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When his mother told him he’d spend the next 2 months in a place far away from the city he lived in, Beomgyu wanted to refuse. The summer vacations before his last school year were something he wanted to remember with his close friends, not in a beach an hour by plane away. Still, he knew trying to convince her to stay would be pointless in any way. It was clear the woman wanted to get out of her house for a while, and she had a reason.
“You know who the Kang family is, don’t be like that”. His mother scoffed softly as they had dinner at the table in their tiny apartment. “Plus, I think it would be good for you to get out of this place more often”. She said, signaling to her surroundings.
Beomgyu looked around too, though there was not much to look at. The apartment was too small for two people, and at nights they often kept the lights off because they were so bright they could give anyone a headache, using lamps with very soft light instead and making everything look dark. The place was pretty depressing, but neither of them mentioned their dislike for the apartment, not wanting to upset the other.
His mother sighed and pulled out her phone, showing Beomgyu a picture of the beach house where her friends lived. “Please, it will be really fun”. She asked.
“Don’t you remember Taehyun? He’s all grown up now and looks like a good guy”. His mother gave him a teasing smile, showing him a picture of him and the Kang boy about 12 years ago, in a random birthday party.
“Stop”.
Beomgyu’s mother laughed a bit and kept showing him pictures of the big and beautiful house by the beach.
The Kangs were probably the closest to a perfect family Beomgyu had ever seen. Both parents were his mother’s friends, and they had been married almost since they met, without ever having experienced marriage problems. They lived in a house on the top of a mountain right next to a beach with clear water and white sand. Their daughter, Sakura, played volleyball and basketball, and Beomgyu was pretty sure his mother had recently mentioned she was an exchange student in Spain.
And then there was their son.
When they were younger, Beomgyu and Taehyun had seen each other very few times, but enough to get along pretty well. He remembered Taehyun liked to play soccer, and was pretty good at it. He remembered both of them eating ice cream on a random evening while their parents chatted and drank wine. Now it had been almost 7 years since the last time he had seen Taehyun. He had no idea how the lively kid he had met so long ago would look like now. Or worse, how he would act now. He sighed and focused back on the pictures his mother was showing him. In the darkness of their apartment, scrolling through the pictures of the beach, the food and the million activities he could do there, he thought it could be a better idea than staying all summer.
“Okay”.
“You want to go? Really?” His mother looked surprised but somehow relieved at the same time, her usual small smile returning to her face.
“Yeah, I haven’t been to the beach in a pretty long time”. He said, smiling himself as well.
“Then we’re going. I’ll give them a call. I’m sure they’ll be happy”.
Beomgyu nodded and his mother let out a soft sigh and patted his back, as she got up and walked to her room, leaving Beomgyu in the dark kitchen, with the lack of light and buzzing of the fridge making him believe he had chosen the right thing. After all, it was just a summer vacation he would spend somewhere else. Nothing too important, and just something for fun, he tried to convince himself.
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Meeting the Kangs again was not as hard as he had expected it to be. The couple seemed to be as happy as they had always been, with warm smiles on their faces. When Beomgyu and his mother arrived, they were the ones who went to pick them up at the airport. Beomgyu was nervously looking for Taehyun, already picturing on his mind how he would start a conversation.
It was a long drive from the airport to the Kang house, and Beomgyu stared through the window all of the time, just speaking to answer the questions his mothers’ friends asked him, like the typical “How’s school going?” Or worse. “Do you have a girlfriend?”
Beomgyu scoffed softly, quiet enough for no one to hear it, and shook his head. “No, not yet”.
“No? Hm, you should probably start looking for one, so you can move together when you finish school”.
“Uhm, yeah, I guess”. The brunnette muttered, a bit shy.
“Well, Taehyun doesn’t have one either”. The man reminded his wife. “Even though he’s a nice kid”.
Beomgyu’s mother placed a hand on his shoulder and gave him a tiny smile, before changing the topic. “Taehyun is like… really smart, isn’t he? Maybe he should help Beomgyu out a bit with his studies”. She joked, squeezing her son’s shoulder, reassuringly.
Beomgyu smiled a bit and went back to staring out of the window, sometimes watching the ocean next to the side of the road, while the adults kept talking, wondering how Taehyun would act towards him. He swallowed harshly, sometimes paying attention to the conversation going on between his mother and her friends. The Kang woman was as loud and cheerful as he remembered, but also pretty nosy, while her husband was way more calm.
“How has the weather been here?” He asked, genuinely curious in a moment of silence.
“Ussually sunny in the mornings and sometimes rainy on the evenings or nights. I’m sure you and Taehyun will get along just well and find ways to have fun together”
Beomgyu smiled a little and nodded, hoping it would be true. He hadn’t seen Taehyun in a very long time, and knew very well how the teenage years could change a person, and he hoped the soccer-loving smart and friendly kid he knew was still there.
As he stared through the window, he imagined himself and a person similar enough to the pictures he had seen of the other boy, trying to recreate him in his imagination in some way. Having the beach so close meant they could go swimming. He wondered if Taehyun would like watching dumb movies and playing chess, or anything else they could possibly have in common. He noticed the change of scenery around him, suddenly so surrounded by trees and driving through a rocky street in a steepy mountain, making his face hit the car window.
He sighed, guessing they were almost there. The huge house, almost considered a mansion, was on the very top of a mountain, after a 15 minute drive off the road. Beomgyu scoffed softly once again, something that was becoming a mindless habit for him. Of course it was a mansion. Pretty house with ocean view and besides that on top of a mountain.
“Are we almost there?” He asked, accidentally hitting his forehead with the window again.
“Yeah, we are”. Everyone else in the car answered him at the same time.
The closer they got to their place, the stronger the rain got. At first it was just a soft drizzle, but then the rain started falling stronger, hitting the car windows with an annoying tap. The wind made the branches on almost every tree move. Beomgyu worried about the non-paved dusty road, trying not to worry too much. The moment they got to the mansion, waiting outside for the metal gates to open and let them inside, he felt his heart beating faster in his chest.
He was scared and couldn’t deny it. Having to live with a boy almost his age who he couldn’t say he knew anymore for the next two months scared him and really bad. In not even 30 seconds he had made a huge list of possibilities about his whole vacation turning out awful, that he tried to get off his mind, but the second the house’s front door opened and a boy with wide eyes and a warm smile on his face came out of it, all of those things vanished from his mind.
“Taehyun”. He muttered, almost unconsciously.
Taehyun walked towards the car, waving to his parents, before stopping at the back door of the car and opening it with a nervous look on his face, but still smiling faintly. Beomgyu watched as his mother got out of the car and greeted the boy, who even though was slightly younger than him and just a bit shorter, already looked older.
“Taehyun! It’s been so long since I’d seen you for the last time”. Beomgyu’s mother placed a hand on the boy’s shoulder, looking at him with a smile that the other mirrored. “You’re so grown up, I still remember when you were just this big”. She said, signaling to her knee and chuckling a bit. “I’m glad you’ve grown so healthy”.
“Thank you, Ms. Choi” Taehyun nodded politely while his parents got out of the car and started taking Beomgyu’s and his mother’s stuff out of the trunk. The rain had easied, looking way different than it had while they were driving to the mansion. Beomgyu sighed before opening the door and getting out of the car, looking directly at Taehyun for the first time in about 7 years.
Beomgyu ignored his mother’s comments to Taehyun about ‘not needing to be so formal’, and just looked at the other boy with a mix of surprise and relief. “Hi”. He said, waving to him and walking towards everyone else.
