pairing : bf!mark x gf!reader genre : fluff, est. relationship warnings : so domestic, self insert, crying, kissing, umm mark = best ever synopsis : headcannons that bf!mark would do wc : 1.7k a/n : this is the pure fluff as promised but its also a self insert :3
secretly selfish. mark was selfish but never in the way you would’ve thought. he was selfish in the way that he always wanted to be the person you talked to the most throughout the day. as much as he loved when you would tell him about the day you had without him, part of him wishes that you spent that day with him because he wanted to be with you all the time. the guilt of this selfishness eats him alive so he never tells you, and instead just acts all casual about the day you had without him but a part of you just knows how much he yearns for that.
his attentiveness. mark had multiple ways of loving you, but there was one in particular. he was such an attentive person that he noticed every little thing about you. when the two of you first starting dating, you were in school and he noticed that you were always in the library day and night so because of that he got you a portable lamp so that you were never bothered with the lack of light. it was those little things that mark noticed that made you fall for him. from fixing your outfit for you to bringing you what you’re craving during your lunch break, he knew you like the back of your hand.
there would be times where he would pick up on something that you weren’t sure you yourself knew. “you’re doing that thing when you’re upset! oh come on babe” he whined out, dropping his head in your lap as you two cuddled on the couch. you snorted and raised your brows, “i do not have a thing when i’m upset! you’re so dramatic” you teased, running your hand through his hair. he raised his head and looked at you closer, “you do, you do this thing with your eyes.. cmon it’s so noticeable” he said, making you furrow your brows. you shook your head and sighed. “stop making that joke though! my labubus are adorable” you groaned and mark only smiled, sitting up softly to position himself closer to your cheek, “whatever you want” he mumbled, kissing your cheek then your face all over.
private but never secret. both you and mark were quite open people, so when the two of you started dating there was a mutual agreement to not make your relationship too public where everyone knew about you two. just public enough that everyone knew you were his and he was yours. it remained that way as you two spent more and more time together. occasionally when you would be out with friends, you two would hold your hands underneath the table, your intertwined hands in marks lap as he rubbed circles on the front of your hand. sometimes when you were walking in public, his hand would rest on the small of your back, signifying that he was still close by and right with you. neither of you were ever big on pda so that wasn’t an issue either. despite all these things, everyone just knew the way you looked at one another, grazed hands, and smiled at each other, that you two were together.
gifts when you least expect it. it wouldn’t ever be a special occasion, but randomly mark would come home with a gift for you. it ranges from a trinket he saw at the convenience store or a necklace so expensive that it could buy a mansion. marks heart was very big, he was a very charitable man but to him, spending money on you wasn’t charitable but rather one of his rights that he had a privilege of doing as your boyfriend.
you heard the apartment door open and close, signifying that mark had come home after his day out. “hey baby” he sighed, the smile in his voice clear as he made his way to the couch where you sat. you looked up at him from your laptop and smiled, scooting to make room for him. “have fun?” you said, watching as he sat down next to you. he nodded, kissing your cheek. he took a small box out of his jackets inner pocket, looking to you. you already knew and smiled softly, “you didn’t have to, you know that?” you watched him, the biggest smile on his face as he opened the box, revealing a ring with small gems. “yeah but, i wanted to” he mumbled, slipping the ring onto your finger, looking back up to you. “thank you” you mumbled, looking into his eyes. “anything for you” he mumbled back, leaning into you peck your lips.
quiet nights. there would be days where both you and mark arrive home overstimulated and tired from the day both of you had. for you it would be work and for mark it would be the endless hours he spends in the recording studio. in those nights, the two of you would lead a very quiet night. you silently cooking dinner as mark kept you company, helping you whenever you needed it. he would clean up the kitchen and dishes afterwards as you run a bath for the both of you. the bath would be quiet as well, marks bare chest against your back as he rubs your arms, pecking light kisses against your shoulder. the night would end with the two of you in bed, limbs intertwined as he runs his hand through your hair, getting lost in you.
“love you” mark mumbles, pressing a kiss on the top of your head as you moved closer to him, your head laying on his chest. “love you too” you mumble back, his soft snores lulling you to sleep.
laughing at your dumb jokes. you could admit that you weren’t the funniest person ever and mark knew that sometimes you did feel insecure when no one laughs at your jokes. so when the two of you are out with your friends and you say a joke, he laughs like it’s the funniest thing in the world. mark has a very contagious laugh so this makes everyone else laugh as well. you know that sometimes he just laughs because he doesn’t want you to feel alone but that makes it better because he cares about you so much to notice the little things.
never wanting to be apart. mark and his closest friends would plan a trip atleast once every 3 month but it was always overnight and at least for one weekend. obviously he wouldn’t want to bring you around because his other friends wouldn’t bring their girlfriends since it was strictly only them. when this time came around he would constantly be texting you about anything since he hated being apart from you. you thought it was cute because you missed him as well but he was just so adorable.
my love: they’re sending me chenle and jeno to the supermarket i can’t believe this
my love: i can’t even cook baby what do i do
you: just help chenle get what he needs he’ll probably be cooking
you: or you guys could call jaemin
my love: wait ur right
my love: i miss u so bad baby
my love: they’re making me drive maybe i should just abandon them and drive back to town
my love: they can just uber
you: babe don’t do that TT
you: i miss you more my love
you: the cat we feed on the way home also misses u lots
my love: :((((
my love: the resort place is really nice .. should i ask renjun to send me the link to the airbnb
you: why? if he booked it then you guys can just book again through him
my love: baby come on
my love: my girl deserves to be taken out and spoiled all the time
you: focus on getting groceries idiot…….
my love: we WILL bookmark it
my love: hope work is good, missing u so much
you: work is work babe
you: i miss u more
you: but i wouldn’t be opposed to the vacay
my love: YESS
my love: don’t work too hard baby
my love: gotta go now, love u
my love: call tn?
you: ofc and i won’t, love you more
my love: <333
hating when you cry. mark didn’t cry often, you weren’t sure when the last time you saw him cry but he always feels the urge whenever you cry. mark loves hard so when he sees you crying as if the world is falling apart to him his world is falling apart. it’s not like you cried often but he knew you were the type of person to pent things up and letting it all out so when that did happen it was a little messy. he wipes your tears away from your face and holds you close to him, letting you cry it out. he knows you need it so he never tries to stop it but instead silently gives you his comfort.
writing poetry for you. there would be times where the two of you would be sitting next to each other doing your own respective work. in those times mark would slip you a small piece of paper, smiling as he watched you read it. he made music and at times he would be writing lyrics but sometimes he got too caught up in you and wrote small poems for you to cherish and adore as he does you. those poems could be on slips of paper or post it notes he leaves around the apartment but it reminds you that his love is everywhere for you to see.
soft sweet kisses. marks love was sweet and warm, just for you. his kisses also followed that same feeling. he wouldn’t kiss you in public because he knew you didn’t like that but when the two of you are alone whether it be in the car or back at your shared apartment, his kisses were frequent. it could be a soft peck against your lips just for a quick goodbye or a slow and sweet kiss that spoke more than words ever could. he would hold you by your waist, soft lips moving against yours, smiling softly. those kisses leave your cheeks flushed and heart beating at a rapid pace. for some reason those kisses meant so much more to you than any words he muttered to you.
ᓚᘏᗢ note cant believe that we are this close to the end of this flufftober...
ᓚᘏᗢ flufftober masterlist
There was something different about the way Mark looked at you when you saw him that night. It wasn't tiredness, or even the reflection of the long day he'd had at the studio. It was more like a mixture of relief and tenderness, as if finding you was just what he needed to breathe again.
You were sitting on the couch, the TV on out of habit, the air silent. His hands were clasped together, his thumbs playing distractedly, and you didn't say anything at first, because you knew that sometimes it took Mark a while to say what he was thinking.
“Today was a long day,” he finally murmured, his voice low.
“Really?” you asked, turning slightly toward him.
“Yes. Full of things, people, noise. But still…” he sighed, with a small smile, “I couldn't stop thinking about you.”
Your heart tightened a little.
“Really?” you joked, trying to sound lighthearted. “I'm sure you always say that.”
Mark shook his head, looking at you with that calm sincerity he had for important things.
“I say it because it's true. I thought about you when I laughed at something and you weren't there to hear it. I thought about you when I went to buy coffee and ordered yours without realizing it. I thought about you when I was exhausted and needed something to make me feel calm.”
There was a gentle silence. Not uncomfortable, but one of those that feels nice.
He looked at you with such serene calm that you had to look away. And then, without moving too much, he ran his hand through your hair, as if he needed to confirm that you were there, that you were real.
“Sometimes I don't know how to tell you that I miss you,” he admitted, “so I just leave it at that. Thinking about you.”
You rested your head on his shoulder, and he let out a long, relieved sigh.
The TV continued to murmur in the background, but you didn't care.
Mark hugged you a little tighter, and in a voice so soft you could barely hear it, he repeated:
dating mark comes with an unspoken loyalty towards you. mark would root for you no matter, even if you aren’t aware that he is. he’d do everything in his capacity to make sure that life goes your way, because mark wants to see you thrive and be happy. whether it be opportunities or any other events in your life, mark would attempt to help you out in whatever way he can. doing research on work fields that you’re interested in during his free time and coincidentally bringing up how there is a job near your place that you could apply for. or, you could complain to mark on the phone how it had started being burdensome to get up in the mornings and prepare your stuff, and wake up the next day to a small note and a lunch box on your kitchen counter that mark had placed there for you, encouraging words written on them. if no one is on your side, you know that at least mark is.
attempting a new lifestyle (just for you).
mark is someone who has a set routine in life, a schedule that he follows daily. he’s a person who knows what he does and doesn’t like, but with you, he doesn’t think a little change can hurt. mark would rarely have the time to go out and enjoy the outside world. you on the other hand, love to explore, which is how mark finds himself getting dragged by the hand as you show him your favourite places. mark, who is scared of heights, but would let you lead him to the top of a building because you like the view up there. he knows he doesn’t enjoy the taste of ketchup, yet he’d keep quiet and let you feed him the french fries drizzled in it. mark who’s world revolves around his work and work ethic doesn’t think he’d mind making space for your world in his own.
nonchalant jealousy.
anyone can point out when mark is jealous. it would start with prolonged stares towards you, a hidden confusion in his eyes as he flashes you a small smile from across the room. walking over towards you before interrupting whatever conversation you were having with the person across you. inching closely towards you, before draping an arm around you shoulder, introducing himself towards the stranger. tugging you away with an excuse along the words of ‘having to show you something’. a nervous laughter as he’d ask you “is that your friend? i’ve never seen him.” by now it’s hard for you to hold back your laughter and you’d have to assure mark that nothing was going on. you can hear the sigh of relief under his breath before another more playful chuckle leaves him. yes, mark was jealous, he’d never admit it though.
how he asked you out.
mark most likely wouldn’t even realise at first that he is crushing on you, only when one of his friends points out how he is not-so-subtly glancing at you every minute with the suggestion that perhaps he might have a thing for you, would it click in his head that “damn, i do have a crush on you”. mark would try to impress you a lot and flatter you without directly telling you that he likes you. by doing so, he’d observe your reactions and slowly build up the courage to ask you out on a date. he’d take you out to the fanciest restaurant he could find and treat you with more gifts afterwards, whatever your eyes land on, he’d immediately ask if you wanted it. the date would end with him driving you back home, asking you if you enjoyed the date. he’d confess right then and there that he’d love to go on a second date if you’d like it too. fortunately for him, you’re crushing on him just as much as he is on you!
