Chapter Text
Today’s the day. Today is Mark Lee’s first day working his dream job at his favorite place in the entire world, the library. A wide grin is set on his face as the squeaky door opens, hit with a wall of cool air as he hears a swell of k-drama music play in his head and envisions a fully choreographed dance routine of staff and patrons twirling around with all his favorite books held in the air.
He’s greeted by a warm Taeyong, his new manager who will be doing his training this morning, cotton candy pink and blue hair styled cooly, dressed in a casual button up and slacks. Mark had stood in front of the small mirror in his apartment for hours earlier, trying to decide what to wear. The short text he had received from Taeyong had been unhelpful with this mountain of a task, simply telling him to “dress comfortably.” He knew better than to wear ratty sweatpants at this new job, which if you asked him, was normally what constituted as true comfort. He had settled on some baggier but rip-less denim and a colorful plaid button up he had thrifted (shockingly, from Ralph Lauren POLO brand?!) and threw a dark denim bucket hat on on his way out, covering his chestnut brown locks on his walk to the bus stop.
Taeyong walked him through the basics of reshelving books and other daily tasks, much of which he was well versed in, having spent the first few months of living in town at this very library. Still, he listened attentively, even jotting down notes in a tiny, leather-bound notebook he kept in this perfectly sized pocket on the side of his jeans. He had stolen a tiny pencil from Ikea but used it down to where it was becoming almost uncomfortable to write with. The first day blew by and soon he was excitedly chatting his roommate Chenle’s ear off about his first day over celebratory beers and fried rice.
“I even helped someone find a book ! Can you even believe that, Chenle?!” Mark half yelled, pieces of egg falling from his mouth as he neglected chewing entirely.
“Yeah Mark, you work at the fucking library, of course I can believe that,” Chenle had sighed, exasperated, but his toothy grin was doing little to convey annoyance.
Three months later, a rickety desk fan is blowing hot air on Mark’s sweaty face, his head only held up by his hand that was starting to get tingly under the weight. The honeymoon period with the love of his life (Ms. Library) had been short lived due to the untimely passing of a love he never appreciated enough when he had her - the air conditioning. Turns out, his beloved building was a little older (nothing wrong with that) and the town was experiencing their annual summer heat wave. The technicians had been working all week on repairing the unit and Taeyong was doing everything to keep the building open as a place for kids to visit on summer break.
Mark moves from his chair and pulls a water bottle from the cooler by the front door, holding the condensation covered plastic to the back of his neck and then to his forehead, pushing up his bangs that were stuck there. He sighs audibly, clicking absently on the ancient desktop computer on the circulation desk, begging the thing to not lock and prompt him for the absurdly long password he had to type in. He had barely seen another soul the whole day, as most of the regulars had learned earlier that week of the lack of air conditioning. Even some of the teenage girls who used the study rooms for the free wifi and a place to unbox their kpop albums in peace were nowhere to be found. His favorite grandma hadn’t stopped by to bring him a small cake or cookie wrapped in a napkin, always crumbly but always delicious.
Suddenly, the automatic front door to the lobby swings open and Mark swears the air outside feels cooler than the thick, stale cloud that has his plain white t-shirt sticking to his chest in all the unflattering places. He had taken a sip of water at that exact moment and instantly regretted it as he is faced with the most attractive man he had ever seen in his entire life, quickly approaching the circulation desk.
The first thing Mark notices are bulging arm muscles, peaking out from under crisp white cotton of an every-so-slightly-too-tight tee with large, floral ink covering his bicep. Mark always did have a thing for strong arms. There’s a leather watch on his left wrist, simple and classic, making Mark wonder who even still wears a watch anymore. His Space Jam themed Bugs Bunny watch had run out of battery in college, which was probably for the best.
The black leather boots and dark denim with a shimmery finish are too cool an outfit for a boring Tuesday afternoon at the local library and the leather bag held up by a strong shoulder looks expensive. His hair is dark and covering his forehead, longer at the back of his neck and curling deliciously. He looks like he just stepped off a photoshoot set and the sight has Mark smoothing his slightly wrinkled tee he had thrown on that morning in a hurry to get out the door.
Water dribbles down Mark’s chin as he does everything possible to clear his throat of the burning, choking feeling as water fills his nasal cavity and windpipe. He wipes a sweaty hand over his chin and neck, arms feeling like they aren't even attached to his body anymore.
“Can I - ahem - can I, uh, like, uh help you? How can I help you, today?” Mark stumbles through speech as if he had just landed on Earth and is making first contact with its inhabitants.
The sexy man smiles a warm smile, plush lips unfolding and blossoming into an expression that made Mark melt even more. It seems knowing, filled with happiness and comfort, as if he could see right through Mark’s panic and didn’t mind that a stranger was ogling at him.
