#yeonho

You went to sleep the night before with a smile on your face, probably more excited than Yeonho was for the coming day.

You woke up before him, and immediately realized that things were very, very wrong.

A glance at the clock tells you it's barely past 5AM. A pit forms in your stomach as you feel the all-too-familiar ache in your lower abdomen and a particular sticky feeling. This can’t be happening today.

You slip quietly out of bed without disturbing Yeonho and rush to the bathroom. You send a silent prayer before checking your suspicions.

No, no—this wasn’t supposed to happen today.

As you stare at the stain of red in your underwear, you can only resolve to blink back tears and frustration. Your period showing up a week early to spoil your plans for your boyfriend’s birthday must be some karmic punishment.

“Fine, fine. Who keeps to a monthly schedule anyway? You were just too excited you arrived a week early. I get it. But if you just had to come early, you couldn’t have picked tomorrow? Why today?” you rattle in disbelief as you clean yourself up and change into different pants.

You will yourself to ignore the pain as you wash your face, as if that will magically make it go away. It’s not too late to arrive on schedule, just stop bleeding. Easy.

But you know that's not an option, even if you wish it to be so bad. There’s no delay button for menstruation, and as the reality sets in that you’ll be grumpy and in pain on your boyfriend’s birthday, you feel utterly useless.

This is the last thing you wanted.

This day is supposed to be his day. You don't want him worrying about you when he should be focused on enjoying himself. And you know that Yeonho takes your period more seriously than anyone. Treating you like a princess, especially the first few days of it. Chocolate, heating pads, flowers, cuddles—anything you could wish for, he is eager to provide. While normally you love and cherish the treatment you get from your boyfriend, it's the last thing you want for today. You absolutely will not let him be the one taking care of you on his birthday.

You've made up your mind given the circumstances, and you have a plan. Yeonho will never know you got your period today. Things will go like normal, and you will still give him the best birthday despite your untimely bleeding, painful cramps, and unpredictable mood-swings. Under no circumstances will you let him even lift a finger to take care of you today.

Perhaps your stubbornness is one of your bigger faults. Yeonho finds it attractive. Of course he does. He’s enamoured with practically everything about you, and some days you struggle to figure out what you did to deserve it. He’s so good to you. Too good. You only want to make sure he feels that love and appreciation back in equal amounts, especially on his birthday.

You slip back into bed as if nothing had happened. Thankfully, Yeonho is still asleep. You curl up close to him, wanting him to wake up the way he likes—with your face being his first sight. It's hard to fall back asleep with the cramps, but Yeonho's warmth beside you helps. You manage to get back to a dreamless sleep just before the clock turns to 6, but when you wake up again, your exhaustion is evident.

"Happy birthday" are the first words you utter to Yeonho, hoping that you sound cheerful enough for him to not notice a slight grimace at the end of your sentence. Your cramps have gotten worse, and frankly, your body is screaming to stay in bed. But you don't listen.

Instead, you find yourself peppering with Yeonho with kisses on your way out, laughing with him as he tries to dodge and dig his head back into the pillows.

Next step: breakfast.

You feel nauseous. The last thing you want is the smell or sight of food right now, but your determination to go through with all your plans overpowers the uncomfortable feeling of your stomach lurching and your head spinning.

Thirty minutes later as you're putting the finishing touches to Yeonho's plate, he joins you in the kitchen, freshly showered.

"You were supposed to stay in bed!" you gasp. Your first plan is already going wrong, not because of your period, but because your boyfriend is incapable of staying away from you. His arms circle your waist and he relaxes against your shoulders.

"The bed was getting cold without you," he tells you seriously before brightening up again. "This smells so good! You're spoiling me."

"It's your birthday. I want it to be perfect for you."

It would be perfect if your cramps weren't equivalent to being battered repeatedly by a truck right now.

Your wince doesn't go unnoticed by your boyfriend, because even though you're very careful to not let a sound escape your lips, his face is still buried against your neck, and he feels your body jerk slightly.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Let's eat."

You realize if you want to have any hope in hiding your current condition from him, you'll have to find excuses for keeping some distance. You busy yourself with carrying the plates to the table, leaving your boyfriend to ponder over the moment for a second longer before ultimately brushing it off.

It's day passes by smoothly for the most part. It's only in the brief moments that you let yourself relax, thinking that Yeonho isn't paying attention, that you tread the line a bit too close. Quiet sucked in breaths or flinches that anyone else would never pick up on can't escape Yeonho's observation. But you're quite good at brushing things off for other reasons, and you never let him push further.

