[M] When Words Cannot Describ (1/1)

Music pounded in the air. A steady, sultry rhythm flowed through each and every patron at the crowded club. It was places like these that Donghae hardly ever visited. He wasn't much for the club scene, and he usually chose to stay at home while his older brother partied until all hours of the night. But today, his eccentric hyung had dragged him out of the house and into the most popular joint on the streets.  “Will you lighten up?” Heechul shouted over the music, accenting his question with a hard slap to Donghae's head. They were standing just inside the doors of the club.  “Ow! Hyung!” The younger male rubbed where Heechul had hit him and pouted.  Heechul flipped strands of hair out of his eyes and put his arm around his brother. “I'm trying to help you, Hae. You should be thankful.”  “Help me? How is forcing me to come here and hitting me possibly going to help me?”  The older man smirked. “How else are you going to get laid if you're sitting around your room all night? Now, go!” Before Donghae could protest about Heechul's plan to get him some action, the boy was shoved harshly toward the center of the room and into the swaying mass of people. He tripped over his own feet and crashed against someone's back. It was a severely intoxicated man who flashed Donghae a drunken smile and grabbed the blonde's waist.  If this is what Heechul hyung meant about getting laid, I'm definitely not up for it! Donghae's mind yelled. He freed himself from the stranger and apologized quickly before running off and collapsing in a chair in the corner of the room. “Aish...” he sighed under his breath. “There's no way I'm that desperate. Why'd I let hyung drag me here?”  “You too?” a voice asked from beside Donghae.  The blonde turned to the person and frowned. “Excuse me?”  “You're here against your will too.” The person sitting next to Donghae leaned forward into the light and rested his elbow on the small table. He brushed his long red hair from his forehead and smiled, his gums showing slightly. He gestured toward a dark-haired male grinding with a taller, lanky brunette on the dance floor. “My friends think I'm too busy with my work to have fun or meet people.” He took a sip of his drink—water—and continued, “I'm Hyukjae, by the way.” “Donghae.”  Hyukjae relaxed back into his chair and stretched his arms over his head lazily. Donghae noticed that he had a camera hanging from a strap around his neck. Glancing once at his friends and shrugging, the red-haired man stood up and pointed to the door, motioning for Donghae to follow him. The blonde was frozen in his seat. What did this stranger want? Rolling his eyes with a smile, Hyukjae reached for Donghae's wrist and gently led the dazed and confused boy out of the club. They walked down the street, more like Hyukjae dragged Donghae down the street, the neon signs on both sides glowing in contrast against the night.  Once his mind started to work again, Donghae pulled back on Hyukjae's grip and stared at him.  “Y-Yah! What do you think you're doing? Let go of me!”  Hyukjae released Donghae's wrist. But before the boy could huff in annoyance and walk away, he grinned. “Ever had ice cream at midnight before?”  “Huh?” Donghae turned around and raised his eyebrows.  “I'm asking you if you want to go for ice cream.”  Blinking back his confusion, Donghae shook his head to clear it. “What? Are you crazy?”  “No. I'm just hungry.” He shrugged when Donghae didn't move. “Fine. Suit yourself.”  Donghae stared at the strange man's retreated figure, contemplating whether or not to go along. He didn't know anything about this Hyukjae person. Maybe he was some kind of serial rapist looking for his next victim. Wasn't that how pedophiles lured children away, with ice cream? Biting his lip, Donghae hopped from one foot to the other, the rational and curious sides of his mind arguing in his head. Against his better judgment, he followed Hyukjae and ran up beside him.  “I better get three scoops...with sprinkles,” he mumbled. His eyes were focused on his sneakers so he missed Hyukjae's face break into a smile.  A few minutes later, Donghae was viciously devouring a triple scoop, vanilla ice cream with chocolate sprinkles while his mysterious new partner watched with an amused smile. He sipped his strawberry milkshake quietly.  “So is this how you treat all random people you meet in the corner of a club, or is it some plot to earn my trust so you can have your way with me later?” Donghae asked with a suspicious tone. He nibbled on the top of his ice cream cone and licked his lips.  Hyukjae fidgeted with his camera. “Neither,” he replied calmly but their was a smile in his voice. “You looked just as bored as I was.”  “So is that all this is? Boredom?” “Yes and no.” He took another taste of his milkshake. “Then why?”  Hyukjae couldn't resist. Donghae was one of those people who let every emotion they were feeling slip into their face. He snapped the picture.  A bright flash blinded the unsuspecting blonde, forcing him to wince and blink rapidly to clear his vision. He rubbed his eyes and glared in shock at the red head who was examining the picture he had just taken on his camera. Looking back to meet Donghae's heated gaze, he smiled innocently. He showed to Donghae who gaped in horror. Hyukjae took his camera back and saved the image with a brief chuckle. Tilting his head slightly and feeling triumphant, he smirked.  Donghae frowned and fought the urge to punch the photographer in the head.  Glancing at the clock on the wall of the tiny ice cream parlor, Hyukjae realized that it was past one in the morning. “I better go.” he said.  Donghae stared at him incredulously and then at his half-finished cone. “You drag me out here and now you're just going to leave?”  “I bought you ice cream didn't I?”  “That's beside the point!” Donghae frowned but gave in. “Aish, you're weird.”  Hyukjae didn't respond, just wiped some vanilla from the corner of the blonde's mouth with the back of his sleeve and smiled softly. As he walked by, he placed a card on the table and left.  Donghae blushed at the previous action, his lips tingling from the coldness of the frozen treat and the warmth of Hyukjae's fingers on his skin. Ridding himself of such thoughts, he lifted the card from the table.  Lee Hyukjae – Photographer Underneath his name was a phone number and the address of his workplace.  Donghae didn't know what he was supposed to do with it so he shoved it in his jeans pocket and navigated himself toward his home. He caught a glimpse of Hyukjae as he walked down the street. A single burst of whit light shattered the darkness in the distance, no doubt from the man's camera.  *~*~*  “Where the hell were you?!” Heechul screamed when Donghae finally got home. He wasn't expecting his brother to already be there. He was usually out later than two in the morning. “One second you were there and then I couldn't find you anywhere. When I said 'go get laid' I meant for you to tell me that you were leaving first.” He took a deep breath and then smiled evilly. “So how was it?”  Donghae was used to his brother's mood swings. He just rubbed the back of his head nonchalantly and asked, “How was what?” The next twenty minutes or so consisted of Donghae trying to convince Heechul that he didn't go have sex. When he said that he went for ice cream, of course his hyung thought he meant something dirty, but after a while, Heechul gave up and sighed exasperatedly. Donghae went upstairs and collapsed on his bed. He was exhausted from his late night adventure. However, he was also intrigued by the person he had met just a few hours earlier. He pulled the card out from his pocket and read it over again. Drifting into a restful sleep, he dreamed of vanilla ice cream and camera flashes.  For the next few days, the only thing on Donghae's mind was Hyukjae. It was strange. He had known the guy for less then three hours and he was obsessed. There were feelings that were bubbling up from deep inside him that were threatening to break free. He was so confused. All Donghae did was lounge around the house and stare at the card that Hyukjae had given him. He even tried to dial the phone number a couple of times but ended up throwing his phone on the bed and banging his head against the wall.  He really wanted to see him again.  Donghae finally gave in after a week of pulling his hair out in frustration and called the number. He waited impatiently, squirming in anticipation as he sat on the floor. His heart was beating erratically in his chest. He thought he felt his ribs cracking.  Finally, after what felt like hours, that same smooth voice broke the deafening silence.  “Hello?” Silence. Donghae's words caught in his throat. His voice sounds deeper over the phone... his subconsciousness mused against his will.  “Um, is there anyone there? I'm hanging up.” “No! W-Wait!” Donghae choked out. He cursed himself for stammering like an idiot. He took a deep breath. “It's Donghae. Do you want to go for ice cream? My treat.”  *~*~* Donghae sat next to Hyukjae on the couch as they watched a slide show of the red head's recent pictures on the TV in the photographer's apartment.  