[SC29] Voice Within The Noise
Rating: PG
Pairing: Kyusung
Genre: AU!Drama, Romance, Angst
Beta: paradigm_twist
Theme: Headphones, Phrase to include: "at the crack of dawn, if nothing goes wrong"
Summary: A troubled man who secludes himself as he's constantly haunted by the sounds of violence and abuse. He meets a oblivious yet kind person who simply won't or can't listen to his protests.
***
Kyuhyun settled down onto the steps near the corridor of the clinic as he looked down at his bandaged arm and torn t-shirt. He sighed and ignored his injuries as he wore his headphones. The light from the rising sun streamed through the windows. He squinted his eyes at the light and laid his head on his knees to avoid looking at it. He took a ragged deep breath, holding back tears as he struggled to remain composed.
He was unsure of what to do. Does he return home? To the constant fighting? The scathing accusations and undeserved punishments? Where would he go if he chose to run away from it all? Every scenario he thought of all led to the same conclusion. It was futile.
He felt a presence and looked up, his eyes landed on a handkerchief held out by a man. A man who gave him a small smile. Kyuhyun noted the name tag on his shirt that read 'Yesung.'
"It's fine." Kyuhyun murmured as he looked away. However Yesung still held out the handkerchief. "I don't need it." He stated.
Yesung pursed his lips before he offered it once again. Maybe he didn't understand, thought Kyuhyun. He then motioned a "X" by crossing his arms and shook his head. Though he slightly winced at the pain from lifting up his injured arm.
Yesung still held out the handkerchief. Kyuhyun dropped his hands, sighing in defeat. He reluctantly took the handkerchief and murmured a quick thank you. All the while noticing Yesung's elated expression.
He twisted the handkerchief in his fingers as he took a closer look at the man. He saw how the sunlight enveloped him, radiating innocence to Kyuhyun. What bothered him even more was his pleased expression. He looked too happy that it was confusing him slightly. Then, he looked passed Yesung, to the clock behind him. He widened his eyes as he saw the time and held on to the handkerchief as he ran past Yesung and down the corridors.
He was late. He earned his punishment and gave a meaningless apology and walked back silently to his room.
He reached for his headphones just seconds before he heard the yelling and the sounds of glass breaking. It had finally taken its toll on him as he clutched his headphones tightly, drifting back into a world where these hurtful sounds wouldn't reach him.
And instead focused on that one kind smile.
---
Kyuhyun was walking down the streets and looking at the restaurants. He heard his stomach grumbled but chose to ignore it. He fruitlessly searched through his pockets, hoping that money would somehow magically appear.
He sat on a cement block, never once looking away from the food cart and watched as fresh meat sizzled in the hot pan. He couldn't help but stare at it hungrily when he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned his head around and was startled to find it was the man from the clinic.
Yesung pointed to the cart and tilted his head. Kyuhyun mimicked his actions, not understanding what he wanted. He heard his stomach growled once more and looked away, embarrassed at his state as he watched Yesung started towards the cart. He watched him buy a plate of food and returned with a smile on his face as he offered it to him.
Kyuhyun instantly shook his head but like before, Yesung persisted until he felt his resolve gave way to his hunger and happily devoured it. When he finished, he felt a tug on his sleeve again. Yesung pointed at another cart. He tried to refuse but again, Yesung had ignored his pleas. Kyuhyun soon found himself being pulled from one cart to another, eating different types of food.
It was only then that he realized why Yesung had never once said a word throughout. They had came across a booth where he seemed to know the owner who gave Yesung a gesture. Yesung returned it with his own seemingly random yet specific gesture. Realization struck him as he watched both of them, finally understanding why Yesung had ignored his spoken refusals.
He was deaf.
Afterwards, Kyuhyun was dragged into a clinic where Yesung led him to a man sitting at the front desk who looked up and greeted him.
"Hello, nice to meet you." He said. "What's your name?"
