YHP 51

The night was gradually deepening. Ho-jin slowly captured Jeong-in’s elegant and shining appearance in his eyes.

How could he be so surprisingly beautiful every moment? He felt like there was nothing more in the world, but when he looked back, he saw new and pretty aspects.

His gaze, which followed the round, curved eyes and the pointed tip of his nose, soon lingered on Jeong-in’s smiling lips. He could see a small dimple on only one corner of his mouth.

“…….”

So this is what happens when he smiles.

It was the moment when he thought it was cute, as if he had discovered an immature part of the always perfect Jeong-in. The smile that had been floating white on Jeong-in’s face suddenly disappeared as if washed away.

“Let’s go.”

Jeong-in turned his back coldly. Ho-jin, holding the dolphin doll preciously in his arms, quickly followed behind him. But the giggling was only for a moment. Jeong-in, who had stopped after a few steps, began to tap his chest with one hand.

“Are you uncomfortable somewhere?”

Ho-jin quickly ran to Jeong-in and grabbed his shoulder. He was reminded of how he had suffered from sudden breathing difficulties during the day. Then Jeong-in immediately pushed Ho-jin’s hand away.

“No, it’s nothing like that.”

He said it wasn’t, but his face was somehow red. Ho-jin quickly looked around. Fortunately, there were a few empty benches.

“Let’s take a break.”

“I told you not to worry about me.”

He seemed to be speaking coldly on purpose. Anyway, Ho-jin didn’t get any deals from him now. Even if Jeong-in suddenly poured out a barrage of swear words, he felt like he could just let it go, thinking that there must be a reason.

“…If we go right now, we won’t be late.”

“Where are you going? I really don’t need anything else now.”

It was really enough at this point. It was so overflowing that he was so happy that he even thought that this was the maximum amount of happiness a person could feel. But Jeong-in stubbornly took a step.

“Your mind will change after you see this. Just follow me quietly.”

Just how much more amazing is he going to show me? Anyway, it seemed like Jeong-in wanted to, so he decided to follow him. He carefully watched to see if his breathing was disturbed and walked a little further, and a small Ferris wheel appeared.

“Is this it?”

There was a much larger and more sparkling Ferris wheel not far away. Perhaps because of that, this small Ferris wheel didn’t seem to be very popular. There wasn’t really a line, so after waiting for about a minute or two, it was soon their turn. Ho-jin let Jeong-in in first and then stepped inside.

“Damn…. Was it this old?”

As soon as he entered the car, Jeong-in’s complexion darkened. Ho-jin carefully took a seat. Then the car creaked and tilted towards the side where Ho-jin was sitting.

“What’s wrong? Why is it like this?”

“Maybe it’s because I’m heavier.”

Even with a rough estimate, there was nearly a 15-centimeter height difference, and Ho-jin was overwhelmingly heavier. It was an unavoidable part of the laws of physics.

“Wouldn’t it work if I put my legs like this?”

He stretched his legs towards the empty seat next to Jeong-in. Then, the balance leveled out a little.

“…It works.”

“I guess so.”

No matter how small, a Ferris wheel was still a Ferris wheel. The ground slowly moved away. Listening to the creaking of the metal interlocking, Ho-jin quietly held his breath.

As they moved away from the lights of the amusement park that filled the ground, the surroundings gradually darkened.

“……”

The narrow car was filled only with calm breathing. Stealing glances at Jeong-in’s profile as he looked out the window, Ho-jin unconsciously clenched his fist. His Adam’s apple bobbed with a strange tension. He was anxious that the sound might be heard outside, and his heart rate was increasing.

In the ambiguous boundary between light and darkness, Ho-jin stared only at Jeong-in’s face across from him, as if holding onto a lifeline. At that moment, the corners of his tightly closed lips slightly lifted, and dimples appeared. With his chin resting on the windowsill, Jeong-in said,

“Pretty, isn’t it?”

“Yes.”

He answered without hesitation, his eyes fixed only on Jeong-in. Again, silence.

“……”

At that moment, an absurd thought crossed his mind.

If I close the distance and get just a little closer…

“……”

If I kiss him, would he hate it?

***

The lights grew farther away. Jeong-in glanced at his wristwatch.

There were now 30 seconds left until the hour. All the lights in the park went out, and the staff who had set up the guidelines in the fallout zone disappeared under the eaves. People standing around the outside of the guidelines were looking up at the eastern sky. He followed their gaze. He met eyes with Ho-jin across from him.

“I guarantee it.”

With the still-black sky behind him, Jeong-in smiled confidently and opened his mouth.

“It’ll be much prettier than you think.”

“What will?”

The moment he asked, a bang went off, and the first firework burst.

