Round 1 2023: Quotes

[hwarium]

Status: Closed This round has closed. It remains open for fills, comments and remixes, but prompts are no longer accepted. Seventeen Holidays Round 1: Quotes About "Someone will remember us, I say, even in another time." "How inconvenient to be made of desire." "It's me, hi, I'm the problem its me." Calling all readers, lovers of poetry and music, screen and stage. Quote collecters and lyric hoarders, unleash your archive. For this round, every prompt must contain a quote - you can combine them, add commentary, link to articles, do whatever. Steal from a literary classic, or copy WeVerse drama. 🛑 HOLD UP If this is your first time on 17hols please check out our About Page which contains helpful information and links to pages explaining dreamwidth and HTML. We are a prompting fest where all the action happens in the comment section. Rules Sign up is not required. Fills have a minimum of 400 words for prose, haiku-length for poetry (3 lines), and 400px by 400px for art (memes are also art). Other mediums are fine too! There is no maximum cap. Tag and provide content warnings at your discretion, but a good guide are the Ao3 four (Graphic Depictions of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage) and this list of common CWs (cr: SportsFest). NSFW/Explicit content should be tagged NSFW art should not be visible, please provide a link and a warning. You may crop the artwork and embed a SFW preview. How it works Prompting Click on [Post a New Comment] at the bottom of this post; Change the subject; Copy+Paste the following HTML into your comment and edit the sections. Feel free to add as much detail as you want! Need ideas? Check out our 2021 and 2022 Quote rounds. <strong>Ship/Member:</strong> Any <strong>Major Tags:</strong> N/A <strong>Additional Tags:</strong> N/A <strong>Do Not Wants:</strong> None <strong>Prompt:</strong> <blockquote>[QUOTE GOES HERE] </blockquote> Filling Reply to the original prompt; You must change the subject to [FILL] - this is to help the mods track. Feel free to add a title Copy+Paste the following HTML into your comment, edit the sections, and add your text. You may also upload your fill to the AO3 Collection. <strong>Ship/Member:</strong> Any <strong>Major Tags:</strong> N/A <strong>Additional Tags:</strong> N/A <strong>Permission to remix:</strong> Yes/No/Please ask *** Remixing Post as a reply to the fill you are remixing, using the same HTML as above; Change the subject to [REMIX]. Art/media Upload your work to any platform (twitter, imgur, youtube, soundcloud, google maps, etc.) Using the same HTML code as above, copy the link into your fill or remix. That's it! Optionally, you can embed a picture into your comment. Please use the following code instead. (To explain, the HTML resizes your picture to 400x400px so that it fits on most screens. Users can view the full size if they click on it. You can also add a link to your work on twitter so that others can share it, or to any other website you want) <strong>Ship/Member:</strong> Any <strong>Major Tags:</strong> N/A <strong>Additional Tags:</strong> N/A <strong>Permission to remix:</strong> Yes/No/Please ask *** <img src="INSERT IMAGE URL" width="400px"> <a href="INSERT ANY URL YOU WANT">TEXT THAT DESCRIBES THE LINK</a> Note! On dreamwidth, you can't edit a comment once someone has replied to it. Navigation ABOUT FAQ CHAT BAITS ✧ FILLS ✧ < ROUND 1: QUOTES > ROUND 2: ALTERNATE UNIVERSES 2021 2022

Comments

Re: [FILL] i’ve crashed into you too many times to count

[lachrymosy]

AH this hurt TT But there are so many beautiful moments! I loved this so much: “I’ll love you forever and ever!” Junhui yelled into the deluge of rain. He looked back at Wonwoo, mouth smiling, t-shirt clinging to his back.

Wonwoo stood under the awning of the restaurant, safe and warm and dry. His mouth was quirked up slightly, small but genuine. He felt the moment stretch on and on and on, confident that the feeling would last.

Even though you destroyed me later, this is such a beautiful scene that suits them so well. And The way Junhui liked his soup never changed: spice, a lot of it, tons of it, to the point where it became unbearable. Wonwoo could not stomach it. Just such a good encapsulation of where the story is going. I also adored They watched another cycle started up, beating around and around again in circles. Laundry as a reincarnation metaphor?? Incredible.

I really loved how certain parts of this echoed the movie and also the slightest suggestion that Wonwoo might regret his choice at the end. Really a lovely fic!! <3

Re: [FILL] not friends

[bluemening]

Just the thought makes Mingyu’s heart twinge, discomfort, and sadness and anger, and everything altogether all at one. The worst part is that Jihoon is right.

