𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐭 ˢᵏᶻ

.𖥔 ݁ ˖๋ ࣭ ⭑ school days

seungmin,

we first met in the elementary school playground, didn't we? you were getting your ass handed to you by a couple of the boys in our year when i happened to be passing by. if there was one thing i hated most in the world, it was bullies - so i gave them a taste of their own medicine.

you cried like a baby as i screamed at them to get lost, which in hindsight was understandable - yet still hilarious. boy, they were terrified by my threats; so scared in fact i believe one of them literally peed himself in fear.

after those wimps scurried off, i was left to deal with you - a heaping mess of sobs and snot. originally, i was going to leave you alone because my job was done and there was nothing more for me to do.

but seeing your pitiful face caused me to have a change of heart. so i held out my pinky and made my promise to you - that i'd protect you, should you ever be in harm's way again.

over a decade later, and i have come to learn that there are some things even i can't shield you from.

it was so much easier then, wasn't it?

the only worries we had were where to sit at lunch and who's house we'd go to after school to play games. now, we are forced to think about exams and our futures, and the ever daunting conversations surrounding dating and eventually, marriage.

how did it all change so fast?

one minute, i'm eight years old playing on a swing set with you - my best friend, laughing about a boy from school because he feel off of the monkey bars. the next, i'm eighteen and i'm packing my suitcase to city i've seen before, leaving my whole life behind.

and it makes me wonder : is that all there is to life?

we just meet people, love them and then leave?

am i supposed to accept the fact that the two of us are heading off to different universities across the world from each other next month, and that i might never see you again?

if that's the case, then let me tell you one thing.

i am proud of you, seungmin. i tried my best to protect you against the harshness of growing up, but now i realise that you are capable of looking after yourself.

with our school days behind us and the person you've become, i'm afraid you don't need me anymore. so i'll keep you in my heart, like the oath i kept all those years, and i'll look back fondly on our friendship.

since tomorrow may be our last day together, you can't get mad if i hug you a little tighter, okay?

you're going to do great things with your life. and i will read all about them.

and my heart will still love you like we are ten years old and nothing bad has happened to us yet.

anyway, don't be a stranger.

love from,

✰