“Wow! You’re done preparing lunch already? That was fast. It smells yummy.” Taekwoon said when he got into the kitchen after taking a nice warm bath. “It’s a fried fish Taek. All fried fish smells the same.” Wonshik said, slightly laughing at his witty comment. “Well. Remember that time you served a burnt fish? It was so burnt it almost looked like charcoal and it even smelled like one too!” Taekwoon said with a smirk. “YAH! That was way back when we were kids. It was the first time I cooked fish... Hmmm.. But you still ate it though. You were so insistent on eating it. You even snatched the plate from me. You were almost crying while shoving it all in your mouth! Hahahahaha… You looked pale after finishing it!” The two males were now laughing at the distant memory they had. “That was so disgusting. Hahahahaha… “ Taekwoon added while wiping the tears from his eyes from laughing too much. “Okay okay. That’s enough. Let’s eat now. Okay?” And Wonshik was wiping tears from his eyes too. He was thankful that they both shared the same fond memory. He wished they will make more memories together.

They sat at the dining room. Eating the food Wonshik served while casually talking about random things again. Even with the years they spent together, they never ran out of things to talk about. It was never awkward, even the silence they shared sometimes was never awkward. It was always so comfortable and calming at the same time. After they finished eating, they started doing the dishes; Taekwoon was washing the dishes while Wonshik was wiping them dry. It was an unspoken routine between them when doing chores. One would always be there to help out.

“There! Done! Let me see your masterpiece.” Wonshik looked over the other male on his side. “Okay. Wait for me on the living room. I’m going to get it.” Taekwoon hurriedly wiped his hands on the apron. “Wow. You did not even glare at me when I said masterpiece. It must really be a masterpiece then huh? Mr. Cocky” Wonshik teased. He knew that Taekwoon was just not paying attention when he said the word masterpiece. “It’s totally the opposite actually” Taekwoon sighed. A little bit disappointed on himself for being so pessimistic. “Hey…. I was just joking okay? Don’t be so negative. Don’t worry about it Taek.” Wonshik said with a caring tone while gently patting the other male on his head.

“Wonshik. Please promise me you won’t laugh at me okay? If you laugh, I’m going to burn your comic book collection okay?” Taekwoon warned in a lovely tone while giving an off-putting smile. “Woooaaahhh…. You don’t have to go that far. I promise okay! You’re so scary. How can you say that with a smile on your face. So evil. Aigoo” Wonshik was now worried. He knows that Taekwoon would seriously burn his collection without hesitation.

“So these are the first few pages. I haven’t written the story line yet, but I already have it in mind. Please tell me what you think after reading it.” Taekwoon gently handed the pages to Wonshik. A blush visible on his face. This was really embarrassing.

He was fidgeting while looking at his best friend reading his work so intently. He can’t tell what the other male was thinking. Wonshik had an unreadable expression on his face. He looked so confused then his expression would turn stoic at some point then he would look at Taekwoon with a frown as if pitying the other man. What the hell! What’s with his expression?! Is it sad? Hmm.. I clearly remembered that I did not put any dramatic scene yet. What’s wrong Wonshik? It’s just fifteen pages. Just tell me already. This is making me nervous. Taekwoon was now debating to himself. Fidgeting like a nervous child waiting to be scolded.