“Beomgyu..?” Taehyun tilted his head a bit and gave him a tiny smile before nodding politely to him too, though Beomgyu could sense a hint of nervousness behind his calm looks. “Welcome here”. He said, stretching out his hand.
“Yeah…” Beomgyu tried to cover how sweatly his hands felt by wiping his hand on his pants before taking Taehyun’s hand and shaking it carefully. As he did that, he regretted it almost instantly, hoping the small gesture wouldn’t have made him look like a snobby and insufferable person just because he lived in a city. “Thanks”.
The Kang family carried the luggage inside, almost dragging Beomgyu and his mother besides them, trying not to get too wet in the rain. Taehyun grabbed Beomgyu’s suitcase before he could protest and carried it upstairs, with the older boy following him close behind, quietly trying to be useful in some way.
The house was as impressive as it looked from outside or maybe even more. There wasn’t much stuff around, but everything was organized perfectly. It seemed like the Kangs wanted to really make it look like a beach house. The tiny golden seashells carved into the walls forming patterns, the amount of sea animals themed decoration made out of metal, gold or ivory, and the style of the tables and chairs made it look exactly like what it was. An elegant beach house owned by rich people.
Taehyun noticed and chuckled, leaving the suitcase in the pretty wooden floor, right before what was clearly one of the guest rooms. “Don’t worry, I’ve got it”.
Beomgyu scoffed softly, though he was not annoyed at all. Instead, he was glad Taehyun didn’t seem to mind having guests on his house who would be staying for so long. ‘I could never be like that’, he thought, already getting an ick at the idea of more people invading his space, taking his stuff without permission or using his room. That’s when he decided he would try to be as helpful as possible, to avoid bothering the hosts.
“I think your mom is the one sleeping on this room though…”. Beomgyu’s attention returned to Taehyun after hearing him speaking again, getting slightly curious.
“Oh, uh… yeah”. Beomgyu tried to focus on the conversation, something that was getting harder for him for some reason. “Yeah, maybe”.
“You could sleep in my room though. I wouldn’t mind”. Taehyun said, shrugging. “We could put a mattress on the floor or something”.
Beomgyu wanted to scoff again. First, he didn’t want to sleep on a mattress for the next two months, already feeling the awful pain on his back after, but he didn’t want to bother Taehyun either. Besides that, he couldn’t explain why Taehyun seemed so chill about having him sleeping on his bedroom floor.
Taehyun took Beomgyu’s stuff to his room, which was pretty big, as expected. The walls were painted of a very soft gray, and were full of posters of soccer players or other sport stuff but in a good-looking way. There were plenty trophies on some of the shelves, from sports tournaments and math competitions. Next to a wall, a wooden desk with a computer and the whole setup on it. There was a pretty big white closet with wooden doors that matched the color of the floor. A few portraits of the Kang family on the shelves, and one of Taehyun and a girl that looked very similar to him, who Beomgyu guessed was Sakura. What impressed him the most was how organized everything was.
Beomgyu smiled a little, admiring Taehyun’s room and then turning back to look at him, shyly, as if waiting for an instruction.
Taehyun seemed to notice the look he was giving him and sat on his bed, looking back at Beomgyu. “Why are you so nervous? We know each other, you know”.
“Oh, yeah, I know”. Beomgyu shrugged and crossed his arms, not really knowing what to do. “I hadn’t seen you in a long time, that’s all”.
Taehyun stayed in silence for a bit before patting the spot next to him, trying to get Beomgyu to feel more comfortable. “You’ve always been kinda shy, that’s something I remembered about you”.
Beomgyu sat on the edge of Taehyun’s bed, doubting for a moment before lying down. After not having rested enough for the past few days, his mind so busy thinking about the vacation, he was too tired to help it. Taehyun noticed and chuckled, turning to face him with his legs crossed.
“You play soccer, right?”
“And basketball too, but I like soccer better”.
“You must be good, with all the trophies and medals and stuff”.
Taehyun was slightly flattered, but just shrugged it off with a smile. “I guess so. I practice a lot”.
Beomgyu nodded and closed his eyes, tired.
“What about you? Do you play any sports?” Taehyun’s voice sounded actually interested
“Not really. I know how to skate, but I never do it”.
“We could do some stuff together now that you’re here”. The suggestion made the brunnette open his eyes again and lazily glance at Taehyun, curious. “Like swimming or riding bikes”.
“Bikes?”
“Yeah, why? You don’t know how to?”
Beomgyu scoffed, slightly ashamed. Ever since he was a little kid he had tried to learn how to ride a bike, and had never succeeded. “Kinda…”
“You can always learn though”. Taehyun crossed his arms over his knees, resting his cheek on top, lazily.
Beomgyu hummed instead of answering directly, still sleepy.
“Aren’t you hungry? Your mom is downstairs talking to my parents. I think they’re having lunch”.
Beomgyu shook his head in denial. Since they were in the car, he had gotten a bit dizzy and was still feeling sick. “No, thanks”.
Taehyun got up and started walking through the room, but Beomgyu couldn’t quite see what he was doing, his eyes still closed. Before he realized, he had fallen asleep on Taehyun’s bed. He woke up a few minutes later, when he felt a soft tap on his shoulder. The younger boy was sitting next to him, with a curious look.
“It’s not even 6 p.m yet. Did you sleep well last night?” He asked, signaling to the luggage on the other side of the room. “I tried to organize your stuff”.
Beomgyu smiled a bit and rubbed his eyes, appreciating the gesture. “Ehh… kinda. I was a bit nervous about coming here and all the stuff”. He said, shrugging.
“You should sleep then. I’ll show you the house tomorrow, if you want”. Taehyun got up again, leaving Beomgyu on his bed as he walked towards his desk and sat down there, turning off the lights but keeping a soft lamp on.
Beomgyu tried to sleep again, but there was something keeping him awake. He wanted to talk to Taehyun. Lazily, he turned around until he was lying down properly, with his head on the pillow. “Taehyun?”
“Hm? I thought you were sleeping”. He replied, not turning around and still focused on whatever he was doing on his desk.
“What do you want to do tomorrow?”
Even though Beomgyu couldn’t see him, he knew there was a smile on Taehyun’s face. “Hm, first, I want to show you the house. If you’re staying here for so long you should know where everything is”.
“Yeah, but… besides that? You said something about swimming”.
“Well, the beach is right there isn’t it?” He said, pointing to a window where, if it hadn’t been for the rain and fog, the sea would’ve been visible. “And besides that… I don’t know. We could play games or watch movies or stuff like that. Maybe you want to go to the town. I don’t have anything to do all summer”.
That had caught him off guard. Beomgyu was half-expecting for Taehyun to mention any type of event with his friends from school or people from the town, but that confused him. “Really?”
“Yeah”. Taehyun shrugged, leaning against his desk. “If you want to do something with your mom I’m sure my parents will lend you the car, so don’t worry about that either”.
Beomgyu clicked his tongue in dissaproval. Growing up with only his mother had helped them build a pretty good relationship in the trusting part. They knew almost everything about the other and always supported each other, but he knew both his mother and himself were taking these vacations as a chance to be by themselves for a while, so he refused.
“Watching movies sounds fun”.
Taehyun nodded and kept typing something on his computer, while the rain got worse outside, making noise when it hit the windows. Beomgyu closed his eyes, feeling his hair fall on his eyes, but too lazy to try and push it away. He sighed, and before he could realize, he had already fallen asleep.
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When Beomgyu woke up, the bright sunlight was coming through the windows, completely different from the weather the night before. He looked around the room, yawning, while he spotted a big mattress on the floor, with a couple of blankets and a pillow over it. That was where Taehyun had slept, but right then there was no sign of the younger boy. He got up and walked towards the mattress, kneeling next to it and folding the blankets.
