You Are (Not) a Cursed Boy // 2ho/yunjong

You Should've Never Come

It happened when they were only kids. Seonghwa remembered that he and Yunho just turned six, while the others - Hongjoong, Yeosang, San, Mingi, and Wooyoung - were still five years old.

Their moms were good friends, either from their high school days or simply because they lived in the neighborhood, and since their seven sons attended the same kindergarten, they often had play dates in the playground after school ended.

One day, there was a transfer student. He looked smaller than the others, but was in the same year as Seonghwa and his friends, albeit in a different class. That very same day, the boy's mother got into a minor accident, and couldn't pick him up on time after school. He ended up waiting at the same playground where all the kids hung out.

"Hi!" Yunho was the one of the first to arrive. He wasn't afraid of new faces, and certainly wasn't territorial of the playground. In fact, he was eager to invite the new boy to join him. "My name is Jeong Yunho. What's yours?"

Seonghwa had just came out of the washroom. Instead of joining Yunho, an observant kid like him decided to join the moms, who were chatting on the benches.

The new boy stopped rocking on a unicorn spring rider, but he didn't look up at Yunho. Instead, he fiddled with his fingers and mumbled, "Jongho. Choi Jongho."

Even at a young age, Jongho knew he shouldn't make friends and risk hurting them. He almost cried right there, thinking of his mother, who was on her way from the hospital after an unprofessional salesman emptied a bucket of dirty water - along with the bucket - all over her body in a fish market.

Trying to protect the little dignity he had, he started to slip off his unicorn, hoping to run away from Yunho.

Unfortunately, Yunho already had a hand planted firmly on Jongho's arm. "My friends will arrive soon, do you want to join us?" Yunho was still smiling brightly, slightly tugging Jongho towards the big equipment scattered around the area.

Jongho looked up timidly at the playhouses and slides, which were all so tempting for a five-year-old like him. Sneaking a glance at his new friend, he gave an almost imperceptible nod, and found himself being led towards the swings.

It was then when Yunho spotted Seonghwa sitting between their moms, drinking water. He raised his long arm into the air and waved enthusiastically. "Seonghwaaa, why are you all the way over theree?? Come here~ Look who I met!"

Seonghwa grinned and ran over, his shoes barely audible against the rubber floor. He cocked his head, still panting slightly. "This is Jongho, right? You're the transfer, I remember! My name is Park Seonghwa, nice to meet you. C'mon, lets play the swings."

Jongho was surprised that anyone would remember him, given his self-effacing nature, but at that moment, he didn't really care. Yunho was holding his hand now, and the three of them walked together, side by side.

"Shall we take turns pushing each other?" Yunho looked at the two swings moving in the breeze, then back at Seonghwa, who shook his head.

"I know how to play on my own, you two can take the other one." He jumped onto the closer one and was already propelling himself off the ground using his tiny feet.

"Do you want to play first?" Jongho looked up at Yunho, who was half a head taller. To Jongho's surprise, his ears started to grow red.

"Oh, no, it's fine-" Yunho stuttered, as if he was embarrassed. "I'm too tall and heavy, it's hard to get me swinging. I'll ask my mum to help me later."

A grin cracked on Jongho's face, his chin angled up with pride. "Don't worry, I'm known for my strength." Not giving Yunho a chance to protest, he let go of Yunho's hand and pushed him into the swing. "Ready?"