The Spring Festival was a rather misleading name, Yongguk always thought. It marked the end of spring and the beginning of summer as it did every year in mid-June. There were many ways in which the inhabitants of Bordeaux celebrated this festival, but the most common for the upper class was the giant picnic held on the banks of the Garonne just outside Bordeaux. It was the first year that Choi Junhong was hosting it, as oppose to his father.

The river flowed gently; it was blue and sparkling under the sun, inviting people to gently dip their feet in it to cool down. It supported the weight of little rowboats that dotted its surface. Laughter filled the air as Yongguk and Jieun approached the center of the picnic. Women were fanning themselves furiously and held small parasols to keep hidden from the sun. Men had ed the top of their shirts and casually drank ice cold drinks to keep their temperatures down. Children, however, seemed unaffected by the heat as they ran tirelessly in circles around the guests.

Despite the suffocating heat, however, people were enjoying themselves.

A soft breeze rustled the willow tree branches, and Yongguk noticed a shady spot that was perfect for resting. It gave view on the azure waters of the Garonne and was sheltered from the sun by an aging willow.

Yongguk removed his shoes as he made his way though the soft grassy grounds of the riverside. The little green blades tickled the underside of his foot and he resisted the urge to giggle. He focused on Jieun, who was carrying Youngjae in her arms, and noted her frail collarbones accentuated by a lovely diamond necklace he had gifted her three years ago. Her eyes were closed as she inhaled the fresh scent of the air around her. She hadn’t so much as glanced at Yongguk all day. But it didn’t matter to Yongguk anymore; he knew there was a pair of eyes that wouldn’t miss a chance to take in his features and love him silently from observation.

Unable to maintain a conversation with his wife, he raised his eyes to the sky. There was not a cloud in sight, and he could observe the birds flirting with the sun as they flew gracefully overhead. Today was a carefree day, and it seemed that even nature was playing along with the mood.

Once Yongguk had reached the desired location, he lay down the wooden basket that had become heavy on his arm. He felt its scratchy texture latch on momentarily to the long white sleeve of his thin cotton shirt before it set down easily on the grass. He opened the trap and pulled out a blanket. It was pretty big and soft, designed with light blue and white squares. As he was busying himself with the setup, Jieun waved towards Hyosung. The young lady had been conversing with her husband, but as soon as she noticed Jieun, she picked up her skirts and made her way towards her.

Yongguk internally sighed. He didn’t want to have to listen to any of Hyosung’s gossip. With quick hands he spread the corners of the blanket to even out any folds. From the corner of his eye, he watched his wife and her friend approaching him, their hips swaying with each movement. Jieun nestled Youngjae on her hip and he reached out with clumsy hands in an attempt to touch her sparkling necklace.

“Mrs. Jeon, it’s a pleasure to see you.” Yongguk rose from where he was on all fours, adjusting the blanket.

“Same, same.” Hyosung laughed. He rubbed his hand together in an attempt to remove any dirt or grass that may have adhered. He reached for Hyosung’s hand and kissed it gallantly. His gaze flickered towards Jieun who was smiling rather pleasantly.  He was rather taken aback by the show she was putting on in front of her friend. His gaze landed back towards Hyosung, but he raised his eyes slightly and felt his stomach lurch forward at the sight.

Himchan seemed to glow like an angel under the sunlight. His white cotton shirt, that was rolled up to his elbows, caught the light and refracted it purely. His pants, too, were white. They were cut off right above the knee, something that Yongguk found very risqué but he didn’t mind, after all, Himchan had fantastic legs. A smirk formed on his lover’s face as he noticed Yongguk staring at him from behind Hyosung’s shoulder. Himchan turned away and made his way to the thicket, a little ways off from the riverbed. It was a clear invitation to Yongguk.

Yongguk suddenly felt anxious, as if time had sped up and the sun was sinking lower and lower into the earth as he motionlessly prayed for Hyosung and Jieun to vanish.

“You know what would be fun?” Hyosung turned to Jieun.

“I haven’t the slightest idea.” Jieun’s face lit up with a smile, a real one this time, as she rocked little Youngjae back and forth and waited for her friend to answer. Yongguk watched as she pressed her pale lips to Youngjae’s forehead, whispering sweet words to him.

“We should all ride the boats together! Look even young Lord Choi is doing so.” Hyosung turned her chin in direction of the river where rowboats seating up to six people floated calmly on the waters. Women’s colorful parasol’s shot up from some of the boats, making them look like water lilies drifting silently with the current.

“I’m in favor.” Jieun shot a glare at Yongguk. It was unreadable and Yongguk tried his best to avoid her eyes.

