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taehyun knows it’s him.
and this isn’t a time for guessing games, because he knocked three times and then three times more, like he always does.
the living room curtains are drawn and the sun is lighting up the room, casting the cream walls in a light cantaloupe - like hue. as he opens the door, he feels his breath knocked out of him, leaving him completely at mercy of the person who is at his door.
he’s here
he’s here leaning against the door frame, eyes soft and smile growing. his signature smirk melts into something, a little more pure and ever - so glowing and taehyun’s heart squeezes in tenderness for the taller boy in front of him.
“ ....beomgyu ”, he whispers carefully, as if the other’s name was a prayer, a simple word that could unlock all the mysteries of the universe, perhaps a sacred syllable.
and beomgyu isn’t even inside the younger’s entryway when he cups his cheek adoringly and places a lingering kiss on his dimple, shocking the younger and making his cheeks blush a thousand shades of crimson.
in the heart of his favourite city, taehyun never knew that loving could be so easy .
their love was simple but it took his breath away. his small apartment at the corner of rue du louvre was a blend of their lives — their thighs brushing, knees knocking as they melted into each other’s embrace, their fingertips tracing open palms.
beomgyu presses a kiss into his open palm and presses it to his mouth — a restraint declaration of affection. he then intertwines his long fingers with his own and says,
“ ready to go my love? ”
and taehyun really, really wants to answer his question. however, his mind is playing broken records of beomgyu calling him my love and taehyun is falling even deeper for the fluffy haired man in front him.
instead of replying with a snarky remark to hide his growing blush, he settles on moving his gaze on beomgyu and he lets himself feel the warm fuzzy feeling that his threatening to fill his stomach.
with wide eyes and rosy cheeks, he answers,
“ as ready as i’ll ever be. ”
their walk to the musee du louvre isn’t a long one but it is definitely a one that he will cherish in his heart, for the coming years.
with palms resting in each other’s, beomgyu pulled taehyun closer to himself, almost cuddling him while walking on the streets.
“ hyung, cut it out ! ”
“ hyunnie, i’m finally going on a date with you after months of being away from you, and it’s been absolute torture yearning for you from quite a distance,so please let me savour this. ” he whispered.
its intoxicating, the way beomgyu has taehyun wrapped around him. even the simplest of words, makes taehyun’s heart spiral into an endless fit of love for beomgyu. their love is so brand new, it makes taehyun’s toes curl; his heart opening up to the feeling of fondness that beomgyu carries in his words.
it’s so so beautiful.
so taehyun let’s him. he let’s himself sink into the other’s chest while they walk, getting lost in the theme of love that beomgyu’s heart sings for him, savouring each moment himself while his heart sings it’s own melody.
the museum is more graceful than taehyun had ever imagined it to be and he just knows that the pictures does not do the art justice.
they say, “ beauty lies in the eye of the beholder ”, and taehyun can’t help but wonder how admirable to museum is looking in the morning. white filtered sunlight is seeping through the glass of the museum, encasing it in a soft wonderous glow and taehyun can’t help but gasp in awe at the beauty of the museum. the entire scenario has him struggling to find words. it’s grand, magnificent even, but most importantly — it’s enticing.
and when he turns towards his left, he sees beomgyu already looking at him with his eyes wide and tips of his ears maroon.
taehyun’s smiling taehyun’s smiling taehyun’s smiling and beomgyu knows that he is well gone for the younger, even before he could admit his newlyfound feelings to himself. in the warm museum light, taehyun’s skin looks so soft and blushed. his eyes are crescents, his smile so glowing and ethereal and he feels himself falling for the younger man quicker than he ever thought.
it’s a shame he thinks, that they went to an art museum, when taehyun is the real masterpiece himself.