“Ah…”

No sooner had the firework, leaving a pure white tail as it soared vertically, disappeared than red light spread to both sides. The Ferris wheel was steadily increasing its altitude to reach the top at the most spectacular moment.

Bang, bang. The sound of explosions hit the window cheerfully. The equipment, much older and faded than he remembered, vibrated finely each time a loud noise was heard. Still, it was romantic in its own way.

He wondered if the same scenery would be visible from the newly built Ferris wheel. This time, he came here because this one definitely knew the timing, but he thought it might be nice to ride that one next time.

“……”

Jeong-in was surprised and took a small breath, startled by the thought of the future that he had unconsciously entertained. Then, Ho-jin, who had been looking at the fireworks, turned his eyes to Jeong-in. Just before their eyes met, Jeong-in quickly turned his head and looked out the window again. Fireworks of all colors were bursting right at eye level.

Soon he would reach the top and encounter the most beautiful fireworks. His heart pounded at the thought of the scenery that he had seen at least hundreds of times but never tired of. It was as if he had hearts in his fingertips and toes. Jeong-in unconsciously clenched his fists and watched for the tipping point of the Ferris wheel. The car, which had been climbing at a steady pace, stopped slightly, leaving only a few meters to go.

“Hyung, this…”

“Yeah?”

Their eyes finally met. It was almost simultaneous.

With a tremendous roar, thousands of fireworks soared into the air all at once. In the pure white world, his calm eyes were clearly visible. Beyond his shoulder, starlight-like lights were pouring down like the Milky Way in the black night sky.

Fireworks last only a moment. No matter how many more there may be, today’s fireworks can only be seen now. But he couldn’t bring himself to take his eyes off Ho-jin’s eyes.

The color of the huge light that burst with a bang was reflected on Ho-jin’s cheek. It was such a beautiful sight. Jeong-in swallowed hard and met his eyes. Wondering what he was thinking, Ho-jin was also looking only at Jeong-in, ignoring the fireworks.

Jeong-in suddenly had an absurd thought.

In this place where no one can see, where no sound can leak out.

If I move a little closer. If I take his hand, and slowly lower my waist.

“……”

If I kiss him, would he hate it?

“……”

He seemed to have gone crazy. He seemed to have gone crazy from getting caught up in strange things.

He was fully aware that he was thinking really strange things. But he couldn’t stop imagining kissing Ho-jin.

For some reason, he didn’t think he would hate it. He would just accept anything Jeong-in did, as he always had.

He would wrap his big hands around his neck and gently press his lips against his. He would mix his breath without hurting or scaring him at all, then gently stroke his back and just smile with a harmless face.

What would happen next?

“…It really is.”

Ho-jin, who had been silently looking at him, slowly opened his mouth. Jeong-in was startled and shrugged his shoulders at the kind voice that flew into the middle of his chest as the fireworks, which had completely reached their peak, lit up the whole world like a seizure.

“I thought I didn’t need anything more, but I guess not.”

The Ferris wheel, having passed the tipping point, began to descend again. Several fireworks were cutting through the darkness for a long time.

“It’s so pretty…”

In the darkened world again, Jeong-in lowered his head. His vision, not yet accustomed to the darkness, was all black. He listened to Ho-jin’s voice, looking down at where his knees should be.

“I like it so much.”

The last firework exploded. His heart pounded loudly. Jeong-in closed his eyes tightly.

***

“Thank you for today. It was really fun.”

It was the moment he was about to close the front door. When he raised his head along the paint stains scattered in the hallway, he saw Ho-jin standing there, holding onto his door.

“…Okay.”

Jeong-in answered awkwardly, opened the door, and entered the room. Then, without turning on the light, he jumped into bed and covered himself with the blanket. Creak, bang. He heard the sound of Ho-jin’s door closing.

“……”

Let’s not think about anything, let’s not think about anything.

He curled up in a ball, holding his head in his hands. Then, in the dark vision, he saw fireworks. The things that shone with sparkling, beautiful light, and Ho-jin’s face smiling brightly against that background…

“Ah, are you really crazy!”

He suddenly got angry for no reason and threw the blanket on the floor. He stomped on it several times, panting. But he didn’t feel relieved, and only his feet hurt for no reason. It was the price he paid for taking his anger out on the innocent blanket.

Jeong-in pouted and picked up the blanket. Then he wriggled back into it. He rolled his eyes, buried in the fluffy blanket. He took a deep breath, scanning the scenery of the room, which was no different from usual. Seeing that his heart was still beating fast, he probably wouldn’t be able to fall asleep on time.

“……”

He turned to face the wall where Ho-jin’s room was. He stared at the turtle on the desk before closing his eyes.

“…I had fun too.”

The words he hadn’t been able to say finally came out.