“Uhm… Taek?.. I have a few questions.” Wonshik called out slightly surprising the fidgeting male. Taekwoon was too nervous to say anything so he just answered with a nod.  He was trying to read the other man’s expression. “Hmmm… So Laine, the main female character, confessed her love to Ravi, the main male character, on the very first day of school? The very first day they met? ” Wonshik asked confused. “It was a love at first sight thing?” Taekwoon answered not really sure if that was the right thing to say. “Oh.. okay… And Ravi was cool with it? He accepted the confession and said she loved her back too? And on the second day of school they are already in a relationship?” Wonshik asked with confusion more evident on his expression. “Uhm.. I read from an article on the web that guys tend to fall in love with the girl who confessed to them… So I just thought that it would be good if Ravi fell in love with Laine too.” Leo answered hesitantly. Wonshik was trying hard not to face palm himself. WELL THAT ESCALATED QUICKLY! Clearly, you are painting a very beautiful and easy life here Taek. Well, every love story is just a fantasy right? Not that I’m being bitter or anything. But if only it were that easy, then I would have confessed already!  Wonshik thought and sighed. “Well. The art is as beautiful as always. The names of the characters are great too. Short and easy to remember. A school life love story is also good. It will help make the story light.“ Wonshik complimented. Taekwoon was happy to hear the good points from his work.  “However, I think that the story development is going way too fast. It’s good that you want them to fall in love with each other. But its way too fast Taek.” Wonshik said with a stern voice. “But it was love at first sight Wonshik.” Taekwoon answered. “But Taek. Love doesn’t happen like “BAAAAMMM! I’m in love” at first sight. Yes you can like someone at first sight, that’s just like a crush or something, but love doesn’t happen that way.” Wonshik explained. “Hmmm… Then how does it happen? How can you say that it is love?” Taekwoon is now confused. He used to read fairy tales when he was a kid where a Prince would fall in love with a Princess on the very first time they met.

“Well, love is… “ Wonshik started. Thinking hard on how to explain it so the other male would understand. He can’t look at the man beside him so he decided to act like he’s looking from afar.  “Hmmm… Well, love is when even just the mention of his name makes you giddy, like there are butterflies in your stomach. Not just the small cute butterflies but like butterflies who went to the gym for years. REALLY HUGE BUTTERFLIES doing summersaults in your stomach! It makes your heart pound like crazy! It’s when you’re life seems so vibrant, alive, and so colorful like you’ve choked up on rainbows or something. It’s when somebody says that nobody’s perfect but you want to scream at them and tell them they’re wrong, because in your heart, the person you love is the embodiment of perfection itself! You accept everything about that person, their faults, and their past, everything about them! It’s when you get in the bath and instead of contemplating about the ty things you did in life, you’re thinking about that person and that is enough to get you through the day. It’s when you are willing to do anything just to make them happy. Just to make them smile. Oh. That smile. You feel like you just want to protect that smile because it feels like it’s the most precious thing in your life. It’s when he’s just talking, laughing, or simply just sitting on the couch and there’s something about him in those simple moments that makes you think “Ah… I just really really love you!”. It’s when you look at him and somehow you can see 50 years from now your still together, laughing at silly jokes the youngsters will never understand. Love is…...“ Wonshik was explaining animatedly, like a child talking to his mom about his favorite TV series…. When he suddenly realized that the other man was staring at him. When he turned to see Taekwoon, the other man was looking at him with a bright smile. “Omo!.. Why are you looking at me like that?!” Wonshik exclaimed from too much embarrassment, a blush clearly visible on his face.

Taekwoon was shocked to see how absorbed his best friend got when he was explaining about love. “Ah.. You’re just so passionate about love. Are you in love Wonhik?” Taekwoon asked with a huge beautiful smile on his face, curious on how his best friend ended up so passionate. “Wha… WHAT?!!!!” Wonshik stood up in shock.  “Ah… It’s just that you looked like you were basing it from your true feelings. Ahhh…. Whoever it is that you love, she’s really lucky to have someone like you. Really lucky indeed.” Taekwoon said with a sincere smile.

Taekwoon stood up to get pens and papers from his room. Finally, he has an idea now on how to start the manga thanks to Wonshik. On the other hand, Wonshik just stood there dumbfounded. Lucky? Well, you’re really lucky then ha because it’s you! It’s you, you idiot! You’re the one that I love. Wonshik was now mentally screaming. He was too shocked from the sudden question and was too embarrassed for putting his feelings into words. After calming down, he went to the kitchen to prepare coffee for the both of them so they can start brainstorming on the revision Taekwoon has to make.

When Taekwoon was walking into the kitchen, pens and papers on hand, he had his thinking expression on, a cute pout and a slight smile on his face. And when Wonshik saw the other male, a sudden thought came to his mind, Ah. I really really love this guy.