Chapter Text
All his life, Juwon has been enchanted by the vibrations of sound from all around him.
These vibrations that rush through him intravenously, they make him feel so alive.
Juwon was born deaf. But even so, he has never once thought of his deafness as a hindrance. His father, on the other hand, thought of him as a failure as he could never join the police force due to his deafness.
Soon, he was labelled as Han Kihwan's deaf son.
But even then, Juwon never hated his disability.
His father had sent him away to study in England when he was younger. He had hired lots of teachers, and had even put him in all sorts of classes, from etiquette classes, to sign language, to lip reading, to speech therapy, and even piano class, the list goes on. All in an attempt to make him 'normal', perfect.
Han Kihwan strives for perfection. He craves it so much, that he drove his own wife to suicide when her own flaws started to show.
So for most of his life, Juwon has always played the part as the perfect, obedient son. He followed all of his father's commands.
While Juwon doesn't view his disability as a flaw, his father views it as a huge one; an imperfection. Even if his father doesn’t necessarily despise him, Juwon knows that doesn’t mean he views him in a favourable light either. Because not only was Juwon born deaf, but he also takes after his mother; too empathetic for his own good.
In his father’s eyes, Juwon is but a failure amongst failures.
But his mask of obedience finally cracked when one of his teachers in England introduced him to photography. More specifically, film photography. It had opened up a whole new world for Juwon. And that's when he realised, he's had enough.
His father had initially wanted him to go into law, as it was the closest thing to his previous goals for Juwon. But Juwon fought, actually fought, with his father to let him take photography instead. His tutor, Kwon Hyuk, who is also somewhat of an older brother figure to him, helped him persuade his father to let him pursue photography. And it wasn't in vain, as he now has his own studio in Seoul.
Juwon's partner, and the studio's co-founder is a man named Han Yuri. Yuri is a year older, and had managed to befriend him back in university, having been one of the few people that knew sign language (it’s been years since they first met, and Yuri had finally managed to convince Juwon to call him hyung instead of sunbaenim about a year ago). Yuri was also the one to introduce Juwon to his mentor, an old renowned photographer. They both worked under him for a good 3 years, before deciding to open their own studio. Yuri thought it was a funny coincidence that they have the same surname, hence the name of the studio, Han Photo Lab.
But Yuri specialises in digital photography, while Juwon does film, or analog photography. So they bought a shop with two floors (courtesy of mostly Juwon's large amount of savings), and made it their studio. The ground floor consists of a storage room, a small section with shelves of cameras and film rolls for sale, Juwon's darkroom, a lounge room, and their office. The top floor is where Yuri conducts his photoshoots, white backdrop and all, alongside some changing rooms for the models, and a meeting room (read: another lounge room).
Currently, Juwon is in the storage room storing and arranging the new batch of chemicals that have just arrive.
5 gallons of developer, check. 5 gallons of stop bath, check. 5 gallons of fixer, check. And 3 bottles of wetting agent... check.
So focused on his arranging, Juwon didn't notice that someone that has entered the studio.
Usually, Yuri tells him whenever someone enters the studio, hearing the slight squeak of the rubber stripping along the doorframe. But that morning, he had texted Juwon, informing him that he'll be coming in late. So as of right now, it's just Juwon in the studio.
Satisfied with his arrangement, Juwon walks out of the storage room and freezes when he finally notices the person lingering at the entrance.
The stranger is definitely a lot older than Juwon. He stands at the entrance in a black bomber jacket and a pair of dark wash jeans. The curls on his head bouncing slightly as he looks around the studio, trailing his fingers against the walls and tables. Slowly, he makes his way to the counter.
"Hi, is this Han Photo Lab? Am I at the right place?" the man's lips read. His eyes looking directly at Juwon.
Juwon blinks. He's slightly unsure on what to do, as Yuri is usually the one who handles their clients.
He raises his hands, “I’m sorry, sir,” his fingers move to say, “I’m deaf.”
But the man just continues to look at him. His dark eyes pinning onto his form. Juwon notices that he has a somewhat confused look in his eyes. So he tries again. This time, Juwon points to his ear and then shakes his hand, in what he thinks is the universal symbol for I can't hear you.
But still, the man continues to look at him with that mix of confusion and blank in his eyes. "I'm so sorry, but my eyesight kinda sucks. So, I can't really..."
Ah.
Juwon proceeds to look for his phone in the storage room behind him, in his pockets, and on the tables nearby. But it's nowhere to be found. That's when he remembers that he left it in the office, that is at the other end of the building.
Frustrated, Juwon sighs audibly. He makes his way slowly, hesitantly, until he reaches the man. Standing right in front of him with only the counter separating them, Juwon notices that they are both almost the same height, him being roughly an inch or two taller than the other man.
His eyes move up slightly to look at Juwon. “I can tell you’ve just moved; you're definitely closer now. But I have to admit, I’m at somewhat of a loss.”
As a final resort, Juwon carefully takes the man's hand across the counter. His hands are rough and calloused, and his fingernails are kept short. Juwon wonders to himself, Was he a police officer?
