MARK TRAILED BEHIND donghyuck, listening to him talk about each flower as though they were old friends. he smiled, enjoying how different donghyuck's point of view on life was so different from everyone else's.

his hair moved wildly, the yellow flowy blouse he wore billowing in the breeze like a frail kite. sandaled feet moved slowly and with purpose ahead of him. mark listened to him talk, putting in his own tuppence worth where he could.

donghyuck stopped moving altogether as they got to the gypsophilas. mark watched as he leaned down, bending at the knees to regard the vibrant flowers. one hand out to touch them, fingers trailing over the dainty small petals.

"are they your favorite?" mark asked softly, noting his interaction with the flowers. "no, but they fascinate me the most." he answered, still fixated on the bright flowers. mark crouched down next to him, eyes now on the florets. "why is that?"

"they come with different meanings. and their significance in different occasions is a sort of ironic contradiction." he seemed almost bewitched by the flowers as he continued to stare at them, fingers brushing gently over them. "like?" he looked to donghyuck curiously.

he caressed one yellow blossom. "joy and happiness." his gaze moved down, where the red gypsophilas bloomed. "passion, love."

he glanced behind them where white and violet gypsophilas stood out. "loyalty, honesty. a wish for better health." donghyuck's expression seemed to be a mix of pain and amusement at his last statement. "they're meant to signify longevity of life but they're also memorial flowers."

his eyes met mark's and he smiled, the corners of his eyes creasing, all evidence of his earlier seriousness gone. "i can't decide if i like them or not. they confuse me so much." he chirped.

mark straightened, reaching out a hand to help donghyuck up. he felt the way about him that he did the flowers. one moment, mark thought he had donghyuck figured out and the next, he didn't know what to make of him.

he didn't let go of mark's hand when he was standing s