𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐬𝐤𝐲 ☾︎ binwoo

C H P - 28

"Well, sweetie, I suppose it's my turn to explain my side of the story, isn't it...?"

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-5 Days Remaining-

Bright rays of light shone through the window as the golden sun rose to join the clouds. A mist hung low to the ground outside, hovering over all of the flowers that were hoping for a first light. Pinks mixed with purples, and swirls of orange blended with each stray patch of color. The sky mimicked the last page of every fairytale, and Dongmin was sure that what he saw now was just that, the final page ripped out and laid down before his eyes.

His eyelids grew heavy. He wanted to close them and allow his mind to rest, yet he couldn't bring himself to look away.

The tips of his ears were red with cold, and he was sure his nose was, too, yet Moonbin's arms kept him warm as they held him tightly, his back tucked up against the pinkette's chest. He could barely move any of his limbs, and that was just the way he liked it to be, because they were simply making up for lost time, and time was not something they would have a lot of.

He thought back to their talk yesterday and frowned.

5 days, huh?

An image of the younger's silver ring flashed before his eyes, his heart clenching.

At least I had been wrong about it being a wedding ring... he thought. But I still can't believe his dad would do all that to him. Who would sell off their child as a servant just to make up for some stupid debt? That's not something anyone should have to endure, especially when they had nothing to do with the original problem...

Breath suddenly tickled the back of his neck, reminding him that Moonbin was still asleep.

He sighed deeply in thought. If he wanted the younger to sleep soundly, he needed to close the curtains and block out the sunlight.

After finding out about all the stress Moonbin had been under these past few months, Dongmin could at least allow him to get a good night's sleep. But still, he didn't want to move. He was comfortable as he was. All of those years that he restricted himself from touching the pinkette were coming back to bite him, as now he was faced with a problem: should he stay as he was, choosing to be selfish, or should he get up to close the curtains?

He shook his head slightly and pushed himself up into a sitting position. He glanced down at Moonbin's features, at just how at peace he seemed to be as he slept. How could he even think about being selfish? He rolled his eyes at himself and reached out towards the window, hoping to grasp one of the curtains. However, his arm was not quite long enough, and he ended up having to scoot even further away from his best friend. 

"Wait..."

The sound made him freeze. He turned towards his sleeping friend with wide eyes. 

Moonbin's voice was groggy and quiet, barely audible. He absentmindedly tugged at Dongmin's waist. "I don't... care about the sun. Just come back..." he gently begged. Normally, this early in the morning, he would be too tired to open his eyes, yet he forced them open as best as he could, sending a pleading glance his friend's way. "Don't leave me just yet..."

Dongmin couldn't help but laugh as he immediately gave in, setting his arm down at his side and slipping back under the covers. He could never resist. "Okay, okay." He pulled the duvet up past his shoulders and flipped onto his side, facing his best friend, of who was only half-awake. He gazed at younger's features with eyes that smiled in place of his lips, shaking his head at himself. "Aish, you're so dramatic..."

Moonbin laughed tiredly and wrapped the other up in his arms. Surely, it was okay to do this now, wasn't it? "But you love that about me, right?" he asked, grinning.

The dark-haired male only eyed him teasingly. "Sure."

Moonbin giggled at the short answer. Somehow, it filled his body with such a giddy feeling, much like the feeling of relief. He pressed his forehead against the other's, sliding his hand up from Dongmin's waist to his jaw, cupping his cheek. "I love you," he whispered happily, overwhelmed with just how much he was feeling, and he didn't expect a response. He was used to not having a response.

Silence would have been okay.

But there wasn't silence.

No.

There wasn't silence.

"I love you, too."

Moonbin suddenly froze. "I-uhm-huh? What, uhm, what, I mean... huh?" 

And even with the younger's panicked sputtering, their chocolate colored eyes still managed to meet, and it was then that he remembered something. He wasn't alone, anymore. Life had finally quite playing tug of war with his heart. Life had really made his hopeless wishes become reality. He was in debt to life, because now Dongmin loved him back, really, he loved him back.

Moonbin's first instinct was to thank him. "Min, thank you," he began, heart beating out of his chest. When was it he had first felt like this, again? He couldn't remember. "Really, thank you."

"For what?"

"For--"

"Boys! Breakfast is done! Come down here!"

Thunk!

It felt like Moonbin had been wacked across the back of the head. "Oh, you have got to be kidding me!" He rolled onto his back, bringing his hands up to cover his face in dismay. "Right when we were having a moment, too!"

He wanted to be mad at his mother, he really did, but he just couldn't. She was too nice of a woman. But still, they were having a moment! Why did she have to ruin it?

He hadn't even taken into consideration just what his thoughts were implying, but when they finally processed, his breath hitched. He found himself blinking multiple times, now fully awake. 

Wait, wasn't she supposed to leave yesterday with... him? 

He sat up abruptly, eyes shooting over to the closed door, then to Dongmin. The older was looking back at him with a face full of questions.

"I swear to..." The pinkette groaned and hopped out of bed. He stood still for just a moment, settling his thoughts, and grabbed his friend's hand, dragging him over to the closed door. He could hear a deep voice coming from down the stairs, yet still, he didn't want to accept it. 

His stomach dropped, and just before opening the door, he looked to his friend. His eyes were pleading and desperate, but he himself failed to realize it. "Listen, be my support today, I'm really going to need it, so please," he said without thinking. He took a deep breath and forced himself to face the door.

Dongmin quickly caught on to the sudden change in his friend's mood. As his best friend, it was expected of him to do so. "Hey," he began softly, tugging Moonbin back from the door. "What is it?"

The pure dread on his friend's face gave him his answer.

Instantly, he pulled the pinkette into a hug, wrapping his arms around his shoulders. He wanted to help him, to wash away the dread and the sadness, but he couldn't. There was no way he could. "Then I'll try my best," he whispered.

Moonbin wanted to believe him, believe that he could make everything better, yet his heart was still full of hesitance. So he nodded, and even though he wanted to focus on just how great it felt to be held by the man who commanded the stars, he could only think about how tense breakfast was going to be.

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yeah, this chapter was a mess. I'm still trying to fix it, but it's just not working

-Author 🖤