The day had finally arrived. Hyunjin was on his way home once more, nearly 4 months to the day after he'd said goodbye to his fellow Stray Kids and left on hiatus.
It felt surreal to be going back to the dorm after all that time. He'd gotten used to the quietness of his parents' house, where most of his time had been spent with Kkami.
The little dog had been his constant companion, not only during the day, but also in the darkest hours of the night. At those times, he had happily snuggled up with Hyunjin in his bed, while the dancer lay staring at the ceiling, his head filled with thoughts of better times.
Now Hyunjin was in the company car on his way back to Seoul, feeling more and more jittery as the minutes passed by. It felt like a lifetime since he'd lived in the noisy, chaotic dorm with the other members. He didn't know if he was ready to go back to that just yet.
There was something else he wasn't quite ready for, too: seeing Felix. The cute, freckled, Australian boy who had stolen his heart. His personal ray of sunshine. An angel sent from Heaven.
Hyunjin had spent a hefty chunk of his time on hiatus daydreaming about Felix. He was supposed to be 'reflecting on his actions', but all he could seem to reflect on was Felix. He spent his days telling Kkami every little detail about the younger boy, and reminiscing about the happy times they'd spent together.
But in the darkness of his bedroom, Hyunjin's thoughts went a lot deeper; and more often than not, he ended up burying his face in Kkami's soft fur and letting his tears run free, the pain of separation too much to bear.
He'd been waiting for this day for months, but now it was here he didn't know if he could face what was to come. He wanted to see Felix more than anything, but he wasn't sure he could trust himself not to kiss the living daylights out of him the moment they were reunited.
But he couldn't do that. He couldn't let the others see how close he and Felix really were. No, he and Felix had agreed to keep their relationship secret, at least for now, so that's what he would do. But God, it was going to be hard!
A car horn suddenly sounded outside the window, making Hyunjin jump, hitting his head on the car roof. As he was rubbing his head grumpily, he looked out the window and realised with a jolt that they were just round the corner from the JYP dorm building.
In a matter of moments, his heart was thump-thumping in his chest, and his palms were suddenly slick with sweat. Panic rising, he instinctively looked for a way to escape - but of course there was none.
Less than a minute later, though, the car stopped. He opened his door with every intention of running - somewhere, anywhere - but what he actually did was stand still and stare.
Running towards him was the most beautiful creature Hyunjin had ever laid eyes on. Long, flowing locks and bright, shining eyes, and a smile that seemed to encompass the world. And if that wasn't enough, Hyunjin heard an angelic voice calling, "Jinnieeee!!!!!"
He opened his arms just in time for Felix to crash into him. The younger wrapped his arms around him tightly and squeezed as if his life depended on it. It was the fiercest hug Hyunjin had ever received.
Hyunjin glanced over Felix's shoulder and saw Chan holding the other members back. He'd never been that good at lip reading, but he thought Chan was saying, "Just let them have this moment." When Chan looked up and met Hyunjin's gaze, the dancer nodded in gratitude. Then he closed his eyes and melted into the hug.
After a while, the two boys slowly unwrapped themselves, and looked into each other's eyes. Then they started talking at the same time.
"Thank God you're alive, Jinnie!"
"I missed you so much, Baby!"
Hyunjin stopped talking abruptly, but Felix kept going, seemingly unable to stop.
"The last four months were awful! There was so much hate you wouldn't believe - I tried to stay away from it, I did, but I heard some of it anyway, and it broke my heart, Jinnie! And we couldn't talk to Stay or do lives or anything! I practised my dancing like you said, and the others helped, but it just wasn't the same without you. I couldn't sleep, and I kept having terrible nightmares, and a lot of times I thought I wouldn't be able to make it until you came back..."
"But you did make it, Baby! You're here now, and I'm so proud of you! And you won Kingdom without me - I told you you could!"
Felix immediately blushed, smiling shyly. But then he looked at Hyunjin somberly. "Do you know what got me through it all, Jinnie?"
"What?"
"Thinking of you. Every time I fell down and didn't want to get back up, I thought about what you would do. So then I'd get back up and keep going. You're the reason I got out of bed every morning, Jinnie."
Hyunjin gazed at Felix with unending love, a soft smile on his lips.
"I love you so much, Lixie."
"I love you too, Jinnie."
And with that, Felix leant forward, closing the gap between them. Hyunjin quickly put his finger on the younger's lips, though, a worried look clouding his features.
Glancing behind Felix at the other members, he said, "Are you sure you wanna do that here? You do know the others can see us? I thought you wanted to keep us a secret?"
Felix shook his head. "Not anymore." He turned his head for a second and looked behind him, then turned back to Hyunjin.
"They'll find out soon enough, anyway. From now on, I'm never letting you go."
As Felix leant forward once more, Hyunjin cupped his cheeks and smiled. Closing his eyes, he met the younger's lips with his own, immediately getting lost in their irresistible sweetness.
As they finally kissed, Hyunjin was aware of cheers and wolf-whistles erupting in the distance. But he didn't care one bit. Not anymore. He was just happy to be home again, in the arms of the boy he loved.