five is a magic number | P.SH
NEUTRAL!READER X PARK SEONGHWA (ATEEZ)
summary: for months you get visited in your dreams by the same man over and over. you’ve never seen him before, never met him before, but you still can’t help but to wish for him every time you close your eyes.
warnings: swear words. mentions of sex (not anything graphic or suggestive in any way, just conversations about it lol)
･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ - uhm, i’m not a native english speaker so there might be grammatical errors or words written wrongly :/ feel free to leave kind feedback if you see any errors <3 thank you so much for reading this!!! - ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.
"Why do you look so tired?" Wooyoung poked your arm sharply, eliciting a muffled hiss from you.
You glared at him in annoyance as you shifted in your seat, "Because I had a strange dream and couldn't fall asleep again."
Wooyoung carded a hand through his washed out lilac hair, chuckling in the meanwhile as he awaited an explanation from beside him.
"Yeah? Share," Jongho said muffled, cheeks round and filled with overcooked potato.
"I just know this is gonna be fucked up," Yeosang huffed and slid his emptied plate to the side to hoist his elbows up on the table.
You sighed, the dream playing up in your head automatically and you nearly blushed. "It was. Well, it was strange at least."
"Oh boy..." Wooyoung chuckled, scooting closer against your fluffy jacket.
You placed the fork down on the plate, "I honestly quite enjoyed being in the dream, I wasn't alone," you said. "I was with this gorgeous guy, around my age, on a beautiful and tropical island."
The three guys listened intently, nodding as you stopped talking.
"We sipped on drinks on the sand, which was surrounded with flying turtles. And the water was green and smelled like lime I think?" you laughed and rubbed at your dry eyes.
"The least odd dream from you, I'm disappointed," Jongho yawned and continued eating the burnt piece of meatloaf left. You couldn't fantom how he was eating that shit.
"So who's this guy?" Wooyoung asked.
"I wish I knew, he was out of this world pretty," the corners of your mouth turned up gleefully on instinct, picturing his wavy hair flowing in the wind as it matched the sand beneath your feet. His eyes had been darker than the shell of the turtles around you, and a smile brighter than the sunshine blinding you.
"Gosh, tell me you're not gonna crush on this dream dude," Yeosang rolled his eyes and supported his chin on his palm.
"I'm not that desperate!" you pouted and leaned back against the hard plastic of the chair, crossing your arms together over your chest.
Jongho shot you a look from behind his lashes, ends of his chapped lips suggestively turned upwards, "Sure about that?"
"What if you begin having wet dreams about him?" Wooyoung cackled loudly, making it ring in your left ear.
"Well, maybe he could fulfill my needs," you sighed, as both Yeosang and Jongho scrunched their faces up in disgust.
"You're so gross," Jongho said as he shook his head rapidly, his chestnut hair bouncing up satisfyingly.
"I'm a virgin and frustrated, leave me alone," you muttered and slid down even further in your seat.
"Petition to find someone for Y/N," Yeosang snickered and raised from his chair, leaning down to grab ahold of his plate and glass.
Yourself, Wooyoung and Jongho all got up too and followed Yeosang out of the lonely campus cafeteria, which had only been occupied by the four of you. It often happened that you spent too much time in the cafeteria talking together or waiting for Jongho to eat up his three portions of crappy, low-budget school food.
"Can we head to the store instead, I really really really don't want to attend the devil's class," Wooyoung whined loudly, clinging onto Yeosang's straight shoulders as you made your way over the yard.
The brown, red and golden orange leaves crisped underneath your thick boots as the wind ruffled the already messy style of your hair. The clouds covering up the faraway sun looked gloomy and angry, crying down over you at any moment now.
"I'm not skipping class," Yeosang answered, casting a quick glance back at Wooyoung who was practically leaning entirely onto the older's back.
"Me neither, I have a napping session scheduled in maths class," you chuckled and pulled your big hood over your head.
After a week had passed since you'd dreamt about the handsome stranger, he appeared again when you were in the state of the deepest sleep.
It wasn't much more normal than the first dream you had with the happy figure. This time you were literally flying over the woods filled with twisty trees curling up into all sorts of directions, on a flying mat. It was much similar to the magical carpet from Aladdin, if not the exact one.
Hours before going to bed you had binge watched several Disney movies, Aladdin being one of them.