"Kyuhyun." He replied uneasily. He waited for the man's answer when Yesung nudged him.
He suddenly chuckled. "Sorry. I tend to drift off. I'm Sungmin." He then tilted his head slightly. "You're his new friend I'm assuming."
Kyuhyun shrugged as Sungmin smiled. "He's like that. Very friendly and sometimes a bit of a handful for most." He shook his head at Yesung who smiled and gestured with his hands. Sungmin nodded.
"He wants your phone number." He translated. Kyuhyun swallowed uncomfortably.
"I don't have one." Sungmin translated it back in gestures. Yesung pursed his lips then snapped his fingers. He ran to the back of the clinic.
Sungmin sighed as he loosely crossed his arms. "I wish he could have just told you instead of coming to me to translate."
Kyuhyun widened his eyes. "He can talk?" Sungmin gave a small chuckle.
"He's deaf, not mute. He can talk if he wants to. But most of the time he prefers not to. He's a little self-conscious about it."
"Why would he be?" Kyuhyun asked.
"It's a little difficult to understand him sometimes. He didn't exactly have the most understanding classmates..." He said irritably. "Luckily he didn't hear their taunts, but seeing them laugh at him was enough. They often ridiculed his manner of talking to the point where he just refused to do so."
Just then, Yesung returned and smiled as he held out his hand. Kyuhyun saw what was in his hand and was ready to flat out refused when Yesung forced the cell phone into his hand.
Sungmin laughed. "Just take it. He's not going to let you leave unless you do." Kyuhyun sighed exasperatedly as he watched Yesung gestured to Sungmin, flipped open his phone and pointed to his name. "You can text him now. Anytime and anywhere he said."
Kyuhyun felt uncomfortable accepting the phone but listened to Sungmin's translations. He held it in his hand and murmured "Thank you," and froze. He looked at Sungmin who smiled.
"Don't worry. He can read lips, though I'm sure even then he'll just ignore it if he doesn't approve." He glowered his eyes at Yesung who smiled in return.
Kyuhyun had learned more about Yesung through their frequent texting over the next few weeks. Yesung doesn't really listen when he doesn't like it, even when Kyuhyun was sure he understood what he was saying when he mouthed his words. Yesung was always persistent when he dragged Kyuhyun from wherever he had managed to find him.
Kyuhyun smiled at that thought as he entered his sorry excuse for a home. He looked up and was rooted to the spot where he stood. His mother was holding the cellphone in her hand.
"When did you buy this?" Kyuhyun remained silent. She spoke again in her low yet furious tone. "I asked you a question, Now answer." He couldn't answer. Why would it matter? No matter what he did or didn't say, he'd received the same punishment. He barely reacted as his mother walked towards him with a threatening look in her eyes. He only glanced at the clock and knew that in less than two hours time, his father would return from work. And then the same thing would happen again.
He dragged his legs through the streets, headphones dangling from his neck as he continued to walk. Every movement he did made him flinched, but he had to keep going. He needed to keep going.
His legs finally gave out under him as he collapsed against a brick wall. He looked up at the night sky as he took deep, steadying breaths. He closed his eyes as he sat there, wishing for the pain to go away.
He barely noticed the figure running towards him, but widened his eyes slightly when he saw it was Yesung who was panting from the run. He grabbed on to Kyuhyun's arm and tried to pull up. Kyuhyun resisted his pull but Yesung's grip didn't falter. Kyuhyun saw his determined expression and stopped resisting, allowing himself to be pulled up. He held on to Yesung as they walked step by step, until they reached Yesung's apartment, where he laid Kyuhyun down on the couch. Exhaustion overcame Kyuhyun and he closed his eyes.
--
Kyuhyun opened the door when a figure jumped into his arms. "Yes, yes I'm home." Yesung grinned at him. Kyuhyun shifted his eyes as he waited but Yesung didn't let go of him. Kyuhyun then pointed to the kitchen, reminding Yesung of the food he was cooking. He immediately let go and hurried away. Kyuhyun couldn't help but smile at his actions.