kisses.
kissing mark feels like having your breath taken away from you as his kisses always have an underlying passion to it. he’d cave in softly at first, testing the waters and getting the both of you comfortable. his hand would rest under your chin as he’d tug you to himself. the kiss grows more passionate after a while, proximity closing between you two. you’d think the room was burning with the warmth that travels through your body as mark deepens the kiss, his arms around your body by now pressing you against him. his kisses taste like sweet love and desperate lust. you’d think its because mark hasn’t seen you for a while, but instead its because he just can’t help himself when it comes to you. mark’s love for you shows through the heated kiss shared between you two that feels like it lasts the whole night, and quite frankly, neither of would want the intimate moment to end anytime soon.
pairing : mark x fem!reader. genre : fluff, est relationship, wedding, idk what else warnings : mentions of getting married synopsis : in which a dream of yours starts to become a reality thanks to your boyfriend wc : 1.3k a/n : nct dream debut w da loml, not much else to say sooo if u like it pls like n reblog!
here you stood, in front of all the people you held dear. to your right you had your bridesmaid and best friend, and further on in the front row were your parents. in front of you however was the love of your life, soulmate, other half, and everything in between. he looks at you with those doe eyes of his, those same eyes forming into crescents as he smiles and reaches for your hand.
the officiant stood between the two of you, reading out the typical things that were read during the wedding, but you weren’t paying attention. the only thing you could focus on was the man in front of you, smiling at you warmly. his smile could calm all of your nerves in an instant. “yn yln do you take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?” the officiant broke you out of your thoughts. you look to him and then back at mark, who only smiles at you. “i do” you say, feeling your heart swell at the words alone. “and do you, mark lee, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?” he turns to look at mark and suddenly every thought is popping in your head.
what if he said no? what if he suddenly regretted the thought of marrying you and abandoned you here in front of all your friends and family. two words break you out of your thoughts, “i do” he says, smiling and gripping your hand tighter. you smile as well, feeling a wave of emotions, you were married now, to the love of your life. “you may kiss the bride” the officiant says, now smiling at the two of you. mark begins to lean in, you as well, closing your eyes…
your eyes open to see marks chest. you look up at him, scrolling mindlessly on his phone. your eyes look around your all too familiar shared bedroom. It was all a dream. you weren’t getting married, hell you werent even engaged. it was all just a silly stupid dream. mark looked to you and smiled softly, setting his phone down. “good morning baby” he spoke raspily, that same rasp he always had in his voice in the mornings. you gave him a tight lipped smile, “morning” you mumbled back.
the problem was that you knew mark would know something was up, the two of you had been together for 3 years now. so when you laid down next to him he turned his body to face you. “whats wrong?” he looked to you with those doe eyes, oh those eyes. you turned your head and sighed softly. “just a dream babe thats all” you replied back because what else could you say? how could you tell your boyfriend of 3 years that you were suddenly yearning for marriage after never mentioning it, all because of a stupid dream.
“cmon tell me” he frowned slightly, hand moving up to stroke your hair. your cheeks turned pink, “its so dumb mark” you mumbled, making him smile and shake his head. “nothing you say is dumb baby, now tell me” he spoke softly, he always spoke so soft with you. it’s what made him so easy to talk to. “i had a dream we were getting married, like we were at the ceremony and all” you breathed out, looking at him expecting a big reaction.
instead he just smiled and giggled a little. “thats all?” he responded, making you furrow your brows. “what do you mean thats all” you reply, smiling softly now at the situation. “its normal baby, we’ve been together so long” he shrugs, as if getting married is just no big deal! he hadn’t even popped the question, how could he be so normal about this?
“you’re being weirdly normal about this babe” you said, inching closer to him so your head was now on his shoulder as he looked up at the ceiling. his arm went under your head to pull you closer to him, his hand on the small of your back now. you rested your head against his chest once again, hearing his heartbeat, making you smile. you always felt so much closer to him when the two of you laid like this.
“i mean at least i know you want to marry me” mark speaks up, breaking the silence between you two. you furrow your brows once more, “of course i want to marry you mark is that even a question” he looks down to you, smiling softly. “where would we get married then?” he said, smiling as he spoke. you could tell he was dying to have this conversation with you at some point. “would you want a destination wedding?” you rested your chin on his chest so you could look at him properly. “depends, i would go wherever you want me to baby” he smiled, making your cheeks turn a soft shade of pink.
mark did that often, he would say something that would make your heart swell with love and just act like he never said it. you hummed, deep in thought trying to rack through the places you would want to be married. “maybe paris” you responded, earning a small giggle from mark. “ooo the city of love” he teased, making you laugh along with him. “cmon you would love to get married there wouldn’t you?” you responded, smiling whilst talking. your cheeks would always hurt with mark because of how much you smiled.
“okay fine paris” he rolled his eyes teasingly, “what about the ceremony, private or big and grand” he asked and you hummed in thought once more. “i think we would both want it to be private right?” you furrowed your brows, making him nod. “obviously your family and mine, and some of our closest friends” he responded, as if already having a mental guest list.
“what about the ring?” you tilt your head, making mark stroke your hair once again. his hand always had to be playing with your hair. “gold, you dont wear silver” he responded, quickly. “wow, im surprised you knew” you replied, rather sarcastically making him laugh. “i would get you any ring you wanted, just say the word” he replied, making you smile once more.
