CHAPTER TWO

Kyuhyun sat on one of the benches positioned at the heart of an intersection. His legs were crossed at the ankles as he watched the daily lives of denizens streamed him by. Raucous voices of the vendors rose from the assortment of stalls and carts lining the cobbled paths. At the nearby vegetable cart, a housewife caviled about the price of a cucumber. He observed as the owner defended the quality of the cucumber, refusing to give in to the housewife’s demand for a lower price. Finally the housewife left the shop victorious. 

Kyuhyun glanced up at the tower clock located at the end of the north street, slightly startled at the time displayed. He had once again squandered hours away on observing the market crowd. 

It had been two weeks since he had left Sodalis, but he was still gravitated to the many quirks of humans. People-watching had become his routine on the days where Ryeowook worked at the fruit stall. Initially Kyuhyun had his sleeves rolled up, prepared to help out alongside with Ryeowook. But due to space constraints, his offer was awkwardly but kindly rejected by Granny Yoon, the owner of the stall. He decided to busy himself with his other plans while he waited for Ryeowook to wrap up his work.

In the first few days, Kyuhyun had strolled down the streets, stopping by whenever a trinket or a gadget caught his eyes. Some owners had shooed him when it was clear that he had no intention of buying, but most were kind enough to let him tinker with their goods. He had even ventured into serpentine alleys where dodgy shops hid. Though he had to admit, man-made items did not fascinate him as much as men themselves.

He had seen kids gamboling across streets, their faces brightly lit with smiles. He had seen a lady blush when her lover whispered in her ears. He had seen a butcher yelling when a thief ran away with a dollar note pilfered from the money bin. He had seen a mother screaming frantically and then bursting into tears when her lost child was recovered.

It was a wonder to him that the humans could be so rich with emotions. And even though he belonged to one of them now, he felt as if some of his inner workings had remained as a puppet.

A gaggle of girls settled on the bench next to him, swinging their legs and their caramelized apples. Kyuhyun’s stomach emitted a gurgle. He looked at the clock again and it indicated lunch. He rose from the bench and proceeded to the fruit stall.

Lunch with Ryeowook had always been uneventful. They would talk, but Ryeowook never permitted their conversations to trespass beyond trivialities. Whenever Kyuhyun asked a question that was deemed too personal, Ryeowook would clam up and let silence be his answer.

Unlike those humans he had observed on the streets, Ryeowook’s face was hardly colored by emotions.  At the very most, he would only catch traces of poignancy silvering across Ryeowook’s delicate features, and that only occurred when Ryeowook thought he wasn’t watching.

Therefore, two weeks into the commencement of their relationship, Ryeowook’s name seemed to be the only thing he knew. 

“Ah Kyuhyun, you’re here.” Granny Yoon greeted Kyuhyun with a friendly smile on her chubby face. Then she turned and patted Ryeowook affectionately on his shoulder. “Ryeowook, go for your lunch.”

Ryeowook hesitated. “But the goods will be arriving soon.”

“And there won’t be anything my old bones can’t carry.” Granny Yoon planted her hands on her hips in mock affront. “You would do me a bigger favor by fattening up. Look at you; if I discounted the height you’re not much bigger than my grandson, and mind you, he’s only ten this year. Go have your lunch.”

Ryeowook shrugged but did not rebut further. He stepped around Granny Yoon to the other side of the cart where he retrieved two tin lunchboxes from a squeaky cupboard beneath. Kyuhyun was about to follow in Ryeowook’s stead when she stopped them.

“Ah I almost forget about this. Old age’s definitely catching up with me.” Granny Yoon opened one of the many crates stacked against the scarred wall and took out one box of strawberries. “Take this with you. They’re so sweet that they can pass off as desserts.”

Hesitation crossed Ryeowook’s face as he pursed his lips into a thin line.  He contemplated for a brief moment. Finally, tucking the lunchboxes in the crook of his arm, he pressed Granny Yoon’s outstretched hand down and shook his head. He gave her a tiny smile that wavered at its corners and turned away, leaving.

