ANKLET - YEONGYU - Force Marriage

7 - Anklet

---

Yeonjun stirred awake, blinking as the early morning light streamed through the curtains. He turned his head and smiled at the sight of Beomgyu curled up beside him, his face buried in the pillow. Gently, he reached out and shook Beomgyu's shoulder. "Gyu, wake up, my anklet," Yeonjun whispered softly.

Beomgyu groaned, still half-asleep, before slowly opening his eyes. When he saw Yeonjun, he immediately smiled and crawled closer, wrapping his arms around him. "Hyung, good morning," Beomgyu mumbled into Yeonjun's chest.

Yeonjun chuckled and kissed the top of Beomgyu's head. "Good morning, my beautiful anklet." He watched as Beomgyu blushed, burying his face further into his chest.

Suddenly, Beomgyu's eyes widened as realization struck. "Oh no!" he cried, pulling away. "Today is my practice, and the wedding is next week! What am I going to do?"

Panic set in as Beomgyu sat up, wringing his hands. Yeonjun reached out, cupping Beomgyu's cheek to calm him down. "Gyu, it's alright. Don’t panic," Yeonjun reassured him. "We were supposed to go shopping for the wedding today, remember?"

"But practice!" Beomgyu whimpered, his eyes filling with tears. "I can’t skip practice! Coach will be so mad at me."

Yeonjun sighed, pulling Beomgyu into his chest again, rubbing his back soothingly. "How about I call your coach and let him know you can’t make it today? I’ll tell him it’s a family emergency."

Beomgyu nodded but didn’t seem any calmer, his tears soaking into Yeonjun’s shirt. "You promise? He won’t be mad?"

"I promise, Gyu," Yeonjun said softly, brushing Beomgyu's hair away from his face. "Now stop crying. Everything will be fine."

Just then, the doorbell rang, startling Beomgyu, who jumped in Yeonjun’s arms. His panic returned in full force. "Oh no, who is it? What if it's someone from practice? Or what if—"

"Calm down, Gyu. It’s just my mom. She’s here to go shopping with us for the wedding," Yeonjun said with a sigh. "I’ll go talk to her, and then I’ll call your coach, okay?"

Beomgyu sniffled, nodding weakly as he clung to Yeonjun’s sleeve. "Okay, Hyung..."

Yeonjun kissed the top of Beomgyu's head once more before heading downstairs to open the door. His mom stood there, smiling brightly. "Good morning, sweetheart!" she greeted.

"Morning, Mom. Come in," Yeonjun replied, stepping aside to let her in. "Make yourself comfortable. I need to take care of something real quick and check on Beomgyu. We’ll be down in a bit."

"Of course, dear," his mom said, settling on the couch as Yeonjun hurried back upstairs.

When Yeonjun returned to their room, he found Beomgyu curled up on the bed, hugging a pillow tightly, his eyes still puffy from crying. "Gyu, I’m going to call your coach now, okay?"

Beomgyu nodded but didn’t say anything, still looking anxious. Yeonjun sighed and dialed the number for Beomgyu’s cheer coach. After a few rings, a gruff voice answered. "Hello, this is Coach Kim."

"Hi, Coach Kim. This is Yeonjun, Beomgyu’s... um, older brother." Yeonjun hesitated but continued. "I’m calling to let you know that Beomgyu won’t be able to make it to practice today. There’s a family situation that needs to be taken care of."

Coach Kim hummed on the other end of the line. "Is that so? Well, family comes first. Tell Beomgyu not to worry, and he can make up for it later."

"Thank you, Coach. I appreciate it," Yeonjun replied, relieved as he hung up the phone. He turned back to Beomgyu, who was watching him with hopeful eyes. "See? It’s all taken care of, Gyu. Coach said it’s okay."