This year was the first year that Jongin's grandmother didn't come pick him up. Instead, when he stood on the gravel after an hour of bouncing in a seat, he found Kyungsoo sitting on the bench his grandmother would sit on. 

"Why are you here?" he sputtered. Kyungsoo made a face and hit him on the shoulder. He took the duffle bag from Jongin and stomped ahead, Jongin following in a daze. "Kyungsoo, I didn't mean it that way." 

"You make it sound like you'd rather not see my face the moment you step in this town." Kyungsoo sped up and Jongin had to jog to catch up to the elder. 

"Kyungsoo, I was surprised! Halmoni's always the one that picks me up. I'm sorry!" Ahead of him, Jongin saw Kyungsoo stop walking and he smiled triumphantly to himself. "Kyungsoo?" 

"What?"

"Are..you okay?" Jongin asked slowly. 

"Yea. I'm fine. Why are you asking?" 

Jongin slowly shook his head. "You're so weird," he mumbled. 

"Thanks," Kyungsoo muttered sarcastically before starting back to Jongin's house. 

"What did I do?" Jongin yelled after him. 

"Do you have the list?" Jongin asked. He looked at the male sitting beside him with expectant eyes. 

Kyungsoo put his hand in the back pocket of his worn denim jeans and pulled out a folded piece of binder paper. "Here." He gave it to Jongin and he unfolded it. 

"There's nothing on here," Jongin said. He frowned and looked up at Kyungsoo who was smiling. 

"That's because we're going to make a whole new set of memories that aren't going to be stopped by a stupid piece of paper." He grabbed Jongin's arm and pulled him upwards, dragging him to the trees and bushes. 

"Are we going back to the field?" Jongin asked. 

"You still remember that place?" 

"Of course. It was the first place you showed me." 

Kyungsoo smiled at the memory. Everything was so much simpler then. They were just young, naive teenagers with no care in the world. Only two years later, they were burdened with the troubles of "growing up" and becoming "adults." That was why Kyungsoo loved it when Jongin came, and vice versa, because they took each other away from the harsh realities of the world and focused on having fun. 

The two walked for a few more minutes before reaching the field. It looked exactly like it did two years ago, untouched by humans. Kyungsoo's lips curled into a small smile when he glanced at Jongin. 

"It's still so beautiful..." Jongin said. 

"It's like nothing changed." 

"Is it still beautiful like I am?" Jongin joked.

Kyungsoo turned to glare at him, the glare that got Jongin curling up into a ball in fear. "You just ruined the moment. Shove off." Jongin gave him a sheepish smile before pulling Kyungsoo on the rock they sat on before. Kyungsoo's legs we curled up to his chest and Jongin sat beside him with his legs in front of him, his head on Kyungsoo's shoulder. The air was clean and fresh and the silence between them was made up by the chirping of birds and buzzing bees. 

"I wonder if it'll still be like this the next few years," Jongin mumbled. 

Kyungsoo's eyes moved to Jongin's head. "I don't know. Will you be the same in the next few years?" 

Jongin sighed. "I hate growing up. Don't you?" He lifted his head up to look Kyungsoo in the eyes. Kyungsoo found those eyes so full of innocence and energy. It was a complete difference from his outer appearance. 

"I've never really thought about it. Nothing really happens around here and I feel like I was forced to grow up and be an adult a long time ago," Kyungsoo answered. 

"What do you mean?" Jongin asked. 

"You know what I find weird? That we've been friends for two years but we've never went into depth about our family." Kyungsoo gave Jongin a soft smile. "If you heard my story, I think it'll be easier for you to understand what I mean." 

"Well then go ahead."

The whole story was a lie. 

"Jongin, I'm tired." Kyungsoo stopped jogging and bent over, hands on his knees, as he tried to catch his breath. 

"We just started!" 

"Not all of us are athletes," Kyungsoo reminded.

Jongin stopped jogging and pulled out his earphones. "Come on, Kyungsoo!" he yelled. 

Kyungsoo rolled his eyes and stood up straight. "Just keep going. I'll catch up." Jongin made a face and walked back to Kyungsoo. "I told you keep going," Kyungsoo said. Jongin grabbed Kyungsoo's hand and started walking, dragging the older behind him. "Jongin!" 

"You're taking forever. I actually have a reason for dragging you out for a run."

Kyungsoo stopped talking.

"Did I ever tell you that I liked you even before I met you?"

Jongin's head whipped around to stare at Kyungsoo with wide eyes. "What?"

"I liked you before I even met you," Kyungsoo said simply. "All the stories your grandmother would tell me whenever I finished cleaning early were all about you. How did you think I knew you liked ham sandwiches without tomatoes and lettuce?" He grinned and slung an arm around Jongin's shoulders. "Your grandmother told me stories about when you were little. I think I know more about you than you do." 

"That doesn't sound creepy at all," Jongin replied sarcastically. 

"It's not." The two turned and made eye contact for a second before bursting out in a fit of laughter. 

"How does summer pass so fast but the school year so slow?" Jongin mumbled. He was laying across all three seats of the couch, wrapped up in a blanket, while playing with Kyungsoo's hair.

Kyungsoo shrugged, his eyes trained on the TV in front of him. "Maybe it's because you don't like school." 

"School's a pain in the ." 

Kyungsoo laughed and turned around to look at the male laying on the couch. "You're coming back again next year right?" 

"I always come here every summer." 

"Just making sure," Kyungsoo said. Then he mumbled something under his breath. 

"What was that?" Jongin asked. 

"Nothing." 

"I love you." 

"Is this a confession?" 

"Maybe." Kyungsoo leaned forward on his tiptoes and pressed a soft kiss onto Jongin's lips. 

When he pulled away, Jongin flushed a deep shade of pink and diverted his eyes. "What was that for?" 

"Just to tell you I love you." 

"Come back next year!" 

"I will!" Jongin waved from the window of the moving bus at his best friend, his lover, his boyfriend. 

"I'll be waiting for you!" 

This was Kyungsoo's third lie. 

Those were the last words Jongin ever heard Kyungsoo say.