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sytco · 3 years

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hello! can i request #25 & #31 with golcha’s donghyun? the genre would be fluff and the pronouns would be she/her. thank u💖

Prompts: #25 [“Is this the part where we kiss?”] & #31 [“I’ve noticed that you’re always here this time of day, and so am I.”]

Member: Kim Donghyun

Genre: Fluff

Reader pronouns: She/her

Warnings: N/A

Word Count: 3.5k

M.list

A/N: i wanted to do something kinda special for this one. i hope u like it!! (the second prompt was kinda bulky so i made it more natural-sounding)

The transit center; a place that becomes almost liminal in the early morning hours when the sun has barely begun rising and the city is just cracking its concrete eyes open. It is a block’s worth of sidewalk, covered to protect riders from bad weather, with a few roads intersecting through for the buses.

A couple security guards can be seen roaming around, sometimes taking the elevator up to the platform above that leads to a nearby parking garage. It’s a bland looking place, the pavement a familiar, cold grey while the plexiglass platform and sky bridge are a nearly transparent, teal color.

Ever since you landed a nice job in the heart of the city, you’ve had to take the bus early in the morning. There are all kinds of people going and returning from different places—business types and college students are who you mostly pick out.

But, among these people, one always stands out when your eyes dance along the spacious area in an attempt to keep themselves from closing.

A man of around your age with raven hair and purple, bulky headphones. He is always at the transit center in the mornings, and you even take the same bus, but you never speak to one another. Haven’t even introduced yourselves before.

This is mostly due to you not being a morning person at all, and the fact that he can almost always be seen with those headphones covering his ears; when you're close enough, you can make out the music he listens to. Always something easy going like slow r&b or bedroom pop.

Even with no introduction, there’s this kind of silent camaraderie shared between the two of you—wherein if somebody decides to cause a commotion at 6am, he moves a respectable distance away from you, keeping an eye on you. Especially when you’re zoned out due to it being so early.

The same gesture is made when he is sucked into his phone with his music blaring and doesn’t notice that the bus has arrived. You‘ll gently tap his shoulder so he doesn’t miss it.

It’s one of those acquaintanceships that you gain when you live in the city; something that’s pleasant but not as invasive as a proper friendship. You’re fine with never learning this stranger’s name for however long you two continue seeing each other at the transit center.

He seems to be the same way, the type of person that minds their business but is still kind to others. Although, you can’t help but to be a bit curious about him. You sometimes try to piece together the beginnings of a personality based solely on his clothes or the music you hear him listening to.

His hair is usually styled in a purposefully semi-messy manner, otherwise hidden by a hat of some sort. And his fashion is very tasteful in your opinion. You often catch him in a jeans, hoodie, jacket, sneakers combo. Sometimes overalls or the odd button-up, but he most often keeps it casual.

He is the type to appear cold upon first sight, his expression blank for the most part. But on days where you help him not miss the bus or when he can tell that the person near you is making you uneasy, he will lend you his warm smile for just a moment.

You’ve only heard his voice once.

It happened when a man that looked to be in his 60’s approached you and began talking as if he knew you, showing off how much of an absolute creep he could be.

Your acquaintance was unaware for a minute, nose buried in his phone and headphones on. But then he glanced over and saw the discomfort settling into your expression.

He didn’t like that one bit, immediately pushed his headphones off so they rested on his shoulders and made his way over to you. He greeted you casually and made a show of telling you that he didn’t know you already arrived, feigning bashfulness whilst urging you to play along with his eyes.

Surprised but not oblivious, you replied to him enthusiastically, telling him that you missed him with a giant, grateful grin on your face. The old man quickly got the message and scoffed, walking off to the other end of the terminal.

Once out of sight, you let out a huge sigh and relaxed your tensed muscles. Not knowing what else to say, you gave your acquaintance your thanks. To which he nodded and casually slipped his headphones back on, moving so that he was standing a comfortable distance away from you and effectively ending the interaction.

In the moment, you wondered why he didn’t just go back to where he originally was. Now that you think about it, you realize that he didn’t want you to feel as if you were alone.

