Trees had never been a place that Jihoon frequented when he was younger—a lot younger—and climbing trees had never been an activity he could classify as a hobby. Overprotective parents and not many friends led Jihoon to not receiving permission to do anything which could put him in even the slightest danger, and nobody to rebel against his parents with, so he never gained much experience from his childhood life. But, now, Jihoon was older, didn’t need his parents, and had a best friend.

Many said that he and his best friend did not look compatible with one another, and Jihoon agreed – he was short and 18, his best friend was taller and 15. Jihoon faced a small head when he analysed himself in the mirror, whereas his best friend overflowed with complaints about how big his was. Jihoon liked to keep his hair blonde—he liked the responsibility that came with maintaining bleached hair, for some reason, while his best friend liked to keep his hair dark so that, even if it became dead, it was a rare occurrence for anyone to be able to notice.

However, they also had many similarities: Jihoon loved to sing and spent many hours practicing in the soundproof room he had built for himself in his apartment, his best friend did too (sometimes they even did duets and accidentally left the door to the room open so the neighbours would accidentally hear their beautiful voices through the thin walls that interfered their distance). Jihoon loved to order takeaway chicken late at night when majority of the city would be asleep, so that there was both fast delivery and peaceful silence which allowed him to indulge in the aroma and taste of the chicken without being interrupted. Although it was kind of strange, his best friend liked to, too. Jihoon liked listening to pop music, classical music, trot music, and sometimes even rap—his best friend did too.

Many said that he and his best friend did not look compatible with one another, and Jihoon agreed—they did not look compatible, but they were. Albeit a few difficulties with varying opinions on different topics such as whether milk tea should be drank warm or cold, or whether Turkish delight was truly a delight or not, Jihoon and Seungkwan got along like thorns on a rose. Some people were afraid of their outer aesthetics when they were together and the fact that they were able to hurt those same people if they were sharp enough at the time to mentally mess with them.

And although they looked like they could cause a lot of pain from the outside, the non-literal inside of them was beautiful. Seungkwan knew that Jihoon had had quite a lonesome and tedious childhood, so tried to help him liven up his life to its greatest extent.

It started when Seungkwan first saw Jihoon sitting alone at a bench one school day, noticing the sadness that came with the feigned smile he attempted when he realised Seungkwan was staring at him. As soon as he thought Seungkwan wasn’t looking anymore, he went back to looking like the clueless, forlorn, abandoned puppy that he had before. Friends of Seungkwan had told him about this boy, Jihoon, and Seungkwan wondered if he was so small because there was no happiness inside him to assist his growth or fill him up to the brim. Seungkwan wondered whether this small, sad boy had ever experienced something that gave him true happiness. He wondered so much. And so he asked him.

“No… I-I don’t… think so… Why are you talking to me? Did your friends tell you to, to make fun of me?” was the anxious response he received. Jihoon had never experienced something that gave him true happiness, and so Seungkwan made it his goal to give him something that did.

“They didn’t, I came over here on my own accord. I saw you looking a little… down, I guess. I want to see if I can give you true happiness. Do you want to go some place this afternoon?”

And that was how Jihoon decided they could go to the park together, because he was so excited to have someone who really did want to have him as a friend, although he wasn’t sure if Seungkwan was joking or not.

He wasn’t.

Jihoon and Seungkwan’s strongest connection had started from there and only continued to grow stronger as the years went on and their relationship tightened. As Seungkwan reminisced the old times while sitting in a sturdy branch in a tree, which was a little too far from the ground for Jihoon to want to be on because of his fear of heights, he cocked his head.

“Jihoon, why did you say yes to going somewhere that afternoon?”

“Which afternoon?”

“The one where I asked if you wanted to go somewhere, if I could make you happy. Why did you say yes?”

“You seemed… sincere?” Jihoon questioned himself. “I never really had anyone to go anywhere with, so I was pretty excited, I guess. Before you came over, I was actually thinking about making a friend and learning how to gain trust or something of the sort. My friendships never really… well, existed.”

“Do you trust me now?” Seungkwan asked, genuinely curious.

