[F002] The Sun Will Shine Tomorrow
Title: The Sun Will Shine Tomorrow
Fandom: SHINee
Pairing: Minho/Taemin
Rating: G
Summary: No matter how dark the night, somehow the sun rises once again and all shadows are chased away.
“I like your kite,” the boy you suddenly found standing next to you said.
That was the first time you met him, ten years ago. You were at the park with your mom, flying kites on a windy spring day. When your kite caught the wind just right, it looked like a dragon soaring into the sky.
“Thanks,” you told him, “my grandpa made it for me.”
Your grandfather had given you this kite for your sixth birthday. Be like a dragon, Minho. Act wisely in your daily life and guard well those around you. You didn't really have any idea what he meant at the time, but you thanked him nonetheless, mainly because you appreciated how cool it looked.
“Can I try?” the boy asked, holding his hands out.
“Uh, sure,” you responded, handing him the ball of string stretching into the sky.
A wide smile spread across his face as the kite flew back and forth, slightly jerking the string in his hands.
“Taemin,” you heard a woman call out, “it's time to go home, darling!”
Turning toward the voice, the boy handed the string back to you and said, “That's my mom. Thanks for letting me fly your kite for a while! It was really fun!”
“Yeah, sure, no problem,” you told the boy as he hurried toward his mother.
That was the first time you met him, ten years ago. Every day for a week after that first encounter, you went to the park to fly kites with your mom. He was always there. Taemin. Always asking if he could fly your kite for a while before he had to go home.
One day, you asked him, “Hey, why don't you ask your mom to get you a kite? Instead of always asking me to fly mine.”
“But I really like yours!” he exclaimed. “Besides, my mom said that I don't need a kite and that I already have a bunch of other toys I can play with.”
“Oh...I see,” you replied, not really knowing what else to say.
On the way home from the park that day, you walked past a little store with a kite on display in the window. It was a sun wearing sunglasses, multicolored streamers hanging down forming a tail. It was a rather silly one, now that you think about it. You asked your mom if you could buy it using your allowance, and she asked you why. You already have a kite. Why do you need another one? You told her that you didn't really know why you needed another one, you just liked the way this one looked.
You bought it, brought it home, and laid it out on your bedroom floor.
You decided that you would give it to Taemin the next time you saw him at the park.
That was the first spring you and Taemin knew each other, ten seasonal cycles ago. Now, you were both teenagers, trying to get through high school alive. You generally kept to yourself at school. Yes, you did have your small group of friends, but you were nothing like Taemin. Taemin, the social butterfly. On a typical day, he would know and wave to at least half of the kids he walked by in the hallways on the way to class. He was involved in sports, student council, and all the teachers loved him.
You and Taemin seemed so completely opposite of each other that every once in a while, your mutual friends would sometimes wonder. How did you two ever become friends in the first place? Every time, Taemin would animatedly recount the story of how you let him fly your kite in the park.
“He had this awesome kite! A dragon kite that his grandpa had made for him!”
Then, he would tell them about how you gave him that ridiculous sunglasses-wearing sun kite as a present.
“And then, one day! I guess he was tired of me asking if I could fly his kite all the time or something, but then he gave me this kite of a sun with a bunch of streamers hanging down from it! It was amazing!”
That was what he told them every time. Every time someone would wonder how you two became friends. But after it happened, things changed. Taemin changed.
“I can't, I just can't do it anymore.”
Taemin called you in the middle of the night, in the middle of having a nervous breakdown.
“I just... It's just all too much.”
All of the activities he was in at school and all of the friendly relationships he had to keep up had finally gotten to him.
You told him to take a deep breath, calm down. Maybe you should drop out of a few things. Take it easy for a while. No one's going to blame you for wanting to have some time for yourself.
As soon as you finished your statement, your grandfather's words to you at your sixth birthday flashed into your mind. Act wisely in your daily life and guard well those around you. Now, you finally understood what he meant.
When Taemin came back to school, he was a completely different person. He had gone from being the social butterfly to being...you. After leaving student council, soccer, and math club, he found that he didn't really have much in common with a lot of the other kids. He ended up generally keeping to himself most days, not really talking to anyone unless he absolutely had to.
You appreciated that this meant Taemin was around a lot more often, but you also knew that it wasn't how things were supposed to be. Taemin was supposed to be the one who knew everyone, got along with everyone. He was supposed to be the one who brought sunshine and happiness into everyone's lives. Instead, here he was, sitting in the stairwell with you, and only you, during lunchtime, nibbling at a sandwich.
“Hey... Maybe you should try out for the soccer team again this season,” you suggested in between bites of an apple.
You knew that was the way it was supposed to be. If Taemin slowly got back into his old activities, things would be okay again. Taemin would again be the sun who brought light and joy into the world. And you, you'd still be the dragon, protecting those around you.
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the_suit_case has written a continuation fic for this here, titled "Rise, Like Lions After Slumber." You all should read it after you read this! (: