𝓹recis ⠀ : ⠀your best friend, lee sanghyeok, rewrites school history by winning the final game for your university. but that’s not what matters to him, because impressing you is way more important than glory and victory.
⠀ genre college au, best friends to potential lovers, fluff
⠀ contains attempted basketball lingo, sweaty athletes. disclaimer i am not a basketball player, nor have i watched a game before, and i only researched lightly so forgive me if things do not make sense!
⠀ notes HOOO HIATUS WHO??? I AM POSSESSED BY SOME KIND OF THING AFTER READING A FEW FICS so go thank the authornims who fueled something in me to FINALLY finish the request that has been brewing since july...2025. yea sue me but i hope you love this fic hehe! my first 2026 fic, and comeback to blr i suppose? anyways please leave feedback and reblog, as always, mwah! (stream boynextdoor live album)
ᅠ ＞︿ please leave feedbacks & reblog
◁ II ▷ from the start (laufey), soft spot (keshi), get in the ring (max), clueless (regina song), her (JVKE ft. annika wells), cherry blossom (dept, ashley alisha, sonny zero), love, maybe (secret number), say (keshi)
YOU were incredibly nervous, but this wasn’t even your game to play.
You got here quite early, managing to beat the long line of people outside of the indoor stadium. But you found yourself lingering between the first and second row closest to the court, unsure where to place yourself. You kept on adjusting the way the strap of your bag sits on your shoulder, fingers playing with the hem of your skirt.
Finally, you settled and chose to sit in the first row, at the very edge. As you sat, and watched as the indoor stadium began to fill up with students from both KOZ University and Belift University, you muttered a little prayer that you had chosen a good seat and would get a nice view of the game.
You glanced at the wristwatch you were wearing.
Ten minutes until the game starts.
You took your phone out, wanting to do some doomscrolling to pass time. But you couldn’t stop staring at the notification you’d been stalling to open.
It was from your best friend himself.
You’d never not open his messages unless you were sleeping or just having an anti-social kind of day. But this was different. Nothing like he’d ever sent before.
this game is for you.
Those were Sanghyeok’s last words to you before he left to join his team earlier.
You kept your smartphone back into your purse, zipping it securely.
THE game started loud and it never—not even once—slowed down.
From the start, it was never like any other basketball matches you had ever watched. You knew it wasn’t like the other games, as this was the KOZ-Belift final that everyone had been anticipating for the entire season. But you didn’t expect it to be… like this.
Bodies collided, sneakers screaming across the polished floor, elbows fighting for space below the rim.
Belift scored first.
Then again.
You gripped the edge of your seat, knuckles white.
Then from the corner—a three-point that pulled a roar from Belift’s side so loud it made your ears ring.
“Belift striking early!” the commentator announced. “These boys aren’t here to play nice tonight.”
They definitely weren’t.
You saw him—Sanghyeok, the man who flashed you a smile when he spotted you before the game began—hitting the floor three minutes into the game, sliding on his shoulder after a charge (an offensive foul). You felt yourself getting up from your seat, eyes widened, but he had already pushed himself back up, waving off help. Jaw tight. He didn’t even look at the referee, demanding a fair decision like his teammates—he looked at the scoreboard.
Your eyes followed suit.
KOZ missed twice in a row. Then turned it over. Then missed again.
The band of Belift students got louder with every mistake.
Midway through the 20-minute half, the game turned mean. A rebound scramble—a 50/50 fight for the ball—ended with four players on the floor, tangled, and one of them shouting. The whistle blew late. The crowd booed earlier.
“Temper is rising,” the commentator said. “Expected from a rivalry like this!”
You stopped sitting entirely.
By halftime, KOZ was trailing behind by eleven points. The loud never softened—Belift fans smelled blood, KOZ fans shouted opposition like prayers.
As the players headed to the tunnel for the break, Sanghyeok looked up into the stands.
Not around.
Up.
At you.
He didn’t smile. Didn’t mouth anything.
Simply looked.
Then, the second half came. It didn’t feel the same as the one before. This time, the game was tighter, faster, sharper. KOZ’s defence pressed full court—intensely putting all their energy into their defence strategy. Ball passes snapped through instead of floating in the air. A steal then turned into a dunk that shook the backboard, bringing back life into the KOZ side of the stadium.
“There it is!” the commentator shouted. “KOZ has awakened!”
Belift—players and fans alike–started arguing with the referee. KOZ began to feel the spirit in their bones.
Your heart thumped louder than the roars echoing through the stadium.
THE scoreboard glowed, harsh. A warning.
KOZ 68 — BELIFT 69.
Two minutes left.
The entire arena was on its feet—no one was sitting anymore, and everywhere you looked, people were just walls of bodies and colour and sound pressed together. You could feel the vibration of stomping shoes through the metal bleachers, your fingers locked around the railing in front of you, knuckles the palest they’ve ever been.
The roars, chants, and cheers didn’t sound like noise anymore. It was pressure.
Sanghyeok wiped his forearm across his face at the freethrow line, sweat dripping off his chin. Even from here, you could recognise the way he breathed when he was focused—chest rising sharply, breath out slow.
The same kind of breath he did before exams. Before those times he smiled at you weirdly and never finished what he meant to say.
The commentator’s voice boomed through the speakers ahead.
“KOZ has fought their way back up from their twelve-point deficit—but Belift is still holding on strong! And now, all our eyes are on KOZ player Lee Sanghyeok!”
The Belift student section booed loud, but KOZ’s side answered with a thunderous chant.
LEE! SANG! HYEOK!
You mouthed the cheer with them, your voice somehow not finding its way out.
Then he looked up.
Not at the basket first, aiming for his score.
He was finding someone in the stands.
You.
Your breath caught when his eyes met yours. His mouth curved slightly—not a smile, really—but it was that same look he once gave you when he shouted that it was your birthday in the cafeteria and invited everyone to sing for you. Reckless, brave, but then pretended it was nothing.
The whistle blew.
He turned back to the game.
Shot the free throw.
Swish.
It tied the game.
The arena detonated into one of the loudest roars of the day.
“Devoured!” the commentator shouted into the speakers. “That’s twenty-seven for Lee!”
Belift played the ball, inbounding fast. Too fast. Their guard rushed hard down the lane. Bodies collided again. Shoes shrieked against the polished wooden floor.
A crash under the basket.
Players hit the floor.
The whistle screamed loud above the chaos of the stands.
“Offensive foul! He took the charge!” the commentator barked. “KOZ ball!”
The KOZ section exploded. Sanghyeok slapped the floor as he jumped up, shouting something that you couldn’t hear but felt in your ribs.
1:21 minutes left.
“KOZ has flipped the table here!” the commentator said. “Belift is rattled.”
KOZ pushed the ball upcourt. Pass. Wing. Corner. Back to Sanghyeok at the top. A defender, taller Nishimura, glued to his chest. Another Belift player right behind.
You never really fully understood basketball, but you knew they were trapping Sanghyeok.
Then, he pivoted. Did a pump fake, and the defender jumped.
Sanghyeok’s eyes sharpened to the basket.
A drive.
He came into contact with another defender, Sim Jake. Hard—shoulder to ribs—but he forced through it, lifting his shot high up.
It dropped. Clean.
“And the bucket counts! AND ONE!”
The whistle followed the deafening cheers like thunder after lightning.
You didn’t realise you were yelling too, until your throat hurt.
Sanghyeok hit the floor, slid, and popped right back up. He lifted his head, looking at the stands, but this time, there was no mistaking it. No doubt at all.
He tapped his chest once, then pointed. Once. Quick and subtle, but clear enough for you to notice.
Straight to your section, right at you.
A message.
Your heart stuttered so hard you felt it in your throat.
KOZ 71 — BELIFT 69.
58 seconds left, and Belift gave three net snaps. Three perfect scores. Silence took over KOZ’s side.
The commentator said something along the lines of the rivalry bringing out cold blood between the teams, but you didn’t hear it properly. Not anymore.
KOZ 71 — BELIFT 72.
The coach called KOZ for a timeout.
The arena was quickly engulfed by a storm of voices. Both bands played too loud. People talked over each other, strangers grabbing each other’s shoulders. You sat in the middle, frozen, unsure what to feel. Pulse racing in your ears.
On the court, Sanghyeok bent with the rest of his teammates, hands on knees, listening to their coach. You watched without a word, without a thought running through your head. You simply couldn’t take your eyes off him.
At the last second before the game resumed, he looked up. Right at you.
He said something you couldn’t hear.
But you read it off his lips.
I’ll do it. Watch me.
0:32
KOZ’s ball.
“They’re clearing the floor,” announced the commentator. “This is it. They’re giving it up for Lee.”
The clock was against all of them.
Sanghyeok began by dribbling at the top. The defender crouched low to match his level.
Ten seconds.
Cross.
Spin.
He stepped back.
The defender’s hand was in his face. But he did it anyway—the shot flying high, arching impossibly…
Time didn’t feel real.
Net.
Swish.
The roar that followed didn’t even process in your brain.
“HE HITS IT! LEE SANGHYEOK DOES IT AGAIN!”
0:11
Belift was rushing now. They shot up. Missed.
Rebound tipped. Loose. Bodies diving. Sneakers skidding. Sanghyeok slid across the floor and trapped the ball against his chest like it mattered more than air.
Foul.
Whistle.
Free throws.
“Belift had one last chance,” the commentator said, breathless. “And Lee just ripped it away.”
He stood at the line again.
The Belift side of the arena tried to break his focus: screaming, stomping, shaking thundersticks.
But Sanghyeok wasn’t looking.
Not even at the basket.
He was looking at you. Again.
Though, he actually looked this time.
It felt different. It was just you and him, no distance, no crowd.
His lips moved in words so clear you almost heard him.
For you.
He shot it.
Perfect in.
Then, came the second shoot.
Good.
KOZ 76 — BELIFT 72
3 seconds left and Belift was desperate, gasping for one last chance.
Miss.
Then the buzzer came off.
Everyone exploded. Bodies flooded the court, KOZ students vaulting the barriers. Teammates tackled Sanghyeok in waves of blue and yellow.
The commentator’s voice drowned into the laughter and shouting.
“KOZ TAKES THE RIVALRY GAME IN VICTORY! REMEMBER THIS DAY, FOLKS, REMEMBER THEIR NAME!”
You just realised you were crying and laughing at the same time, relief and pride washing over you.
