This is my entry for the Wings and Fins contest. :) I chose wings because I believe birds are some of the luckiest creatures of us all, because they can fly. Play enjoy my fic, I'm sorry that it's sad. ^_^ Good luck to all the other contestants~!

-----

Kyuhyun was eight when he met Sungmin.

It was in the park next to the hospital. Since Kyuhyun’s mother had been working he had gone to stay with his father at the clinic and had gotten bored and went to explore. Knowing that if he went too far he’d get in trouble the playground right outside seemed like a perfect place.

It was just a small clearing with a swing set and slide, but at Kyuhyun’s age, it was kid heaven.

Kyuhyun ran eagerly through the gate and into the park when he noticed a small kid in the shadows of a big tree in the corner. The girl was sitting against the trunk of the tree, legs pulled up to her chest with her hands resting on her knees. Her head was leaning backwards, short ivory hair falling around her face, her lips slightly parted as she watched the view above her.

The tree was covered in bird houses, about a hundred in different shapes and colors all nestled into the leaves. Birds of all colors of the rainbow flew from branch to branch, singing their melodic songs and resting in the trees. A soft breeze blew, sending the leaves from the tree spiraling down around her.

At first Kyuhyun was going to ignore the other kid sitting under the large tree, but something about the way she was sitting, staring blankly upward at the leaves, bothered him.

“Noona,” Kyuhyun called out as he walked forward, believing the girl was older since she seemed a bit taller than him.

The girl didn’t respond and only looked up when Kyuhyun came to stand in front of her. Then she snapped a glare at him and responded angrily, “I’m a boy!”

Sungmin was nine at the time. Short, a bit on the chubby side, large doe eyes and the perfect pouty lips.  No one could blame Kyuhyun for thinking he was girl the first time they met since Sungmin looked quite feminine, especially with the pink shirt he was wearing.

And that’s how their friendship began.

After almost getting beat up for his mistake, Kyuhyun had run away back to the hospital. Feeling guilty, Kyuhyun had gone back the next day to apologize for calling him a girl but the little boy was gone.

He’d forgotten about the incident for the rest of the week, lost in the daily routine of school and family, until he had gone to the hospital the next week and spotted a familiar shape under the tree outside.

Eagerly slipping out from under his father’s watch Kyuhyun went back to the playground, opening the fence and running to the opposite corner.

“Hyung!” Kyuhyun said happily as he stepped into the shadow of the tree to join the other boy.

The boy looked up in surprise, snapped out of his thoughts. “Oh, it’s you,” he said when he recognized Kyuhyun.

Kyuhyun smiled his goofy kid smile. “I’m Kyuhyun,” he said quickly.

He just nodded in response.

“I just wanted to say sorry for calling you a girl,” Kyuhyun said shyly then pulled out a feather from behind his back. “Ta-da~!”

The feather was gorgeous. It was small, able to fit neatly in one’s palm, a stunning bright blue with horizontal black lines, a white tip and fluffy gray feathers at the bottom. “I found it myself,” Kyuhyun said eagerly. “It’s from a blue-”

“-jay.”

Kyuhyun blinked, before a wide smile appeared on his face and he nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah, it’s a blue jay feather! Isn’t it pretty?” He smiled and held it out again. “It’s for you.”

The boy just stared at it for a few moments before taking it with a quiet, “thank you.” He placed it carefully into his shirt pocket, then, after contemplating for a few moments, looked up at Kyuhyun and motioned to the spot next to him.

Excitedly Kyuhyun sat down. “You know, you never told me your name,” Kyuhyun said. He turned to the boy but he was looking up at the tree leaves again. The boy looked at him out of the corner of his eye, touched his index finger to his lips before looking away.

“Ahh, I got it,” Kyuhyun said with a small grin. “Quiet,” he whispered.

It took him a few minutes to get calmed down, since he kept fidgeting, but eventually the two lapsed into silence, both staring up through the leaves at the sun that was filtering through. Birds chirped above, creating a soft melody in the background. From his place on the ground Kyuhyun could see splashes of color here and there as birds flew from branch to branch. The birdhouses swayed in the breeze, catching the light and reflecting a rainbow of colors. Kyuhyun understood Sungmin a bit better now because he could now see how easy it was to get lost in the beautiful world right above them, just out of reach.

