early >< Apologies for mistakes.
Check out henhaelove ^^