The door opened a couple of minutes later, and Taehyun gave him a curious look. “Did you sleep well?”
“Yeah”. Beomgyu turned to look at him and smiled a bit. “Thanks for letting me use your bed last night, I’ll keep sleeping on the mattress”.
“It’s okay, we can switch, you know?” Taehyun shrugged and sat down close to Beomgyu, leaning against the wall.
Beomgyu nodded and crossed his legs, still a bit sleepy. “Did you have breakfast yet?”
“Uh-huh. It’s already like… 10 a.m. You’ve been sleeping for hours, really”.
“Eh?! Wake me up next time if I sleep so much”. Beomgyu’s expression shifted to one of disbelief, no longer tired at all.
“You were tired, I guess letting you sleep was the best I could do”. Taehyun shrugged, mindlessly. “Aren’t you hungry though? You didn’t eat anything yesterday”.
Beomgyu nodded and got up, noticing how hungry he actually was. It had been almost a day since he had eaten anything. “Now that you mention it, yeah, I am”.
They walked downstairs to the kitchen, Beomgyu often looking at stuff with curiosity. There were some parts of the house in which the walls or floor would be covered in blue and white tiles, some with designs. Downstairs, there were a couple of living rooms, a bathroom and the huge kitchen. Taehyun opened the fridge, looking for the leftover breakfast and giving Beomgyu a chance to peek inside and look at all the different fruits, juices and leftovers there. That house was like heaven.
“You can eat whatever you want”. Taehyun grabbed a container with scrambled eggs and sauce inside and handed it to Beomgyu before closing the fridge. “Do you want some bread or fruits or something?”
Beomgyu noticed Taehyun wasn’t used to host people on his house, but he was trying his best. He didn’t know if he was doing it because he wanted to or because his parents had told him to, but tried not to care much about it.
“Uh, both are fine, don’t worry”. Beomgyu took out a box of blueberries from the fridge and placed them on the counter, next to the container. “What are you going to do today?”
The younger boy scratched the back of his neck, some of his hair falling all over his face. He tucked it back with one hand while shrugging, like he always did. “I don’t know. Go somewhere with you”.
Beomgyu let out a soft sigh as he washed the blueberries. “I don’t want to keep you from going out with your friends or something like that”.
“Trust me, you’re not. I… I don’t want to spend my vacations with the people I have to see the rest of the year”.
“Okay”. Beomgyu agreed, but was still pretty confused. Taehyun was good at sports and stood out at soccer, was very smart and was quite attractive, at least to his point of view. He would’ve been sure someone like him would have tons of friends to hang out with and a beautiful girlfriend, not wasting their vacations with someone they barely knew.
Taehyun noticed his expression of concern and placed a hand on his back. “Also I… want to get to know you…”. He said, nervously, with a soft blush taking over his cheeks as he pulled his hand away, awkwardly. “And to… uhm, be your friend”
Beomgyu gave him a look of disbelief, but noticing how nervous Taehyun seemed made his expression soften. He smiled a little, slightly flattered, and turned towards him. “Yeah?”
“Yeah”. Taehyun looked away, smiling a bit while Beomgyu sat down and started eating his breakfast. “I, uh, was going to ask you if you wanted to watch a movie together yesterday, but you had already fallen asleep”.
Beomgyu’s smile widened a bit as he chewed on the toast with scrambled eggs. “We could watch something tonight”. He said, resting his cheek against his hand. “But you have to show me your house first”.
Taehyun let out a soft sigh and nodded, patiently waiting for Beomgyu to finish his food. As he waited and Beomgyu had breakfast, they started talking again, getting to know each other a bit better every time. Beomgyu noticed Taehyun looked like he genuinely wanted to be his friend, and they were both kind of awkward or shy at first. Behind the other’s big dark eyes, there was a hint of something he couldn’t quite identify, but somehow added personality, in a way.
When Beomgyu finished, Taehyun took him outside, to show him the pool. It was located in a pretty garden, from which they could see the ocean and the forest surrounding them. “The sunset looks pretty good from here”. He said, kneeling next to the pool to touch the water with the tips of his fingers.
“Are we going to be here today at that time?” Beomgyu did the same thing, taking some pool water on his hands and letting it fall back into it. He looked back at Taehyun and got up, curious.
Taehyun shrugged and got up as well, shaking away the remains of water on his hands. “I guess. I don’t have everything planned, you know? Still, we have a lot of time. The sun goes away at the end of every day”.
Beomgyu nodded and stared at the view, noticing the way the wind moved the trees and the waves came and went peacefully, while the breeze messed up his own hair.
“Do you want to go to the beach now?”
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As he changed his clothes to swimming ones, Beomgyu couldn’t help feeling slightly nervous. When he was ready, he looked over at Taehyun, who was sitting on his bed, wearing a dark blue short sleeve button shirt and had a bored expression on his face. Beomgyu didn’t remember ever noticing how pretty he was. Taehyun looked back at him and got up, taking him to the car while they started talking between them again.
“Your bangs are getting long”. Taehyun looked at him before sitting down at the driver seat and starting the car. “Who cuts your hair?”
Beomgyu sat next to him, on the front seat, and rested his head against the window as Taehyun started driving carefully down the mountain. “I cut it myself most of the time. Does it look bad?”
“Nah, not really”. The road under them was very rocky, making the car tremble slightly. Even though they both were supposedly too young to drive, Beomgyu considered himself pretty good at it and Taehyun seemed to have experience driving through the mountain to get to his home. “But it’s probably uncomfortable if your hair gets in your eyes”.
“Uh-huh, I guess”. Beomgyu sighed and raised an eyebrow, looking at Taehyun and the way his shorter bangs fell on his forehead and how soft his hair looked. “I like your hairstyle. It suits you”.
“Thanks”. Taehyun looked in the side mirror, smiling a little. They both stayed in silence for a while, slowly driving down the mountain. When they got to the main road again, Taehyun doubted for a moment before gently tucking a strand of longish hair behind Beomgyu’s ear, pushing it away from his eyes. Before Beomgyu could say anything, Taehyun focused back on driving and acted like nothing had happened. “We should’ve probably told our parents we were taking the car”.
“I don’t think they were going out. At least not my mom”. Beomgyu scoffed softly as Taehyun drove into the entrance to the beach. “Still, you have another car, right?”.
“Yeah, but they don’t let me drive in that one”. Taehyun parked the car in the sand and opened the door, standing on the sand. “It was probably pretty expensive”. He added, while Beomgyu got out too, carrying some stuff on his arms.
“What did you bring? I thought we’d be swimming the whole time”. The younger boy yawned and sat down on the sand, curious.
“Ehhh…” Beomgyu placed the stuff he had brought on the sand, sitting besides Taehyun. The strand of hair the other boy had placed behind his ear was still there, making one of his eyebrows visible. Taehyun glanced over at the container with fruits, the chess box with the board and pieces, the two cans of iced tea and the towels Beomgyu had taken, making him wonder how did he have time to pack so much stuff for just a hang out at the beach.
Taehyun took off his shoes and shirt, leaving them on the side before glancing at the sea and grabbing one of the iced tea cans, opening and drinking a bit. “Look how clear the water looks. Don’t you want to go?”
“I do, just…”. Beomgyu’s cheeks flushed a bit as he took off his shoes, still too shy to take his shirt off. He crossed his legs and looked away, trying to come up with an excuse at the same time Taehyun let out a soft sigh and got up. Beomgyu thought he would go to the sea by himself, but instead of that, Taehyun moved closer to him, sitting right in front of him, next to all the stuff he had brought.
