Taehyung leaned his head back against the edge of his mattress. His backpack was packed and ready for school the next day; his homework all done and arranged neatly within it. Being grounded was very boring when the only thing he wanted to do was be with his friends.

   The house was silent apart from the humming and muffled gushing of the shower and sink running in his parents' bathroom as they got ready for bed. Taehyung wasn't ready to sleep. It'd only gotten completely dark about an hour ago.

   He'd picked up his pencil to sketch, laughing dryly at himself as he put it right back down because holding it only made him think of the fact that he'd really rather be holding a certain someone's hand. He realized what a lovesick fool he'd become then, further laughing at himself as he laid flat on the floor and folded his hands over his stomach. He kicked his feet up and rested his crossed ankles on top of his bed and began to hum softly.

  He'd just begun to sing the first few lines of the song dancing around in his mind when something heavy hit the window, making him jump and flip over onto his knees. With it being dark he could hardly see anything more than the tree in front of his room- a few of its leaves, its branches, its... Jeongguk?

   Jeongguk's unmistakable grinning, sparkling eyes were staring at him through the glass and the leaves. A startled, confused, and slightly embarrassed Taehyung stared back, head cocked and eyebrows furrowed. The boy straddling a tree branch motioned for Taehyung to open the window, while exaggeratedly mouthing the words 'open it'.

   Taehyung looked over his shoulder nervously before he bent down to grip the bottom of the window and pulled it up enough for him to lean out of it. His parents had meant to put a screen in the window for quite a while to keep the bugs out, but now Taehyung was glad they kept forgetting. He planted his hands on the inner part of the windowsill and squinted to see Jeongguk a little better, before he asked, "Gguk! What are you doing here?"

   "Thought I'd ask if you wanna hang out."

   "Yeah, actually... um.. So I guess I'm sneaking out?"

   Before Jeongguk could answer, Taehyung hurriedly shut the window as he heard footsteps approaching his room. He'd learned his lesson. He resumed his earlier position of laying on the floor with his feet kicked up as a few quiet knocks sounded. "Come in," he called.

   His mother opened the door and leaned in to quietly say, "Goodnight, Taehyung." She didn't often come to his room to say that. He guessed it was her trying to offer a bit of comfort amidst a punishment. He smiled slightly and replied similarly. "Don't stay up too late, okay?"

   Taehyung nodded. "I think I'm gonna get ready for bed, now." He stood and walked out with his mother, and they split as he turned to go inside the bathroom and fit his toothbrush into his mouth. As soon as the woman had shut the door to her bedroom behind her, Taehyung made a dash to his bedroom, kicking the door shut behind him and kneeling at the window while he opened it.

   "Sorry," He started, as soon as it was sufficiently opened (not without making a worryingly loud squeak), though impeded by the toothbrush and toothpaste in his mouth. "Lemme finish 'rushing my teef"

   Jeongguk snickered quietly in the tree as he listened to Taehyung fight against the toothpaste then waited patiently, kicking his feet over the twenty-or-so feet drop below him while Taehyung hurried off toward the bathroom again to rinse his mouth.

   As he returned he wiped the leftover water off his face with his wrist, shut his door, flipped the light switch, and squinted to adjust to the darkness while he fumbled around to find the window without walking into anything. He grinned as he hunched over to fit through the open window and reached out to grab hold of the closest branch. Jeongguk scooted forward to grab his forearm and help pull him into the tree, breaking a twig or or two in the process and shaking up the whole tree.

   Within seconds, Taehyung was safely seated directly in front of Jeongguk, and neither of them could contain their wide smiles. Overjoyed to finally be with Jeongguk, Taehyung threw himself into the boy's chest and wrapped his arms around him tightly, taking in his calming scent and savoring it. He could almost smell the honey on him. Jeongguk chuckled and hugged him back just as hard.

   "Hi."

   "Hi."

   "I missed you, Tae." He paused. "But can we get down? The branch is squishing my balls and it kinda hurts."

   At this, Taehyung burst out laughing and released him. They each shimmied toward the trunk of the tree and Taehyung followed after Jeongguk as he began swinging down onto lower branches and inevitably getting dark green leaves stuck in his hair.

   They each jumped down and landed gracefully enough, though, Taehyung realized he was quite out of practice when he fell back onto his butt directly after landing. Jeongguk extended a hand toward him and helped him to his feet, but didn't let go after he was standing again. They swung their intertwined hands between them as they strolled out of the yard and into the road.

   "Where are we going?"

   "The park, I guess?"

   "Sounds good." The street was so quiet and empty as they walked together in the dark, with only the light of the moon and nearby houses with their porch lights on illuminating their path.

    Taehyung wasn't one to sneak out of the house, but he'd been doing lots of things he wouldn't normally do recently.

   The walk was so peaceful and quiet that he couldn't help but let his mind wander back and worry about that open window. But he'd gone too far now to turn back, wish Jeongguk a good night, and climb back in through the window, then into bed.

   That wasn't the only unresolved worry floating in his mind.

   "I looked for you when we were getting on the bus earlier. I thought we could sit together but..."

   "Oh! I'm sorry. Jimin told me what was going on so I thought I wasn't supposed to be with you at school," the boy apologized.