“I’ll talk to him,” he mumbles. “After we’re done with the tournament. If he turns me down, I’ll play like shit.”

“We’re your friends, too,” Jihoon squeezes his hand. “You can always come to us, no matter what Soonyoung says.”

“Hey!” Soonyoung interjects. “You make it sound like I hate him.”

“Well, you do,” Mingyu rolls his eyes, but he doesn’t have the energy to start another bantering session.

Quietly, he finishes his milkshake, Jihoon’s words still reverberating through him.

Jihoon is right. Mingyu needs to figure out a way of letting Minghao know, even if it’s just to be rejected.

Maybe like this, he can finally move on with his life.

*

A thick layer of sweat tickles Mingyu’s brows, but he doesn’t dare lift his arm to dry it and take the risk of losing the ball. The other team’s server is known for his quickie hands and fucked up serves that always land where he wants them to.

The match dragged on for far too long until the fifth set, and the opposite team is just one point away from the match point. Mingyu can’t help but feel uneasy knowing that a single mistake will throw them out of the tournament when his hyungs deserve so badly to win.

He barely sees it when the ball passes through him, but Jihoon manages to catch it last second and put it back into the game. Mingyu prepares when Wonwoo touches the ball, jumps exactly where he needs to be and spikes so hard his whole hand hurts.

This is a perfect move, exactly like they rehearsed during the trainings but, somehow, the ball is coming back to their side of the court after barely crossing the net, too fast for any of them to move accordingly and block it.

It echoes terribly in Mingyu’s ears when it hits the floor.

The silence doesn’t last more than a split of a second, the opposing crowd erupting into cheers and screams of pure joy.

The match is over.

They lost.

Mingyu can’t even bare to raise his head and look Jihoon, Wonwoo, and Soonyoung in the eye. He’d promised them they would win their last high school tournament before inevitably moving forward to college, but still.

He knows he should say something, given he soon will be the official team’s captain, but Mingyu just can’t. He barely registers when Wonwoo, then Minghao, then the coach talks to them, the words nothing but a buzz in his head.

His feet carry him away from the court and don’t really stop until he’s facing a cramped room full of volleyball gear.

Without a second thought, Mingyu sits down between some damaged nets and rests his forehead on his knees. He’s never felt so fucking awful.

When Mingyu woke up this morning, he had a three-step plan: first, he’d win them the championship. Second, he’d find a way of being alone with Minghao while everyone else was busy celebrating their victory. Third, he would confess. But everything went to hell still on the first step, and Mingyu can’t force himself to just skip straight to the last part when he’s feeling even more pathetic than normal.

He’s not sure of how much time he spends sitting there, basking in self-pity and sadness until he hears someone calling for his name.

Not someone. Minghao.

Mingyu raises his head, even if he doesn’t have any intention of moving from that spot, and stares at the door he left ajar.

“Oh, there you are,” relief tints Minghao’s voice as soon as he sees him. “Aren’t you coming with us?”

“Coming to where?”

Minghao enters the room as he explains, jumping above the mess to get closer to Mingyu.
“Wonwoo-hyung is taking us to barbecue, I guess, and after they want to go to a noraebang. Are you crying?”

“No.”

“I know you are,” Minghao snaps his tongue. “You were awesome today, stop beating yourself up.”

“Well, we lost.”

“Yeah, but it doesn’t matter that much. You all still played beautifully, I’m sure we’re gonna win the next one,” Minghao sits across him, hugging his knees against his chest. “Everyone is impressed with your game, also.”

“Stop babying me,” Mingyu mutters, harsher than intended.

“I’m not,” Minghao rolls his eyes. “Stop being a sore loser, no one is mad at you. Not our fault if they just were too good, okay?”

“I want to be alone.”

“You’ll have to be alone somewhere else, then, they’re gonna close the gym in twenty minutes. That’s why I was trying to find you.”

“Fine,” Mingyu gets up, legs sore both from the game and from the weird position he was in.

Minghao rolls his eyes again and gets up too but, instead of going to the door, he steps closer and involves Mingyu in his arms. “You’re so annoying.”

“I’m already feeling bad enough, no need to make it worse.”

“Yeah, I know. Look at me.”

