Epilogue

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~Five years later~

A blanket of stars covered the jet black sky above the city as the crowd below waited with anticipation running through their bodies, all packed in to the huge city square by the river. Almost every head was turned towards the sky as people hopped from foot to foot, trying to ward off the biting winter chill.

Amongst them were two handsome young men in their early twenties; one of them was wrapped up thoroughly in an enormous black parka with a dark grey scarf wrapped around his neck, his teeth chattering audibly as he shivered constantly on the spot. His hand, tightly clasping that of the other man, displayed a simple yet beautiful gold band on the ring finger which, just a few years back, bore only an incredibly delicate diamond ring.

The other man stood impossibly close beside the first, donned in a much more sleek yet much less warm trench coat, though his own neck was also protected by a thick, cosy and soft scarf. His hand, too, was adorned with a matching gold band and, although it was hidden under his garments, a familiar little infinity pendant still hung elegantly against his neck.

"Babe, you're absolutely freezing. Come here," the second man demanded albeit in a soft and loving tone, not waiting for an answer before he wrapped his arms and the ends of his coat around the first, smaller man, their hands still gripping each other's tightly.

"I can't believe this," the smaller grumbled in such a disgruntled tone that only Do Kyungsoo could achieve. "I literally dress in warmer and way more appropriate clothes than you and I'm still the colder one."

"Hyung, how many times do I have to tell you? Style always wins," Jongin answered smugly, nuzzling the top of his husband's hair affectionately.

"Oh, please," murmured the older. "We both know you only wore that to look good. You've turned into such a fashion snob since you started working for Chanyeol's company. I never should have introduced you to the world of business. I've created a monster."

"Yeah, but you'll love this monster when I get you in bed later—"

"Kim Jongin!" hissed Kyungsoo, whipping his head around to glare up (much to his displeasure) at his lover. "We're in public, shush!"

A soft snicker being his only response, Jongin held the smaller man closer and rested his chin atop Kyungsoo's head, who had now turned back around to face the river again. The Big Wheel was right opposite them on the other side of the water, glistening with thousands and thousands of lights that illuminated the enormous structure.

"Have you been in contact with Chanyeol lately? He told me Baek keeps dropping hints about children, so Chanyeol reckons he's going to bring it up properly sometime soon," Jongin explained as he, too, looked out across the water at the wheel, his eyes not entirely focused on what he was seeing as he let his mind wander back to that particular conversation.

Briefly at the time, and now a little more comprehensively, he wondered how long it would be before he and Kyungsoo were also considering children. They had been married for almost one year now and both of them had been lucky enough to find stable jobs immediately after graduating, with Jongin being offered a position by his friend at Chanyeol's family company which he had inherited a year before finishing school, and Kyungsoo taking up a deputy leadership role at an established music company which had contacted him some time after their school talent show.

The older man had insisted on turning his back on his father's business which he had been set to inherit and had been adamant on never setting foot in any part of that field again, but Jongin had persuaded him otherwise by reminding him of the music opportunity he had regrettably turned down back in school. The idea had piqued Kyungsoo's interest on the grounds that even though it was still a business of some sort, it was at least one that he was genuinely interested in and had an undeniable talent for.

Again, he had vehemently refused to take on a leadership role, but Jongin - and also their entire group of friends - had declared that he was far too bossy to be simply a regular employee.

Still, Kyungsoo refused to go back to the strictly dictated lifestyle he had once possessed, pointedly spending the majority of his free time dressed in slacks and hoodies and anything that was as far from a suit and tie as possible.

"Yeah, Chanyeol rung me up earlier in the week. It was only to get some advice on his investments and he didn't mention anything about children, but he did sound pretty exhausted. I guess that's probably why." With a faint shrug of his shoulders, Kyungsoo rested his head back against his husband's chest comfortably, just about feeling the odd rumbling of Jongin's voice that followed.

"He told me to tell you that he's planning on proposing soon, too. He's going to throw a party and get everyone back together, just like I did for you," Jongin added, dropping a little kiss to the shorter's hair as he recalled the memory from five years ago. "Kris, Tao and Yixing are coming over from China for about a month to spend time with us as well as for the party."

At that, Kyungsoo released a soft gasp, his hand holding on to Jongin's just a little bit tighter. "Really? Oh, we haven't seen them in so long, that'll be amazing!"

"I know, right? Minseok and Luhan are coming over from the states, too."

As a knowing grin spread across his lips, Jongin waited a split second until Kyungsoo was spinning around in his arms, screeching with joy as he threw his arms around the taller's neck. "Nini, I'm so excited already! I've missed them all so much, haven't you?"

"Of course," Jongin answered with a soft laugh, his eyes twinkling with adoration as he gazed down at his precious husband. "Chanyeol had to tell me about three times before I believed it all."

"And we'll get to see Jongdae and Joohyun and little Sungmin," Kyungsoo breathed, his eyes glazing over slightly as his mind began to wander. "And Sehun and Joonmyun— Oh, hyung will be so happy to have Yixing back again after all this time."

"Yeah," Jongin replied, his tone a little grave as he thought of how much their older friend had struggled when his boyfriend had taken a job opportunity over in China. Yixing had only been gone for a year so far, but even the first week had crushed Joonmyun. Jongin was certain that the two must talk regularly over the phone and through video calls, but he couldn't imagine not having Kyungsoo by his side for an entire year.

"It'll be such a happy occasion," Kyungsoo said as he beamed up at his lover, who immediately returned the bright smile before encasing the shorter in his arms again.

"I love you, my baby," Jongin murmured and leaned in to warm those beautifully plump lips with his own, feeling the older man smile gently against them.

"I love you too, my darling," the smaller replied, but the last few words of his sentence were almost drowned out by the sound of fireworks exploding into the air.

Instantly turning back around to watch the display, Kyungsoo settled back against Jongin's chest as warm arms held him close, and the two of them watched as the night sky erupted with burst after burst of colours, the crowd murmuring in awe and excitement in and amongst the cacophony of noise.

Soon, the many thousands of voices began to chant in unison, the lights on the Big Wheel flashing in sync with the numbers.

10... 9... 8...

Shuffling back around to face his husband yet again that night, Kyungsoo grinned up at the younger man as the two of them gazed into each other's eyes, the booming voices all around them fading out of existence as they waited to share yet another New Year's kiss.

3... 2... 1...

And then two whispers.

"Happy New Year."

~

A/N
this.. this fic is finally finished😭 after so damn long, we finally made it to the end. I am so so so sorry for taking so long to finish it, and I'm not even 100% happy but I really hope it's enough for you guys.

thank you so much to everyone who kept on commenting the last few years, even when they knew the fic wasn't finished, and also to all those who stuck by me from the very beginning. you're such a special and important part of the making of this fanfic and I hope you remember it always! for now it's over and out, but I'd definitely love to write more fics in future❤️❤️

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