Granny Yoon sighed, her eyes lingering on the strawberries before they met Kyuhyun’s. She shook her head in defeat, her silvery gray hair glinting under the sun. “That boy has never accepted any kindness from me, no matter how many times I’ve tried.”

Kyuhyun squinted his eyes. Ryeowook’s diminishing back appeared desolate and frail amidst the milling crowd. The heavy trudge of Ryeowook’s steps was a stark contrast to the purposeful stride of the passersby that funneled around him.

“Has he always been like this? So…” Kyuhyun rummaged through his mind for an appropriate word. “Withdrawn?”

She nodded, sighing again. “He never speaks unless he’s spoken to. He’s a nice boy though; just that he shies away whenever someone tries to get too close. Unfortunately that includes me.” Kyuhyun barely had time to feel sorry for the old lady when her next revelation surprised him. “That’s how he has always been since he came to this town.”

“Came to this town? He wasn’t raised here?”

“How could you not know?” A hot blush crept up Kyuhyun’s face at her incredulous tone. “I’ve always assumed that you both were hometown friends considering your sudden appearance by his side. Out of nowhere if I may add.”

Finding himself in a sticky situation, Kyuhyun scratched the back of his head awkwardly. Normal folks were hidebound when it came to the idea of puppets coming to life. 

“It’s… a little tricky to explain our relationship.” Kyuhyun equivocated. He continued quickly before she could fire a volley of questions. “Tell me more about Ryeowook. You know how he would never open up to people.” He tried to evoke her sympathy by playing the role of a mournful friend. 

To his relief, Granny Yoon took the bait. “He arrived alone a little over two years ago. It was summer where many fruits are in season, and I needed help and he needed a job. He stuck on ever since, even though I couldn’t pay him much. Every time I tried to increase his pay out of my own conscience, he would insist that what I give is enough for him to get by. So I thought of compensating him through other ways but as you’ve seen, he never accepts it.” 

“What about his family?”

“He has always been alone. No family, no friends. You’re the first person who hangs around him. Truth be told, I’m relieved that he has finally found a friend.”

Kyuhyun measured Granny Yoon’s words for a moment and when he replied, he made sure that he didn’t sound like he was complaining. “I’m not sure if ‘friends’ is a fitting word to describe us.”

Granny Yoon shook her head and a reassuring smile bloomed on her wrinkled face. “I’m sure you’ve already taken the first step. He isn’t someone who let others come near him so easily.”

“Here, take this. They’re too good to be missed.” Granny Yoon reached for Kyuhyun’s hand and pushed the box of strawberries into it. The coolness of the box contradicted the heat emanating from her callused hand. He wondered what history had steeled Ryeowook’s heart to abnegate such familial warmth.

As Kyuhyun left the cart and retraced Ryeowook’s steps to the awning where they always had their lunch, he mulled over Granny Yoon’s words. The image of Ryeowook she had crafted dashed the absurd hopes that he could rely on Father Time to mediate their relationship. Even though he was thankful for her encouragement, he wasn’t certain that he could barge through the barrier that Ryeowook had staked around his own heart. 

Not when Ryeowook had built the barrier to not only fend others off, but also to incarcerate himself in.

::::::::::

Kyuhyun was awoken by a dream in the middle of the night. For a long while, he tried to recall its contents. He gave up when all his mind could make out was shapeless blobs. He jerked the blanket over his head and tried to fall back into sleep. But sleep never came. 

He sat up and ruffled his hair in frustration. It was then that he noticed that the bed was empty of its owner. The blanket was gone as well. He blinked and stared at the creases of the bed sheet, listening for any outside sounds of ruffle at the same time. Finally he clambered onto his feet and exited the room.

“Ryeowook?” Kyuhyun’s voice echoed in the rustic belly of the living room but there was neither answer nor movement. With its low ceiling, the room appeared uncannily cavernous in the dark.

He felt his way to the couch where he had left his coat earlier that night. Pulling the coat on, he headed for the door and slipped into his shoes. 

The door squeaked on its hinges when he opened it. An unexpected gust of frosty wind whipped past him and he recoiled instinctively. The coat was ineffective as a shield from the cold. Biting down his chattering teeth and winding his coat tighter around his body, he decided to brave the cold on an imprudent spark of boldness.