“yeah the real question is when are you proposing?” you scoffed amusingly. you shifted your position to lay your head back on his chest, his arm holding your waist. mark laid in silence for a couple minutes, clearly deep in thought. then he said a sentence that you didn’t think you would hear this morning. “i mean we could go pick a ring now?”
you sat up almost immediately, mark looking up at you. “what?” you said, searching in his eyes for an answer. “we’re both off of work today.. so we could go” he said once more, smiling. you smiled even bigger. truth be told this wasn’t how you imagined your proposal to go, in bed with mark, legs intertwined, bodies meshed together as one, but for some reason it was perfect, beyond that really.
you leaned closer to him, hugging him. smiling into the crook of his neck as he giggled like a lovestruck idiot. you pulled back, looking in his eyes. “is that a yes?” he smiled even bigger if that was possible and you nodded frantically, kissing his cheek all over then moving to his lips. the two of you locked lips, each time you kissed mark it felt like the first in the best way possible.
he smiled, his hand reached up to cup your cheek as your lips moved together slowly. this kiss felt so much more different than the others, like the two of you were holding back tears due to how happy you were. you pulled back, smiling down at him. “i love you” you mumbled, looking in his eyes. “i love you even more baby” he smiled back, sitting up to kiss your cheek. dreams really could come true.
warnings: mark x afab!reader, use of pet names (baby, babe), headcanons go gradually from sfw to nsfw (MDNI), possessiveness, car sex, riding, unprotected sex, breeding, praise kink, dirty talk, more car sex
a/n: this is actually a repost LOL i deleted this and forgot about it but anyways my racer!mark brainrot was so bad that i had to make this… i was thinking about making this a series with other members but i’m not too sure! lmk ur thoughts :)
racer!mark who considers you his good luck charm. before every race, he'll come find you and ask for his 'good luck kiss.’ the idea's silly, at least to you, but mark takes it very seriously. he constantly tells you, "babe, without my kiss, i think i might lose. like.. for real."
racer!mark who makes it his personal mission to always do his best for you. every win is for you and you only. a part of him thinks that maybe that's why he made to top of the industry as fast as he did. who could beat him when he has the best motivator?
racer!mark who, although very rarely, sulks every time he loses. you know he's always hard on himself, cursing himself in his head for even the smallest mistakes, and you hate to see the frown on his face when he comes to find you after the race. he always tries to apologize, thinking he disappointed you. you hate that he doesn't realize that no matter what he does, he could never disappoint you.
racer!mark who loves to take you for spontaneous midnight drives when he's not racing. you always complain, telling him, "maaaark, it's late." he'll silence you with a kiss and drag you to the door, assuring it'll be fun. he has a spot, one only for you and him, and he knows you could never say no to him. he's proven right every single time when it's you and him beneath the stars, laughing without a care in the world. at times like these, nothing else matters besides the way mark kisses you, slow and sweet and with so much love that it hurts.
racer!mark who broke his own personal record— which, obviously, was the world record-the day you first told him that you loved him. you came up to him in disbelief after the race, asking, "what.. what was that?" mark could only give you a shy smile, shrugging his shoulders. "i just really love you too," came his silly and ridiculous-yet-very-mark response.
racer!mark who is an absolute nerd about cars. you expected it, but nothing could prepare you for how cute mark is when he rambles. sometimes, you're too distracted to realize what he's actually saying, staring at him with a soft smile while he continues to talk. there's almost nothing better than the way he flushes bright red when he realizes, pausing whatever thought he had and telling you to stop staring.
racer!mark who lost it the first time you wore his jacket. you were curious, wanting to see how he would react, and mark couldn't believe just how good it looked on you. "it's—holy shit. you look—you look great, babe. you're—wow," mark fumbled out when you asked him how it looked, unable to tear his eyes away from you. something inside of him was hot, burning with desire from seeing you in his jacket. he pulled you to the bed, begging for you to keep the jacket on while he fucked you.
racer!mark who does everything he can to make sure the whole word knows you're his. he has a possessive streak that never seems to end, constantly leaving marks all over your body. you always return the favor, almost just as possessive as him, wanting people to know that mark lee, the world’s biggest star, is yours. they'll never be able to have him the way you do.
racer!mark who loves to fuck you in his car. at first, he was unsure until you brought up the idea. all it took was a simple, "wouldn't it be nice to fuck me here?" before he cracked, the both of you climbing into the back seat.
racer!mark who lets you ride him (in his car, of course) until he's begging to cum inside you, overwhelmed with how good your tight cunt feels around his cock and how hot it is to have you on top of him, defiling his most prized possession.
racer!mark who flushes bright red every time you promise him 'something fun' before a race, whispering in his ear about everything you'll let him do to you if he wins. he'll be damned if he lets someone else beat him, especially when he's being promised having you in his bed tonight.
racer!mark who loves to praise you, telling you how good you are every chance he gets. he'll tell you how good you feel around him or how perfect you are for him, taking his cock like you were made for it. he's never been able to be quiet in bed, mumbling to himself about how fucking good your pussy feels and how he can never get enough of you.
racer!mark who easily gets jealous when you teasingly bring up his competitors, especially his rival haechan. you do it to work him up, wanting to push him to the edge. mark's always sweet with you in bed, giving you whatever you want, but sometimes, you want him to be mean. nothing gets him there quicker than an offhand comment that goes something along the lines of wanting to take a ride with haechan instead. mark hates this. you're his and no one else's. it causes him to finally snap, pinning you down into the sheets and fucking you like there's no tomorrow. "you're mine, baby. all fucking mine," he'll growl out, punctuating each word with a thrust.
a/n: i mainly reposted this bc i got an ask about it and figured it would make more sense if u guys got the racer!mark details… ☀️🐰 anon if u see this…. this was for u.. ANYWAYS i love doing headcanons so if u guys have any headcanon requests thennnnnnnn u know where to find me!
warnings - slight mentions of drinking/getting drunk
tagalog ver.