Down on the court, Sanghyeok twisted enough to look toward the stands one last time.
He found you. Even through the chaos, like he always did.
THE court dissolved into waves of people. Students broke through the barriers—banners, flags, painted faces, strangers screaming into strangers’ shoulders. The band was still playing, but it sounded wonky and weak now, swallowed by human noise. Someone nearly knocked you down rushing past, and someone else grabbed you by the arm and celebrated the score with you like you hadn’t just witnessed it live.
KOZ had won.
KOZ had actually won.
Your eyes burned before you even realised why.
This was your university’s first win after three consecutive years. And now, you all won bragging rights for the rest of the year.
You watched everything with blurry vision. How the security gave up pretending to control anything. How the floor was now a blur of team colours and camera flashes and jumping bodies.
But you didn’t see Sanghyeok anywhere.
A slight panic shot through you, cutting through the euphoria.
Then you saw the jersey number through the crowd.
He was half-lifted, half-dragged by his teammates, silver hair plastered to his forehead, grin wide and disbelieving. Someone dumped water over his head. He spluttered, laughed, shoved them off, then turned in a circle like he was finding something.
Someone.
He stepped away from the celebration, ruffling his damp hair.
For you.
It took him three and a half tries to break free from the chaos—ducked under an arm, slid between photographers, and barely dodged another jumping-in-circles situation.
Then he saw you at the edge of the court.
Everything about his face changed.
Relief broke through in a smile. Softer at first, then lighter.
He ran towards you, jogging the last few steps. He was breathless, eyes electric. His skin shone with sweat, hair dripping with water at the edges, jersey clinging to his body.
Your breath got stuck in your lungs.
Up close, he was… unreal. Like he was moving at game-speed, and the rest of the world lagged and blurred behind him.
“Hey,” he said casually, like you two were meeting up at the crosswalk. Like he hadn’t just written new school history. Like he hadn’t just… did whatever he did earlier in the game.
“How’d I do?”
Your mouth opened.
Nothing came out.
You didn’t have an answer.
Your throat closed up, betraying you in the moment when you needed it most. Your ears still rang from the leftover pride and thrill of watching the last shoot leave his hands. You laughed instead of answering him, wiping under your eyes with the heel of your palm, embarrassed that it was wet.
“You–” you tried. “You were–”
Of course, even your words failed you.
But he waited. Didn’t joke. Didn’t grin it off or helped move on to a new topic.
“Amazing. You were amazing,” you managed, finally.
His head tilted slightly. His grin was smaller now. Hopeful. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
The noise faded around the two of you. The chants, the celebration, the band still playing—it all felt far away, like rain outside of a window.
Sanghyeok rocked once on his heel, shoving his hands into his pockets that weren’t there on his basketball shorts. His hands fell to his side, awkward.
He was nervous. You could see it, now that his in-game persona was turned off.
He rubbed the back of his neck, eyes darting around for a moment.
“Cool,” he said. “Yeah. Very. Thanks. I mean, good. Yeah. Good that you think that. Oh, and um, thanks, again.”
You didn’t know what to say to that.
A beat.
It came fast, like he was afraid his courage would run out before he could finish his sentence.
“Amazing enough to take you out tonight?”
Everything in you simply stopped. Every organ in your body forgot how to function. For a second.
“You… just won our school the biggest game in three years,” you breathed. A slightly broken laugh that went under your breath, overwhelmed, teary, victorious—everything colliding into one.
Sanghyeok had this tiny hopeful streak in his eyes. “Yeah. And? I should celebrate properly.”
“With rest. Sleep.” You narrowed your eyes at him.
“With you,” he corrected instantly. Softer.
That was it.
You finally gave up ignoring it.
You stepped forward and hugged him—hard—not caring that he was all gross and sweaty, soaked with Gatorade and victory. He froze for the slightest second, surprised.
Then his arms wrapped around you just as tight, like he’d been holding back for longer than you thought he did.
You could feel his heart racing against yours.
“So, um,” he said into your hair, “is that a yes, or should I try again next season?”
You pulled back, smiling through the last of your tears. This idiot.
“Yes it is,” you shook your head fondly. “But don’t ask again and make it weird. I might take it back.”
“Hey!” Sanghyeok laughed, “No take backsies!”
You raised a brow at him.
His shoulders slumped slightly. “Fine. It was already weird.”
“It was.”
“Worth it?”
You looked at him—really looked—at the pride, the exhaustion, the disbelief, the hope, and the pure happiness on his face.
synopsis: riwoo accidentally retweets one of your old posts, thinking he’s on his spam account. he quickly deletes it, but your friend manages to screenshot it before it’s gone. you play it cool, acting like it was no big deal—pretending you haven’t secretly had a crush on him for years and thinking it was just a harmless mistake. but riwoo knows it wasn’t a mistake
genre: slow burn? mutual crush, angst?, fluff, humor, kys jokes, and swearing, smau & half written, non idols, university au
note: reader is one year younger than riwoo, (includes njz hanni, illit moka, enhypen jungwon, sunoo)
a/n: i wanted to try out SMAU cause when i was lurking i barley saw any riwoo fics, and i was a little sad cuz riwoo is my bias so i decided why not and came up with this [blink]
SYNOPSIS: lee riwoo has never been sure about anything in his life — not school, not his future, and certainly not you. but it isn’t until he actually cuts ties with you that he realizes perhaps he’d made a mistake.
WORD COUNT: 6.7k
GENRE/CONTENTS: angst, hurt/comfort, some fluff!! (eventually), exes to lovers, soulmates (?) au, pure yearning, kiss!!!, riwoo is overly insecure but reader knows what she wants so it’s ok.
FEATURING: boynextdoor’s taesan and sungho.
AUTHOR’S NOTE: i listened to two songs on repeat while editing this so i think everyone else should too to really experience the emotion i was trying to convey here 😭 anyway, my main goal on this site is to prove to everyone that boynextdoor is just a bunch of yearners (in their very own, special way) and i don’t see enough of yearner!riwoo so here we go! have fun 😸
RECOMMENDED SONGS: i think about you all the time by Deftones and Another Space Song by Failure
BACK TO MASTERLIST.
1. WHAT WE CAN’T HAVE.
When you were seventeen years old, Lee Riwoo broke your heart.
There's a lot you wished you could've done to change the order in which the events occurred. Perhaps you could've communicated better, talked about your feelings and how you truly felt for one another instead of hiding behind a mask and pretending not to know each other. Or maybe you should've never gotten involved with each other to begin with, avoiding the smiles you gave each other in the hallway, thinking it was nothing more than a friendly smile — a courtesy, if you will.
But that's not what happened. You and Riwoo became very involved with one another, your curiosity eventually getting the best of you as you developed feelings, ones that “friends” weren't supposed to feel, ones that would eventually lead to your own demise.
You wanted to believe it wasn't your fault, that your words the night before hadn't scared him. You wanted to believe that there was another underlying factor beneath the reason for his cruel words towards you. Maybe his friends had teased him too hard, or maybe he simply didn't feel the same way for you as you did for him. But you knew that no matter how hard you tried to convince yourself otherwise, nothing would change because in the end, you never really got what you wanted, did you?
"We should stop seeing each other." Riwoo’s eyes avoided yours as he stood on your front porch, keeping his distance from where you stood in the doorway. "For the time being."
"For the time being?" you repeated his words, confused as to why he'd ever say such a thing. "What do you mean 'for the time being'?"
"You know what I mean."
"I don't, Riwoo."
"How could you not know what I mean?" he asked, frustrated, as if he couldn't have made himself more clear. (The truth was, he hadn't.) "I mean we should stop this."
"That's exactly what I don't understand, why we should stop seeing each other." You didn't know why he was suddenly acting this way. Everything was fine before. You had a good thing going and he wanted to stop that now? "Is this because of what I said?" Your brows furrowed, "You know you don't have to say it back."
"What you said wouldn't have made a difference," Riwoo spoke. "I just think this is for the best."
It should be made clear that you and Lee Riwoo were perhaps too young to be experiencing such raw and intense emotions as the ones you felt when you were together. But it just couldn't be helped and because of that, Riwoo felt afraid. He was afraid that he would feel more, more than he could handle, more than he had initially hoped for.
Riwoo was afraid that eventually what he first believed was just another fling would turn into something more, and he felt that he needed to escape before he wouldn’t be able to.
You couldn't find any words to say to Riwoo. And even if you had found the words, there was nothing you could've said that would change his mind. No matter how intense those emotions had been, you knew they meant nothing to him, considering how coldly he'd decided to break things off with you. In the end, he was just another one of the things you couldn't have, and to ever have been so vulnerable around him made you sick to your stomach.
And still, despite it all, you couldn't help but look for him in every smile you were given, every eye that crossed yours, every soul that passed you by.
It just couldn't be helped.
2. BLACK HOLE.
Riwoo had always been a quiet person, perhaps too quiet for his friends' liking.
It's always hard to tease someone when there's nothing to tease them for. But there was something about Riwoo’s quietness, something deeper and solemn, that led him to you. A girl with a plan, a plan so detailed you wouldn't dare let anyone get in your way of achieving your goals. You had a future, one that involved your career and yourself alone, one where you’d succeeded and gotten everything you could ever want. You had your life in order.
Perhaps that was the difference between you two.
Riwoo didn't know what he wanted or what he was going to do with his life. His friends knew this much, too. So when Park Sungho found out that he had been seeing you (or at least had taken an interest in you), he was nothing short of surprised.
"Seriously?" Sungho asked, walking beside Riwoo as they made their way home. "But why her? She's so... strange."
Riwoo never said more than he needed to to get his point across. Maybe that was why you could never tell what he was truly feeling, because he never cared enough to explain himself.
"Who else if not her?" Riwoo said in a quiet voice, staring ahead as he adjusted the straps of his backpack.
Sungho raised a brow, "Well, if she's so great, why'd you break up with her?"
If there's one thing Sungho knows about Riwoo, it's that his eyes speak more words than his mouth ever did. He noticed the way his gaze shifted towards the ground, the way his shoulders dropped as he debated even telling his best friend why he'd stopped talking to the girl he'd been so “head-over-heels” for just a couple months ago.
"It's—” He sighed, his nose twitching. “It’s complicated," Riwoo hesitated. "It's just not right."
"What's not right?"
"I can't possibly be the one she wants."
