습관

sung jaeha / xxvi

[ywjaeha]

hey guys! sorry i disappeared 🙃 rl got very hectic very quickly and i’ll still be on and off over the next few days while i try to get a project out T_T but i hope you had wonderful holidays and i’ll (finally) be working on some starters i owe people <3 thank you for the patience!!

[ywjaeha]

@ywtaewoong

when his intended recipient for the feast of the winter star’s secret gift exchange arrives, taewoong laughs. he’s always assumed, perhaps unfairly, that the goddess doesn’t have a sense of humor. clearly, he was mistaken. after all, the fact that he’s been assigned sung jaeha out of all the people in yangwon for the exchange has to be some sort of a joke.

(“you were intending to get him a gift anyway,” his twin points out. “don’t be melodramatic about this.”

“but now it doesn’t mean anything,” taewoong complains. whatever he gives now will feel like a gift out of obligation.

his twin raises an eyebrow. “did you want it to?”

he doesn’t respond.)

it takes a few days, but taewoong eventually takes the setback in stride and begins planning his gift. it may be for the feast, but it can still be special. with boram’s help, he’s able to put something together that he can be proud of. truthfully, it’s more boram’s gift than taewoong’s, but he feels it’s suitable—“i think jaeha likes you more than he likes me?” he muses out loud, and boram gives him a look that seems to say, naturally.

boram accompanies him to the post office on the evening before the feast. taewoong considers delivering the gift by hand, but his family takes the feast seriously and he doubts he’ll find the time to get away on the day itself. the mail carriers assure him and boram, who peers up at them with worried eyes, that the gift will be delivered the very next day, and boram forces one of them into a pinky promise to ensure he’ll keep his word.

on the way home, boram asks taewoong if he thinks jaeha will like the gift.

“i’m sure he will, princess,” taewoong says. he’s not, actually, but he is sure jaeha will be able to sense that it came from the heart.

[ delivered to the sung household on the morning of the feast of the winter star is an envelope from sweetgrass stables. inside is a letter addressed to sung jaeha, offering him a complementary afternoon of riding lessons with instructor park taewoong and his daughter, park boram. accompanying the letter is a child’s drawing of jaeha, taewoong, boram, and the pony known as aegi gongju. ]

because the world likes to play cruel jokes on him, work gets unimaginably busy at the last minute, and he’s too stubborn to admit it, but he might be feeling a tiny bit under the weather too—physically or mentally, jaeha isn’t quite sure (and he isn’t sure it matters, either, if he doesn’t want to admit one or the other). it’s probably a mix of both. holiday season’s always such a gamble, and while he isn’t homesick (surprisingly), he is tired, and that hardly seems to be the right state of mind to appreciate the almost whimsical glow yangwon seems to wear during this season. 

it’s why he drags his feet in the days leading up to the feast of the winter star, why he hardly keeps track of what’s going on—days blurring into one. maybe this is fate too, but it’s only when jaeha’s stumbling out of his house, pulling a sweater over his shoulders, hardly dressed for the weather, that the postman spots him and waves an envelope cheerily. he’s trying to call his father back, and service for his carrier’s fickle here, always demands he wander around like a leaf in the wind to find a good place to be spoken at. the phone call’s forgotten and jaeha’s confused because he has no reason to be receiving anything in the mail (and had this fateful encounter not happened, he probably would have walked right past his mailbox, too)—

but the contents of the envelope are a pleasant surprise and it’s hard to fight the smile that works its way onto his lips in spite of how dazed he’d been the past week. it’s a considerate gift, definitely something he’ll have to thank taewoong (and boram) in person for, but it’s the drawing in particular that tugs at his heartstrings with particular insistence. 

the call with his father isn’t as stiff as it might have been and jaeha doesn’t come back home with a heavy heart or a pounding headache, like he usually does. he’s careful as he places the drawing up against the refrigerator door, pressing it into place with a stray magnet. 

he bites back a laugh. maybe today isn’t so cold after all.