He walked casually to his bedroom and settled himself down on the bed. He took a deep breath as he looked out the window, staring at the night sky. It had been two years since that Yesung had dragged him to his apartment, but now, it was also his home. He tried often to leave and find his own place, not wanting to be a burden, but Yesung had repeatedly threw out the many newspapers with the apartment ads and hid his phone to ignore any potential calls.
Yesung entered his bedroom with two bowls of rice and meat, giving one to Kyuhyun as he sat down on the bed. Kyuhyun took a few bites when he saw Yesung's hand pointing to his headphones.
Kyuhyun read Yesung's lips and recognized his question. "I blocked out the fighting so much that it became a habit now. I feel weird not having them with me." Kyuhyun mouthed. Yesung looked down sadly when Kyuhyun reached for his chin and shook it slightly. "No need for that face."
Yesung pushed his hand away and turned away from him as he ate his food when he felt Kyuhyun come up behind him. He slung his arms around from behind and leaned against him. "Thank you for everything." Kyuhyun said out loud. Yesung smiled and snuggled himself against him, completely unaware of what Kyuhyun just said.
They walked into the clinic the next day, though Kyuhyun had noticed Yesung's reluctance in going. Sungmin narrowed his eyes. He had been receiving the cold shoulder from Yesung for a while now, and though he seemed to know the reason why, he never told Kyuhyun exactly what it was. He greeted Kyuhyun with a smile as Yesung stood between them. "How possessive." He commented. "All I'm giving him is just lessons."
Sungmin had been Kyuhyun's sign language teacher for a few months now, something he felt was suitable due to his constant interaction with Yesung. Though Yesung didn't take it well, upset that he wasn't asked instead. Their first few attempted lessons didn't go very well, leaving Kyuhyun no choice but to sought out Sungmin's help.
"Actually," Sungmin looked up at Kyuhyun, "I'll need to move our lesson to tomorrow night."
"That's fine but why?" Kyuhyun asked, one of his hands playing with the wire of his headphones.
"I have to completely reorganize our supplies because of some mistakes. We ended up with such a mess back there that I have to clean up. That and because some employees decided that this was the best week to go on vacation despite it being one of our busiest." Sungmin muttered bitterly.
"I can help." Kyuhyun offered when he felt a tug on his sleeve. He looked at Yesung who shook his head vigorously.
"Really?" Sungmin asked, ignoring Yesung's scowl. "Are you sure though? All of this has to be done by tomorrow, meaning we'll have to work through the night." Yesung gestured furiously at Sungmin who threw him a glare. He looked back at Kyuhyun and smile slightly.
"That's fine." He replied.
Sungmin narrowed his eyes when Yesung gestured something again. Sungmin looked out from the corner of his eyes at Kyuhyun when he gestured back. Yesung huffed and gestured it again. Kyuhyun watched the silent argument between them, moving too fast for him to understand, when Sungmin waved him off.
"Never-mind him. We have some beds in the back if you really do get that tired, but otherwise, we'll be up till the crack of dawn, if nothing goes wrong." With a final gesture towards Yesung he walked off to the back. Kyuhyun started to follow him when he was held back.
He turned back to Yesung who clung on to his sleeve. Kyuhyun smiled reassuringly. "I'll be fine," He mouthed. "I'll come home tomorrow at seven." Yesung frowned as he reluctantly let go and watched Kyuhyun walk towards the back room.
Yesung stared at the clock in their apartment, watching every painful second ticked pass until it reached 6:59. He glanced at the door. No sign of it opening. He continued to look between the clock and the door when it struck 7:00.
He shook away the worries he had, none that involved Kyuhyun being hurt, but thoughts of Kyuhyun and Sungmin alone. He knew they were just having lessons but he found himself being uncomfortable watching them and wanted nothing more than for Kyuhyun to stop them.