“What do you say, Mr. Bang?”

“I-I have some friends of mine I’d like to meet.” Yongguk sank his toes into the muddy turf anxiously. “Also, I don’t do too well on boats. My lovely Jieun can attest to that.” He chuckled lightly at the memory. It had been a Spring Festival day like today, perhaps their first one, and Yongguk had wanted to try the boats.  Jieun had been apprehensive, tugging on his wrist and begging him not to go. Yongguk had laughed at her and managed to convince her. It seemed all was going well, except Yongguk felt seasick even when the tiniest ripple hit the side of their rowboat. He threw up all over his wife, unintentionally, of course, and in the water. He had never felt so sick in his entire life. And despite being vomited on by her husband, Jieun had quite enjoyed the boat ride. She was even so bold as to change her dress and ride the rowboats until the festival was over as Yongguk watched from the sidelines.

“True. I’d rather not repeat the experience.” Jieun huffed. Her eyebrows knitted together in a frown and she pursed her lips. She brought a frail hand to her forehead. “So you’ll take care of Youngjae?”

Yongguk’s mouth hung open and his eyes began to burn. The words were caught in his throat as he tried to come up with a decent excuse to not be put in care of his son.

“Of course not, darling! Youngjae needs to come with us. He’s a bundle of joy and he’s very well behaved.” Hyosung’s words relieved and made Yongguk swell with pride at the same time. “Oh please, Jieun?”

Jieun smiled at her baby who giggled back at his mother’s uplifted features. Yongguk felt a small smile spread across his face at the joyous sound of Youngjae’s laughter. “Okay, I wouldn’t mind taking him either.”

“See you soon, Mr. Bang.” Hyosung inclined her head and escorted Jieun and Youngjae towards the rowboats.

Knowing Jieun and her love for rowboats, however, Yongguk knew he wasn’t going to see them again anytime soon as Hyosung has suggested.  

As soon as they were out of sight, Yongguk turned to face the thicket. His heart pumped quickly as he glossed his eyes over the area. Without wasting any more time, he trekked, shoeless, amidst the guests in hopes of finding Himchan.

*

The buzz of the party had died down quite a bit as Yongguk found himself going deeper and deeper into the willow tree forest. The shade was becoming more frequent, blowing off the hot steam of the day that had nestled on Yongguk’s shoulder. He could hear birds singing sweetly to one another, filling the dense area with a calm melody. The cool grass shifted under his feet with each step, and his heart raced faster as he felt himself getting closer and closer to Himchan.

Himchan was lying on a white sheet that he had spread out on the grass. His eyes were closed and Yongguk observed as his Adam’s apple bounced when he swallowed, unaware that Yongguk was in his presence. Himchan’s soft, sleepy, breaths bounced breezily off of the trees.

Yongguk approached his lover with silent steps his lips like a cat on the hunt. He grinned widely as he crouched down next to Himchan. He observed the black eyelashes that fanned out gracefully over his stark white skin. They moved slightly with each movement of his eye under their lids. The skin over his eyes was so delicate, like lace. Yongguk watched mesmerized as Himchan’s lips parted, letting a small sigh escape. He felt a heat bubble inside him at the noise, joined by a slight acceleration of his heartbeat. Strands of black hair fell in Himchan’s eyes as he shifted his head slightly. With trembling fingers, Yongguk pushed back the strands brushing his skin against Himchan’s.

Feeling a new sensation on his skin, Himchan’s eyes fluttered open in shock. His pupils, although barely distinguishable from his dark irises, were the size of the moon. He opened his mouth to scream, but was silenced by Yongguk’s lips on his. Yongguk felt Himchan melt under his soft grip and ease into the kiss. A soft hum rattled in his throat.

Yongguk broke the kiss, his fingers still on Himchan’s collar. He smiled widely, bringing his eyes up to Himchan’s. His lover shook sleep from his eyes and returned the grin.

“Did I scare you?” Yongguk asked.

“Not at all.” Himchan lied. His cheeks were dusted pink from guilt.

Untangling his fingers from Himchan’s soft shirt, Yongguk lay down on the soft blanket. He let his body relax as he faded into the sheets, staring up at the sky blocked by the treetops.  He stole a glance at Himchan’s neck and smiled. The marks he had left the night before were still there, pink and red lines dashing across his snow-white skin. They were Yongguk’s marks. Smiling smugly, he crossed his arms behind his head and propped it up against his hands.  His mind felt completely at ease, here, with Himchan.

