his gaze switched from his phone screen to the door, making sure he got the address correct.

the pink haired boy checked the facts once again, not wanting to ring at the wrong door.

he wanted to spare himself from that embarrassment as it once happened to him when he visited donghyuck for the very first time. (he kept that a secret from his best friend or else hyuck would bully him for that forever.)

jaemin breathed in as he rang the doorbell. he had no problem waiting for renjun - he's a patient person - however, his nervosity was hard to deal with the longer he stood there.

the junior couldn't explain it himself why he made a fuss about it. just two friends going to an exhibition in an art museum, nothing more - right?

his heart pounded quickly at the thought of it. "just a normal hangout. nothing else."

his eyes widened when he recalled his own words of having called their hangout a date as joke. "oh my god, i can't believe it that i said that back then", jaemin thought to himself, feeling his ears turn red at the memory.

he may act all confident, however, he was secretly a bit shy when it comes to his crushes. nevertheless, he kept that a secret from them as well or else they might tease him for that.

the sound of the door opening caused him to snap back into reality. his eyes met renjun's as jaemin was welcomed by a warm smile from his friend.

"hey, jaem! i hope i didn't make you wait for too long", the two-toned haired boy greeted softly, stepping outside and closing the door behind himself.

"no, not at all", the younger one responded grinning, taking in the look of his friend and finding him extremely adorable.

"nice fit, renjun", jaemin complimented, making the chinese blush slightly. "you're not bad yourself", the older one replied softly, feeling his heart skip a beat.

"thanks for picking me up, jaem", renjun expressed his gratitude, "you didn't have to do that but i appreciate that."

"i'm a gentleman, i insist. it's a date afterall", jaemin joked teasingly, reminding his friend of his own words and replacing his shy side with his confident, flirty side.

renjun rolled playfully his eyes, intrigued by the idea of a date. wait, was he not opposing to that?

"whatever", the two-toned haired boy shrugged it off, not wanting to deal with these thoughts as for now. "do you have the tickets?", he changed the subject, tilting slightly his head.

jaemin pulled them out of his jacket pocket, showcasing them to his friend with a proud grin, "as promised."

"we should get going now or else we'll be late for the exhibition", the pink haired boy mentioned as he put the tickets back in his pocket.

"good call", renjun nodded before they headed towards the art museum.

━━━ ☆★☆ ━━━

renjun's eyes lit up at the sight of the exhibition, eager to explore the museum and its artistic works.

jaemin's heart warmed up at the sight of his friend beaming for the visit. he would never admit it out loud but he was so glad that he lost the bet between them. if he hadn't, he would've never seen renjun being this passionate and lovely.

the two of them walked around, examining the paintings and sculptures of the exhibition while chatting in between.

"you know, it's actually my first time in an art museum", jaemin confessed, his eyes glued on an abstract picture.

renjun's gaze shifted from the painting to his friend as surprise was written on his face. "really?", he asked in disbelief, his mouth being agape.

the pink haired boy nodded, turning around to lock eyes with the shorter one. "yeah, but it's not my first time seeing art in real life", he added smoothly, giving him a playful wink.

"shut up, jaem", renjun pushed him lightly, trying to hide his blush and grin but failed to do so.

even though he had a chill demeanor, he was struggling inside. jaemin's flirty words kept on repeating in his head, attacking his poor heart every single time.

"just saying, gotta appreciate natural beauty and art", the pink haired boy played it cool, enjoying renjun's reactions while feeling his heart melt at the same time.

"you flirty ass", the chinese mumbled, looking away in an attempt to cover up his deepened blush.

he didn't know it himself why jaemin's words affected him that hard; made his heart flatter and skip a beat; cause him to feel both excited and strange; let him feel something he hadn't experienced before. it was confusing. he was confusing.

they kept on going around, talking casually and studying the exhibited works.

renjun was able to distract himself from the confusing thoughts as one painting caught his full attention. his eyes admired the way the picturesque butterfly was drawn and the unexplainable, severe impact it had on him.

"dreamscape", he read out the name of the painting, finding the title being as magnificent and intriguing as the piece of art.

"it's so beautiful", renjun commented in astonishment, examining it with much fondness.

"i love this painting. it's incredible! what about you, jaemin?", the two-toned haired boy looked to the side to his friend, however, he wasn't standing next to him anymore.

"behind you!", the younger one chimed in, making renjun turn around. his eyes spotted his friend holding his phone at him.

surprise and shock was spread across the chinese's face, not having expected that jaemin had taken pictures of him while he admired the painting.

