Seonghwa literally jumped as he heard a rapid knocking at his unit door.
Frowning, not having expected anyone after he'd gotten home from work, he put down his journal article and wandered over to the door.
And the moment he opened it, Mingi suddenly came bursting inside.
'Hwa! I passed! IpassedIpassedIpassed!'
Seonghwa's heart leapt into his throat as his friend's excited behaviour startled him. Breathing heavily in shock, he closed his door and turned around, staring at his friend. 'You passed... ethics? I thought that wasn't due for another two weeks?'
Mingi groaned. Dropping his bag down beside the coffee table, he hurried up to him and took his shoulders in his hands. 'Hwa, I passed lab.'
Seonghwa's eyes suddenly widened, and within an instant, he filled with pride. 'Min!' he gasped, pulling him into a short hug. 'You did it! How'd you go?!'
'I didn't even gag once. And, I didn't have a panic attack after!'
Seonghwa didn't know whether to feel awful that he was saying such things so lightly, or ridiculously happy that he was so pleased with himself. 'Min-ah, San and I told you you could do it.'
'I know... I knew I could do it... But I was still scared...'
'What was it in the end that helped you?'
He watched as Mingi glanced down at his bracelet, touching it tenderly, before he suddenly took a breath and smiled. 'I tried to focus on the table... Hwa, did you know they shimmer?'
He frowned, not having expected any of that train of thought. 'Uh, no... I can't say I did... Do they?'
Mingi nodded, and Seonghwa felt his heart melt a little as he saw a smile creep onto his lips. 'It's really quite pretty... At first, when I walked in, I couldn't stop looking at the body... but then I kind of realised... It was something Yun actually said... That the people who donated their bodies to the students wanted to help us, help other people, even after they had passed away...
And then somehow, I got distracted by a little iridescent rainbow on the steel, and I found myself thinking... What a beautiful place for someone whose wish was to help others, even after their life had ended...'
Seonghwa watched as Mingi's eyes glassed over with a misty kind of awe. 'Suddenly... I can't really remember why I was so scared to begin with...' He suddenly looked up at him, his eyes innocent like doe's. 'Hwa, it can't be like a switch, can it? I can't be just over it... Can I?'
Seonghwa gave his friend a warm smile, stepping forward and rubbing his shoulder comfortingly. 'Min, it's different for everyone. But if you say that you are okay now, then you are. You don't need someone else to tell you if you are over your fear.'
Mingi's lips pulled into a small smile, a shy, yet immensely happy smile. 'Hwa... I think I did it... I think I'm okay now...'
Seonghwa's heart melted. After so many years of having to watch his friend suffer, lab after lab, week after week, he'd only dreamed of the day that Mingi wouldn't feel like he was suffering any more. 'Min-ah, I'm so proud of you,' he whispered, and he meant it.
Mingi offered him a warm smile. Stepping back, he walked over to his bag, and much to Seonghwa's surprise, pulled out two ramen cups from the convenience store. 'You haven't had dinner yet, have you?'
Seonghwa's stomach rumbled, as if on cue.
And Mingi smirked. 'Good. I'll boil the water. You get the chopsticks.
~~~