’Meet me at your neighborhood park at around nine?

Couldn’t come to school ‘cause didn’t do homework.

PS. Hope you had another interesting head to ogle.’

Two days after Jongdae had cropped up outside his window, Minseok’s phone buzzed, delivering a text to him whilst he was shrugging out of his school uniform.

An amused smile gracing his lips, he replied once he had donned casual clothes. He was supposed to have a sleepover at Luhan’s given that it was weekend the following day.

Consenting to meet Jongdae, he next called his best friend to ask whether it was all right if he came over tomorrow instead.

“You traitor!” Luhan screeched, gasping in mock offence when Minseok told him he was congregating with Jongdae. “For the sake of that boy, you’re abandoning me?”

“Baby, it’s just for a couple of hours.”

Luhan broke into fake sobs on the other line. “What kind of man have I been betrothed to? Giving in to temptation of another man, my love – do you want macaroni and cheese for breakfast tomorrow?”

“Sure, honey.”

“After all the delicacies I’ve fed you, you do this to me, you perfidious bunny! What sin did I commit in my past life –”

The two dived into a nonsensical, melodramatic artificial lover’s quarrel about how Luhan was openly cheating on Minseok with Sehun and how Minseok was considering divorce.

-*-*-

Minseok set out toward the park three minutes before the appointed time. Minseo had whined about wanting to join him but their parents silenced her saying her brother was going to be with a friend and she would only be intervening. Thankfully they did not ask for his friend’s name.

The park was all grass and trees and tranquility, illuminated by nothing else but stars. Hardly any people were loitering around at this time of the night.

Glancing at his wristwatch – it was exactly nine – he wandered across the turf, on the lookout for a certain mafia lad.

Minseok’s eyes found the boy and he made his way there.

“What’s up?” Jongdae asked from where he was stretched out on the grass. Minseok plunked down next to him.

“Dark sky and stars.”

Jongdae grinned and rolled over onto his side to lean up on his elbow and gaze at Minseok.

“What do you think of while staring at the back of my head in class?”

Minseok laughed, embarrassed and scratching the side of his neck at the sudden query. “A lot of things. Like, whether you recognize me and how we’ve changed and stuff.”

Jongdae continued to survey him.

“What do you think of while staring at me?” Minseok returned the question, staring back at his companion.

Jongdae inhaled. “A lot of things,” he echoed Minseok’s phrase and they laughed.

“Like, how you seem familiar. And how Minnie had soft round cheeks and a dazzling smile but how Minseok has lost those cheeks and doesn’t smile much.”

“I could say the same for you. You don’t smile that radiant smile.”