Work Text:
Baek Cheon was ecstatic when Cheongmyeong finally agreed to start dating. Of course, nothing much really changed with their dynamic other than the addition of them exchanging sweet kisses and the occasional intimacy. Life was good for the first few years.
But then Baek Cheon finds the first few white strands in his hair.
Suddenly he became more aware of their rather large age difference. Baek Cheon, who is now closer to his 50s, and Cheongmyeong, who has yet to enter his 40s.
Baek Cheon had always taken pride in his youthful appearance. It made him look friendly and approachable to most commonfolk. Not to mention it was what attracted Cheongmyeong to him in the first place, something the other man had drunkenly admitted once in the privacy of their now-shared bedroom. It wasn't strange for him to want to maintain it.
But time doesn't wait for anyone. Gone now was the young-looking sasuk that Cheongmyeong often commented on, the signs of aging starting to become visible on his face. Meanwhile, Cheongmyeong's appearance had completely grown into maturity, him finally looking the part of a genius swordsman in his prime.
It was the first time in a while that he felt unsure in his relationship. It had been years since the two had been wed, but it had taken a longer time for Cheongmyeong to fully accept the commitment of a marriage.
Of course, it's not that he doesn't trust Cheongmyeong, but hearing all of the horror stories of women whose husbands had left them for younger, prettier brides... a small part of him is afraid of the possibility.
Baek Cheon nevertheless eventually stopped thinking too deeply about it as he got buried with paperwork. They'd been married for years, and have loved each other for more. If anything were to happen, they can just talk about it. There are more important things to worry about. After all, with their level of martial arts, they will live much longer lives together at Mount Hua. They can worry about these things in the future.
(The thought still lingers in his mind, though.)
Baek Cheon wakes up one day to his husband staring at his face. Though it isn't unusual for Cheongmyeong to wake up earlier than him, he feels unsettled about it somehow that morning. There were no emotions betraying his face at the moment, even as Cheongmyeong started tracing the outlines of his wrinkles with his fingers.
Baek Cheon felt nervous. Why is he staring so hard? Is he going to comment on his wrinkles? Cheongmyeong who nags them so often, will he finally start complaining about his face??
Numerous questions kept swarming in Baek Cheon's head and Cheongmyeong, after a long time simply hums, his blank face breaking into a pleased smile.
"My husband... today... you are really, really handsome." Cheongmyeong then kisses his face a few more times before getting up to ready himself for training, leaving a frozen Baek Cheon alone in bed.
??
????
??????
What was that???
Handsome??? He said he was handsome today??? Huh????
(Baek Cheon then spends another one and a half hours stuck in bed before Cheongmyeong barges in to drag him out to working on his sect duties.)
Something changed in their relationship that day, Baek Cheon realizes. Lately, Cheongmyeong had been more... affectionate, somehow. Staying in bed longer than usual just to look at his face, leaving gifts at his office table, calling him sweeter names (graduating from his usual "Dongryongie~" or "Dongryong-ah~" to 'Honey', something that surprised him so much when it first happened that he felt like he was floating the whole day) and becoming more publicly affectionate in a way that he usually doesn't like showing...
Instead of everything he feared, things turned out to be the exact opposite!
Isn't he acting like a newlywed woman who had just entered her honeymoon phase??
Cheongmyeong-ah, Cheongmyeong-ah, you said you liked this sasuk's youthfulness, but could it be that you like this sasuk more as an older man?
Baek Cheon remained confused for a good long time.
He eventually does ask Cheongmyeong one day what was up. If his theory about Cheongmyeong's taste was true.
Cheongmyeong blushed when he was confronted and buried his face in his husband's chest to avoid answering.
...
Cheongmyeong, since when did you become such a maiden?
(Cheongmyeong doesn't want to admit that his old grandpa age is getting to him and that he's excited at the thought of being able to grow old with the person he likes a lot, who somehow aged like fine 100-year-old wine.)
(Cue Cheongmun laughing at him from the grave now that he finally found someone that fits his tastes at 200 years old.)