Maybe it's partly because Juwon has been around his father and his colleagues at the force on some occasions. So Juwon's gut tells him that this man is (was?) one of them.
He doesn't usually introduce himself this way. But with his phone in another room, and the confused yet expectant stranger in front of him, he decides that this method will do. So with slightly trembling hands, he slowly writes the word deaf on the man's palm.
"Ah," the man breathes out. He furrows his brows in slight contemplation, while still looking directly at his face. His gaze feels almost piercing. "Can... can you read lips?" he asks, looking unsure.
Juwon nods his head, and inwardly curses at himself when he quickly realises that the man can't see it. So he opts for writing yes on the man's palm, before proceeding to write hold on please, and goes to get his phone from the other room when the man nods at him. He grabs his phone, opens his favourite text-to-speech app, and starts typing.
"Hello. Welcome to Han Photo Lab," his phone relays when he reaches the counter again, reading aloud the line of text that he had typed, into the space between them. "How may I help you, sir?"
And for a few moments, it's quiet. Neither Juwon nor the man has moved. The phone sits suspended in midair, being held up by Juwon's outstretched hand. The man blinks at him once, twice, before his lips start moving. "I didn't expect such a soft pair of hands to sound so robotic."
Juwon frowns. "...I'm sorry, I don't know what a robot sounds like."
The man laughs at his response and Juwon can't help but admire the way his laugh lines become more prominent as he does so. He looks beautiful when he's smiling like that.
Juwon stops his thoughts short.
What the hell.
"Cute," Juwon can almost swear that's what the man's lips read.
What. The hell.
But before his thoughts can escalate further, the man digs into his bag for a few good seconds, before pulling out a film camera and holding it towards Juwon. It's one of the cheaper, disposable ones, Juwon thinks to himself as he takes it from the man.
"The film in this is old and has probably expired already. Can it still be developed?"
Juwon takes a good look at the camera; the model itself is older too, but it's still in good condition. Nothing seems damaged. He places the camera down, picks his phone back up and types away.
"Yes. Would you like me to print it out too?"
"Yes, please. And... how long will it usually take? The developing and printing?" the man asks, curiously.
"Unfortunately, we do not offer express services. Our average processing time for all services is approximately 7 days. Is that alright?" Juwon's phone speaker replies. The man ponders for a second, before agreeing.
"Great. May I please have your name, phone number, and email for the booking?" Juwon lets his phone relay as he goes to get a notebook and a pen. He'll let Yuri key everything in when he arrives.
"Of course," the man says sweetly, as Juwon gets ready to write, "My name is Lee Dongsik. My phone number is..."
Lee Dongsik. So that's his new client's name.
"...I'm sorry, but I didn't get your name."
Juwon looks up at Dongsik somewhat blankly, before reaching for his phone. He pauses, taking a glance at the awaiting Lee Dongsik. Maybe it's because of their similarity; their respective disabilities. But there's just something about this man. Something that makes him feel so...
Intrigued, maybe? He doesn't really know.
But then Juwon decides to make a somewhat rash decision on his part. One that he would never usually do.
So just like earlier, Juwon carefully takes Dongsik's hand in his. He slowly traces the characters of his name on Dongsik's palm.
Han
He watches Dongsik's lips as he tries to pronounce his name.
Ju
This time, his traitorous mind thinks that Dongsik has pretty lips.
Won
He can't help but wonder if his lips are as soft as they look.
"Han Juwon," Dongsik says with a bright smile and eyes that almost glitter, "It's nice to meet you. I'm Lee Dongsik."
And Juwon returns the smile, even though Dongsik can't see it.
All of a sudden, the studio's door opens, and Dongsik turns around at the sound of it. A girl, who is probably few years younger than Juwon, steps inside the studio. She spots them and immediately walks over.
"Dongsik-ah! I'm sorry I took so long. Turns out the mistake was bigger than I expected," she says to Dongsik, looking apologetic.
Dongsik-ah?
Juwon looks at them curiously and raises an eyebrow at their familiarity. As if sensing his gaze on them, the girl turns to gawk at him instead. Her eyes widen and she blinks at him.
"Wow. You are so handsome," she says with a look of awe, before leaning over the counter slightly, "I'm Kang Minjeong. But you can call me, anytime," she says with a wink.
"Yah, Kang Minjeong! This isn't how I raised you!" he sees Dongsik's lips move rapidly in shock.
Now. Juwon has always been aware of his good looks. And he is definitely not one to blush. But with Minjeong's attempt at flirting with him, and right in front of Dongsik, Juwon feels his cheeks flush rapidly.
"Oh my God, you're blushing! You're so cute!" she gushes out.
Juwon averts his eyes for a few moments, in an attempt to cool his cheeks down, before looking back at them and catching Dongsik mid-sentence, "...with anyone she finds attractive. I'm so sorry, Juwon-ssi."
Juwon put on his best, albeit strained, smile and reaches for his phone. "It's alright. I'm just... shocked."
