#sunjae x inhyuk

[joanyio]

one of my favorite headcanons about eclipse is that sunjae/inhyuk is a famous ship among capellas (their fandom name) with over 20k works written on ao3 and don’t get me started with postype which is kfans’ ao3 — not an impossible number because they’re basically bigger than lim youngwoong in LR canon universe with even ahjummas being their shooters.

how can they not be shipped? high school best friends who chase their dreams and succeed together, inhyuk who roped sunjae into music after he suffered a career changing injury, inhyuk who one day randomly revealed in bubble live that he loves sneaking into sunjae’s house to take a bath, their closeness, both always there for each other through thick and thin.

thanks to ep 12 i got one of my fav lines from this show. imagine eclipse films a documentary and that’s when inhyuk talks about how he almost gave up music before, but sunjae came to him with 내 젊은 날 가장 빛나는 순간이 온다면 너랑 함께했으면 좋겠어 when the brightest moment in my youth comes, i want it to be with you. crazy material for shippers and fanfic writers im telling you!

[sunjaesol]

soljae | university timeline, mutual pining, fluff | prompt: pathetic

⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖ ࣪⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖ ࣪⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖ ࣪⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖ ࣪

Sunjae fell onto his bed with a big grin smacked across his face, as wide as his facial muscles could bear. Covering his face, he let out a giggle.

Sol... Sol... His Sol... Sol-ah...

To put it frankly, Sunjae didn't care that Sol possibly came from a different timeline, or about her premonition of his untimely demise. Her words had slipped by in the same way that water divided for him in the pool—easily.

The point was that Sol liked him back. Sol liked him so much that she—possibly—jumped from a different dimension to warn him about future dangers. She wanted to save him. Him.

And honestly, he didn't really believe that he was in trouble. He was healthy and smart and, currently, very happy. It had to be some freak accident before he kicked the bucket.

Rolling from his bed onto the floor, he dug into his nightstand and found the unused pack of hydrating face masks Inhyuk left behind a couple weeks ago. Tearing it open, he placed the cooling mask on his skin and smeared the rest of the product onto his neck.

Now that Sol liked him back and wanted to be with him, he actually had to look good. Otherwise people would think she was out of his league.

Biting back another laugh, he grabbed his phone from his jeans pocket and sent her a text.

Tmw han rivr d8 @ 6pm? Xxxxxx

He stared at the text. Too many x's? He grimaced. It was too late to regret it.

For a beat, he waited for her reply, but then figured it was best to let it marinate for a couple of minutes. Maybe she was freaking out as well. Maybe she agonised over their new relationship with the same adrenaline-filled vigour. Glancing out his window, he saw no movement at the video rental store.

His gaze drifted to the ceiling, his head rolling back and leaning against the bed. Sunjae sighed. He couldn't wait to hold her hand—to hold her in general—to walk around with her and show everyone that he was her boyfriend. He wanted to kiss her. No drunken smooches anymore.

He wanted to feel her cheeks when she smiled. He wanted to trace her lips with his fingers. He wanted to hug her until no air existed between them. He wanted—

His thoughts came to a screeching halt when the idea of more than hugging and kissing popped in his head. Nope. Sunjae was pure. And he certainly didn't push such... things... onto the girl he loved.

A grin crept on his face. He loved Sol. This feeling in his chest couldn't be defined in any other way.

(He checked his phone. No response yet.)

Maybe he should go over to her house and as ask her to take a walk around the block. Maybe they could repeat that five or six or seven times. And he'd intertwine their fingers, palm to palm, and then tuck the ball of hands into the pocket of his jacket.

(No response yet.)

Sunjae frowned. As he did, the mask tugged on the skin and peeled at the temples. Pulling it off, he thew it away and crowded over his phone like it was maths homework.

Was she busy with chores? Maybe her phone was off. But who kept their phone silent?

His fingers hovered over the phone with a hesitant tremor, wondering if he should text her again.

Sunjae gasped. It were the six x's, wasn't it? Six kisses over text and she rightfully ignored his message. He cursed himself over his overzealous streak and pressed a hand over his mouth.

(No response yet. Fucking obviously.)

That plan to go to the States and rehabilitate his swimming career started to sound great again. Hell, dying like in Sol's premonition sounded good at the moment. Anything better than waiting on a response of the girl he loved that was probably thrown off by the six kisses in his text.

Maybe–

Yes!! CU tmw!! Xx

Sunjae blinked as her message popped onto the screen out of the blue. Oh.

A grin spread across his cheeks and he grinned. She said yes. She wanted to see him tomorrow. And she sent back two kisses!

With a lovesick sigh, he dropped back on his bed and stared at the ceiling fan. Those indescribable feelings crawled in his chest and swarmed in his stomach like an unrelenting barrage of animals. They made his fingers tingle and his head empty and his will succumb to her littlest of gestures.

Sunjae loved her. He wanted her.

And if Sol was saying the truth, then he's loved her in every timeline. In every universe.

An incredulous laugh puffed out of him.