Sometimes, Riwoo wished he could understand what you had seen in him. A girl like you going after a guy like him — a guy who was barely getting by in school, someone who hadn't even applied to colleges yet despite the deadline approaching so soon. He just couldn't wrap his mind around the fact that someone so prepared to leave everything behind just to achieve her dreams, someone whose world varied so drastically from his, would want someone like him.
Riwoo had never been good at believing people when they told him they loved him.
It wasn't your fault. It wasn't what you’d said to him that night they laid in his bed, your bodies tangled together as the silence fell upon you and the darkness of the night slowly consumed your thoughts with tiredness because in all honesty, he felt the same. That feeling in the pit of his stomach, as if there were a black hole slowly consuming him and everything that he was — it was a feeling you both shared.
The problem was that he hadn't realized it, and now that he'd drawn the line, he feared there was nothing he could do that'd let him back into your world.
3. HEART AND SOUL.
You liked to pretend — pretend that your heart hadn't been crushed to pieces by Riwoo’s hand, pretend that you didn't care about him anymore, that the only thing that mattered to you now was graduating and getting into your dream school (which was easy for a student like you).
But you’d never been good at pretending.
Han Taesan noticed the way you spaced out in the library as you were supposed to be studying for finals, the way your pen stopped moving and the way your eyes remained on the same page of your textbook for minutes on end before coming back to reality and flipping the page. He noticed it, the longing look in your eyes as you stared out the window and watched people pass by. He knew all the times you told yourself you didn't care about Lee Riwoo had been a lie.
But he didn't understand why it was so hard for you to move on.
"Let me ask you something," Taesan started, waiting for you to face him before continuing. "What's so special about him?" You stared at him in silence, unable to come up with a response — or at least one that'd satisfy your friend.
"He's a good person, Taesan," you said.
"He broke up with you after you told him you loved him, Y/N."
"That's not it." You were frustrated. Every other girl would've been seething, plotting some sort of revenge against him. Or some simply would've moved on quietly, not bothering to spare him a second glance. But in that time that you had gotten to know Riwoo, you felt you’d gotten to see who he really was, how he was so much more than the “playboy” everyone had described him to be. You felt you knew him, despite being unable to read his thoughts sometimes.
Though many may think otherwise, his heart and his intentions are pure. During your time together, he'd given his soul to you, letting you carry it with you wherever you went. And even though he'd taken it back, he left you only with the good memories.
Lee Riwoo is a good person.
Taesan found it hard to believe how tightly you were wrapped around his finger; and the longer he observed you, the more clearly he could see that you would do anything for Lee Riwoo. You’d let him keep your heart and didn't intend on taking it back any time soon.
"Do you think he loved you, though?"
It was never clear what Riwoo was thinking. He could say one thing and mean another, which is why you found it hard to believe that you’d broken up because it was "for the best." It was the reason why you hadn't fought for him as hard as you wanted to — because in the end, you believed he would simply find his way back to you. But did Riwoo ever love you? Or was it simply the infatuation you had for one another?
"He did," you spoke, convinced.
Taesan sighed, "Okay." He turned his body away from you, facing his laptop as he continued to study. He knew there was nothing he could do to make you see that Riwoo was toying with you, that you felt this way because he wanted you to feel that way.
But Han Taesan was ignorant. He didn't understand that what you and Riwoo shared was something more than a simple "first love," something deeper. He didn't understand that something changed within Riwoo the longer you remained in his thoughts, that he truly did love you despite his actions and cruel words.
Lee Riwoo is a good person — a person you believed was worthy of love. Your love. And you hoped he realized that you could never hate him, no matter how many times he broke your heart.
4. SMALL WORLD.
When Lee Riwoo was twenty, he met you again for the first time since the end of your relationship.
It was unexpected, uncalled for. He wasn't expecting to run into you while he was working, at a job he hated with people he barely got along with. He wasn't expecting you to walk up to his register and set your things down, a look in your eyes that he couldn't quite decipher.
Riwoo avoided looking at you, focusing on bagging your items and hoping you wouldn't acknowledge him or the past you had together. He hoped you’d moved on and thought of him as a stranger — nothing more, nothing less.
But you couldn't stand the silence. It was eating you alive.
"How've you been?" you asked. "I haven't seen you in so long."
"Well," he replied, scanning your last item.
"That's good to hear."
"$17.63."
There was a disappointed look on your face as you moved to take your wallet out of your pocket. You figured he was simply shocked to see you after all this time. You were too, despite asking all your mutual friends about him every chance you got.
"I'd like to talk to you, Riwoo," you said, handing him a twenty dollar bill. "It'd be nice to catch up."
Riwoo didn’t understand why it was so hard for him to speak to you. Perhaps it was because he was at work, just trying to get through his shift after an already terrible day. But he knew it wasn't that. He was never really able to talk to you, despite having so much he wanted to tell you. He felt like that seventeen year old boy he used to be — never expressing his true feelings, always bottling things up, ashamed that if he felt too much, you’d only turn away from him.
Why was it so hard to talk to someone he so desperately wanted?
He sighed, his lips forming a thin line as he finally looked up, reaching his hand out and giving you back your change. His fingers brushed against the palm of your hand and suddenly, he missed the feeling of your hands intertwined with his — even if it was behind closed doors. His eyes met yours, holding your gaze. It was almost as desperate as his.
"Sure," he said. "That'd be nice."
You waited for Riwoo outside as he went to tell his manager he'd be taking his break early. You waited for what felt like forever, your heart racing within you, your arms crossed over your chest and your foot tapping quickly, anxious for what was to come. You didn't know why you were so afraid — it was just Riwoo after all.
"I heard you got into Brown."
You looked up at Riwoo, who was standing close to you, leaning against the wall of the grocery store he worked at, his hands tucked into the pockets of his jeans. How long has he been standing there? You cleared her throat, fixing your posture. "I did," you said.
"What d'you study there?"
"Neuroscience."
Riwoo cracked a smile. "I figured."
Deep down, he wished he'd forgotten about you. He wished he didn't remember every little detail you’d told him about yourself, about how it was your dream to study the human brain despite your mother wanting you to become a lawyer. He wished he could forget it all and say he'd finally moved on, but he couldn't.
"So you're just back for the winter?" he asked, continuing.
"Yeah," you said. "I'll go back once the next semester begins." You paused, looking down at your shoes. "It's my first day back, actually."
"You must’ve been so happy to have run into me, no?" Riwoo joked.
"I am." You stared at him, watching his expression change. "I missed talking to you."
There was so much Riwoo wanted to say at that moment. He wanted to tell you the truth, that breaking up with you wasn't the best, that his life had only gone downhill since then, that your presence frequented his dreams no matter how many times he tried to get you out of his head. It was as if you were haunting him, and he wanted to hate you for it.
But Riwoo could never hate you. It just wasn’t who he was.
"I missed you, too.”
5. WHERE YOU ARE.
It seemed Riwoo would run into you wherever he went, whether he wanted to or not.
As much as he’d wanted to see you, as much as he'd searched for you in every person that walked past him, he couldn't help but feel the need to avoid you now. There was no need for him to. After all, your conversation on your first day back had concluded with you leaving on good terms, to the point where you’d consider each other friends.
But Lee Riwoo found it hard to be friends with the girl he'd loved for so long, despite him never telling you so.
"Did you ever consider staying here for school?" Riwoo asked, holding your bags as he walked you home. You’d run into each other outside the corner store late at night, where you had gone to get a late night snack while Riwoo carried a bag from the twenty-four hour pharmacy just a block away. You’d noticed the tired look on his face when your eyes had met and figured he'd just go about his night after saying hello. But that wasn't the case. Instead, he'd offered to take you home — since you were going in the same direction anyway, he reasoned.
"I did," you said. "But everything's so familiar here."
"Isn't that usually the reason why people stay?"
"I don't think I would've liked it," you said. "I needed a change of pace."
"And how's that going?"
"Good."
Riwoo paused. "That's all?" he asked. "Just good?"
"Yeah, it's good," you said. "New place, new people. I mean, I guess I miss it here sometimes, but I get to come back every break, so it's not so bad."
In all honesty, you missed your home terribly. You missed your friends, your mother, the corn dog shop around the corner from your house. And most of all, you missed Riwoo. You missed looking for him, even though you knew seeing him would only do more damage to your heart. If you could turn back time, you would've chosen a school closer to home just to be with him, just to be near him. But sooner or later, you had to learn to let go of a love that no longer searched for you.
But perhaps he, too, had some lingering feelings.
If only you knew he'd search the ends of the Earth just to see you again, even if it was from afar.
Riwoo walked in silence beside you, swinging your plastic bag back and forth gently, paying attention to every word you said. How your classes weren't as hard as you’d thought they'd be, how the people there were so different from the ones back home — so spirited, so lively. "It's such a nice place," you said. "But I always felt like there was something missing, you know?"
"Did you ever figure it out?" Riwoo asked, a shiver running down his spine as a cool breeze passed them by. "What was missing?"
"You weren't there."
Riwoo stopped in his tracks. He lifted his head to look at you, who had stopped ahead of him, looking back at him with a serious look in your eyes. "What do you mean by that?" he asked quietly, afraid that he'd misunderstood you and was getting ahead of himself. "You don't mean that."
"Why would I lie?" You felt you had nothing left to lose.
"We're friends."
"I don't want to be your friend, Riwoo."
There's always been a strong force of attraction between you. And even though you’d only been "friends" for a short period of time, you had come to the realization that being Riwoo’s friend was not enough. It's not what you were made for, not when you wanted him to be yours so desperately, to the point where you could barely breathe around him.
And the thing was, Riwoo felt the same. But he was so afraid of messing it up again, afraid that his thoughts and insecurities would get in the way and he'd only hurt you once more.
"You don't mean that," he repeated, his voice quieter than before. "You should get some sleep, Y/N."
"I just want to be with you."
"It's getting late. We should g—"
"Why do you always have to push me away?"
Riwoo watched the tears form in your eyes. He watched them fall, leaving a track on your cheeks beneath the dimly lit streetlights. He stood there, unable to speak, the words caught between his throat as he began to hate himself even more than he already did. "I never know what you're thinking," you said, "or what your words actually mean. But I'm telling you right now that I’ve meant every word I've ever spoken to you." Your voice cracked, "Then and now."
He knew, and it made him feel terrible.