02:37
Checking your phone repeatedly for the time, showing obvious signs, "Hey, I'm kinda bored and tired and wanna go home, but I don't want to ruin your bonding moment."
"Love, are you still okay?" Your boyfriend cooed out the nickname, coming up behind your slightly distant seat after getting up to get more drinks for the table.
Mark stood on your left side, gently cupping the right side of your face as you leaned back in your seat, looking up before nodding lazily, "Sleepy, just a little though."
Raising your cup closer to your lips, drinking to get your thirst away. Mark smoothly grabbed the cup away from you, kneeling down to your relaxed posture. "Let's go home? Hm?" He kept a free hand on your waist, eyebrows raised, and eyes focused, waiting for your answer, admiring how your eyelids automatically fell once you felt his touch.
He patted your thigh to bring you back to consciousness, then walked towards his seat, picking up his jacket which hung around the back of his chair. "We'll go first, I'll drop off my girl." Mark waved goodbye, dabbing up his friends before focusing all his attention on you, now leaning against the pillar. He grabbed your purse and placed his jacket around your slightly exposed shoulders, offering his arm for support.
"Drive safe!" One of his members yelled out before raising his cup to Mark and nodding.
Still feeling sleepy, you were grateful for Mark and his self-control. Knowing he had the choice to get wasted with his friends after a long time and you driving him home, or only having one drink in a 5+ hour hangout to be able to keep checking up on you, even though you both knew that it was your job to keep an eye on him.
2023 | please do not copy, repost, or claim my work
a/n: and here is the first of the wips! i know this was supposed to come out on friday and now it's almost wednesday but it's out and that's worth something, right? i hope you love this little fluff piece + mark as much as i do!
word count: 5.1k
tags: finance bro mark and y/n, slice of life, mostly fluff, kinda your typical suburban modern day couple, idk they’re just good ppl who experience a slow and sweet romance, oh! and mark sucks at beer pong
sorry, is this seat taken?
you pride yourself on not being a very superficial person. you always look deeper into a person of interest and in the past, your friends have made fun of you because you never seemed to find the people they thought were attractive very hot at all.
he seems like he swears at his mom. they give off the impression that they are rude to waitstaff. i don’t care how hot she is, she’s literally fighting with a customer service worker for no reason.
did it mean that your ability to look past superficial identity led to you giving some pretty sketchy people second chances? maybe. but usually, it did more good than harm.
but for all of your in depth thinking, you realize that you’re just as superficial as every last one of your friends when the man of your dreams asks you to marry him.
what he really says is, “is this seat taken?” but it all sounds the same when you’re half in love.
with dark eyes that are bright and shine with innocent curiosity, slender lips with a slight pout, and tousled black hair that falls into his eyes, you realize this man looks like nothing short of an angel.
you stutter out a squeaky, "no, go ahead!" before moving your laptop a little closer to you so that the hot stranger could have space to put his things down. he offers you a sweet smile before sliding into the seat next to you.
"my name is mark, by the way," he says once he's settled into his seat. he's about to ask your name but he nods to the keychain that's attached to your lanyard. "i'm guessing your name is y/n? that's a cute keychain."
"yeah," you say, flipping the keychain so that mark could see it properly. "one of the kids i teach made me it a couple years ago and i've carried it around ever since."
mark's eyebrows furrow at that as he checks his calendar to make sure that he's in the right class. "you're an education major? what's an education major doing in a business statistics class? this class is an upper level business class i thought?"
you nod and close your laptop so that mark could see the sticker on the backside of your laptop. you point out the biggest one that has 'ucla - anderson school of management' written in bright yellow letters. mark's eyebrows knit as he reads it and you can't help but laugh softly at how utterly confused he looks.
"i'm a finance major. i just really like kids so i spent last summer juggling between an internship at apple and volunteering at a learning summer camp for kids who are underprivileged in education," you explain, watching as mark's confusion turns to awe, his dark eyes glinting as you explain.
"damn. that's so cool of you, y/n. i'm sorry i assumed you were an education major. turns out you're just an angel instead," mark says, almost offhandedly. you freeze at the last sentence and immediately, mark's ears turn bright red as he realizes what he had said.
you to turn to face forward as mark rubs the back of his neck awkwardly and if you weren't so damn flustered, you would take a picture of how incredibly cute he looks.
mark had pretty privilege, as far as you were concerned. if any other person said that, you would probably just laugh it off and thank them but a single comment from mark had you blushing and internally combusting. the worst part? you didn't even mind it.
the two of you are silent for another couple minutes before you turn to him once more, a corner of your lips tilted upwards, a teasing look in your eyes.
"you know i definitely don't mind being called angel by a pretty boy," you say casually. you try not to let your voice give away how nervous mark actually makes you but there's still a little shake when you say the word 'pretty'. because really, mark was so pretty. just...too pretty to be good for your heart.
it doesn't really matter though because mark looks at you like you've personally put the stars in the sky.
"you think i'm pretty?" mark says, his voice soft and tentative. you look at him strangely. surely he had heard that many times over the course of his life? why did he sound so surprised?
"i think you're very pretty, mark," you say matter-of-factly. mark wants to say something else but everyone has filed in and it seems as though the professor is starting the lecture soon as the lights begin to dim in the hall.
mark has heard that he was attractive many times before. in fact, he'd probably become synonymous with the word handsome, as his superlative in high school was 'most likely to become a famous singer' and 'most likely to win prom king'.
so why did his heart flutter so much when you called him pretty?
can you help me with this one?
turns out, mark is shit at statistics. he's great at the business part, as you have learned over the past three weeks of sitting next to each other and working on the practice problems together. but the actual statistics? you might as well be working with a victorian child.
