Heās terrible at this shit. He always had been. Love was a difficult thing for Yi-joon to understand ; his parentās love was transactional. When his brother got out, he thought that his brother didnāt love him either ( no fault of Jiyongās ; Yi-joon was taught to hate him at a young age ). And yet, if you had told him when he was younger that he would be at these gardens in Shanghai with his husband ā free of the chains that bound him to a life he didnāt want to live ā he would have laughed in your face.
Thereās idle shifting in his jacket, and he hopes the strange sound from said jacket was muffled by the sounds of other people nearby. Though he moves with Hyeon, grabs him by his wrist and nearly drags him to an area that still gets the light from the display of lights at night, but away from too many prying eyes, for what he had wasnāt allowed in here.
āLook, Iām shit with my words, you know that.ā Yi-joon always showed his love differently. The way he wanted to be near Hyeon always, the way that heād get anxious when his husband went to work all day, the soft kissed and physical affection in the privacy of their own home. Feelings that he wasnāt allowed to really express on his youth, but after leaving all of that behind, there had been ⦠improvement, hadnāt there? He grunts as thereās clear movement in his jacket ā he has to hurry.
āāBut I love you. You fucking know that ā thatās why I brought you back here. You make me ⦠happy, okay? If it werenāt for you, I wouldnāt fucking be here. Iām a piece fucking shit and you love me anyway.ā He unzips his jacket; a small scream of a meow as the hairless kitten pokes his head out, ears too big and eyes wide and blue, looking at Hyeon before Yi-joon scoops him out and holds him out to them, the collar around the little guys neck adorned with a gold and jade ring ; special, for Hyeon and Hyeon only.
they've always thought themselves rather skilled when it comes to predicting surprises before they happen. everyone has little tells that give them away, gives their plans away āāā and with how long they'd been married to yi-joon, they'd thought ( perhaps foolishly ) that they knew his every tell, down to that little twitch of the eyebrow whenever he was ... struggling with his emotions.
the trip to shanghai had been planned by the two of them, there were no surprises to be had, at least they'd thought. another beautiful night, another moment spent with their husband in a city that they loved dearly ; there was no reason for hyeon to suspect that anything was amiss. of course, yi-joon had been acting a little off, shifting around awkwardly at times but to some extent that was normal for him, he didn't do crowds, he didn't do PEOPLE. he'd only ever tolerated that sort of environment for hyeon.
a romantic a heart, hyeon thinks. though he'd likely deny it until he was blue in the face.
a romantic in his own way, at least āāā because there's no warning as hyeon is dragged off somewhere a little secluded. they're not ashamed to admit that their thoughts go somewhere ... suggestive in that moment, because the two of them weren't exactly strangers to certain activities in a public setting. but when yi-joon starts talking, when hyeon just barely catches a glimpse of movement within their husband's jacket ... that's when they know that he's been planning something.
" yi-joon, what are you talking about āāā "
and then? well, everything happens so quickly, and they're not even given the time to PROCESS his words before they're face-to-face with the cutest little kitten they'd ever seen. and they don't see it at first, too taken by the fact that yi-joon had caved ( yet again ) and given the older what they wanted, to see that there was something attached to the collar. they don't notice, of course, until the kitten is in their arms, until fingers brush against something cold and small āāā a ring.
it had been an offhanded comment of course, the idea that they'd wanted to get married again, get married properly. their wedding hadn't exactly been romantic, a rush to the courthouse after their divorce papers from PREVIOUS marriages had come through. it hadn't been romantic, but it had been enough because they'd had each other. but now, as hyeon stares a yi-joon in shock, they're reminded of just how far the two of them had come, how far yi-joon had come ; and despite the fact that they were tearing up, they couldn't help but think about just how proud they were of the man they'd married.
" yi-joon ... " his name barely above a whisper, and if it weren't for the kitten in their arms, they would have surged forward and almost knocked the other to the ground from the excitement of it all. instead, they move closer, free hand moving to cup their husband's cheek before leaning in, pressing kiss after kiss upon his lips. " of course i'll marry you again. i'd marry you a hundred times over, yeobo. i love you āāā "