“Don’t worry about any dumb stuff”. He said, tilting his head a bit, with a warm smile. “I want to show you something”.
Beomgyu sighed again, giving Taehyun a shy glare before getting up. Taehyun smiled and grabbed him by the wrist, dragging Beomgyu into the beach. The sand felt weird under his feet, but Beomgyu supposed it had to do with the fact that he hadn’t been to the beach in a long time. Suddenly, he felt glad Taehyun was there, with him, because he looked naturally comfortable and calm, holding Beomgyu’s wrist.
They dipped their feet in the cool sea water, both of them with small smiles on their faces. Taehyun looked around through the bottom of the ocean for a moment before letting go of Beomgyu’s wrist and crouching. He grabbed something from the bottom as the waves splashed him and then got back up, showing it to Beomgyu. “Look, a sand dollar”.
Beomgyu carefully grabbed the curious-looking white and round thing from Taehyun’s hand, not really knowing what it was. He looked at it, as if he was scared the sand dollar would bite him or something like that.
“That one’s a skeleton. This beach is full of them”. Taehyun shrugged, his smile widening. “I knew I’d find one to show to you. Take it if you want, but be careful not to touch the ones that are alive. They look the same, just dark gray and living instead of white and solid”.
They spent the rest of the morning and almost the whole evening on the beach. Taehyun tried to convince Beomgyu to swim with him in the sea until he finally gave in. The water was very clear and the sand white, so some fishes could be spotted from the surface. Beomgyu finally decided to take his shirt off, realizing how heavy and uncomfortable it felt if he wore it while swimming. After that, they spent some time sitting on the sand, at some palm tree’s shadow, playing card games and chess and eating watermelon until the sky started to look colorful and the sun was slowly moving down.
“Are we going back to your house now? You said the sunset looked pretty”. Beomgyu was sitting on the sand with his legs crossed and a towel wrapped around his shoulders, though it didn’t stop him from feeling cold.
“Sure”. Taehyun was lying down on the sand, with a ray of sunlight hitting his face in an uncomfortable way, but when Beomgyu suggested going home already, he lazily got up. “We could go to the pool and after we’ve eaten something and taken a shower, we could do something else”.
“How do the stars look from your house?” Beomgyu got up too, helping Taehyun pick everything up. “I like stargazing, but it’s hard to do it back on the city. Too much light”.
Taehyun doubted for a moment before shrugging, alreafy opening the car door to get in. “It has been raining a lot”. He replied, not answering the question.
Beomgyu hummed and got into the passenger seat, still wrapped in the towel, shivering a bit. Even though the city he lived in could be way colder sometimes, this type of cold felt different. Taehyun noticed it and rubbed Beomgyu’s arm, trying to get him to warm up a bit. “When we get home you should take a hot shower. We can see the sunset another day”.
He started the car and drove them through the road, back into the mountain. When they got home, Beomgyu —who had been freezing through the whole ride— went to take a long, warm bath almost immediately, while Taehyun organized back all of the stuff they had taken to the beach and did other stuff. As he put the games back on their places, he couldn’t help smiling to himself. Beomgyu had lost to him on chess, though they were pretty similar in skills, but was way better on card games. It was fun playing with him, because he took the games seriously but still didn’t cheat. After a while, when Beomgyu came out of the bathroom, finally able to wear pajamas at that house, he greeted him with a nod and smiled a bit.
“You should go downstairs. My parents are making dinner”. Taehyun finished organizing everything and took some clothes from his closet. “I’ll take a bath too”.
“I can wait for you”. Beomgyu shrugged, sitting on the edge of Taehyun’s bed before lazily lying down, tired. “And we watch a movie”.
“Okay”. Taehyun’s smile widened a bit before he turned away and walked to the bathroom, leaving Beomgyu alone in his room. Beomgyu grabbed a pillow and clutched it tight against his chest, closing his eyes for a bit and hoping he wouldn’t fall asleep, but the next thing he felt was another pillow hitting his back. He hadn’t even realized he had been dozing off for the past 15 minutes, until Taehyun came back, with his hair a bit damp and wearing clean clothes.
“Come on, you can’t sleep so much”. The younger complained, crossing his arms. “Aren’t you hungry?”
“I could eat”. He doubted for a bit. “But I don’t want to get up now”.
“You’re way lazier than I thought you’d be. We didn’t do anything in the whole day”. Taehyun scoffed lightly, as Beomgyu reclutantly got up. “No, wait, stay here. Just don’t fall asleep”.
“Do you eat here regularly?”
“Not really”. Taehyun shrugged and walked out of the room before Beomgyu could say anything else, coming back a couple of minutes later, carrying two bowls of steaming tomato soup and offering one to Beomgyu. “Here, have yours”.
Beomgyu smiled a bit and grabbed the bowl and a spoin from Taehyun’s hands, as the younger sat back down on the bed and started eating his own food.
“This is really good. Did your mom make it?” The soup Taehyun had handed him was natural and made out of tomatoes, garlic, and something else Beomgyu couldn’t recognize. He didn’t know if it was because he was starving or if the soup actually tasted that good.
“Yeah”. Taehyun sat next to Beomgyu, with his legs up to his chest. He pulled out his phone from his pocket and placed it against a pillow. “Wanna watch something?” He asked, smiling.
Beomgyu smiled back as he ate the soup and nodded, also moving slightly closer to Taehyun, shyly. Taehyun thought for a moment before deciding to play a random show, saying he had never watched it before as an excuse if they didn’t like it. The show was very realistic and happened in a hospital, so everything was pretty intense and kept them entertained for the following two hours, as they slowly got more and more sleepy.
Neither of them realized exactly when they fell asleep, or who dozed off first, but the next morning, when Beomgyu opened his eyes, Taehyun’s head was resting between his chin and shoulder, and one of his arms was around his chest, in a loose hug. Without moving much and still sleepy, he looked around and saw Taehyun’s phone still where they had left it last night, turned off, and the empty bowls of soup placed on the floor. Taehyun’s breath felt warm against his neck, and his soft hair was tickling his chin.
Beomgyu pulled away, careful not to wake him up, and got up, grabbing the bowls and walking out of the room, closing the door behind him quietly. He let out a soft sigh and walked downstairs to the kitchen, to clean up the dirty dishes. As he walked around the house, he wondered where his mother and the Kang wife and husband could possibly be. He peeked through a window and noticed the expensive car was gone, meaning they were too. He shrugged, not really minding and actually enjoying the loneliness. After washing the dishes, he stayed downstairs, walking around the house while eating a piece of toast with peanut butter and sliced banana on top, and drinking a cup of tea he had made himself.
While he snooped around the stuff in the living room and finished his breakfast, Beomgyu heard a door open and close again, and some soft footsteps walking through the wooden floor. He turned around just in time to find Taehyun looking for him, his hair a bit messy and with a sleepy look.
“Hi”.
“Hey”.
“How did you sleep? You still look tired”.
Taehyun yawned and lied down on the living room sofa, closing his eyes as the sunlight that shone through the window hit his face. “Pretty comfortable”.
Beomgyu wondered if Taehyun knew about the way they had slept, so close to each other.
“Yeah, me too”. He said, with a smile. “Are we going to keep watching that show we were watching yesterday?”
“Sure. What else do you want to do today?”
“We could go to the beach again”.
Taehyun shrugged, covering his eyes with his arm, clearly sleepy. “Alright, but let me rest for a bit first”
Beomgyu shrugged too, sitting in the couch, next to where Taehyun was resting his legs. “Okay”.
Taehyun pat the spot next to him on the sofa for Beomgyu to sit closer, and when he did he smiled a little. “And I also have to do some stuff today”.