“I guess. We’ve been friends for, like, 5 years now? You haven’t done anything bad so far. What’s there not to trust?”

Seungkwan nodded his head in agreement, pursing his lips as if he was planning a brilliant idea. He glared at Jihoon as his lips curved into a smile, a smile that didn’t seem quite right—

“Oh God, what do you want?” Jihoon whispered, knowing that what Seungkwan did want wouldn’t be so good.

After a short silence of, not hesitation, but what seemed like inspiration, “Come sit up here next to me!”

Jihoon’s dumbfounded look, due to the fact he could not believe what Seungkwan was making him do, earned him a quick, confused what?! from Seungkwan, and a longer, confused what?! from Seungkwan when he actually started making his way further up the tree. He carefully placed his foot where he knew it could not fall (because he tested it 5 times before actually moving anywhere) and lunged up, hands hanging on a branch above his head, next to Seungkwan. In fact, Seungkwan wasn’t actually so high, Jihoon thought. Maybe his fear of heights was irrational?

Some clambering and some bark ashes in Jihoon’s mouth allowed him to eventually swing his legs over the same branch Seungkwan was swinging his over. “Okay, what do you want me up here for?”

“Well,” Seungkwan responded with a kind of pride that Jihoon couldn’t believe he had, “I was testing if you really, really trusted me—and obviously you do. So, thank you. Also, I was testing if you really, really are afraid of heights. And, well, you seemed a little frightened while getting up here, but you made it. Also—“

“Are you kidding me? There’s more?”

“Excuse me,” Seungkwan retorted to Jihoon’s interruption, “just listen. Back to what I was saying: Also, I wanted to show you these,” he said, gesturing towards a flower which leant against a twig that looked fragile, as if it was about to break. It was winter, and Jihoon wondered why there was even a flower which had the ability to live through the freezing conditions of the current weather. He still didn’t know what Seungkwan wanted with the flower, so he gave him an eyebrow raise to prompt his explanation.

“Look at it! It’s so…”

“Dead? Broken inside? Love struck?”

“Uh, no. Beautiful! I love blue flowers!” The flower was a type of blue that didn’t come around very often in winter, but became abundant in February. Jihoon wasn’t a scientist and he didn’t know the reason behind this, but he had to admit that the flower Seungkwan was shoving in his face was pretty — beautiful.  

“You know how I was going to  shovel snow and give it to the guys as a present for Christ~mas~” Seungkwan continued in a singsong voice, putting emphasis on the last word with a higher tone and the addition of vibrato, showing the obvious excitement he held inside of him for the holiday.

“How could I forget that dumb idea?” Jihoon asked sarcastically. Seungkwan looked legitimately hurt after that comment, so Jihoon apologised and insisted he go on with his new idea (which was probably much, much better, although he now wouldn’t dare to admit it.)

“I say,” Seungkwan started, not understanding why Jihoon thought the snow thing was a bad idea, “we buy them plant seeds with these flowers which they can take care of in February. It will teach them responsibility! How to care! Love! Ador—“

“OKAY, OKAY. That sounds like a good idea, Mr. Seungkwan. I think it will pan out fabulously and is a well thought-out plan. I think that your snow plan is also a good plan, and if you want to ever go back to that, it is absolutely fine with me.”

“Um, why are you talking like a robot?”

“I am not, Mr. Seungkwan. Please accept my speech of gratitude towards you for thinking of an extremely good idea. I could never.”

“Okay… anyway, we can go buy them later. There’s just one more thing that I wanted you to come up here for.”

“Yeah?” Jihoon inquired.

“I didn’t want anyone to hear… down there,” Seungkwan continued, pointing towards the ground which was beginning to be covered in snow.

“Yeah?” Jihoon repeated.

“It’s just as a friend thing… but… well. Jihoon, I love you.”

Jihoon smiled, but not just any smile. It was a smile that had the most authenticity any of his smiles had ever had.

 “Yeah,” Jihoon replied, “I love you too, Seungkwan.”

[a/n: I could've made this a cutecutecute fluff so easily but I also restrained restrained restrained myself so hard, oh man. I love YOU, Seungkwan, you lil cutie.]