(later, he sends taewoong three texts: a picture of the drawing on his refrigerator door, i couldn’t find a spare frame, but tell boram thank you!, and a final message that trickles in five minutes after the fact—

thank you. you really brightened my day!) 

[ywjaeha]

bright whites

— for @ywhaneul

something about yangwon’s winter is biting, even colder than the decembers he’s accustomed to back home.

(home—the word floats awkwardly in jaeha’s mind, almost like it doesn’t belong. it’s concerning, really. he should take more care to put some distance between himself and yangwon again. he’s starting to feel himself letting his guard down. again.) 

he’s on his way home after stopping by the general store to buy some cold medicine (preemptive, really; he’s not sick yet, but he can feel the telltale ache in his bones and at this age, it’s like a premonition), jacket pulled especially tight over his torso. he’s regretful for the nth time that he left his thicker coats in seoul, but it’s stupid how stubborn he is about admitting it out loud. maybe if the snow gets especially bad, he’ll cave and try to buy a new one. maybe he can push someone in the city to ship him his winter gear if he offers to foot the bill. maybe, maybe, maybe. 

jaeha sighs. 

for a town as small as yangwon, there’s a large variety of very interesting characters. he’s bad enough with names and faces, but it’s especially hard to keep track of everyone when everyone seems to be filled with a sort of warmth—in some way, shape, or form—that jaeha isn’t quite familiar with. he supposes it’s kind of nice, in a way, how a small town like this is so tight-knit that a newcomer like jaeha just can’t float under the radar. he supposes it’s overwhelming too, with all of the people going out of his way to make sure he wants to stay (and he doesn’t). 

there are some people he just can’t read though. some people who do strange things like snap photos of him when he’s completely off-guard. some people who are honestly friendly enough, that jaeha’s subconsciously started going out of his way to avoid—if only because he’s photo shy, which is probably the worst justification there is to hiding in his shell. 

and those some people often times pop up out of nowhere when jaeha least expects them.

for example: right this second.

for example: han.

jaeha looks up from the path in front of him and freezes. “oh,” he says, a faint smile on his lips. “hey, long time no see?”

[ywjaeha]

HELLO my internet crapped out on me yesterday so i was in the void but !! i’ll be getting to ims and such today :’)

in the meantime, if you’d like to thread for sum winter star shenanigans (jaeha will be around for the festival and the potluck — and since he’s w/o family and new to town, plz guide him.. plz) please like this post !!

if we’re currently plotting and have something vaguely figured out and you’d like a short starter, please reply to this post with ur fave color. 

thanks again for ur patience n_n

[ywjaeha]

(COLOR) STARTERS ARE CAPPED !!!!! PLS. (but thank u for replying im glad i didnt flop)

here are some additional plots (general, not winter star specific) i’ve whipped up bc i did not anticipate running out of open plots (and they r my security blanket for when im [clown honking sadly noises] and can’t brainstorm).

below the cut are some winter star plots! i’ll send out ims to the people who liked this post hopefully tonight, but if you’re interested and we are not chatting atm just.......... like this post (i have no system and am very inefficient, plz excuse me) :D and i will im u :D

ok.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!!!!!

ur not really big on the whole winter star viewing thing but jaeha’s really really excited about it for some reason and he’s ALONE IN THIS TOWN...... NO FAMILY............. (SOME BUT NOT VERY MANY) FRIENDS........................... it’s fine........... u don’t have to view it with him............... he’ll just look at it......................... Alone.......................... 

he’s honest to god about to spend his entire night just watching bad reality television but u find out he doesn’t have plans for the 25th and decide to [force] invite him to the community potluck! get him involved! he’s kind of against it bc he’s #awkward but ur like ok my dude whoever can skip a rock the furthest @ the beach gets to decide whether u have to be a part of the community or not. except u both suck at skipping rocks so ur just standing on the beach in december at like 10pm. dumbasses. 

u suck at cooking/baking and he doesn’t suck and foolishly invites u to get ready for the potluck w/ him @ his place but by the end of the night his kitchen looks like a murder scene and he’s like [choking up] [never going 2 interact w/ people ever again] this was fun! (but it was fun and he appreciates ur time and company)

on principle he isn’t a very festive person but u are (maybe just to give him grief) so u spend an entire day trying to decorate his Very Old House and he’s mostly just like. supervising. as u almost fall off ladders and such trying to hang up decorations and he tries to prevent certain death. 

