i. the story teller

the boy who could fly // morinozuka

All children, except one, grow up. They soon know that they will grow up and Choi Minho was no different. Minho grew up believing that The Boy Who Could Fly exists. If you are wondering who The Boy Who Could Fly is — he was said to bear the name Taemin.

Minho grew up listening to his grandmother telling him stories about the said boy. She would tell him how the said boy would take Sunyoung (the main character of her grandmother’s story who, coincidentally, shared the same name as hers) to a land called Neverland for adventures. Of course, he stopped believing when he reached the age of fourteen, when his mind slowly matured and starting to accept the harsh reality of the world.

Minho’s father wasn’t an ordinary man, and that was a fact you have to keep in mind. He was a well-known man for his special skills in kendo. His father owned a dojo; which was a part of their house, located somewhere in their garden. Mr. Choi loved the Japanese culture and he was, after all, married to a Japanese woman.

Being a strict man he always was, he had wanted his sons to be healthy and strong men thus why he trained them every night. And he was especially strict to Minho, as Minho was the apple of his eyes. Minho was competitive and very passionate in kendo and these are some of the reasons why his younger brother, Minseok, looked up to him.

Another reason was because Minho told good stories. Certainly, growing up listening to his grandmother’s tales helped him in being a good storyteller. Minho could tell stories and made them sound real — just like his grandmother. That boy got a big and wild imagination, you see. Especially when he told stories about The Boy Who Could Fly. It would always be Minseok’s favourite. And secretly, it was Minho’s favourite too.

So, one night when Minseok came running to Minho’s room, telling Minho that The Boy Who Could Fly came to visit him, Minho was confounded. Sure, Minho loved that story. He envied The Boy Who Could Fly’s ability to fly and stay forever young; which meant he would never have to be responsible for anything that’s happening around him.

“It’s true, it’s true,” said Minseok. Poor boy, he was excited over something that might be just a figment of his imagination. “And I saw his fairy companion too!”

Minho silently thanked God the first person Minseok tell was him and not his father. Mr. Choi would not be happy if he ever hears such thing.  Mr. Choi was never the happiest man in the world, and letting him hear such make-believe things won’t make him any happier. Mr. Choi taught his sons to never be a dreamer and always be a realist as he always was.

“If I was a dreamer, I would not own this dojo,” he would say.

“Minseok-ah,” Minho began; his voice was soft in order to calm the excited seven year old child. “Why don’t you go to sleep? It’s already late. We’ll talk about this tomorrow, okay?”

Just like any other children, Minseok was thoughtless. He nodded his head and agreed without thinking that Minho might as well say the same thing for tomorrow and the next day and the day afterwards and it could go on until he finally forgets.

Unluckily for Minho, Minseok came again to his room the next night. He was waiting for Minho to finish his kendo training in Minho’s room. Minho was surprised seeing his younger brother, looking thrilled than ever.

“He came again!” Minseok cried happily.

Minho decided to listen to what his little brother had to say.

“He was on the window again. He probably wanted to go inside, don’t you think so too, hyung? But I couldn’t reach the lock; it was too high for me. His fairy companion was there too, and she was so small I could barely see her. But she was glowing, hyung. And she’s got wings!”

 Minho only nodded, pretending to believe at what the child had said.

“And by the time I was on my way to the window, they both disappeared!” and the only thing Minseok saw that night was a shooting star in the starry firmament.

Minho had to end this. If his father heard of this, surely Minho will get punished for feeding Minseok stories that could poison his young mind. As much as Minho hated being punished, he hated ruining the child’s dream more.

“Minseok-ah,” Minho began, his voice was soft as silk, his hand squeezed the younger’s shoulder. “Have I ever told you the ending of The Boy Who Could Fly?”

“The story has no ending, hyung. The Boy lived forever. He’s forever young,” was the younger’s respond.

“Every story has an ending, Minseok-ah,” Minho smiled and his smile made Minseok believed that the story did have an ending. Unfortunately for Minseok, he didn’t know that his brother lied. But my, my, he was only a child. What did he know?

“Now, why don’t you go to your room and wait for me while I clean up? I’ll tell you the story as soon as I get out of the shower.”

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

©