just like this (let's be forever)

Posted originally on the Archive of Our Own at http://archiveofourown.org/works/12143262.

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Archive Warning: Choose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Category: M/M
Fandom: EXO (Band)
Relationship: Kim Jongdae | Chen/Park Chanyeol
Character: Kim Jongdae | Chen, Park Chanyeol, EXO Ensemble, Toben
(Chanyeol's Dog)
Additional Tags: Baby Toben, soft fic, Soft Kisses
Collections: EXOHOUSEWARMING SUMMER 2017 ROUND
Stats: Published: 2017-09-20 Words: 2107

just like this (let's be forever)

by exohousewarming, hanijima

Summary

Prompt number: SELF PROMPT #1

Summary: It’s love, Chanyeol knows it is, or rather, something close to it.

Notes

Author Note: title from exo’s forever! also many many thanks to my wonderful beta J, i
wouldn’t have finished this fic without your support and encouragement! also to the mods
and readers of the fest much love to you all!

There’s just something euphoric about coming home. Toben is already by the doorway, greeting him
with excited barks. (“He’s only a year old! A baby!” Chanyeol remembers Sehun telling him. “We
need to arrange a playdate with Jongin’s kids too.” Jongdae had just laughed at the thought of Sehun
throwing a puppy party with the pups running around, wearing birthday hats.) They both adopted
Toben from the dog pound just a few months after they finally rented out their own pet-friendly
apartment. It was rough at first, when they had to leave Toben all alone in the house for hours.
Admittedly, it was nice that the kid from down the hall didn’t mind dog-sitting for them every once
in awhile until Toben got comfortable staying in the house by himself.

“Hi there, baby.” He scoops up the puppy and coos in his ears. Toben will also probably whine at
Jongdae later, asking to be coddled and fawned over when he gets back from a meeting with parents
at the school.

Chanyeol scratches behind Toben’s ears before settling him onto the bed. “Wanna go out for a
walk?” Chanyeol asks when he’s shucked off all his stuffy presentation clothes and changed into one
of his favorite hoodies. Toben yips at him excitedly. He’s going to get an earful from Jongdae later
for letting Toben on the bed, so he sneakily covers the place Toben jumped on with one of his
hoodies –the purple one with the words “sexual fantasies” printed on the front. Jongdae’s probably
going to change into that one when he gets back and it’s cute that he’s the one who constantly wears
it despite it being his birthday gift for Chanyeol.

Toben leaps off the bed and Chanyeol poses to catch him in his arms. Only to see Toben run straight
for the door, barking expectantly at Chanyeol. Chanyeol grins fondly, “alright, alright. We’re going.”

It’s love, Chanyeol knows it is, or rather, something close to it.

Jongdae is already sleeping on the bed when they get back. He’s snoring comfortably in the hoodie
Chanyeol predicted he’d be wearing and it takes so much from Chanyeol not to swoon. He slips
under their shared Rilakkuma sheets, careful not to wake Jongdae up from one his scheduled naps.
To Chanyeol’s surprise, Jongdae turns around and wraps his arms around him. He’s still asleep,
probably mistaking Chanyeol for a giant pillow. Jongdae flounders to find a comfortable position
with his newfound pillow and only settles down when he’s got Chanyeol tucked under his chin, and
then lets out a satisfied hum.

Chanyeol is more than happy to cuddle up with him like this –limbs placed where Jongdae’s sleeping
mind finds appropriate, curling into himself and feeling Jongdae’s arms wrap around him, bringing a
happy warmth his blankets can never hope to give. Chanyeol isn’t really sure if Jongdae is awake
now, when he feels Jongdae’s soft kisses on the back of his neck. As much as Chanyeol likes being
engulfed in Jongdae’s arms, he’d much rather be seeing Jongdae’s face right now, just now, to see
the exact moment when Jongdae’s stress melts away as he traces soft circles on Jongdae’s hand. The
intervals between twitches seem to be increasing, and Chanyeol only lets himself fall asleep too
when he feels the gap close into infinity.

Chanyeol stirs awake, feeling the purple and orange lights threatening to fade to black, taking it as a
cue to wake Jongdae up too. Nap time is always good, but at this rate, they wouldn’t be able to order
from the Chinese takeout restaurant three blocks down. They’re always packed on Wednesdays and
even though they still deliver, it takes them three times the normal delivery time.