Some of them were of people: Hyukjae's friends, random passersby, children playing on the playground. Others were of animals: birds, squirrels, the neighborhood stray cat. The reel included beautiful landscapes. There was a scene that looked like it was from a movie of the beach with a red and orange-streaked sunset in the background and the ocean cresting its waves on the grainy sand. They left Donghae speechless.  But then there were ones that were out of focus, or there was a glare blocking the important elements of the picture. Some were just a solid color, ruined by the reflections of the sun. To be completely honest, they came out terrible.  Donghae turned to Hyukjae in question. The latter read his mind and answered his silent question.  “Sometimes, words can't describe events well enough, memories are skewed and distorted, or there aren't enough words to convey emotions and feelings, abstract things that only occur in the moment. Pictures are exact replicas of that person, place, or incident. They're raw and the truth, unlimited and impervious to time. That's why I take so many of them. They each have a different story to tell. It doesn't matter to me how bad they come out, if they're blurry or discolored or utterly ruined. I like them all.”  Donghae sat back and thought about it. It did make sense. Then the picture Hyukjae took of him the night they met appeared on the screen. It was the one with his mouth wide open in a fish-like manner.  Hyukjae paused the slide show and rested his chin on Donghae's shoulder. “That one's my favorite. I couldn't help myself. Your fishy face was too adorable to pass up. You looked like you were gasping for air or something.”  Feeling a blush creep into his cheeks, Donghae covered his face in embarrassment. He peeked from between his fingers. “Is this why you brought me here? To show me an embarrassing picture of myself? Never mind. I'm going home.” He struggled out of Hyukjae's arms and aimed for the door.  “Wait!” Hyukjae reached for Donghae's hand and held it firmly in his. “I wasn't trying to make fun of you. It really is my favorite.”  “Delete it,” Donghae demanded.  Hyukjae shook his head. “I can't do that.”  “And why not?”  Smiling to himself, the red head met Donghae's eyes. He stared at him with all the affection and adoration he possessed. “I never delete my pictures. They represent a moment in time that I'll never get back. I see extraordinary things in them.”  “What's so extraordinary about a picture of me with an idiotic expression on my face?”  Hyukjae tilted Donghae's chin with his free hand, his other one still locked with the younger's. He leaned in until his lips were just inches from Donghae's. “When I look at this picture, I see the person I fell in love with. That's extraordinary in itself.”  He pressed his mouth to Donghae's in the gentlest kiss. He wasn't in a rush. He wanted Donghae to feel all of the love, all of the raw emotion and attraction he felt for him. He cupped the stunned blonde's cheek and stroked it with his thumb. After a moment, he broke the kiss and smiled sweetly.  Donghae blinked, not quite sure how to react. “You...love me?”  “From the moment I met you. I went home that night thinking about you. I couldn't stop myself from staring at that picture and laughing about how you wear your heart on your sleeve. I love how you're stubborn and eat ice cream messier than a four-year-old. I love your goofy smile and the way your eyes light up when you laugh. I love how when you're surprised you gasp like a fish. I can't find one thing that I don't love about you. You're special to me. I love you, Donghae.”  Donghae's arms circled the red head's neck and he brought them closer together. He sat down on Hyukjae's lap and kissed him hard. The older man responded immediately and licked at Donghae's lips, coaxing them apart. He slid his tongue inside the blonde's mouth and tasted every inch. Donghae moaned into the kiss, the wanton sound muffled by their frantic kissing.  With one hand, Donghae reached for Hyukjae's camera left neglected on the couch. He held it up and snapped a picture. Hyukjae pulled back, a confused look on his face. He examined the photo and smirked.  He showed it to Donghae who wanted to slap himself for taking such a picture. It was basically a shot of his mouth being ravaged by Hyukjae, their heads tilted for better access, their lips parted while the older male's tongue stroked the inside of Donghae's cavern, a heavy blush clearly visible on the blonde's face.  “Now that's not extraordinary,” Hyukjae whispered huskily. “It's erotic.”  Donghae felt Hyukjae kissing down the side of his neck. He began panting and unintentionally started to grind his hips into Hyukjae's. “You were the one who said that every picture tells a story. I wonder how this one's going to end.”