Color Me Rainbow || MEANIE ✔

-44 || wonwoo-

The ceiling was high, and Wonwoo could see three chandeliers just from where he was standing. Not even a third of the restaurant was in his line of vision.

"This is . . . really over the top," he said.

His mom wasn't listening. She continued to talk and laugh with the host before they were eventually led to a table.

They were going out to dinner, something they hadn't done in a long time. It used to be a weekly thing. It was a sign that his mom was getting better.

"Your father never took me to a place this nice," Mrs. Jeon finally said when they were settled and had menus.

"Can we please not talk about him?" Wonwoo pleaded.

His mother gave him that pity look she always gave when her ex husband was brought up, but this time, the pity didn't also include the depression and drunken anger that often came with it.

"I think we should. I spent these last few years trying to figure out how to forget him, just forget everything about him, but he's still out there. I didn't realize I needed to accept that before I could move forward."

Wonwoo wanted to argue but didn't. Ultimately, she was right even if he didn't want to agree.

"All I ever thought about was the bad," she went on. "Maybe that's what made things worse. There were still good moments." She set down her menu. "Those are what I want to talk about tonight."

"Did you start talking to a therapist?" he asked.

Mrs. Jeon shook her head. "No. I've been watching a lot of YouTube videos, which are actually very helpful, by the way."

He wanted to say something about that but didn't. She's been happier. Not once since she met Mingyu has Wonwoo found her drunk and passed out on the couch.

"I remember when Dad used to take me to the amusement park and we'd spend hours on the ferries wheel," he said. "He'd point at ransom people on the ground then come up with some elaborate story about what their lives might be like." Wonwoo almost smiled at the memory. None of what his dad came up with could have been possibly true, but it was fun to listen to.

"When we were in high school--this was before I'd ever worked up the courage to even say hi to him--he dyed his hair this dark seaweed green, with one bright pink stripe right in front. It was one of the ugliest hair colors I had ever seen, even he hadn't managed to pull it off." She laughed at the thought. "The next day, his hair was back to normal and he vowed never again. A couple of months after we were married, I told him he'd look good with silver hair, so you know what he did? He dyed it again. He looked so much better with the silver. You could probably pull it off."

They went back and forth like that for a while, up until dessert. It was Wonwoo's turn again.

"He gave me my first camera," he said. Then he was crying. It was one of those silent sobs that shook his whole body. His mom held him and let him cry it all out right in the middle of the restaurant.

He couldn't help it. He wasn't a big crier, so he always held back his tears, letting one or two fall every now and again. He felt overwhelmed, he couldn't control it anymore. The host was kind enough to bring him tissues once he finally settled down.

"You and Dad, you guys were soulmates," he said, his voice shaky. He was still pretty unstable. It wouldn't take much to get him crying again.

He almost felt embarrassed, but crying tired him out so much, he was too exhausted to feel anything even remotely complex.

Mrs. Jeon smoothed his hair down and shook her head. "Once you realize that 'soulmate' is just a word and eye color is just a color, the happier you'll be."

Wonwoo hadn't thought of it that way. Soulmates were always a Must. You found one, you were locked in, even if you didn't want to be. People aren't given a choice, they're given an assignment.

That didn't change how he felt about Mingyu. Yes, Wonwoo never had a choice in the matter, but he had a right to his own feelings. If the other hadn't approached him the way he did, yeah, he wouldn't be thinking about love or soulmates, but if he were given the chance to change that meeting, he wouldn't. Even in a different world, Mingyu probably would have found some way into his heart. He would have gotten through that wall Wonwoo had built.

Mingyu was the exact kind of person Wonwoo needed in his life.

"I can see the gears turning," his mom said. "What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking that I'm actually in love with Kim Mingyu," Wonwoo said, dazed, his sniffles completely gone. Yeah, he'd mentioned love with Mingyu before but he hadn't been completely sure. It was a complicated concept for him, but now he knew.

Mingyu really is the love of his life. He was in love with Mingyu.

Mrs. Jeon kissed Wonwoo's forehead and smiled. "He loves you too," she said. "But I think you already knew that."

He leaned into his mom, giving her a side hug. "Thank you for this," he said.

She squeezed him. "Of all the things your father took, I'm glad he left your ability to love."

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a/n: wonwoo's so cute 😌😖