“Jongdae-ah, get up,” Chanyeol whispers. His voice is a little throaty, mouth dry as his
embarrassingly chapped lips. Chanyeol is still caged in Jongdae’s embrace, but at least this time,
Chanyeol can see him in his peripheral vision. “Dae-ah, let’s order dinner.”

“Don’t wanna,” comes the mumbled reply onto the crook where Chanyeol’s shoulder and neck
meet. “You’re too soft to let go.”

“We can skip dinner but we still have to feed Toben.”

“Nice try smart-ass.” Jongdae laughs. “You’re not skipping dinner. You’re still on medication.”
Chanyeol shrugs. “It was worth a shot.”

Jongdae presses a kiss on his neck. “Of course it was. I’m awake now, anyway. Thank you.”

Jongdae loves taking long baths, Chanyeol is a hundred percent sure. It’s debatable if he regrets
letting Chanyeol fit his long limbs in the bathtub with him when he’s taking one, though. Because
Jongdae whines about not enough space and how Toben’s pitiful whines hurt him as the puppy
looks on at them (read: Chanyeol) splashing water against each other. Jongdae doesn’t regret much,
he says, but he does scold Chanyeol for playing too long that he ends up sniffling afterwards. But
Chanyeol knows Jongdae gives good hugs, big warm hugs that envelop Chanyeol to sleep most of
the time when he needs it. But tonight, it’s Chanyeol’s turn to be the big spoon, with Jongdae already
tucked comfortably inside his arms, limbs tangled in a way Jongdae likes and Jongdae’s humming a
soft tune for the both of them, but he falls asleep first, stress melting away from his shoulders. Toben
jumps onto the bed, wriggles his way between them and, in Jongdae’s sleep, he nuzzles into the little
dog like his life depended on it.

Chanyeol smiles before drifting off to sleep too.

Breakfast is always a hurried affair for the two of them. Three if Toben bothers to wake up with
them. Chanyeol likes cooking hearty breakfast and lunch, meanwhile Jongdae really likes to drape
himself over Chanyeol’s back, clinging like a koala. Chanyeol is clingy, but a half asleep Jongdae
without his morning coffee fix is even clingier.

“You know, you should stop drinking instant coffee. We have this coffee machine for a reason,”
Jongdae says, sipping from his dignified Americano. “It’s not good for your health.”

“Coffee in general isn’t good for you,” he messes up Jongdae’s hair as he leans in to kiss the mole on
his eyebrow. It’s the cutest mole he has.

Jongdae whines, plops himself onto the kitchen counter and snatches a few cut up pieces of bacon
from the pan. Chanyeol swats his chopsticks away and tries to give him a look. But just like with
Toben’s begging face, Chanyeol is weak for his boyfriend. He turns off the heat and just proceeds to
feed Jongdae himself.

“You’re so whipped Chanyeol, it’s funny.” He says that, but when Chanyeol wants something
stupid like a giant jar of jelly worms, Jongdae always puts up a fake fight against buying it. But when
it’s about Chanyeol asking to be the little spoon he doesn’t hesitate at all, just making space for
Chanyeol and wrapping whatever his short arms can reach. If Chanyeol wants kisses, wants to be
pet, wants to go out for ice cream dinner, Jongdae acquesies too.

It’s so blissful, whatever they have now. But sometimes, Chanyeol’s brain doesn’t remember how
much Jongdae cares for him. Not really forget, but sometimes he just can’t believe it.

Maybe, Chanyeol thinks, maybe Jongdae gets tired of him being whiney. Sure, Jongdae is labelled
as the whiniest by their friends, but it’s aegyo, it’s adorable. Chanyeol is cute too, Jongdae says, over
and over again.
Afternoon cuddles are definitely not the time for Chanyeol to have bad thoughts. He shouldn’t be
having bad thoughts when Jongdae is practically half lying on top of him, reading a book, looking
unbearably adorable with his reading glasses perched on his nose. Chanyeol leans down quickly to
kiss the nearest mole on his temple, just because.

He feels Jongdae’s laugh on his chest, and when he looks up, his eyes are practically glinting with
mischief. He sees Jongdae shove his feet into the gap between the couch’s cushion and the opposite
arm of the couch as he shifts into a more comfortable position. He’s mumbling something Chanyeol
can’t make out, maybe whining about how Chanyeol can never out whine him, or maybe for
distracting him on his readings.