From that day forward, your acquaintance made an unvoiced declaration to stick near you. Whoever arrived second would find the other and situate themselves a few feet away.

This is what really cemented your unconventional tendency to look out for one another. You knew that you had somebody. That you weren’t alone amongst the sea of people flowing in and out of buses.

—

In the 4 months that you’ve had this job, you haven’t learnt your acquaintance's name. Haven’t had a good opportunity nor the guts to do so. You thought about asking him during your first and only conversation, but he was too quick to push his headphones back on.

Maybe, after all, he doesn’t want to know you or be known. You’ve nearly come to terms with the fact that you two are forever destined to be strangers that share the same space for a small fraction of your mornings.

Until the day the bus doesn’t arrive on time.

Nor does it show up 20 minutes later. That's when you know something is definitely wrong, even though the digital signs display no delay message. They just keep showing that the bus is 1 minute away, still refreshing every 5 minutes.

You become antsy, crossing and uncrossing your legs on the metal bench. It’s one of the colder mornings, today’s forecast calling for cloudy skies and rain later on. And you dumbly wore a skirt, assuming that the bus’s heaters would relieve you once it arrived on time. You spare your acquaintance a worried glance.

Only to find that he is already looking at you. He purses his lips and glances at the digital sign, finding no change. He looks back at you and opens his mouth, but then hesitates for a second. The usually stoic man appears… nervous, to your utter surprise.

“Uh, I noticed you’re always here this time of day, and so am I.”

You crease your brow at him, not expecting him to speak at all, let alone say that.

“... Yeah. I mean, we’re both commuters, so it makes sense.” His small smile fades a bit and you worry that your answer was a bit too awkward. But what do you say to such a thing? “Uh, do you ride the bus to work?”

It’s a weak attempt at keeping the conversation going, but you’re genuinely curious, although still slightly thrown off by the very late introduction.

He brightens up again. ”Yeah! I work in that black tower next to the stadium.”

“I know where that is! What do you do there?”

He reveals that he works as a web developer, having nabbed a paid internship not too long ago. It isn’t what you expected, but once he mentions it, you can definitely picture him situated at a desk, typing and coding the days away.

You’re next to talk about your job, just as enthusiastic as he. Every word you say, he seems to hang on to, completely engaged, even though you don’t find event planning to be a very interesting profession. Nevertheless, the way he nods his head or hums along keeps you speaking confidently about what you do.

The conversation takes a few tangential turns, and you end up discussing something obscure when you pause, realizing something—you still don’t know each other’s names.

You ask him and he goes completely red. He tells you his and you tell him yours, laughing together afterward at how irregular this first real conversation is.

“Well, Donghyun, it’s nice to meet you.”

“You too.” He smiles, cheekbones raising and eyes nearly closing; he is beautiful.

A shiver runs down your spine as you take in his smiling face, causing you to jolt in your spot. The wind nips at your exposed legs, rushing through the transit center in a mighty, long gust.

“Shit,” you mutter to yourself, palms running over your freezing limbs where you sit.

“Here.” You look up to see Donghyun with his jacket dangling from outstretched fingers. “Take this until the bus comes. I have a hoodie on anyways.”

A nonsensical flow of ‘thank you’s’ escapes you as you grasp the soft material and spread it over your lap like a blanket. And your gratitude causes Donghyun to rub the back of his neck, shaking his head as the corners of his lips raise coyly.

The conversation halts there and you take the opportunity to ask, “Why now?”

For a second, Donghyun looks confused. Then his mouth forms an ‘o’ shape.

“Ah… Well… You just looked really stressed—because the bus is late, and I wanted to take your mind off it and… I’ve honestly been trying to gain the courage to talk to you ever since I saw you here. But I didn’t know if you’d be interested in that.” He pauses, hesitates, and then his next words seem to tumble right out of his mind and onto his tongue. “You’re also a bit intimidating.”

A ‘pff’ sound leaves you and you chuckle, causing his eyebrows to scrunch together at your reaction to the frank comment.

“Yeah,” your words come out as a sigh, “is my R.B.F. that bad?”

“N-no! It’s not bad at all!”

