got7 ; 2jae | rewind ↺

chapter 15 | ice cream cake

___

mark tuan woke up to six boys screaming into his face.

"—HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" they chanted awfully out of tune.

unable to comprehend anything that was ocurring around him; mark was punched with a cherry-topped cake into his face. the sweet flavour dripped down his chin as he just kept his eyes closed in horror to know that everything was most likely recorded on camera.

"won't you look at that, our oldest hyung becoming an elderly with every passing day, isn't that depressing?" jackson cooed at the boy who licked the cake off his lips.

"isn't it more depressing knowing that an elderly still looks better than you," jinyoung muttered a comment as everyone burst laughing, including mark who just couldn't stop.

luckily enough, it was a sunday. a day of freedom from repetition of identical songs, critical words and exhausting minds. and as a treat, the group decided to go out and celebrate.

in other words, food and a trip to the cinema.

in other, other words — a good excuse for heaven.

after mark washed off the pastel cream off his face, he was attacked with endless hugs and snuggles from everyone as they tackled him back onto his mattress. they were wishing him kind words, and at times making fun of him for being so old. but even so, mark never stopped smiling.

by late afternoon, the seven of them dressed themselves into typical outgoing outfits that they could muster from their overused wardrobes. a mix of jeans and hoodies, caps and boots as the early autumn dwelled viciously outside.

pedestrians eyed the screaming group as they shuffled by, but they were too hyper and excited to care. because these past few days — they've started new.

new choreographies, and new songs. restored willpower to become better at what they do. no one ever said they were giving up.

and now, trudging through the city streets, jaebum couldn't deny the feeling that youngjae tried to keep as close as possible to him when they collided with crossing roads and rude passing figures. but with each step — they were torn apart, separated and lost between the crowds.

growing irritated, jaebum huffed a sigh and grasped onto youngjae's hand with his own, interlocking their fingers as the younger boy held on assuringly.

their shoulders bumped against one another as jaebum felt a faint of a smile lingering on the tip of his lips. and in contrast, youngjae found himself accustomed to a blush fighting his cheeks.

they marched lightly behind the rest, in their own little world as they arrived to mark's favourite food place. it was a small corner shop that served the greatest chicken noodles and bubble tea on earth.

the seven of them gathered with hungry stomachs, grabbing the bigger table by the front window. their orders whistled fast, everyone eagerly waiting for their meals as if they were at a ten year old's party.

somehow, jaebum's and youngjae's hand-holding was interrupted as they took their seats. now, the boys took places across from one another, their feet fighting a game of heels beneath the table.

"remember that time we ended up locking bambam in the bathroom by accident for the whole day?" yugyeom recalled with a grin as the table erupted into a split of jaw-hurting laughs.

"—yeah, huh, by accident," bambam rolled his eyes.

it was an odd memory, from a couple months aback that youngjae didn't witness — but soon enough knew every single detail about.

that's just how things went, laughs, conversations, glorying the arrival of food.

and without much surprise, their orders were gone faster than it had taken for them to come in the first place. typical.

so following onwards, they sipped on their multi-flavoured bubble teas with enthusiasm as they exchanged tastes. the cinema was just down the road and in honour of mark's birthday, he chose a movie that was due to start in less than twenty minutes.

yugyeom and jaebum sprinted for popcorn snacks as jinyoung helped mark sort out the tickets.

no one volunteered to sit beside jackson, everyone knew that he could potentially scream two hours on straight if he saw a good looking actor or even a bug appearing on the screen.

jackson pouted in defeat as they sent him to the end of the row. mark and jinyoung shuffled behind, taking the next two flipping chairs as bambam hopped along and yugyeom clung onto him. it left youngjae stumbling towards a seat as jaebum sat on the end.

with popcorn crunches and the dimming of the huge room; youngjae became aware of jaebum's hand in his once again as the movie started rolling.

___
i'm craving mochi so much

written: august 7/8, 2017
published: august 30, 2017

니카 ✿