Yeah, that sounded about right.

[iheart-nana]

x. a taste of victory

☾⋆｡𖦹 °✩⋆｡° ✮

CHAPTER TEN ─ a taste of victory.

❛ where's the trophy? he just

comes running over to me. ❜

Narrator's Perspective

"By the way," Inhyuk said to Sunjae the morning of the swimming competition, "Where is your Eunyoung today?"

Your Eunyoung. The moment those words fell upon Sunjae's ears, he beamed, flashing the dimple on his right cheek. His face turned pink, recalling the events of the previous evening.

"Oh, dear," Inhyuk expressed, "You should look at yourself right now! You're completely in love with her!"

"She's coming to cheer for me," Sunjae told him proudly, "She was telling me to take it easy and not participate, but when she told me that she'd come today, she seemed to have faith in me. So, I'll make sure not to let her down."

"You can't seem to stop yapping when it comes to her," Inhyuk observed, a cheeky smile surfacing on his face, "Don't tell me she's the reason you're competing today!"

"It's not like that!" Sunjae exclaimed defensively, "It's just... another reason to do well. That's it."

Inhyuk shook his head in disappointment. Sunjae was the last person he expected to fall for someone and act like a total loser.

But, after all, we're all fools in love.

💿

Minutes ticked by, each one echoing like a hammer blow in the tense silence before the competition. Sunjae, clad in his racing suit, felt a familiar knot of anxiety tighten in his stomach. He scanned the crowd, searching for a familiar face amidst the sea of spectators. Doubt, a cold serpent, began to coil around his heart. Would she make it? Had something happened? His focus, so meticulously honed, threatened to shatter.

Then, just as despair threatened to consume him, a splash of pink cut through the cacophony of pre-race jitters. There, in the stands, was Eunyoung. His face broke into a radiant smile, a beacon that chased away the shadows of doubt. She wore a soft pink dress, the colour a burst of life against the sterile white walls of the pool complex. A white cardigan draped gracefully over her shoulders, adding a touch of elegance.

As she made her way down the rows, a revelation struck Sunjae. He'd never truly noticed how tall she was. Even in her simple white flats, she seemed to carry herself with a quiet confidence. Yesterday, on their walk together, her head must have brushed his ear. Suddenly, the way they walked side-by-side, a memory from only a day ago, took on a new meaning. His gaze lingered on her, a wave of warmth washing over him. The familiar knot of anxiety loosened its grip, replaced by a surge of determination. He wouldn't just swim this race, he would win it. For her.

Simultaneously, a smile surfaced on both their faces as their eyes met. She waved at him, mouthing "good luck," as she took a seat in front of the railing that separated the pool and seating area. Behind her was a group of Sunjae's supporters, wearing t-shirts with messages cheering him on and shouting messages of encouragement. Eunyoung's erect posture was just a disguise for her nervousness. Despite her earnest wish for Sunjae to complete this race without injuries, worry rose in her chest. Please prove me wrong, Sunjae.

The pool stretched before her, a shimmering lane of blue below her. In the water, a blur of movement─ that was Sunjae, his powerful strokes propelling him forward with a focused intensity.

This was the final stretch, the culmination of years of gruelling training. Every flick of his wrist, every powerful kick, echoed in Eunyoung's chest. A tendinous strain, a cramp, a single misstep – any of these could shatter Sunjae's dreams of gold. She squeezed her eyes shut, willing her anxieties away, willing him strength.

Then, the electronic board pinged, and the crowd erupted in a deafening roar. Eunyoung snapped her eyes open, heart leaping into her throat. Sunjae was surging towards the finish, his form flawless, his determination etched on his face. He touched the touchpad a fraction of a second before anyone else, and the stadium lights seemed to dim for a moment before exploding in a kaleidoscope of colours.

Sunjae emerged from under the water, shaking off the hair stuck to his forehead, running his hands down his face, attempting to clear his vision. As he turned to look at the scoreboard, his joy knew no bounds as he saw his name at the top of the list. Letting out a euphoric yelp of victory, he pumped his fists in the air with a triumphant grin on his face.

Eunyoung's eyes had begun to well up with tears of happiness that she couldn't hold back no matter how hard she tried. The shouts from Sunjae's friends and supporters around her muffled as if it was a faraway sound; the only thing she could hear was the excited beating of her heart. She placed a hand over her chest in disbelief at what she had just witnessed.

Sunjae's eyes scanned the stands impatiently, only wanting to look at one person. As their eyes met, his smile widened, the dimple on his right cheek making a reappearance. The tears in Eunyoung's eyes spilt, blurring her vision as she returned his smile, her throat choking with tears. At that moment, the rest of the world seemed to melt away, leaving them alone, their eyes giving a million soliloquies their mouths could never.

Eunyoung's legs propelled her forwards as she ran past the crowd, down the stairs, straight towards Sunjae. It was as if her body had began to move on its own, not wasting a single second on thinking. Her desperation to get rid of the distance between them reflected in her teary, glassy eyes as she stood in front of him, the smile never leaving her face. Their gaze was fixed on each other.

