[Chapter 5]

Joshua continued to stumble along behind Jeonghan as the other male dragged him around the park, stopping at stall after stall to see the trinkets and food that were being sold. Every time a child decked out in red, white, and blue passed by, Jeonghan would stare at them with adoration, cooing to Joshua once they were out of earshot about how adorable American children were.

Of course, Jeonghan himself probably looked the most patriotic out of them all. Not only was he wearing a star-spangled shirt, he had begged and pleaded until Joshua agreed to get matching temporary tattoos of the American flag on their cheeks. Jeonghan’s wrists were decorated with glow sticks galore, and he waved around a miniature flag in the hand that wasn’t dragging Joshua along. He had even dyed a few strands of his hair red and blue.

If Jeonghan had been any one of Joshua’s family members, the younger would have been embarrassed beyond belief. But of course, Joshua thought the patriotic enthusiasm was adorable on Jeonghan.

“I don’t think I’ve ever felt his American before,” Joshua commented as he and Jeonghan walked around hand in hand, each on a red, white, and blue popsicle they had bought earlier.

“Why? You not celebrate like this every year?”

“Maybe not this much...I mean, matching flag tattoos?”

“But you are American! You should celebrate America!”

“But I don’t look good in red...”

“But you look good when blush. That’s red, yes?”

Jeonghan turned to Joshua and put his hands on the other’s cheeks. This of course caused Joshua to blush, reinforcing Jeonghan’s point as the long-haired male laughed out loud.

Suddenly, someone ran by and bumped into Joshua. Jeonghan reached out his hands to keep Joshua from falling, steadying the younger as he narrowed his eyes at the person who ran into his date.

“Jeonghan?”

Jeonghan’s eyes widened when the person called out to him. Tall, gangly, seemingly pointed ears, and light, curly hair.

“I’m sorry, we were not looking where we were going–” another person said as they ran up beside the other before stopping abruptly and staring at Jeonghan.

“Minghao! Junhui!” Jeonghan said excitedly. He let go of Joshua’s hand as he ran forward to hug the two males in front of him. Joshua just waited awkwardly as the three conversed in Korean. Actually, it seemed more like Jeonghan and the new male conversed in Korean, while the other just looked on excitedly as Jeonghan held onto him and ruffled his hair.

“Oh, Joshua! Come here! These are my friends Minghao and Junhui.”

Jeonghan pointed to the one that ran into Joshua first. Minghao seemed somewhat shy, standing close to the other male and only looking at Joshua for a second before looking back to the ground. The other male was introduced as Junhui. He seemed like the older of the two, and he smiled warmly at Joshua before bowing just a little in greeting.

“Minghao and Junhui, this is Joshua, my...my...” The long-haired male giggled awkwardly and tucked his hair behind his ear before mustering up the courage to say, “my date.”

The two boys looked between Joshua and Jeonghan as they said “ooooo,” playfully hitting Jeonghan and then talking to each other in Chinese. Joshua tried to control his blush, but hearing Jeonghan call him “my date” made his heart flutter more than he could bear.

Junhui came toward Joshua and gently patted him on the shoulder, asking him in Korean, “So you’re the one who stole Jeonghan’s heart?”

Remembering not to answer, Joshua just stared at Junhui in confusion before Jeonghan quickly saved him by explaining that he does not speak Korean. Junhui then apologizes in nearly fluent English before asking Joshua about himself. The four of them – or the three of them – continued to talk for a while. Junhui was incredibly nice and welcoming to Joshua. Joshua could tell that the other smiled just a little bit every time Jeonghan rested his hand on Joshua’s shoulder, talked about Joshua, or anything of the sort. It was great to see how supportive his friends were of his burgeoning relationship.

Though, it did make Joshua sad and incredibly guilty, too. Would Junhui hate Joshua for lying to Jeonghan? Would they not want their friend to date him anymore?

Before Joshua could fall too much into his negative thoughts, Minghao suddenly leaned toward Junhui and whispered something in his air. Junhui then excused them from their coincidental meeting, saying that they needed to claim a good spot for a dance group that was performing before the fireworks. With waves goodbye, Minghao began pulling Junhui away toward the performance area.

Jeonghan and Joshua were left alone again. Jeonghan immediately brought his hand to Joshua’s and squeezed with a wide smile on his face.

“They seem really nice,” Joshua said honestly. They really did seem like great friends to Jeonghan.
 

“Yeah, they are great!” the other replied. They slowly began walking again, arms gently swinging between them, as Jeonghan told the story of how he met his two friends.

“Minghao and Junhui been friends since birth. Both mothers run a grocery store in Chinatown where my mom always go. So we are friends that way!”

While Jeonghan was talking, Joshua gently led him to a clear spot on the grass for them to set up their space to watch the fireworks. Joshua had brought an old blanket to sit on that he had been carrying in a backpack. He laid it out as Jeonghan continued talking.

Apparently Junhui and Minghao’s parents had moved to America together when the two children were still young. By the time Jeonghan moved here, Junhui and Minghao understood a lot about America and LA, and they basically took Jeonghan under their wing in order to help him adjust to America. They both spoke Mandarin Chinese, but Junhui was also pretty fluent in Korean and English. Minghao is, too, but Jeonghan explained that the younger never felt confident in either language so he always seemed shy. Junhui has assured Jeonghan, though, that Minghao never shuts up when it is just the two of them speaking Mandarin.

Joshua smiled warmly as Jeonghan prattled on, setting up their blanket and pillows while still listening. He did not know if he was just getting used to Jeonghan talking or if the other was getting better at speaking English. Before, Jeonghan would wait for Joshua to speak first. His sentences were more shorter and fragmented, face scrunched in effort and concentration, eyes always questioning if Joshua understood what he said. This Jeong