The arms of the stranger's were tightly, and very securely, holding onto your waist as you controlled the carpet’s movements in the air. You had smiled, casting a lingering glance over your shoulder to where the male was sitting right behind you, his legs trapping your own. His head was leaned back and he let the colors of the wind sweep him away. He looked so utterly happy and at ease, every detail on his sparkling, honey face smooth and lean - almost child-like.
His Adam's apple bobbed up as his mouth opened in joy, grinning widely while his eyes just barely opened to inspect the open sky above. His eyes glinted dreamily in the soft lighting.
You couldn't bask in the euphoric feeling of floating in the air, trying to avoid the crowns of the trees below, much longer. The vision of the man in his calm state blurred and turned into a pitch-black wall of nothing, as you registered a faint sound of ringing.
On instinct, your eyes snapped open and it took a moment for you to come to your senses.
"Fucking alarm clock..." you muttered in displease and hit the snooze-button on the screen of your screaming phone.
Your hand placed itself onto the exposed skin of your waist, caressing the area lightly as the dream repeated in your head. A smile tingled over your lips, heart swelling excitedly at seeing the stranger again.
"Again?!" Wooyoung gaped, "How is that even possible?"
"I have no idea, it's so weird!" you whined, stopping at writing down notes to look up at Wooyoung in front of you.
"What if you actually do know him?" he urged, sitting hunched over the table as his eyes were widened in excitement and nose scrunched cutely.
"I think I would've remembered someone like him," you chuckled and turned your head back down to see what you were writing.
Wooyoung chuckled airily, "I guess."
You dropped the pen from your hold, "Gah, this man is truly perfect, I'm telling you," you exclaimed tiredly, "And he's always smiling so much."
"If Yeosang would hear you," he smirked, imagining the sassy comments pouring out of his friend's devilish mouth. Both of you knew he wasn't the innocent boy he seemed to be on the outside, always dressing classy and never leaving a button open.
"Yeosang is going to roast me or expose me when I tell him about this."
"Probably both, Y/N," he laughed, louder this time and in his usual high-pitched tone that cut through your ears each time.
"Probably both," you repeated and couldn't help the laugh escaping when hearing Wooyoung. His laugh was so contagious and made you all giddy inside.
"You know what you should do?" Wooyoung said, you shook your head, "Write these dreams down! Imagine in the future when you look back at it."
"I like that idea, Woo," you said, slowly nodding your head in agreement and thinking it over as you scribbled onto the pages of the notebook.
You didn't expect to dream about him again. You thought those two time were it, and you'd nearly forgotten all about him as months went by. Dreaming now was just without him.
The third time had you concerned of your well-being. Dreaming of the same stranger three times in a row could possibly not be a good nor healthy sign, right?
You didn't even have the courage to search it up on google to try to find some answers to calm your mind (and your heart). But you knew the headlines would read 'finding your soulmate' and 'dreaming about strangers? you've found your destined soulmate' in scary capital letters.
Your friends had been pushing the concept onto you, telling you that this guy have to be your destined soulmate. The one searching and waiting for you somewhere out in the world.
You honestly didn't believe in the concept of soulmates, having just one person being the one for the rest of your life. It couldn't be possible falling in love with a person who's supposed to be the perfect one for you.
You didn't want to dwell on it. Wooyoung, Jongho and Yeosang could make all the conspiracy theories they wanted, but preferably leaving you out of it.
The fourth dream could never be forgotten.
This time it had only gone a couple of day since the last dream, and also a couple of days had gone by since you had gotten a good nights sleep. Exams were tiring, to say the least.
You found yourself in an empty parking lot, no cars were to be found, no white road marks creating spaces for the vehicles. Strangely, only a cube-shaped store glowed in neon yellow in the middle of the deserted and gray place.
You looked from left to right repeatedly, finding no one but yourself there. Until a set of lite steps echoed behind you.
Swiftly you turned towards the new sound, staring dumbly at the too familiar stranger. He looked elegant with a white blouse, straps and metal holes sewn into the clothing item as the classy dress-shoes clicked against the cement.
"I'm not surprised to see you," your voice said, the words mumbled and distant as if they traveled through a thick fog.
"Makes two of us," he said with an easy chuckle, but the sound wasn't recalled on your part. Somehow you just knew he was laughing, and somehow you knew he was talking to you.
"Where are we?" you asked, looking around.
The man stepped closer, smiling softly as his eyes locked onto yours, "Dreaming, I suppose."
You scoffed with a joyous smile plastered over your face, "Duh."
Silence draped over the tight atmosphere between the two of you, not a single sound picked up, not even the sound of breathing.
