forever ; hyungwonho

04

CHAPTER FOUR

WAKING up the next morning, hoseok's bleary-gaze landed on the sleeping figure next to him.

mouth slightly a jar, hair a total mess, acting as a sort of halo against the older boy's sheets. it wasn't a rare sight to see hyungwon sleeping next to him, they slept over at each other's place all the time; but, right now, something inside hoseok's heart caused him to feel such an overwhelming urge to never let hyungwon go- to hold him in his arms for longer. because he never knew when something like that, something so pure, could get ripped away.

hoseok leaned down, gently placing a kiss on hyungwon's cheekbone. "wake up, sleeping beauty."

the younger stirred, but still didn't open his eyes. so, hoseok shifted closer to him, kissing his cheek a few more times. after every kiss, he'd lean back to see if the boy was waking up, but nothing changed- hyungwon somehow remained asleep.

"hyungwon, wake up, i'm bored."

lifting up hyungwon's arm, then letting it fall again, hoseok was trying to irritate the other into waking up.

eventually, the boy scrunched up his nose, squinting his eyes open. "let me sleep," he mumbled.

hoseok pouted, "no."

"fine," hyungwon closed his eyes again, a smirk playing on his lips. "you'll just have to keep kissing me some more."

"i'm not doing that again," the shorter said in a fake-disgusted tone, provoking the other.

before hyungwon could grab onto hoseok's arm or even yell at him for being a tease, the older rose from the bed, walking out of the room. announcing that he was going to make them both breakfast, a don't burn the food again came from hyungwon, who was holding back his laughter. hoseok dismissed the comment, trying not to remember how last time he burnt their toast and, somehow, part of the kitchen curtains.

hoseok pulled out all the ingredients and equipment he needed. he cleared a space on the small bench, beginning to crack open an egg and whisk it in a bowl.

"shin hoseok."

startled, hoseok dropped the fork in the bowl, turning around to see hyungwon standing a few meters away from him. his shirt hung loosely on his shoulder, hair slightly wavy.

"something wrong?"

"you didn't get any egg shells in there, did you?"

hoseok turned back around, trying to hide his grin, "that was only one time."

hyungwon giggled, walking closer to the boy. he peaked over hoseok's shoulder, watching him stir some parsley into the egg mix. he rested his chin on the shorter's shoulder, "i wish you were taller so i wouldn't have to bend down so far."

hoseok snorted, "get your pointy chin off my shoulder, then."

inside, he wished that hyungwon wouldn't move away from him. it oddly felt right like this - having their bodies pressed together, feeling safe - and a part of him hoped the younger boy felt it as well.

"hm... nah," hyungwon murmured. then, gradually, he wrapped his arms firmly around hoseok's waist, squeezing him a little bit, "you're warm."

once hoseok was done cooking, the two ate breakfast in peace, and thankfully there weren't any egg shells. even though, their small meals didn't ever quite fill them up completely, they were happy. being with each other, sharing a meal, was more than enough for them; as long as they were together, everything seemed okay.

in the evening, hyungwon decided to stay another night, which hoseok honestly didn't even mind.

both of them were currently laying on his mattress. the older boy was reading a book, while hyungwon complained about how bored he was- hoseok just zoned out his voice and concentrated on the story. when the younger knew he wasn't going to get hoseok's attention, he tried searching for something to do, and that was when he came across one of hoseok's old fairy tales.

"snow white?"

"huh?" the boy finally looked up from his book. "oh, i haven't read that in years."

hyungwon flicked open the first page, sitting cross-legged at the end of hoseok's bed, leaning against the wall. he cleared his throat, "once upon a time in midwinter, when the snowfl-"

"what are you doing?"

"reading to you. now, be quiet, i've never read this before." he shifted his body, making himself more comfortable on the bed.

"okay, okay," hoseok closed his book, placing it on the floor beside him. "continue."

somewhere in between hyungwon's sweet voice speaking the words from the page, and the sunlight fading, hoseok ended up resting his head on the younger's lap. hyungwon softly played with the boy's hair with one hand as he continued reading out loud. every now and then, he would poke hoseok's cheek, just to make sure he was still awake. he could clearly see the boy wasn't sleeping, but he liked it how hoseok would instantly smile whenever he touched his cheek.

as hyungwon came to the bit where snow white died, he started crying. tears streamed down his cheeks, landing in hoseok's hair. it startled the older boy at first, but he knew the other was sensitive, so, hoseok sat up, and wiped the tears from hyungwon's cheeks with his thumb. he took the book, reading it to hyungwon, who was now laying in his arms, head leaning against his chest.

at first, they were reading it together, but hyungwon closed his eyes and allowed hoseok to tell the story instead.

"the end," he whispered, looking down once he was finished, kissing hyungwon's head.

he then slowly closed the book, positioning it on the floor. sighing, he began to feel extremely nostalgic- it was the first fairy tale his mother ever read to him. he missed her, his father, everyone else he had lost. he knew there was nothing he could do to bring them back. but, hoseok still held onto the memory of them, knowing that somewhere, high above in the stars, they were watching over him.

besides, he knew he did have someone else now.

"can we sleep?" hyungwon's voice was gruff, the exhaustion prominent.

hoseok pulled the same, old blanket over them. then he wrapped his arm around the other boy. hyungwon nuzzled his head near hoseok's neck, the closeness made him feel calm, yet he could feel his heart beating rapidly.

"hoseok?" hyungwon's breath lightly fanned over his skin.

all hoseok could do was respond by running his fingers down the other's back, a sign to show that he was listening.

"sing to me."

"you want me to sing to you?" he asked, keeping his eyes closed.

he felt hyungwon nod his head against his shoulder, and subtly tighten his grip on his shirt, "please? can you sing that song you always used to sing? it's so beautiful."

hoseok leaned down, pecking hyungwon's cheek before taking in a deep breath, starting to sing. his voice was gentle, soft, carefully pronouncing each word. and soon, he heard the steady breathing of the boy in his arms. he wondered if hyungwon thought about him when he sang the lyrics; he wondered if there was even a chance for them to be more than friends.

he wondered if they really were going to stay with each other forever.