Disclaimers:
- Just pretend that it's legal to ride a motorbike without a helmet, because I was too lazy to write that dialogue and also just can't imagine people wearing helmets while riding a motorbike.
- I don't know whether or not it is actually legal for two people to ride on one motorbike, so you can ALSO pretend that is allowed for plot purposes XD
- I'm not sure about Korea's college years, so in this story, school ends in June and summer break is in July and August.
- This story has an unexpected ending, so keep that in mind just in case you're expecting everything you're going into
"Kid, whose bike is that?"
Jeongin, resting on the alleged bike at the corner of a gas station, was way too tired to put up with random small talk like this at six in the morning. Especially coming from a curly-haired older boy who was training his eyes on him like he expected Jeongin to be hiding a gun or any other lethal weapon on him. A bold assumption from someone decked in full black.
"It's... mine," Jeongin said blandly, in no mood to be polite.
Old Boy (Jeongin was also in no mood to establish a nicer-sounding nickname) raised an eyebrow. "Uh-huh, really? Do you have a license for that?"
"Depends. Are you a cop? Cause if not, kindly mind your own business and leave me alone."
For those few seconds of awkward silence, Jeongin was terrified that he had proven himself to be the world's greatest screw-up. Old Boy may not be a police officer, but he could still put Jeongin into deep trouble.
Not like Jeongin was jumping at the chance to apologize. He still had his pride.
Thankfully, Old Boy only chuckled. But that seemed to get on Jeongin's nerves even more. Everything was bothering him at this time of the day. "You're really not helping your case here, kid. If that bike isn't stolen, you just have to say so.
"I have a license. Leave me alone." Jeongin decided to quit fighting this battle, pulling out his wallet and putting the card up only inches away from Old Boy's face. "Can you see this clearly? Or do I have to display it on that billboard over there for you to get a clear view?"
"Okay, okay, geez." Old Boy backed away, his arms up in mock surrender. "I believe you."
"Wow, that means a lot," Jeongin deadpanned. "Now can you go away? I'm too tired for this."
Old Boy sighed. "Okay, fine, sorry for that interrogation. You're just... around the age of my younger brother and if there's anyone who fits the 'juvenile' label, it's him. So seeing you with that motorbike got me kind of paranoid."
"Sorry about your sibling problems, but not all adolescent college kids are like that. I can ride this bike perfectly fine." The question of whether or not Jeongin would was completely different, but he wasn't about to give Old Boy another reason to call 119 on him.
Old Boy's eyes fell on Jeongin's bag. His eyes widened. "I used to go there!"
"Huh?" Jeongin looked at his bag and realized it was the one he bought at his college's merchandise shop. The title was in big, bold letters. "Oh, really?"
"Yeah, I studied engineering there until I got a better offer for my third year. So I transferred. I just graduated."
Getting to transfer to a top college mid-college? Old Boy was definitely a genius.
"Eh, I'm just good at what I do. Also, do you want a name to substitute that 'oh so pleasant' nickname you have for me, kid?"
Jeongin put his hand over his mouth, realizing he had said his thoughts out loud. "I'm sorry-"
"The name's Chan." Newly identified Chan laughed. That seemed to be his response to anything, no matter how much of an insult something seemed to be.
"So, do you want my name, or are you just going to keep on calling me 'kid'?" Jeongin countered.
"I'm liking the second option-"
"Jeongin!" Jeongin turned pink and attempted to retreat to the safety of his bike, wondering how on earth his battle with this Chan guy had turned into some sort of peace offering.
Not like his bike felt that safe. Jeongin still felt strange pressing his hand into the handlebars, balancing his weight on the seat. It was a lot to get used to.
"Well, nice to meet you, Jeongin. I'm assuming you're a first-year? How do you like college life?"
Okay, wow, so this guy was actually starting a conversation. But then again, it wasn't like Jeongin was a total jerk. He could handle this.
What the heck, Jeongin. Have you totally forgotten that you LIKE talking to people?
Not this early in the morning, inner Me!
Oh, PLEASE. You're acting as if your sleep schedule isn't already screwed.
Point taken from Jeongin's conscience. He sighed and began talking. Whether he liked it or not, he always had a lot to say. His pre-med major was demanding, but he was enjoying it. Staying in Busan to study had been the right decision. He kept in touch with his parents and everything was more or less familiar. Still, now that exams were over and summer break had officially started a week ago, it was a breath of fresh air.
