-Fireflies' Love- (A JiKyu Fanfiction)

十一: The Sea, Tale and Heart

They stayed more or less quiet for the next few minutes. Junkyu started wowing again when they reached Jihoon's small but beautiful house. And right outside the door, in local clothes, he saw Jihoon's mother. She gave a light hug to her son, and a warm smile at him, "Junkyu, right? Wow. Never knew my son has such handsome friends!"

Junkyu smiled in a happy kinda embarrassment while Jihoon playfully tsked. They talked a little more, formal talks that is until Mrs. Park asked them to go freshen up in the room as she would set the table. They obliged. Jihoon took Junkyu to a small corner room. It was mostly empty, just a bed and a chair. On one side was a small wardrobe. It was natural since Jihoon doesn't live there. The room was really welcoming though. It smelt of wood and seawater. Junkyu liked it. He sat on the not-so-soft mattress with a billion dollar smile.

"My stuffs are kept in a box since you know, it's a hassle to clean up every time." Jihoon soon said. Junkyu didn't respond to that. He patted the spot next to him, signalling Jihoon to sit down as well. The latter listened.

"I love your house." Junkyu said. Jihoon chuckled, maybe he couldn't believe it, but Junkyu's happy stares at every part of his room made him a little curious.

"What are you looking at? There's nothing here."

"I'm just wondering..." Junkyu said, "You grew up here. In this place. In this room... How does it feel to come back here after all this time?"

"It feels good." Jihoon answered honestly, "Why are you asking?"

"Nothing." Junkyu sighed, purposefully hiding that he missed his own place as well. He stood up, asking for suitable clothes from Jihoon.

"You wanna go swimming, right?" Jihoon asked, he didn't have to though. It was the sea after all. He gave Junkyu an orange oversized thin shirt, with purple shorts. For himself he took a pastel shirt with blue shorts. He let Junkyu use the bathroom first. Good for them, Mrs. Park arranged everything for them beforehand. So, they finished cleaning up without any problem.

Once Jihoon was done with showering, they got to have lunch with Jihoon's mother. At first Junkyu was a little stiff, but with time and with the intake of more and more delicious food, he relaxed. Jihoon was right. His mother did like him. They even shared jokes about Jihoon's childhood. Junkyu didn't get a chance to see Jihoon's father yet as he was at work. He was hopeful though, that Mr. Park will also be as cordial with him.

After helping Jihoon's mother, they decided to finally run for the sea. Junkyu wasted no time to jump in the cold water. He kept screaming, splashing water, jumping on and on like a little kid. His clothes were all wet, hair stuck on his forehead. He looked so happy, so damn brilliant with that dazzling smile. Jihoon stared for a moment. How can someone look this gorgeous? How can happiness fit someone so well?

"Park Jihoon! What are you doing there?" Junkyu shouted with the ocean around him, he was already swimming, drifting far and far away from the shore. His call brought Jihoon to life. He quickly took off his shirt and jumped in. It took him a few seconds to catch up with Junkyu. Once he did, he splashed a huge wave of seawater at Junkyu's face.

Junkyu gasped, then paid him back. They soon started a water fight that ended up with Jihoon tackling him. Junkyu begged for dear life in the sea, Jihoon let go, finally winning. They kept playing in the water, chasing each other, fighting and laughing. They had so much fun! Even when the sun was setting, they did not want to get out. It's as if all their worries, tiredness, frustration, confusion- everything vanished in that saltwater space. Yet as their skin started itching from being in water for so long, Jihoon insisted that they go back to the shore.

And they did, after a few more minutes. They sat on the dry sand, Jihoon with only a pair of shorts and Junkyu with a wet shirt. It started getting cold, but the sunset sky was spectacular. They both stared at the horizon with no care of the world. Junkyu felt blessed to be meeting Jihoon. Yes, he did miss everything he lacked, but Jihoon- when did he become such an important person? Why when he thought of going back home- to his family, friends, lover- his heart ached just because of a single person? Why was Jihoon's profile the most striking one he had ever seen?