when tour ends and there's a short few weeks in the winter where the boys have nothing to do-- well, fine, they have things to do, but at least it's not in front of fans and so busy that the boys are never home. so anyhow, haena has a pretty free schedule. she makes it herself, honestly. when she knew the boys were going to be free, she made a secret plan to sneak riki away to japan for his birthday. he hasn't been home in years, and the second haena learned that devastating piece of information, she knew she had to take him home- she goes home every few months, jay gets to go home on tour, jake's parents are in korea. why can't ni-ki see his family in the place he grew up? he has no clue that haena got his parents' number from their manager, that she called them to ask if it was alright to bring him home and if she could join... (a little forward of her, but she knew riki wouldn't go otherwise)... he had no clue that she bought the flight tickets, organized their transportation to and from the airports in both korea and japan, etc. etc. she was up almost every night secretly working on it while heeseung laid in her bed, snoring and drooling on her pillow- or when sunghoon pouted on the couch because he wanted her attention but she had a schedule that she needed to throw together. "he won't even want to follow the schedule once he's there, we both know it," hoon whines. "give me five more minutes then i'm all yours." "you said that ten minutes ago..."
when the trip comes around, ni-ki has no idea what's going on when he walks into the house to find his luggage packed and ready to go in the entryway. "do we have a schedule i forgot about?" jake laughs and tosses his bag he uses on the plane at him, "haena's taking you on vacation." "just me?" "just you. enjoy it."
"noona, where are we going?" he asks the entire car ride to the airport. she won't tell him. "give me a hint." there's not a chance she'll budge. "what did you pack for me?" "the necessities." even while checking in, he doesn't know a thing about where they're going because he's too busy trying to hide in his hoodie and keep his head down in the hopes that no one will recognize him. sure, haena thought in detail about how they were going to avoid sasaengs, but ni-ki's still incredibly worried about it. "how long is the flight going to be?" "it's short, nae sarang, relax, i've got everything under control." they sit in a quiet corner in the airline lounge to avoid being noticed, but he keeps looking around out of habit, even while haena shoves food in his face because she wants him to enjoy the vacation instead of worrying about sasaengs, diets, etc. it's only when they're boarding the plane that he sees the name Okayama on the screen that shows the flight is boarding first class, which he and Haena are lined up for, that he realizes where they're going and why. "noona, no-" he stops short, his feet glued to the floor. she turns to face him, "what?" "i can't go home." "what?" "i can't." "you haven't even gotten on the plane and you're panicking?" she sighs and grabs his hand, using all of her strength to drag him onto the jet bridge- he might be a big dude, but she knows how to make him move when she wants to, especially when he's acting like a deer in headlights. "why are we going to japan, haena?" he asks when they're in their seats. "for vacation. i've always wanted to go in the winter." he frowns, "i'm serious, haena." she gulps, "i told your parents i'm bringing you to see them--" if it weren't for the fact that they were already on the plane, ni-ki probably would've bolted away like a cat being put in a bath tub.
riki clings to haena the entire car ride to his neighborhood. his hand is clasped tightly against hers, his side is pressed up against hers, and every time he feels like he can't breathe then he just presses his forehead against her shoulder because when he's not hiding he's looking out the window to take it all in. it's been forever since he's been home. he remembers bits and pieces, almost like he never left... but there's a million things he feels like he's seeing for the very first time and it takes his breath away. as they pull up the house, ni-ki can't bear to look. instead, he's staring at haena while chewing on his plump bottom lip. "i don't think i can do this, noona." "why?" "it's been too long." "so?" "i just- i-" he lets out a heavy sigh, his thoughts too frazzled. he tells her that he's scared to see his parents in his hometown after so long. it's been forever since he's seen them, and there's been plenty of times he's been to japan but he hasn't been home. "what if they're disappointed in me?" haena smiles gently at him and rubs her thumb over the back of his hand comfortingly, "when i called them, they seemed so happy that you were coming home, and they only had nice things to say about you... they're your parents, nae sarang, they love you. trust me." he looks at the house. he looks at haena. he looks at the house, the drapes opening slightly for his parents to peek out to spy on the car sitting in front of their home. "i can't do this." "yes, you can." it takes a few minutes, but he eventually gives in-- only if he can hold her hand the entire time, though. he's surprisingly not worried about what his parents will think about him bringing home a girl- the first girl he's ever brought home, and she's an idol from canada of all places, and she's not just dating him but his six best friends too................ but he can't make that walk to the front door without here there to hold him and tell him that it's going to be okay- that his anxiety about being home and seeing his parents is valid, but he still needs to do it.
his mom is so happy to see him home. he's just a big baby who starts crying when he sees his parents and his mom hugs him tightly- even though they're standing awkwardly because he's so tall now and she's trying to hug his neck. he apologizes for not coming home sooner. he's embarrassed and scared that they'll scold him in some way... but instead, they just welcome him home with bright smiles. "okasan, this is my girlfriend, haena." he sounds so excited to introduce her with his hand pressed against the small of her back to make sure she can't hide from his parents. they want to see haena up close. sure, ever since she called and said she'd be coming to visit with their son, they googled her- but they wanted to see her up close with their own eyes to pass their own judgements. was she good enough for their son? was she acceptable enough to have in their home for the duration of the trip? at the very least, they pretended like she was because they welcomed her with smiles too before ni-ki's mom got excited to show him to his room-- the very same room he said he was worried didn't exist anymore; but in reality, his mom has preserved it over the years. since the day he left, it hasn't changed a bit. she cleans regularly, but the room itself hasn't aged.
