“I can’t believe we are doing this,” Jinki stage-whispers, laughter evident in his voice.

Joon grins, “This is the best thing I have ever tasted in my whole life.” He follows up by promptly digging a pink spoon into a cup of Strawberry Cheesecake, scooping it carefully from the side to get himself a mouthful of the half-melted sinful goodness. Joon smacks his lips exaggeratedly, earning himself a laugh from Jinki.

The two of them are now tucked away in a small corner of a Ben and Jerry franchise in Sangwon-don, sitting at a table, devouring… ice cream.

Yes, ice cream. The forbidden food in idol-dom. The frosty, milky, lovely dessert that’s so high in calories that has dieticians and managers waving their daily meal plans at them, warning of how it will just ruin their bodies.

Your six-packs, his manager shrieks, will disappear, Joon!

Joon snorts at the memory. Some things are worth sacrificing for—even the screams of fangirls are nothing before this lovely dessert. Besides, it’s not as if he really has time to work out nowadays, what with the recent Smoky Girl comeback.

And it’s Jinki who’s smiling before him now, Jinki who looks so happy. What are calories in the face of Jinki’s smile? Pfft, nothing, absolutely nothing. Joon is willing to gain a kg or two if he can spend more time in Jinki’s company.

And there’s some sort of cheap thrill he is getting from this whole experience. It’s almost as he has taken a bite of the forbidden fruit and is –gasps- rebelling from the management.

“This is so good,” Jinki heaves a satisfied sigh after swallowing down a huge mouthful of New York Super Fudge, “I wish we can do this more often.”

“It’s the best,” Joon repeats happily, “Seriously. I love Ben and Jerry.”

“Ice cream is the best,” Jinki says, “But Ben and Jerry isn’t that awesome. You should try the ice cream before Ehwa station sometimes.”

“Huh?” Joon says in a muffled voice, spoon still stuck in his mouth, “There’s a famous ice cream place there?”

“No, no,” Jinki shakes his head, “It’s more of like a pushcart store. The grandma there sells the best ice cream waff—“

“Grandmother’s waffles!” Joon cuts off Jinki excitedly, “Are you talking about Grandmother’s waffles?”

“Oh, you know about it too, hyung?”

“Know about it? I used to eat it at least once a week,” Joon recalls, a huge smile taking over his face as he recalls his younger days, “My friends and I will drop by Ehwa just for the ice cream. Gods, it was that good.”

“Just for the ice cream?” Jinki teases.

Joon laughs knowingly. “Ok, maybe not just for the ice cream,” he admits, “But the ice cream waffles were a huge draw too, alright? It is so cheap and good!”

“Yea, and she will drizzle all that maple and chocolate syrup over it,” Jinki agrees, “And so generous with the ice cream too! I love that grandma, seriously. I do.”

“And all for 1,500 won only.” Joon sighs and leans back in his chair, “Man, I miss those days.”

Jinki simply nods his head easily and refocuses back on his ice cream that is melting rapidly. What to say to those words? He is pretty sure everyone in this industry misses the old days.

The silence gathers, and the two finishes the ice cream in a somewhat less cheerful mood than they started with. All the nostalgia and lingering regrets, they are almost choking up the air. Joon scoops up the last spoonful of vanilla ice cream and allows it to melt slowly in his mouth, closing his eyes.

Jinki has finished his a while ago already, and is waiting for him.

Joon breaks the silence, “Hey Jinki.”

“What?”

“Do you have time for a stopover at Ehwa?”

A startled laughter sounds and Joon cracks open his eyes and is rewarded by the sight of Jinki laughing unrestrainedly, his sunglasses slipping off the bridge of his nose, and his cap tilting dangerously to the side.

“Joon,” Jinki wipes a tear from the corner of his eyes, “Are you serious? Going to Ehwa now?”

“Come on, it will be fun,” Joon wriggles his eyebrows suggestively, “We can sneak into Ehwa uni too.”

“But it has been so long since I last visited that place,” Jinki says, “Maybe she is not even there for all we know.”

“Spontaneity man,” Joon gives Jinki’s back a playful slap, “Besides, just like you said, the grandma may still be there too.”

Jinki simply begins to chuckle softly as he crinkles his eyes at Joon, intentions undecipherable. Joon stares back at him pleadingly. It will be fun, he is sure. He wants to recreate those highschool memories.

And create new memories with Jinki while he is at it too.

“Please?”

A short pause ensues before a bright grin finally breaks across Jinki’s face, “Ok.”

Joon pumps a fist into the air happily, causing Jinki to laugh at his antics again. Standing up, he gathers his jacket and urges Jinki impatiently, “Come on then, Jinki. Let’s go.”

“Alright, alright,” Jinki says good-naturedly as he readjusts his cap and sunglasses. He then gathers up the cups and throws them into the dustbin as Joon stands by the door, waiting.

“Ok, I am good to go now,” Jinki beams at Joon.

Joon holds the door open, “Hey, shall we walk? Let’s walk.”

Jinki’s laughter fill the air and Joon feel his insides warming. None of them said a word about how it’s only 3pm in the afternoon and Ehwa is probably crawling with people or about how their management is probably going to scream at them later on.

So what if some fans caught sight of them? Joon is willing to risk a hundred gaggles of fangirls if he gets to have some fun with Jinki. the consequences.

And maybe Jinki feels the same way too.

Joon hopes.

And smiles.

Whatever. He is just going to live in the moment for now. Off to an adventure in Ehwa!

You guys probably don't know this, but I have a soft spot for Joonew since forever. 

And fyi, Ehwa is a women university, hence all the eyebrows wriggling haha.