catch him coming out of a phone call looking v tense and a little upset (it was a call with his parents) (doesnt usually end well) (holidays r never fun for him) and treat him to a drink @ the bar bc ur feeling gracious. talk to him about the winter star, why it’s significant, what it means to u, etc. 

u slip on a patch of ice in front of his house or the vet clinic and Do Not Get Back Up and he’s like HOLY SHIT this person is DYING and races to the ppl clinic with u on his back but it turns out u were just.............. hungry. and he’s like [creaking noises as he tries 2 smile, struggling to be understanding] ok. 

a misfired snowball nails him in the back of the fucking head and he drops his groceries everywhere, including into the nearly frozen river he was crossing on the bridge. u better take responsibility my dude. 

TBH............ his family back home wasn’t rly festive at all lmao so all of this is very new (for more reason than one) and exciting to him but he just ! needs ppl to facilitate that excitement :D PLZ PLAY W JAEHA he wont bite

[ywjaeha]

HELLO my internet crapped out on me yesterday so i was in the void but !! i’ll be getting to ims and such today :’)

in the meantime, if you’d like to thread for sum winter star shenanigans (jaeha will be around for the festival and the potluck — and since he’s w/o family and new to town, plz guide him.. plz) please like this post !!

if we’re currently plotting and have something vaguely figured out and you’d like a short starter, please reply to this post with ur fave color. 

thanks again for ur patience n_n

[ywjaeha]

helo budz i’m ayn and this is my cityslicker jaeha! he’s 26, city boi, and brand spankin new to yangwon. currently filling in as a veterinarian until he finds a long-term replacement! :’) he’s a pretty chill dude, just rly shy so like. u know. is he against making friends? not really. would he rather befriend the stray dog that keeps trying to steal his zucchini? yea. ANYWAY ! ! ! more info and wanted connections below the cut and also here!! if you’re interested in plotting ! please like this post and i’ll im u! i also have a discord (heunjeok#6758) if that’d be more convenient zz

Keep reading

[ywjaeha]

hewwo budz i’m going to be away for most of today so i’ll get any promised starters up tmrw and also reply 2 all of my ims/send out plotting ims tmrw (but maybe later today) too!!!! thank u for ur patience and may ur crops be bountiful 🌱🌱🌱

[ywjaeha]

reading signs

— for @ywtaewoong

all he gets is an ambiguous, borderline desperate plea before the call disconnects and jaeha’s left dumbfounded in the middle of his office. 

(please come. we need you.)

he assumes the worst. jaeha has no idea who aegi gongju is, but it sounds like a reasonable nickname for a child, and the mere implication that boram might be sick or hurt or injured in any way is enough to alarm him. so as much as jaeha would like to return taewoong’s call to kindly remind him that he isn’t a pediatrician and probably isn’t the person to be calling about whatever-this-is, instinct beats rationality to the punch. before he knows it, he’s already hurrying out of the clinic, making a beeline for the pharmacy to ask (vaguely) for remedies for a variety of different ailments that come to mind—but for children. (like the common cold, maybe she needs band-aids? oh, and conjunctivitis is common these days too...)

what jaeha finds, however, is that he might be a pessimist, because his assumption is sorely wrong.

after the fact, he’s relieved boram’s okay (more than okay, actually), the smile on her face bright and electric. it's the first thing jaeha sees by the time he actually manages to get to the stables, slightly out-of-breath, plastic bag swinging carelessly from one arm, his backpack of work essentials nearly slipping off the other.

he should have known. 

any other day and jaeha would find the sight heartwarming: boram and taewoong standing side-by-side, a small pony joining the party—one boram can’t stop looking back at, her expression bursting with mirth as she beams. 

jaeha’s gaze flickers to taewoong’s face, at a loss for words. the only thing he can manage is an expression of pure disbelief before jaeha drags a palm down his face, a tiny sigh of exasperation slipping past his lips before he can help himself.