“Mumbles.” Chanyeol says as he fixes the pin that keeps Jongdae’s hair from his face. Jongdae looks
back up at him and grins.

“Does it tickle?” Jongdae drops the book onto the ground to prod a finger on Chanyeol’s side, then
teasingly slides it up and down, tracing where Chanyeol’s ribs should be poking out if he stopped
eating again.

“It does now when you’re purposefully trying to get hit.”

“You wouldn’t hit me,” Jongdae challenges him. He wouldn’t hit him, but he would kiss him again
and again. No matter how many times Chanyeol kisses that smile, that pout, those same curly lips, it
never ceases to amaze him, to leave him awestruck. But that was never the point of his kisses. He
kisses Jongdae because it feels like basking in the sun after a week-long rain that never seemed to
stop. It’s a warm feeling he doesn’t have enough words for but he’d rather much express in a song.
Jongdae is that percussion beat in a slow song that fades and turns into a fast piano that reminds him
of spring. It’s like realizing again for the first time how he’s so moved by Jongdae’s unwavering
kindness, his laugh, his everything. It’s like falling in love all over again.

Jongdae stops tickling him and presses a finger on Chanyeol’s nose. “You’re doing the scrunchy
face again. You’re still upset about Minseok-hyung calling you whiney?”

“Well, he’s not wrong,” Chanyeol pouts. “Maybe you’ve influenced me too much that Minseok-
hyung has renamed me his least favourite dongsaeng.”

This time, when Jongdae laughs wholeheartedly, Chanyeol gets to see his eyes crinkle into crescents
and his lips pull before he buries his face in Chanyeol’s chest. “Who said you were his favourite in
the first place? Sehun would kick you just for thinking that.”

Jongdae’s still laughing, rolling onto his side to alleviate the weight on Chanyeol. He makes a grab
for Jongdae’s hand and without any preamble, easily intertwines their fingers. He feels warm,
warmer than the sun on this cold afternoon. “Sehun doesn’t count. He’s the maknae.” Chanyeol says
childishly, lips turning into a pout.

Jongdae doesn’t seem to have an answer to that, so Chanyeol swoops in for a kiss, lingering for as
long as he can until he feels Jongdae pushing himself up.

“What’s wrong?” Chanyeol asks, lips stuck into a pout again. He can still feel Jongdae’s warmth on
his lips and he really, really wants to kiss him some more just to savor the moment. But then Jongdae
is pulling Chanyeol into his lap, both legs on either of his sides and he feels Jongdae slide a hand into
the back pocket of his jeans.

“Just wanted to get you comfortable, baby.” Chanyeol laughs, leans into Jongdae’s personal space
and laughs. Of course Jongdae would do this, would find ways to distract Chanyeol and stop all the
bad thoughts. It’s going to be a long weekend, and frankly, all his academic responsibilities can wait
until Sunday afternoon after their scheduled ice cream dates and sharing tons of kisses under the
blanket forts for movie marathons.

Jongdae holds his face in his hands and he stares at Chanyeol’s eyes so intently that it’s so hard for
Chanyeol to look away. He feels so loved, so cared for, very important to Jongdae.

“You’re my favorite, whiniest or not. And if you like being whinier than me, then it’s fine, okay?”
Jongdae peppers his face with soft fluttering kisses starting from his forehead, to his nose, to his
cheeks and finally, to his lips. Chanyeol basks in everything Jongdae gives him, leans into his hands
like he’s giving back all the love Jongdae showers him with. “You’re absolutely wonderful,
Chanyeol.”

And Chanyeol preens at the praises, feels his heart swell with affection as he moves down and
returns the kisses a little more passionately. He traces his own pattern, kisses the curls of Jongdae’s
lips, kisses the mole in immediate range and kisses him again on his lips. If he could, if Jongdae
would let him, he’d draw kisses everywhere, map him up again and just love him. Chanyeol isn’t
very good with words but he does hope that every kiss he gives Jongdae is just as much as an ‘I love
you’ could equate too. Because he loves Jongdae, and wonderfully, wistfully, Jongdae loves him
too. It’s all he could ever dare to want in their small short lived lives.

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