“ hyung stop staring at me ”
“ but tyun, you’re an absolute work of art ”
“ oh my god ”
taehyun playfully shoves beomgyu with his arm while he blushes silently at the string of compliments that beomgyu expresses while explaining why taehyun is an actual piece of art.
curse you, choi beomgyu.
taehyun tugs beomgyu towards all the other paintings that they want to see today. being in paris, beomgyu admits that he never had the experience of the authentic parisian life — always stuck in his work, striving to be the best.
but with taehyun, everything is just a bit more lively. the world is a little colourful and soft, blending into happiness and love. taehyun makes him feel all the comfort in the world, as if a blanket of safety has been wrapped around him.
as they stare at the beautiful portrait of mona lisa (which taehyun said he wouldn’t admit was real if he didn’t see it for himself), beomgyu shifts his gaze towards the younger, staring at the way shimmering light falls on his perfectly sloped nose and makes him gleam like an angel.
i adore you is what beomgyu thinks when he looks at taehyun. i adore the way your eyes light up when you’re looking at something that excites you, the way the corner of your eyes crinkle just enough to show that you’re truly happy, the way you clutch my hand, delicate yet tight, so that i don’t lose you in the crowd. i adore everything about you.
i adore your affection and what it does to me
i adore you
beomgyu stares at taehyun for many moments before realising that the younger is staring back at him. the share a lingering eye contact that makes his heart skip a beat. and beomgyu feels as if he has offered his heart to taehyun on a silver platter, for him to nurture or break. or even love perhaps.
he lets out an incoherent sound at the back of throat when he feels taehyun embrace him, so gingerly and quietly. he feels that the beating of his heart will give away his intensity of affection he feels for the small boy.
taehyun eyes him, then embraces him tighter and murmurs, “ thank you hyung, for bringing me here, for taking care of me and handling my awful ramblings about the wedding at cana . thank you, for just being here. ”
beomgyu twirls taehyun around in the corner of the hallway, and slightly dips him which causes taehyun to giggle in a euphonic tone. he presses he nose on taehyun’s cheek and sighs,
“ tyun, you are too beautiful to be here with me. i feel so content with you, so safe. and your ramblings are too adorable. please don’t stop. and no need to thank me. actually, thank you taehyun for being my safe haven, for helping me escape world. ”
taehyun’s face is crimson under the fluorescent warm lights. he knows that beomgyu has his way with words, being a literature major in their university, but his words really make his inside turn to mush. he feels beomgyu tighten his hold on his waist, which he didn’t even realise his was holding. taehyun’s knees turned to mush as he tried, tried his best to support himself against his dearest, his amour and regained his composure.
“ stop with the cheesy lines and let’s go ”
“ your wish is my command my angel ”
after many many hours of roaming around the museum, taehyun stops for a break. he knows that beomgyu is not an art nerd like him, so he scans the elder looking for any traces of boredom on his face. after all, he doesn’t want beomgyu to run away because of his weird obsession with art.
instead, he finds beomgyu looking at him with curious eyes and a warm smile.
“are you tired hyung? we could go home if you want…”
“of course not tyunie !” he said bewildered, “i’m not tired, never with you”
“okay then hyung, i have one last place to visit before we go home”
“lead the way, my love”
the sculpture of cupid and psyche was the literal epitome of yearning and romanticism. it symbolised a beautiful marriage, a timeless allegiance to your other half. but to taehyun, it reminded him that love exists in it’s purest form and that love can move worlds.
he feels beomgyu move his gaze curiously over the sculpture, analysing it and understanding it, as if trying to learn the life and reason behind it.
“ do you wanna know their story? ” taehyun cautiously asked.
beomgyu smiled at him, as he nodded softly.
“ well, there was a time in rome when psyche, a princess was worshipped for her beauty. the goddess of love couldn’t even compare to her beauty and charisma. for only way to get her land and her title back, venus ordered her son, cupid to make princess psyche fall in love with a monster. ”
beomgyu listened intently to taehyun’s words while rubbing the soft skin on taehyun’s wrist, causing him to feel goosebumps all over his body.
“however, cupid fell in love with the princess himself. this caused venus, or aphrodite in greek mythology, to become even more envious of psyche which cause her to pass through a series of trails in order to win cupid’s love. in the end, zeus offered her ambrosia and nectar which helped her become immortal, and finally cupid and psyche married in heaven.
“ that’s beautiful ”
taehyun softly gazed at beomgyu before continuing, “ i love this sculpture because it reminds me that love is so eternal and beautiful ”
taehyun was about to pull beomgyu with him, before his heard the older mutter something under his breath.