Mingyu complies because he can’t say no to Minghao, anyway. He’s not sure of what he expected to find on Minghao’s face, but it certainly isn’t something so… earnest.

“I wish I could do this at a better moment, but I’m kinda tired of waiting for you to do something and maybe this can cheer you up,” Minghao tells him, much to his utter confusion.

“What are you talking about?”

“You’re so fucking dense,” Minghao sighs, taking hold of Mingyu’s face with both hands. “You like me, don’t you?”

Panic churns in his guts as soon as his brain is capable of processing what he’s just heard.

“Who told you this?” He croaks weakly. Mingyu wants to slap himself, but he’s completely unable to take this situation and turn it into what it was supposed to be, anyway, unable to even pretend Minghao is wrong.

“Your eyes,” Minghao’s smile falters slightly. “Unless I understood it all wrong. If so, please pretend I never said anything.”

This is his chance.

“You didn’t,” Mingyu says in one go, preparing for the impact. “I… I’ve been wanting to tell you. I’m so in love with you, Hao-yah.”

And, God, the way that smile spreads on Minghao’s face might actually be the death of him.

“Good,” he says quietly, a thumb brushing over Mingyu’s lower lip.

Mingyu needs all of his willpower to stay still, to not run away and hide from him. He guesses now he understands what Seungkwan meant by ‘bedroom eyes’, and he wants to kiss Minghao so badly, but he’s not sure he can do it, now that it’s actually possible to happen.

“Wait,” he says, “this is all you have to say?”

“I think so,” Minghao’s smile grows bigger as he chuckles a little. “I wouldn’t have brought up the subject if I didn’t feel the same way, stupid.”

“Life would be so nicer if you stopped mistreating me,” Mingyu mutters. He doesn’t need to look to know he’s totally shaking.

Minghao lets out a full laughter, this time, eyes still locked with Mingyu’s, and warm hands still on his face. “Well. Can I?”

Mingyu nods without even realizing it.

Minghao’s hand slides behind his neck and pulls him down, finishing the distance between them. As expected, his lips are soft and warm, nothing like Mingyu’s chapped ones, and, oh god, Minghao won’t like him anymore if the kiss feels terrible to him.
Regardless, Mingyu finds out quickly that it’s very hard to concentrate on his thoughts and be kissed by Minghao at the same time. His lips are insistent against Mingyu’s, and he’s so sure he’s having an extracorporeal experience when Minghao licks into his mouth that he doesn’t even try to think about what’s happening right now.

He forgets about the match, about where they are, and, hell, he even forgets what was making him so scared of confessing, in the first place.

Mingyu might not know that much about kissing, but he sure as hell knows it feels good, and like Minghao was being serious about being in love with him, too. He might just start crying again.

He follows Minghao’s lead, struggling to breathe and kiss at the same time, but he’d choose the kiss over oxygen if he needed to make a choice. Minghao doesn’t seem to care about how he clearly doesn’t know what he’s doing, or how hard he clings onto his shoulders. In fact, if Mingyu tries to pay attention, he can feel the phantom of a smile against his own lips.

“You’re cute,” Minghao says after breaking the kiss with a peck, “but we need to get out of here or we’ll be locked in here.”

He laughs when Mingyu says nothing in response, just keeps staring at him, wide-eyed and starstruck at the sight of him.

It takes him a couple more chaste kisses to get Mingyu moving but when he notices their hands are still clasped together as Minghao pulls him to the exit, he goes all wobbly again.

It is with terror Mingyu realizes he’s still dirt, and that he didn’t even gather his things before leaving, but he relaxes with relief when he sees his knapsack hanging off Soonyoung’s shoulders. At least one thing.

“Can we go now or do you need to star another romance movie before allowing us to eat?” Seungkwan yawns.

Mingyu kicks his shin, face growing tomato red as Minghao just giggles as he always does.

Minghao holds his hand tighter and kisses his knuckles briefly before turning to their hyungs to figure out where they’re going to eat.

Truth be told, Mingyu doesn’t want to eat or hang out with anyone else but Minghao. He wants to kiss him again, hold him close and ask what they are. He wants to do all the things he missed out on in the past years, but in the end, Soonyoung was right.

He doesn’t want to be friends with Minghao, and he hopes so bad he doesn’t want to be friends, too.