His eyes quickly became accustomed to the darkness. He padded through the empty front yard, his shoes digging patterns into the thin blanket of snow left over from the afternoon. When he nearly slipped a few times, he became cautious and chose to hop on the patches where the snow had chosen not to land. He rounded the house and came to the backyard where he finally found the person he was looking for.

The backyard was the only compound graced by moonlight. Hanging on backdrop of dark velvet speckled with luminaries, the moon was perfectly round tonight. Ryeowook had curled himself up on the left side of the wooden bench. A blanket was wrapped around him like a cape. He stared blankly at the sky, lost in his thoughts.

Unknown waves welled within Kyuhyun as he silently watched from where he stood. It felt as if a cloth was wadded down his throat, impeding his ability to breathe. The flashes of sadness on Ryeowook’s face paled in comparison to this living portrait of sorrow and loneliness. How had Ryeowook managed to hide such degree of pain under a veil of indifference? How suffocating must it have been?

When Kyuhyun stepped forward, the scuffle of his feet against the snow disrupted the pregnant bubble of peace. Ryeowook whipped his head in Kyuhyun’s direction. Ryeowook’s jaw tensed.

“Out to enjoy the moon? It’s hardly this big and round, isn’t it?” Kyuhyun pulled his lips into an innocent grin and pretended to be oblivious to fact that he had caught Ryeowook at his peak of vulnerability.

“Can’t sleep,” Ryeowook replied tersely, squirming closer the edge of the bench when Kyuhyun occupied its right side. It was an unvoiced accusation that Kyuhyun’s presence had just invaded a private section of his world that he had cordoned off from everybody.

“Do you know this moon we’re seeing isn’t the only moon in the entire universe?” Kyuhyun started, playing his usual role of initiating a conversation. He held up a hand and began reciting off his fingers. “Mars has two, Saturn has 33, Uranus has 27 and Jupiter has –”

“I’m going in,” Ryeowook interrupted hastily. He dropped his feet onto the ground and wriggled them into his shoes. He was about to rise from the bench when Kyuhyun grabbed the hem of his blanket.

“Ryeowook, let’s talk. And by that I mean the two of us,” Kyuhyun added before Ryeowook could rebut. “Not just me holding up the conversation.”

Ryeowook held Kyuhyun in a measuring glance. “You’re probably going to be disappointed,” he said, but he slipped his shoes off. He curled up once again, hiding his pink toes back into the tent of his blanket.

“At least we try.” Kyuhyun said, his feelings lifting at Ryeowook’s rare compliance. “Why don’t you start by telling me about yourself?”

“There isn’t anything about me that you should but haven’t known.” Ryeowook turned his head away from Kyuhyun and buried his cheek into the softness of his blanket.

“Should I start asking questions then?” In spite of the manifesting sense of helplessness, Kyuhyun refused to give in to Ryeowook’s lack of candor. “Questions like what your favorite colors are; what your favorite fruit is; where your family is; what happened before you came to this town.” Kyuhyun knew that he was stepping on dangerous grounds when Ryeowook snapped up, warning flashing in his eyes. However, out of impatience, more words rolled off Kyuhyun’s tongue before he could stop himself. “Or perhaps you can just answer this: Why do you look at people the way you do? Like nobody is worth trusting?”

Every line of Ryeowook’s body went rigid. “You don’t know anything.”

“That’s why I’m asking,” Kyuhyun said matter-of-factly. “It’s been nearly a month and look at us, we’ve hardly gone pass the mark of strangers. I know close to nothing about you, and you’re not bothering to fill me in.”

“I’m sorry that I’m not the type of person you’ve expected me to be,” Ryeowook said testily, his jaw set in defiance. “And if it makes you feel better, I apologize for ruining your chances of meeting a better owner.”

“That’s not what I mean.” Kyuhyun defended himself hotly. 

“I know exactly what you mean,” Ryeowook accused in a voice full with edges. He resembled a startled porcupine that had stiffened its body of spikes to protect itself. “I’ve been alone long enough to understand how much of a burden I am to anyone who comes too close.”

