Bloom// Nomin

01

Jeno's friends say San Francisco is miserable in the winter.

There is no snow or icy sidewalks, but the cold wind is enough to make Californians complain.

The skys are always grey and ugly, and when it rains, traffic is even worse than it usually is.

Jeno loves the rain, maybe even the traffic too, but everyone around him seems to hate it.

As he sits in his small apartment, he stares out the window with a longing look on his face. Rain pours down from the sky and he wishes he could dance in it.

He isn't allowed to leave the apartment alone anymore, not after what happened last time. He wandered too far and got himself lost in the middle of the city. No one even knew he was lost til his mom came home that night to an empty house.

He recalls the way his mother scooped him up in her arms when she found him. He couldn't remember the last time she'd hugged him before that night, he savoured every last bit of the moment.

Behind his mother was his childhood bestfriend, Donghyuck, a boy who's sole purpose on this earth was to make people laugh.

There were dry tears on his tan face and he gave Jeno a rough slap that the back of his head wouldn't soon forget.

Almost no one wanted to go out on a rainy day like this one. His only option these days was to call his friends in the apartment building and hope they'd want to hang out with him.

So that's just what he did.

"What do you want Jeno? You're interrupting my Red Velvet time."

Jeno could hear the faint sound of Red Velvet's, One of These Nights, playing in the background.

"I'm bored. Come over."

"No."

"Don't act like you have something better to do Donghyuck."

"Did you not hear me? Its Red Velvet time, not Lee Jeno time. Ask Renjun."

"I cant ask Renjun, his cousin is over at his house. I don't feel like third wheeling."

Donghyuck sighs on the other line. "Listen Jeno, I love you and all, but this sounds a lot like a you problem."

"Fine. Just get back to your Red velvet time. But I hope you know, Joy will never return your love."

"HOW DARE Y-"

Jeno hangs up with a loud sigh. Although he is home alone, he hopes someone will ask him what's wrong. No one asks though, absolutely no one.

He's about to do something he shouldn't, he knows well that it's wrong but he'll do it anyway. He throws on a coat and his closest pair of shoes and heads out the door.

He's sure he won't get lost this time, he's smarter now.

He immediately feels happy as he steps outside. The sky is bland and ugly, the wintry air makes Jeno's nose cold but he loves it because there is nothing like it. The light rain dampens his hair and clothes, he really loves the earthy smell.

He spots an icecream shop, he realizes its winter, but he also realizes that there is never a time where icecream is inappropriate.

Jeno shouldn't be buying cold desserts in the middle of winter when he's not even supposed to be outside, but in an unforeseen turn of events, he does it anyway.

This is by far one of the best choices he has ever made.

He decides to go to the park for a little while, no one is there because its winter and it's also 6 PM but that doesn't stop him from going on the swings.