Re: [FILL] but I am like this

[astralumina]

it's amazing how much emotion you've packed into such a short piece. i've been thinking a lot about post-apocalyptic stories lately and the idea of continuing to push forward despite not having anything to live for. joshua asking, begging seungcheol to kill him really reminded me of that, like jeonghan was the only thing that joshua was living for anyways (which has soooo many crazy implications in itself). thank you for writing this heartbreaking piece, it will haunt me for many days to come ❤️

Re: [Fill]: In the Heat, It Searched For You

[tenjouh]

thank you for the fill! aaaa and the bonus soonwoo at the start <33 this is special. thank you for writing!!

Re: [FILL] sticks / stones

[st8rgazer]

THANK U THANK U!! gyuhan were my first ever written pairing and it was so interesting to revisit them (in a different light!)

I don't wanna die for you.

[bluemening]

Ship/Member: Consider Jeonghan or Minghao, but any is fine!
Major Tags: N/A
Additional Tags: toxic relationships, angst, relationship study (and also I'd recommend reading the whole lyrics of this song!!)
Do Not Wants: mcd

Prompt:

This isn't love, this is a car crash
This isn't love, this is a bloodbath
This isn't love, this is a sentence
It's a bullet in the head
So pull the trigger

- BMTH, Die4u

[perhaps the world ends here]

[st8rgazer]

Ship/Member: ANY
Major Tags: N/A
Additional Tags: ANY but suggested: magic realism??, grief, love within grief
Do Not Wants: None

Prompt:

At this table we gossip, recall enemies and the ghosts of lovers.

Our dreams drink coffee with us as they put their arms around our children. They laugh with us at our poor falling-down selves and as we put ourselves back together once again at the table.

This table has been a house in the rain, an umbrella in the sun.

Wars have begun and ended at this table. It is a place to hide in the shadow of terror. A place to celebrate the terrible victory.

- Perhaps the World Ends Here by Joy Harjo

closer [to you]

[st8rgazer]

Ship/Member: any
Major Tags: N/A
Additional Tags: any
Do Not Wants: None

Prompt:

If love ain’t for us,
이걸로 만족할게
I don’t need your touch
너의 사랑이면 돼

/

If love ain’t for us,
I'll be satisfied with this
I don’t need your touch
As long as it’s your love

- Closer (With Paul Blanco, Mahalia), RM

Re: [FILL] do mi ti, why not me

[soupblog]

hehe thank you so much!!! glad u enjoyed!

Re: FILL: in my arms

[healingtoyou]

!!! i didnt see this until now omg but thank u sm !! 'a beautiful letter of love' im :') so happy it can be seen that way...im glad u liked <3

Re: [FILL] you said love fills you up

[(Anonymous)]

Mingyu’s love is warm and soft, it’s kind, it doesn’t ask for things in return. Jeonghan’s love is a snowstorm that’ll trap you in your house and leave you to die. He’s not sure he knows how to love something without killing it.
[…]
Is this also love? Here is the proof you’re still here; I am touching the back of your leg.
[…]
Want, the size of a fist.
[…]
He’s still looking at Jeonghan. “You love them until they realize they deserve it.”
[…]
He’s loving him in his way, and Jeonghan; Jeonghan loves Mingyu in his way. By keeping him at arm's length.

god. god. that was tender as a scraped knee, as a bruise just starting to turn from black to purple. thank you for sharing.

Re: [FILL] you said love fills you up

[(Anonymous)]

oh my god, oh my god. this was tender and painful and skittish and so jeonghan and gyuhan. you’ve stolen all my words from me and i don’t even want them back. please keep them and continue creating pieces like this. this was beautiful. thank you.

love loves it when love does it

[klav]

Ship/Member: Any, gen welcome
Major Tags: N/A
Additional Tags: Any, please consider: astronomical levels of fluff, established relationship or friendship, love through doom/grief/hopelessness
Do Not Wants: None

Prompt:

love is a cloud in the sky that’s also love. i remember today like it was yesterday. i open the door and there stands love, ready to get down, and i’m like whoa, we just met and love’s like i don’t care. love has a history of such indiscretions.
—Garrett Caples, excerpt from "love is made of sky"

Re: [Fill] you wanna ____ me right now

[leomoonwonu]

I'M ALWAYS HAPPY TO DELIVER YOU MY HORRORS AND AGONIES <3

Re: [Fill]: In the Heat, It Searched For You

[leomoonwonu]

aaa thank YOU for prompting something so specifically catered to me <3333

Re: [FILL] But nothing is like the heart of a person

[seokmin_liker]

you knocked it out of the park, as always. your prose is evocative and immersive and deeply deeply painful (but like in a good way. the pain of recognition, you know?)