A soft breeze caressed their faces, sending more of the v shaped leaves spiraling down around them. Once, one landed right on Kyuhyun’s nose. Kyuhyun twitched his nose, trying to dislodge the pesky plant. The boy next to him giggled but when Kyuhyun smiled at him he just looked away.

Kyuhyun had no clue how long they stayed like that, staring at the beautiful sight, but it seemed like only a few minutes had passed when a nurse came into the playground, calling for him to come back in for dinner.

Kyuhyun pouted but grudgingly sat up. “I’ve gotta go now,” he mumbled as he brushed grass off his pants.

The boy looked up at Kyuhyun for a few moments before whispering, “Sungmin.” He said it so quietly that Kyuhyun thought he might’ve misheard him.

“What?” Kyuhyun asked, tipping his head to the side.

“Sungmin. My name’s Sungmin.”

Kyuhyun’s face lit up, the sun bathing down on him casting him in an orange glow. “Sungmin. I like that name.” He then turned around, jogging to the nurse. Just before he exited through the gate he turned around and gave a big wave. “Bye, Sungmin hyung~! See you next time!”

And that was the first time he saw Sungmin smile.

They continued that pattern, Kyuhyun coming to the hospital every weekend to find Sungmin sitting underneath what had come to be called, the Bird Tree. He would come to the playground every time with a new type of feather he had found, eagerly bringing it to Sungmin and showing him it so Sungmin could tell him what kind of bird it came from.

From the pure white seagull feather to the barn owl’s striped one, and the white dove to the hummingbirds sparkling neon colored feathers, Sungmin knew them all.

“Wah, you’re really a bird master,” Kyuhyun said with a grin as he stared amazingly at the feather in his hand. To him, it just looked like a brown feather with white on the edges, but Sungmin claimed it was a baby robin’s feather.

“I know a lot about birds,” Sungmin said as he carefully plucked it from Kyuhyun’s fingers and put it carefully in his pocket.

“Do you think I could learn about birds?” Kyuhyun asked with a grin.

“No, it takes a long time to learn.”

For a moment Kyuhyun thought Sungmin was making fun of him but then realized he was completely sincere. He had begun to learn that Sungmin was not very good at making jokes and awkward at conversation. Kyuhyun was surprisingly fine with that though. Usually he was the quiet kid, even at his house he barely spoke, but with Sungmin it seemed like he could go on for hours.

Kyuhyun liked to believe he was Sungmin’s best friend.

When Kyuhyun had  once asked Sungmin if he was his best friend, Sungmin had turned to him with a smile and responded, “of course,” before sitting back down again. It may have seemed like a small gesture, a side comment, but Kyuhyun couldn’t keep the smile off his face for the rest of the day.

Sometimes when Kyuhyun came to the Bird Tree, Sungmin was sitting underneath it with drawing pad and a pencil in his hand.

“What cha doing hyung?” Kyuhyun asked the first time, sitting next to him in his usual place, tipping his head to the side like he usually did when he was curious or confused.

Sungmin showed his the pictures he had been drawing. They were gorgeous, pencil sketches of the birds up above them. They mainly focused on the birds in mid flight, their feet in close, wings outstretched. Kyuhyun was amazed with his talent, it looked like they were about to fly right off the page.

He told Sungmin about how there was an awesome art program at his school and how Sungmin should come one day and join. “You’re really good, hyung,” he said.

Sungmin just smiled at him. “That’d be nice,” he said quietly before going back to drawing.

After weeks of Sungmin continuously drawing, Kyuhyun began to wonder. “Hyung,” he asked from his spot in the grass, hands behind his neck, knees up. “Why do you only draw birds in flight?”

Sungmin paused from his drawing and looked up at the trees, watching the magnificent creatures flit from branch to branch, some flying away to find better trees, others finding homes in the leaves.

“I want to fly.”

Kyuhyun rolled over on his side, propping his head up with his arm. “Fly?”

