"jeez what took you so long?" taemin complained once junhui had found a decent parking spot and walked up to the group with minghao trailing him.
the things that happened in the car on their small five minute break would be their little secret, no one beside doc later on had to know about how far minghao had opened up on his own intention. the hug on the other hand would be something just the two of them could treasure as they both didn't quite feel the need to share it with anyone.
they now stood in the middle of a tiled square, surrounded by a traditional little outdoor shopping centre with little stores and cafe's as far as the eye reached. "calm down taemin, they probably just took a little break or something." doc explained, handing out little piles of money to the patients around him so they were able to take a souvenir home.
"we've only been on the road for thirty minutes? who needs a break on such a short track?" taemin defended his opinion, his impatient self just wanting to go and explore the little town. which was quite understandable after all the time he had been kept from the outside world.
"tae, maybe you should remember that junhui has to think about his condition? i think you might handle him with some more respect after we all witnessed when he fell on one of doc's walks." yanan pointed out, flicking the young man against the back of his head.
though the words affected junhui in a painful way, he remained with the same bright expression he wore before, not wanting to burden anyone with his unforsaken faith. "oh yes of course.." taemin giggled rather shyly, regretting his foolish choice of words. "i'm sorry junhui."
"hey don't worry tae!" junhui said with his beaming sense of happiness. "but since we're here right now why don't you go ahead and do your thing!"
doc nodded at junhui's sensible words. "what a good idea! i want all of you back in three hours so we can eat dinner all together! me and roger will be at one of the terraces here on the square incase you need us. and you all have our phone numbers for emergency cases, so don't prank call me like last time when you were allowed on your phone, taemin and wheein. now go and have fun!' doc waved them away, taemin running off like a little kid while yanan and wheein followed him with smiles plastered to their faces.
"how about we go too, huh?" junhui proposed, gazing over at minghao beside him who just returned a sheepish grin.
"see you later boys! don't do anything that i wouldn't do!" doc gestured for roger to follow him as the two adults wandered around the square, finding a cozy place to spend the afternoon in the late summer sun.
"so, what would you like to do this afternoon?" junhui asked as they started making their way into one of the streets, curious eyes wandering through all the shop windows that seemed to gain their attention. "we both got thirty bucks, i think we could buy a nice souvenir with this amount of money."
"i know something!" minghao's eyes suddenly sparked that same excitement like how they had done in the car, reaching for junhui's arm. "this is our first town we're visiting together! we should go look for one of those little magnets for on the refrigerator!"
a certain warmth stroke junhui's heart when he felt how minghao gently pulled onto his arm in no specific direction. "yes! let's go look for one of those tourist shops! they should have at least one in a town like this."
it took them about an hour and fifty minutes until they had finally found a store that satisfied their desires. at the counter of the small shop there stood a rack with magnets. junhui, being the gentleman he is, had given minghao the job to choose the one he liked most. and to make his offer even more generous, junhui was quick to place five bucks of his own on the counter.
even when the old man working had offered a small gift bag, minghao couldn't resist the urge to unpack it again once they were outside so he could admire the first piece of the amazing series of memories they were about to make. the metallic little thing resting in his palm seemed to be a symbol of their very own beginning, which held way more value to minghao than he previously thought it would.
"you really like it, don't you?" junhui's heart warmed upon the sound of minghao's contagious giggle as the boy quickly hid the small object in the gift bag again.
"i never thought something small like this would hold so much value." minghao looked up at junhui with the brightest smile, causing junhui's heart to skip a beat. "i guess living in luxury with way too expensive things surrounding me never made me appreciate the little things. i just, i can't exactly remember the last time i've been so happy with something like this. thank you junhui."
"you're welcome." junhui breathed out in a warm tone, feeling the immense urge to just hug minghao right then and there. although even if it was far from crowded, junhui knew minghao wasn't one to enjoy physical affection much in public. especially in a new environment like this. "hey but it isn't complete yet!"
minghao cocked a brow, confused about what junhui pointed out. "we need to make a photo of ourselves to stick underneath the magnet, remember?" junhui had already reached for his phone and swiped over the screen, opening his camera and pointing it at their faces. "now, any preferences about how you want to pose?"
"just a simple selfie will do, right?" minghao giggled again, his face flashing red when he felt junhui leaning his cheek against his temple to fit them both in the frame.
the photo was taken before they even noticed and junhui got excited to see whether it was successful. "just look at this!" minghao's eyes widened upon seeing his own face, noticing something he never thought he would see again.
it was that genuine smile he hadn't shown anyone in years, all because of junhui who wore a smile exactly like him. and oh, how minghao felt butterflies roaming through his tummy because of that singular photo they had taken.