He fell to his knees, clutching his arms when the door opened at exactly 7:02. Yesung watched as the light came on and looked up at Kyuhyun, who was taking his shoes off.
"I'm home." Kyuhyun said loudly, his headphones on when Yesung suddenly threw himself at him. He hit his head against the door and winced in pain. "Yesung?" He patted his head but Yesung didn't loosen his tight grip. He sighed and let Yesung hold him until he reluctantly let go.
This was different from all the previous times Yesung had physically greeted him. Kyuhyun met his eyes and gestured. 'What's wrong?'
Yesung stared at his hands, knowing that it was Sungmin who had taught him it, knowing they had spent hours together alone. Yesung swallowed the lump in his throat. He didn't want to think about it.
Yesung shook his head as he turned away when Kyuhyun walked pass and stood right in front of him. "What's wrong?" He mouthed this time. Yesung hid his eyes behind his hair and tried to walk forward but Kyuhyun blocked him.
"You can tell me." Kyuhyun said. Yesung read his lips and gulped slightly. He focused more on the lips than the actual words being said. He then met his eyes and stopped.
Yesung needed to tell him.
Yesung raised and dropped his hands repeatedly, unsure and afraid of Kyuhyun's reaction. But he was determined to go against his legs urge to bolt and listened to his heart's reasoning. He needed to do this. His arms felt trapped however. He took a deep breath, as if to steady himself, as he looked up with determined eyes. He glanced at the headphones and forced his hands to move them. They slung loosely around Kyuhyun's neck.
He opened his mouth. "I-I..." He took a deep breath as he attempted to voice out the words. "I lob-lobve ju." He winced, knowing full well that he didn't pronounce it right.
Kyuhyun widened his eyes at his struggled yet profound proclamation.
Time had stopped as Kyuhyun felt his own heart react in ways he thought possible.
Yesung however, felt his insecurities gnawing at him in the horribly lengthed seconds. Kyuhyun hadn't said anything or even reacted. Did he say it right? Did Kyuhyun understand him? Was he shocked? Or did Kyuhyun simply not return his feelings?
The questions overwhelmed him and he turned away, tears threatening to fall. The last thought nearly tore his heart when he felt two hands on his cheeks. He looked up to see Kyuhyun's comforting smile.
Kyuhyun wiped the few tears that had spilled and met his eyes. "Say it again." He mouthed.
Yesung stiffened. Did he really not understand? He felt unsure of himself and forced his eyes to look away. It had took most of his courage to say that statement alone. He hardly had any left to say it a second time.
Kyuhyun seemed to realize that but that didn't deter his smile. He withdrew his hands but didn't drop them. Instead he raised them slightly and gestured, that alone made Yesung widened his eyes in surprise. Another tear slid down his cheek as he realized what he had done. Kyuhyun reached out and enveloped Yesung in his arms. Yesung cried happily as he reached around Kyuhyun's torso and grabbed on just as tightly.
Kyuhyun gently lifted his chin and placed his lips on Yesung's. He smiled at Yesung's eagerness and chuckled lightly as Yesung slung his arms around his neck and pulled him even deeper.
It was worth it, Kyuhyun thought as he forced Yesung away for a bit of air. He kissed him on the forehead reassuringly at Yesung's hurt expression.
He recalled what he had asked Sungmin to teach him that night. The one he desperately wanted to learn out of all the other words.
Sungmin furrowed his eyebrows at Kyuhyun's statement, fighting back an all-knowing smile. "You want me to teach you that?"
"Yes." Kyuhyun gave a gentle smile in return. "Teach me how to sign I love you."
He knew how hurtful scathing words could be. How he still cringes from the sounds of broken glass. Needing to block out the world, unwilling to hear what else it had in store. Yet as his headphones fell to the ground, he had also realized just how elated he could ever feel from hearing that simple yet profound phrase.
He smiled brightly as Yesung roughly pulled him down for another kiss.