"i still don't understand why you can't just assume that this condition applies in all scenarios," mark says as he reads through the question once more. the two of you had grown pretty close over the past month or so, and often, you would go to the library after class to work on the assigned homework or projects together.
mark was a good study buddy (he always brought good snacks) and he had a great work ethic that made you feel guilty about not studying when he was. not to mention that he was gorgeous eye candy to look at whenever you needed to take a break from your work.
which was pretty much all the time if it meant looking at mark lee a little while longer.
your friends had teased you when you described your encounters with mark thus far. although they never really crossed the line between platonic and romantic relationships, just the fact that you were practically dying of anticipation was enough to rile your friends up.
you had had a few partners in the past but most of them ended at the situationship stage - very few of them become actual relationships. so, you had put a pause on dating for good (much to the dismay of your gossip mongering best friends) and had been happily single for the past year or so. unfortunately, that was when you met mark lee and your heart decided to rebel against all sense of logic.
besides his pretty face (your friends were very surprised to hear that you had developed a crush on a good looking man for once; you had a seriously incriminating track record), mark lee had a pretty heart. he was so incredibly humble and kind to everyone he knew - which was a lot of people, as you came to learn. he was super friendly and great at remembering little details about people that made them feel as though he truly cared about them.
which he really did. it seemed like mark truly cared a lot about every single one of his seemingly thousands of friends and went out of his way to make them feel loved. for you, however, it seemed like he went above and beyond.
it seemed as though after mark (and you, really) had gotten over the initial shyness and awkwardness, the two of you were rarely seen apart. you weren't sure if the two of you were toeing the line of romantic relationship yet, but it just felt like you guys were having fun. even without a label or anything, you and mark tended to gravitate towards each other in social situations and even made consistent efforts to see each other outside of your respective friend groups.
for example, you really didn't belong in the frat scene. you had expended all of the energy and patience you had for frat house parties during your freshman year and quite frankly, as a junior in college, it felt kind of embarrassing to go to them without having any real connections to brothers themselves.
but mark was a brother in nu chi theta so within the first month of your friendship, you found yourself at the NCT house with a red solo cup and an uncomfortable top on.
"hey y/n! i'm losing over here! can you help me with this one?" mark calls out from behind you. you turn around to see him extending a ping-pong ball (that smelled like it was coated in beer, vodka, and...laundry detergent?) in your direction. you look to see if your friends, who you had dragged along to the party, were going to save you from death by beer pong but you're on your own when you see two of your friends making out with the same boy.
you would stop them but the image was far too gruesome and downright hilarious. and in their drunken state, you doubted you could really separate the lovebirds (?) anyway.
"alright, but it's gonna cost you, lee," you sigh dramatically, setting your cup down on the counter before accepting the ping-pong ball, your fingers brushing over mark's.
"name your price," mark says confidently as you line up your shot, ignoring the heat that radiates off of mark's body as you realize that mark was a lot closer than you had previously anticipated. his words sink into your skin and you involuntarily shiver when you feel his breath on your neck.
"hmm...i'll have to think about it..." you trail off, finally throwing the little ping-pong ball into the cup. you turn so that your chest was pressed against mark's front and all your thoughts have been replaced by the look of his eyes in the dim lighting. the words tumble out of your mouth before you even realize what you're saying.
"go on a date with me?"
your heart drops as you see mark's face turn from confusion to shock and then back to confusion. he rubs his neck awkwardly (a habit, you had noticed, that tended to present himself when he felt particularly confused) as he licks his lips nervously.
"was...was us hanging out everyday not...dating? i kinda thought we were already going on dates," mark mumbles, his cheeks flushed. you stare at him and a strange gurgling laughter rips out of your mouth before you clamp your hand over your mouth, your eyes wide in horror at the sound that came out of your mouth.
"does this mean you like me?" you ask, and once again, you're graced with the sight of mark lee looking just all too angelic under the strobe lighting as he nods before tentatively making eye contact with you.
"uh...if you asked me on a date, am i safe to assume that you like me too?" mark proposes and the way that he says it, almost like he was presenting a business pitch to a potential investor, makes you laugh once more as you lean a little closer to mark, your lips barely brushing against his.
"more than you realize, mark."
can i come inside?
the first time mark came with you to help out with the kids at the school, it was completely unexpected. another one of the student teachers had suddenly fallen ill (you found out a few months later that at his girlfriend's baby shower that he was not, in fact, sick) and no one else was available to help out.
your supervisor was a sweet old lady who was dedicated to helping as much as she could before 'her joints gave up on her' - which meant that oftentimes, she tried to take on more responsibility than she really could. and then that meant that she often didn't hire enough staff to keep the place running, hoping that she could do all of the administrative things herself so that all of the people who did come in could focus on working with the kids. needless to say, as one of the only volunteers who had been with the organization for more than four years, you knew more than well that the sweet old lady needed more people to help her out.
so, you forced your boyfriend of three years to help you out. well, not really forced. mark had the day off from work because it was the day before july 4th and really didn't have any plans for the day. so when mrs. varghese calls you frantically at nine o'clock the previous night, mark offered to come with you.
