A garden for two | heehoon

beautiful and irresistible

The hours passed slowly, as if time itself had chosen to drag out the ache in Sunghoon's chest.

The house had grown quieter since their conversation, the stillness settling into every corner, making it hard for Sunghoon to breathe.

Heeseung was out in the garden, tending to the apple trees.

His shirt was damp with sweat, his hands caked with dirt as he carefully trimmed the branches, lost in the simple rhythm of his work.

The sun hung low in the sky, casting a golden glow over the leaves, painting the world in soft light.

Heeseung heard the soft patter of feet before he saw him.

He straightened, wiping his brow with the back of his hand, and turned towards the sound.

There, running across the garden, was Sunghoon.

He stopped in his tracks, his breath catching in his throat.
Sunghoon was beautiful.

He wore a white shirt, loose and flowing, the fabric billowing slightly in the breeze, and a pair of shorts that barely reached his knees.

His feet were bare, the grass tickling his toes as he ran, his dark hair flying messily around his face.

He laughed, a pure, unrestrained sound, filled with the kind of joy that made Heeseung’s heart swell.

The boy’s face was flushed from the running, cheeks rosy, his eyes bright with something innocent, something untouched by the heaviness of the world.

For a moment, Heeseung couldn’t move.

He could only watch as Sunghoon ran towards him, as if he were a vision of something sacred.

The way the sunlight caught the strands of his hair, the soft shimmer of his skin, the effortless grace in his movements.
It was all too much.

His chest tightened, and Heeseung felt that familiar pang, the one he always tried to ignore.

The one that reminded him how dangerous this was.

But in that moment, as Sunghoon’s laughter echoed through the garden, Heeseung couldn’t help himself.

He fell in love with him all over again.

Sunghoon slowed as he neared, a breathless grin lighting up his face.

There was something about the way he looked, standing there in the golden light, barefoot and carefree, that made Heeseung’s heart ache.

Sunghoon’s innocence, his purity, it was something Heeseung didn’t deserve to taint, yet he couldn’t stop the way his heart raced at the sight of him.

"Hey."
Sunghoon breathed out, still catching his breath.
"What are you doing out here? I thought you’d finished with the trees."

Heeseung chuckled softly, his gaze never leaving Sunghoon.
"Thought I’d give them a bit more attention. They needed it."

But the truth was, the trees weren’t what needed tending.

Heeseung had come out here to escape the intensity between him and Sunghoon, to give himself space to breathe, to think.

Yet here he was, caught once more by the boy who had stolen his heart.

Sunghoon stepped closer, his hand brushing against the rough bark of the apple tree, and Heeseung’s stomach flipped.

The boy looked so delicate, so unguarded.

His fingers traced the grooves in the bark absentmindedly, his eyes glancing up at Heeseung with a softness that made the older man’s chest tighten.