- ❄ Challenge 28 ❄ | ❄ Challenge 30 ❄ -
~ SuJu 31-shot Masterlist ~
Pairing: Kyusung
Genre: AU!Drama, Romance, Angst
Beta: paradigm_twist
Theme: Headphones, Phrase to include: "at the crack of dawn, if nothing goes wrong"
Summary: A troubled man who secludes himself as he's constantly haunted by the sounds of violence and abuse. He meets a oblivious yet kind person who simply won't or can't listen to his protests.
***
Kyuhyun settled down onto the steps near the corridor of the clinic as he looked down at his bandaged arm and torn t-shirt. He sighed and ignored his injuries as he wore his headphones. The light from the rising sun streamed through the windows. He squinted his eyes at the light and laid his head on his knees to avoid looking at it. He took a ragged deep breath, holding back tears as he struggled to remain composed.
He was unsure of what to do. Does he return home? To the constant fighting? The scathing accusations and undeserved punishments? Where would he go if he chose to run away from it all? Every scenario he thought of all led to the same conclusion. It was futile.
He felt a presence and looked up, his eyes landed on a handkerchief held out by a man. A man who gave him a small smile. Kyuhyun noted the name tag on his shirt that read 'Yesung.'
"It's fine." Kyuhyun murmured as he looked away. However Yesung still held out the handkerchief. "I don't need it." He stated.
Yesung pursed his lips before he offered it once again. Maybe he didn't understand, thought Kyuhyun. He then motioned a "X" by crossing his arms and shook his head. Though he slightly winced at the pain from lifting up his injured arm.
Yesung still held out the handkerchief. Kyuhyun dropped his hands, sighing in defeat. He reluctantly took the handkerchief and murmured a quick thank you. All the while noticing Yesung's elated expression.
He twisted the handkerchief in his fingers as he took a closer look at the man. He saw how the sunlight enveloped him, radiating innocence to Kyuhyun. What bothered him even more was his pleased expression. He looked too happy that it was confusing him slightly. Then, he looked passed Yesung, to the clock behind him. He widened his eyes as he saw the time and held on to the handkerchief as he ran past Yesung and down the corridors.
He was late. He earned his punishment and gave a meaningless apology and walked back silently to his room.
He reached for his headphones just seconds before he heard the yelling and the sounds of glass breaking. It had finally taken its toll on him as he clutched his headphones tightly, drifting back into a world where these hurtful sounds wouldn't reach him.
And instead focused on that one kind smile.
---
Kyuhyun was walking down the streets and looking at the restaurants. He heard his stomach grumbled but chose to ignore it. He fruitlessly searched through his pockets, hoping that money would somehow magically appear.
He sat on a cement block, never once looking away from the food cart and watched as fresh meat sizzled in the hot pan. He couldn't help but stare at it hungrily when he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned his head around and was startled to find it was the man from the clinic.
Yesung pointed to the cart and tilted his head. Kyuhyun mimicked his actions, not understanding what he wanted. He heard his stomach growled once more and looked away, embarrassed at his state as he watched Yesung started towards the cart. He watched him buy a plate of food and returned with a smile on his face as he offered it to him.
Kyuhyun instantly shook his head but like before, Yesung persisted until he felt his resolve gave way to his hunger and happily devoured it. When he finished, he felt a tug on his sleeve again. Yesung pointed at another cart. He tried to refuse but again, Yesung had ignored his pleas. Kyuhyun soon found himself being pulled from one cart to another, eating different types of food.
It was only then that he realized why Yesung had never once said a word throughout. They had came across a booth where he seemed to know the owner who gave Yesung a gesture. Yesung returned it with his own seemingly random yet specific gesture. Realization struck him as he watched both of them, finally understanding why Yesung had ignored his spoken refusals.
He was deaf.
Afterwards, Kyuhyun was dragged into a clinic where Yesung led him to a man sitting at the front desk who looked up and greeted him.
"Hello, nice to meet you." He said. "What's your name?"
"Kyuhyun." He replied uneasily. He waited for the man's answer when Yesung nudged him.