Minjeong seems confused at his text-to-speech app, "I don't want to sound rude but– hey! I'm really not! I'm genuinely curious!" she says while rubbing she arm where Dongsik had nudged her, "Are you mute?" she asks him.
"He's deaf, Minjeong-ah," Dongsik answers for him instead.
Minjeong's eyes light up in curiosity. "Oh! Do you have hearing aids, then?"
It’s not everyday that someone shows genuine interest in his deafness, so Juwon decides to indulge the girl’s questions. Juwon nods as he types, "Yes, I do. But I prefer not to wear them. So I usually read people's lips when they speak to me."
"Wow. That's... pretty cool? Am I allowed to say that?" she asks him, looking unsure. Juwon nods at her with a reassuring smile, getting a smile in return.
Minjeong's phone screen suddenly lights up, signaling a notification. She looks at her phone for a few seconds and her eyes widened in shock.
"Uhh so, has Dongsik told you what he wanted?" she asks, looking quite frantic.
Juwon picks the camera up with one hand and shows a thumbs up with the other.
"So we're done here, right? I kinda have to go back to uni as fast as I can, there's an emergency with one of my assignments," she says while looking somewhat sheepish. Juwon nods in understanding.
"Alright. Lee Dongsik-ssi, would you like to pay in cash or card?"
After Dongsik is done paying, he looks back up at Juwon. "Juwon-ssi, if it is alright, may I have your number? It's so I know that it's not just some random number texting me."
Once again, Juwon offers him a small smile even though he can't see it. He carefully tears a page from the notebook and writes down his name and phone number, before folding it neatly and pressing it into Dongsik's palm. Dongsik's fingers close around the folded paper, brushing against Juwon's own fingers in the process.
"Thank you," Dongsik says with a gentle, yet bright smile.
As soon as the words leave his lips, Minjeong is pulling him towards the door. Her lips are moving, but Juwon can only see the way Dongsik waves at him with that same, bright smile plastered on his lips.
Just as they leave, Juwon's partner, Yuri, comes in. He proceeds to stand at the entrance for a good few seconds, watching in equal parts confusion and amusement as the pair leaves in a hurry. Yuri then looks at him with his eyebrows raised, "Do we have new clients? Is it them?"
Juwon nods in confirmation, and signs with one hand as Yuri takes the notebook that he's holding out to him, "Here are his details. Can you key it in the system?"
(Later that day, Juwon definitely doesn't save Dongsik's number into his phone. Nope. No way.)
***
That evening, Juwon finds himself in an upscale restaurant. Across him, sits Kwon Hyuk, having been the one to book them a table. Juwon tries his best to meet up with Hyuk every once in a while; be it for lunch, dinner, or just drinks. He owes it to Hyuk for helping him convince his father to let him pursue what he loves.
"How has work been?" Juwon's hand asks, as he reaches to take a sip of his red wine. Dry, just how he likes it. Hyuk sighs, chewing absentmindedly on his food as he ponders on Juwon's question.
"Work is extra annoying lately," Hyuk hums, before giving Juwon a look that screams of exhaustion, "I think the higher ups are making it their life mission to work us all dry. The next time you see me, Juwon-ah, I’ll be nothing but a sun-dried raisin."
Juwon chuckles and rolls his eyes at Hyuk's dramatics.
"And how's father?"
He glances at Juwon and leans back in his seat. "Busy as always," he says before sighing, "He asks about you sometimes, you know? You should visit him, maybe at least have dinner with him?" he suggests somewhat wearily.
Juwon scoffs and continues to poke at his own food.
"And what about you? How's your work, Juwon-ah? Meet any interesting clients, or maybe any pretty models?" Hyuk asks him. Juwon rolls his eyes at the last comment.
The man from earlier, Lee Dongsik, immediately comes to his mind. Something about him definitely intrigues him. He launches into a mini story of his latest, most interesting client. Juwon mentions that he thinks Dongsik might have been a police officer once, but had to quit because he went blind.
"A former officer named Lee Dongsik... interesting. That name does sound a little bit familiar. Maybe I’ve handled one of his cases?" Hyuk pauses for a few seconds, "Juwon-ah, I can look into him if you want me to?" he offers thoughtfully.
Juwon shakes his head before signing "No, it's alright."
"Okay then," Hyuk hums, "But just saying, the offer will always be up," he tells Juwon, earning him a nod and a reassuring smile.
All of a sudden, Juwon remembers something. "Oh, I almost forgot. How was your blind date last week?" his hands ask, and Hyuk's eyes seem to light up at the mention of his blind date.
"Her name is Kang Yuna. And oh my God, Juwon, I have so much to tell you."
Juwon smiles fondly as Hyuk gushes on about his blind date.
***
That night, after Juwon is done with his night routine, he makes his way to his bed to get some well-deserved sleep. Just as his body is halfway under the sheets, his phone screen lights up on the bedside table.
He goes to peek at it, and is almost floored by what he sees.
Message from Lee Dongsik:
Hi Juwon-ssi! It's me, Dongsik. Just texting to say hi :)
Juwon can't help but smile at the text.
Message from Han Juwon:
Hello Lee Dongsik-ssi.