Goodbye, Stranger
“Yah Jinki!” The fourteen-year-old boy cried as he ran after his friend.
Coming to a halt, Jinki turned back and grinned at the panting Kibum, revealing a mouthful of braces. “It’s Jinki hyung, Kibum-ah.”
Kibum rolled his eyes as he walked over to where Jinki stood. As a mischievous smile crossed over his face, he reached over and pinched Jinki’s cheeks. “Who’s a good little boy?” He laughed as he pulled at the older boy’s face, “Is it little Jinki?”
Jinki pouted as he pushed Kibum away gently. “Speaking of little Jinki, you brought me back to topic. Now hurry up!”
Grabbing Kibum’s hand, Jinki began to run once more, ignoring the whining of the boy he was now pulling along with him. They ran for a good five minutes, and soon, Kibum could see the silhouette of a playground slide looming closer and closer. Oh.
“Ta-da!” Jinki smiled, once more showing his braces to the world.
“Why did you bring me here?” Kibum asked, a little harsher than intended.
Jinki’s face fell, and Kibum immediately regretted his tone. After all, it seemed like Jinki had spent days, nights too, thinking about it. But then, a small smile graced Jinki’s lips once more as he shrugged.
“I heard that they were going to tear this place down for new apartment buildings. I just thought we should come back. You know, for old time’s sake.”
Kibum sighed as he sat himself down on a swing. It wasn’t that he hated this place. It was far from that, after all, he and Jinki had grown up together at this very playground. It was just that every time he thought of the playground, his mind would rewind back to the moment he had kissed Jinki on the cheek. Sighing again, Kibum kicked at the sand. Jinki had always been special to him, ever since he first saw him as a little boy, but as he grew up, he slowly began to understand just how special Jinki truly was. And it scared him, to be honest. Looking up, his heart dropped when he realised Jinki was nowhere in sight. Just then, he spotted a pair of feet under the slide.
“Jinki,” Kibum breathed as he slid down next to Jinki.
“Hyung,” Jinki murmured into his thighs, not looking up at Kibum.
“Jinki,” Kibum repeated, “Look at me.”
And he did. Jinki’s face was stained with tears and his eyes were red. His lower lip was bleeding from where his braces got caught on it while he was crying. Kibum’s heart melted, seeing Jinki in that state.
“I’m sorry,” Kibum said as he reached out to rub Jinki’s shoulders, “Don’t cry.”
Jinki sniffed. “Don’t be. I’m just being silly. I shouldn’t have forced you to come. I just - this place means a lot to me. I assumed it did to you too.”
Taking Jinki’s hand, he sighed. Slowly, Kibum rubbed the back of Jinki’s hand gently with his thumb. “It does mean a lot to me. It’s our place, after all.”
Kibum chuckled softly, “Best friends, remember?”
“No Kibum,” Jinki suddenly said, “I kind of, I don’t know. I want to be more than best friends.”
There was silence as Jinki stared intently into Kibum’s eyes.
“I love you, Kibum,” Jinki whispered, almost as if he were in pain.
“I think - I think I love you too.”
And right there under the slide, Kibum and Jinki shared their first (real) kiss.