See What I See (A GTOP Fanfic)

| Chapter Eighteen |

Birds chirped as the sun rose into the sky, taking place of the moon. Jiyong was just starting to wake up when the bedroom door opened and Seunghyun walked in. He smiled as he shut the door again, leaving it cracked a bit, before crawling back in bed.

"Good morning, beautiful," Seunghyun said once he was all settled in, lightly brushing Jiyong's disheveled hair with his fingers.

"Ugh." Jiyong groaned as he rubbed his eyes open with a few of his fingers. "It's too early to be smothering me with your flattering opinions on my appearance," he said, the faintest smile painted on his lips.

"They aren't opinions." Seunghyun chuckled, now stroking his cheek. "They are accepted statements of fact." 

Jiyong laughed in defeat before directing his eyes at Seunghyun. "I love you," he said, speaking softly, "but you really are too nice to me."

"I disagree," Seunghyun said as he shook his head. "You want to know what I think?"

"Not really, but what do you think?" Jiyong replied with an amused smile occupying his lips.

"I think you need to learn to love yourself as much as I love you," Seunghyun said with a more serious expression on his face. Jiyong lowered his eyes upon hearing the said male's words."You need to learn how to see what I see."

"That sounds easier said than done," Jiyong said, his voice coming out as slightly muffled.

"Hey." Seunghyun caught his attention by caressing Jiyong's cheek with his hand. "I know it's hard for you to see yourself the way I see you, but I promise you that you are the most beautiful person I've ever met, inside and out. And I am going to prove that to you no matter how long it takes."

Jiyong secretly always hated it when Seunghyun said things like that to him, but only because they made him want to cry and that was one thing he hated to do. So, in order to hide the glistening tears in his eyes, Jiyong buried his head into Seunghyun's naked chest, letting out a tired grumble as he moved.

"Do you want to go do something today?" Seunghyun asked, his hand petting Jiyong's head. Jiyong only nodded his chest, making the elder smile as well. "Okay well, you think about what you want to do while I take a shower, alright?" Seunghyun got off the bed in a few careful movements, causing Jiyong to whine at the loss of his warmth. Then, Seunghyun left the room and headed into the bathroom. Jiyong watched him leave, sighing to himself after he disappeared across the hall. He turned over to lay on his back, staring up at the ceiling. 

It had been a week since he was first picked up, but it felt like so much longer in his mind and heart. Yet, he knew this time of bliss couldn't last forever. Even if he was serious about staying with Seunghyun, which he had every intention of doing, Dongguk wouldn't just let him quit and move out. And what would happen to Hanbin? He didn't have many people in his life he could lean on and if he just up and left, it would destroy him. Besides, how many times had he seen people quit tricking because they "fell in love" only to end up right back on the street corner? Too many to let him feel hopeful it would be different with Seunghyun. 

But it felt different, not just in his heart and soul but in his bones. Seunghyun wasn't like every other man he encountered, who all just wanted something from him whether it be his money, his time, or his body. There was always a risk when it came to love because love required work despite its blissful moments, and Jiyong truly felt that what him and Seunghyun had was worth the work and the risk.

~~~~~~~~~

Later that morning when Jiyong managed to drag himself out of bed, he made himself and Seunghyun some coffee, deciding to wait to pour so that it would stay warm until he was done in the bathroom. He walked over to the outlet where his phone was plugged in and started to look through it, disconnecting it from the cord since the battery was full. As soon as he typed in his password, Jiyong instantly saw that he had tons of missed texts and calls from Hanbin and Dongguk. He mentally cursed at himself; he couldn't remember the last time he called either of them.

Now feeling in a rush, Jiyong tapped on one of the calls from Hanbin in order to call him back and waited until he got out into another part of the apartment to press the phone against his ear.

"Hyung!" Hanbin practically shouted after the ringing tones died out.

"Hey," Jiyong said sheepishly in a softer voice, feeling extremely guilty for making him worry.

"Where the hell have you been?!" the younger boy asked. "I've tried calling and texting you like a million times!"

"Yeah, I saw," Jiyong said. "My phone died and I didn't get a charger until a few days ago. I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to worry you."

He heard a muffled sigh leave his lips. "It's fine, I guess," Hanbin said, starting to sound calmer. "But where have you been? Are you alright? Are you trapped somewhere? Do we have to come get you?"

"No, I'm fine." Jiyong couldn't help but chuckle a little at him. "I'm great actually."

"Well, who are you with?"

"You know the last guy Dongguk set me up with?"

"Yeah, vaguely."

"I'm with him, and honestly...I kind of don't want to leave."

"What are you talking about, hyung? Aren't you the one who always says we should never get emotionally attached?"

"Yeah, I know and I still believe that, but this guy...I don't know..." Jiyong couldn't even find the words to describe how happy he was feeling. "He's just so nice to me, you know, and he buys me all these things that I don't even need and...he treats me like an actual person rather than some product."

"But hyung, I still don't get it," Hanbin said. "A-Are you saying that you fell for him or something?" Jiyong looked up at the slightly cracked bathroom door, hearing the shower water stop running.

"Yeah, I guess I am," he said, smiling like a fool. "I know it's foolish and might be something I regret later, but I think I fell for him harder than I even realize right now."

"I don't know what to say," Hanbin said after letting some silence pass. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm happy for you, but what about Dongguk hyung and I? Aren't you ever going to come back home?" 

Jiyong dropped his eyes in guilt as he let out a small sigh. "I don't know if I can even if I wanted to," Jiyong said. "I do care about you a lot, but we both know I can't do this forever. I didn't think my life would ever amount to anything before, but now I want to try and make a change. And that's all thanks to him. I know it hasn't been that long and this all might blow up in my face, but I truly feel at home with him and I want to keep feeling that way, even if it all ends in disaster."

"But hyung," Hanbin said, his voice starting to crack. "You can't just leave. You can't just leave me here by myself. You're the only true friend I've ever had."

"I know, and I won't," Jiyong said, shaking his head. "I'll talk to Seunghyun about it a-and as soon as I can, I will come get you. We can both start over." There was no response from the younger, just the barely audible sound of a sigh. "Hanbin, I would never just leave you like that, you know that. Just please hang in a little bit longer, and I will come back for you. Can you do that for me?"

"I-I..." Hanbin started, having trouble finishing. "I'll try. But hyung, Dongguk is in a rage. He is literally looking for you everywhere. He even filed a missing person's case."

"What?" Jiyong said in disbelief. "W-Where is he now?"

"I don't know. Probably out looking for you again."

"Okay, thanks for telling me," Jiyong said, trying to remain calm for now. "I should go now, but just be careful around him and don't tell him you talked to me."

"O-Okay hyung, I won't," Hanbin said.

"I promise I will see you again soon, okay?" Jiyong said. "I won't leave you behind."

Hanbin didn't say anything for a minute. "Okay," he said, an obvious sadness in his quieter voice. Jiyong then hung up the phone and set his cell phone on the couch.

He rested his elbows on his thighs and rubbed his face in distress. He knew Dongguk was relentless and would go to any length to get him back. A long time ago, when he had tried to run away, Dongguk found him in a matter of days. As nice he usually treated them, Dongguk could get violent, and Jiyong did not want him to take that out on Hanbin.

That's why he had to find some way to get him out of there.