There was hesitation in his voice, his mouth opening to say something, then closing again before he could say anything. You waited. You waited for him to try and gather his thoughts, you waited for a response. He could say anything to you and truthfully, you’d still take it. As long as he said something.
"There's nothing good about me, Y/N," Riwoo spoke. "I don't want to hurt you any more."
"You missed me. Was that a lie?"
"No."
"Then what more do you need?" You felt pathetic, how desperate you were to convince him that you weren't the only one that felt this way. You’d waited so long for him. You’d avoided other people in hopes that Riwoo would change his mind, that he'd come back and regret everything. You waited, hoping that maybe they could work it out the second time around.
You’d wait forever, really, if it meant he'd come back. Why couldn't he realize that?
"Don't think about what will hurt me," you said, taking a step closer to him. "What do you want?"
Riwoo didn't know what he wanted. He knew he loved you, that he'd frankly do anything for you. But was being with you truly the best decision? You wouldn't be here for long, a couple more weeks at most. Your relationship would primarily be long distance, and Riwoo couldn't really wrap his head around that idea. But it was you that was telling him you wanted to be with him. It was you that was telling him you loved him despite it all.
So why was he hesitating?
"It's not gonna work."
"We can make it work."
"You're not gonna be happy with me."
"I've always been happy around you."
He sighed, "Why are you waiting for me?"
"Who else if not you?"
It took him longer than it should've to realize that you didn't want anyone else besides him, and once you’d set your eyes on something, you’d do anything to have it. He realized it the moment his lips met yours, as he held your face gently in his palms — afraid to touch you, afraid to hurt you again. He realized it when you kissed him back, your arms wrapping around his waist as you pulled him closer, pulling on the fabric of his jacket.
You would've done anything, as long as it meant you got to be with him.
6. SHAME.
You and Lee Riwoo were never meant to be friends.
After your conversation that night, Riwoo had come to the conclusion that no matter how hard he tried to fight it, his heart would always lead him back to you without fail. No matter how far he strayed from the path, he would always find his way back in the end. So he caved. He let go of those insecurities and doubts he'd clung to since the day you’d met, deciding that perhaps his happiness was important too, that maybe he had a right to be with you, despite you being so far out of his league.
But you were happy, and that seemed to be all that mattered then.
"I bet a lot of guys tried to ask you out," Riwoo started, biting his ice cream. You were seated on a bench in the park near your neighborhood, watching people pass, wasting time. "Like they did here."
You laughed, "No one ever asked me out here," you said, crossing your legs as you bit the cone of your ice cream. "Besides you, but even then that wasn't really asking me out, was it?"
He turned to look at you. "We went on dates," he said.
"Yeah, in your room."
"I thought you liked my room. You said you liked my Radiohead posters."
"I did," you said. "But I can't help it if I want to go out, walk down the street, maybe sit on the side of the street and feet some of the strays." You sighed. "I felt like you were ashamed of me back then."
"I wasn't ashamed of you," Riwoo replied, staring at the cement beneath his feet. "It was more that I was ashamed of myself."
"Why?"
Riwoo shrugged. "I always thought you could do better than me," he said. "You're the smartest person I know. I mean, you got into Brown, and I never even applied to any schools. You can do so much better, you know?” He paused, his voice growing quieter. “I don't know why you don't."
You were quiet. You knew Riwoo had always had trouble talking about his feelings, but you never knew he actually felt this way. "Is that why you broke up with me?" you asked, staring ahead, a part of you afraid to hear the answer he had yet to give.
"Yeah," he said. He paused again, looking back at you. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay," you said, bouncing your leg gently. "At least you told me, right?"
"I know. I never meant to hurt you."
"You don't have to worry about hurting me." You looked at him, intertwining your hand with his. "I just want you to be happy."
Riwoo could never quite calm his heart down around you. He always felt out of breath, the mere sight of you being enough to take the words straight from his tongue. But his eyes spoke all the words he couldn't say. You knew that. It's why you didn't care for an explanation on why you’d broken up, or why you never hated him.
Because his eyes had always told you they loved you, despite him physically being unable to.
But even after you’d reassured him, even after you’d finally gotten to talk about your feelings towards one another, Riwoo couldn't help but feel he still wasn't good enough. You should go on to do great things with your career, meet someone who is worthy of being loved by you. You shouldn't be dragged down by someone like him, someone with no future outside of their hometown, someone who'd only ruin your chances of a better life.
You were too good for Lee Riwoo.
7. DREAM OF ME.
You answered the phone every time Riwoo called.
It didn't matter that it was 1 AM. You answered the call, getting out of bed as quietly as you could so you wouldn't wake up your roommate, carefully closing the creaking door of the bathroom and turning on the light. "Hello?" you spoke, waiting for Riwoo to respond.
"Hey," he said. "Sorry to call so late. How've you been?"
You rubbed your eyes, trying your hardest not to yawn so he wouldn't know how tired you were. "I'm okay," you responded. "It was a boring day. You?"
"I'm okay, too. I'm taking my break right now, so I thought I'd call you." You hummed, pacing back and forth in the bathroom. "What're you doing right now?"
"Nothing much," you replied. "I was studying for my calc midterm — you know, typical college stuff." You could hear Riwoo chewing from the other end of the call as he hummed in response. "Are you eating?" you asked, smiling subconsciously.
"Mhm. Granola bar and a Red Bull. I'm working a double today, so I'm gonna be here until—" He paused, checking the time and doing some quick calculations in his head, "—11 PM."
"You should eat more, then. I don't think you'll be able to survive on that alone."
"I'll be alright."
Riwoo had never been fond of the idea of long distance relationships. What was the point in dating someone if he had to wait 4 months until the next time he'd be able to see you? He didn't like that he wouldn't run into you anymore, that he couldn't hold your hand while they went on late night walks around your neighborhood. He didn't like that your timezones were so drastic, that when his day was starting, yours was ending. He believed it was inconvenient, too much effort.
But he figured perhaps with you, it'd be worth it in the end.
"I had a dream about you last night," Riwoo said.
"Really? What was it about?"
"I can't remember." You laughed again, and hearing you laugh made him smile. "I just know you were in it and when I woke up, I missed you more than usual."
"I'll be back soon," you said. "If all goes well, maybe I can get a break in between the semester and I won't have to retake this stupid calculus class." Riwoo snorted. "See? I'm not that smart."
"You're still the smartest person I know," he said. "I gotta head back soon." You heard him crumble the wrapper of his granola bar and push his chair back. "Mm, do me a favor."
"What is it?"
"Dream of me, will you?" he asked.
You smiled, "I'm always dreaming of you." You could hear the smile growing on his face, a small giggle coming from his throat. "Okay, get back to work."
"Okay," he said. "Love you, bye."
Riwoo hung up before you could say anything more, before you could process those last words he’d mumbled into his phone. You stood there in the bathroom, staring at the screen of your phone, the time now 2 AM. It was an understatement to say that you were tired — perhaps exhausted was the correct word. You wanted to crawl into bed, close your eyes, and wake up a week later. You wanted to stop studying and throw your textbooks and notes out the window of your dorm. And most of all, you wanted nothing more than to be held in the arms of Riwoo again, a place where you could rest free of any worries.
But this was only temporary. Soon, you would be back in his arms.
Soon, you wouldn't miss him as terribly as you did at that moment.
8. LINGERING.
"Again?"
Park Sungho gave Riwoo a look, his brow raised as he questioned his words. "You're telling me you're dating Y/N again?"
"Yeah," Riwoo said. When he was met with silence, he turned to look at Sungho, who was still giving the same look. "It's better this time, I promise."
"What's better about it?" Sungho asked. "Besides the fact that you actually talk to her now. You never see her unless you FaceTime her or wait until she comes home for the break, and even then you don't know the exact date. Are you sure you're okay with that?"
"Why wouldn't I be?"
"Lemme guess: because it's her?"
"Yeah. It is her. It's fine as long as it's her."
"But is it really? Or are you just saying that so you'll feel better about the situation?"
Park Sungho knew Lee Riwoo well — well enough to know that even if he said otherwise, he still wasn't okay with being in a long distance relationship with you. He wanted to see you, he wanted to hear your voice clearly and not through the speaker in his phone. He wanted to hold you and talk to you while you were right in front of him. He wanted you to be with him, not some 7,000 miles away. Sungho knew this. He could tell just by looking at him.
"But things are good," Riwoo said. "I don't want to ruin that again."
"But you're clearly not happy."
"I'm happy because it's her, Sungho. I don't need much more of a reason."
"Are you sure you really love her, though?"
"You're crossing the line," Riwoo said. "I suggest you take a step back."
"Look," Sungho started, leaning forward in his seat across from him, "I just want to know if you actually love her like you say you do, or if you're just stuck on some feelings from the past. Like, you feel guilty for how you ended things, so you're trying to make it up to her."
Riwoo stared at him, unsure if he should even respond. Sure, he'd felt guilty in the past, but it wasn't the reason why he was dating you again. He was dating you because he loved you, not because he had some remaining lingering feelings from the past.
Right?
"I love her," he said, "and I'll be seeing her soon. That's good enough for me."
"Okay." Three years later and Sungho still couldn't understand what it was about you that had Riwoo so head-over-heels for you. Was it because you waited for him? Was it because you claimed to love him like no one else could? Or was it simply because you were as good as Riwoo has always described you to be?
Did you really make Riwoo happy? Or was he suffering, afraid that if he cried for help, you’d see it as a weakness and abandon him?
Was Riwoo happy, or was he lost in the idea of being happy with someone that loved him?
9. YOURS.
On your flight home for the summer, it rained.
Riwoo waited anxiously at the airport, keeping his head low as leg bounced rapidly. For the past couple of weeks, he'd been trapped in his head, Sungho’s words repeating themselves over and over like a broken record. He just couldn't stop thinking about it, about the fact that maybe — as much as he wished otherwise — he was right.
He was conflicted. He had done a lot to prove that he truly loved you, so why did Sungho doubt him? Why did he question him when all he ever talked about was you, when all he ever thought about was you? For the past three years of his life, Lee Riwoo had loved no one as much as he claimed to love you. But perhaps that was the problem.
How could Riwoo love you when he didn't even love himself?
It was 12:38 AM. He'd been in the same position for the past hour and a half, thinking. I am happy, Riwoo thought. This is the happiest I've ever been. And it wasn't a complete lie. He truly was happy whenever he spoke to you, but was that a strong enough reason to keep holding onto you?