"smile for the camera!", the pink haired boy grinned proudly, making the older one chuckle at first.

renjun did as requested, smiling and posing for the camera in front of a painting he liked.

"you're so sneaky, you know?", the chinese teased after the pictures had been taken.

"i know", jaemin's grin grew wider as he stood next to him again. "you seemed so cute and fascinated by it. i just had to capture the moment", he explained beamingly.

"you're really sweet, jaem", renjun mentioned and flashed him a bright smile, making the pink haired boy fold for him.

"let me take some pictures of you too!", the older one suggested eagerly, wanting to return it.

the simp he was, jaemin immediately agreed as he could never say no to a cutie like him.

it was renjun's turn to take some photos of his friend. he enjoyed doing that and loved how jaemin did a great job at posing.

they ended up taking several pictures of each other and switched often the positions. not only that, they also took lots of selfies together to capture their beautiful date- uhm, i mean hangout! obviously.

━━━ ☆★☆ ━━━

"i had so much fun!", renjun exclaimed happily after exiting the museum and heading home.

"me too. i also loved how the pictures turned out, they are so cute!", jaemin added, having insisted of walking his friend home.

"by the way, i also liked the butterfly painting. it was truly beautiful", the pink haired boy commented, not having forgotten about the previous question.

renjun cracked a sweet smile at his words, finding it thoughtful of him of still answering his question.

his eyes stayed glued on jaemin, studying his pretty features. "that's true but i'm looking at someone who's more beautiful than the painting", the older boy remarked gently without thinking much.

jaemin's cheeks were as pink as his hair was. surprise was spread across his face. it was clear that he was caught off guard and extremely affected by it.

his crush had just given him such a beautiful compliment even though he never flirts. additionally, renjun, the art enthusiast he was, told him that he was prettier than the painting which he loved with his whole heart. that meant the entire world to the younger one.

jaemin's heart couldn't handle this sudden attack. he was internally melting and swooning, being all love struck for the chinese.

renjun observed his friend turning all flustered and shy, liking the impact his words had on him. an amused grin adorned his face, finally relating to why jaemin loved to tease and flirt - the reactions of the recipients were too entertaining.

"woah, renjun... since when are you so flirty?", the pink haired boy tried to play it off, teasing the older one while attempting to hide his shyness.

"picked up some habits from a certain someone", the two-toned haired boy responded cheekily, shrugging his shoulders.

"smooth", jaemin commented chuckling, positively surprised about his flirty side.

━━━ ☆★☆ ━━━

after a while, they had reached renjun's home. the two of them stopped in front of the door as they stood face to face.

"thanks for walking me home", renjun thanked once again, giving him a warm smile.

"don't mention it", the pink haired boy mirrored his smile as his eyes softened when looking at the shorter boy.

rays of sunlight shone on jaemin's face in a graceful way, tinting his skin gold and highlighting his marvellous beauty.

his pink hair fell perfectly in his face. his eyes glinted as his full lips were glamorously rosy. the sunlight created the illusion of his cheeks being adorned with glitter.

the sky was hued in pink and orange colors as the sun was slowly setting. the golden hour made jaemin appear more gorgeous, striking, divine.

renjun admired the art in front of him, it was better than any exhibited work he had seen today - not even the butterfly painting could beat the art he's facing right now.

he was falling for the art in front of him.

... and he was falling for the next thought that struck his mind.

"thanks for going to the art museum with me", the two-toned haired boy whispered as his impulsive thoughts took over his mind.

renjun leaned in, placing a gentle kiss on jaemin's cheek.

the pink haired boy's heart paused for a moment. the world stopped moving the second he felt his lips on his cheeks. the touch being as soft as his lips.

heat shot up his face as jaemin couldn't think straight. his mind was spinning around while butterflies were fluttering in his stomach. his heart was pounding at a fast pace, making it impossible to calm down.

as renjun pulled away, realisation hit him right away. his eyes widenend in shock and panic of what he had done. why did he do that? why was he so bold, impulsive and risky? it was unlike him.

he didn't even know if jaemin wanted it, he didn't ask for his consent - he felt like a terrible person. he wanted to bury himself alive or run away and leave his old life behind.

the chinese examined the face of his friend, assuming that he didn't like it and that it was a horrific experience for him.

"oh my god, jaem. i'm so sorry!", he apologized worriedly with guilt and shyness being displayed in his eyes.

the chinese turned around and walked quickly to the door, attempting to escape the situation out of panic and embarrassment.

however, jaemin grabbed his wrist, preventing him from running away and causing his attempt to fail.