He felt a weight on his stomach as Himchan nestled his head on it. Yongguk peered down at his abdomen and watched as Himchan’s head rose slowly up and down with each of his steady breaths. Himchan lay his porcelain hands neatly on his own stomach before changing his mind, and reaching up for Yongguk’s.

The older slipped a hand from behind his head and met Himchan’s hand halfway. He grasped it, his grip tightening around the soft flesh. He memorized the texture of Himchan’s knuckles as he inched his hand around them to get a better hold. Himchan’s hand was slightly cold in contrast to Yongguk’s warm, sweaty ones.

“Beautiful day, isn’t it?” Yongguk asked.

“It’s perfect.” Himchan closed his eyes and let the feeling of Yongguk’s soft breaths overcome him. “I like being with you the best. I wish I could stay forever.”

Yongguk laughed happily. “Himchan-ah. You can’t stay here forever. What about university?”

“But what about you?” Himchan shifted his gaze up to Yongguk’s. His eyes flashed with momentary panic as he thought about leaving Yongguk again.

“I’m a day’s trek away.” Yongguk soothed Himchan. “Barely two hours by car.”

“Cars are expensive you know.” Himchan returned his head to its original position.

“I will walk to Créon without hesitation to come see you.” Yongguk peered down at Himchan again. He wasn’t lying. Yongguk knew that it was already hard for Himchan to be away from the little college town. He had a brother, Jongup, who was fairly ill, and Himchan was the only member of his family who knew how to help him. Yongguk knew that if the duke didn’t summon him to Bordeaux, Yongguk would have to go to Himchan. But that wasn’t a problem. Yongguk would walk to the moon for Himchan.

A comfortable silence settled between the two before Himchan spoke again.

“Do you think this is wrong, Yongguk?” Himchan’s sandpaper voice resonated through the small forest.

“What is wrong?”

Himchan’s head snuggled up a little higher on Yongguk’s stomach as he struggled to find an answer.

“Us being together.”

Yongguk hesitated. His hand gripped Himchan’s a bit tighter.

“There’s nothing wrong with us being together. There’s nothing wrong with love, Himchan.”

Himchan suddenly scrambled on all fours, hovering over Yongguk. He panted slightly and lowered his face to Yongguk’s. Yongguk could feel heat radiating from Himchan’s face as he approached him, his black eyes were questioning as he locked them with Yongguk’s. “Do you love me?”

“Yes.”

Himchan swallowed thickly. “Why?” He tried to stop a smile from spreading across his heart-shaped lips.

Yongguk sighed dreamily. “You can’t ask why about love, Himchan. That would be like asking why the stars shine at night.” He reached up and cupped Himchan’s chin, letting his cool skin glide across his palm. Himchan let out a rattled breath and his eyes narrowed on Yongguk’s lips.

He slowly craned his neck down so that he was close enough to kiss Yongguk. He rested there, motionless, letting his hot breath hit Yongguk’s lips, causing them to tingle with excitement. Yongguk parted his lips and Himchan exposed his pink tongue, running it across Yongguk’s top lip as if to taste him. Yongguk felt a shudder run through him as Himchan repeated the motion to his bottom lip, feeling his breath hit the now-wet spot. Yongguk sensed Himchan’s teeth slowly clamping around his plump, bottom lip, nibbling it affectionately. He hated when Himchan like this.

Yongguk s his arms around Himchan’s neck and brought him down closer until their bodies touched. He captured Himchan’s lips with his own and began kissing Himchan passionately. Himchan whined slightly as Yongguk slipped his tongue in Himchan’s mouth, eagerly tasting his lover.

The soft breeze and the shade of the trees kept them from becoming too sweaty as their movements became more exaggerated and rough. Himchan’s pale face was flushed pink and Yongguk grunted in delight at Himchan’s painfully beautiful face. Even in the heat, sweating under Yongguk’s touch, Himchan managed to steal Yongguk’s breath away.

Yongguk trailed kisses down the young law student’s jaw until he reached his already battered neck. The red bumps didn’t deter Yongguk, however, who kept planting his soft lips on each one, as if in apology for hurting Himchan earlier. He felt the younger shudder as he ran his thin fingers through Yongguk’s hair, letting Yongguk’s lips tickle the sore spots on his neck. Himchan let out a loud moan as Yongguk kissed a particularly painful one.

Yongguk brought two fingers to Himchan’s lips. They were warm and wet and he let his fingers linger before speaking.

“Shh.” Yongguk smiled. “This is our secret.”

Himchan nodded, his features crinkling in a large, childish smile. Although the tone had been playful, the message was serious.

They simply couldn’t get caught.