Prompt: “One teaches the other how to ride a bike”

Pairing: Xiumin/Chen

Words: ~1300

“You seriously don’t know how to do this?” Minseok asks, a hint of disbelief in his tone. Jongdae glares a little, his cheeks flushing as he attempts to straddle the seat of the incriminating mode of transport before him. The handlebars slip out of his grip as the wheels wobble, and with a heavy clunk he finds himself once again lying sideways on the cement pavement, another bloody scrape itching across his knee.

Usually one for retorts, instead Jongdae’s completely shell-shocked into silence by the embarrassment of the situation. Minseok had driven them halfway across the country and (honestly) Jongdae thought they were just doing some cutesy-couples nature sightseeing before a lovely candle-lit dinner; but, once they’d pulled all the gear on, he finally realised what was actually going on. Minseok apologised to their guide in cautious whispers as Jongdae had stood there, glaring at the bicycle pushed before him.

“I don’t know how to ride that,” he had said, desperation and some fear barely concealed as a bead of sweat dripped down the side of his usually stoic face.

“What? Wait… are you serious, Jongdae?”

It’s not like his parents didn’t try to teach him – he rode around with training wheels for a time before scooters came out. No, at a young age Jongdae had decided that riding bicycles wasn’t really a necessary skill to have, when you could just catch a train or a bus instead (methods that involved WAY less exercise). Riding bikes was dangerous, his brain tells him. Besides, what was the point of burning calves and aching muscles when someone else could simply move you to your destination for you?  It was stupid, if you asked Jongdae. Plus, once you were old enough you could just learn how to drive. That was much safer than riding a bicycle and potentially toppling over and scraping your exposed skin every few minutes.

“You should have told me before I booked us tickets for this mountain biking trip,” Minseok continues conversationally. “I would have taken you to a flat place, and you could have learnt on my old mountain bike before we had gotten here. I could have eased you into it a bit…”

“You didn’t tell me we were going mountain biking!” Jongdae retorts, fuming. “You said we’d go to this famous mountain and take pictures and typical date stuff like that. You never said to me we’d have to assault the mountain on two wheels before we even got purchase enough to use our cameras! The whole mountain biking bit seems like a lot to leave out when you explain a date, Minseok! I don’t even want to know how much this cost! What a waste of an afternoon…”

Minseok lets out a small chuckle and holds out a hand to pull Jongdae up. Jongdae hesitates, now more red-faced than before. He growls a little before lacing their fingers together. Minseok tugs him up and pets him gently on the shoulder.

“I learn something new about you every day,” Minseok says thoughtfully. “I guess this trip isn’t a waste entirely. If we didn’t come here, I wouldn’t have learnt that you –“

“– Can’t ride a bike?” Jongdae  finishes for him.

“Well, yeah,” Minseok says, shrugging his shoulders. “It’s nothing to be embarrassed about, it’s just rare is all. I hadn’t expected you wouldn’t know I just kind of assumed…”

“Well you never asked,” Jongdae bites back. Minseok goes silent, Jongdae becoming aware of just how loud the wind is in his ears. Even if they did try to bike up to the lookout (with his amazing biking abilities, mind you!), he’s sure he would have been blown off the pathway. That would have been great, Jongdae thinks – he could have fallen and been smashed against the side of a cliff, accurately resembling a cracked egg on kitchen tiles.

“I learnt something about you too I suppose,” Jongdae utters sarcastically.

“Like what?” Minseok asks.

“Like the fact that you’re a sadistic psychopath that wants to destroy my legs and possibly kill me by forcing me to climb up a windswept mountain on wheels!”

A flash of hurt shoots across Minseok’s eyes and Jongdae feels immediately guilty. As quickly as his pain came, however, Minseok recollects himself by replacing the hurt frown with his stoic, passive look. His eyes soften as he lowers his hands from Jongdae’s shoulders, pressing them into the small of his partner’s back. He pushes forward gently, walking alongside the now upright bicycle with his hands hovering by Jongdae’s sides. Jongdae flashes a confused look at him but Minseok is concentrating on what is ahead, steering Jongdae along, slowly letting them both gather speed until he’s skipping along next to the bicycle.

Jongdae squints his eyes shut, biting his lips in panic. This is too fast, he thinks, he’s going to flatten himself against a tree! He knows bicycles don’t go as fast as cars but he’s seen the Tour De France and what happens when riders go flying off the side of the road. Besides, this ride is probably just as bumpy as those cobblestone sections. The winds pick up a little, battering his face. He wants to scream bloody murder for he’s sure this will be his doom.

Now Jongdae remembers exactly why he didn’t learn how to fully ride a bike. He had accidentally hit the curb with one of the training wheels, effectively tilting the bicycle heavily to the side. He was going too fast. The vivid flash of red pain and the accompanying blackness. It was all a bit vague now, but one thing Jongdae’s brain latches onto is the fact that it could happen again. He doesn’t want it to.

No, he thinks quickly, he trusts Minseok.

Finally noticing Jongdae’s discomfort, Minseok lets the mountain bike slow. He leads it onto flat ground, wrapping his arms gently around Jongdae when they finally pull to a stop. Jongdae has bitten through his lip, a little dribble of blood trailing down his chin. Minseok notices that he’s shaking; tremors run up his hands and he’s unsteady on his feet as he tries to dismount.

“Easy, Jongdae,” Minseok whispers, hovering over his partner. Once he’s off the bike, Jongdae collapses to the ground, breathing slightly accelerated. He gulps down air and tries to calm his racing heart. His eyes flutter open, and he throws a tentative glance up at Minseok as he sits in his shadow.

“I don’t really want to learn how to ride,” Jongdae groans, a stray tear slipping down his cheek. He quickly swipes it away self-consciously.

“It’s okay,” Minseok replies, holding out his hand once again. Jongdae takes it immediately, pulling himself up on shaky feet.

“We don’t have to do this again,” Minseok continues. “I prefer the bright and bubbly Jongdae to the freaked out one. I just wish I’d known… we would have never come on this stupid date!”

Minseok feels guilty, Jongdae realises; probably as guilty as he feels about snapping at Minseok earlier. Jongdae shakes his head, carefully steadying himself by grasping Minseok’s shoulder. They walk back to the car park and slide into the car in silence, Jongdae tugging his seatbelt across his front as Minseok clasps the steering wheel. Jongdae pokes at Minseok’s cheek playfully. Minseok glances up, brows furrowed. Jongdae flashes him his trademark grin, before gently pecking Minseok’s cheek. Minseok flushes and Jongdae lets out a chortle.

“So what if I can’t do the whole biking thing! There’s still loads of other stuff we can do together… We just need to make sure we know each other’s fears well enough to prevent dumb stuff like this happening again.”

Minseok thinks on this for a few seconds, then grins.

“So, next weekend we can still go canyoning right?”

Jongdae pales, asking himself why he ever decided to go out with such an adventurous daredevil.