Work Text:
lee donghyuck is some kind of anomaly, never quite fitting in, always catching the eye of those lucky enough to be in his presence.
more than just a mood maker, he is like the sun, rays of light beaming, brightening the world.
there’s so much to admire about him. from the way his skin is littered with moles, to his natural tan. the shape of his lips, the height of his cheekbones. the texture of his skin that adds more charm. the scar on his eyebrow, his soft thighs and long legs. a thin waist, with sculpted curves. beautiful hands, long fingers, perfect for playing piano. which is another thing, his talent. a gifted singer, an incredible dancer, a beautiful pianist. an artist at his core. lee donghyuck is truly some type of prodigy. meant to be known, meant to change lives.
“you’re staring at me again, loser.”
mark stays quiet, fighting the urge to roll his eyes, but to do that means he’d have to briefly look away, break his gaze off of the man lying next to him whose beauty is something indescribable.
“of course i’m staring, you’re beautiful.”
in mark’s opinion, donghyuck looks best like this. in the morning when he has just woken up, with the chill of autumn creeping up and bruising his exposed skin, bumps rising, hair disheveled and eyes glossy. the sound of his sleepy humming blending in with cars passing by once in a while, disturbing the calls sung by birds outside of their home. when they had first moved in, donghyuck insisted on leaving food for them – though most of the time squirrels get to it first. not that mark has the heart to tell donghyuck, he just refills the feeder and pushes away any questions.
sleepily, donghyuck leans in to kiss mark before pulling away and running his fingers through the older’s hair, an attempt to tame it. “you look like a lion right now,” he laughs out, ruffling the mess even more. if mark wasn’t so lovesick, maybe he would be annoyed, but instead he just smiles like an idiot, harboring so much adoration for the younger man that his heart aches. sometimes, he questions if the blood coursing through his veins was replaced with love somehow, questions if maybe that’s why he feels it so intensely.
or, maybe it’s because mark has always been a passionate person. when he loved something, he loved it wholeheartedly, which is why he became an artist. why he dedicated his teenage years to working through pain, both mental and physical, to achieve his dreams. being in love with someone was no different, that same passion was present in everything he did with donghyuck. even in the little things, like moments of shared glances or holding hands in secret, he’s passionate. expressive of his love in his own way.
it’s early mornings on days when they’re off that always seem to hold the most intimacy, moments kept between the pair in lazy whispers and soft smiles, when mark lets the younger lean into his chest and gently strokes his hair, finally having a break from the dull pain in his chest that typically weighs him down. work days, where instead of spending the morning breathing in the scent of donghyuck and tracing his fingertips over his features, he is counting down the minutes until they’re forced into a car and proceed to play cat and dog. a game of push and pull that makes mark worry, worry that it’s too much, that he’s too mean.
but, it was always that way. despite having a different dynamic off screen, during work hours it was some type of rule. donghyuck bothers mark, mark teases him and pretends he hates it, even though his heart swells with every flirtatious comment and contact with the younger's soft skin. it was a habit, though he’d only recently become aware of just how harmful it was. how much donghyuck took it seriously, how he wondered in secret if maybe mark did resent him. if mark found him too clingy, annoying, too loud. if the other members found his presence to be too much, a burden.
mark thinks, maybe he’d spend the rest of his lifetime trying to make up for it. to prove to donghyuck how much his presence is worth.
“you’re so stupid,” donghyuck whispers, hand resting on the back of mark’s head, fingers softly gripping his hair. “i love you so much.”
instead of replying, mark leans in to kiss him again, now on the cheek, his fingers softly stroking the side of donghyuck’s jaw, then using his thumb to trace over his moles. in awe, he absentmindedly let’s a soft whisper of ‘pretty’ escape past his lips, an english word donghyuck was more than familiar with. “such a loser, imagine if the fans found out how you act with me” donghyuck pulls back to catch his reaction, but he just smiles, “i think they would go crazy for it, for you”
anyone would go crazy for donghyuck, someone so beautiful and kind, so emotional yet logical. creative yet a realist. once, mark had admitted to jaemin how hard it was to be with someone who shines so brightly. almost wanting to keep it all for himself, but also wanting to see donghyuck grow and prosper, live the life he was meant to in the spotlight. donghyuck was made to be loved, mark is certain of that.
