Paper Hearts || Krii7y

11. Ren?

A smile slowly spread across John's face. "Who on earth convinced you to go to a party?"

"Ha ha," he said sarcastically. "I sort of promised him I'd come to one and I can't shrug him off now."

"I like this guy already. And sure, I'll come with you."

A few minutes later, they were at the park. They had no bread this time so decided to walk aimlessly around the perimeter. They had almost completed half a lap of the place when they came upon the area by a body of water. Few bothered to go there now because the breeze from the water was tenfold colder and nipped at your sinuses. The weather had gotten chillier anyway as fall came into full effect- it was late October already.

They walked over to a large willow tree with branches so droopy they swept the ground and made it impossible to figure out if there were people behind the dense veil of leaves.

There weren't, the pair discovered when they pushed back the branches to reveal an open space around the wide trunk of the tree.

"This is perfect," John said.

He pulled his blanket out of his bag and Jaren laughed.

"Why are you laughing?"

"You just keep the blanket in your bag?"

"Well, do you want to sit on the grass and get your ass wet and dirty?"

"No."

"Didn't think so."

Once sat down, they could admire where they were. The branches thinned out closer to the trunk, leaving space for them to sit. The sun glinted through the branches in a scattered nature, illuminating certain spots with a gorgeous emerald tint from the leaves.

"This is so pretty," Jaren said.

"Right? It feels like a portal to a different world."

He giggled. "You have a unique mind."

"Thanks," John hummed. "It's one of my pros."

"One of them? What are the others?"

John shrugged. "You tell me. You've known me for a while now. What do you think?"

"Give me a minute, this will be really hard."

John knocked into his shoulder before laying down on his back and closing his eyes. The light hit his face so beautifully, basking his features in a soft glow.

"Your personality is pretty killer," Jaren offered.

"Go on, you've barely touched the surface."

Jaren lay down beside the blond. "When we first met, you seemed like the typical popular guy whose head was too big for his shoulders. I learnt pretty quickly that that couldn't be further from the truth.

"You're down to Earth, a great listener and you get me. I'm glad I know you, John. You are my best friend. So thank you, for everything."

John said nothing for a minute, their breathing and the faint rustle of leaves the only sounds. "Is that all?"

Jaren scoffed and flicked his ear.

"Ow! I was kidding, Ren. Thank you, really."

"Your turn now."

The blond stayed quiet for a while and Jaren wondered what was going through his head.

"You're smart, like I expected, but you're a million things more. You're funny, you're caring, honest, perceptive, trustworthy. You're one of a kind."