You shake your head, letting the tip of your nose waft away any assumptions of ill intent. “I’m just kidding. I’m a night owl by nature, so I’m always pretty out of it in the mornings. If you caught me later in the day, though, I promise I’d look more approachable.”

Donghyun stares at you, processing what you’ve just told him. He’s wondering if your words go deeper than the surface. If this is an invitation. But alas, he already feels as if he’s reached his embarrassment quota for the day.

So he lets it go.

The bus finally pulls up then and he lets you on ahead of him, opting to sit in his usual spot a few rows behind you. He guesses he’ll see about it tomorrow.

—

You offer Donghyun a sleepy smile when you unite the next morning. He asks if you like coffee, and you tell him sometimes. He nods and you don’t talk again until the bus arrives, thankfully on time.

“Go ahead.”

“Thanks!”

You’re too tired to initiate coherent conversation and he’s too busy thinking about what you said yesterday. It’s a Friday and you’re focused on getting the day over with so that you can enjoy the weekend. But you think about Donghyun intermittently throughout work, and even on the following days off.

You wonder about him more now that you have his name and know a little more about him than before. You wonder if he’s just being kind—if your still-kind-of acquaintanceship will go anywhere from here.

—

You are the first to arrive the following Monday, and when you look up and find Donghyun in front of you, he is holding two cups of coffee. He hands you one and begins mumbling about how he didn’t know if you liked dairy milk or sweetener, etc. He comes off as nervous, like how he was when he talked to you for the second time.

Meanwhile, you are practically jumping for joy at the sight of anything having to do with caffeine. Even if it is just an Americano with vanilla syrup and cream. The fact that he thought about you makes your heart soar.

As it becomes clear that he may just be a shy kind of person, and that he actually does want to get to know you more, you bring up the past weekend. Tell him about your plans and the time you spent sleeping in. And then you ask about his.

Surprisingly enough, he has a lot to say. He enthuses you about his friends and how they dragged him out of the house to go shopping. He tells you that this was against his will, but the smile in his voice tells you otherwise.

You learn that Donghyun is a stubborn person, which is why he seems to go so well with his adventurous friends. The mysterious aura he carries begins to turn a different color as you get to know him on a deeper level. It excites you, every little thing he says piquing your interest more. Makes your heart speed up in your chest even.

But what is it about this exchange that causes this reaction? Are you simply happy that you’ve made a new friend—that you’re beginning to create a genuine connection born purely out of serendipity? Or is it something deeper?

—

Time passes and you learn even more about Donghyun. His outer shell ebbs away almost completely and he begins to become warmer, more open and friendly. He is still shy and bashful at times, but you’re beginning to think that that’s just an asset of his personality.

He talks about his friends and his dog mostly, even if half of the stories he tells you of Jibeom and Youngtaek are punctuated with an eye roll. You can tell that he has a huge heart and a very compassionate soul, and you are admittedly enamored by all of the little things about him.

—

By Wednesday, you and Donghyun become close enough to sit next to each other on the bus. The two of you discuss your music tastes and he puts his headphones around his neck so that you can both hear what he plays. Far enough from the few other people on the bus so as not to disturb them.

There’s a lot of giggling and offhand comments on the buildings and places you pass by before you get to your stop, where you must part ways.

But for the small sliver of time in your day where it feels like it’s just you and Donghyun, in a space of your own, you feel at peace. These days, Donghyun’s presence alone puts you at ease. Yet, at the same time, you get this gnawing feeling that you don’t have enough time.

The bus ride to your stop, as long as it is, just isn’t cutting it.

—

Your eyes have grown accustomed to seeing raven hair either messily styled atop Donghyun’s head or poking out of a beanie or bucket hat. So you nearly don’t recognize him at first when you spot a man with honey toned hair standing with bulky purple headphones on.

But it’s him alright, and he breaks out into a blinding smile when his eyes meet yours. You nearly trip over your feet, struck in the heart by just how radient he looks.

“Good morning!” He greets, a tad more bubbly than usual.

“Hey there. I almost didn’t recognize you without the black hair.” You hand him the coffee you brought for him. “You look handsome.”

Donghyun takes the cup gingerly, smiling at you widely. His teeth on full display, looking charming if not a tad goofy.

