Jungwoo knew he was in for a long, long day. 

It was a beautiful day and he really, really wanted to take his eight to nine year old campers to the lake to play in the sun and sand all day. He had spent hours packing sandwiches and snacks for them all last night and had told them to make sure their swimsuits were dry so they could play in the lake. He had thought everything was perfect when he told Doyoung and Jaehyun of his plan. They had agreed, except for one thing: Jungwoo had to bring another counselor with him. 

Jungwoo had understood; it was a big area and the lake could get dangerous (he remembered when Jaemin almost drowned his first year of camp). So, he went around asking almost every counselor if they were free to help him out. But none were, except the one person Jungwoo hadn't asked: Wong Yukhei. It was his job to take the kids out on adventures outside of the campgrounds and assist the age group counselors. So of course he was free, and of course he agreed to help Jungwoo out when Doyoung and Jaehyun had asked him. 

It wasn't that Jungwoo didn't want to spend time with Yukhei. Actually, that was all he had wanted to do since camp had started. But he had always had a hard time with the awkward stuff, and he was sure Yukhei didn't exactly want to spend time with him. Just looking at Yukhei's ever handsome face filled him with guilt, and things were just worse after what he admitted last night. 

Jungwoo and Yukhei had been able to avoid each other on the walk, playing with two separate groups of kids, but they were stuck when they got to the lake. They set up a blanket on the sand, laying out the ground rules before they sent the kids off to play. Sitting side by side, Jungwoo's face was burning and he could barely get the words out, forcing Yukhei to do most of the rule explaining and question answering for him. 

The kids dispersed immediately after they let them go, sitting in the sand in uncomfortable silence, curled up with their arms around their knees. The screaming joy of the children was easily drowned out by the ringing in his ears, and it was so awkward that Jungwoo could have screamed. This was the first time they had been so close so they had broken up, after all. 

Jungwoo tried to calm his mind, watching the lapping of the lake against the shore, but he couldn't. He could only think about the happy times he'd had with Yukhei right here at this lake all those years ago. He missed him. He'd missed him since the day he broke up with him. 

"Yukhei, Yukhei!" A group of kids yelled, running over to the counselor. Jungwoo watched him look up and put a smile on his face. 

"Hey kids, what's up?" 

"Do you wanna play with us?" 

Yukhei shook his hands. "Sorry guys. I'm tired today." 

Jungwoo stared at him in surprise; he loved playing with the kids. The kids whined and pouted. "Come on! Please?" 

Yukhei hummed. "Maybe later." 

"Fine," the kids groaned and ran away. 

Once they're gone, Jungwoo finds the courage to turn to Yukhei. "Don't you usually like to play with the kids?" 

Yukhei shrugged and looked at Jungwoo. "I don't know. I...I wanted to stay next to you, I guess." Jungwoo started fidgeting; he didn't really know what to say to that. "Jungwoo?" Yukhei suddenly asked. 

"Yeah?" 

"Last night, why did you say you regret breaking up with me?" 

Jungwoo froze; he had not expected Yukhei to bring it up. But maybe he'd forgolt tten that was Yukhei's nature. He wasn't afraid to ask these things like Jungwoo was. "I...I said it because it's the truth. Y-you told me not to lie and I didn't." 

Yukhei looked so sad and it was weird because Yukhei was almost never said, and Jungwoo could cry just thinking about the fact that he was the one who made Yukhei feel this way. "Then why did you break up with me in the first place?" Yukhei choked out, like he was about to burst into tears, and it was all Jungwoo could do not to cry too. 

Once he calmed down a bit he spoke. "Yukhei...I guess, I guess before college I'd never felt cool at all. B-but then I met my friends, and they made me feel like I was a part of something, not just something I'd have to wait for summer for, an all the time group. They...they really wanted me to break up with you. They don't know anything about you, they think you're totally something you're not. I really can't blame them though. I actually listened to them and did it, and they liked me more for it. But...but I miss you every single day. I've cried every single night since I did it, but I didn't want to tell my friends because they'd not like me or tease me." Yukhei just watched him, listening. Jungwoo sighed. "All I can say is I'm sorry. I should have said sorry ages ago. When I did it, well, I shouldn't have even done it, but I should have said sorry then. You didn't deserve that. You are so much more than a stupid stereotype and I don't know why I'd listen to anything like that when I know how perfect you are." 

"Jungwoo...I...I...Why didn't you ever reach out to me? I missed you so much too, I missed you half to death! It hurts me to think of you crying like that, every night. Why didn't you ever send me a message?" 

Jungwoo hummed and looked down at the sand. "I didn't want to lose my friends, of course. But mostly I was afraid I would just hurt you more by trying to contact you. Plus...I don't deserve you. I don't deserve your time or your love. I didn't deserve you back when we first got together and I sure don't deserve you now. I'm weak. I'm so weak and I couldn't stand my ground, not even to defend the person I love more than anyone else." 

"Jungwoo..." Yukhei said slowly, the pain clear in his voice. "If you could go back, do you think you could do it? Do you think you could stay with me?" 

Jungwoo nodded carefully. "If I could go back I wouldn't even be friends with them. I-I regret breaking up with you and I regret everything that happened our first month of college. I regret myself most of all." 

Yukhei started to smile a little bit and Jungwoo looked at him, confused. "Jungwoo, you hurt me a lot. You really did. But...I'm over it now. It wasn't right but I know you and why you did it. We all have our moments, and I know things have been hard for you. I know how badly you were bullied in high school, how you had nobody, and how much friends mean to you because of that. How much feeling like people like you means to you. So I understand. And I'm over it. Now all I want is to have you back." 

Jungwoo's jaw dropped in surprise. That was all he had been wanting but he could not have imagined it actually happening. But this was why Yukhei was so special; he had always understood Jungwoo in the way that nobody else could. He didn't deserve Yukhei; he wasn't good enough for him. He couldn't accept this with a good conscience. 

"Yukhei, you don't want me back. I'm not good enough." 

"Jungwoo," Yukhei mumbled, tilting Jungwoo's chin up to look at him, trembling and teary eyed. "I want you, flaws and all. That's all I've ever wanted." 

Jungwoo sniffled. "A-are you sure?"

Yukhei nodded. "Of course. Of course I do." And for the first time since camp started, Yukhei smiled. He had smiled these past nine days of course but not his real smile, his big bright Yukhei smile that had the whole world falling for him in mere seconds. The smile that made Jungwoo fall too, the one that never failed to blow him away and surprise him when it was directed at him. 

Jungwoo, slowly, smiled back. "I-if you want me...then I want to be with you again. S-so badly." 

Yukhei giggled and leaned in closer. "Then you're my boyfriend again. Okay?" 

Jungwoo sniffled and nodded. "Okay." 

And in that gentle smile Yukhei's frame doesn't even seem capable of, he pulled Jungwoo in for their first kiss in nine months. It was gentle and sweet and forgiving. Just like Yukhei. 

When they pulled away Yukhei pulled Jungwoo tight into his arms and Jungwoo latched back on, sobbing endlessly into the crook of his shoulder about just how sorry he was, how he would never hurt Yukhei again, how he would do anything for him. And Yukhei just rubbed him back and told him it was okay, as long as they loved each other as they deserved nothing would go wrong again. 

And the kids stayed far, far away from them.