“I had a couple books on hold that I was hoping to grab,” the mystery man pauses, eyes flicking down to the lanyard around Mark’s neck and then back to his face, “Mark, from Canada!” he finishes with a sound of surprise.
Mark flushes even further, catching a glimpse of his reflection in the shine of the computer monitor that had definitely just locked in the time he hadn’t been jiggling the mouse. His face is beet red, all the way to the tips of his ears. Taeyong had made them these Animal Crossing themed nametags with their first names and where they were from, saying it would help them “connect with the community” if they wore them on their lanyards. Until now, it had only meant that his coworkers started singing “Ohhhh Canadaaaa” whenever he walked into the staff room.
“And you are?” Mark replies quickly when he sees Johnny’s smile widen again, eyes narrowing slightly as if a teasing remark is just at the tip of his tongue.
“For the book hold! What’s the name?” Mark adds on at record speed, turning to face the cart of books behind him to begin searching but also to hide his embarrassment.
“Suh, Johnny,” comes the warm voice behind him and Mark quickly finds the books, sliding them across the desk after scanning the barcodes.
“Thank you, I’ll see you around then, Mark,” Johnny says, offering a small wave before turning and walking out into the parking lot. Mark cranes his neck over the desk, trying to see what car he walks to.
Who the hell was that?
A week later, as if like clockwork, Johnny returns in an equally devastating outfit and those damn biceps showing again. He’s there to use a printer as his had run out of ink. Ever the most dedicated worker, Mark nearly shoves Jisung out of the way when he tries to show Johnny to the computers that are connected to the printer. Jisung glares at Mark, but it’s worth it to walk alongside Johnny for a few moments and unlock the computer with his admin password. Johnny is considerably taller than him but seems to bend his head a little whenever Mark speaks so they can converse easier. Johnny even winks at him as he waves the large stack of paper in his direction as he flies out the door fifteen minutes later. Mark sinks his chin into his palm, slumping back into his chair. He silently stews when he hears Jisung stifle a chuckle next to him.
“You like fantasy books?” Mark blurts out a few weeks later as he slides Johnny’s holds across the counter. He seemed to be one of library members who preferred to place holds for books online rather than stop in to browse. It made sense for someone younger and more tech savvy, especially when he was apparently reading the latest popular vampire romance book that was taking BookTok by storm. He must have placed the hold months ago as Mark hadn't even had a chance to check it out yet.
Johnny laughs his same warm chuckle, the sound coming from deep inside his chest as he plays a large hand on the linoleum counter top and leans in closer to Mark lifting a finger to his lips.
“Shhhh don’t blow my cover. I’m supposed to have a cool air of mystery and style,” he whispers, lips quirking up at the end and into a smirk.
Mark has to remind himself to breathe as he inhales the scent of Johnny’s cologne. He’s not a big fragrance guy but whatever the hell he was wearing smelled irresistible. All he can do is nod and blink, staring into Johnny’s dark brown eyes that are now inches from his own.
“Well uh, I read that kind of stuff too. Even though I’m pretty sure no one thinks I’m mysterious or cool,” Mark says as he regains his composure, scanning the two books that had been held together with a rubber band.
“Oh yeah? Have you read the Swallow Chronicles series? It’s kind of similar to this one,” Johnny asks, leaning against his arm that is resting on the counter.
“Of course! I’ve read them all! Kind of waiting to see if we are ever going to get another book though,” Mark lights up at the mention of one of his favorite series. He even had a failed TikTok account where he had tried to make content about the series and gave up when he realized how much editing he had to do when he would talk about one chapter for thirty minutes.
“Yeah, heard the author was on a little break from writing so who knows how long it will be,” Johnny replies, eyes flicking up and down Mark’s frame as he watches him speak with such animation.
“I mean, as much as I get it, I feel like they really owe us, you know?! Such a cliffhanger in the last book with the Vampire King reveal and who he was going to sacrifice as part of the Jaguar Games. The obvious choice is Tenebris, because he is clearly evil but I will simply have to end it all if they kill off Lucien, the love of my life,” Mark rambles, clicking a couple things in the system to confirm the held books were picked up.
Mark pales, realizing that he may have revealed too much of his nerd self in the middle of his job, in front of his crush.
“Uh, sorry…here’s your books,” Mark continues, sliding the two across the counter to Johnny.
“Don’t apologize, it’s cute,” Johnny replies simply, grabbing the books with his large palm and holding them at his hip as he turns and waves that same wave in goodbye to Mark. He swears he caught him staring at his lips before he turned away.
“Oh Markieeee, but I think you’re cool!” Jisung coos from his spot on the floor where he is reshelving manga for the fifth time that day. Mark throws a crumpled up receipt at him in retaliation.
