Short Stories-Kai Ships Only! Volume 3

Sookai- If I Loved You First

Soobin was dying on his hospital bed with an oxygen mask over his face and a multitude of drugs being pumped into his body. It was a miracle that he was alive. Kai's bullet barely missed his heart. Still, if you asked him if he had any regrets, he would've told you no because that would be like admitting the blonde wasn't a blessing.

He saw him in his dreams. In fact, while in his coma, Kai was really all that he dreamed out. 

They met in a bathroom. Soobin forgot his police badge in a stall that Kai just happened to go in. Under the dim flickering lights, he genuinely thought he was an angel. A breath of life within a city of depression. Every fiber of his being wanted to continue to talk to him. Get to know him and see if he was as precious as he seemed to be.

Instead, he had to leave. His boss was expecting him and he didn't want to keep his partner waiting in the car. Seeing him later with someone else, someone so undeserving, hurt worse than the bullet. While their real ending wasn't a fairytale, he subconsciously decided that it could be.

In his head they started over. He walked into the bathroom in a full on panic to see some tall blonde holding his police badge. Total relief came when it was handed back freely. He joked "you saved my ass! Thank you for giving it back! Seriously!"

"Of course! I'd like to assume most people would."

"Eh, you'd be surprised." Soobin tucked his badge securely in his breast pocket then took another look at who he was talking to. Unlike everyone else he's met in the city, this guy had an innocence in his bambi eyes. "I'm Soobin by the way. And you?"

"Kai!"

"You're not from around here are you?"

"Moved here a couple weeks ago."

"Well-" Soobin's radio cut him off. His partner told him to hurry up because their boss was waiting. He didn't want to leave, especially not for something as mundane as a meeting. With regret, he said "I gotta go. This might sound a little weird but are you doing anything tomorrow?"

"I have a class and then work but you could stop by sometime!"

"I'd love to."

Kai beamed "okay sweet! Kang's cafe. It's not far from the university."

"I'll be there. See ya Kai!"

"Bye!"

The dream morphed into the cafe. Kai was behind the bar while Soobin sat down on a bar stool watching him work. He observed his smile, his politeness, the way he walked with a sort of grace and his cute laugh from various jokes told in between. When the blonde finally had time to talk to him, Soobin joked "damn you earn a lot of tips."

"I'm just grateful people are generous with me."

"I can see why."

Kai blushed while tucking a piece of hair behind his ears. "Why's that?"

"You're cute. Your partner is lucky."

"Don't have one but thank you."

Soobin's smile drew wide when the blonde looked up from the counter. Butterflies bloomed when their eyes met. He shyly laughed then nervously asked "so you said you just moved here right?"

"Yeah a few weeks ago."

"You um... wanna go out with me? I can show you around. Plus I'm a cop so I've been everywhere. I know all the good places."

"How are you so confident that I'm not straight?" Kai let out the biggest laugh when Soobin's face turned bright red. "I'm kidding. I'd love to go out with you. Here's my number. Just text me when."

The phone number on the lid of his cup was one of two he memorized and the other was his own. Kai's number was ingrained in his memory because he feared for his safety every day since he found out who his boyfriend was in reality. He wanted to be able to reach him anytime and make sure he was okay. With excitement, he replied "I will."

Fast forward to the restaurant he envisioned taking them on their first date. It was a small sports bar with outdoor seating.

Soobin sat at a table under the hanging lights that dangled with a breeze in the air. It was cooler than he anticipated. His light black sweater wasn't enough when the sun set behind the restaurant. He then looked down and wondered if jeans were too casual. When he looked back up, he grinned widely.

Kai ran his hand through his wavy blonde bangs while walking the brick path. His tan trenchcoat floated behind him like a model gracing a runway. There was still five minutes before their date was supposed to start. He looked at his phone and wondered if he was too early.

Gray joggers and a plain white long sleeve had never looked so good to Soobin as he stared at his date. With a deep breath in, he nervously stood up and began to wave.

"Hey!" exclaimed Kai when he spotted who he was looking for. "You look great!"

"So do you. Shall we?" Though it was a sports bar, Soobin pulled out the blonde's chair for him like a true gentleman. Seeing him under the fairy lights put him in awe.

Kai's cheeks shaded to an even deeper pink when he saw how he was being looked at. "What? Do I have something on my face?"

Soobin joked "my lips if you'll let me." The joke was no longer funny when Kai leaned in. His heart nearly stopped while his guts wanted to explode when he was kissed. He couldn't stop smiling. His jaw actually began to hurt from how happy he was when he was kissed again. Each one slowly took his breath away.

The dream shifted into the blonde waking up next to him in bed, only it wasn't a one night stand. It was forever. Their wedding rings were in a box on a nightstand. After kissing him good morning, a little girl ran into their arms. Soon after, a smaller boy followed. It was perfect.

Their life together was perfect because it wasn't real.

Him dying in the hospital was blissfully masked by his brain when it should've been focused on recovery. His body knew he was being murdered and there was nothing he could do about it.

As he was seconds away from his last breath, his dream shifted to Kai putting a bullet in his chest. This time, with blood dripping to the floor, he was going to tell him everything he originally wanted to say. "Kai, I still love you. You were right. I should've stopped but I didn't because I thought I was protecting you. You need to get out of this city okay? I-I love you Kai. I've never regretted meeting you. I just wish you loved yourself as much as I do. Goodbye."