“Come on, Wonnie, I’m not having you make me late on the last day of school,” Kihyun nags, tugging his dongsaeng away from his front door. Hyungwon chuckles fondly as Kihyun drags him away from his own apartment. His eyes shine fondly at the newly-acquired nickname, considering it as a poetic symbol for how far they’ve come throughout the school year.

Of course, he’s a hopeless sap as far as Kihyun is concerned, so it could very well just be him.

“It isn’t like they can start the assembly without you, hyung,” Hyungwon sighs loudly, quickening his pace despite his relaxed tone. “You’re giving the opening speech, for god’s sake.”

“I’m not going to make everyone wait,” Kihyun fires back, his voice sounding slightly tense. “Besides, decorations still have to be put up, and the sound check still has to be done one last time, and—”

“Hey,” Hyungwon interrupts, pulling hard on Kihyun’s hand to make him stop mid-step. Kihyun does so, his frantic gaze settling hesitantly on Hyungwon’s shoulder. Hyungwon chuckles fondly, hooking the index finger of his free hand under the shorter’s chin and forcing him to look him in the eye. “Everything will be fine… You’ve totally aced every salutary speech you’ve given up ‘till now, and this year won’t be any different.” He chuckles lightly then, shrugging. “Well, I mean, with one exception. This year I’ll be in the front row, center-stage, to cheer you on.”

Kihyun visibly relaxes, the light in his eyes shifting to adoration as a faint smile flickers across his lips. He leans up on his tiptoes to give Hyungwon a quick peck on the lips before releasing a long sigh.

“Thank you, Wonnie,” he says, his voice dripping with genuine gratitude. Hyungwon hums in reply, as if it were absolutely nothing in the world, and nods towards the path ahead. Kihyun turns to continue leading them to school, though this time at a much slower pace.

Hyungwon glances up at the sky as they walk, unable to wipe the silliest of grins off his face. On mornings like this, when Kihyun goes very out of his way to walk with him to school and the sun is shining and the warmth of spring surrounds them, he thinks he wouldn’t change anything. Sometimes, when he and Kihyun are hanging out watching dramas, that he would’ve liked to skip all that time fighting just to get where they are sooner.

But, honestly, he wouldn’t ever want to change a single thing about their past, because it only makes their present all the sweeter.