Re: [FILL] i will have you know – my swan song will not be my last

[kisoap]

always glad to inflict pain in the form of fic :_) ♡ i wanted to write an inherent catch-22 of a situation they're in because they both jumped to their own conclusions about the relationship... the only appropriate ending is that they both end up unhappy!! thank you for reading ally T____T ♡

Re: [FILL] i will have you know – my swan song will not be my last

[kisoap]

ellie you are too kind!! i feel like this was super dialogue-forward for me so i'm glad that you thought what minghao said was super important to the whole ficlet T___T mingyu who's predisposed to say yes vs. minghao who's predisposed to say no... i hope i can write something less hopeless in the future for them! thank you for reading as always, it means so much! ♡♡♡

Re: [FILL] i will have you know – my swan song will not be my last

[kisoap]

the way i am laying down because of your comment!! truly o<-< -ing out here... the inherent bleakness of two people who overthank themselves out of a relationship! glad you enjoyed reading this even despite its sadness TT___TT ♡♡

Re: [FILL] i will have you know – my swan song will not be my last

[kisoap]

the could've-been-right-person/very-wrong-timing dilemma... mingyu who doesn't have too much pride to beg to get back together and minghao who i think is too pragmatic and grounded for the drama of getting back with your engaged ex you really get it risa TT___TT!! the catch-22 of it all, when a relationship is done on paper but both are still holding onto a futile hope that can only be extinguished after taking the stakes into account... always honored to receive your comments and thoughts ♡♡♡

Re: [FILL] i’ve crashed into you too many times to count

[furniished]

oh i absolutely love how you filled this prompt - to me, the song lyrics definitely added a stronger sense of sorrow/regret to the romanticism of the eeaao quote and you really captured such a complex sentiment so well. maybe love only lasts so long...

“I am,” Junhui responded, when Wonwoo took too long to respond. Quietly. Sharply, like the baring of teeth. Or a heart pricked too many times to count.

“I am happy.” Junhui repeated, but the gesture was hallowed out, worn thin. They watched another cycle started up, beating around and around again in circles.

such a poignant snapshot of a scene. i really like how you portray jun through wonwoo's pov but also offer glimpses outside of that, hinting at an exteriority that we don't fully get to see - but does it even matter, because there are hundreds of universes and wonwoo is wonwoo in all of them?
so glad someone picked up this prompt and built something so full out of it, thank you for sharing!

[FILL]: troika

[biggrstaffbunch]

Ship/Member: Seungkwan/Vernon/Mingyu
Major Tags: N/A
Additional Tags: polyamory hints, nsfw, verkwan primary ship
Permission to remix: please ask!

*****

Seungkwan is not necessarily prepared to admit it out loud, but he’s had fantasies that start out this way.

Mingyu, in the front seat of the rental car they’re driving to a campground for a group getaway that won’t be filmed for once, wearing a backwards baseball hat and a tank top cut to show not only his arms but a little rounded shadow of his pecs from the side, too.

Vernon, sitting next to him, manning the auxiliary cord — a tragedy — but crooning along with the songs in a throaty, sleep-thick voice — a win! — and even though he’s wearing baggy jeans, he’s got on that t-shirt that’s a size too small, stretching out over a wide chest and broad shoulders.

And Seungkwan, sprawled in the back, lightly dozing with an iced Americano in hand, idly imagining the car breaking down and having to wait for help as the night gets colder, maybe having to huddle for warmth, maybe one thing leading to another…

The car drives over a roadbump and the coffee sloshes all over him. Seungkwan splutters awake and curses.

Mingyu and Vernon trade looks and snicker.

Seungkwan scowls.