He suddenly chuckled. "Sorry. I tend to drift off. I'm Sungmin." He then tilted his head slightly. "You're his new friend I'm assuming."
Kyuhyun shrugged as Sungmin smiled. "He's like that. Very friendly and sometimes a bit of a handful for most." He shook his head at Yesung who smiled and gestured with his hands. Sungmin nodded.
"He wants your phone number." He translated. Kyuhyun swallowed uncomfortably.
"I don't have one." Sungmin translated it back in gestures. Yesung pursed his lips then snapped his fingers. He ran to the back of the clinic.
Sungmin sighed as he loosely crossed his arms. "I wish he could have just told you instead of coming to me to translate."
Kyuhyun widened his eyes. "He can talk?" Sungmin gave a small chuckle.
"He's deaf, not mute. He can talk if he wants to. But most of the time he prefers not to. He's a little self-conscious about it."
"Why would he be?" Kyuhyun asked.
"It's a little difficult to understand him sometimes. He didn't exactly have the most understanding classmates..." He said irritably. "Luckily he didn't hear their taunts, but seeing them laugh at him was enough. They often ridiculed his manner of talking to the point where he just refused to do so."
Just then, Yesung returned and smiled as he held out his hand. Kyuhyun saw what was in his hand and was ready to flat out refused when Yesung forced the cell phone into his hand.
Sungmin laughed. "Just take it. He's not going to let you leave unless you do." Kyuhyun sighed exasperatedly as he watched Yesung gestured to Sungmin, flipped open his phone and pointed to his name. "You can text him now. Anytime and anywhere he said."
Kyuhyun felt uncomfortable accepting the phone but listened to Sungmin's translations. He held it in his hand and murmured "Thank you," and froze. He looked at Sungmin who smiled.
"Don't worry. He can read lips, though I'm sure even then he'll just ignore it if he doesn't approve." He glowered his eyes at Yesung who smiled in return.
Kyuhyun had learned more about Yesung through their frequent texting over the next few weeks. Yesung doesn't really listen when he doesn't like it, even when Kyuhyun was sure he understood what he was saying when he mouthed his words. Yesung was always persistent when he dragged Kyuhyun from wherever he had managed to find him.
Kyuhyun smiled at that thought as he entered his sorry excuse for a home. He looked up and was rooted to the spot where he stood. His mother was holding the cellphone in her hand.
"When did you buy this?" Kyuhyun remained silent. She spoke again in her low yet furious tone. "I asked you a question, Now answer." He couldn't answer. Why would it matter? No matter what he did or didn't say, he'd received the same punishment. He barely reacted as his mother walked towards him with a threatening look in her eyes. He only glanced at the clock and knew that in less than two hours time, his father would return from work. And then the same thing would happen again.
He dragged his legs through the streets, headphones dangling from his neck as he continued to walk. Every movement he did made him flinched, but he had to keep going. He needed to keep going.
His legs finally gave out under him as he collapsed against a brick wall. He looked up at the night sky as he took deep, steadying breaths. He closed his eyes as he sat there, wishing for the pain to go away.
He barely noticed the figure running towards him, but widened his eyes slightly when he saw it was Yesung who was panting from the run. He grabbed on to Kyuhyun's arm and tried to pull up. Kyuhyun resisted his pull but Yesung's grip didn't falter. Kyuhyun saw his determined expression and stopped resisting, allowing himself to be pulled up. He held on to Yesung as they walked step by step, until they reached Yesung's apartment, where he laid Kyuhyun down on the couch. Exhaustion overcame Kyuhyun and he closed his eyes.
--
Kyuhyun opened the door when a figure jumped into his arms. "Yes, yes I'm home." Yesung grinned at him. Kyuhyun shifted his eyes as he waited but Yesung didn't let go of him. Kyuhyun then pointed to the kitchen, reminding Yesung of the food he was cooking. He immediately let go and hurried away. Kyuhyun couldn't help but smile at his actions.