By the end of the night, you feel satisfied that your plan worked, and you successfully hit it well enough that your boyfriend never questioned sure you hid it well enough that your boyfriend has no idea. Every activity went well. Dinner and cake with friends was lively—perhaps a little overstimulating for you on your period, but you did your best to stay involved with the group. You're glad to be back home, though. Getting to 10PM feels like crossing the finish line. You're relieved that the marathon is finally over.

You and Yeonho are both a bit tipsy and tired. Having showered and changed into pyjamas, you're curled up in his arms, cheek pressed against his chest as you fight sleep off for a bit longer. You find the silence comfortable, satisfying your craving for it all day. You fail to notice how Yeonho seems to be too quiet, as if contemplating some problem.

His gentle stroking of your hair pauses for a moment, and then he quietly asks, "Were you in pain today?"

You freeze for a moment, pulling back and glancing at him. You were so sure…

"Don't lie," he says seriously, yet his voice is still soft.

"… I took pain meds," you answer. "It wasn't too bad."

Yeonho's brow furrows. You can feel his dissatisfaction with your answer from just the way he's looking at you, but you don't have it in you to feel sorry.

"It was all day, wasn't it? I noticed it from breakfast. Why didn't you tell me?"

You're silent. In your head, it was obvious that his birthday plans would be ruined if you didn't conceal how much pain you were in. And, to you, making today perfect was much higher priority than anything else. It truly wasn't a big deal to you. But when you look at Yeonho's expression, you start to waver. You didn't expect him to find out. His face holds a mix of guilt and sadness, which starts to make you regret your choices today.

"Hey," you cup his face. "It was your birthday. I'm fine, I promise. I really wanted to celebrate today. It was my choice."

Yeonho still looks conflicted, even though he nods in understanding. Another three minutes of reassurance and a few kisses to stop him from talking ends the topic altogether, replaced by more legitimate thoughts of sleep.

Yeonho lies awake after you've already slipped into dreams. The day really was perfect—more than what he could have wished for. But it would have been perfect regardless. The games, food, and partying were never as important to him as the fact that it's the first birthday he's celebrating with you. He would have been just as happy with less as long as he knew you were comfortable.

You are stubborn, though, and always have been for as long as he's known you. There was no convincing you out of your plans once you had set them, no matter how your boyfriend felt about it. Yeonho can do nothing but settle his heart on the matter and hope the situation doesn't repeat itself.

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@fantasia-films @k-records

It started with a simple look across the room; shared smiles, a familiar face with no name to go with it, and mutual attraction kept secret. And that was how it stayed for a long time. Back then, you were shy around him. Too nervous to introduce yourself properly, and without the self-confidence to think that he could possibly be interested in anything that had to do with you. You'd never had much luck making friends, let alone any experience with romantic attraction. It was uncharted territory and far too intimidating for you to take the first step. Thankfully, Yeonho was good at reading between your lines.

It wasn't until the second Summer after you first saw him that you grew closer. Names were exchanged at first, and then contacts soon after. Nights were spent staying up until the AM talking about anything and everything. Yeonho was easy to talk to. Things felt lighter around him. It was easy to breathe, easy to share your opinions without feeling lesser. When you were around Yeonho, you felt like you mattered. It was a feeling you were scared to lose.

When you moved away for an internship in the fall, you expected that your newfound friendship with Yeonho would fade with the distance. You'd learn from past experiences to not set your hopes too high. People always had a knack for disappointing, and you had never had someone put in any real effort into staying in contact before. Yeonho was the first, and that small bit of effort had you falling head over heels before you could catch yourself.

Your mother said you were too easy. You told her that you had just found your future husband.

Perhaps both things were true. Yeonho did steal your heart—with his smile and his care and the little things he always took note of. And you never asked for more. You never had to. There was no begging for his time or attention, nor did you worry about him losing interest or being unfaithful. Yeonho set his own standards, and he did it all with that same smile you lost yourself in that very first day.

You would never love someone quite as much as him. He made love feel uncomplicated.

You find yourself staring down at the ring on your finger, tilting your hand at different angles and watching the sunlight streaming through the window reflect on it. For a moment, it feels like a dream again. All too good to be true as your brain tries to supply what you've done to earn it and comes up with nothing.

Then your head lifts, eyes settling on him. And he smiles at you, his own eyes disappearing into crescents. The pure affection on his face doesn't need explaining, and it cuts your thoughts off before they can drift towards withering your self-esteem.

Yeonho loves you, and you never had to do anything to earn it.

He gives you the assurance to know that it won't ever change. As long as you exist, so does his love for you. There would never be a need to complicate it further. It would always be just the two of you; intertwined. One love, two hearts.

© slytherinshua ── do not repost translate or copy　⸝⸝⸝　join my taglist!

@kstrucknet