Well. There’s a reason it’s a fantasy.

read the rest at AO3

[FILL] Apple of My Pie

[citrinecowboy]

Ship/Member: Wonwoo/Seungcheol
Major Tags: N/A
Additional Tags: Pushing Daisies AU (kind of), more of a bakery au with supernatural elements, love at first sight, falling in love under really kind of terrible circumstances actually, bakery au, animal death (a bird has an unfortunate incident with a window), technically main character death but uhhhh not…really? it is extremely brief and doesn’t quite stick and it isn’t actively depicted I promise it’s fine
Permission to remix: Yes
Word count: 1,472

it’s been a very long time since I’ve written anything and there very much is no plot to this only vibes. zero knowledge of pushing daisies is necessary for this I literally just stole part of the concept and made something else entirely (sorry not sorry for the title)

also on ao3 if this is a bit long for your comment reading needs on here, sorry for the long scroll

***

"Could you pass me the –”

A gloved hand appears right in front of Seungcheol’s face, so close that his eyes can’t help but cross. In the palm rests a neatly coiled rose formed from delicate slices of apple peel. White flesh, nearly translucent and only just beginning to yellow, rimmed in pink, contrasting beautifully with the black leather of the glove. The fingers wiggle with impatience, sending a waft of perfume to envelop Seungcheol, the floury warmth of the bakery blending enticingly with white florals, and something…deeper.

Wonwoo clears his throat, startling Seungcheol into redirecting his gaze to Wonwoo’s face. The blush just barely dusting his cheeks like rose-tinted powdered sugar is only a shade or two darker than the skin of the apple.

Seungcheol makes a meal of plucking the rose from Wonwoo’s palm, making sure every single fingertip touches the surface of the glove, caressing slowly, dipping gently beneath the petals. He is as careful as he is tender, hands as steady as a surgeon.

Wonwoo shivers, and Seungcheol’s knees shake.

Sometime when Seungcheol wasn’t paying attention, or, well, when he was paying attention to the apple, and the glove, and the smell blooming from the skin of Wonwoo’s wrist, the two of them have gotten closer. So close Seungcheol can hear it when Wonwoo’s lips part, and feel it when Wonwoo's shaky breath fans across Seungcheol’s cheeks.

He's vibrant, glowing, beautiful. A wanting thing, nerves and need skittering through the air between them.

He's alive.

That's the thought that stops Seungcheol, in the end.

~~~~~

Seungcheol found out he could resurrect the dead when he was eight years old. A foolishly enthusiastic bluebird had slammed itself into his bedroom window, landing clearly lifeless on the ground beneath it. With all the fear and wonder and sorrow of a boy, Seungcheol had run outside and, after some nudges with his tennis shoes and a lot of deliberation over whether or not he'd get in trouble for it, he had poked the poor bird with his finger.

The bird snapped to life in a flutter and flurry, wings everywhere and feathers clouding around its tiny body. Seungcheol snatched his hand back and watched, awed, as the bird righted itself, coming to standing and breathing hard like it was as startled by this series of events as Seungcheol was.

The two considered each other, hearts racing, heads tilted in matching confusion and delight.

Slowly, gently, Seungcheol reached his still-chubby fingers out toward the bird. The bird, after a moment of careful consideration, chirped and held still.

~~~~~

Seungcheol's grandmother told him a story once, years after the bird, or maybe years before the bird, it was hard to say with a child's memory that mostly clung to the sensory experience of his grandmother's kitchen, flour and sugar and the alchemy of pie. The story changed, whether she changed it with each telling, or Seungcheol's mind changed it with each remembering. But the moral of the story remained the same, as well-worn as her voice, or the lines creasing the paper-thin skin of her hands.

With every gift, there came a cost.

~~~~~

Seungcheol petted the beautiful crown of the grateful bluebird, and that was how he found out a second touch to the newly-living made them dead again.

He found out, with the bird and, later, others, that the dead stayed that way afterwards, no matter how much touching or praying or crying he did.

~~~~~

Wonwoo walked into Seungcheol's bakery at almost the same moment that he walked into Seungcheol's heart. Almost, only because Seungcheol was in the back when the bell over the door tinkled it's merry hello, and so it took the wiping of flour-dusted hands and the shuffle of steps and the lifting of Seungcheol's head before he saw Wonwoo, and then that was it. Love. As plain as day, and more beautiful too.

It was a minor miracle that Seungcheol got Wonwoo's order right (a slice of apple pie, whipped cream on top, and a coffee, black, three sugars) given his ears were ringing and the light in the bakery was suddenly blinding, a halo surrounding Wonwoo. Well-trained hands plated the pie, swirled a spiral of cream atop it, poured the coffee into Seungcheol's best mug, and spooned three generous helpings of sugar. When he slid his offerings across the counter, Wonwoo's fingers brushed his own, and it was like moonlight, or starshine, or some other such celestial offering, big and bright and unfathomable.

They smiled at each other, Wonwoo soft and a bit shy, Seungcheol beaming like the lovestruck fool he was.