Sungmin nodded his head, clutching his notebook to his chest. “Birds are lucky,” he whispered, eyes dreamy. “They’re free. They have nothing to hold them down. They can go wherever they want, whenever they want. They have wings that can bring them anywhere, or away from anything.

“Meanwhile, humans are shackled to the ground. We can barely lift ourselves two feet off the ground without help. We lack the one thing that would free us from this world.

“Wings.”

And at those words, Kyuhyun began to think, that maybe by being with Sungmin, Kyuhyun was beginning to feel free himself.

With Sungmin, Kyuhyun could forget the worries of school and the conflicts with his serious father and for even a few moments, just be happy.

They stayed in silence for the rest of the time that day. Sungmin went back to drawing while Kyuhyun, instead of watching the birds like he usually did, watched Sungmin.

Sungmin was smaller than most boys, very skinny with dark black hair that contrasted with his unhealthy white skin, and tired looking eyes. He always seemed to curl in on himself, making him look even smaller and more fragile. His mouth was set in a straight line, for he only smiled a few times every day, with soft, almost sad, looking eyes. He was venerable, but beautiful.

Sungmin jumped in surprise when Kyuhyun ran the back of his hand against his cheek. Sungmin stared wide eyed at the boy kneeling next to him.

Kyuhyun laughed at Sungmin’s expression, his eyes twinkling, but then he smiled softly, touched the corners of Sungmin’s mouth and pulled upward. “Smile,” he teased.

Sungmin frowned at him but Kyuhyun just laughed. Eventually, Sungmin joined in, smiling and laughing along with him, and Kyuhyun was sure he had never seen a more beautiful sight.

“Hyung, look what I brought today,” Kyuhyun said as he pulled out something from behind his back. It was getting cold soon and since Sungmin wasn’t able to go outside during the winters Kyuhyun had learned to try to spend as much time with him as he could before the snow came.

Sungmin looked over, interested. Kyuhyun lived for that look on his face, the small spark in his eyes and the excited smile. Kyuhyun found himself smiling back just by reaction.

“It’s bread!” Kyuhyun eagerly held out the ripped up bread in his hands.

Sungmin held out his hands as Kyuhyun poured half into his palms. “What’s it for?” He asked.

“Feeding the birds, of course~!” Kyuhyun said with a grin as he situated himself comfortably under the tree and set his hands on his lap. Then he added quietly, “I thought it may help with your drawings if you can see the bird up close.”

Sungmin leaned over and nudged Kyuhyun with his elbow, careful not to knock the crumbs from their hands. “Thanks, Kyu.”

“Hyung, they won’t come,” Kyuhyun whined as he held out bread crumbs in his hands. The sun was beginning to fall and yet no bird had come to Kyuhyun yet.

Sungmin, on the other hand, was having a great time. The birds seemed to love him and had landed on his hands and started eating the bread almost immediately. Sungmin just stared at them, amazed by their beauty and their closeness.

“Of course they won’t, you keep moving your hand,” Sungmin scolded, though with a hint of humor in his voice. He instructed Kyuhyun to lean against the tree, place his hand on his knee, and most importantly, not move.

“Don’t forget, don’t move,” Sungmin said with a pat on Kyuhyun’s leg.

Kyuhyun stuck his tongue out. “I’m trying.”

Sungmin giggled with his hands in front of his mouth. “That means no talking either.”

Somehow Kyuhyun was able to stay still for the next thirty minutes and eventually a single chickadee came down bravely and landed on his hand.  The bird seemed to tip its head similarly to how Kyuhyun did before starting to eat.

Kyuhyun looked ready to shout in happiness but after a look from Sungmin, he relaxed and just watched the creature. He was amazed at the innocence of the being and the trust that it had in him. At any moment he could snap up a hand and scare the bird away, or hurt it, but the bird had enough trust in him that it knew he was a friend.

It reminded him a bit of Sungmin.

He found himself smiling as the chickadee finished the rest of the crumbs. It hopped once, let out a small chime before fluttering away, back to its home from above.

“See, that wasn’t so hard now, was it?” Sungmin asked with a grin as he leaned against the tree.