That caught Beomgyu’s attention, and he looked at Taehyun who was still laying down. “You do? Maybe I can help you”.
“It’s nothing important. Just organizing my bedroom”.
“Organize it? It looks good to me”.
“It’s not that bad, and I can do it myself, but thanks”.
Beomgyu nodded before laying down next to Taehyun, unintentionally resting his head between Taehyun’s arm and chest, and letting out a long yawn. He thought Taehyun would move away or just ignore him, but he was not expecting what he did. As Beomgyu yawned lazily, resting comfortably, Taehyun placed his other arm over him, in a hug.
Beomgyu let out a soft chuckle and looked at Taehyun, who was smiling a bit too, even though the sun was directly hitting his face. As if planned, they both sighed at the same time, relaxed, and Beomgyu moved a bit closer too, placing a hand over Taehyun’s waist. He closed his eyes, feeling the soft sunlight and Taehyun’s arms around him. He could stay like this for the rest of the day. For the rest of the vacations, actually.
That’s when he really thought about it. He was starting to like Taehyun. It was like when he was starting to like anyone else: a funny feeling on his chest and wanting to be close to them. He smiled a bit and looked at Taehyun again, just for a second. Beomgyu had never had a partner. He had been in love with several people before, but in the end he realized it wasn’t anything too serious and he could live without letting them know. He was sure his feelings for Taehyun were just like that, and the other boy would be happy just being his friend.
“Beomgyu”. When he heard his name being called, Beomgyu looked at Taehyun, noticing the tiredness in his eyes, which worried him a little.
“Yeah?”
“I’m sorry”. He said, clearly exhausted. “I’m really tired. Do you think we can go to the beach in the evening?”
“Sure”. Beomgyu’s smile softened a little and he nodded, resting his head back on Taehyun’s chest, and feeling his breathing. “Should I stay here?”
“Yeah, unless you don’t want to”. Taehyun smiled, his dimple appearing on the right side of his face. Beomgyu shrugged, knowing he’d stay there, both because of how comfortable it was lying down where the sun hit, and because of the physical contact. He closed his eyes, but couldn’t fall asleep. Taehyun’s breathing slowed down as the minutes passed by, and when Beomgyu realized, the younger was fully asleep.
Beomgyu’s smile widened as he looked at Taehyun’s sleeping face, wondering why he was so tired. He sighed softly and closed his eyes, enjoying the moment and sometimes staring at a clock on the wall. One hour. Two hours. Right before the third hour, as Taehyun was still sleeping peacefully, Beomgyu heard a car moving through the rocky road and arriving. He didn’t move away, trying not to wake up the youngest, but Taehyun,who Beomgyu swore was deeply asleep, got up incredibly quickly, letting go of him.
Beomgyu was still lying down on the couch, with his right arm over his chest, where he had been hugging Taehyun. Taehyun just rubbed his eyes, trying to look like he had been awake all morning and glancing desesperately at the door. He sighed softly, missing the contact and feeling a bit sad. It wasn’t like they had been doing anything wrong, right? Taehyun was exhausted and he had been looking after him. He couldn’t see the issue.
The door opened and Taehyun’s parents walked inside, followed by Beomgyu’s mother. Taehyun greeted them nervously, but his mother seemed to notice something about him and took him with her to another room, just the two of them.
“Taehyun, come here. I want to speak with you for a second”.
Beomgyu stayed in the living room couch, waiting for Taehyun to return. He didn’t want to seem too affectionate, but he missed the younger boy. When Taehyun came back, there was something different about him. The small smile and the sparkle in his eyes were gone. Beomgyu smiled a bit, trying to offer some kind of reassurance, but it didn’t seem to help at all.
Taehyun straight up ignored him and walked up the stairs into his room. Beomgyu sighed and quietly waited for Taehyun to come out of his room, as he wondered what his mother had said to him. Maybe the Kang family wasn’t so perfect. The door remained closed and locked, with his friend inside. Beomgyu could hardly believe he had spent the whole day in a couch, only getting up to walk around and eating lunch instead of the tons of things he could’ve been doing, but he didn’t want to go anywhere.
He was waiting for Taehyun to come out of his room even if it took the whole day.
The sun had already setted and his mother and Taehyun’s parents went out again. Beomgyu was dozing off on the couch, already bored of being on his phone most day. He was almost asleep when he felt something lifting him off the couch.
“Hm?” He opened his eyes, lazily, and noticed Taehyun was carrying him in his arms and holding him up to his chest, looking at him with his calm smile and shiny big eyes.
“I thought you were asleep. I was going to carry you upstairs so you could sleep properly”. One of Taehyun’s arms was under his knees while the other was around his waist, holding him. “Do you still want me to carry you?” He asked, teasingly
Beomgyu smiled a bit and nodded, sleepy. “Yeah, okay”.
As Taehyun walked upstairs, surprising Beomgyu by how easily he could carry him even when walking up a staircase, he looked at him and chuckled.
“Why are you laughing?” Taehyun smiled and dropped Beomgyu on his bed, before sitting next to him.
Beomgyu shrugged and yawned, still almost asleep. “I’m tired”.
“That doesn’t sound like a reason”.
Taehyun lied down and closed his eyes, as Beomgyu placed his head over his shoulder again, like they had been in the morning. Being sleepy just made him want to be close to the younger.
“What have you been doing today? I thought we were going to the beach”.
“Oh, right. I’m sorry”. Taehyun sighed and looked up at the roof. “My mother and I… we had an argument. It was nothing too serious though. I’m really sorry if you got bored”.
“No, it’s okay”. Beomgyu moved a bit closer, still with the urge to be closer to Taehyun and get hugged by him. “I waited for you for a while though”. He said, blushing a bit.
“Hm? How long?” Taehyun doubted for a bit before carefully moving away, completely the opposite of what Beomgyu had been expecting. “You should’ve been doing something else”.
“Well… I didn’t know what to do”. Beomgyu shrugged and after doubting for a while, he gained the courage to try to get Taehyun to rest by his side again. “Come here”. He suggested, patting the spot next to him on the bed.
Anyone could tell that Taehyun really did wanted to lay down and hug Beomgyu until they fell asleep, but after hearing the suggestion, the younger boy just swallowed and shook his head. “I can’t. I- I’m kinda busy right now”.
Beomyu tilted his head, dissapointed but concerned. “Do you want me to help you?”
“Not really, thanks”. Taehyun started walking outside of the room, and Beomgyu noticed something wasn’t alright about him. “You should sleep. I’ll be back in a while”.
“You look a bit pale. You’re probably tired too”.
Beomgyu didn’t even finish the sentence before Taehyun had already walked out the door.
────── ────── ────── ────── ──────
The days passed, and the sudden changes in Taehyun’s mood were starting to worry him a lot more. Normally, Taehyun was calm, friendly, and smiled at him with affection. Many days spent together at the beach and even more nights sleeping besides each other curled up in Taehyun’s bed. Hugs, direct affection and even small kisses on the top of the head were becoming something normal for them, and Beomgyu was glad Taehyun looked genuinely happy.
Still, there were many moments in which the younger boy would look distant. They could be watching a show, and when Beomgyu glanced at Taehyun, he noticed he wasn’t paying attention, just staring directly into something, completely distant from the present time. Once, they were resting in Taehyun’s bed, practically cuddling, when the younger suddenly got up and excused himself, saying he had something to do.
All of that just sounds like excuses to avoid him, at least for a while.