“You could just ask hot guy out,” Chenle says between sips of beer on Saturday night, arm stretched out across the sticky booth at the dive bar around the corner from their apartment.
“I can’t ask him out! I can barely show my face again after rambling about the damn Vampire King in the middle of my shift,” Mark sighs, palm sliding down his face in anguish.
“I mean, you said he reads the same stuff as you, I think it’s worth a shot, dude,” Chenle replies, shaking his head at his best friend and finishing the rest of both of their beers.
“It might mean he’s into that freaky sex from the books too, don’t they like bite each other and then mix their blood with their cu-” Chenle is cut off by Mark’s hand slammed across his mouth before he can finish. Mark is so done for.
“I thought you were boycotting the series until the author revealed who was going to die,” Johnny’s smooth voice breaks Mark’s concentration as he flipps the page in his book, leaning dangerously back in his chair.
Mark looks up and pushes a blank receipt from the printer into the pages as a bookmark, letting his hand fall on top of the cover, embarrassed, caught reading on the job.
“Yeah yeah I know,” Mark laughs back, stretching his arms high above his head and straightening back up on the chair.
“But I convinced my friend to read the series so I’m reading along with her so I can explain everything in excruciating detail, like the good nerd I am,” Mark shares with pride.
“John,” interrupts a voice and Mark has to peer around Johnny to get a better look. It’s coming from a tall, dark haired man grey denim and a blue striped button down, open over a white tee. He’s not as tall as Johnny but just as attractive, with delicate features and a striking nose.
“Coming!” Johnny replies simply, waving the mystery man off with a casual motion. He receives an eye roll in reply, the other man turning his attention to his phone, scrolling with an annoyed air about him. They seem close and Mark is trying to analyze every interaction for any signs of what their relationship actually may be.
“No books for you today?” Mark asks, hopeful he can keep the conversation going for a little longer.
“Nah, was thinking about checking that one out, by the adorable librarian I always talk to seems to have beat me to it,” Johnny flirts boldly, poking the cover of the book as punctuation.
“Oh god, I’m sorry! I have my own copies at home, I was just reading this here for convenience! Who am I to deprive a fellow romance reader of Olea Helianthus’ genius!” Mark half yells, smile stretching across his face as he exaggerates for show.
Johnny laughs a deep belly laugh, almost bending at the waist as his torso shakes, clapping his hand on the desk and causing the other man to look up momentarily from his phone.
“You’re pretty funny when you’re not so nervous, Mark from Canada,” Johnny replies, turning on his heel as he always does and flashing that million watt smile once more before he’s slinging his arm around the other man’s shoulder, dragging him through the automatic front door.
Mark sinks back into his chair, unsure of when he stood up, tracing his fingers absently over the ornate cover of the book, feeling the raised letters under his fingertip to soothe his racing heart. He’s about 75% sure Johnny was flirting with him but the other 25% of his brain is screaming at him that the other man is the love of Johnny’s life, his husband, his life partner, his soulmate with a binding blood pact recognized by Lucifer. Mark needed a nap.
It’s been a few weeks since Johnny has visited the library (with or without mysterious other hot guy), at least when Mark was working. He has resisted the ever tempting urge to check in the system to see if he has checked out any books since he last worked and would rather die than ask Taeyong if he had seen him come in. He’s helping move a large section of children’s books to another area of the library where they are preparing for a community event, rolling a large cart filled with colorful spines and a few stuffed animals when he nearly runs into Johnny.
He looks good, as always, hair slightly damp from the drizzling day they are having and a brown leather jacket covering a white tank top (thankfully also covering his distracting biceps).
“Mark! I was looking for you!” Johnny calls out, making his way over to him and his big cart of children’s books.
“Really?” Mark tries not to sound too surprised, nervously fidgeting with the stuffed bear hanging off the top rack of the cart.
“Yeah, I was hoping you could help me with some research I’m doing. I need to find some old newspaper articles and from looking online, it seems like the library has some here in hard copy. I just don’t want to mess anything up since they are all pretty old.”
“Oh yeah, cool yeah, of course. I can help you,” Mark nods, head bobbing almost comically as Johnny speaks. “My job, I can do my job!”
Jisung reluctantly takes over the task of carting the books to the basement, mumbling something about “pretty privilege” as he slowly rolls across the ancient carpeted floor.
Mark leads Johnny upstairs, walking mostly in silence as Johnny tells him what they are looking for and showing him what he found on the library website. Mark rubs his palms against the fabric of his shorts, hoping Johnny can’t see how much he’s sweating.
“Ill grab the newspapers, you can wait here,” Mark tells Johnny when they get to one of the tables, walking through the door to the archive hall, tall bookshelves holding large portfolios of newspapers and magazines.
