lemon boy | seungjin

twelve

"it's actually pretty easy being nice to a bitter boy like him
cause we're the bitterest boys in town"

...

seungmin unlocked the door to his seemingly cozy house, hyunjin following him in.

"it's nice of you to invite me to your house," hyunjin said as he looked around, both boys leaving their shoes at the door. "this place is cute!"

seungmin smiled a bit & shrugged, "there's not much to do here, but i figured it'd be better than walking in the heat."

seungmin gave him a vague tour of his house as they walked into the kitchen together. seungmin grabbed two juice boxes from his fridge, hyunjin happily accepting his. "i don't mind whatever we do, i like hanging out with you anyway."

seungmin found himself blushing an embarrassing amount at that. "w-well, i guess i can show you my room, then we can watch tv or something." hyunjin nodded cheerfully, & the younger boy led the way down the hall.

hyunjin looked over at the family photos framed along the wall. the parents looked like they were forcing their smiles, while seungmin made no effort to look happy. in nearly all of them, he was off to the side while his father had an arm around the boy's shoulders. hyunjin pouted, then continued following seungmin to his room.

seungmin didn't bother turning on the light in his room, the sunlight seeping in from his window being enough. he grabbed the tv remote as hyunjin observed the room. it was slightly messy but somehow still organized.

seungmin flipped the channel to the only one he watches normally, cartoon network, as they sat next to each other on the bed. seungmin barely cared about the show that was playing, & kept finding himself looking over at hyunjin. the brunette finished his juice box & set it on the bedside table, & settled back next to seungmin, sitting a little closer than before.

they were sitting shoulder-to-shoulder by now, & seungmin didn't try moving away from hyunjin. there was a comfortable silence between them as the random show played quietly.

hyunjin could tell seungmin was stealing glances at him, & he finally looked over at the other. seungmin blushed as they made eye contact, hyunjin just smiled at him & whispered, "cute," then laid his head on his shoulder.

seungmin's heart almost skipped a beat, but managed to put his arm around hyunjin to hold him close, making hyunjin smile to himself even more.

"are you watching this?" seungmin asked as he grabbed the remote. hyunjin hummed, shaking his head to say 'no'. seungmin turned off the tv, & he tried to focus on what he was preparing to talk about, if he could even bring himself to do it.

hyunjin rolled over so that he was on his back, & he rested his head on seungmin's lap. seungmin was definitely red in the face, & his thoughts were jumbled again as hyunjin gazed up at him.

"hyunjin," seungmin started nervously.

"hm?" hyunjin said, sounding as bubbly as ever.

seungmin brought a hand towards hyunjin to gingerly touch his long hair, trying to find the right words. "thank you again. i've probably been saying that a lot lately, but seriously," he said quietly. "you have no idea how much better you've made me feel these past few days... i still feel sorry for how i pushed you away at first, but i'm so glad you kept trying. i really do admire your effort...& i appreciate you so much."

hyunjin blushed at the affectionate words & touch of seungmin. "aww, seungmin... i'm glad that you could be more open with me, & i want to thank you too. i appreciate every little thing you do, paying for my things, even just hanging out with me..."

seungmin stopped playing with hyunjin's hair as he tried to continue, "...&- & i think i realized something."

hyunjin sat up again so that he could face seungmin normally, & he took a good look at his face. this is the most nervous seungmin has acted around him, considering the other times they were together, he acted confident & bitter. the older boy reached out to hold seungmin's hand to encourage him to continue.

"i...i feel myself get red in the face when i'm with you, when i see you smile or hear you talk. i find myself wanting to hang out with you more... i've ended up liking your company more than i thought i ever would, you manage to make me feel better everytime i see you. i feel like you've made me a more sensitive person," seungmin rambled.

hyunjin listened with a bashful smile, feeling proud of himself for helping seungmin into a better state of mind, & proud of him for allowing himself to open up & change for the better.

"&... i don't want to scare you away, but i really like you. like, more than as a friend," seungmin said, hearing his own heartbeat in the quiet room. "i want to get to know you better, & be closer with you... if that's okay with you," he continued nervously.

hyunjin's smile brightened, "of course it's okay with me! i feel the same way, & you couldn't scare me away even if you tried, you already know how hard it is to try to get rid of me," he joked, but seungmin cringed again as he remembered how hard he tried to push hyunjin away. nonetheless, he let out a sigh of relief since hyunjin wasn't opposed to getting closer.

seungmin was pulled into a warm hug from the dark haired boy, & he immediately hugged back. he didn't ever think he could be this affectionate with someone, but it felt right. even if it is a simple hug, he was grateful that it was with hyunjin.