Beomgyu found himself thinking about this one day, while watching the sunset at the beach with Taehyun, sitting on the sand and leaning against a log. His head was resting against Taehyun’s bare shoulder, leaning against him, while Taehyun had an arm around his shoulders and mindlessly played with his hair.
“Tyun”.
“Yeah?”
Beomgyu turned his head towards him and gave him his usual v-shaped smile, before wrapping his arms around Taehyun’s torso.
“I like the way you smile”.
Taehyun scoffed softly and buried his face against Beomgyu’s hair as the sun slowly dissapeared in the horizon.
“No, I’m serious. Your smile is pretty”.
“Thanks”.
“Yeah”.
When the day finally turned into night, they packed their stuff and went back home, just to do the same thing after showering. It was raining outside, and they were resting on his bed once again, Taehyun’s head resting on Beomgyu’s chest while he showed him some pictures on his phone.
“There was a time when I was into soccer so much that my grades lowered. I barely even studied, but I was really good”.
“Yeah? Well, you’re top of your class, I don’t think it was that much of a problem”.
“My mother wasn’t happy about it”.
“Oh, right”. Beomgyu rolled his eyes. He had noticed every time Taehyun seemed distant or upset it was after a conversation with his mother, and he was starting to strongly dislike the woman.
Taehyun noticed his reaction and looked at him in curiosity. “What?”
“I didn’t say anything”.
“I know you didn’t, but you expressed yourself very clearly”. Taehyun grinned teasingly. “You don’t like my mother”.
“It’s not exactly that…”.
“Don’t worry, I don’t really like her either”.
“Wait, really? Why not?”
The younger boy shrugged. “She’s kinda controlling, I guess”. He doubted for a moment before speaking again. “And she doesn’t like… all this”. Taehyun signaled to himself and Beomgyu, and the way they were sitting so close to each other. The way they were becoming so close to each other.
“I don’t care though. I do like it”.
Beomgyu smiled a bit when he heard Taehyun’s opinion, and hugged him tighter, resting his head on top of his. “Me too”.
They stayed in silence, the older running his fingers through Taehyun’s hair while he placed his head on his chest, until they eventually fell asleep, slowly. Beomgyu slept through almost the whole night, but in some point at early morning he woke up and realized Taehyun wasn’t there.
He sleepily looked around and finally spotted Taehyun sitting on his desk, his back facing him. But he didn’t look okay at all. The alarm clock on the night table read 4:26 a.m. and there was barely any light on the room besides the incredibly bright lamp on the desk. The way it glowed reminded Beomgyu of the lights back at his apartment and made him cringe.
Beomgyu quietly got upand walked towards his friend, who was writing something on a paper. He already had several paper sheets full of his handwriting, which seemed like a summary for something. It made Beomgyu wonder why he was studying if they were on vacation.
“Hey”. He poked Taehyun’s back, trying to catch his attention and convince him to go back to bed, but accidentally startling him on the way. Taehyun flinched and the pen on his hand slipped, staining the paper on which he had written.
Fuck.
Taehyun looked at the paper on his hands, almost perfect except for the huge ink line in it. He let out a sigh and turned to Beomgyu, with an exhausted look on his face.
“What do you need?” He asked, coldly.
That made Beomgyu feel even worse, because he didn’t even need anything. He just wanted Taehyun by his side.
“Look, I’m really busy right now. If you don’t need anything, go away. It’s early, go back to sleep”.
“I- I’m sorry. You should go to sleep too. I can… make you some tea or something, if you want”.
“Go back to sleep. I’m busy”.
Taehyun got up and walked out of his room, after crumpling the paper he had been writing in and throwing it to the trash. The exhaustation was clear on his face, and there was a hint of something else. Fear. Beomgyu could tell Taehyun was afraid of something. But what was it? Was it his parents? The test he was studying for?
He wanted to help, but didn’t know what to do. For the following 5 hours, he lied down on Taehyun’s bed, waiting for him to come back. When he did, he tried to apologize, but Taehyun just nodded and walked away again. That whole day was awful. He barely left Taehyun’s room, and tried to talk to him every once in a while, but Taehyun would treat him different. Not exactly bad, but in a way that made him feel terrible. Not smiling at him anymore, not talking to him at all and straight up ignoring the older boy.
Beomgyu hadn’t meant to ruin whatever he had been doing. He felt incredibly guilty and even took the paper out of the trash and wrote everything himself, with a much better handwriting than the one he ussually used. He left it on the desk, making sure Taehyun saw it.
He wanted to cry. He wanted to go back in time to 24 hours before and just hold Taehyun all night and make sure he slept properly. He tried as hard as he could to hold back the tears, but when the day was over, he couldn’t hold it back anymore. Beomgyu lied down on the mattress and covered himself with the blankets, as the rain hit the windows outside.
Some minutes passed by, but the feeling of hurt didn’t leave. Not until he felt something besides him. Beomgyu doubted before pulling the blankets off from his face and noticing Taehyun holding the paper with the summary Beomgyu had re-written for him. There was a faint blush on his cheeks and he looked incredibly stressed, like he had through the whole day.
“I’m sorry”.
Beomgyu’s eyes widened in surprise, and he tilted his head to a side.
“You should sleep on the bed. The mattress is uncomfortable”.
“It’s fine. You’re the one who should be sleeping in the bed”.
Taehyun swallowed, with the most guilty expression Beomgyu had seen in his life.
“Do you want to sleep by yourself?” His voice didn’t seem rude or trying to make Beomgyu feel bad. He was genuinely self-conscious.
Beomgyu shook his head. “Not really”.
Taehyun got up and put the paper back on his desk. Beomgyu thought he was going to leave, but instead, he sat back down, keeping a distance.
Beomgyu rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand, trying to pretend he hadn’t cried.
“Taehyun”.
“Hm?”
“What are you studying for?”
Taehyun’s expression became even duller than before, and he doubted for a moment before lying down on the other side of the mattress, right on the edge.
“I’m trying to get into a really good university”.
Taehyun didn’t sound not even a bit proud. Beomgyu made a sign for him to come closer, and he did, shyly.
“What do you want to study?”
“Politics”. The answer was so dry and automatic it couldn’t be right.
“Oh, interesting”. Anything related to politics sounded like the most boring job ever to him. People only applied to it to make money.
“What about you?”
“Hm?” Beomgyu’s expression shifted into surprise, which made a tiny smile appear on Taehyun’s lips. “Maybe photography. I’ve always liked that”.
“That does sound interesting”. Taehyun stretched an arm towards Beomgyu, almost about to hug him, and then pulled back immediately. “Suits you”.
Beomgyu smiled a little, feeling his eyes filling with tears again. He didn’t want to cry anymore, but now he was glad Taehyun wasn’t mad at him. He moved a bit closer to him and rested his head on his shoulder, before getting squeezed by the younger’s arms and pressed to his chest.
When Beomgyu looked at Taehyun, he noticed his ‘I want to talk to you but don’t know how to’ expression, and it made him smile a bit. He was starting to get to know Taehyun in a way probably no one did and he knew he struggled with something. Something that was keeping him from expressing himself completely.
Taehyun sighed softly and swallowed, before looking away. “I’m sorry”.
“It’s okay”.
They stayed like that for a long time, sometimes talking but mostly in silence. Taehyun’s arms were wrapped around Beomgyu’s back, and this one was resting his head on his chest. Even though he quickly fell asleep, Beomgyu still felt the soft kiss Taehyun pressed on his cheek.
────── ────── ────── ────── ──────
The days passed quickly, and every time Beomgyu was more scared about having to say goodbye soon, so he tried to spend as much time as he could with Taehyun. Taehyun seemed like he also wanted to be with him most of the time, but sometimes he’d act a little distant. Beomgyu was sure this was because of his parents, because when they were alone, Taehyun would act more relaxed and calm.