“Is that the kind of excuse you use to convince yourself that you don’t need anybody?”

“I like being alone.” Ryeowook glared into Kyuhyun’s eyes, as if daring him to say different.

“Is that so?” Kyuhyun raised an eyebrow. “I don’t know a lot about humans; but I know enough to understand that you’re not happy even when you’re alone. You never smile.”

“There isn’t any reason for me to,” Ryeowook stated tersely, his subconscious probing him to curl further into himself as an inherent mechanism of self-defense. 

Kyuhyun folded his arms and buried his cold hands into his coat before turning to Ryeowook. “Are there no reason for you to, or did you simply choose to be oblivious to them?” 

Ryeowook looked at Kyuhyun for a moment before angling his head to the sky. The strong façade he had mounted was cracking into pieces under Kyuhyun’s unrelenting advances. His pale lips moved, working a response that came out as a sigh. “What exactly do you want from me, Kyuhyun?”

The hard planes of defiance had softened into a visage of resignation; but it was not what Kyuhyun wanted to see.

“I just want to be your friend.” Kyuhyun said earnestly, leaning forward. The intensity of his gaze forced Ryeowook to turn, and their eyes met. “Or at least let me try. You don’t even have to do anything. You just need to keep a bit of your heart open.”

“Why are you doing all this? Why do you want to go through all this trouble?” A shiny film was forming over Ryeowook’s eyes. It pained Kyuhyun a little to realize how distrusting Ryeowook sounded. “No one has ever bothered to do that before.”

“Then let me be the first,” Kyuhyun said. “You’re sick of being alone, aren’t you? That’s why you visited Sodalis in the first place and brought me back, isn’t it?”

The resolution in Ryeowook’s wavered but before Kyuhyun could further decipher the meaning, Ryeowook moved his eyes away, choosing instead to stare at the patterns on his blanket. “You’re weird,” Ryeowook mumbled, his hands peeking out from the blanket to toy with a loose thread.

“So what do you think of my proposal?” Kyuhyun’s eyes glimmered with hope, but Ryeowook pretended that Kyuhyun’s words were lost.

A sudden gust of wind graced the yard, stirring the scents of nature. “Shucks,” Kyuhyun complained, vigorously rubbing his frozen hands together. His flimsy coat was insufficient in shielding him from the cold. “I should have brought a blanket out too. Hey where are you going?”

Ryeowook stopped in his tracks and jerked his chin to the house. “Back in.”

“But you haven’t told me how you feel about my proposal.”

Ryeowook merely shrugged. He turned, about to round the corner when he stopped again. “You should get back in too, before the chill gets worse.”

“I’m taking your concern as an agreement,” Kyuhyun called after Ryeowook’s disappearing figure. 

::::::::::

Kyuhyun was awakened by the sunlight that pierced through the window to land on his eyes. He squeezed his eyes in discomfort before opening them. He stared at the window for a good second and when the haze of sleep cleared, he shot out of his futon frantically. He calmed his pounding heart when he remembered that it was a Thursday, an off-day for the fruit stall. 

He was stretching his arms when he noticed something blue peeking in from the corner of his vision. A navy jacket was neatly folded at the foot of his futon, and atop of it was a pair of matching gloves. He pulled the clothes into his lap to examine them.

The jacket was padded with cotton and upon taking a closer look, he realized that it was a patchwork of different deep-blue fabric seamed together with neat stitches. The fabrics a chord in his memory. Just a few nights before, Ryeowook had cut them out from a few pieces of his older clothes. He could also vaguely remember the bag of cotton that slumped on the floor while Ryeowook sewed diligently at the dining table. He had had questions back then but he had dropped them before his curiosity earned Ryeowook’s annoyance.

Kyuhyun unfolded the jacket and held it before him. It seemed too a little too big and long for Ryeowook’s stature. Ignoring the hopeful speculation that he might know who these clothes were for, he set the jacket down and diverted his attention to the gloves. He pulled one of them on. It fitted his hand reasonably.

Barely able to contain the delight bubbling within him, he scrambled out of his futon. Tripping over the rope that was his blanket, he stumbled for the door and flung it open. Ryeowook, who was stirring a pot at the stove, jumped at the resulting bang that seemed to shake the house. Ryeowook turned over his shoulder and frowned at him.

