BALMAIN [NIELWINK]

2. CHERRY BLOSSOMS & BANDAIDS

hope you guys enjoy this chapter! it's incredibly unedited so there may be mistakes.. - hyonseok 

there's a preview of the next chapter at the end of this one~ 

stay tuned for the next update

❀

standing amongst a pile of fallen flower petals, jihoon leaned down, taking the petals in his hands which were wet from the ground. he picked up a few more and then blew them from his hand as the wind carried them a little farther to a nearby bench. he had been walking the entire time, set on wanting to see some part of nature in all it's rarity though another part of him simply wanted to sit around, read the book he had been given.

how many times he had read that book even he didn't know but all he knew was that it had been much better knowing that he had bought it for him, that stranger. each word was read with underlying care and it was a definite lie to say that despite weeks having passed that jihoon had thought to the stranger who had given him the book more than once.

if he were to ever find him, that cinderella (he had nicknamed him cinderella since he didn't yet know his name), jihoon assured himself that he would surely thank him somehow.

the cream cardigan loosely draped on his body swayed with the icy winds, cutting through his body sharply. his cheeks were a soft peach colour from the lack of warmth he was feeling as he let out a staggered breath, inhaling deeply in turn. winter never provided much comfort for someone like jihoon who loved the warmth of summer and spring, bearing through autumn most of the time. he kept his hands stuffed in his pockets while his book was in the back pocket of his pants, hiding in a warmth he wished he had.

something about dying cherry blossoms in winter had sparked his curiosity, unendingly thinking of all sorts of things whilst picking up a few flowers here and there to examine them. others would think he was an absolute nut job, no doubt about it...but there was something that drew jihoon in and captured his attention which was why he had come here, taking a train and then bus upon bus.

continuing on a slow dawdle, his eyes caught a stranger near him as they were walking on the same path, seeing he was looking to his phone though what made his curious the way his knuckles were bleeding and bruised. it was so obvious, like he wasn't trying to hide it but a part of him was probably thinking that this man expected that no one would be coming along this path. after all, no one particularly liked walking along the cherry blossom roads in winter. there was nothing much of a spectacle to see.

the more he looked to the swollen knuckles, even the dried blood on them which extended to the tips of his fingertips, he couldn't stand there and see them slowly injured like that, it simply wasn't in his nature.

slowly he approached him once more, chewing on his bottom lip while politely greeting them with a smile which went unnoticed until he spoke. "i've got some bandaids...you must be hurt." he whispered and the stranger looks up from his phone, their eyes locking onto his own though what stuns the both of them even more is the fact that they both didn't expect to see each other again.

he's face to face with that person he had been thinking about for weeks. daniel was looking back to him while jihoon's hand was outstretched, taking in daniel's gently. they look to each other, simply taking in each other's appearance while daniel's hand slips his phone into his pocket so he can focus on the other. their gaze is tight, almost like they've been missing each other silently while jihoon's hands move subconsciously and caress the other's knuckles with his thumb, making the male grit his teeth and writhe his wrist out of his grip. jihoon breaks their eye-contact rather awkwardly, scrambling for the bandaid in his pocket, pulling out cartoon covered bandaids. "let's go buy water to wash it off." he suggests quickly and he led him over to a small vending machine, buying a bottle of water so he could wash off his fingers.