You Rock My Heart

Mental note: never bring your own gloves again

Hongjoong waited outside of the bar anxiously. He hadn't really been able to connect with Seonghwa since their night at the bar and he didn't want Seonghwa to give up on him for his work. There was a lot of pressure riding on this night and he couldn't afford to screw it up. He was also worried for Seonghwa. He knew that they hardly knew each other but knowing that something was bothering him made Hongjoong's heart ache. He couldn't stand to think of Seonghwa's adorable eyes filled with tears. As he was picturing all of the worst possibilities, he heard footsteps turn around the corner and Seonghwa appeared, dressed in a white calf length trench coat. He had wrapped a light blue scarf around his neck and wore a tan beret. Seeing him all bundled up made Hongjoong's heart skip a beat and his face lit up.

"Is something wrong? How come you're pacing so much?" Seonghwa asked and Hongjoong felt himself slowing to a stop. He hadn't noticed!

"Sorry it's— I'm just a bit nervous that's all. We just—haven't hung out in person since we first met and—I didn't want to mess anything up," he said looking at the ground, feeling a blush and a shy smile creep across his face.

"You mess it up? I don't want to mess it up!" laughed Seonghwa, making Hongjoong laugh as well.

"Alright then let's get going! Whichever one of us messes it up first has to pay," Hongjoong smirked, grabbing Seonghwa by the wrist.

"Wait pay for what? Where are we going? You haven't told me!" he complained with a smile still plastered across his rosy face.

"If neither of a mess up, we won't have to worry about it! Now come on!" Hongjoong giggled.
They dashed together down about five blocks and began to near the coastline. Just as Seonghwa began to worry that this lunatic would be bringing him down to the icy water, they veered left and began running out of familiar buildings. They began to slow pace as they each tired out and eventually they switched to a casual walking pace.

"Why exactly did we have to run?" Seonghwa laughed while regaining his air.

"I didn't realize it was so far, I thought it'd be closer," Hongjoong sighed, scratching his head nervously.

"It better be close I have work to get back to when we're done," pouted Seonghwa, which made Hongjoong smile.

"Don't worry it's just around the corner," he reassured him and just as he said it they approached their destination. It was a sprawling park surrounded with woods on all sides. The streetlights didn't stretch into the park so it was a bit dark but the moon was bright enough to light their way.

"This looks a bit sketchy if I'm being honest," Seonghwa remarked uneasily.

"Oh no don't worry, I come here all the time."

"In the middle of the night you go and sit in a poorly lit forest regularly?" Seonghwa asked. "Don't tell me I agreed to hang out with a serial killer."

"Okay when you put it like that I definitely sound like a creep," Hongjoong laughed. "But I swear I'm not! I just—sometimes my office just gets too suffocating and I need air. You know?" Hongjoong looked away shyly again, his blush barely visible in the dark.

Seonghwa couldn't help but stare at Hongjoong adoringly. How was he so precious? He held back a giggle and instead took Hongjoong's hand, which only caused the other to be more flustered.

"Hey that's my move!" Hongjoong managed, his ears burning.

"Well then I guess that makes you the first to mess up. If it's your move you should've made it first," Seonghwa smirked.

Hongjoong pouted but then linked his fingers with Seonghwa's and grinned as he saw the confidence falter.

"Now th—that's unfair!" Seonghwa stuttered, trying to look away. But Hongjoong reached up and pulled his cheek to face him.

"What's unfair is that you look so cute when your face gets cold," Hongjoong sighed, evidently mistaking Seonghwa's blush for the cold.

Seonghwa couldn't help but blush harder and realized Hongjoong was only trying to give him an excuse for his obvious blush.

"I wouldn't be cold if you hadn't put your icy hands on my cheeks. Here put these gloves on." Seonghwa pulled his hand away and took the mittens off to give to Hongjoong.

"Oh no I'm fine you don't have to—" Hongjoong protested but then saw the stern expression on Seonghwa's face, signaling he wasn't taking no for an answer. To be completely fair, Hongjoong was regretting not bringing any gloves but he didn't want to look foolish in front of Seonghwa.

"Well what are you going to do, you're going to get cold too—" Hongjoong started but then saw Seonghwa's solution; he had pulled his coat sleeves down extra far and only a small portion of his fingers were visible. He then flapped his arms slightly like a bird and turned his head back to Hongjoong, who was absolutely wrecked by the cuteness.

Mental note: never bring your own gloves again.

"So what's the surprise?" Seonghwa asked, looking around the park.

"Oh right I forgot! Here give me a second."

Hongjoong reached into his bag and pulled out the blanket and a bag of jalapeño flavored chips.

"I thought you might be hungry since it's late and I thought we could just share a snack under the stars. I know it's kind of lame and it's such a random snack but I just thought that maybe—"

"These are my favorite chips! How did you know?"

Seonghwa grabbed the bag eagerly and ate a small handful. Hongjoong released a sigh of relief. Things were going way better than he'd expected. He set out the blanket and the two sat together and talked for the rest of the night.