“Are these for me?” Kyuhyun asked, trying his best not to sound too hopeful. Ryeowook looked at the clothes in his arms.

“Oh,” Ryeowook looked at the clothes in Kyuhyun’s arms and shrugged off-handedly, but the red rising on his ears gave his fluster away. “I thought you might need them since the weather is getting colder.”

Kyuhyun padded to the spot beside Ryeowook, hugging the clothes like a prized treasure. Ryeowook shrank a few inches away from him when Kyuhyun peered at him expectantly at a distance too close for comfort.

“These clothes, you made them for me?” Disbelief laced Kyuhyun’s question. “Me?”

“My jackets don’t seem to fit you and I couldn’t afford a new one. I could only improvise from what I have.” Ryeowook placed a lid over the simmering soup and in the process of doing so, he stole a glance at Kyuhyun.

Kyuhyun ran his hands over the clothes, unable to describe the warm fuzzy feeling that tickled his insides. The thrill and incredulity of having someone make new clothes for him jumbled his coherency for speech. However little did he know that Ryeowook had misconstrued his silence.

Ryeowook shuffled his feet, peeling his eyes away from Kyuhyun to look at the floor. “They aren’t much, but they’ll keep you warm,” he added in a hopeful mumble. “And I think they’ll fit you well.”

When Kyuhyun did not respond, a shadow of hurt flitted across Ryeowook’s face. “If you don’t like them, you can always return them to me.”

“What are you doing?” Ryeowook’s attempt to pull the clothes out of his arms jolted Kyuhyun. He shunned, clutching the clothes to his chest. “Of course I like them! It’s not every day that I get a handmade present from someone. No, scratch that, make this the first time I’ve gotten anything from anyone.” 

“So how do I look?” Kyuhyun asked after pulling on the jacket excitedly and straightening the cuffs. He extended his arms like a scarecrow and beamed at Ryeowook. “Good, better or best?”

“Breakfast when you’re ready,” Ryeowook muttered. He turned away to ladle the soup into bowls, but Kyuhyun did not miss his relaxed shoulders.

“What’s for breakfast today?” Kyuhyun chirped, rushing to join Ryeowook at the dining table. 

The jacket and gloves were more than just winter apparels; they were also the representation of the leap in their stagnant relationship. They were finally going somewhere. He could almost glean a fraction of the heart which Ryeowook had so fiercely guarded. This lifted his spirits and parted the gloomy cloud that had hovered over him for the past few days.

After breakfast, while Ryeowook was washing the dishes, an idea struck Kyuhyun. He paused in his circular motion of wiping the table and strode over to Ryeowook, his eyes dancing with anticipation. He twisted the tap shut, successfully garnering Ryeowook’s attention.

Kyuhyun ignored the crease that pinched Ryeowook’s brows. “We should go for our after-breakfast walk now.” The certainty in Kyuhyun’s tone could have fooled others that a morning walk was an entrenched part of their routine.

Before Ryeowook could vacillate, Kyuhyun latched his fingers around Ryeowook’s wrist and dragged him in the direction of the door. He frowned at the icy dews of water that matted Ryeowook’s skin. “You should have worn rubber gloves. Colds are rampant these days.”

“If that’s the case, you should let me get my coat before you pull me outdoors in a weather like this.” Ryeowook gestured to the window. Kyuhyun relinquished his hold awkwardly and informed Ryeowook that he would be waiting in the front yard.

They strolled on a winding path that led to a park north of their cottage. Snow were groomed into ridges that now flanked the path. In the faraway distance, Kyuhyun could glimpse the outline of snowcapped mountains behind a thin curtain of fog. It was a cold day, but his new clothes kept him nicely warm.

Kyuhyun noticed the bare trees as they stepped into the vicinity of the park. Their angular branches were unadorned with flowers. Snow shrouded most of the barren grounds. If not for the presence of humans, the park would have appeared entirely lifeless. 