“Uh, thank you. And, uh, thank you,” he stutters through his grin.

“You’re welcome… times two, I guess,” you chuckle out, shuffling so that you now stand beside him.

“So, you like my hair for real?”

“Didn't I just say that?”

“Not technically. You just said I look handsome.”

Your eyes roll and he presses his lips together to hold back a laugh.

“Yes, I like it,” you admit, earning a pleased hum from him. “But why the big change?”

“Well… A while ago, I noticed a woman that takes the same bus as me every day.”

An eyebrow quirks in his direction, wondering where he’s going with this. “Mhm…”

“And she didn’t think I was a loser when I used a really bad opener to try and get to know her.”

Donghyun looks away and then down at his cup, studying the lid as if it’s the most interesting sight in the transit center. After looking at this place every day, you can’t deny that this could be the truth—but still, he’s become tense and you’re curious to hear the end of this. You don’t interrupt.

“So… I talked to my friends and asked what to do to impress a girl. Youngtaek told me to wear insoles and Jibeom—I can’t even repeat what Jibeom had to say. But, anyway, I turned to Google after that and the people of the internet told me to be myself.”

He lets out a nervous chuckle, shuffling the cup sleeve around with his thumbs. You tap your finger against the lid and he looks at you from the corner of his eye. You give him a soft smile.

“Go on.”

“I didn’t really know what to do, so I thought about what you said a while back during one of our random conversations. About how you liked this hair color on one of your favorite celebrities, so…”

“You dyed your hair just because I said I liked Rosé’s new hair color?” You clasp a hand over your mouth as you try not to giggle at how adorable Donghyun is being.

“Um, you didn’t just ‘like’ her hair. You talked about it every day for a week!”

Your laugh escapes through your fingers and your hand falls to your side in defeat. “Yeah, I guess I did,” you breathe, taking a moment to collect yourself. “But why did you want to impress me so much? I think you’re already quite impressive as it is.”

Donghyun’s palm touches to the back of his neck, as it does quite often when speaking to you, and he finally turns his head to look at you. His eyes swim with uncertainty, among many other emotions you can’t pick out in the moment.

“Because I want to be the kind of person in your life that gets to see you later in the day.”

“Huh?”

“The day we told each other our names,” he begins, “you said something about being more approachable later in the day. I want to find out if that’s true.”

“Oh, I did say something like that, huh… Sure, yeah. Do you want to get lunch together today?”

“I- Yeah!” He chuckles breathily, disbelief written all over his countenance. “Is… Are we, uh. Is it going to be a date?”

Your heart flutters hearing that word, not expecting for him to be so forward. But then again, he is very blunt when he wants to be. You nod.

“If you want it to be.” A smile creeps onto your lips as you say this, words coming out in an unintentionally sing-songy melody.

He nods vigorously. “Yeah. Yes! I do.”

“Alright, then. It’s a date.”

“Is this the part where we kiss?”

You can’t tell if he’s joking as his eyes lock onto yours, cheeks dusted with a blush that grows brighter every second that ticks by.

The squeal of bus breaks interrupts the moment and your heads turn to see your shared ride approaching. You look back at him and find his hand with yours.

“I guess not. But who knows what the future may hold?”

It’s funny to you how, in the past, you would will the bus driver to throw all caution to the wind and speed down the highway so that you could get to your destination quicker. And how now, you find yourself wishing that your stop was farther down the line so that you could sit next to Donghyun and talk about nothing of sustenance for even longer.

You like the way his warm hand feels in yours, and how his freshly dyed hair tickles your cheek as his head rests against yours. You don’t want the time you have with him to end, as always, but more so today than ever.

The transit center; the liminal space that you used to hate because of how mundane and soulless it felt in the early morning hours, has now been painted with the golden licks of sunshine and filled with the sound of his soft voice.

Places are just places until you make memories in them. Moments cling onto the cold pavement and leave it warm with the indentations of the start of something new.

#this looks soooo cute #gonna read it after i submit my essay later on #thank u chai for putting it on my dash!!!!!!!!!!#more golcha content to supply the desert that is golcha tumblr 🤲🤲🤲

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