Was it better for him to stop dragging you down and let you go?
Riwoo felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. His leg stopped bouncing as he took it out and held it in his hand, seeing that he had an unread message from you.
y/n: Arrived! I'm about to go through customs. See you soon
You didn't know that Riwoo was waiting for you at the airport. You didn't know that he'd argued with Taesan for two hours until your friend finally gave up and let Riwoo pick you up. You thought he'd be asleep, or at least working (because he told you he could never sleep well when you weren't around). So when you saw him ten minutes later, his eyes focused on the floor beneath him with one hand tucked in the pocket of his jacket and the other fidgeting with his car keys, you felt like crying. In fact, you did.
Riwoo looked up, his eyes meeting yours instantly. He stared at you for a second, watching as you covered your eyes with your hand, your shoulders shaking as you cried. He walked towards you, shoving the keys into his pocket as he wrapped his arms around you, his eyes glossing over with his own tears.
"I thought you were busy." Your voice was muffled as you spoke into his chest. "I thought Taesan was—" You hiccuped, "—picking me up."
"I convinced him to let me do it instead," he said, holding the back of your head with his hand. "I wanted to be the first person to see you."
"You're such a jerk," you said, your grip around him tightening.
"Why?"
"For making me cry," you said. You heard him laugh, which only made you cry harder. "I missed you so bad."
"I missed you more."
It was then that Riwoo realized it. What he felt for you was not a lingering feeling, one that he held on to for the sake of reminiscing. No, what he felt for you was real, a feeling he'd always associated with you.
Lee Riwoo loved you with every fiber that was his soul. From the moment he'd kissed you for the first time in his bedroom, believing that you truly were the most beautiful person he'd ever met, to now as he held you in his arms. Even on the day he'd broken your heart, he never once thought to take his heart back. He let you have it, for it was yours since the beginning.
He was made to be yours.
10. COMPLETELY.
"I talked to Taesan the other day," you spoke as you sat in the passenger seat of Riwoo’s car. He'd pulled over outside your parents' house, waiting for the rain to stop and passing the time as you talked to each other. "When I was packing."
"What'd he say?"
"He asked me why I chose you in the end," you said. He turned his attention away from the window and looked at you. You weren't looking at him. Instead, you were watching the raindrops fall down the window, leaving tracks as they disappeared. "He asked me if I thought we were better at wanting each other than we were having each other."
"Do you think we were?"
"No."
"What'd you tell him?" he asked.
"The same thing I told you," you said, "because who else if not you, Riwoo?"
Riwoo’s gaze softened as you turned to look at him, your eyes meeting. "All I did was hurt you," he said. "I'm sorry I ever did."
"I never held it against you," you said, exhaling. "I know it's hard sometimes and I understand why you did it. That's why I waited, because I know you didn't mean it." You paused, "Because I knew you still loved me either way."
Lee Riwoo had always had a problem with communicating his emotions, especially when it mattered the most. But he never had to with you because you knew him. You knew how he felt, even if he couldn't find the words to describe it to you.
RIwoo felt tears form in his eyes the longer you held each his gaze. As many times as you’d told him you loved him, his brain always told him he'd never be enough for you, that you would leave him and find someone better because that's what you deserved — someone who could love you wholly, completely. Not someone like him, who was always second guessing himself, who was always putting himself down because he simply couldn't fathom the thought that someone as great as you had chosen him. But sitting there in his car with you, listening to you tell him the same thing you always told him — he couldn't help but believe you this time.
"You know I love you," Riwoo said.
"I know," you said, reaching out to hold his hand, a solemn smile resting on your face. "I've always known."
Once the rain had stopped, Riwoo helped you get your luggage out of the trunk of his car, offering to take it inside for you. "I got it," you said, taking your suitcase from his hands. "It's late. You should go home and get some rest."
"I can't sleep without you," he said with a playful smile, pulling you close.
"Stop," you said, laughing. "Go to sleep. You'll see me tomorrow, okay?"
He looked down at you, holding out his pinky. "Promise?"
You smiled at him, hooking your pinky with his. "Promise."
"Okay," Riwoo said, letting you go. He watched as you opened the gate to your parents' house and closed it behind you, looking at him one more time as you blew him a kiss and waved. Riwoo waved back, pretending to catch your kiss. And he watched, waiting until the front door of the house was fully closed before he got back into his car and drove away.
Riwoo doesn't know why he ever doubted his love for you. Every time he thought back on it, he couldn't help but regret never realizing it sooner. It'd always been so obvious that Lee Riwoo was in love with you.
pairing: non-idol or idol!riwoo x short-haired-fem!reader
genre: fluff, fluff, and fluff !!
synopsis: after chopping your hair off to be short, you’re unsure of how your boyfriend will react. though, there’s nothing to worry about; i mean—he is lovestruck for you.
warnings: kissing, not proofread, and i think that’s all.
wc: ~0.6k
maia’s note: 1st riwoo work what am i doing ?? for all my short hair girlies out there (me) bc i just know riwoo would be obsessed with a short haired gf >< enjoy reading! reblogs and feedback are always appreciated!! 💘
you raise your hand and run it through your hair. your newly, freshly chopped off hair.
it’s now short, and not medium length short, but short short. so short, it barely reaches to the edge of your chin.
you stand in front of you and your boyfriend’s shared apartment, needing to take a moment before you walk in and see his raw reaction. riwoo knows you were going to get your hair done, he just doesn’t know that you got it cut to a certainly short length.
read under the cut! ⬇️
you aren’t scared for how he will react, just nervous! it’s natural to be nervous in a time like this, is what you manage to convince yourself.
you inhale a deep breath before slowly moving towards the door knob.
but in a snap of a second, you watch the door open.
you freeze in place, scanning the figure that is now right in front of you. a figure that you could recognize in a crowd of thousands of people, a figure that your heart beats rapidly for—in this moment especially.
your boyfriend, lee riwoo, wears soft, light pink pajama pants with white stripes going down them and a baggy, plain white shirt with a image of his dog, daebak, on it (he got it custom made). his short and orangish brown hair sticks up messily and one of his hands holds a trash bag with several recyclable plastics inside. his eyes widen and his mouth opens wide in an ‘o’ shape.
“yn..” he starts slowly.
you mirror him, eyes widening. “riwoo! i.. i can expla—“
he cuts you off, “you look adorable.”
he drops the bag dramatically to the ground as he steps closer to you and cups your face with his hands, your hair slipping into his hold as well.
your cheeks squish together in his hands. “riwoo, what are yo—“ you say, muffled.
he states the obvious, “your hair. it’s short.” he turns your head, tilting it from left to right.
your heart starts to pound against your chest faster.
“yes..” you mutter.
a loving, happy smile grows on his face which eventually turns into a wide grin.
he exclaims, “it’s so cute! why didn’t you tell me earlier you were getting it this short?” he continues blabbering, “actually no. i’m glad it was a surprise. it looks so pretty, you look so pretty.”
your face heats up immediately. for some odd reason, this whole time you’ve been expecting the worse. that he would hate it, find it ugly maybe. you realize that you never once should have doubted your boyfriend. hearing this, seeing him respond heavily positive, is a huge relief and makes your heart grow even fonder for him (if that’s possible).
“thank you, baby,” you smile. you try to remove his hands from your face but ultimately fail. “riwoo, let’s go inside.”
his pink lips form into a pout. “no, let’s stay like this for a little.”
“riwoo—“
he interrupts you with a quick peck on the lips. the touch of his soft, balmy lips withdraw a little too fast, leaving you wanting more.
but lucky for you, you don’t have to ask.
riwoo leans in to place more sweet, fluttering kisses to your face. he tries to not miss a single spot; your forehead, temples, and the last one on the tip of your nose. all while doing so, his hands move to run his fingers through your hair. he twirls some locks, loving the feel of your hair—the feel of you.
he pulls away in a lovestruck daze, leaving you the same.
“now can we go inside?” you tease.
he giggles, “only if that means i get to make little braids in your hair.”
you roll your eyes in annoyance, but truly, you love it.
+*:🩷:*﹤smut, sub!riwoo, sounding, bondage, loose handjobbing / wc: 1.6k / masterlist / this is not the best representation of sounding but i did a lot of research! / a/n : my FIRST riwoo work!! I’m slowly getting down the line…somebody please match my freak…
✧･ﾟ: *
riwoo would do anything for your beautiful smile and praising words. he’s always tended to hold back his noises in bed because they’re so embarrassing, but when you call them pretty and confess to him that they turn you on, it’s all he can do to let his mouth hang open during sex, let his pretty noises tumble out of his mouth unrestrained.
before he met you, he had never done anything more than typical, vanilla sex, but he lets you pull him into scenarios he would’ve never imagined, ones that often leave him wondering how the hell he got there. he realizes tonight is no different when you loop your pink handcuffs through the decorative bars of your headboard, then latch them onto his wrists.
this isn’t new for the two of you. in fact, it has almost become a habit for you to restrain his hands, ‘cause he’s easily overwhelmed and will squirm away from your hold if given the chance, even if he doesn’t want you to stop touching him. still, he tugs at the chain anyway, and breathes out a shaky, fearful sigh when it barely budges, when he realizes he can barely move his arms.
his eyes are wide and searching for safety when he looks at you, and you coo at him, cup his cheeks, and press a sweet kiss against his pink lips.
“this is just so you don’t pull away and hurt yourself, okay, riri?”
he nods, and reminds himself that you’re not here to hurt him. that you're going to take care of him like you always do, but it’s a little hard to remember as he eyes the rod you’re sterilizing.
sounding. that’s the new thing you want to try out. he’d facepalm, but well, you know. his throat is dry and his words are failing him. he doesn’t even know what he wants to say, but he's just so scared.
“i don’t- i don’t know about this, n/n. what if it, like, hurts?” he gulps when you come to straddle his thighs. now he can’t move those either, and his hips only slightly jerk when you wrap your hand around his cock. he’s completely trapped.
“i won’t hurt you, sweetie.” you slide your hand up and down his length slowly and tsk when his hips try to twitch into the feeling. “i’ve done it before.”
riwoo’s eyes nearly pop out of his head, and he’s momentarily distracted from the feeling of your hand on his dick. “what? you’ve done this before?”