Kyuhyun groaned dramatically and stretched his arms. “Hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life.” The two laughed. Kyuhyun then opened his palm and there stood a small chickadee feather, one that had fallen off from the bird standing in his hands moments ago. “Here, for you,” he said as he placed it in Sungmin’s hand.

“You’re welcome,” Kyuhyun said with a wink. Sungmin punched him and the two laughed until the nurse came to take him to dinner.

Even though it wasn’t the first chickadee feather Kyuhyun have gave, and hopefully wouldn’t be the last, Sungmin found himself staring at the feather for the rest of the night.

“Hyung! I found something that also flies like a bird,” Kyuhyun said excitedly as he walked into the playground with Sungmin walking next to him.

“What’d you find?” Sungmin asked curiously as Kyuhyun opened the gate and he walked in behind him.

Kyuhyun ran over to the Bird Tree and grabbed something before running back to Sungmin. He had something behind his back and was trying his best to hide it. “Guess,” he teased.

Sungmin puffed out his cheeks. “Ahhh, an airplane?” He asked.

“Nope, not even close,” Kyuhyun said with a smile.

“A bug?” At this Sungmin stuck his tongue out disgustedly. He hated bugs.

Kyuhyun shook his head again and Sungmin punched him in the arm.

“Tell me!” Sungmin pouted, punching Kyuhyun again while Kyuhyun faked pain.

“Ouch, that hurt!” Kyuhyun said, rubbing his arm dramatically. “I’m not gonna tell you now since you hurt me.” He grinned and stuck out his tongue before dodging backwards when Sungmin went to punch him again. “Okay fine, fine!” He then pulled his surprise from behind his back. “Tada~!” He said, grinning in the same way he had said it a few years ago.

There were two brightly colored bird shapes, pinks, blues, greens, yellows and reds with dark black and white outlines and colorful streamers attached to their tails. At the center was a wooden square with a cross in the middle with strings attached to each of the corners.

A kite.

“Wahhhh~!” Sungmin eagerly snatched one up, the pink one with the blue accents, leaving the blue kite with the pink accents for Kyuhyun. “They’re beautiful,” Sungmin said as he carefully handled the kite, barely touching it as he turned it over in his hands, gazing at the beautiful material it was made of.

“Aren’t they? My parents bought them at this store in China, they’re great.” Kyuhyun grabbed Sungmin’s arm and tugged him toward the center of the clearing. He stopped and unraveled the string a few meters before throwing the kite into the air. The wind caught it easily and tossed the bird into the sky. The bird seemed to spread its wings and catch the air, flying higher and higher, the string taunt in Kyuhyun’s hands.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Kyuhyun said with a grin as he shielded his eyes, looking up at the kite soaring gracefully through the wind, its streamers flowing behind it like a tail.

“Gorgeous,” Sungmin whispered. He then imitated Kyuhyun as best as he could, unraveling the string before tossing it into the sky. It held for a few moments before faltering and falling to the ground.

Kyuhyun laughed, smiling. “It’s okay. Try it again. This time, try to run with it to gain some air,” he advised, still playing with his own kite.

Sungmin nodded and pulled the kite to him before tossing it into the air and running a few feet. The bird seemed to follow him again before plummeting to its doom.

Kyuhyun continued to fly his kite, watching it soar around in circles. “Hey look, Min, try this,” he laughed. He stopped though when he noticed Sungmin was just standing there, staring up at a pine tree at the edge of the playground.

High up in its branches, caught in its leaves, sat Sungmin’s kite. The breeze ruffled the tail but it didn’t budge from its spot.

“Oh, I’m sorry Sungmin,” Kyuhyun murmured as he walked over, his own kite forgotten. “Here, use mine-”

Sungmin turned to him, an unreadable expression on his face. He then smiled and pushed Kyuhyun’s hands gently away. “It’s okay. Maybe I wasn’t meant to fly.”

Kyuhyun’s eyes hardened and he stepped forward, grabbing onto Sungmin’s arms painfully tight. “Don’t EVER say that. Sungmin, you can’t give up.”