The whole ‘vacations ending soon’ thing had Beomgyu’s mind a bit distant recently, but all of those thought instantly vanished when his mother and Taehyun’s parents gave them the big news. They were going on a trip for ten days, leaving the whole house and a car just for the two boys. His relationship with Taehyun had undeniably grown, and so had his feelings, but that also scared him.
Everything was telling him that his feelings were returned, and that included the soft smiles his friend gave to him, the way he would crawl into bed with him and hold him while they fell asleep, and the gentle forehead kisses that became more and more frequent. The way Taehyun was slowly starting to tell him more of his opinions that he had probably never mentioned to anyone else before.
When their parents announced their plans, both of them agreed that it would be fine by them to stay at home, and that they would have fun and do the same stuff they always did. With just that promise, everyone agreed and their parents left almost immediately.
They left in the early morning, before Taehyun and Beomgyu woke up. Now the two boys had the whole place for themselves for ten long days. Beomgyu was planning to do something in that time. Luckily, Taehyun would feel the same way, but if he didn’t, him and his mother would leave soon and he wouldn’t have to see him ever again.
The raining season seemed to have ended a few days ago, and now all days looked sunny since the early morning. Even though Beomgyu reminded him and even did it sometimes himself, Taehyun kept leaving the curtains open, so a bit after sunrise, they would both wake up at the sunlight.
Beomgyu was the first to wake up, almost falling from Taehyun’s bed. One of his arms was tightly wrapped around Taehyun, pulling him close. The younger was still asleep, peacefully, his breathing even and soft. Beomgyu rubbed his eyes and looked at him with curiosity, waiting for him to wake up.
He was about to let go of him and get up, but Taehyun grabbed him by his sleeve, sleepily.
“It’s still early”. He muttered.
That surprised Beomgyu. In all of the time he had spent with Taehyun, after so many nights sleeping together while the rain splattered against the windows outside, there had been very few times in which they had woken up at the same time, and none of those times Taehyun had hesitated to get up.
He wondered if this had to do with his parents leaving.
“Yeah, I guess it is”.
Taehyun smiled a bit and rested his head on his shoulder. He wasn’t asleep anymore, just lazying and enjoying the moment with Beomgyu.
“You know…”. Taehyun yawned and covered his eyes with his arm as the sunlight hit his face. “I know something we could do today. I could take you somewhere you haven’t been to yet”.
Beomgyu raised an eyebrow in curiosity as Taehyun sat up, looking down at him. “My parents probably wouldn’t let me take you there, but you still haven’t been to the town”.
“Eh? Well, when my mom and I arrived and your parents picked us up, we drove through it, but we haven’t really been there”.
“You haven’t really been there. I’m sure my parents took your mom there while insisting that place is full of pickpocketers and drunk people. It kinda is, but you should still come”. Taehyun smiled a bit, which made Beomgyu return the gesture.
“You make it sound like a gorgeous place. Isn’t it like a regular beachside town? Full of tourists and stuff”. Beomgyu shrugged and lazily got up, as Taehyun did the same thing after him.
“Just wait and see”. Taehyun looked for some fresh clothes in his closet and quickly got ready, while Beomgyu tried to fix his brown hair, which was growing long enough to reach his shoulders, looking at his reflection in the mirror and frowning a bit, until he realized Taehyun was looking at him.
“What is it?”
“Nothing. Your hair looks good, don’t worry”.
Beomgyu turned to look at him, frowning a bit more, playfully. Taehyun smiled softly and crossed his arms.
”Should we go?”
“Yeah”.
The car ride was fun, playing loud and cheerful music as Taehyun drove down the mountain and Beomgyu looked through the window, feeling the wind mess his hair. When they got to the town, Taehyun left the car on a random parking lot, and eagerly took Beomgyu’s hand, dragging him through the town.
It was a regular beach town, but something about going there with Taehyun made the place feel special. The smell of flowers, fried fish and chips, the colorful beach clothing outside of the stores and the sound of the ocean waves mixed with music and wind chimes.
It was the most special day in Beomgyu’s life.
After walking around for a while, Taehyun pointed at a bike rental and looked at Beomgyu, grinning. “Remember what I had told you about this?”
Beomgyu sighed and crossed his arms. “Yeah…”.
“Aw, come on. It will be fun, you’ll see”. Taehyun turned to look at him with a soft smile, and Beomgyu finally agreed.
“You know what we could do?” As they approached the bike rental and Beomgyu started looking for one that he liked, Taehyun got an idea. “We share a bike”.
“We can do that?”
“Probably”. Taehyun shrugged, looking at the bike Beomgyu had picked. A light teal bicycle with a metal basket in the front. “That one looks nice”.
Beomgyu smiled a little, as Taehyun payed for it and got in the bike. “Now sit behind me and wrap your arms around my waist”.
Beomgyu nodded and did exactly as Taehyun had told him. After so many years of not riding a bike, he was a bit nervous, but he was sure that as long as Taehyun was there, they wouldn’t fall.
Taehyun started pedaling out of the store and through the cheerful streets, Beomgyu holding tight to the younger’s waist and shyly resting his head against his shoulder. He could see Taehyun’s carefree smile, and it made his heart flutter.
“This is fun, isn’t it?”
“Yeah, it’s not that scary”
Taehyun turned to look at him and his smile widened, making the small dimple on his right cheek show again. Beomgyu tightened his hold on his waist and in a moment of impulsiveness, placed a kiss to his cheek, almost on the corner of his mouth.
Taehyun’s eyes widened slightly, in curiosity, but he barely reacted. He just gave Beomgyu a soft smile and kept calmly riding the bicycle. It was the way he did everything with that calm expression, the way he looked so reassuring and the way it seemed like he could read his mind, all those little details were what made Taehyun who he was.
It was what Beomgyu liked the most about him.
────── ────── ────── ────── ──────
After that, the days had passed in a blur. The mornings were sunny, they would eat delicious breakfast, go to the beach or the town and end the day in the pool back at Taehyun’s house. Watching one or two episodes each night, the hospital show was already over. Living just the two of them together was becoming something really peaceful.
One week had passed, and Beomgyu had barely realized it. They had spent the day at the beach, and in the evening returned home, like usual. But this night it had started raining. A storm, even. The rain splattered against the windows while the wind shook the trees outside.
Beomgyu was outside of Taehyun’s room, waiting for his friend to finish showering so he could go next, but Taehyun was taking too long.
With the sound of the storm outside, he couldn’t tell where Taehyun was. He was starting to feel cold, still wearing the clothes he had taken to the beach. His hair was still damp and he was tired, but he let Taehyun shower first, thinkig he wouldn’t take too long.
He knocked on the door and tried to hear anything from inside the room. Showering for almost an hour wasn’t what Taehyun ussually did.
“Tyun? Are you okay?”
He heard a soft breathing inside and knocked again, before noticing something else. The hallway he was standing in was illuminated, but Taehyun’s room wasn’t. There was no glow coming out from under the door.
Beomgyu opened the door and turned on the lights, adjusting them to a low mode. He looked around for Taehyun and found him sitting at his desk, with a soft expression that showed his emotions. He wasn’t feeling well. The small bags under his eyes were a bit red and his skin was pale.
“Sorry for not letting you in yet. I… I was busy with something”.
Beomgyu shook his head, looking at Taehyun with concern.
“Don’t worry about that”. He leaned a bit closer, placing a hand on the younger’s cheek. He felt Taehyun’s body going a bit stiff at the touch, like he was scared. “Are you okay?”
