Can We Pretend?

Making Wishes Out of Airplanes

It was a clear and starry night and currently three six year olds were playing in a bedroom. Or more like, two of them were fighting each other with wooden swords, jumping up and down on a bed while the other was looking out at the window, admiring the beauty of the world outside.

"Hey, Sang-Ook, could you stop looking out from your window for a few minutes and help me fight Minseok?" Dongwoo asked said girl as he was trying to slay said boy with his sword.

Instead of doing what Dongwoo asked, Sang-Ook simply asked a question that confused both boys and caused him to lower his guard. "Can we pretend that airplanes are like shooting stars?"

"Uh... what?" Dongwoo lowered his sword and Minseok, taking advantage of his friend's distracted state, went in of the kill. "Ah!"

"Ha! I win!" Minseok cheered, raising his sword and waving it in the air, standing over a defeated Dongwoo.

"Yeah, you did," Dongwoo muttered as he rolled off of Sang-Ook's bed. "What are you talking about?"

"We see airplanes flying around at night a lot but we rarely see the shooting stars we always read about in our books," Sang-Ook answered as Dongwoo walked over and stood by her side.

"So?" Minseok asked as he got off from her bed and joined his two friends, standing at Sang-Ook's other side.

"So can we pretend that the planes we see in the night sky are shooting stars?" Sang-Ook asked her two friends with a cheeky grin plastered on her face.

"Sure, I guess," Dongwoo scratched his head.

"Whatever floats your boat," Minseok shrugged, accepting the girl's weird, imaginative suggestion.

"Good!" Sang-Ook chirped.

She ran over to her backpack which was placed under her bed and got a notebook and pencil out of there. She then opened her notebook, write something down, and ripped out the page she just wrote on. She soon started to fold the page she just ripped into various shapes.

"What is she doing?" A confused Dongwoo asked Minseok as they watched her do all those actions.

"I don't know," Minseok said who was in a state that was equally confused as his friend.

"Here!" Sang-Ook ran back to the two boys after she finished folding and handed Dongwoo her folded object.

"Huh?" Dongwoo looked at what she had just placed in his hand which was a paper airplane.

"That's my shooting star to you guys. Now open it up so you two can grant my wishes," Sang-Ook smiled brightly.

"You weirdo," Minseok shook his head and let out a little laugh.

'Jang Dongwoo,' Dongwoo started reading once he unfolded the plane in his hands. 'Stop looking like a dinosaur.' Hey! My face is good-looking already!" He playfully glared at Sang-Ook who laughed and exchanged high-fives with Minseok.

'Kim Minseok,' The boy who slightly resembled a dinosaur continued reading. 'Beat up Kwon -Chin.' Is he bothering you again?" He faced Sang-Ook with a concerned look on his face.

"After we told him to stop? Don't worry, I'll pound his face in for you," Minseok patted the girl's shoulder. "Though you didn't need to use a paper airplane to ask us that," He added.

"I know. I just wanted to do this for fun," Sang-Ook said as the two boys hugged her.

"Hey, can I use your notebook for a second?" Dongwoo asked and ran over to her still open notebook when she nodded her answer. He then wrote something on the page, ripped it out, and folded it into a plane.

"Can I?" Minseok asked, gesturing towards her notebook and ran over to do the same when she gave him permission.

"Here's our wishes," Both boys ran back to her and gave her their planes.

--☆--

"Ah, I can't believe we're finished with middle school!" Sang-Ook let out a content sigh as she placed her arms around her two favorite guys. "Up next, high school!"

"I know! We're almost at the big leagues now," Dongwoo said, liking the feeling of Sang-Ook's arm around his shoulders.

"No, the SKY universities would be the big leagues," Minseok corrected the other boy as he shrugged off Sang-Ook's arm much to her displeasure.

"Same difference," Dongwoo replied with a shrug.

"Hey, I got something to give you guys," Sang-Ook took her arm off Dongwoo's shoulders, much to his displeasure, and dug into her pockets.

"Oh, a gift? You shouldn't have?" Minseok put a hand to his heart which caused Dongwoo to playfully shove him and Sang-Ook to roll her eyes as she continued to search for certain items in her pockets.

She then pulled out two wrinkled paper planes and handed one to each boy.

"It's been a while since I've seen one of these," Dongwoo chuckled as both boys started to unfold the planes they were given.

"Blame middle school for eating up our time to make planes and grant wishes," Sang-Ook shrugged.

Ever since that night when Sang-Ook came up with her unusual comparison and the boys went along with it, the three made it a habit to send each other paper planes and grant each other's wishes every day during their years in elementary school. Then middle school happened and the planes were sent less often since as students, they were expected to take their education and studies more seriously.

"So your gift to me is a wish I have to grant. Damn, this gift ," Minseok remarked.

"Just open it and read it," Sang-Ook crossed her arms.

"I am!"

"Plus, we never made a contract which states that we have to grant each other's wishes," She muttered as a side comment.

"Never stopped me from granting all your wishes, other than that dinosaur one when we were six," Dongwoo stated as the two finally unfolded their planes and quietly read Sang-Ook's wishes.

"Aww..." Dongwoo cooed, immediately wrapping his arms around his female companion.

"How cheesy," Minseok commented as he pinched Sang-Ook's cheeks and laughed when she swatted his hand away. "Of course, the three of us would still be friends. We've been together since day one of our lives!"

"Why that wish?" Dongwoo asked.

"We barely have time to send planes to each other in middle school and we're expected to do focus even more on our education and studying in high school. I doubt I would be able to give you more planes while we're in the bigger leagues so I figured I should give you two my last wishes which I know you would easily grant," Sang-Ook explained which caused Dongwoo to tear up.

"Oh, no, here comes the waterworks," Minseok commented as he patted Dongwoo's shoulders and joined the two for a group hug.

"Well, you're right! Of course, I would grant that wish!" Dongwoo blubbered and Sang-Ook chuckled as she wiped her sensitive friend's tears away.

"Might as well since it's clear that you two are going to be in my life forever," Minseok stated and chuckled as his two friends rolled their eyes before punching him.

--☆--

Sang-Ook was right. High school ate up even more of their time as they focused even more on their education and studies. They didn't have time to do trivial things anymore such as making paper planes to send to a friend and expecting them to grant a simple wish. For a while, that was the last time any of the three friends sent some planes and granted wishes and they all thought that the little habit from their much simpler times would never happen again.

 

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