before spring is gone | k.th

005 : start line

"I'm going to let go now," Taehyun smiled.

"Kang Taehyun! Don't you dare!" Bomi cried out, holding on tighter to Taehyun's wrist when he tried to step away.

He laughed brightly as the girl frantically tried to keep her hold on him. Her panicked expression only made Taehyun smile wider. The way she held onto him so desperately made Taehyun's heartbeat aggressively against his chest. He was sure that if Bomi wasn't so frantically trying to stay on she would be able to hear his heart.

"Taehyun!" Bomi exclaimed when Taehyun let go of her arms, her hands still holding onto his wrists tightly.

The way she said his name made Taehyun's heart flutter, he was so shocked by this feeling that he could only stare at her. Bomi looked up from the skateboard and gave a shaky smile at Taehyun. He burst out laughing at her expression.

"Let go," Taehyun said.

"No!"

"Trust me, trust me," Taehyun smiled.

"I don't trust you," Bomi shook her head but still let go of Taehyun nonetheless. He held his hands out in case he needed to catch her. Bomi rolled forward, her arms spread wide as if it would help her keep her balance. Her eyes stayed glued to the skateboard in concentration.

"Aren't you a figure skater?" Taehyun teased, "You should have good balance,"

Bomi looked up to defend herself but as she did she lost her balance. The skateboard rolled backward, throwing Bomi forward. She threw her hands forward to stop herself and closed her eyes tightly. Bomi felt her hands slam onto the cement. Her body landed on something soft and she heard someone groan.

When Bomi opened her eyes, Taehyun was staring up at her. His face was masked with worry and pain. Her eyes widened as she quickly sat back so that Taehyun could sit up. He groaned as he did and lifted his hand to his head.

"Are you okay?" Taehyun asked as Bomi did at the same.

They both stared at each other before bursting into a fit of laughter. Taehyun smiled at Bomi and rubbed the back of his head. Bomi frowned and leaned forward to check if he was okay. She shook her head as she felt the growing bump on the back of his head.

"I tried to catch you," Taehyun laughed sheepishly.

Bomi laughed too, "How heroic of you," she joked as she sat back. "We should get some ice for your head." She pulled her hands away and Taehyun glanced at them. The palms of Bomi's hands were scraped, and a few of the cuts were bleeding from where her hand landed on some rocks.

"Your hands," he said and grabbed Bomi's hands.

"It's alright," Bomi said as she stood up and pulled Taehyun to his feet too. Taehyun's lips pressed into a gentle frown and Bomi flicked his head. "Don't pout," she said, "They'll heal,"

She and Taehyun grabbed his skateboard and started to make their way over to the convenience store on the other side of the street. Bomi kept glancing at Taehyun, she was worried that he hit his head too hard on the ground but it seemed like he was fine.

As Bomi went to go get some ice for Taehyun, he walked through the aisles looking for bandaids and ointment. Bomi placed her things on the counter as Taehyun got there. Before she could pay for anything, Taehyun pulled out his wallet and had the cashier use his debit card.

"You don't have to pay," Bomi said, "I got snacks too,"

"I want to," Taehyun replied.

He led her to the table outside of the convenience store and made her hold out her hands for him. As Taehyun started to tend to Bomi's hands, she watched him thoughtfully. She liked how his dark hair glowed brown in the setting sun and how his eyes were so focused on her.

Bomi was brought back to reality when Taehyun finished putting the bandaids on her hand and looked up at her. The two of them held each other's gazes before they turned away. Bomi felt her face flush and found herself glancing back at him.

As Taehyun started to clean up the bandaids wrappers, Bomi took the plastic bag and ice she had gotten and made a makeshift ice pack for Taehyun. When he got back from throwing away the trash, Bomi gently placed the ice pack on the back of his head.

"Thanks," Taehyun smiled as he held it there himself.

They stayed and chatted while eating the snacks Taehyun had bought for Bomi. Bomi found that his eyes lit up whenever he started to talk about something he was passionate about. Her heart raced seeing this side of him.

"Sorry, I'm talking too much," Taehyun smiled. "I should take you home,"

Bomi shook her head, "Don't worry, I like hearing you talk," she stood up with Taehyun as they made their way to the bus stop.

Their hands brushed against each other and they quickly pulled their hands away. Taehyun felt his fingers twitch a little, he wanted to hold her hand but wasn't sure if that would be the right move. Once on the bus, the two fell into silence as they pulled away from the stop.

Taehyun found himself growing tired and felt his head nodding back and forth as he tried to stay awake. Bomi glanced sideways at him and smiled a little as she watched his eyes close. Taehyun's head moved around as he slept and once she was sure he was sound asleep, Bomi gently guided his head to her shoulder.

Despite seeming to be asleep, Taehyun was still awake and felt Bomi move his head to her shoulder. He felt his face and ears grow hot as he tried to keep up his sleeping facade. A few minutes later, he felt Bomi's head gently lay on top of his. Taehyun's eyes flickered open when he noticed Bomi had fallen asleep.

A smile made its way to his face as he slowly moved to get his head out from underneath Bomi's. Once out, Taehyun placed her head on his shoulder and then his head on hers. He closed his eyes and the two of them fell asleep as the bus drove through Seoul.