Chan raised a brow. "What are you doing in a gas station in the middle of nowhere if you live in Busan?"
Jeongin patted the seat of his bike. "I'm returning this bike to my brother. It was originally his. I left early this morning."
"Your brother gave you a bike!?"
"He taught me how to ride it and since I got my license, he trusted me with it," Jeongin said with a shrug.
Chan's jaw dropped. "Damn... if I ever did something that nice to my brother, he'd think I'm trying to kill him."
"I'm guessing you don't get along with your juvenile brother?"
Chan huffed. "More like he hates breathing the same air as me. Believe me, I try. I'm actually heading over to Seoul to see my family again. My brother's also on summer break from his community college, but I bet my left lung that he's going to be fooling around with his new college friends instead of bothering to see his brother again."
Jeongin rolled his eyes. "I sympathize with him. I passed that phase years ago."
"Yeah... a phase. Just one that he's been going through ever since he was old enough to acknowledge my existence."
"Sounds rough, Chan hyung."
"Thank you for the well wishes, Jeongin. So your brother lives in Seoul?"
"Pretty much," Jeongin said.
Chan eyes the bike. "Can I ask why you'd want to return this if he gave it to you?"
Jeongin shrugged. "It's just... not for me." He smiled. "But hey, I get to visit him and return the bike while I'm at it, so I'm killing two birds with one stone. What about you, why are you in this place this early?"
"My car's busted. I'm waiting for it to be repaired." Chan groaned and shook his head. "So basically, I'm starving and stranded."
"Oh..." Screw his apparently brilliant social skill, Jeongin wanted out of here. Because he knew what he was supposed to offer. An action he desperately was not in the mood to take.
But you're just too damn nice for your own good, aren't you, Innie?
Shut up Inner Me pretending to be my brother! I freaking know!
"Do you want a ride? We can both get something to eat," Jeongin said, his stomach grumbling on cue.
Chan paused, surprised. "You sure? We just met."
"Yeah, but you're like... my senior. That makes you trustworthy enough," Jeongin said, his rational thinking deciding now was the right time to malfunction. Oh well, fingers crossed.
Chan shrugged. "Okay, that would be great! I'll check my GPS for the closest place."
It was only when Chan walked towards the motorbike that realization hit Jeongin. "One request!" he blurted out.
"What is it?"
Jeongin bit his lip. "Can you possibly..."
"Be the one to ride the bike? If you know how to ride it?"
Jeongin wanted to sink into the ground in embarrassment. But Chan only chuckled. "I mean- I can ride a bike, but why me?"
Jeongin shuffled around awkwardly. "I don't... really trust myself. Or others around me. Anything can happen on the road. I can barely function in the driver's seat."
"Kind of inconvenient for a four-and-a-half-hour trip to Seoul, don't you think?"
"I know," Jeongin groaned. "That's why I'm taking it slow. I'll drive for maybe half an hour every night, when traffic is low. Then, when I get too scared, I plan to park and hang around for the rest of the day, then leave again to drive a bit when traffic's low. It might take me a week to get to Seoul, but I have time."
"That must suck," Chan said, taking on a more sympathetic tone. "Sure you don't want to toughen it through and man the wheel this time?"
"Fears aren't that easy to face. Please drive." Jeongin tossed the keys over to Chan before he could interject.
"Okay, let's get moving before I faint of hunger," Chan joked. "Get on."
Jeongin did just that, swinging his legs over the back of the seat and putting his arms around Chan's back. He was used to second wheeling. After all, that was his way of riding back when his brother would drive him around anywhere.
Jeongin tried his best to cover up the writing on the side of his bike with his leg, hoping Chan would never see it. It was a message hastily scrawled with a permanent sharpie by his brother. Jeongin would forever burn in shame every time he saw that remnant of his brother's cocky teenage self.
Property of Lee Minho.
If found, please return in exchange for money or a dinner ;)
Jeongin was a morning person. Not because he was born that way. More like he was forced.
If someone were to ask Jeongin to name his earliest best memory with his older brother, his first response would have probably been along the lines of Ew, good times with Minho? No such thing exists.