Without a second thought, she reached for him, wrapping her arms around his bare torso that dripped with little droplets of water. She felt her clothes becoming moist, but couldn't care less at that moment. Her embrace enveloped him in warmth as she smiled wider, the joy of his victory a physical force she needed to press against. She couldn't believe it. He had won the gold medal! His fate had taken a turn for the better.

Sunjae's eyes widened at the sudden contact of her soft hands that clung onto him. She hugged him with such force that the deep blue towel he wore fell backwards, exposing his toned shoulders in a moment of vulnerability. The feeling of her soft cardigan against his bare torso and the tiny point of contact of her palms against his back sparked an unexplainable warmth inside him. He coughed out a surprised laugh, the coolness of his moist skin a stark contrast to the fire that flared at her touch. Years of training had honed his muscles, and Eunyoung, clung to him with a possessiveness that sent a shiver down his spine. The shock he felt countered his exhaustion that threatened to pull him under.

He wrapped his arms around her just as fiercely; The weight of the race, the pressure of expectation─ it all melted away in the press of her body against his.  Under the deafening cacophony of cheers, there was only them, her skin tingling against his, a shared victory written in the frantic dance of their heartbeats. He buried his face in her hair, the scent of chlorine and victory mingling with the familiar sweetness of her shampoo, a perfect encapsulation of this overwhelming moment. In that tight embrace, their bodies spoke a language far more profound than any roar of the crowd, a language of love and pride that resonated in the echoing silence of his own racing heart.

☾⋆｡𖦹 °✩⋆｡° ✮

nayoung's notes: okay, taemi content in the next chapter, i promise. kinda got carried away with this lol. its already 1310 words and if i continue i may never stop. also, now that it think about it, the chapter title is implying something entirely different... ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

delphi's notes: sunjae's pov speaks volumes about his feelings. he's down bad guys. who's surprised? not me (but then again i helped decide this lolol)

next chapter: friday (out now!)

list of chapters here!

[anonymousotherworld]

LOVELY RUNNER THOUGHTS 2

— contains spoilers to the whole series! I'm thought process is all over the place, so this post is not structured properly. I'm just typing as I think of things. I also wrote this over several days, adding more things as I remember.

part 1

OMG I'm absolutely in love with Sunjae's loserism. bro's whipped for Sol regardless of when he meets her. him repeating the same dialogue in the 3 different timelines is wild (why are you crying? I didn't make you cry).

I really love the unspoken beef that Sol's mum & Sunjae's dad have. regardless of timeline, they've got some beef.

I'm really glad that Sol remained friends with Taesung. in the process of not crossing paths with Sunjae, she also lost her friendship with In Hyuk and it would've been really sad if she lost her friendship with Taesung too. it's nice to see that he ended up becoming a cop and ended the ill-fated relationship Sol had with the taxi driver. like bro accomplished the one thing Sol was trying to do for a whole 14 episode. I like to think that Taesung became a cop because of Sol's influence.

can we also appreciate the real mvp? Baek In Hyuk. imagine having to deal with BOTH Sunjae & Taesung who are stupid in love with Sol. his permenant 😟 face was so funny ngl.

big respect for Taesung for always respecting SolJae. he's always bickered with Sunjae but that was about it. I hope Taesung finds someone who'll love him the same way.

I wonder if Taesung knew that the "Sunjae" Sol would cry about whenever she got drunk was the famous Ryu Sunjae before he saw them together. if not, it definitely would have sunk in when he saw them together at Sunjae's apartment building.

also has anyone thought about the fact that ep 16 Sol has been alive for about 50 years? she was in her 30s during her first time travel and spent maybe a year in the past and then on the last time travel (where Sunjae doesn't meet Sol), she lived the full 15 years.

I wonder if the grandma was the one that allowed Sol to time travel. our first introduction to her, we see her wearing the watch. the 3rd time Sunjae dies, grandma's wearing the watch. the watch that Sunjae lost (according to InHyuk). she's the first to admit remembering the different timelines.

I wonder to SolJae meeting at the award ceremony was what caused Taesung to sort of remember the past. sort of because he doesn't actually remember, he just has conflicting feelings about Sol & having deja vu moments.

I also realised that the Im Geum x Hyunju side plot happened outside of the SolJae situation. they would've gotten together if Sol didn't get paralyzed. in the original timeline, Im Geum stepped up to be the responsible one but with Sol being well, in the final timeline he was able to pursue his acting dream. in the 2nd(?) future timeline, he was responsible because Hyunju didn't pursue a higher education and they got married immediately after she graduated. I'm guessing Sol convinced Hyunju to pursue a higher education and get a job with her in order to avoid having a situation where Hyunju has to rely on Im Geum (in the final timeline).

anyways, I'm finishing up this post about a week after I finished the drama and I think it's safe to say that this has taken the #1 spot for my favourite drama of 2024.

let's kidnap Sunjae and run