“of course. i wouldn’t put you through this if i wasn’t 100% confident. you’re too fragile for that.” he isn’t really sure if he should be thankful for your consideration or embarrassed by that statement. you stop stroking him and pick up the rod. it’s skinny and black, and has small ridges. looking at it makes riwoo’s blood run cold. “my ex seemed to like it. just wanna know if you would, too.”
riwoo’s skin itches at the mention of your fucked-up ex. he wants to do all the things you used to do with that scum, wants you to think about riwoo instead when you think back on these kinds of things.
“but we don’t have to do this,” you say. “you can say no, and i’ll make you feel good in a different way.”
he thinks over your offer. he’s still terrified, but you’ve done it before. you won’t hurt him, you’re 100% sure. you want to see him, specifically, like this.
he squeezes his eyes shut and nods.
“gotta use your words, riri.”
“we can-,” his words cut off, and he gulps thickly. “we can do this. you can do this.” he says, because he trusts you so much, you could probably do anything to him. he watches as you spread lube around the sound, and his confidence falters.
“i-if i don't…like it, you'll stop?” he asks, hands clenching into fists against the headboard. you smile at him before leaning down to place another kiss on his lips.
“if you don't like it, i'll stop immediately, okay?”
he takes a deep breath, then nods again. you don’t wanna give him more time to overthink it, so you line the rod up with his opening. when he doesn’t say anything else, you ever so slowly slide the first two smooth centimeters in.
riwoo sucks in a breath, and his hips tremble, but they barely move under your weight. you wait a couple of seconds, then slide in two more centimeters. riwoo hisses, and you stop. when you look up at him, his mouth is hanging open and his chest is rising and falling quickly.
“how does this feel?”
riwoo tries to adjust to the feeling. you were right, it doesn’t hurt. it just feels kind of…heavy? and foreign, like it’s not supposed to be there, but it doesn’t hurt. he’s failing to see how it’s going to feel good, though.
“talk to me, sweetie,” you say, breaking him out of his thoughts.
“feels…weird, confusing,” he whispers, and looks down to see the rod sticking out of his tip. he looks away almost immediately.
“think you can take a little more?”
“i don't k-know, ‘s scary.”
the remaining portion of the rod is ribbed. you rub his hip soothingly, then guide more of it in until it’s halfway sheathed. riwoo lets out a small whimper that catches your attention.
“feels okay,” he answers breathlessly when you check in on him again. you pull the rod out just the tiniest bit and slide the length back in. he makes another tiny noise and his hips move just a bit under your weight.
“riwoo, be still,” you warn, and his response is just a whine that's cut off when you rotate the rod, letting the ridges hit different areas of his insides.
“oh- y/n, y/n,” he chants out in a whispered tone, looking at you with big, wet eyes. you hum in response and slide more of the rod out this time. you wait a second before sliding it back in a little deeper than before.
“feels g-good…” he trails off, and you smile at him again.
“knew you’d like it, baby boy. you always make the prettiest sounds.” you pick up the pace, thrusting a little bit of the ribbed portion in and out of his opening, and the chain of the handcuffs clinks against the bed when riwoo’s upper body jerks. you look up at him, but his eyes are squeezed shut now, and his mouth is open with a silent moan. he lets out a desperate, breathy noise when you twist the rod once more.
“w-wait, wait,” he calls out, and you stop.
“what's the matter, sweet thing?” you ask while trailing your nails down his waist. his stomach trembles and he gasps at the feeling, then he begins stuttering around a sentence.
“what i-if i…need to, y’know…”
even at a time like this, he’s shy, and it makes you laugh fondly. “what, cum?”
he nods. his cheeks are pink, his forehead is beading with sweat. he’s breathing harshly, and you figure he’s definitely not gonna last much longer.
“just let me know, and i'll take it out.”
he nods and whimpers again when you start up the short, thrusting motions again.
“good, good,” he's mumbling repeatedly, eyes empty when you look at him. you smile at him and wrap a loose hand around his base. he starts shaking when you massage the area, and his fingers twitch uselessly.
you keep both of your hands occupied with the motions, listening as riwoo's noises raise in speed and pitch. you alternate between massaging his base and stroking his shaft, and when you look back at him, there's a single tear rolling down his cheek.
“aw riri,” you coo, and his eyes flutter open. “what's wrong?”
“i t-think i’m gonn-a,” he hiccups. “n-not gonna l-last.”
you hum in thought. “like it better than you thought you would, huh, baby boy?”
you can slide a majority of the rod in and out at a steady pace now, and riwoo gasps out harshly when you move your hand down to massage his balls instead.
“out, please, i–,” he starts. a few more tears tumble down his skin, and his hair roughs up as he shakes his head against the pillows. “can’t t-take it, gonna– need it out.”
“i’ve got you, sweetie,” you oblige and start pulling the rod out, but the process is slow, because you don't wanna hurt him. you twist the rod slowly, teasingly as it slides along, and riwoo's stomach convulses.
“please, please, please–” he babbles, and you shush his cries as you ease the rod out of his opening. a milky white stream follows it immediately, and your mouth runs dry at the sight. riwoo whines, and his hips do their best to buck up into the air, shaking you lightly where you’re still straddling him. you climb off of his thighs and lean down to lick up the side of his wet shaft, and he's jerking away from your overwhelming touch.
“no, no– don't,” he begs, and you ease up with a smile.
“what did you think, riri?” you ask as you unbuckle the handcuffs. you massage the red marks they left on his wrists.
“think you’re gonna be the death of me.”
✧･ﾟ: *
a/n : i feel like this ends kind of abruptly, im sorry abt that!! please take aftercare seriously <3
working during the holidays isn’t too bad with sanghyeok by your side
co-worker!riwoo x gn!reader (non-idol au)
this work is my contribution to @onedoornet’s christmas event, a very onedoor christmas! check it out here!
word count: 4.1k ˚ʚ♡ɞ˚ genre: fluff
warnings: a pinch of angst i'd say (alluding to burnout/seasonal depression), reader is a people pleaser, i curse maybe twice lol, riwoo is referred to as sanghyeok!
a/n: SORRY I KNOW CHRISTMAS IS OVER…. had fun writing it regardless :,) hope u enjoy ^^
reblogs ↺ + feedback always appreciated!
Being one of the younger workers in the office was frustrating to say the least. Pausing your work to complete trivial tasks in the middle of the workday – making copies of a meeting agenda, fetching your seniors’ morning coffees, reorganizing the ridiculously large stack of your current client’s files – the list seemed to never end. For some reason, everyone around you was conveniently occupied with something so urgent that they couldn’t attend to the matters themselves, leaving the responsibility up to you. Sometimes you felt like you spent more time faced with useless errands than doing the work you were hired to do in the first place.
You were expecting a bit more respect from your peers when you were appointed as the team leader for your company’s newest project, but you were quick to realize your naivety in the earlier group meetings, finding that no one seemed to take you seriously. You would’ve thought that because the other members on the project had years of experience on their side, surely they’d be able to hold their weight to a certain extent... Right?
Painfully enough, it was the complete opposite. You can’t count the number of times one of the more “experienced” workers asked you to repeat a detail you’d discussed just minutes prior, or proposed a suggestion that completely contradicted the end goal of your client– it was clear to you that no one saw your leadership as more than a joke, no matter how hard you tried.
And to top it all off, your company was structured in such a way that made it nearly impossible for you to speak up against your elders. Your word as a senior associate meant close to nothing if you were going against one of the partners of the firm. It didn’t matter that you put in ten times more effort than your team members, it was almost as if they were praised according to how long they’ve been in the office.
Safe to say you were relieved when Sanghyeok was added as a member of the team you were leading on a random Tuesday afternoon. Not that you two were close by any means – the extent of your interactions consisted of small smiles exchanged in passing in the printer room or short discussions of weekend plans over coffee in the break room. Rather, you were hopeful that his addition to the project would mean someone would finally start contributing even a fraction of the work you were putting in.
Even though you dread your bi-weekly team meetings, it was so much more rewarding to at least one other person cared about the success of the project. Sanghyeok was always in his unassigned-assigned seat right by the projector, intently nodding along to your agenda and taking notes when he deemed necessary. Hell, he’d even chime in whenever someone would ask a question that was obviously answered earlier in the presentation, giving you the chance to save your breath for something that actually mattered, and shooting you a cheeky grin afterwards, clearly satisfied helping you whenever he could.
ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁 .ᐟ Four days before the deadline. . .
Everyone begins to pack up their belongings the second it hits 5:00PM, slowly but surely filing out of the office before it gets too dark. It was no surprise to see your colleagues zipping up their briefcases far earlier than you planned on clocking out; the project deadline crept up on you faster than you’d like to admit, and your mostly incompetent team forced you to work overtime a majority of the recent weeks. In any other case, you probably wouldn’t be breaking your back hunched over your keyboard hours after the sun had set, but because the project was in your name, it pained you to present a finished product you weren’t proud of.
“You aren’t leaving yet, Y/N?” You look up from your monitor, finding Sanghyeok looking at you from across your cubicle, wrapping a plush scarf around his neck. His eyes are full of concern– he’s noticed the way you never seem to budge once your peers start going home for the night. Even on days when he logs off later than he’d initially planned to, you’re still there, typing away at your desk.
“Agh, our Y/N is always so hardworking! They never seem to leave with the rest of us,” Alvin, a senior on your project notorious for sending in half-assed work far past the deadline you set for him, comments from his seat beside you. “I could never put in as much work as you do, not when I’ve got a family waiting for me at home!” Yeah, no shit. It’s hard to believe he’s stayed at the company so long performing the same quality of work you were doing in your first year in the office.
His words stung a bit, feeling oddly bitter at the idea of someone like him having people who loved him waiting for him to return from work– Coming back home to an empty apartment late at night never used to bother you, but something about the long winter nights and freezing temperatures made it undoubtedly sad in nature. It wasn’t just the weather making your loneliness feel colder than usual.
The smile you return is painfully fake, something Sanghyeok clocks almost immediately. He gnaws on his lip, wanting to say something to the senior, ultimately deciding to hold back on it given how new he was to the project. Maybe it wasn’t his place. He didn’t want to make things worse for you by saying something out of line. Alvin shrugs his coat onto his back, quickly leaving the premises without another word.
