baby, come home
title: baby, come home
pairing: taekwoon/hongbin
rating: pg-13
word count: 1,042
summary: hongbin misses taekwoon.
❝she's singing 'baby, come home' in a melody of tears
while the rhythm of the rain keeps time❞
- fall out boy, "jet pack blues"
Hongbin leaned on the rail of the balcony of his apartment, his lips wrapped around a cigarette as he took a drag and then exhaled. He liked to watch the shape of the smoke as it billowed from his mouth. The sun had almost set - he couldn't see it with the buildings of the city in the way but he could still see the fading orange sky. A blanket of grey clouds was on the horizon to his left, paired with a cool breeze an indication that it would rain soon.
It had been two hours since Taekwoon was originally supposed to be home. But airports were hellish and a series of delays and a missed connection had set their reunion back. But Taekwoon had already been gone for two weeks, what was two more hours?
To Hongbin it was an eternity. He wasn't accustomed to being so lonesome. Even when he wasn't sharing his apartment he at least had a friend or two he could lean on. Or a blind date. Or even a meaningless hook-up. The last option was starting to look more and more attractive, but he and Taekwoon had never had a discussion about whether their relationship was open or closed. He sighed and rested his head on his free hand while he stubbed out his cigarette on the railing and then released it from between his fingers and it fell to the sidewalk two stories below. Taekwoon would tell him off later for not using the ashtray when he got home, but that was entirely the point. He was in the middle of lighting a second cigarette when his phone buzzed in his pocket. It was the man of the hour.
"Are you on the ground yet?" Hongbin asked. "For good?"
"Hello to you, too," Taekwoon grumbled. He sounded tired. "Yes and no."
Hongbin sighed impatiently into the speaker, making extra sure Taekwoon could hear it. "What is that supposed to mean?" He took a drag from the cigarette.
"Does an elevator count as 'on the ground?'"
"God," Hongbin groaned, "you're such a dick." He could hear the smartass chuckle on the other end of the phone.
"What are you up to?"
"Oh, you know," he shrugged despite the fact that the gesture couldn't be seen through the phone, "seeing how many cigarettes I can burn through before you get back. The current count is two - oh wait, this one's dead." He paused to stub that one out before lighting another. "Three." Down below a taxi honked at a car for not moving fast enough on a green light.
"Great," Taekwoon mumbled, "now your mouth is going to taste like an ashtray when I kiss you."
"If you take a drag first you won't notice." Hongbin found a loose rock beneath his foot and nudged it over the edge of the balcony with his toe. The streetlights had turned on at that point, the sky quickly losing the orange glow of sunset. "How much longer are you going to be?"
A beat of silence. "Do you have at least two more cigarettes left?"
Hongbin scoffed. "I'm going to go pour myself a drink then." Of course, by "drink" he meant "a shot of vodka."
"Don't you dare bring that smoke inside."
"Too late," he teased as he opened the door. He had put the cigarette out already but Taekwoon was too much fun to mess with. In the kitchen he made sure to make extra noise with the bottle as he took it out of the freezer and put it on the counter.
"If we get a noise complaint-"
"I'm about to give you a silence complaint," Hongbin retorted. "You've been out of the country for two weeks and you can't even tell me how you are!"
"You didn't ask," Taekwoon muttered as Hongbin poured his shot. "Besides, I just got a cab I'll be home in like ten minutes now."
Hongbin put on his whiny voice, "I don't want to talk when you get back, though."
That got him a laugh. "Hongbin, I've been chasing planes all day. I'm tired."
Hongbin knocked back his shot, glad Taekwoon couldn't see the face he made afterwards. He sighed dramatically into the phone, "Fine. Just hurry home." He went back out to the balcony, but forgot to close the door behind him. "I'm about to light number four."
"Fuck," he heard Taekwoon say under his breath. "Hongbin, I don't know when I'll be back."
His stomach dropped in panic for a moment. "What do you mean? What's wrong?"
"Traffic."
Hongbin groaned and let the entire upper half of his body fall limply over the railing. He dropped his cigarette over in the process. "Traffic is the worst. And it just made me lose half of my cigarette. Tell your cab driver he owes me."
"Why the driver?" He loved the puzzled tone in Taekwoon's voice. "He's helping me get home."
"He's still part of the traffic. Guilty by association."
"You're so ridiculous." He was trying to sound fed up with Hongbin, but the sigh at the end of the statement gave away the fact that he was enamored with him.
Hongbin felt something wet hit the back of his neck and stood up just as it started to drizzle. "Are you here yet?"
"What did I tell you about leaving the outside door open?"
"Huh?"
"Turn around."
He did as he was asked, and was so shocked to see Taekwoon standing in the doorway with his bags that his jaw almost hit the floor. He was still wearing his stupid black business suit with the black tie. His hair was slightly messed up from hours of travel. Hongbin rushed inside, the door slammed behind him, and bounded across the apartment. His phone was thrown to the side and he grabbed Taekwoon by the damn tie, pulled him inside, and kissed him on the lips.
"You bastard," he growled between kisses, "You killed my hopes on purpose."
Taekwoon found it difficult to kiss him back, he was smiling so much. "I didn't expect you to be so wound up."
"Of course I am!" Hongbin was exasperated. "I fucking missed you."
Taekwoon chuckled, admiration in his eyes.
