When King woke up, it was raining. The late morning rain was neither light, nor heavy, and wind caressed the trees in a rough but calming way. It was like a blanket enveloping the city.
The sound of rain was always peaceful to him, when he was safely tucked away at home.
He felt the steady rise and fall of his own breath, and also an extra weight on his chest.
He looked down and immediately admired the man half on top of him. His bare, pale skin littered with marks he himself had made. That long silvery hair that framed his face perfectly. The eye-catching beauty mark under his left eye, next to his perfectly pointed nose. Those soft full lips, flushed and slightly parted. They were even softer than they looked.
Fuck!
King never stood a chance.
He felt his face heat up and he looked away, trying to calm his breathing so he wouldn't wake the other.
His free hand squeezed the sheets between his fingers. Was any of this even real?
He didn't want to interrupt his sleep, but he also didn't know what he would do when he woke up. The best mistakes often happened under the cover of moonlight, but he really hoped this wasn't a mistake to Dae.
They were heated, tense and impulsive, yes. They were mere moments away from throwing blows, he was sure. So he hoped for the best and expected the worst.
After being confronted like that, maybe Dae just wanted to prove a point. His heart rate picked up again as his mind spiraled.
Amidst the internal chaos, he felt a feather-light kiss on his naked chest and looked down again, just in time for Dae to look up at him. Sharp brown eyes stared up at his and his heart nearly gave up. Dae's eyes held a softness he had never really seen before. He just wanted to melt away into jam. He ached to kiss him again.
They blinked at each other, until King blurted, "you're.. you're so beautiful."
And if Dae was a fierce vixen two seconds ago, he was a wide-eyed mess now. "Shut up."
He hit his chest weakly and pouted slightly. King had to look away before he died. It was unnerving. How could someone look so good?
He then remembered that up until last night, they were only roommates and business partners who happened to have attended the same highschool, once upon a time. They fought, but they were a standard mould for the term good friends. The wholesome default picture you would see in a new frame.
Now Dae was awake, and so was he.
They were no longer in the realm of friendly accidents, tactfully pushing the lines of ambiguity. They'd been stripped bare, and stripped each other bare.
But they couldn't even hold eye contact anymore. With every glance, memories of how they took turns initiating kisses like starving animals, and giving in like they wanted to be devoured, flashed in their minds.
King suddenly took in a sharp breath, steeled his resolve and asked simply, "Do you regret it?"
Dae's eyebrows furrowed tightly, as though he had just been asked to solve a math problem.
He relaxed his features and instead muttered, "I regret how loud we were... at least Sora was asleep."
King cracked a small smile before he could help it. "So, not the sex then?"
Dae rolled his eyes and simultaneously rolled off of him, flopping onto his back and shuffling upward to lay on the second pillow. The cool silk cleared his mind a bit. He had skillfully tried to imply his feelings, rather than admit them openly, but King was pushing him. "You're annoying. Is there a reason you don't trust me?" Dae simply asked.
King huffed, "It's because you do things like this. Answer the question." King placed a hand on Dae's cheek, pulling his head to the side, bringing them face to face. "Do you regret it? Do you regret the things we did last night? Do you.. want me to forget it all? I won't, but I want to know your stance." He caressed where his fingers met the soft skin. His eyes spoke of a desperation he may never willingly admit.
He knew that to Dae, this was obviously a dirty move. The man could dodge teasing and deflect affection, but not this. This gaze was too steady, too strong, yet too fragile. It made him do stupid things like tell the truth.
Seconds later, and not breaking eye contact, Dae turned his face slightly and he planted a soft kiss on King's palm.
Both now had flushed faces from the surprise attack.
"You're clingy." Before King could protest, he continued, "And I love you." Dae studied his reaction, took a shaky breath and shut his eyes. "That expression is too ridiculous, change it." He chuckled softly and removed the hand on his face.
King could only use the same hand to cover the lower half of his own face, perhaps trying to return the kiss, eyes still blown wide.
"Yesterday, when you said..." Dae started but his voice got quieter as he strained the words out, "when you said I was just looking for someone to blame.. because I'm too much of a coward to admit that I wanted you.." His voice had regressed to a mumble, before suddenly finding vigor, "I was— I was so pissed off! But I didn't kiss you because I was pissed off. I was pissed off because I couldn't kiss you earlier..." He clenched his fist and opened his eyes to sneak a glance. "Somehow, that pisses me off even more. Hey, stop smiling like that!" Dae quickly tried to roll away but he was dragged back and into a warm (scalding) embrace. "Why are you so hot?! What the fuck?"
King's eyes were glossed over, his face a deep red. He tightened his hold, like he was afraid to let go. "Say it again," he whispered. "The part where you didn't kiss me just because you were mad."
Dae groaned, burying his face in King's hot neck. "Why are you like this? A grown man?"
"Say it."
"I can't believe people are intimidated by you.." He received no response and buried himself deeper. "I didn't kiss you because I was mad.. I wanted to.. I. Wanted. You." Dae declared, ripping the band-aid off and simply going for it.
King's hold tightened, and Dae felt him vibrate softly. He stiffened, "Are you—"
"..asshole. You beautiful asshole," King murmured into his hair, half-laughing, half-sobbing. "I thought I was going crazy alone."
Dae pulled away, just enough to look into King's teary brown eyes. "We're both crazy, I guess."
The moment lingered for a minute, before he burst again, "Now let me go, you tall heater. I'm starting to sweat!"