Lee Know lifted his head to see who the voice belonged to. His eyes widened when he saw Jisungs face through the window. He stood up quickly and waited for Jisung to make he was around the car.
When they were standing face to face, silence filled the air around them. Before anyone could say anything, Lee Know pulled Jisung into his embrace. Jisung was frozen by this action.
If Jisung was in the position that Lee Know was in, he would resent himself. Lee Know held him close and fell into the hug that he had been dying to get for years. Soon enough, Jisung wrapped his arms around his waist. Holding him close and taking in his scent. Jisung felt happy, but once the hug was over, the guilt fell upon him yet again.
Although he chose not to think about Lee Know when he was getting his life together. Although he did manage to focus on his work, in the back of his, he always wondered where he was. He never thought he would be able to stand in front of him again.
"Why aren't you angry with me?" Jisung took a step to get out of arms reach, "I ruined your life."Lee Know took a moment to think about his answer. He knew that his love for Jisung has dialed down and is more platonic than before, but he couldn't find the feeling to be angry at him for the rest of his life."I was angry."
He said putting his head down, "But I can't hold a grudge against you for the rest of my life because I know I fucked up also."Lee Know wanted to kill someone when he was put in that cell. But he knew his anger wasn't going to get him anywhere, and also murder would have him in jail longer.
"I can't stay mad at you. No matter if I did what I did or not." Lee Know lifted his head.Jisung looked into the boy's eyes with remorse, not knowing how to react. He shoved his hands in his pockets and looked down at the ground. Jisung felt as if Lee Know was disappointed in him. Jisung did what he was told and lost someone special to him.
"I understand," Jisung said finally lifting his head and facing him. The regret inside of him felt like it was deflating, but that didn't seem to show on his face.As silence fell over the two again, Jisung looked from side to side before breaking the silence, "The next bus comes in about an hour, do you w-want a ride?" Lee know was taken aback by the offer, but accepted.
They both got into the car and drove off. On the way, they had chats about how their lives were. Since this wasn't the most comfortable situation they'd had, the awkwardness filled up most of the air. When they made it to the airport they sat in silence for a moment.
"This silence is killing me." Lee Know said with a chuckle.
"Indeed." Jisung agreed, "Do you want me to walk you in?"
"I didn't know you were so sweet." Lee Know sarcastically replied while placing his hand over his heart. Lee Know laughs when he earns a small slap on the arm from the boy.
"Shut up and get out," Jisung said unlocking the doors.
"Subtly kicking me out too?" Lee Know took a step out of the car and grabbed his things. Jisung laughed at the boy now standing outside his car. The window was down so he had a perfect view of him.
"Have a safe trip." Jisung said with a small smile, "And meet a lot of new people in college. Ones that are way better than the people you met here, okay?"
Lee Know nodded before tapping on the door softly. He turned his back away from the car and left. Jisungs smile faded when he saw the doors of the airport close behind Lee Know.
He sat back in his seat and stared at the car in front of him. He thought about the times they had spent together. He had no idea it would lead up to something like this. His eyes drifted towards the doors and watched as people went in and out of them. It was like a sad ending for something that could have ended well. He hated sad endings.After a short amount of thinking, he got out of his car and raced inside.
He searched and searched for Lee Know, hoping that he wasn't too late. Jisung knew this airport well enough that he could find just about anything.
"Gate 4... Gate 5..... Gate 6...... Gate 7." Jisung counted to himself. He did this up to Gate 10. Once he saw them in the bold letters, he started sprinting again.
He got to the section and didn't see anyone. He panted and looked around for him. He started losing hope until he found the brown-haired boy's head. He walked in front of him, catching his attention.
"Jisung what are y-" Lee Know started before being pulled up from his seat.Jisung wrapped his arms around his waist and held him tightly. The height difference made the scene even more loved by the people around, "What is this all about?" Lee Know chuckled while his arms were still up in the air.Jisung didn't say anything and nuzzled his head into Lee Knows' chest. Lee Know soon wrapped his arms around his small frame and laid his head on top. Subtle awws came from the audience the boys didn't know they had.
"I ran as fast I possibly could," Jisung said while looking up at him.
"I could tell by the sweat coming from your forehead," Lee Know said jokingly, "How did you even get this far? Don't you need a ticket or something?"Jisung nodded and stared into the boy's eyes. It felt like the first time they met. He was frozen and locked into Lee Know's looks. But Lee Know didn't feel uncomfortable this time.
The only thing he wanted to stop was the hug. Jisung was holding onto him like he was holding him hostage. Lee Know wiggled his body to signal that his air circulation was being cut short. Jisung let go and stepped back and cleared his throat.
"I know saying something to the police was the right thing to do but I can't help but feel bad." Jisung started, "I'm sorry for what I did and if I could go back I would do it differently." Jisung started going on a small rant about how sorry he was. Before Lee Know stopped him from going on too long.
"It's okay," He reassured, "as you said, it was the right thing to do. And it would have happened whether you said something or not."
This brought Jisung to small tears. How could he feel nothing? Jisung was hoping Lee Know would beat his ass but when that didn't happen, it made Jisung even sadder. He inhaled a sharp breath when he felt Lee Know's hands on his cheeks. His watery eyes were met with Lee Know beautiful brown ones. Lee Know gave him the warmest smile while wiping his tears away,
"Don't cry over something that's in the past now."Jisung nodded in agreement as he wiped his nose clean. He swallowed hard, trying to make room for the words to come out of his mouth.
"If we can't wonder this world as lovers, I want to wonder this world as friends." He said stretching out his hand for Lee Know to shake. He had his eyes tightly shut, just in case Lee Know rejected. He didn't know what closing his eyes would do in that situation, but he did it anyways. The only thing Lee Know could mustard up was a laugh. Jisung just hugged him a second ago and now he wants to shake his hand.
"We don't need to be lovers to hug Jisung," He said grabbing his hand and pulling him into yet another cherished hug. Jisungs eyes relaxed while closed. He took in the warmth that he probably would get for a while and savored it. His breath went along with Lee Knows' heartbeat. This was going to be a moment he would remember for the last time.
"Gate 10 is now boarding." A worker called over the intercom. The boys looked at each other and pulled apart. Lee Know shoved his hands in his pockets, which is something Jisung always did.
"Here's my number so we don't become strangers." Jisung chuckled while grabbing Lee Knows' phone from his hands.
To Jisungs surprise, Lee Knows password never changed. He unlocked it easily and went into the contacts. He punched in his number and set his name as 'Jisung'. He lifted the phone took a sweet photo of himself and set it as the profile picture. When Lee Know retrieved his phone again, a small smile spread on his face, "Just as adorable as I remember."Jisung blushed and hit his shoulder softly.
"Go before you miss the flight."Jisung watched Lee Know turn around and walk to the terminal. Lee Know took one last glance behind him and waved. Jisungs grin was wide and happy as he waved back. He was holding onto his shirt tightly, hoping the butterflies in his stomach would go away.It got to a point where Lee Know was no longer visible, leaving Jisung on his own again.
He sat down at the airport and was happy. The hole inside him had finally been filled up. The only thing he hoped for was a text message. Along with Lee Know finding someone else in his life to give him the love he deserved.
———-
Lee Know sat down in his seat and exhaled. He looked out the window, watching the workers get the planes ready to fly. He was happy. He was finally going to turn his life around and become someone that everyone will love. Although he knew that Hyunjin and the others probably didn't forgive him, all he wanted was Jisungs forgiveness.
That's all that mattered to him.The boys now lived their lives as close friends, more like acquaintances, rather than lovers. Jisung believed that in another life, they could truly have their happy ending.