"I missed you, too."
pairing: taekwoon/hongbin
rating: pg-13
word count: 1,042
summary: hongbin misses taekwoon.
❝she's singing 'baby, come home' in a melody of tears
while the rhythm of the rain keeps time❞
- fall out boy, "jet pack blues"
Hongbin leaned on the rail of the balcony of his apartment, his lips wrapped around a cigarette as he took a drag and then exhaled. He liked to watch the shape of the smoke as it billowed from his mouth. The sun had almost set - he couldn't see it with the buildings of the city in the way but he could still see the fading orange sky. A blanket of grey clouds was on the horizon to his left, paired with a cool breeze an indication that it would rain soon.
It had been two hours since Taekwoon was originally supposed to be home. But airports were hellish and a series of delays and a missed connection had set their reunion back. But Taekwoon had already been gone for two weeks, what was two more hours?
To Hongbin it was an eternity. He wasn't accustomed to being so lonesome. Even when he wasn't sharing his apartment he at least had a friend or two he could lean on. Or a blind date. Or even a meaningless hook-up. The last option was starting to look more and more attractive, but he and Taekwoon had never had a discussion about whether their relationship was open or closed. He sighed and rested his head on his free hand while he stubbed out his cigarette on the railing and then released it from between his fingers and it fell to the sidewalk two stories below. Taekwoon would tell him off later for not using the ashtray when he got home, but that was entirely the point. He was in the middle of lighting a second cigarette when his phone buzzed in his pocket. It was the man of the hour.
"Are you on the ground yet?" Hongbin asked. "For good?"
"Hello to you, too," Taekwoon grumbled. He sounded tired. "Yes and no."
Hongbin sighed impatiently into the speaker, making extra sure Taekwoon could hear it. "What is that supposed to mean?" He took a drag from the cigarette.
"Does an elevator count as 'on the ground?'"
"God," Hongbin groaned, "you're such a dick." He could hear the smartass chuckle on the other end of the phone.
"What are you up to?"
"Oh, you know," he shrugged despite the fact that the gesture couldn't be seen through the phone, "seeing how many cigarettes I can burn through before you get back. The current count is two - oh wait, this one's dead." He paused to stub that one out before lighting another. "Three." Down below a taxi honked at a car for not moving fast enough on a green light.
"Great," Taekwoon mumbled, "now your mouth is going to taste like an ashtray when I kiss you."
"If you take a drag first you won't notice." Hongbin found a loose rock beneath his foot and nudged it over the edge of the balcony with his toe. The streetlights had turned on at that point, the sky quickly losing the orange glow of sunset. "How much longer are you going to be?"
A beat of silence. "Do you have at least two more cigarettes left?"
Hongbin scoffed. "I'm going to go pour myself a drink then." Of course, by "drink" he meant "a shot of vodka."
"Don't you dare bring that smoke inside."
"Too late," he teased as he opened the door. He had put the cigarette out already but Taekwoon was too much fun to mess with. In the kitchen he made sure to make extra noise with the bottle as he took it out of the freezer and put it on the counter.
"If we get a noise complaint-"
"I'm about to give you a silence complaint," Hongbin retorted. "You've been out of the country for two weeks and you can't even tell me how you are!"
"You didn't ask," Taekwoon muttered as Hongbin poured his shot. "Besides, I just got a cab I'll be home in like ten minutes now."
Hongbin put on his whiny voice, "I don't want to talk when you get back, though."
That got him a laugh. "Hongbin, I've been chasing planes all day. I'm tired."
Hongbin knocked back his shot, glad Taekwoon couldn't see the face he made afterwards. He sighed dramatically into the phone, "Fine. Just hurry home." He went back out to the balcony, but forgot to close the door behind him. "I'm about to light number four."
"Fuck," he heard Taekwoon say under his breath. "Hongbin, I don't know when I'll be back."
His stomach dropped in panic for a moment. "What do you mean? What's wrong?"
"Traffic."
Hongbin groaned and let the entire upper half of his body fall limply over the railing. He dropped his cigarette over in the process. "Traffic is the worst. And it just made me lose half of my cigarette. Tell your cab driver he owes me."
"Why the driver?" He loved the puzzled tone in Taekwoon's voice. "He's helping me get home."
"He's still part of the traffic. Guilty by association."
"You're so ridiculous." He was trying to sound fed up with Hongbin, but the sigh at the end of the statement gave away the fact that he was enamored with him.
Hongbin felt something wet hit the back of his neck and stood up just as it started to drizzle. "Are you here yet?"
"What did I tell you about leaving the outside door open?"
"Huh?"
"Turn around."
He did as he was asked, and was so shocked to see Taekwoon standing in the doorway with his bags that his jaw almost hit the floor. He was still wearing his stupid black business suit with the black tie. His hair was slightly messed up from hours of travel. Hongbin rushed inside, the door slammed behind him, and bounded across the apartment. His phone was thrown to the side and he grabbed Taekwoon by the damn tie, pulled him inside, and kissed him on the lips.
"You bastard," he growled between kisses, "You killed my hopes on purpose."
Taekwoon found it difficult to kiss him back, he was smiling so much. "I didn't expect you to be so wound up."
"Of course I am!" Hongbin was exasperated. "I fucking missed you."
Taekwoon chuckled, admiration in his eyes.
"I missed you, too."