but the momentary incredulity wears off when he catches boram smiling again and he’s weak, he gets it, but he’s not about to ruin her day when it was his fault for jumping to conclusions anyway.

with that, jaeha takes a couple of steps closer to the pair, crouching down until he’s eye-to-eye with the little girl, mirroring her smile with a smaller, fainter curve of his own. his voice is quiet, almost conspiratorial, as though he’s asking for a secret, when he whispers, “looks like something exciting’s going on, princess boram.” he peers up at taewoong too a second later. “definitely not what i was expecting,” he adds. 

[ywjaeha]

dear blue

— for @ywyunyeong

life in yangwon almost feels busier than life in seoul, which is hardly what jaeha was anticipating when he made the move—one suitcase, one backpack, his good pair of glasses left on the coffee table of his apartment back home in his rush to catch his cab. it might just be the learning curve, might be the ever-present fatigue settling too comfortably in his bones. he’s not a social person, not by any means, and as lovely as everyone he’s met so far has been, he’s exhausted, and the few hours he gets to himself seem like water in the desert. he can afford to be selfish for those few hours alone; can afford to keep to himself, to soak in sun in his grandparents’ living room and shut out the rest of the world.

but as always, as is the case for most everything, there are exceptions. sometimes, the exception comes in the form of a panicked phone call at ten at night, asking him to drop by whenever he can to check up on a sickly calf (and whenever he can means right away if his conscience has anything to say about it—but he doesn’t mind, it’s his job). 

other times, the exception comes in the form of a living, breathing, human being. and today, it’s none other than yunyeong who occupies the space in jaeha’s mind that he usually tends to keep locked away. 

he’s still a little groggy. come to think of it, it’s hard to remember the last time he got a good night’s sleep. idly, jaeha rubs at the bottom of his eye, feels the corners drying, watering. he hates contacts, should really just admit defeat and go back to wearing glasses, but he’s stubborn about the dumbest things and this is one of them.

“we’re not lost, are we?” he thinks to ask, the lilt in his tone hardly malicious. it’d taken some persistent poking and prodding for jaeha to relax, but now that he’s more or less acclimated to yunyeong’s company over the past three months he’s been in yangwon, it’s easier to breathe around the other man. maybe it’s their history or the fact that yunyeong smiles like he’s trying to chase the sun. it’s hard not to like him. 

from both sides, the rays of sunlight that had been peeking in through the gaps between the leaves have filtered out. it gets a little darker, a little cooler with each step they take forward into the forest.

jaeha hums thoughtfully, zipping up his jacket as an afterthought. it’’s chillier here than it is in seoul, he thinks. maybe it’s the open spaces: the wind can blow so freely, jaeha’s bitter he left his bigger jackets at home. 

“so, should i get my hopes up? for the view?” 

[ywjaeha]

helo budz i’m ayn and this is my cityslicker jaeha! he’s 26, city boi, and brand spankin new to yangwon. currently filling in as a veterinarian until he finds a long-term replacement! :’) he’s a pretty chill dude, just rly shy so like. u know. is he against making friends? not really. would he rather befriend the stray dog that keeps trying to steal his zucchini? yea. ANYWAY ! ! ! more info and wanted connections below the cut and also here!! if you’re interested in plotting ! please like this post and i’ll im u! i also have a discord (heunjeok#6758) if that’d be more convenient zz

TL;DR (but not rly bc i ramble lol)

born and raised in the big city! only kid, grew up pretty well-off. his grandparents moved to yangwon when he was a lil baby and lived the rest of their lives out there until passing. he’s visited yangwon a few times (every week every summer through middle school! and then every now and then for a day—sometimes less haha—high school onward) so he’s not Brand New but it sure feels like it :’)

he’s a...... veterinarian. just like his grandpa! finished his post-vet school internship a few months back and he was abt to sign a contract to work in seoul when his grandparents passed. 

originally he just came to yangwon to help tidy up his grandparents’ affairs but ended up committing to filling in as the veterinarian for a year max until a “more suitable replacement” could be found for his grandpa. 

