about a week had gone by.
a week filled with joy and the freedom they had desired for. they had spend their days up in junhui's apartment, taking never ending strolls through their town, spending their evenings with all ten of them in seungcheol's cafe and so much more.
minghao was convinced that he never felt such genuine happiness ever before and was grateful for all the things junhui had shown and taught him. the new group of friends he became a part of also helped him with growing his social skills. which was almost impossible not to learn with both soonyoung and chan still being a fan of him.
however, the time had come that both junhui and minghao had to make a final return to the lake house. even when doc had given his approval for minghao to stay with junhui over the phone early this week, in exchange for him to keep doc updated, all his clothes and other belongings still lay in his closet at the lake house. and while junhui's clothes were only a tad bit too large for him and felt safer than his own, they both knew it was also time to close off that chapter.
it was time to begin with a new adventure.
and so, they were getting ready for a long-lasting drive to the lake house. for the last time in a long while, as junhui knew that they would visit the place again in the far future. for now, all the medical care and therapy session had been more than enough. they both deserved to take some rest and to get back to their old selves before they would return to school and start with the second semester, now they had both missed the full first period of school.
"haohao? have you seen my car keys?" junhui's voice echoed through the small hallway all the way to the living room, where minghao was still busy with tying the laces of his nearly outworn sneakers.
"check your pockets!" hao yelled back, being aware that his boyfriend could be a little clumsy from time to time.
mingyu had brought junhui's car back from the lake house, surprisingly, without getting into any car crash or causing any form of damage to the frame. and though they previously had feared that junhui wouldn't be able to use it as naturally as before, nothing seemed to have changed. junhui drove minghao through the entire area in the short amount of time they had spend back in the town. which was enough proof that nothing seemed to burden him any longer.
junhui rummaged through the pockets of his jeans and surprisingly found his car keys, chuckling out loud once he realized how well minghao knew him already. "found them! are you coming, mister: 'i can't find a decent pair of sneakers for our trip to the lake house.'" junhui joked, knowing that minghao was a man who preferred to go out in full outfit than to look the slightest sloppy.
"god stop complaining! i can't help the fact that all of your shoes are twice my size! besides, your clothes are too good looking to not match it with a nice pair of shoes." minghao playfully nagged back, finally appearing around the corner, wearing his own sneakers. it appeared that he wasn't able to find the right fit.
warmth radiated off minghao's expression as a smile covered the lower hand of his face, both rows of his pearly white canines visible. junhui had no clue why his deep brown eyes sparked such pure glee out of a sudden, but he surely took a liking to the look of it. "hey you, are you excited for the trip or is it my irresistible handsome face that makes you this happy?"
"don't get too full of yourself, sir." minghao poked his index finger in junhui's chest. however, he wasn't able to hide his smile at least the slightest. "but it's a mixture of both i think." he silently added, unable to look the confident junhui directly in his face.
junhui couldn't resist the urge of hugging him, so all out of a sudden he pulled minghao in a warm embrace, tightly wrapping both arms around his shoulders. "god.. you're adorable." junhui breathed out, taking the opportunity to snuggle his nose in minghao's utterly soft black hair.
"oh shut up." minghao huffed, yet carefully wrapped his arms around junhui's waist as well.
junhui noticed how his tender fingers crept up his back a little higher. his touch felt gentle, cautious almost, as if minghao still feared that his disease might return. though his body wasn't in a vulnerable state any longer, junhui couldn't deny that he loved to be treated with such pure tenderness and care.
"you're allowed to hold me tighter, hao. nothing will happen to me anymore." junhui whispered the reassuring words to his boyfriend, who visibly flinched a little when he realized how even his touch gave away his concerns.
"i'm sorry.." he apologized. "i'm just scared that something might happen to you again."
though his touch remained gentle, junhui pulled minghao a little closer up against his chest. "there's no need to be sorry, babe. and even if something might happen, i don't want you to hold back on me. i would even prefer you to hold me as tight as you can."
his words were enough for minghao to tighten his grip. his fingers found a way in the fabric of junhui's shirt, carefully clawing themselves in it to greedily take in as much as he could. "i feel loved, jun." his words came completely out of the blue and even managed to surprise junhui.
"that's because you deserve to be loved, hao hao." junhui whispered, his voice a few octaves lower to convince minghao of his honesty. "you deserve to feel what it is like to be loved by someone who would do anything for you. i love you more than anything hao."
minghao still refused to let go, even when they decided to depart about ten minutes ago. "i love you too jun. and i don't think i will ever be able to feel this way for someone else."
"i don't think it's necessary to ever feel like this for someone else. at least, not as long as i'm around." the sound of junhui's gentle laughter was a form of reassurance that created a home-like sense of safety.
more than enough for minghao to know that he indeed was loved by the most beautiful human-being on earth.