Taehyun nodded and bit his lip. He shyly stretched out a hand towards Beomgyu, who took it and laced their fingers together. That made Taehyun smile a bit and relax slightly.
“You should take a shower”.
“I will”.
Taehyun sighed softly and looked down, and Beomgyu noticed he was starting to cry. That shocked him slightly. He had never seen the younger like this. It wasn’t that he didn’t show emotions, it was that he never broke down. He was always calm and patient.
That must be very exhausting for him.
Immediately, he kneeled down and looked at Taehyun, taking their joined hands to his chest.
“Tyun…”. Beomgyu let out a soft sigh as he looked at Taehyun trying to hold back tears and holding his hand just as tight.
The first thing that came to his mind was telling him to try to calm down, but as he thought about it, he realized it wasn’t what his friend needed. Taehyun had been told to handle his emotions and priorize other things, and now he was finally feeling free from that pressure. Now he could express himself.
But he still needed comfort and reassurance from somebody that wouldn’t judge him, and somebody that he trusted enough to let into his little world.
And that somebody was him; Beomgyu.
Beomgyu kneeled in front of the chair Taehyun was sitting in, trying to stay at the same height at him. He squeezed his hand and placed a tiny kiss to his knuckles, which made the younger smile, and a tear fall from his eye.
“Beomgyu…”.
“Hm?”
Taehyun sighed, trying to find a way to word his thoughts.
“I… I don’t want to keep living here. Don’t think I’m ungrateful for all this, but…” Taehyun didn’t know how to continue, trying to make his point clear.
Beomgyu nodded, as he gently played with Taehyun’s fingers, something simple but making sure his friend was aware that he was there, listening to him.
“I’ll really miss you when I leave”. Beomgyu said, looking at him.
Taehyun nodded, forcing himself to smile a bit. “I’ll miss you too”.
Even if he didn’t say it, Beomgyu was aware that he had became someone very special in Taehyun’s life. He didn’t want to say goodbye. Without him, there was nobody to be close to Taehyun. No comforting prescence or safe space.
Taehyun stayed in silence for a bit before speaking again, struggling to keep his voice steady. “My parents wouldn’t like this”. He said, looking down at their joined hands.
Right.
Beomgyu closed his eyes, feeling helpless. There was nothing he or anyone else could do about that. He got up, swallowing harshly, before looking at Taehyun dead in the eye. “I… I know. I know that hurts, and I understand completely”. He said, starting to pull his hand away.
“Wait”. Taehyun took Beomgyu’s hand in both of his, holding it tightly. “You’re not my parents. You’re a boy I’ve known since… since forever, but who I started falling for less than two months ago. It sounds kinda stupid…”. He let out a shaky sigh. “But my parents are also not you”.
Beomgyu raised an eyebrow, a bit confused.
“You’re… I’ve never met someone like you”. Taehyun paused for a moment, trying to express his emotions. “I don’t want to give up on you, especially not because of my parents’ opinions”.
Beomgyu’s eyes softened, and he nodded in understanding.
“You should come to the city”. Beomgyu muttered, almost unconsciously. “I’ll be there, and your parents will not. At least for a couple of months, like I did here”.
Taehyun doubted for a moment, and ended up silently nodding. Beomgyu noticed his eyes were filled with tears again.
“I could try. Maybe when I finish school”.
Beomgyu smiled, and gently dragged Taehyun out of his chair and into his bed, with him. They both sat on the corner of the bed, and Beomgyu leaned closer and pressed a soft kiss to his hair.
“I’ve been thinking…”.
Beomgyu looked at him with genuine curiosity.
“I’d like to be a reporter”. Taehyun smiled a bit, resting his head on Beomgyu’s shoulder. “I’ve always been pretty good at writing articles and essays”.
Seeing the hint of happiness on Taehyun’s face made Beomgyu smile too, and he nodded, picturing the younger boy as a succesful writer for a famous magazine or newspaper.
“Yeah?”
“Mhm”.
Taehyun made himself comfortable in Beomgyu’s arms and closed his eyes, as he hugged him tighter and started humming a song.
“What song is that?”
“Hmm ♪ hmm ♪ hmmmm ♪”. Beomgyu doubted for a moment, still humming the song, trying to remember the name or the lyrics. “You did more than mend a broken heart, ‘cause you made a fire start, and now I can see that you feel the same way”. As he sang, he rested his head against Taehyun’s, smiling.
Taehyun scoffed softly, looking at him. Beomgyu looked back at him, smiling as well and not remembering the lyrics completely.
“Even the nights are better, now that we’re here together ♪”. He moved at the rhythm of the music, still holding Taehyun and making him move slowly with him. “Even the days are brighter, when someone you love is beside you ♪”. He tried to keep singing, but didn’t remember anything else.
Taehyun stayed in silence, enjoying the feeling of being held in Beomgyu’s arms, and wrapping his own around the brunnette’s waist. After a while, he finally spoke again, softly. “They are”.
“Hm?”
“The nights are better, the days are brighter”. Taehyun slowly leaned closer, his lips just a few centimeters away from Beomgyu’s. “Now that we’re here together and someone I love is beside me”.
Both of them doubted for a moment, just staring at each other in the eyes, sometimes looking down at each other’s lips, until Taehyun finally made a move and pressed their lips together.
The kiss wasn’t violent or desesperate. Their lips fit perfectly together, in such a soft and reassuring way. Two people that had felt so lonely through their lives, and now found someone that could understand them or at least make an effort. Two people that actually cared about each other. Two people who had known each other since so long ago and just a few weeks at the same time.
When they pulled apart, they stayed in each other’s arms, Beomgyu admiring Taehyun’s face and viceversa. Beomgyu giggled softly, looking away, flustered. Taehyun tilted his head, looking at him with his usual warm smile.
“What are you laughing at?”
“I never thought you’d really like me back”.
Taehyun raised an eyebrow and chuckled.
“That’s weird. I’ve always been pretty sure that you like me back”.
“Am I that obvious?”
Taehyun shrugged and then shook his head. “I don’t think so. I just… kinda understood what you were trying to do”.
Beomgyu giggled again and closed his eyes, enjoying the moment, even though they stayed silent. The time passed by, and he felt more and more tired.
“Beomgyu”.
“Hm?”
“Take a shower”.
Beomgyu let out an annoyed sigh, not wanting to move away from where he was, but the feeling of his hair being tangled and damp in sea water motivated him to let go of the younger.
“Don’t be so lazy. Wash your hair, and I’ll help you dry it”. Taehyun looked over at him with a small frown, clearly not mad.
Beomgyu reclutantly got up and walked to the bathroom, closing the door behind him. While he showered, Taehyun went downstairs and prepared something to eat that he was sure Beomgyu would like: pancakes.
As he waited in the kitchen, flipping the pancakes perfectly, Beomgyu walked downstairs too, with a towel around his neck. His hair looked slightly longer when wet, something that Taehyun found really pretty.
“Do you need any help?”
“No, not really. Thank you”.
Beomgyu sat down first, and a few minutes later, Taehyun joined him, with the plate of warm and fluffy pancakes between them. They talked for a while, even when they had already finished their food. Everything felt so natural with Taehyun by his side.
The rain had almost stopped, but it was still there, almost the same as the sadness behind Taehyun’s eyes.
Beomgyu noticed that and took his hand, giving it a light squeeze. “We’ll figure something out. You’ll see”.
Taehyun smiled back, his face illuminated by the soft kitchen lights.
“Yeah, I know we will”.
And with that, they promised each other that they would find a way to be together. Even if they lived so far from each other, even if their happiness would somehow affect other people, they weren’t giving up on this.