SEVERAL DAYS PASSED before mark saw donghyuck again. the sun was already dipping behind soft pale clouds, bathing the sky in a palette of yellows, golds, reds, and pinks. it was the sort of sunset that made mark think the world was really just a huge canvas.

the beach was still somewhat crowded with summer tourists who had come to have a little fun in the water. compared to the night he'd first met donghyuck, the beach was a cacophony of noises. yells, shrieks, laughter, cries. seemingly every sound humans made could be heard.

mark ran his fingers through his wet hair, one arm wrapped around his surfboard ad he trudged out of the water. he liked the sea and the calm it brought. he despised the noise that came with the visitors. he always felt as though it caused some sort of imbalance. he just wasn't sure if it was within him or against nature.

next to him, yukhei suddenly smiled, cheeks rounding like two flushed peaches. "race you to the house?" he asked, ruffling his wet locks. a slow grin found its way to mark's lips. "you bet." he replied and took off. "cheater!" jimin yelled, running after him. "slow poke!" mark laughed, only glancing back for a second.

when he was around his friends, mark always reverted to his age. he stopped thinking beyond his years, stopped acting like he was twelve years older than he really was. he talked more like a boy who just hit his twenties, his mannerisms could be likened to a ten-year-old's and he definitely did play around like one.

yukhei suddenly picked up speed. mark almost forgot how fast the boy could be when he wanted to. he was quickly gaining on him an