"we've been together for the past three years and we've been living together for the past one and a half. i lose my girlfriend every monday and thursday evening to kids. i gotta meet the little suckers who've been monopolizing my girlfriend." which was mark's stupid way of saying i love you. let me help you out a little bit. let me be part of your world. maybe in the disney princess way.
and you're a sucker for kids and your boyfriend, even after dating for three years, so you agree and the next day, you're piling into the passenger seat at seven in the morning to teach young children addition and subtraction.
not really how the two of you (mostly mark) were planning on spending on of your rare days off but you could never deny mrs. varghese of anything. especially if it meant more time with the kids.
mark always joked about how you should've become a teacher but as much as you loved the children and the interactions with them, you were not a fan of the underpaying salaries. so you made it a point to become successful in your career and dedicate a percentage of your paycheck to donate to the school you volunteered at instead.
which had caused some struggles when you first moved in with mark, given that it was only the two of you rather than you living with three of your friends and your share of the rent went higher. but you figured it out and mark definitely wasn't the type of person to hold it over your head that you weren't able to pay your full share of rent for the first two months.
because that's just who he was. he would cover for you, covering up all of the little parts of yourself that you didn't like. and you would help him see that those blemishes he thought he had were just things that made him more lovable to you.
so when mark steps into the little school and immediately, kids are swarming to the two of you, trying to find out who the attractive boyfriend was, you're not even surprised. mark had a natural, comforting air about him (not to mention the fact that the kids were overly invested in your personal life) that made people want to draw to him like moths to a flame.
in fact, he's so overwhelmed by the love that the kids are showing him, he's still hovering around the door awkwardly, semi-bowing to mrs. varghese, who's watching him with amusement.
"can i come inside?" mark asks, trying to take a step forward while not hurting any little kids. you snort at his awkward shuffle before clapping your hands together, taking it upon yourself to relieve your poor boyfriend from the possibility of death by enthusiastic children.
"can you or may you?" mrs. varghese says with a humorous smile and mark's eyebrows furrow as he contemplates the question. the kids are slowly making their way over to you, where you're starting to distribute fruit pouches as a morning snack and mark finally feels as though he's only carrying his own body weight - as opposed to ten other children's.
"it was 'can i' at first but now i think it's more of a 'may i'. mrs. varghese, i presume?" mark says, extending his hand for the old lady to shake. she just looks at it strangely before gathering mark in a tight, bone-crushing hug.
for such a frail old lady, she had a lot of strength.
"get out of here with those manners. y/n's told me a lot about. and anyone in y/n's corner is family here, alright?" mrs. varghese says, and mark has to blink furiously to push back the tears, although he can't really tell why her words are hitting him so hard.
"thanks."
you mean that?
mark was really easy to love. that's just the type of person he was. in everyone else's eyes, he was a good guy who just always tried to be better at the things he was already incredibly good at. he was always polite with strangers, babies cooed at him, and was the type to be the person to start a 'pay-it-forward' queue whenever he could afford to do so.
and for all of his perfectness, mark was a very flawed man. he was a little bit of a miser - he hated to spend money on himself, even if he would splurge a little more on you. he was a little bit on the insecure side, and no matter how many times you told him that you loved him all the more for his quirks, he still got down about it. mark was also really bad at communication when things made him upset. he was just so easy-going that he would let the smaller things accumulate and build until he's practically bursting.
and mark was kinda mean when he got angry.
he would never hurt you, of course. mark didn't think he could ever live with himself if he knew that he had laid a hand on anyone - but you in particular. and he really, really was trying to work on his communication skills so that he wouldn't let it build and then get so angry.
but when mark got angry, he seemed to just turn into a different person. it had only happened once in your relationship before, almost right after you had moved in together
it was about something incredibly stupid but the tension had been building for a while prior to that. technically, before you moved in, the apartment had been mark and one of his friend's, johnny seo from school, before johnny had moved out to move in with his own girlfriend. and mark and johnny weren't exactly...the cleanest people. you didn't really mind the mess but soon it turned into an unhealthy balance of mark leaving things around the house and you having to clean up after him.
not to mention that a lot changes when a couple moves in together. naturally, tensions were running a little high. for all your cleanliness, you had a really bad habit of leaving unfinished meals in the fridge until they went bad and started to smell, which made mark upset because that was a waste of a valuable meal. and so on and so forth.
one day, the tensions just burst and the two of you ended up in a screaming match going back and forth and back and forth about cleanliness and not eating properly and soon, it escalated from a conversation about living together to being together in the first place.
mark regretted it almost immediately, cursing himself out when he saw you just completely shut down in front of his eyes. he knew his anger got the best of him sometimes, and when he was in the moment, all he could think about was winning the argument, no matter what he needed to say to win.
that had been the worst fight you've ever had. after that fight, you got a lot better about portioning your food to eliminate leftovers and mark made a more conscious effort to clean up. you also started talking more to each other about what things did or didn't make you happy.
but even as mark was getting better at communicating with you, he still didn't know how to raise up issues with you. usually, you would tell mark what you were up to and then you would naturally ask him yourself if he was comfortable with what you were doing. he would then reply with a simple yes or no with an explanation and that would be the end of that. he always hesitated to raise up an issue with you though. he didn't want you to think that he was trying to control your life or be one of those possessive boyfriends.
one day, though, you were out clubbing with your friends (your friend had recently broken up with her fiancé and she really needed her girlfriends) and you had come home pretty late. mark had stayed up, watching a movie (barely), worried about you making it home safely because he knew that your friends were prone to trying to get you as wasted as possible.
mark never told you explicitly but you had a feeling that's how he felt. it frustrated you though that he never said anything to you and wait for you to bring it up to him instead. so that night, you decided to drink a little more than usual (but not as much as they tried to make you drink) so that you could finally, finally get mark to talk to you about his issues.
really, for your behavior, you were expecting to have a round two of what had happened when you first moved in with him. you were imagining a screaming match like no other but instead, mark just looks at you, sighs, and pulls you into a hug when you come stumbling through the door. confused, you begin to pull away, but mark just continues to hold you tight.