He walked casually to his bedroom and settled himself down on the bed. He took a deep breath as he looked out the window, staring at the night sky. It had been two years since that Yesung had dragged him to his apartment, but now, it was also his home. He tried often to leave and find his own place, not wanting to be a burden, but Yesung had repeatedly threw out the many newspapers with the apartment ads and hid his phone to ignore any potential calls.
Yesung entered his bedroom with two bowls of rice and meat, giving one to Kyuhyun as he sat down on the bed. Kyuhyun took a few bites when he saw Yesung's hand pointing to his headphones.
Kyuhyun read Yesung's lips and recognized his question. "I blocked out the fighting so much that it became a habit now. I feel weird not having them with me." Kyuhyun mouthed. Yesung looked down sadly when Kyuhyun reached for his chin and shook it slightly. "No need for that face."
Yesung pushed his hand away and turned away from him as he ate his food when he felt Kyuhyun come up behind him. He slung his arms around from behind and leaned against him. "Thank you for everything." Kyuhyun said out loud. Yesung smiled and snuggled himself against him, completely unaware of what Kyuhyun just said.
They walked into the clinic the next day, though Kyuhyun had noticed Yesung's reluctance in going. Sungmin narrowed his eyes. He had been receiving the cold shoulder from Yesung for a while now, and though he seemed to know the reason why, he never told Kyuhyun exactly what it was. He greeted Kyuhyun with a smile as Yesung stood between them. "How possessive." He commented. "All I'm giving him is just lessons."
Sungmin had been Kyuhyun's sign language teacher for a few months now, something he felt was suitable due to his constant interaction with Yesung. Though Yesung didn't take it well, upset that he wasn't asked instead. Their first few attempted lessons didn't go very well, leaving Kyuhyun no choice but to sought out Sungmin's help.
"Actually," Sungmin looked up at Kyuhyun, "I'll need to move our lesson to tomorrow night."
"That's fine but why?" Kyuhyun asked, one of his hands playing with the wire of his headphones.
"I have to completely reorganize our supplies because of some mistakes. We ended up with such a mess back there that I have to clean up. That and because some employees decided that this was the best week to go on vacation despite it being one of our busiest." Sungmin muttered bitterly.
"I can help." Kyuhyun offered when he felt a tug on his sleeve. He looked at Yesung who shook his head vigorously.
"Really?" Sungmin asked, ignoring Yesung's scowl. "Are you sure though? All of this has to be done by tomorrow, meaning we'll have to work through the night." Yesung gestured furiously at Sungmin who threw him a glare. He looked back at Kyuhyun and smile slightly.
"That's fine." He replied.
Sungmin narrowed his eyes when Yesung gestured something again. Sungmin looked out from the corner of his eyes at Kyuhyun when he gestured back. Yesung huffed and gestured it again. Kyuhyun watched the silent argument between them, moving too fast for him to understand, when Sungmin waved him off.
"Never-mind him. We have some beds in the back if you really do get that tired, but otherwise, we'll be up till the crack of dawn, if nothing goes wrong." With a final gesture towards Yesung he walked off to the back. Kyuhyun started to follow him when he was held back.
He turned back to Yesung who clung on to his sleeve. Kyuhyun smiled reassuringly. "I'll be fine," He mouthed. "I'll come home tomorrow at seven." Yesung frowned as he reluctantly let go and watched Kyuhyun walk towards the back room.
Yesung stared at the clock in their apartment, watching every painful second ticked pass until it reached 6:59. He glanced at the door. No sign of it opening. He continued to look between the clock and the door when it struck 7:00.
He shook away the worries he had, none that involved Kyuhyun being hurt, but thoughts of Kyuhyun and Sungmin alone. He knew they were just having lessons but he found himself being uncomfortable watching them and wanted nothing more than for Kyuhyun to stop them.
He fell to his knees, clutching his arms when the door opened at exactly 7:02. Yesung watched as the light came on and looked up at Kyuhyun, who was taking his shoes off.
