𝙎𝙖𝙫𝙞𝙤𝙧 (Gwi-Nam x Cheong-san)

Seven

As we were building the fire, he was silent. Gwi-Nam never really speaks unless he's telling me off or giving me instructions. 

Something I noticed about him rather early on is that he only speaks when he has to, and sometimes comes off way harsher than intended. When he'd scold me particularly harshly, he'd always get a look on his face as if he is annoyed at himself.

So, I put aside my fear and clear my throat and speak. "What's your family like?"

"My family?" He looks up at me.

"Yeah. What were they like?" I repeat my question as he flicks a lighter that he found on the ground near the building.

"Well.. I guess my mom is nice. Real pretty. I was proud of her when I was young." He pauses for a minute. "My dad is a dependable guy. He used to fix things for our neighbours. They care about me a lot."

The lighter flicking is the only sound for a while. The silence stretches for so long that I'm starting to wonder whether I had brought up a painful memory from the past. But then he breaks it. "But like most parents,"

He laughs a little bit. "they probably wish I was a star student going on a fast track to Seoul University. They don't say anything about it but I can see it when they look at me. "Where did we go wrong?" and all that. I can't make them proud of me, like my older brother."

He smiles in a sad way as he looks at the fire we started together. "My brother is a real genius kid. He's in his first year at Seoul University with a full scholarship. My parents are so proud of him. It's a lonely occupation to be the disappointment in the family."

"Well..I'm proud of you." I said. "You kept us both alive and you've gotten us this far. And you're plenty smart." I reach over and hesitantly take his hand. It makes the butterflies start in my stomach, but I don't mind. "I think they would be proud of you if they knew what you'd accomplished."

He looks at me, and nods. "Thanks. But don't give me too much of that credit. You helped." The corner of his lips turn up and he smiles a little smile at me. I instantly feel my face heat up. I play it off with a shrug, letting his hand go.

"You should sleep. I'll wake you if anything happens." His serious look is back.

"Okay. But Gwi-Nam?" I make eye contact.

"What?" He asks.

"Don't be a stranger. Because you and I?" I hold up my hand and intertwine my pointer and middle finger. "We're like this. Wake me up if you get lonely, okay?"

He looks away and his voice shakes. "Okay. I- I will." Is he crying? I decided against asking him;

I laid down that night realizing exactly what those feelings were. I liked him. As more than just my friend. But of course, I wouldn't be telling him that. 

No, I'd just wait for this to fade. It would be worth it. Hopefully after this is over, we would stay as people who are close to one another. Maybe even good friends. 'Who know what could happen?' I thought as I fell asleep.