"don't be sorry, jun", the pink haired boy muttered sheepishly and pulled him back so that the older one faced him.

his heart skipped a beat at the nickname. it was the first time that jaemin called him like that. it was unlike him.

"there is nothing to be sorry about", the younger boy reassured with a lovely smile being plastered on his face.

renjun's cheeks turned pink at his words. they were tinted in a darker shade when jaemin's lips met softly his cheek, planting a tender kiss.

the chinese felt his heart dropping at the touch. his mind was blank as his stomach felt all twisted. he had never felt something like that, so exciting and sparkling.

"thanks for today, too", the pink haired boy whispered in his ear. his warm breath met his bare skin as his gentle voice sent a shiver running down renjun's spine.

his face was all flushed and hot from the situation - the chinese was clearly overwhelmed (and so was jaemin but he was able to hide it better).

the younger one pulled away, grinning in satisfaction as his friend wasn't the only one bold here and jaemin succeeded in covering up his shyness.

the sun was long gone but the warmth and sparkles were still present. the once colorful sky turned into a black ocean, soon to be littered by stars.

"it's late. you should head home soon", renjun managed to say and gave him a lovely smile even though he wasn't able to function properly anymore.

"you're right", jaemin nodded, copying his expression and still feeling all tingly.

"goodnight, jaem."

"goodnight, jun."

with the last words being exchanged, the two of them went seperate ways. renjun disappeared behind the door as jaemin turned around and walked the path down his home.

as the pink haired boy headed home, he couldn't stop thinking about the whole situation - starting from their art museim visit until their last goodbyes and cheek kisses. his ears turned red once again when he recalled all their moments together.

jaemin was normally the bold and flirty one. he'd mostly be the one who does the first move - i mean, he had once given a kiss on a hand.

however, he didn't expect someone else to make a move. he didn't see it coming that he would receive a kiss, especially from his crush.

the pink haired boy still felt the soft touch of his lips on his cheek, having the moment in his memory as vivid as ever.

despite the positive experiences and thoughts, he didn't know what their relationship was. was renjun interested in him? was he actually gay too or was it just friendly? does he give his other friends cheek kisses too? has he any chances to end up with him?

"what in the situationship", jaemin whispered, sounding both in love and in despair.

━━━ ☆★☆ ━━━

renjun closed the door behind himself before throwing himself on his bed and reflecting today's events.

he was overwhelmed.

the two-toned haired boy laid on his back as he ran his hands down his face.

he couldn't stop thinking about what today's events. the art museum date, the flirty exchange, their lingering gazes, their cheek kisses, jaemin giving him a nickname for the very first time.

renjun sighed quietly and looked out of his window, noticing the shining stars on the dark sky. the beautiful night sky reminded him of that one night where jaemin and he held hands and walked under the stars.

his gaze shifted to his desk where he spotted his sketch book. seeing that reminded him immediately of the times where jaemin was happy and supportive to see all his drawings and hear the stories behind them.

his eyes switched to the cat plushie that was right next to him on his bed. the soft toy being another reminder of the time where jaemin was determined to win plushies only for him and on top of that, was extremely flirty with him.

several moments of the two of them were flooding his mind. a deep blush adorned his cheeks as he buried his face in his pillow. renjun felt so shy when recalling all those memories.

he was surprised of himself that he acted so boldly and impulsively. he would've never expected that from him. perhaps the butterfly painting inspired him to to be free and escape for his dream?

wait a moment - which dream? the wish of spending more time with him, being closer to him, kissing him and being lovers?

renjun quickly shook his head - what was he even thinking?

he removed his face from his pillow and placed one hand on his cheek. he could still feel the warmth and softness of his lips there.

it was his first intimate experience he had ever had in his life. and that with a boy.

jaemin was messing with him.
the shared moments with him were messing with him.
his own emotions and thoughts were messing with him.

it was confusing to him.

it was confusing to him that he liked the idea of being in love with jaemin.

━━━ ☆★☆ ━━━

[ author's note ]
AAAKSBSBSBSB
I'M GIGGLING SO HARD
they are so cute together 😭

both of them be questioning their whole life tho

situationship be calling 👊

i was so excited to write about their art museum date <3 and it kinda got out of hand oops

btw that's the butterfly dreamscape picture:

(i was hella obsessed with the dreamscape era and lore back then) (i still am)

anyways, the song golden hour by jvke is so renmin (esp. this chapter) coded 😮‍💨😔‼️