“If I didn’t see you in a new outfit everyday, I’d think you slept at your desk,” Sanghyeok jokes, trying to lighten the mood. From his first meeting with the new team, he quickly learned to admire the way you seemed to take charge when you needed to. It was impressive the way you’d joined the company later than he had, and were already put in charge of such a big task. He knew exactly how it felt to deal with all the stupid tasks from the other seniors in the office, finding himself doing the same thing for weeks before you came in.
You chuckle pitifully, mainly towards yourself. “At this point, I should stop paying rent and start living at my desk.” You groan as you take a break for a well-needed stretch, your back cracking from your poor posture. “Some days I feel like I’m in the office more than my apartment.” Your words are lighthearted, but Sanghyeok notices the underlying melancholy in your statement.
And Sanghyeok takes his leave, only after wishing you good luck and a “get home safe” as he always does, but he can’t stop thinking about how much time you’ve been putting into your work. He’s constantly shut down whenever he asks you if there’s anything else he can help with, just wanting to take a fraction of the load off your plate.
He knows you’re doing it just to be nice. You’re the type of person to take on a burden all on your own, even if it means committing to the ungodly hours you’ve become so used to. Even on the bus ride home, Sanghyeok can’t shake your tired eyes out of his mind. For some reason, it hurts to imagine you slowly killing yourself over a silly project all because no one had the decency to bother trying when they knew you’d fix it for them anyways. He wanted to do more… No, he needed to do more.
ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁 .ᐟ Three days before the deadline. . .
Sanghyeok wonders how you’re always earlier than him when he walks into the office, finding you so put-together and diligently editing the project presentation when he’s still groggy after his commute to work.
The workload around the holidays is never too demanding, thankfully the company’s clients normally don’t ask for much as the year comes to an end. In your case, however, all your time is spent on trying to perfect the project proposal for your overwhelmingly-nitpicky boss. You’re convinced it’s some sort of test to see how good you’d be leading a team before you get the promotion you’ve been waiting on for the past couple months. Even if you make it out of your boss’ critiques alive, you’re certain you’ve lost countless years off your life with all the stress weighing down on you.
You lock eyes with Sanghyeok every once in a while, finding him peeking over the divider separating your desks more than normal. That’s odd. You figure it’s probably because he has a question about the numerous items that still need fixing on the project. It doesn’t occur to you that he wants to talk to you until he rises from his chair, tapping his pen on the top of your monitor to catch your attention.
“I don’t know if you saw, but I just fixed a lot of the trouble areas you mentioned in the meeting the other day,” He’s excessively clicking the pen in his free hand, feeling oddly nervous to show you his work even when he knows he did everything properly– He knows how high your expectations are when it comes to your job. “I’m pretty sure I made sure to do everything you asked for, but you might want to double-check if I missed anything.”
The gasp of relief you let out is uncharacteristically loud, so much so that it earns you a side-eye from Alvin, who was currently playing solitaire at his desk next to you. He’d just saved you hours of overtime with his work, finding everything done to a tee. “No, no, this is perfect. I was dying to fix those until I realized I forgot Christian told me to come with him for his fieldwork later and–”
“It doesn’t matter who goes with him, right? I’ll go with him instead.”
“Huh? Are you sure? I don’t mind, plus he specifically asked me so maybe–”
“Y/N, it’s fine, really! I used to go on client visits all the time before he started dragging you along with him. I’ll be okay, promise!” He’s confident in his words, reassuring you of all the concerns he knew were starting to bubble up in your head. “I know you’ve been worried about getting everything done before the deadline, you shouldn’t have to waste your precious time following him around and pretending like you care about his wife.”
The comment makes you giggle, everyone knew the senior for the way he could go on and on about his family life knowing damn well no one was actually listening to his neverending rants. “Thank you, Sanghyeok. It means a lot, really.”
“Maybe we’ll be able to leave at the same time today, yeah?”
ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁 .ᐟ Two days before the deadline. . .
The following day, after everyone else in the office logged out for the night, Sanghyeok sneaks back into the office. He made it his mission to discreetly plant a care package for you while you’re busy in the printer room– It’s nothing big, no, rather just a hot cup of tea and a sandwich he’d purchased from the cafe across the street from the building.
You’d offhandedly mentioned the way you get so immersed in your work without anyone peering over your shoulder that you forget to cater to your growing hunger, often resorting to eating instant ramen in the break room before returning to your desk. Sanghyeok knew how much the project meant to you, but that didn’t mean he was going to let you neglect your health just for a positive response from your old boss.
You’re confused when you come back to your cubicle, finding all of your previously haphazardly scattered project papers perfectly organized in a folder by the edge of the desk. The lid was taken off the cup of tea, presumably to let it cool down a bit before drinking. Huh? The note atop the sandwich container answered the questions lingering in your mind.
hope you don’t mind me moving some stuff around on your desk :p
eat up before you get back to work! good luck y/n!
sanghyeok ( ≧ᗜ≦)
ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁 .ᐟ One day before the deadline. . .
“You think Alvin will mind if I borrow his spot today?” Sanghyeok questions, swiveling around in an office chair that didn’t belong to him.
“You could probably erase all the files off his computer and he wouldn’t bat an eye,” You joke as you sort through the stacks of papers residing on your desk, looking for a particular document. “I’m convinced he gets paid to just sit there and play card games for eight hours.”
“Yeah, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him touch his keyboard.” Sanghyeok chuckles before logging into the computer beside you.
“Why’re you using his computer though? You’re not going home yet?”
“I think it’s only fair for me to help you finish the proposal when we’re supposed to be submitting it tomorrow,” Sanghyeok answers matter-of-factly. You watch as he opens up the same powerpoint you’ve been staring at on his own monitor. It’s quiet for a few minutes, the only sounds coming from the occasional clicks of your mouse. “...Doesn’t it get lonely working all by yourself?”
You pause to think for a moment. It’s not the worst thing in the world, you’re sure you wouldn’t be capable of doing it everyday if it was that unbearable. “No, not really. If anything, it’s nice to not have anyone pulling me away from my desk for some stupid shit– Sorry, stupid stuff.” You correct yourself.
“I know we’re still at work and all, but you don’t need to censor yourself when it’s just us. I’m not gonna snitch on you for cursing on the clock, Y/N.” He teases, not surprised to see that you’re still in work-mode even when the office is practically empty.
“Oops, just force of habit. I'd rather die than accidently curse in front of one of the oldies we work with,” You smile sheepishly, feeling at ease with him at your side. You’re not sure when you grew so fond of the man – maybe it’s because of how similar you are in age or the way he’s always so quick to defend you in the meeting room – but he’s always felt like more of a friend than a co-worker in times like these. “...It’s nice to have some company for a change, though. Felt like I was going insane looking at the same documents all by myself.”
“It’s okay to admit you get lonely sometimes, Y/N.” Sanghyeok pauses his typing to look at you, his eyes soft when they meet yours. “I was thinking about it on my way home the other day, you know, the way you willingly stay in the office after everyone leaves every night. It’s hard to imagine it isn’t difficult being by yourself all the time.”
You’re silent, knowing that he’ll see through you no matter what you say. Sure, you had your fair share of moments sitting crying at your desk, in fear that your efforts wouldn’t pay off despite how much you’ve been trying, but that doesn’t mean you need his help. You made it this far all on your own, after all.
And when you fall asleep at your desk, exhaustion finally catching up to you, Sanghyeok doesn’t hesitate to rest a sweater on your back. He knows how upset you’ll be once you wake up, bummed that you dozed off at such a crucial time, but he’s more than happy to let you sleep for a bit before gently shaking you awake after a well-deserved power nap.
“Shit, how long was I knocked out for?” Embarrassed, you rub the sleep from your eyes, turning away to yawn.
“It wasn’t even thirty minutes, you’ll be fine Y/N. I finished editing a section of the report while you were sleeping too.” You tap on your mouse, waking up the black screen, happy to see that a good chunk of the comments you’d made on the document were long resolved. “Can you promise me something?”
You’re offset by the sudden serious mood lingering between you two, but you slowly nod regardless. “Even when this project is over, will you promise to come to me if you need help?”
“I know I only joined your team recently, but I want you to know you can depend on me. It’s not fair for you to do all this on your own,” Sanghyeok can sense the way you’re processing his request in your mind, watching as you hesitate to answer. “I know it’s probably weird coming from someone who’s only been here a couple months longer than you, but I promise I’ll try my best if you ever need me.”
“Okay.”
“...So that means you won’t try to turn me down whenever I offer to do something for you, right?”
“Yes, Sanghyeok, I won’t turn you down when you try to help me.” You roll your eyes at him before turning back to your computer, missing the way his face lights up at your response, proudly smiling to himself.
ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁 .ᐟ The day of the deadline. . .
You’re sure you could cry tears of joy when you send the final version of your project proposal to your boss. There were a few sections you wish you had more time to perfect, but it was impossible without an extension to your deadline– There’s nothing else to do but wait until you get feedback, which is entirely out of your hands at this point. 7:15PM. It’s still two hours past the usual 5:00PM ending time, but far earlier than you’ve clocked out in the past two weeks.
“You’re actually leaving at the same time as me? I’m not dreaming, right?” Sanghyeok pinches at his cheek, earning a giggle from you in response.
“Well, I just forwarded all the documents to our boss. Felt like I deserved at least one early night during the holidays,” You close your eyes as you fall back in your chair, letting out a content sigh knowing there wasn’t anything else you had to do for a while. “God, I don’t know what I’d do without you, Sanghyeok.”
He holds the door for you after you’ve both collected all of your belongings, bundled up for the harsh temperatures waiting for you outside the building. The elevator ride down is silent until the man next to you clears his throat, prompting you to look at him. “So, do you have plans tonight?”
“Ah, not really. I was planning on picking up some dinner at the convenience store before heading back to my place.” He nods, fiddling with his tie in a feeble attempt to calm down his nerves from what he was about to do.
“Can I take you out to dinner, Y/N?” Your eyes widen slightly, unsure what to make of the question. Was he… asking you on a date right now? It wasn’t out of the ordinary for coworkers to share a meal off the clock, but the fact that it was just the two of you had your brain malfunctioning. “...You know, as a thank you for working so hard on the project! It’s the least I can do.” Sanghyeok laughed nervously, hand flying up to the back of his neck as he waited for your response.