If really prodded, his second response would have probably been the times that transformed him into an early morning organism (because those breeds of people couldn't actually be human.) He had been eight. Minho was ten (A three-year age difference, but Jeongin's early birthday always put him somewhat in the lead.)
It had begun when their parents had figured out that Minho had been skipping fifth-grade gym classes with his friends. As a punishment (and a plea for help,) Minho was forced to promise to take a half an hour's walk every day during the summer and for possibly a few months following.
But, there was a catch. Minho was classified as 'too young' to do these walks alone, so it had to be with a friend or a parent.
Nobody knew it back then (naturally,) but in two years, Minho would discover what dancing was, and that would be what would make the young boy escape from his life as a hermit and find something he would actually be willing to lift his feet a few inches off the ground for. But until then, Minho refused to waste his summer days going on walks. So, he decided to take them early in the morning.
And, since he wasn't allowed to go alone, he took Jeongin with him.
Jeongin was heavily opposed to that plan. Not because he was too young to be qualified as a proper accompaniment for Minho (Minho had conveniently left off that minor detail when waking him up.) It was because Minho could only go with a friend, and they were 'not friends.'
"Siblings count as friends, don't you know that, Innie?"
Jeongin gagged. "I don't want to be your friend!"
Minho only chuckled and then proceeded to wake Jeongin up at 6 am every morning for the rest of the summer.
"Rise and shine, Innie!"
Jeongin let out an incoherent shriek of a dying cat when Minho opened the bedroom curtain, curling far into the safety of his blankets.
Until Minho also pulled that off. "Come on! If we leave now, we can go back to sleep before 7!"
"How do you know? You almost failed math," Jeongin grumbled.
Minho rolled his eyes. "You're too full of sass for a little kid."
"Says you, hyung."
"Up you get," Minho said, his approaching arms threatening to lift Jeongin out of the bed (which he was frustratingly capable of doing.)
"No! I DON'T WANNA!"
"Shhh!" Minho was quick to cover Jeongin's mouth. "You'll wake up mom and dad!"
"Serves you right," Jeongin said, pushing Minho's hand away. "Just wait till I tell mommy and daddy what you've been making me do for the past few weeks!"
"If you tell them, you can't play games on my console anymore." Minho said it teasingly but Jeongin knew well enough that the threat was real. "Plus, I'll tell them all about the insults you throw at me. You know how they're always on your case about polite words and staying humble. You'll be in hot water."
Jeongin groaned. He hastily got out of bed, grabbing a random pair of clothes and letting Minho help him into them. Soon, the two were outside.
"Come on, Jeongin, walk faster!"
"I don't wanna!"
Wrong choice of words. Minho grabbed his hand and made him walk faster. He laughed as Jeongin complained, revelling in his suffering. Jeongin hated him.
But, he had to admit that at least early morning walks were peaceful. Not a single soul was outside and there were a lot of animals out of hiding. Jeongin spotted many rabbits and raccoons frolicking around and would have loved to watch if Minho didn't keep on ushering him forward.
Finally, Jeongin mustered the strength to ground his feet down and stay in the spot, preventing Minho from going further. "Minho hyung, look!"
"Huh?"
Jeongin was pointing to a tree. On top of it was a nest. But it was what was in the nest that made Jeongin want to watch. "It's a big bird with her little birds!"
The mother bird pushed her child to the edge of the nest. Jeongin frowned. "What's happening?"
"They're learning how to fly," Minho explained. "The babies will be pushed out of the nest and they have to learn how to use their wings in order to stop themselves from hitting the ground. We're first-hand witnesses right now."
Jeongin gasped. "What if they don't learn in time!?"
Minho shrugged. "It's a risk they have to take. They can either spend the rest of their lives safe but stuck in that nest, or they can take a chance and fly."
Jeongin giggled at that. It was a running family joke that Minho had once been fascinated with the idea of flying. At the age of five, he had even attempted jumping from a play structure to try it out himself. That incident had left him with a broken arm and a crippling fear of heights. Jeongin found it one of life's greatest injustices that he had been too young and did not get to witness Minho's humiliation.
As the mother bird approached the end of the nest, Jeongin shivered. "I don't think I'd have the courage to jump from the nest." He wanted to close his eyes as he saw the first baby bird about to be pushed out.