Johnny sits in one of the chairs, scribbling something with an expensive looking pen, in a notebook that looks like it has seen a good amount of use. Something about it makes Mark smile as watches him through the glass panel in the door.
An hour later, they have a system down, Johnny tells Mark what dates he’s looking for and Mark flips through the pages to find the correct issue, carefully pulls it out and lays it on the table for Johnny to take pictures of the article he needs. Their fingers brush every other hand off or so and Mark can feel the blush spreading up to his ears by the 10th time it happens.
“So what are you like, doing a PhD or something?” Mark asks, making eye contact with him and relishing in the way his eyes sparkle as he listens to the question.
“Something like that,” Johnny chuckles, playfully looping his pinky onto Mark’s.
“So what, are you like flirting with me or something?” Mark finds a shred of boldness in his body and says it with his eyes half shut and his head shaking in disbelief as he speaks.
Johnny leans in, eyes darting up and down Mark’s body, leaning closer to his chair as he smiles wide.
Mark gulps.
Johnny’s hand is fully covering Mark’s in an instant and Mark begs his brain to push away the thoughts of the size difference. He lets Johnny drag him into the archive hall, the door swinging behind them and the dim lighting casting shadows over the pair as Johnny lightly pushes Mark against the wall.
“W-What are you doing?” Mark squeaks out, feeling sweat prick at his hairline.
“I am flirting with you,” Johnny smiles down at him and pulls Mark’s belt loops to press their hips together. “Or something.”
Mark’s hands are at the back of Johnny’s neck in an instant, pulling him down to press his lips firmly against those plush ones he’s been dreaming of for what feels like a lifetime. He can feel Johnny’s surprise melt into a smile before he’s kissing him back, hard.
Johnny’s hips grind against his, the pressure sending a bolt of arousal to his groin. His whole body feels like it’s on fire and all he can do is kiss back and try to figure out where to put his hands. He lands on keeping a tight grip on Johnny’s neck, fingertips brushing up against the longer strands of hair there.
Johnny re-angles his hips and slides his thumbs up under Mark’s t-shirt, which causes him to let out an embarrassing whimper, swallowed up quickly by Johnny as he takes the opportunity to slip his tongue in his waiting mouth. Mark’s glad for the position, because if Johnny weren’t holding him up, he would surely be melted into a puddle on the ground.
“The library will close in 10 minutes, please make your way to the exits at this time. Please visit the circulation desk to return any study room keys or rented devices. Thank you,” Taeyong’s voice comes crackling out of the speakers in the ceiling, doing his best impression of Isabelle reading the daily announcements.
The sudden noise startles Mark and he clutches onto Johnny’s biceps like he is drowning. When he realizes he is digging blunt nails into skin, he rips his hands away (and can almost swear he sees a disappointed look in Johnny’s eyes).
“Oh my god, that was scary,” Mark blurts out, hand clutching his chest as if he had just seen a ghost.
“I didn’t realize how late it was, I better get going before I get you in trouble,” Johnny mumbles with a glance at his watch, almost nervously, as he scratches the back of his neck.
They walk in step with one another, elbows brushing every few steps, back to the table with all the newspapers spread out and Johnny’s notebook on the corner of the table. He tucks it under his arm and is about to turn to walk out when he turns back to Mark, pressing a firm hand to his hip, pushing him into the table. His lips are on Mark’s again, this time soft and tender, with less urgency and passion than before. The kiss is over as soon as Mark’s eyes slip shut, pushing his chin up in hopes of keeping their lips locked for longer.
“See you again soon, cutie,” is all he says before he’s gone and the warmth of his hand is still burning into the skin of Mark's hip. He can barely keep his eyes open, his mind running a million miles a minute before he realizes he needs to clean up all the papers before one of the older librarians comes upstairs and yells at him. He begins sliding them back into their plastic sleeves and organizing them chronologically with care.
Wait a minute… Mark pauses as his fingers trace over the top page of the newspaper. The dates of the issues are blaring red sirens in his brain as he sinks down into the chair again. There’s a slightly crumpled piece of paper that must have fallen from Johnny’s notebook, it seems to be a printed page of dense text. In scanning it, Mark immediately recognizes character names, scenery descriptions, writing style - all Helianthus.
“John, you need to do more research on this part, go find some newspaper articles that actually show what was going on at this time to make it feel more realistic.”
It’s a scrawled note in red pen, calling out a section that talks about rumors of vampire sightings and a suspicious string of murders in Chicago in the 1950s. Oh god.
Johnny Suh.
His library crush.
The man he has pined for for months.
Is the author of his favorite book series?!
Johnny is Olea Helianthus.
And Mark just made out with him at his job.