They walked on the track that paved the circumference of the park. Twigs littered the gravel and one particularly spindly one rolled and cracked under Kyuhyun’s weight, nearly tripping him. You don’t belong to the ground, he thought almost grumpily.

A sudden question struck Kyuhyun. “How long will this winter last?”

“Probably for another two more months,” Ryeowook answered after a short while of quick calculation. “Why do you ask?”

“I can’t wait for spring.” An excited tingle ran through Kyuhyun’s shoulders at the thought of spring. “Everything will be back where they belong.” He waved at the twigs.

“Spring…” Ryeowook tested the word on his lips as if it was a faraway dream.

“Yes, spring.” Kyuhyun exhaled in a smile, his breath coming out as a white puff of smoke. “When I was back in the shop, I spent many of my nights pondering over this particular season. I could visualize the other seasons; winters are white, summers are yellow, autumns are red. But it’s not the same for spring.”

Ryeowook looked at Kyuhyun in puzzlement.

“Springs are colorful. Think of it this way: if winter is a white canvas, then spring would be the splashes of colors that go onto this canvas when the season changes. Flowers bloom, birds return. There’ll be a myriad of colors. Where do I start?” Kyuhyun glanced at the frost that crouched on the overhead branches, imagining them studded with flowers when spring graced. “And I can’t, unless I experience spring myself.”

“Looks like you’re really looking forward to spring.”

“Who wouldn’t?” Kyuhyun recalled the snippets of conversations he had unintentionally eavesdropped in the market. “Don’t most people believe that spring is the season of promise?”

“They probably do.” Ryeowook tilted his head, casting his eyes across the pristine scenery. “But I wish winter would last longer.”

“Why? Winters are freezing.” As if on cue, a stinging gust of wind whipped past them. Kyuhyun gritted his chattering teeth and stuffed his gloved hands into the pockets of his jacket.

Ryeowook looked away, his eyes suddenly duller. “That’s the exact reason why I like them,” he murmured. The tone and expression were all it took to warn Kyuhyun to withdraw his army of questions before he wandered unknowingly into territories that were too personal.

The amicable atmosphere tapered into silence as they continued their walk. They sat down a bench that an old couple had vacated just moments ago. A few kids, bundled in their puffy winter gear, were skating on the frozen lake. Their squeals of delight rang whenever one of their counterparts accomplished a skating feat deemed difficult by their standards. 

“Say, do you have some spare change?” Kyuhyun asked when he spotted a booth that offered ice skates for rent at a cheap price. 

Ryeowook glanced at Kyuhyun almost suspiciously but did not ask. He dug into his pocket and fished out some pennies and a crumpled note. “This is all I have.”

“This will do.” Kyuhyun plucked the note from Ryeowook’s uncurled palm. He jogged to the booth and spoke to the corpulent man in charge. He could feel the itch of Ryeowook’s trailing gaze on him all the while.

“Let’s skate!” Kyuhyun announced when he returned, a huge smile splitting his face. Each of his hands held a pair of ice skates. He sat back down on the bench and dropped the ice skates onto the ground. “You can take the smaller pair.”

Kyuhyun kicked his own shoes off and reached for the ice skates, grunting as he struggled to pull the stiff material up his heel. When he fastened the last knot on his laces, he looked up to see Ryeowook staring hesitantly at the ice skates heaped on his lap. “What’s wrong?”

Ryeowook shook his head and motioned to the lake. “You can go first.”

“All right.” Kyuhyun sensed Ryeowook’s reluctance to skate but he knew better than to push. He stood up and turned over his shoulder before embarking on his ungainly journey to the lake. “I’ll be waiting for you to join me. But while you’re here, watch me, won’t you?”

Kyuhyun tottered unsteadily to the edge of the lake, nearly toppling over when he stepped onto the ice with the thin blades. Under the scintillating sunlight, the frozen lake resembled a massive mirror. He waved to Ryeowook from where he was and began to skate.

His initial glide was clumsy but soon enough, he captured the gist of skating. Wind whipped through his hair as he sped up. He spread his arms like an eagle, certain that this was the feeling birds get when they soar. The taste of freedom rejuvenated him.

