begin again | woosan (✓)

- epilogue | part 1 -

tw / brief mentions of past abuse and rape (in the context of wooyoung's healing)

[ three years later ]

the following year, san, wooyoung, and their friends all graduated. it wasn't easy, but they did it.

the year after that, seonghwa and hongjoong got engaged and started planning their wedding, and wooyoung had one of the worst panic attacks he'd had in years at the thought of how different things would be after the two were married and living separately from yeosang and himself. needless to say, it was a bit of a setback and required a lot of quality time with seonghwa and hongjoong, but they reassured him that even if they weren't living together, they would always be there and willing to drop anything for the boy in a moment's notice. yunho and mingi also got engaged that year, but they planned on having a smaller wedding that required less extensive planning, opting to wait a while before getting started.

another year had passed and the group was preparing for seonghwa and hongjoong's wedding the following month. seonghwa, wooyoung and yeosang had just returned from the oldest's bachelor trip to jeju, marking the first big trip wooyoung had been on since escaping his abuser. the first couple of days were tough for the boy, being away from both san and bada, but as the days went on, he started to enjoy himself. it was when they returned that wooyoung decided to finally register bada as a service dog, having his therapist help him with the registration process and signing up for the formal trainings that would really prepare bada.

now, san and wooyoung were at san's place, curled up with bada at their feet. san and jongho had moved shortly after graduation, still living in the same area, but in a new complex that allowed animals so that bada could come along with wooyoung when visiting.

"sannie?" wooyoung whispered.

the boy had been a bit overwhelmed all day, seonghwa going on about wedding plans with yeosang and wooyoung and it was beginning to become stressful for the boy that change was so close.

"yes, my love?"

"i'm really scared..."

"scared? oh, woo... what are you scared of?"

"what life will be like after hwa and joongie get married... i-i know i should be happy, but really, i-i'm terrified. a-and it feels awful, because they're so happy, but i can't help it."

"baby... it's okay to be scared. everything you're feeling right now is totally valid. you've been living with hwa for over seven years, and joongie for almost four. whether or not they're planning on still living with you and yeo or not, things are changing and that can be really scary.

"it'll be hard, i know. but you, my love, are so incredibly strong and i know you can handle it. i'll always be here for you to lean on me too, you got that?"

wooyoung took a deep breath and nodded, cuddling closer to san.

"if you need space from all the hectic happenings at your place right now too, you can always come here to escape, whether i'm here or not. you have a key for a reason, baby."

"okay..." wooyoung whispered. "i-i think i'll probably be here a lot."

"you know that's fine by me, love."

wooyoung just nodded at this, closing his eyes and taking deep breaths to try and relax. san rubbed his back gently as he did, then thinking about the conversation he had with yeosang and jongho a few days before the boys went to jeju while wooyoung had been in the bathroom.

they had discussed the possibility of yeosang and wooyoung moving in with the two once seonghwa and hongjoong were married so that the newly married couple would have more space and privacy, but also so that wooyoung would still be living in a situation that was relatively normal to him. the longer that the two couples had been together, the more frequently both yeosang and wooyoung would come over and stay the night.