"Then you'd miss out on a lot." As Minho said those words, the baby bird fell. Jeongin yelped, scared to death for that poor bird.
That was until he was graced with the sight of a bird now in the air, spreading its wings. It chirped happily as it frailed around. Then, it landed on the ground, turning its head around wildly, as if trying to take every sight of the new world it had made it into.
Jeongin began to clap but immediately stopped, waiting for Minho's teasing. But it never came. His brother only smiled.
"See? Now the scary part is done and that bird is free to explore a whole new world," Minho said. "I'd jump from the nest without a second thought."
"Even though heights make you cry?"
"Oh, shut up."
"You're not allowed to say that to me! I'm telling mommy and daddy!"
"Jeongin, get back here!"
So yes, their energy in the morning made the brothers used to these early walks. Sometimes, they would be too hyper to even fall back asleep upon reaching home.
Jeongin dragged his feet on the sidewalk as Minho went back to pulling him along. They reached an intersection where the walking sign had just turned a flashing red. Horrible timing.
What Jeongin didn't expect was for Minho to break off into a run, making Jeongin run too. Jeongin's blood pressure rose, seeing them approach the road.
"Hyung, we're not supposed to cross now-"
But before he was even finished, the two had run across the road, huffing and puffing at the other side.
"Why did you do that!?" Jeongin exclaimed.
"Because the cars were still at a red light."
"But the walking sign was flashing! My teacher said that means we shouldn't begin crossing!"
"But if we can make it across the street before the flashing stops, it doesn't matter," Minho said, completely unphased. "It was a risk I took. Now, we have saved time and can get home even earlier. That wouldn't have happened if we had waited."
"That was dangerous," Jeongin said, not convinced. Such risky acts were incomprehensible to him.
"It's always the dangerous stuff that has the greatest payoff," Minho said.
Like jumping out of a nest. Jeongin wasn't entirely sure what a 'payoff' was, but he couldn't help but relate his brother's words back to the baby birds, so new to the world, but already beginning their ascent with something dangerous. And they got rewarded for their risky actions.
That was a day that always stood out to Jeongin. As he got older, he could place him and Minho on a scale with those birds.
Because despite his fear of heights, Lee Minho was a flyer. He always took every opportunity to jump out of his nest, believing he would fly. And when he flew, he soared.
Jeongin, on the other hand, always sought safety in his nest. He was studying at a university close to home, in a major that would guarantee him success. Not that that was a bad thing. Jeongin found solace in the path he was on, in the comfort and benefits it offered.
But there was never a time when he stopped aspiring to someday take his own leap out of his nest. To fly like Minho.
"So are you sure you know how to ride this thing?"
"A bit late to be asking me that when we're five minutes into this ride, don't you think?" Chan said, letting out a chuckle that sounded forced.
Jeongin sighed. "I'm sorry. We just met and I'm sure you already want to get rid of me."
"No, I'm sorry, I'm the crabby one. My car breaking down is a horrible way to start off a trip," Chan said with a sigh.
"All is forgiven," Jeongin said. He looked around him. It had been such a long time since he had been on the bike during daylight. Minho had only given the bike to him last year and schoolwork and growing fears had prevented Jeongin from ever taking it for a proper ride.
He wasn't riding it now, but Jeongin made sure to keep the experience in his head. Especially since only short night rides awaited him in his future.
"Okay, here we are," Chan said, turning into a plaza. "Food!"
"Amen," Jeongin said with a laugh.
They walked inside the restaurant and quickly ordered. "You can cover your tab, right? I remember being a broke college student," Chan said.
"I have enough," Jeongin said. "I saved up for a few months for this trip."
"You've been planning this for months?" Chan asked. "Just to give the bike away?"
"It was always an idea in my head," Jeongin said. "The bike is wasted on me. It truly belongs to my brother."
"Oh, to go to that much lengths to see a sibling..." Chan said wistfully. "Why is your brother in Seoul anyways? Why can't he come back to Busan to pick up the bike?"
"Minho hyung has lived in Seoul for the past two years," Jeongin said, pausing to receive the noodles from the waiter. "He was supposed to come to Busan for the break. Things got complicated so now I'm going there." Jeongin hated how complicated things became.
Oh, what have I gotten myself into?
This story will be updated every Monday!