For eternalspring

Stargazer Lily

It was the day of graduation, and Jongin wasn’t feeling nervous because he was basically on the brink of adulthood and moving into the stage of life that would be on fast forward; he was feeling nervous because from freshman year to his senior year, he had eyes for only one girl. However, he still hadn’t been able to confess to this girl. They were very good friends and he had been there for her when other boys would break her heart and when girls would talk behind her back. He was the shoulder she would cry on and the first person she would tell when something good would happen to her, but he never told her about his feelings.

It was the last day of high school, and he was the valedictorian. He would get up on that podium and say a speech that would detail the fun moments throughout the crazy experience of high school and give advice or a message of encouragement to his fellow classmates. This required a lot of courage, but for what he was planning to do, it would take a lot more than that to get him to say the thing that was on his mind.

He woke up that morning and put on his black dress pants and a crisp ironed white button down. He put on his cap and gown, and then got out a flower and pinned it to his left pocket. He went downstairs and his mother and father gave him a hug and told him that they were proud of him. They took some commemorative photos, and then they went to the school.

When he was called to the stage to give out his speech he walked up slowly and breathed into the microphone causing it to let out that dissonant sound. He leaned forward again and then tapped the microphone. The first half of his speech was spent thanking his teachers and fellow students and all the people that had made an impact on his life. He thanked his friends and his parents and then told them a few stories during high school that stuck out to him as the best memories. Like the time that they accidentally caused a mini-explosion in the science labs because they had mixed the wrong chemicals together, or the time that they were trying to bake some cookies but used the broken oven and turned the heat so high that the whole hallway was filled with smoke, or the time that they had a massive water fight on the football field after practice and how that was recreated the same weekend because it started raining after the game, and the grass became so wet that running on it made it feel like skidding or going down a water slide.

“I look back fondly on those memories, but now we look forward to making new ones as we start on a journey into the future. I don’t think that I’m the best person to give out advice, but all I can say to you is something that my mother had always told me. She said to follow your dream, wherever that may take you, and to never get discouraged, because failure is always another step closer to success. So that is what I want to say to you, fellow classmates, about how I think you should live your life starting from today. Work hard and play hard, but not so hard that you do something stupid okay? So right now, it seems that I’m coming to the end of my speech, and technically, I am. But, there’s one thing that I still have to do.”

Jongin opened up his robe a little bit to expose his shirt with the flower. He plucked it out and help it up for everyone to see.

“It might be a little hard to see the detail of this flower, but I wore it today, because it symbolised ambition, according to Google. This flower could also be my way of supporting my argument about dreams, but I wore this flower because this flower is one of my favourites. This is because someone in this audience wore it to our senior prom. If you’re wondering what flower and who that person is, it’s a stargazer lily and it was worn by none other than my best friend Yookyung. Now, I guess you’re wondering how all of these relate. Well, there’s only one thing that I regret not doing in high school. No, it wasn’t joining the astronomy club, although the name of this flower is slighty cosmic, but it was the thing that should have been the most memorable and most awkward experience in high school: confessing to a girl. So, I want to end my experience at this school by doing just that, and checking all of the boxes of all the things to do in school. Yookyung, I like you. Ever since you spilled sodium chloride on me in chemistry, I’ve liked you. I said that everyone her should follow their dreams, and so that I won’t be called a hypocrite, I should follow my own advice. You are my dream, and I will follow you wherever you go. Will you let me tag along?”

The audience clapped and cheered as Jongin got off the stage. Some of his friends ran up to him and gave him fist bumps and pats on the back. When the ceremony ended, he felt someone tug on his arm and pull him to the back of the bleachers.

“That was a pretty good speech. I don’t think anybody could ever top that.”

“Can you please put me out of my misery here?”

“What?”

“Will you let me tag along?”

“Yes!”

“Thank you!”

He picked her up and spun her around, then grabbed her hand to pull her back into the festivities.

“Why?”

“You still have one more high school experience to tick off.”

“What?”

“This.”

Yookyung gave him a kiss on the lips. When they pulled away, Jongin had a smirk on his face.

“That’s right! Kissing behind the bleachers…check!”

And they walked off, hand in hand, back to the field to celebrate with the senior class.