The silence, it wasn't uncomfortable, on the contrary. His eyes drew you in hypnotically as you stared into those dark depths, wanting to come even closer and maybe even embrace him. But you felt stuck in place, like an invisible stop sign was blocking your way forward.
"Who are you?" you shouted out, feeling the air become thicker as your words drowned.
He reached his delicate hand out for you, brows now creased harshly together as a look of despair laid over his once soft face. Or maybe it was sadness.
You reached your hand out too, trying to fight the force pulling you backwards, but it care to no avail.
The vision of him dispersed like the wind blowing away dust.
You sat up straight in bed, panting softly as the alarm blared throughout your cold room. You looked into thin air, hand tensed and still trying to grasp ahold of him. Whoever he was.
The dream haunted you for the rest of the boring and drawn out day. And it didn't go unnoticed by your small group of friends entirely invested in your wicked dream adventures with one specific, and unknown, guy.
"I was so close in getting his name!" you said in irritation, rubbing your temples harshly.
"Your dreams are literally evolving," Jongho said, amazement widening his eyes.
"I wish I could dream about a handsome stranger," Wooyoung pouted.
"You don't, I promise. It's only frustrating..." you sighed, "And I can't believe we were having a conversation together?"
"This is really weird," Yeosang commented as you looked at each other.
"Try asking him again next time you meet," Jongho suggested.
By now it sounded as if you were trying to find someone in real life and asking about the person's number. But it wasn't so easy, it never was. You weren't even sure if he was real in the first place.
Little did you know there wasn't a "next time".
You spent weeks hoping to catch a glimpse of him again, one last time, to ask him of his name or to just see him. See his smile.
The dreams occurring during your sleep were as odd as ever, but forgot to include the stranger. And you often forgot about the activities in your head the minute you woke up.
Sadly, the memory of the dreams including him were fading slowly with each day running away. You had every dream written down in a hidden journal, so that wasn't a problem, you were just scared to loose the image of him. You couldn't even understand it, but he felt important to you. He sparked a warm feeling deep down your heart.
But you gave up after a couple of weeks, leaving him locked away in a small box of random memories somewhere in your useless brain. And you never opened the the journal to read through the journey together with him.
So you forgot. You forgot all about the four dreams. All about the face with no name.
Even your friends did. Thankfully.
Eventually you graduated college alongside Wooyoung and Yeosang, entering the adult world hand in hand and carrying each other’s fears and anxieties for the upcoming chapter in your lives.
You’d been lucky to get hired at a job in central Seoul, while waiting for your job interview to get accepted. You were hoping to become a successful journalist at some luxurious and nortorious company, who could publish all of your writings.
The luck was on your side, because you even found a cheap apartment near the restaurant you were working at. Your plan had been to share an apartment with Yeosang and Wooyoung, but you couldn’t resist the offer. Still, you saw them everyday, and visited (along with Jongho) the place they rented together.
Mindlessly you bopped your head from side to side as the music poured into your ears while you leaned against the window, sights flashing before your eyes rapidly.
You were heading home after a job interview at a very famous and well-talked about company. Honestly you had no idea how it went, you’d just answered their questions as good and upright you could while bringing out the most polite side of you. You just hoped they liked you and your work.
The subway stopped at a station, new people shoveling themselves inside the carriages and filling up the small amount of free seats available inside.
You ignored the new set of people and continued gazing out of the window at the underground station and towards the platform in front of your eyes.
People clutching onto brown or black briefcases, dressed in overpriced suits beyond comprehension and in dresses, which were the newest fashion, stood scattered over the platform. A gentleman sneaked a peek at his watch each passing second and an older lady tapped her sharp heel impatiently over the concrete. But what your eyes landed on next had you double taking in your seat.
The stranger was looking - or rather staring - at you with a bewildered expression. His mouth was parted and stood agape dramatically, and his deep eyes were round and wide open.
You saw your reflection turn into the same kind of expression as your eyes were practically glued onto his form in disbelief.
“Oh. My. God,” you whispered in a high pitch, standing upright and stumbling to the subway’s already closed doors.
Your eyes never left his, and his never left yours.
Slowly, the wheels began moving, departing from the stop and towards the next one. You threw yourself against the glass doors, palms pressed tightly against the surface while giving him a pleading look.
He himself started moving to the direction of the subway, soon coming to a jog to chase after you. But soon enough the subway disappeared into a pitch-black tunnel and the both of you lost sight of each other.
You began panting, breathing in hastily as reality set in. You had seen him. In real life. A year must have probably passed already...
