Tastebuds (Ours)

- one

Minghao remembered it like it was yesterday: his first day of real school. The excitement of meeting new people, being in a new environment, and learning, Minghao's favorite thing in the world. He was seven years old, his tastebuds alive with the flavors of a Summer well spent- flavored ice, barbecued meat, and those amazing lemonade cookies his mother always made when the air turned warmer. Usually, those tastes would fade gradually, soon becoming a fond memory.

That year, however, had tasted a bit different.

That year tasted like green tea leaves, honey, and spring water. It tasted like the first breath of cool Autumn air after a burning hot Summer. It tasted like the cherry blossom trees shaking in the wind, and the fragile scent that floated behind the breeze. It tasted like the pastries in the window of the bakery down the street made him feel: warm, fluffy, and welcoming.

It tasted like his mother tucking him into bed at night, kissing his forehead, and whispering, "You're my moon and all my stars, Minghao. And someday, you'll find someone who will make you shine even brighter."

It tasted fresh and comfortable, and Minghao grew to like it.

~

By the time he was ten, Minghao began and ended every day with a cup of green tea with two spoons full of honey specifically for his soulmate. His soulmate had also caught onto his affinity for anything lemon flavored- lemonade, lemon candy, lemon cookies, lemon chewing gum. Much to Minghao's liking, his soulmate began to add a few drops of lemon to their tea each morning, and it made Minghao's cheeks feel warm with affection.

Along with tea, Minghao's soulmate loved oranges. Every so often, an artificial orange flavor would burst onto Minghao's tongue, and he recognized it as the candies his grandmother kept on the porch in a little jar sometimes. He made sure to tell his grandmother every time his soulmate was sucking on one of the candies, and her face would bloom into the warmest smile as she said, "They already love you, Hao."

He made a habit of keeping a few of the candies in his pocket at all times after that.

~

When he was fifteen, Minghao kissed a girl for the first time. It was at a birthday party for a mutual friend, and they were all in the girl's basement playing truth or dare. Typical, Minghao knew, but he figured he needed to get it over with sooner or later.

Unfortunately, it happened sooner rather than later.

Of course, when the bottle pointed to him, his friends shouted "Dare!" so loudly that he couldn't refuse. Not with his masculinity (something his fifteen-year-old-self valued a lot) still intact, at least. So, when the birthday girl told him to go into the closet with a girl named Fei, he complied. "Don't come out for three minutes! And don't come out at all without proof that you kissed! I want swollen lips, people!" The birthday girl, Hyeri (?), announced. She seemed quite proud of herself for setting this whole scheme up.

Once they were actually in the closet, Minghao wasn't sure what to do. He had never even spoken to this girl before that day, so he figured the right thing to do would be to introduce himself. He cleared his throat before he began: "So, hi, I'm Xu Minghao. Nice to meet you?" It sounded like a question because it was. "Xu Minghao? You're Chinese?" Fei asked. She had her arms crossed over her chest, and her eyes nearly pierced straight through Minghao. She was intimidating to say the least.

"Yeah. What about you?" Minghao asked. He was trying to use up as much of the three minutes as he could. "Wang FeiFei, also from China. Nice to meet you!"