During the middle of spring, usually around the time of day before the sun is fully perpendicular, there is an untold desire to watch butterflies dance among the flowers, and caterpillars cry in defeat. Sometimes, if the stars are align, many shy boys will confess their love for that one pretty girl. The festivals all begin, as if there is an understood yet unsaid celebration concerning the life of the season. There is a certain romance about spring sharply different from that of February air.
Jongin sat in his small kitchen table, patiently sipping the green tea he had grown in his small and secret garden. Outside the window, hummingbirds and bees quickly raced against the pollen, as they collected every ounce of nectar hidden within the petals. A few small butterflies had tapped on his window, and Jongin placed his finger to the dividing glass, as if to greet nature’s beauty. There was one butterfly that stayed a little longer than the others. Its wings stretched surprisingly wide in an unmistakably graceful manner, bragging its glorious colors. Because it stayed, and came back many times, Jongin felt a little attached; he decided to name it.
“Taemin.”
He didn’t know why he named it this, and he didn’t think too hard about it either. Perhaps his subconscious found an analogy so strong it could not be ignored, or perhaps Taemin was the first name to come to his mind. Jongin finished his tea, and set it down in such a way he had seen his father do countless times. Before he left the windowsill to dress himself for school, he shared one last thought. Taemin, my spring butterfly.
~~
The following week, the quivering students of Debate/Speech restlessly rocked in their seats, waiting for their turn to present their project. Jongin and Taemin volunteered to go last, purely for the enjoyment of laughing at the other students whom continuously glanced over in their direction as if they needed some sort of approval. The unsaid fact that Jongin and Taemin’s project would completely conquer cruelly played on the students’ vulnerabilities and insecurities.
At last, they were called to the front. The room hushed in such a way that Jonghyun’s soft smirks were heard loud and clear. Taemin held their research paper, while Jongin displayed their poster. Jongin was about to begin, yet Taemin had already started. “What is global warming? If humans were extinct, what would global warming be? Would there be such a thing? Do you believe us humans,” Jongin laughed to himself due to Taemin’s much more vulgar description of humans when they practiced before, “are capable of directing the earth towards the path of becoming one ginormous fireball?” Jongin interrupted Taemin’s increasing dislike for people, which would have probably ended in an argument completely off topic. “Reality wise, one of the main issues is the carbon dioxide emission from burning ga—““Gasoline and fossil fuel.” Taemin completed Jongin’s sentence almost instinctively.
This type of teamwork discussion continued to the very end. Not only were they precise in their vocal projection, they were well-researched (though Jongin mainly used Taemin’s knowledge as his resource) and intimidatingly well prepared on not only their topic, but any questions regarding any fragment of their project. As they finished, the students hesitated for a moment before clapping rather loudly. This gave most of them a chance to whisper to their friend things such as “they even look like each other” or “they both do that weird puffy thing with their cheeks” or “wait which one is Taemin?”
As they made their way to the back of classroom to seat themselves, Jongin discreetly placed a kiss on the back of Taemin’s neck in praise for being too damn good. Taemin swore paradise was hell compared to his contented heart, and now his entire contented soul.
~~
Another wick of hope inside students nationwide was the thought that summer vacation was only about a month away. There was no greater joy than the feeling of absolute freedom and procrastination that defined the few months of summer. The heat would slowly ambush the scantily dressed teenagers who were pumped for summer, yet always ended up complaining about the sun or sunburns. For Taemin, summer meant air conditioning and discount popsicles, while to Jongin, summer meant opportunity and laughter.