"i was so worried that you might not get home safe. and i promise we'll have a proper conversation about this when you're sober in the morning but i love you so much and...let's just talk about this in the morning, okay?" mark mumbles into your hair. you let mark just rock you gently side to side as he clings onto you, completely opposite from the reaction you were expecting.
"mark, i'm not drunk. i just...i'm tired of always being the one to bring up issues. i know that you don't like it when i get drunk outside because you're worried for me but i'd rather you tell me that than me having to guess that by myself. i can make my own decisions and i'm a big independent girl but you're the singular most important person in my life. i would never consciously do something to make you uncomfortable but i make mistakes sometimes. i need you to be open and honest with me when something makes you uncomfortable - because i know it takes a lot to get that far in the first place."
mark steps back to look you in the eyes, his eyes glittering in the shitty lighting of the apartment. "you really mean that?"
"i mean it with my whole heart."
do you promise to love me for the rest of our lives?
mark tries not to trip. he tries really hard to hold in his sneezes, tears, and any other bodily fluids that are inappropriate for the situation. but the nearly fifteen feet from the entrance to the where the officiant is standing is enough to make mark want to puke all over the very expensive carpet you bought for the wedding.
when you first proposed having a backyard wedding, mark was extremely opposed.
a wedding was a once in a lifetime day where you could celebrate your union together with your partner and start the journey to the rest of your lives together. in fact, it was mark, not you, who had the pinterest board (although, to be fair, it wasn't actually a pinterest board and was rather just a folder on his phone of screenshots from pretty tiktoks). he had a vision for the wedding - one that included all members of your friend circle, your families, and your family friends as well.
and well, that wasn't really in the budget. rather than spend 100k on a one day event, you proposed having a backyard wedding that would be significantly more economical and using that 100k to buy a starter home.
"you still get your expensive venue and we have a place to move into. a real home that we can start a family in, mark," you had argued as mark paced back and forth in the small, almost cramped apartment the two of you shared. mark stops when he realizes that it only takes fourteen steps to make it from one side of the room to the other side and back.
and that was the biggest room.
so mark agrees on one condition: there are no lacking traditional elements of the wedding. the both of you worked together on the pain-staking process of planning a wedding that included portions of your culture and his culture to put on the wedding of a lifetime. hopefully the only wedding of your lifetimes.
well, the only wedding for you and mark, at least. but that was about the future and in the present, mark can barely keep from keeling over right there at the beautifully decorated altar that you and your mother had spent hours on.
after so long of being together, mark can't help but feel just so incredibly lucky and overwhelmed to be finally marrying you. you. the person of his dreams. the person who taught him that love isn't always fireworks and euphoric thrills; that love can be huddling together when gas bills were too high to pay and wanting nothing more than to see your significant other when it's been a long day.
love was you and mark really, really can't wait to finally show the world how much he truly loved you.
unsurprisingly, mark almost cries when you finally enter, the picture of the stunning bride as you clutch your father's arm for the last time as y/n l/n instead of y/n lee. mark isn't sure the last time he saw you this nervous but when you meet his eyes, he can feel the rest of the world melt away.
just normal people with enough love to fill the world, is what you say in your vows. just a guy and a girl in the same business class who never travel business class because the two of you are such money minders - something that my soon to be husband has rubbed off on me.
"i will never forget the moment that i knew i was so irrevocably love with mark. it was two days after we fought for the first time. i remember that i was so incredibly angry and scared that that fight would be the end of y/n and mark. that i would have to move out and redownload tinder and just be miserable again for losing one of the best things in my life over a little sock in the wrong place and leftover pizza."
"but two days after we fought, mark came up to me, hugged me and just said, 'we're gonna get through this. i love you too much to not get through this.' and even though everything just seemed so uncertain, the moment mark said that, i knew instantly that we really were going to get through it. because mark had faith in us. and i have faith in us. i love you, mark lee. from the moment you sat down in that ucla business class. i have loved you for so long and i will continue to love you forever."
there isn't a single dry eye in the house (quite literally) after your vow. mark has to clear his throat four or five times before he can start his vows, too afraid that his voice would give out on him in the middle due to how much emotion he was feeling.
"y/n, you asked me one day when we were binging american horror story and pigging out with a family sized bag of chips when i started falling in love with you. and i couldn't answer then so i just said that for as long as i can remember. and that's true - i still don't know when i fell in love with you. i just remember that one day i woke up alone in bed (don't worry mr. l/n, i have never slept in a ten mile radius of your daughter...please don't make her divorce me) and thinking that i would rather wake up next to you instead for the rest of my life."
"but i do know when i realized you were my soulmate. five moments when i knew i found the one. when i asked you if i could sit down next to you in business class. when i asked you to help me with statistics because for being a business major, i'm horrible at math - go figure. when i volunteered with you for the first time with mrs. varghese. mrs. varghese! - where are you - mrs. varghese! may i marry y/n? then i'll be real family."
mrs. varghese blows into a handkerchief unceremoniously, waving mark off through her tears, making the crowd and you laugh a little. mark's smile grows when he sees you laugh and continues on nervously.
"and the fourth moment was the time when you gave me a reality check. when you reminded me that love doesn't work without communication. you've changed me so much for the better, y/n, and i truly could not thank you enough for it. so, i have one last question for you. one last moment for me to know that we're soulmates."
mark takes a deep breath, holding one of your hands in both of his as he looks at you with soft eyes, so filled with love that your breath catches in your throat. "i promise to love you and stand by you for as long as i breathe. can you - can you promise...do you promise to love me for the rest of our lives?"
it seems as though everyone in the venue is holding their breath before you press a sweet kiss to mark's cheek and say the words that everyone has been waiting for.
"i do."
and with those five questions, mark lee had found his soulmate.
