r e f l e c t i o n | 김 남준

Seven

May 5th, 2015

It was another night spent painting the town with cans of spray paint. Namjoon and Taehyung were giggling like school children, the only other sound being their aerosol materials. The part of the city they were in was pretty much dead at this time of night. It was after one of Namjoon's long and grueling graveyard shifts. Normally, he wanted to go home and sleep, but Taehyung needed to get away from his house.

It wasn't often that they went tagging anymore, especially after Taehyung was arrested for it a few years back. Namjoon was his emergency contact and had to cancel a meeting with a music producer to go pick him up. The producer didn't contact him again and Taehyung felt awful, but Namjoon insisted that he was more important.

His backpack was slung over one shoulder while he traced profanities onto the wall. Taehyung was drawing phallic symbols, completely amused when Namjoon's words echoed his art. They were adults, but even adults needed to relieve their stress in some way.

The environment was laid-back until they heard a car pull up at the curb behind them. Red and blue light flashed on the wall before them and they didn't need to turn around to know that they had been busted. Namjoon pulled Taehyung toward him, insisting that he run, but the younger only shrugged.

"Hyung, I've done this a thousand times. They'll just throw us in a cell for the night."

Before the older could respond, the police officer had already exited his vehicle and was in the process of grabbing both boys by their collars. He threw them against the police car and shouted at them to put their hands behind their backs. Namjoon dropped his bag at his feet before obeying him. The officer sneered and told them not to move before walking around to the driver's side.

Namjoon took a deep breath, trying to calm his heart rate. "Taehyung," he began, whispering so as not to be heard. "I have sixty kilos of drugs in my bag."

The younger's eyes widened as he stared back at him. "Fuck....shit...okay. When I say run, we run."

"Got it." Namjoon watched the officer carefully. He was punching something into his system.

"Run!" Taehyung hissed, taking off into the night.

Namjoon grabbed his bag and raced after him, ignoring the shouts of the officer, who clearly didn't give chase because a few seconds later a siren-blaring vehicle was following them. Taehyung turned a corner and sprinted up some stairs into an apartment complex. They knew exactly where they were and the cop would never catch up to them at this rate.

They rushed through the winding labyrinth of apartments and concrete stairs that had small pebbles mixed in to ensure that it could withstand the weather. The cold night air whipped at their faces and Namjoon didn't think he'd ever been so relieved. Perhaps when his customers decided not to kill him—that was also a huge relief. But in his opinion, prison was worse than death.

It was when they reached the apartment parking lot that they finally stopped to catch their breath. The asphalt backed up against a large field that gave way to mountains in the distance. It was a part of the city they hadn't developed, but it was clear on the signs hung on the chain-link fence encasing the lot that they had plans.

"Shit," Namjoon breathed, chest still heaving as he stood with one hand on his hip, head hung.

Taehyung had laid down on the gravel to stare up at the few stars dotting the sky. He began to think about what Namjoon had said about air pollution and stars. He wanted to go somewhere rural and see all that the sky had to offer. He wanted change. He wanted it so bad.

"Hyung, who was that girl at your station tonight?"

Namjoon turned his attention to him, a bit alarmed. Jangmi had left before Taehyung showed up. "What? What girl?"

"The girl who was smiling at everything you said and you almost kissed her but didn't when you walked her to her car."

The older pursed his lips. Had Taehyung seen the entire thing? It was crazy how much his best friend could get from simply watching. He had thought about kissing Jangmi at her car, but they hadn't even been on an official date and he would have rather kissed her while they weren't outside or in public.

He took a few steps toward the boy laying on the ground. "My friend, Jangmi."

"You sure she's not your girlfriend?" the younger teased with a smirk, looking up at him.

"Honestly, she's kind of aloof," he admitted, scratching the back of his head. "I'm not sure she likes me that way. She tenses up whenever I touch her, even if it's just a tap on the shoulder."

Taehyung was silent for a few moments before speaking. "Well, I think she does. She may not be super affectionate right now, but the way she was looking at you was kind of...telling."

"Why didn't you come in then?" Namjoon asked, desperate to change the subject as heat rose to his face.

The younger shrugged, clasping his hands over his stomach. "I didn't want to ruin your moment."

Namjoon only sighed, finding that his thoughts were occupied with the pretty dancer most of the time. Honestly speaking, if Taehyung had walked in just as he was about to walk her out to her car, he would've been frustrated. He knew he needed to make a move before his feelings became too much to handle.

"You don't ruin anything, Tae."