Scrambling up your phone in a frenzy, tears nearly welling up in your panicked eyes, you pressed the first contact you saw and impatiently waited for the call to pick up.
“C’mon, pick up, pick up, pick up...” you whispered to yourself, biting at your thumb nail as the image of him was glued behind your lids.
His hair was raven colored, not sandy like in your dreams. You were very fond of it, he looked so elegant with the color.
“Wooyoung, I saw him,” you rambled.
“Saw who?” he could barely ask before you were answering him.
“The guy from my dreams!” you exclaimed in a mix of panic and happiness.
The line got quiet for a long moment, no response.
"Are you serious?!" a shout suddenly erupted in the silence and you distanced your ear from your phone.
"Yes! We were staring at each other. He was standing on the platform on the opposite side while I sat here on the subway," you explained with quick words spitting out of your mouth at high speed.
"Yeosang!" Wooyoung shrieked at the other line. Shuffling noises echoed in the background, Wooyoung's hushed voice talking to a quiet Yeosang.
A loud gasp was heard, "Y/N, what are you going to do?" Yeosang asked.
"Well, I'm gonna get off here at the station and try to find him," you said breathless as you stepped onto the platform and began running towards the escalators.
"Really?" Wooyoung asked.
"Of course I am! I can't loose him," you yelled into your phone as you ran past people and out into the bright afternoon. "I can't believe I saw him!"
"Me neither! We told you he was your soulmate!" Wooyoung giggled.
You sighed loudly, "He's not my-"
Your mouth parted and your tongue couldn't form any words as you halted in the middle of the busy street, almost getting pushed by on-passing people.
"Y/N?" you vaguely heard Yeosang speak.
"I-I have to go," you said and hung up before getting an answer.
He was standing just a few meters ahead, just as frozen in place as you were. His mouth wasn't as parted as earlier, but the expression was still there and stared back at you for a long moment.
You didn't know what to do but to watch him awkwardly, mind running in a hundred miles per hour. Similar to the last dream with him, you felt a pull that prevented you from stepping forward and into his presence.
As you noticed him walking towards your direction with easy and slow steps, your mouth went bone dry and your throat wanted to close up while your palms oozed out sweat.
Fighting your own body you took your own small steps as he was getting so close now.
A part of you was scared we was going to disperse again, disappear from your sight before you could reach out for him.
But nothing happened as he suddenly stood face to face with you, slightly looking down at you. He was taller than you'd remembered from your dreams, tall legs, tall arms and wider shoulders.
The no-name guy softened, not keeping the shocked expression as he began smiling the slightest. You beamed on the inside at seeing the corners of his mouth turn up beautifully.
"I can't believe it's you," he said, voice so clear and smooth and deep all at once.
"Have you also been dreaming about me?" you asked with brows knitted together softly.
"Holy shit," breathlessly you said. "How is this possible?"
"I have no idea, but I don't care," he chuckled nervously, "I'm Park Seonghwa."
You nearly cried again at hearing his name flow so gracefully out of his mouth and between his full, plump lips colored in the softest of red.
"Seonghwa... finally," you grinned and looked between his eyes still holding that dreamy glint.
"It's nice to meet you..." Seonghwa trailed off and leaned a bit forward to gesture.
"Ah! L/N Y/N," you answered, a soft giggle escaping.
Seonghwa raised his brows at the sound, a wholehearted laugh making your heart beat heavily. His laugh sounded so awkward, but it was so charming. You heard it repeat in your head.
"So," Seonghwa started, "Can I buy you a coffee, Y/N."
You grinned and felt a hot blush spread over your cheeks, both at the name rolling off of his tongue, but also at the sudden invitation, "I would love that, Seonghwa."
A moment went by before you actually moved away from the middle of the street, too busy in glancing into each other's real eyes.
When you did move, you gently snaked your hand through his, smiling automatically at the touch you'd longed for. It was strange, definitely, but you felt so calm with Seonghwa. You experienced something you couldn't even describe. It was just warm, comfortable and so right.
Maybe you should rethink the whole soulmate thing...
A/N: this was a bit rushed, only written in two days, but I hope you enjoyed reading :) i just suddenly got this idea to write about Seonghwa and specifically meeting him in your dreams! it’s honestly so fun writing about Seonghwa <3
THANK YOU FOR READING REALLY 💕
gummygunk
turnnoffyourmind
tangentwithtanner
theartofmadeline
romaincrisis
kaledo-art
jacobvanloon
jbbartram-illu