“ did you say something? ”
as if he was caught in an unforgivable act, beomgyu flushed the colour of a pretty cherry and looked at the paintings. he then pulled taehyun by arm and held his waist while gazing into his chocolate brown eyes.
“ i said — i want to be your cupid, if you let me ”
taehyun couldn’t believe his ears when he heard what beomgyu said. all his fear and insecurities about the outcome of their date fused into a beautiful emotion.
love
he scanned his surroundings carefully before pressing beomgyu against a wall which surprised the older pleasantly. unlike beomgyu, taehyun had a determined fire in his eyes, a passion that could move universes, compared to the slightly intrigued and curious expression that beomgyu had.
“ taehyun-ah what are you — ”
beomgyu felt something cushiony and soft against his lips. his mind went haywire when he realised that the younger was kissing him softly and slowly, not caring if anyone found them doing the deed in the corner of the museum. the kiss felt like it lasted forevermore — their breaths miggling together, beomgyu’s hand supporting taehyun’s waist as taehyun gently rubbed the skin on his cheek before moving his hands into the older’s soft fluffy hair.
it was bliss, it was euphoria
beomgyu pulled taehyun closer as he switched their positions, so that taehyun was pressed against wall. he gently cradled his face and kissed him deeply like there was no tomorrow.
beomgyu parted, only to rest his forehead against the younger’s, his breathing quick and soft.
“what was that for?” he asked the younger, breathless from their little moment.
taehyun searched beomgyu’s eyes for an honest love, but a sun doesn’t lie when it shines. taehyun’s laugh held a tinkling melody as he responded,
“ well, i want to be your psyche if you let me darling. ”
beomgyu snuggled his nose into taehyun’s neck and grabbed his hand, so as to intertwine them together. their quiet breaths and words shared in secrecy sounded a lot like i love you in so many ways.
and so, they went back, not as beomgyu and taehyun; but as cupid and psyche , desperate to love each other against everything that the society threw at them. it was them against the world.
it was their new beginning.
taehyun remembers falling asleep before beomgyu arrived from work. he promised himself that he wouldn’t, but some things are hard to do when eyelids weigh heavy.
but he remembers his shuffling, hearing the sighs once he came home — feeling the light from his closet on his cheek before it being quickly turned off because beomgyu didn’t want to disturb him. and taehyun slept better knowing that he was home again; breathed easier when he pulled back the sheets to join him.
it only made sense for them to stay like this, taehyun’s head on beomgyu’s chest —and he knew the older would do the same because no time is ever long enough, and it’s impossible to cover the clocks, put phones on do not disturb.
beomgyu’s chin dips and a crease forms between his eyebrows. taehyun holds himself back from waking his beloved up. he thought his dreams had gone dark and nightmarish, but it’s the first step in the older’s routine that the latter will never see. beomgyu, instinctively looks for something to wrap his arms around and taehyun presses his lips against his forehead. in their few months of being together, beomgyu has become precious, so sweet and pure to taehyun.
finally, oh finally; beomgyu opens his eyes, his eyelids fluttering as taehyun runs his fingertips against his jaw and boops his nose.
the day is fresh, it’s brand new like the eternal adoration they have for each other.
“ it’s good to see you ” beomgyu always starts, instead of saying good morning. and taehyun cannot help but hum delightfully at how gentle and loving beomgyu sounds each morning, just feeling like him.
“ i’ve been waiting for your eyes. not sure how much longer i could’ve taken without seeing them ” and their comfort. honestly, taehyun wasn’t even sure if beomgyu knew how much comfort he radiated.
so he opens them wider, and guides him closer to them.
“ happy now? ”
“ the happiest ”
and they lay together, for as long as they can; talking like there is so much to learn, so many thoughts to share, so many suppressed feelings to set free.
at some point, beomgyu’s head ends up on his lap, his smile absolutely radiant with taehyun’s fingers running through his chocolate brown locks. it’s like they know their time is coming, that there’s an entrusted lover who will listen soon.
for taehyun, soon is easy to do when the entrusted lover is the man holding his hand, with his deep brown eyes and another it’s good to see you.
just like psyche and cupid were destined to be together, the tuilleres neighbourhood knew, the little apartment at the corner of rue du louvre belonged to beomgyu and taehyun; and that beomgyu and taehyun, belonged to each other.