His legs shot out beneath him when a burst of unreasonable confidence prompted him to attempt a half-spin in the air. He landed with a thud on his . He winced as a small pain gathered at his spine. The few kids who had witnessed his debacle giggled behind their mitten-clad hands. He offered them a feeble smile that ranked of embarrassment.

He picked himself up before the wetness could seep through his pants. The pain that he felt had been mollified by the chill of the ice. He slid a furtive glance in Ryeowook’s direction, somehow hoping that Ryeowook had not caught his flailing hands and skittering legs as he tried to cushion his fall. 

However his worries were unfounded, for Ryeowook’s attention was centered on skating instead of him. Ryeowook was standing at the lip of the lake, experimentally placing one of his now skate-donned feet on the surface of the ice. He balanced himself with his arms slightly apart from his body. He towed his other feet off the land and planted it on the ice. He steadied himself and began to take timid steps on the ice, his gait uncannily alike to that of a penguin.

Kyuhyun felt his lips twitching in satisfaction.  He skated to where Ryeowook was, picking up his speed when Ryeowook lost his balance and fell. In an instant, he was standing over Ryeowook.

“You okay?” Kyuhyun bent down and helped Ryeowook up by the elbows, releasing his hold only after he was certain that Ryeowook would not fall again.

“Thanks,” Ryeowook said softly, avoiding Kyuhyun’s eyes in embarrassment. His cheeks were adorably colored with pink. Kyuhyun felt a surge of affection for the smaller boy. 

“Looks like you’re not a natural at this. That’s pretty much unlike me.” Kyuhyun teased, completely forgetting that he was the one who had earned himself an ungraceful fall from being over-ambitious.

“I’ve never done this before.” Ryeowook admitted.

“Let’s do this together then.” Kyuhyun extended his arms, encouraging Ryeowook to take his hands. Ryeowook chewed his lower lip in hesitation. “Trust me. I won’t let you fall.”

A few more moments lapsed by and Ryeowook finally caved in. He entrusted his hands to Kyuhyun. Smiling, Kyuhyun closed his hand around Ryeowook’s fingers and squeezed them lightly in reassurance. 

“Well, be my eyes and look out for the kids. Here we go.” Kyuhyun started to glide backwards, pulling Ryeowook along. “Try moving your legs like me.” 

Ryeowook heeded Kyuhyun’s advice, sliding his leg forward when Kyuhyun’s mirrored leg slid backwards. All the while Kyuhyun kept his grip on Ryeowook’s hand firm and encouraging. They accelerated when the tension loosened from Ryeowook’s muscles, the scenery becoming an exhilarating blur. They moved in synchrony, their blades carving twin lines of loops and curves on the ice.

They slowed to a stop when the need to catch their breaths arose. Ryeowook dislodged his hand from Kyuhyun’s to brush the positively windswept fringe that had fallen over his eyes. Flustered by the sudden sense of loss, Kyuhyun closed his hands into fists and plunged them into his pockets. He cleared his throat awkwardly but to his surprise, it was Ryeowook who spoke first.

“This isn’t so bad. It’s… nice actually…” Ryeowook’s lips curved into sincere smile, revealing a silver of his whites.

Kyuhyun had to blink twice to ensure that the smile he saw was not a figment of his imagination. It took a beat of silence for him to recompose himself and another more to revel in the breathtaking transformation that a smile could do.  It was a magical smile that brightened Ryeowook’s eyes, making those brown irises twinkle like liquid diamonds. 

For a brief moment, Kyuhyun wondered why he anticipated spring when just one smile from Ryeowook could infuse his world with such dazzling spectrum of colors. 

“Well then, let’s continue.” Kyuhyun reached for Ryeowook’s hand and held tight. He noticed Ryeowook’s questioning frown at their linked hands. “Just in case.” He grinned and Ryeowook let him be.

As they skated along the rim of the lake, Kyuhyun couldn’t fight the effervescent contentment that rose within him. The day could just be what happiness is all about; the kind that was revered and cherished by all humans.

He may still be far, but at least, he was slowly but definitely making his way into Ryeowook’s world.

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A/N: Better earlier than later, right? And I can't wait to share the rest of the story with you. ^^