escaping mark and his pleading eyes begging donghyuck to stay in bed just a little longer, he gets up to shower, leaving mark tangled in the sheets, imprinted with the sweet smell of donghyuck’s perfume and warmed with his body heat after hours spent under the covers.
the warmth of his spot is comforting the same way his scent is, calming the same way his tanned warm skin making contact with mark’s own is. there’s a million things to do, work on his album, maybe clean their house, but he’d prefer to lay and bask in the feeling of home that surrounds him. their bedroom is a mess, clothes discarded in various spots and some blankets kicked off to the side, likely from donghyuck’s tendency to overheat at night, but mark couldn’t care less about it. if anything, it makes mark smile, how well he knows donghyuck. how much he can love another person, to the extent of knowing their routine, what they like, how they like it.
he knows how many blankets donghyuck prefers to sleep with, which one is his favorite that he refuses to let go of even if he’s sweating and borderline feverish. he knows just how much donghyuck can eat, and that his eyes are bigger than his stomach. he knows donghyuck loves in the purest of ways, loves his friends and family, loves fans, loves his brothers in the group, loves mark.
he knows that donghyuck wants to have kids someday, a daughter. he is naturally nurturing, mark thinks they’d raise a daughter perfectly. he also knows that he secretly feels regret for his early debut and wants to shield the youngest members from that feeling too, telling the company to allow them the space to have a childhood. he has a strong sense of justice, willing to fight and push back for the things he believes in. a strong set of morals. he is truly an anomaly, something, someone, so unique, so perfect. yet humble and accepting of flaws.
flaws, like mark’s jealousy, his approach to relationships, how he prefers to be private. to push donghyuck away when eyes and cameras are on them to keep their love away from exploitative arrangements. “i don’t want to profit off of this, of us, we are real. not some way to make money” he’d whispered in the middle of the night, in london, holding donghyuck close as they stared at the view from their hotel room’s balcony.
“why are you still in bed?” donghyuck questions, walking out of the bathroom in yet another shirt he’d stolen from mark and sweatpants that he thinks were johnny’s at some point.
typically, donghyuck would shower and then mark would clean the house, waiting for the other to finish before taking his place to wash up while donghyuck prepares breakfast. it was routine by now, after years of living together through dorms and apartments.
but sometimes, on a day like today, when mark is tired and still a bit jet lagged, he couldn’t care less about what the house looks like, or washing up, or even eating. all he wants is to hold donghyuck in his arms.
shrugging, mark gestures for donghyuck to take his place next to him, and he does so without hesitation, “you’re so cute mark, you missed me?”
mark wants to say no, to tease him, but he can’t. not when his boyfriend is lying next to him looking heavenly, with his hair damp and oversized black t-shirt ridden up to expose some of his soft tummy. “yeah i missed you a lot, let’s just stay here all day.”
donghyuck smiles and moves to kiss mark again, soft and slow, soaking up the feeling of mark’s warm hands on his waist. “you smell like peaches and vanilla” mark points out, his senses becoming overstimulated as the scent engulfs him.
there’s so many things he can touch. donghyuck’s waist, hair, his face, his lips. so many things he can feel. his heart racing, donghyuck’s hot breath on his skin. he can see the brunettes tired eyes fluttering open and close, he can taste the mix of their saliva on his tongue. he can smell sweat and the new body wash in the air. he can hear the love he has pouring out from him with each unintelligible whisper, pulling away from donghyuck’s lips to drag him closer into his chest.
no words need to be said, donghyuck knows, mark knows. it’s obvious that they love each other. gentle reminders are painted across their skin, in bruises ranging different shades of black and blues left to dissolve before their short break ends. the silence that fills their space doesn’t feel uncomfortable, they don’t need to speak, they know just by looking at eachother.
lee donghyuck is meant to be loved, he is meant to live, and to love, and mark is the luckiest person on earth – giving and receiving that love every chance he gets.