so now he’s living here. in his grandparents’ old house on mugunghwa (neighbors where u at). hasn’t unpacked completely and probably never will bc at this point (he's only been in yangwon since september!) he’s still pretty set on going back to seoul asap. 

still he kind of ! likes it in yangwon ! even tho he won’t admit it! 

generally he’s a pretty polite, even-tempered dude. comes across as a little cold and stilted @ first bc he’s reallllylyyly really shy and it kind of manifests as stiffness instead lmao. that being said, he’s not too great at pretenses and when he smiles/laughs, he rly means it!!! so !!!!! pls dont give up on him he needs friends lmao 

seems kinda like a pushover but he’s pretty str8forward about things he does/doesn’t want to do. like for example when ppl try 2 flirt with him he’s like Im not interested [and then after a pause] but thank u!

internalizes everything bc he’s a grownass man who never learned how to cope w/ his emotions

probably cried watching old yeller but did u not? u heartless b*tch?

some random facts and tidbits: spends way too much time watching reality television (think trashy shows like love island) but is way 2 ashamed so it’s like a dirty secret and he’ll die if anyone finds out. has terrible vision but he’s wearing contacts these days and they’re so gd THICK sometimes his eyes start watering and it looks like he’s just having a bad day and crying it out. he’s super duper fond of kids and animals. likes 2 garden (he’s maintaining his grandma’s garden atm). uhhhhhHhhH he was engaged to a long-time gf but she broke it off maybe one? almost two years ago and he’s #okcool abt it (but not rly, genuinely he’s very exasperated w/ the idea of romance rn). has the tastes of an old lady (his fave snack is yanggeng). and. 

idk what else man. 

he’s (vague hand gesture) really just trying his best. 

WANTED CONNECTIONS

people he met when he was way younger and visited yangwon! chances are he won’t recognize u and u won’t recognize him but maybe once u get to talking some gears will shift and something will click! even if it’s been a longass time since he was last in yangwon, he’s pretty desperate for any semblance of familiarity he can anchor himself to ha ha ha

have a pet? or just a ton of animals? as long as they’re not seriously injured/in need of surgery or specialized attention (in which case he’ll reroute the case to haesan, but dw! he’ll make sure the transition goes smoothly!), he’s ur dude :’) 

he’s watching this show called heart signal (it’s a reality show abt finding love) RELIGIOUSLY and u catch him and he’s humiliated but maybe ur a big fan and now u guys have viewing sessions and it’s honestly embarrassing at first but now he’s just glad he has someone to talk to about it

ur mom/dad is seriously concerned that a single dude like jaeha is living on his lonesome in a house built 4 a FAMILY and keeps sending u to check up on him with banchan in tow. it’s really fucking awkward at first! but maybe a rapport develops somewhere along the way ...! 

u think he wants to be friends with u but in reality he just thinks ur kid/dog/cat/literally anything that isn’t an adult human is cute

catch him tearing up in the middle of a conversation bc of his contacts and ur like holy fuck i just made this newcomer CRY and jump to conclusions before jaeha can explain (haha no it’s just my eyes- wait- why are u apologizi- uh-) and now ur dragging him around and going out of ur way to be nice to him in penance and he’s just standing there awkwardly like I’m Never Wearing Contacts Again 

U step on his only pair of glasses and break it to SMITHEREENS! it’s fine but it’ll take a couple of days to get a replacement so it’s chill.... he’ll just walk around........... Hopelessly lost............. vision obscured......... nbd.... 

doesn’t usually drink bc he’s hella #cleanliving but also hella #lightweight so idk... drunk shenanigans... he’s so embarrassed he trips into a bush the next day trying to avoid eye contact w/ u 

only child!!!!!!!!!! but he’s always wanted siblings so idk? maybe a younger sibling figure :’)

ok im [steam comin out of my ears] running out of ideas but we’re just generally looking for some friends! acquaintances! people who were familiar w/ his grandparents! ppl he might have met before! anyone! Anything! let’s go find a wendigo together!

[jjear]