Kaisoo One Shots

12 Days of Kaisoo

Author: fatal_fangirl

A Partridge in a Pear Tree

Kyungsoo liked to listen to old American records on a player he picked up off the sidewalk. Jongin remembered the day they dusted it off and brought it home—a scuffed up wooden box with a warped turntable and a perfectly good needle.

"It just needs a little work." Kyungsoo had said it with that smile Jongin always fell for.

They'd been living together for a year now, and listening to vintage records for just over half: best friends splitting rent in a money-draining city. One was a dancer struggling to break into a theater company and the other was a line chef with hopes of opening a jazz bar. They were young, dreams still vibrant even in their doubt, and on top of everything Jongin was in love.

He thought back on the exact moment he had tripped head over heels. It was while they were listening to this exact record and this exact song. Kyungsoo had sung it to himself then like he did now, folding laundry in the middle of the living room floor. It was in English and Jongin only knew a handful of the words, but he could hum the tune and knew the meaning of the chorus well enough to sing it honestly. Thick accent and all.

Jongin crossed his legs and sat, picking up a pear-green shirt to fold. He stole glances, awkwardly confessing through a Partridge Family song. His heart drummed along with the words as he watched Kyungsoo's lips move in sync, smiling down at a pair of Jongin's socks.

When the song ended so did the record.

Kyungsoo stood with a stretch, starting to step carefully toward the record player when Jongin reached up. The wrist was small in his hand, and Kyungsoo stopped with a question in his raised eyebrow. Maybe this was the moment. Maybe this simple quiet after an old familiar song, with them stationed between stacks of fresh linens, was the moment Jongin had been waiting for.

"I..." He faltered under all the maybes. The possibility of success seemed dim next to the probability of failure, and the potential of ruining years of friendship was caught in his throat.

Kyungsoo waited and it gave Jongin time. Somewhere among the butterflies and ringing of his pulse in his ears, he found his voice.

"I love—" His focus danced between Kyungsoo's bright-eyed stare, lidded from looking down. It was just so perfect that it scared him. He backed out while still holding on. Fingers loosened on a warm wrist. "I would love pasta tonight."

Kyungsoo smiled, and it was the one Jongin always fell for. "I can make that happen."

The record was flipped and music returned. The moment had passed. Jongin placed his hand over his heart as Kyungsoo disappeared into the kitchen, and reminded himself to not get discouraged. He still had 11 more days until his self-constructed deadline. There was still time to confess before Christmas.

-----------

Two Turtle Doves

"I don't understand you." Sehun stretched his legs out from underneath the diner table. It was their local spot, a 24-hour joint with cheap coffee and a wait staff that didn't mind if that was all you bought. Jongin liked to come here after time in at the studio. It was the perfect place to sip on something warm while he waited for Kyungsoo to get off his late shift downtown.

"Have you ever?"

Sehun paused, thinking. "I guess you have a point." They were friends through the studio, struggling young dancers often auditioning for the same roles that neither of them got. At the moment they were in a community production of the Nutcracker together, and had small parts as soldiers. They worked hard and late, and when the day was done, they came here to a table already saved by Sehun's boyfriend.