When Wonwoo left, Seungcheol didn't wonder if he would be back, or when, or how he would ask this beautiful man out on a date. He knew as certain as the sun would rise that he would see Wonwoo again, and soon, and that whenever the time was right to take Wonwoo on a picnic under Seungcheol's favorite tree on his favorite hill with his favorite view of the valley, he would know, and that Wonwoo would smile, soft and a bit shy, and say yes.

Seungcheol had whistled, and perhaps skipped, and gone back to his pies.

~~~~~

He doesn’t remember seeing Wonwoo die. He knows he must’ve, he was right there when it happened. Waving goodbye from the door of the shop as Wonwoo looked back and smiled one last time as he stepped off the curb, and then –

Nothing.

And then, a choice that wasn’t really a choice at all.

~~~~~

In the end Wonwoo was surprisingly accepting of the situation. Seungcheol hadn’t resurrected so many people that he had a script for it, and it wasn’t like it was common for someone to have literally magical fingers, but he fumbled his way through things, and Wonwoo listened.

And perhaps even more miraculous than Wonwoo’s first breath of a second chance at life, Wonwoo stayed.

~~~~~

It should’ve been terrible, loving someone and never getting to have them. Wanting and never being allowed something as simple and necessary as touch. And it was terrible, sometimes. Lord knows Seungcheol is no saint, and neither is Wonwoo. They had their fights and their frustrations, and their ways of managing it all, both healthy and not.

But in the end, it was simple. Seungcheol’s world was better with Wonwoo in it. Wonwoo was a gift. And with every gift, there is a cost.

And every time he got to see Wonwoo smile, Seungcheol decided it was a cost he was more than willing to pay.

~~~~~

Seungcheol hauls himself away from Wonwoo, taking the apple-peel rose from his still waiting hand. He clears his throat and takes several deep breaths, and politely pretends not to notice Wonwoo shaking himself from a safe distance.

They finish the pie, and then a few more, until the ovens are full and all there is left to do is wait and see how it all turns out.

The kitchen is quiet and sun-drenched with joyful morning, and Wonwoo is humming along to the radio and petting the cat that frequents the bakery, and the moment, Seungcheol decides, is right.

“Do you want to go on a picnic with me?” Seungcheol asks, heart pounding even though he is certain of the answer.

Wonwoo smiles, soft and a bit shy, and says, “Yes.”

~~~~~

The picnic is as perfect as Seungcheol imagined.

Well, there are more bugs than he had pictured in his daydreams, and the whipped cream did not survive the warm spring sunshine, and Wonwoo’s glasses fogged up a bit on the moderate hike up the hill. Seungcheol forgot napkins, and the tree is budding but not quite in bloom, and a squirrel, high in the branches, is entirely too interested in their spread.

But Wonwoo is beautiful, and he has laughed several times on this perfect date, and Seungcheol doesn’t think he could possibly be happier.

“I love you,” Seungcheol says between one breath and the next.

A brief flash of panic darts through Wonwoo’s eyes, and Seungcheol feels compelled to explain himself.

“I know the situation isn’t ideal, and there’s so many people who would be better for you, and it’s probably selfish of me to even say this considering I could kill you at any moment purely by accident, but you make me happy, Wonwoo. I want to make you happy every day, if I can. So if that sounds like something you could let me do, then –”

There’s cellophane over Seungcheol’s face, and he only has a second to make a bemused little sound about it before the sensation of warmth and pressure registers over his lips, and then he realizes he’s being kissed. Wonwoo, brilliant, beautiful Wonwoo, is kissing him.

And so, hands behind his back to avoid temptation, Seungcheol makes a choice that isn’t a choice at all.

He kisses back.

the minor fall and the major lift

[sunsparrow]

Ship/Member: Any
Major Tags: N/A
Additional Tags: None
Do Not Wants: None

Prompt:

Maybe there's a God above
But, all I've ever learned from love
Was how to shoot somebody who outdrew you?
-Hallelujah, Jeff Buckley

Re: [FILL] Apple of My Pie

[leomoonwonu]

See ao3 for the more deranged comment RILEY I LOVE YOU AND I KISS YOU AND THIS IS EXTREMELY CATERED TO ME IN A WAY ONLY YOU COULD MANAGE AND IT'S GOOD!!! THERE ARE NO BAD WORDS HERE THIS IS GOOD AND I LOVE IT!!!!