"I'm home." Kyuhyun said loudly, his headphones on when Yesung suddenly threw himself at him. He hit his head against the door and winced in pain. "Yesung?" He patted his head but Yesung didn't loosen his tight grip. He sighed and let Yesung hold him until he reluctantly let go.
This was different from all the previous times Yesung had physically greeted him. Kyuhyun met his eyes and gestured. 'What's wrong?'
Yesung stared at his hands, knowing that it was Sungmin who had taught him it, knowing they had spent hours together alone. Yesung swallowed the lump in his throat. He didn't want to think about it.
Yesung shook his head as he turned away when Kyuhyun walked pass and stood right in front of him. "What's wrong?" He mouthed this time. Yesung hid his eyes behind his hair and tried to walk forward but Kyuhyun blocked him.
"You can tell me." Kyuhyun said. Yesung read his lips and gulped slightly. He focused more on the lips than the actual words being said. He then met his eyes and stopped.
Yesung needed to tell him.
Yesung raised and dropped his hands repeatedly, unsure and afraid of Kyuhyun's reaction. But he was determined to go against his legs urge to bolt and listened to his heart's reasoning. He needed to do this. His arms felt trapped however. He took a deep breath, as if to steady himself, as he looked up with determined eyes. He glanced at the headphones and forced his hands to move them. They slung loosely around Kyuhyun's neck.
He opened his mouth. "I-I..." He took a deep breath as he attempted to voice out the words. "I lob-lobve ju." He winced, knowing full well that he didn't pronounce it right.
Kyuhyun widened his eyes at his struggled yet profound proclamation.
Time had stopped as Kyuhyun felt his own heart react in ways he thought possible.
Yesung however, felt his insecurities gnawing at him in the horribly lengthed seconds. Kyuhyun hadn't said anything or even reacted. Did he say it right? Did Kyuhyun understand him? Was he shocked? Or did Kyuhyun simply not return his feelings?
The questions overwhelmed him and he turned away, tears threatening to fall. The last thought nearly tore his heart when he felt two hands on his cheeks. He looked up to see Kyuhyun's comforting smile.
Kyuhyun wiped the few tears that had spilled and met his eyes. "Say it again." He mouthed.
Yesung stiffened. Did he really not understand? He felt unsure of himself and forced his eyes to look away. It had took most of his courage to say that statement alone. He hardly had any left to say it a second time.
Kyuhyun seemed to realize that but that didn't deter his smile. He withdrew his hands but didn't drop them. Instead he raised them slightly and gestured, that alone made Yesung widened his eyes in surprise. Another tear slid down his cheek as he realized what he had done. Kyuhyun reached out and enveloped Yesung in his arms. Yesung cried happily as he reached around Kyuhyun's torso and grabbed on just as tightly.
Kyuhyun gently lifted his chin and placed his lips on Yesung's. He smiled at Yesung's eagerness and chuckled lightly as Yesung slung his arms around his neck and pulled him even deeper.
It was worth it, Kyuhyun thought as he forced Yesung away for a bit of air. He kissed him on the forehead reassuringly at Yesung's hurt expression.
He recalled what he had asked Sungmin to teach him that night. The one he desperately wanted to learn out of all the other words.
Sungmin furrowed his eyebrows at Kyuhyun's statement, fighting back an all-knowing smile. "You want me to teach you that?"
"Yes." Kyuhyun gave a gentle smile in return. "Teach me how to sign I love you."
He knew how hurtful scathing words could be. How he still cringes from the sounds of broken glass. Needing to block out the world, unwilling to hear what else it had in store. Yet as his headphones fell to the ground, he had also realized just how elated he could ever feel from hearing that simple yet profound phrase.
He smiled brightly as Yesung roughly pulled him down for another kiss.
- ❄ Challenge 28 ❄ | ❄ Challenge 30 ❄ -
~ SuJu 31-shot Masterlist ~