"see?" haena says with a smile, "there was nothing to worry about." ni-ki blushes. now that his parents have left them alone to unpack while lunch is put out on the table, he takes in the look of his old room from when he was still a kid. it's different from his room in korea. it's so....... childish... but haena appreciates it for what it is and takes a look around too. "oh, what's this?" she finds a stack of letters sitting on the desk. riki's eyes go wide and jumps to snatch them before she can, but she's faster. those weren't there when he left. those are new. they're from over the years, because he's a bit old fashioned when it comes to family, insisting on writing letters when he has the time since they feel more personal than a simple text summarizing his life updates. the most recent letter-- the one at the top-- talks all about haena without naming her. "i met a girl. i don't think she cares for me, but i've fallen in love with her to the point i can only write music about her and nothing else." haena giggles, "you bragged about me to your parents?" "maybe." "you sound so cute!" "i'm not cute." "yes, you are."
once they're settled in, he shows her around everywhere. taking her to all the places he messed around as a kid. telling her stupid stories that come to him as he remembers them because it's been so long since he thought about that time.
their trip is quiet. no one bothers them. fans don't know that they're there, no one in ni-ki's neighborhood cares to bother him and his girlfriend who are trying to hide from the spotlight for a short while, and neither of them have to worry a single bit about work. they decide to spend an afternoon at the park- it's the warmest day of the winter, only a cool breeze but surprisingly no snow or harsh weather to force them inside, so they decide to make the most of it like everyone else. families are playing at the park, couples are sitting on benches, people are taking their pets on walks. they go with a couple of blankets and some food for a short picnic. but they stayed longer than intended. ni-ki's lowkey a comfy pillow. the second he falls back on the picnic blanket to just stare at the sky, haena cuddles his side and lays her head on his chest, and he plays with her hair casually. neither of them say anything. it's nice to just stare at the clouds, listen to people play in the park, count the birds that fly by, feel each other breathing slowly. and then they pass tf out. neither of them realize it, neither of them meant it. they don't even know who falls asleep first.
ni-ki's the first to wake up when it starts to get cold as the sun goes down because he'd given his jacket to haena earlier when it got windy and the blanket over them wasn't doing enough. he's obviously shocked that the two of them managed to fall asleep in the middle of the day out in public like that. he just thinks, “well shit” and against his better judgment, he gently wakes Haena up and whispers that they need to leave. She looks so cute when she whines in her sleep and shakes her head. His stupid ass tendency to call her “onee-chan” while pleading with her to get up……. That’s fucked. Using her own weakness against her. WHY CANT HE JUST SAY NOONA ATP??!!! IT WOULD AT LEAST BE CORRECT- anyhow.
Haena is barely awake as they pack up their picnic stuff and waddle back to the house where Riki’s mom is making dinner… poor Haena just wants to keep sleeping, so they make it through dinner politely before riki makes up excuses for them to go to bed early. he's her cuddle bug in private. the only people who know that are him, haena, and the boys- and even then, he doesn't love for them to see it all the time, because he thinks he's gotta be a big tough guy or whatever lol... but in his room at home, he's all hers. she's laying flat on the bed, and even though he's as tall as he is, he manages to be her little spoon by curling up between her and the wall and putting his head on her chest so she can play with his long blonde hair the same way he did earlier at the park. "thank you for bringing me home, oneesan..." he draws circles on her hips with her thumbs as he thinks. "i probably wouldn't've come after so long, if it weren't for you." she smiles and curles some of his blonde hair around her finger, "you're welcome, nae sarang."
even though the trip was planned well in advance and so thoroughly that it seemed like there couldn't possibly be any issues, of course life just had to get in the way. haena told her company she was going on vacation. she told her manager not to contact her. but an emergency arose, and she had no choice but to go home to seoul to work. "what about ni-ki's birthday?" sunoo texts her after she tells the boys what's going on. "he'll stay to celebrate it with his parents," she replies. "you can't stay?" "no." the thought of leaving ni-ki in the middle of their quiet trip breaks her heart to the point that as the taxi waits in the drive way with her bags already loaded in the trunk, she can't let go of him. "we'll see each other in ten days, oneesan." but his attempts to cheer her up simply don't work. she clings to his shirt and cries against his chest- why does she have to leave? it's not fair. but then she feels some relief that at least she's the one having to leave and not him. she'd be pissed if his team dragged him back to seoul after years of not sleeping in his bedroom.
when she lands in korea, her manager's there to grab her bags from the luggage belt while she goes through customs, and there's a security guard there to guide her to the private van as fans and media swarm her for photos and videos. she keeps her head down, her mask over her nose and lips, and her hoodie up to keep the rest of her swollen face hidden because she'd rather that the world didn't know she'd been crying the entire flight from japan. her manager sits up front with the driver. the security guard puts his hand on the top of the doorway for the backseats so that she doesn't hit her head as she crawls to the back row then he sits in the middle row and closes the door behind him. haena freezes when she sees that they're not alone in the car, however. waiting for her in the back is jungwon. he knew how upset she would be leaving her riki, so he insisted on coming to pick her up. she immediately hugs him and lets herself cry again. she really, really hates that she had to leave. she hates leaving him alone. she hates missing his birthday. ni-ki's her baby-- always has been and always will be-- and she just had to drop everything and leave him... it doesn't feel fair, and that's the part that breaks her heart the most. but jungwon of all people understands that feeling and he didn't want her to be alone, so he's there to comfort her the entire drive into the city.
"happy birthday, nae sarang," haena says over facetime a few days later. riki smiles at her, "thank you, oneesan." "are you doing anything special today?" "my parents invited family and friends over for a big dinner, so i think i'll go shopping quickly with my mom before she has to start cooking later this afternoon. i want to buy her something special for today." "that'll be nice." his smile widens, "i'll be home soon, don't worry too much about me, okay?" "i'll try."