It doesn’t take long for you to decide your answer, nodding in confirmation, feeling slightly bashful at the sudden act of appreciation you weren’t used to receiving, especially not at work. There’s a pep in his step as he brings to you one of his favorite ramen spots, a hole-in-the-wall joint tucked away from the main streets. It’s cute, honestly. You’ve learned a lot about your coworker in recent days, but this side of him was entirely new to you.
You’re glad you trusted his recommendations when you take your first bite, the hot broth immediately melting the chills you garnered from the short walk there. Despite this being your first interaction with Sanghyeok outside of work, there’s no awkwardness in your time spent together– Instead, a fuzzy feeling rests in your chest as you look at the man sitting across the table from you. Perhaps it’s due to the newfound absence of pressure on your back from sending in the project proposal, or maybe because it’s the first time you’ve allowed yourself a proper meal in days, but it’s a feeling you don’t wish to lose any time soon.
Usually you’re one to rush back home immediately after dinner, not wanting to lose any second of rest you have before you’re forced to go back to the hell you call work, but you’re more than happy to accept Sanghyeok’s invitation to go to a nearby bar for some drinks following the meal you shared. It’s there you realize he’s a lot wittier than he comes off as when you’re on the clock, your cheeks aching from smiling so hard at his endless supply of jokes.
You don’t stay there long, only garnering a couple drinks before finding yourself walking around one of the parks in the area you didn’t even know existed, gawking at the string lights adorning the trees. Work was taking up all of your attention that you didn’t even have the time to decorate your apartment for the holidays like you normally would’ve. This was the closest thing you could get, but you were far from complaining.
“I never expected you to be like this, Sanghyeok.” You confess after coming down from the fit of laughter he’d induced with one of his stupid puns.
“What do you mean?” He asks, worried that he’d done something wrong.
“Oh, I wasn’t trying to say anything bad! You’re just… A breath of fresh air, I guess.” Your words emit a cloud of vapor in the frigid air. “I’m sorry I didn’t notice it sooner, I’ve been a real shut-in especially with the deadline and–”
“You don’t need to apologize for that, Y/N.” He cuts you off; he’s well aware of your tendency to apologize for things that you didn’t need to be sorry for in the first place. It was one of the only things he wished he could change about you, wanting you to give yourself more credit for the love you poured into everything you did. “I just wanted to make your life easier, I guess. Thanks for giving me the chance to do that tonight.”
“I should really be the one thanking you. You’ve been nothing short of helpful ever since you joined our team,” Thinking back on the past couple days, Sanghyeok never once shied away from doing things to ease your burdens, even going out of his way so you could focus all your attention onto what mattered most to you. “It’s like you were some sort of holiday miracle sent to me.”
Unwrapping the scarf from his neck, Sanghyeok carefully loops it around the back of your head, securing it snugly at the front of your jacket. “It’s freezing… You should really be layering up more.” He’s glad the lighting on the trees is too dim for you to see the blush creeping up his neck after seeing you in his clothes. He’d probably blame it on the frosty air if you called him out on it. “Ah, it’s snowing!”
The gaze you were previously sharing is broken as you look up, crystal white snowflakes slowly sinking from the sky. It was surreal to be standing in the middle of the park, ambient light illuminating the way the snow ended their descent atop your heads, your shared laughter harmonizing at the sight.
And despite the cold weather, you felt warm standing next to him.
no rush but i can’t stop thinking about getting one of those lock you know the ones you will lock to a fence to like promise love forever or whatever cuz that and riwoo is just ahh so whenever you find time or if you wanna :)
YES I LOVE RIWOO REQUESTS HES SUCH A ROMANTIC
You feel a small familiar pull on your wrist, dragging you towards your destination. The tug wasn’t from your boyfriend though, it was from his pomeranian Daebak. Riwoo had insisted on taking Daebak for a walk with him to a popular bridge on the other side of town. You had never been to the spot before, but you trust your boyfriend enough to follow him anywhere.
Once the bridge is in view, Riwoo starts walking faster while keeping your pinky fingers locked together. “C’mon! I can see it!” He exclaimed happily while clapping for Daebak to follow him and pick up speed. “Riwoo! Hold on...” You laugh as he pulls you by your little finger causing the shared earbud to nearly fall from your ear. Daebak excitedly follows the two of you, having no clue what is happening.
As the two of you reach the bridge, you stop to catch your breath from running and laughing. Of course, Riwoo and his dancer's stamina had him recovering before he even had a chance to get tired or winded. His warm, familiar hand comes up to cup your face and tilt your chin up to look at his pretty smile. “You okay?” There’s not a hint of mockery in his tone as he rubs his thumb over your cheek. You nod and feel your cheeks heat up at the soft touch and admiration in the boys' eyes. “Good...” Riwoo bends down to one knee, and you feel your heart in your throat.
“Wh- what?” Your eyes nearly bug out at the sight of your boyfriend on one knee in front of you. The moment he understands what you’re thinking, his expression matches your own and his cheeks and nose turn pink. “Woah- no no no- that-” He quickly points to one of the locks attached to the bridge near the bottom. “I got us a lock I’m not proposing, don’t worry.” The laugh that follows is more flustered than anything as he tilts the lock up to show you.
You bend down to get a better look and see a rose-gold lock with you, and Riwoo’s initials engraved into it. Daebak seems more than interested as he sniffs at it curiously. “Sanghyeok...” You’re renderedspeechless as you look down at the only pink lock among the hundreds of silver and black ones decorating the bridge. The smile on your boyfriend's face makes it obvious that he’s happy with your reaction and the lock.
“Do you know why people put these on the bridge?” He asks as he stands up and helps you up with him. “Because they’re dating, right?” Riwoo laughs softly and shakes his head. “Kind of...” His eyes find yours and they’re full of love and warmth. “It’s cheesy but it’s like we’re permanent now, like our love is held in place by the prettiest lock I could find at the hardware store.” You laugh softly at his antics because of course he would look for the pretty lock. “You’re stuck with me now, locked together.” He locks his pinky with yours to really sell his point which makes you smile down at your hands. “I could never be stuck with you, I love you.” You say without a hint of doubt. “I love you more darling...” He says as he uses his grip on your pinky to pull you to him. His hand finds your waist and his other stays in yours as he swaysyou around with perfect posture and control. “Riwoo!” You laugh out as he spins you around, matching your excitement.
STARLIGHT IN YOUR EYES : boynextdoor medieval headcanons pt 2.
how they convey their love to you.
genre. fluff. medieval au. secret relationship (sungho). intentions of marriage (riwoo).
warnings. reader is a princess. mention of execution in sungho's. kissing.
pairing. sungho&riwoo x princess!reader (separate).
wc. 800.
request. requested by anon: heyy! i still haven’t gotten over the bnd medieval headcannons, can u please do more of these or seperate imagines for each member??
a/n. lmk if you want the other members as well for now i just did sungho and riwoo since i wanted to expand on their scenarios but i'd love to do the rest of the members as well!!
pt 1 (ot6) here!!
SUNGHO: THE PERSONAL GUARD
sungho was always a clever man, one who thought through things carefully and rarely acted on impulse
his nature made him an excellent guard, but often a lacking lover
his devotion to you was never in question, but his propensity to err on the safe side clashed with both of your longing hearts
there was nothing easy about maintaining a secret relationship with your personal guard, but the hardships you went through always proved to be worth it in the end
sungho couldn't risk showing you affection while in public at all, and while you could get away with a little more than he could without being questioned, you followed suit with his caution to avoid any unwanted consequences
it wasn't for lacking of wanting that sungho refrained from any hint of affection for you in the presence of others
it killed him inside every time he had to act as if he didn't know you better than anyone else in the room
he didn't even dare to try to hold your hand behind your back or place his hand on your shoulder
no matter how much he longed to feel your skin under his, even the slightest physical touch would get caught by the other guards in an instant
they were always on alert for intruders, and that included the palace staff
in order to keep his crucial position of protecting the princess, sungho was forced to act as professional as possible
but there was still one way that he could convey how he felt without getting caught by anyone
and that was in his eyes
only you could catch how his cold gaze softened whenever he looked at you, his dark eyes sparkling with love and adoration
his longing for you was evident in his eyes, and even just a glimpse at his gleaming eyes filled your entire heart
his reputation was at stake as much as yours, and you were both heavily aware of that
if the news that one of the most trusted and skilled guards of the palace was caught in an illicit love story with the princess, he was sure to be banished or even executed for it
so sungho took no risks and did his best to ignore his heart's longing
if only things were different, he would be able to hold you and profess his love for you for as many hours of the day as he could
but as things were now, he had to be content with fleeting glances and precious moments shared together in the privacy of the gardens or your bed chamber
those were the only areas of the palace far away from the preening eyes of the maids or sentries
SANGHYEOK: THE DUKE
sanghyeok's respected position within society allowed him to visit you freely
his courtship with you was adored by both the public and your own parents, and he was very clear in his intentions both to them and to you
sanghyeok never left you with any doubt that he was the man you would spend the rest of your life with
regardless of whether it were fancy balls thrown in your name or sincere words he professed to you privately, you were assured of his love for you
you were no stranger to noblemens' commitment to win over your heart, but never before had you sensed such earnestness as with sanghyeok
he was sincere and everything he did overflowed with honesty and affection for you
you could trust sanghyeok, and knowing that made you fall even more in love with him
as much as he showed his feelings for you, you reciprocated equally
you had rarely cared about looking pretty for a man, none of your past suitors had brought out any want in you to impress them
but you did for sanghyeok
for the first time, you were excited to try on new extravagant ball gowns and jewelry, picturing his reaction when he saw you wearing them
how he would tell you just how stunning you looked in them, how you were the most beautiful woman he had ever laid eyes on
while you loved hearing his compliments and seeing his cheeks dusting a soft pink just from your mere presence, your favourite moments with sanghyeok would always be when you were dancing with him
you had been courting him for months now, but dancing with him still felt as thrilling as it always had
how gently he held you, swaying and twirling to the elegant waltzes and minuets the royal symphony played for the public's enjoyment
and when the music slowed, signaling its finish, he would gracefully dip you, not wasting his chance to press a gentle kiss to your lips
from the first to last dance you ever took with sanghyeok, you were sure your heart would continue to hum with warmth from his pure smile, soft eyes, and gentle kisses
↳ boynextdoor taglist (bolded could not be tagged): @rizzshimura,, @captivq,, @icyminghao,, @eternalgyu,, @metalchick529,,