   Taehyung had the weird experience of having to say 'I told you so' to his own hyperactive, overthinking mind. Jeongguk was once again acting from good intentions. How long would it take for him to get used to that?

    Taehyung nodded, while rolling his eyes. "Yeah," he sighed. "But the bus should be fine."

    "'cause it's not at school?"

    "Mhm."

    "Tomorrow, then."

   And just moments later they were at the desolate park. Throughout the day it would be filled with giggling children being pushed on swings or shrieking toddlers going down slides while patient parents waited on benches or walked the length of the playground. But now, at nearly eleven, there was no one else but a lonesome sparrow perched on the bar of a swing set.

  Jeongguk toed at the mulch, tilting his head as he grinned.

   "What're you smiling at?"

   "Tag!" Jeongguk shouted. Taehyung felt his hand graze his back before he took off, sprinting across the playground they were both far too big for. Now, Taehyung shared his grin, quickly picking up his feet to chase after him. Chasing after Jeongguk was much more difficult than it sounded. By the time Taehyung had nearly caught up to him, he was just short of hyperventilating.

   They were making rapid laps around the playground, due to the fact that Jeongguk kept coming just inches away from Taehyung's reach and slipping away right before he got hold of him.

Just hold still long enough for me to catch you already-

   Once Taehyung's lungs were just about ready to collapse, and with just the slightest touch of his fingers to the boy's shoulder, Jeongguk was caught, and finally gave up, all while panting, giggling, and falling to his knees.

   Taehyung fell right beside him; spreading out on the mulch. "You... are... speedy," he huffed.

   The boy just smiled as he caught his breath.

   Taehyung was eventually encouraged to get up and climb on the the playset with Jeongguk. And to go down the slide with him. Literally, with him, in his lap. That was a tight squeeze.

Taehyung sat on the swing, ignoring the fact that it was quite small for him. It pushed his thighs close together, making his knees touch.
Despite it being uncomfortable, he kicked his legs out to start moving, but with the adrenaline in his blood settling down after all the running, he was getting a bit sleepy and didn't feel like putting in the effort to go high. He let his feet drag in the rut of kicked-up mulch below the swing on the way back down.

Jeongguk came behind him, and Taehyung looked over his shoulder, worried he would hit him. "Want me to push you?"

"Sure." Taehyung felt Jeongguk's palm push into his back, sending him into the air; cool night breeze hugging his body as he flew forward and fell back to get another push from Jeongguk. Back and forth, back and forth, with creaking chains and chirping crickets to keep their ears full while their mouths were closed and quiet.

Once Jeongguk's pushes started to come a little gentler and he wasn't going up so high anymore, Taehyung let his toes dig into the mulch to almost come to a stop; just slowly rocking now. He felt Jeongguk's arms slip over his shoulders. The boy's forearms rested over his chest, and Taehyung was sure he heard him hold his breath while he tentatively placed his chin on the top of his head.

Taehyung unhooked his arms from around the chains and wrapped his fingers around Jeongguk's wrists, pulling his arms in tighter to himself as if pulling on a coat. The weight of Jeongguk's body draped over his back was the most comforting thing he'd felt in quite some time.

After a period of stillness and subconsciously syncing their breathing, Jeongguk broke the silence with his amber voice. "Tae?"

Taehyung felt the buzz of his vocal chords as he spoke. He was so close.

"Mhm?"

"I guess we never really got to talk after.. yknow." Jeongguk paused to gather his thoughts up in a neat little heap. "Are you okay? What'd they say to you? They didn't hurt you, right?"

"I'm okay, Gguk. They didn't hit me."

"They yelled at you though, didn't they?"

He nodded. "It's fine."

"How long are you grounded?"

"Till graduation."

"What!?" He slipped away from Taehyung a little as he raised his voice. "Sorry, I didn't mean to yell in your ear"

"No worries, it didn't hurt. But... I'm also not supposed to talk to you anymore. Ever."

The boy just sighed, letting out a breath that was thick and dense with regret. Maybe not regret, but disappointment. His arms left Taehyung's shoulders and he paced behind the swing, now quite antsy. If it had only been just a little different. If only things had worked out for them. "This is my fault," he finally said. "I just.. got carried away, looking at y-"

While Jeongguk had worked himself up into a tizzy, getting too absorbed in his own pangs of guilt, Taehyung had stepped out of the swing and grabbed onto his collar to pull
him in. One, two, three steps in, Jeongguk was drug forward, until they were so close that even one deep inhale would have made their chests press together. Eyes wide, and frozen in their places, they stared at each other for the split second it took Taehyung to make his choice.

Come on, just do it- you've already gotten this far just do it-

   In his mind, Taehyung was telling himself to just hurry up and go for it- to press his lips against Jeongguk's. And maybe he would've done it, if it weren't for the sound of that old playground swing, still going back and forth on its own, creaking just like the hinges of his bedroom door.

   With the memory of the other night brought back to the front his mind, he suddenly felt his legs wobble. His grip on Jeongguk's collar went loose and he only had the courage to make contact with the boy's cheek; his head tilted to the right to steer clear of his lips.

   Not ready to meet his eyes again, Taehyung threw his arms around Jeongguk's neck and pressed his body in close, feeling the boy's arms settle around his waist. "It's not."

   But he wasn't sure how true his words sounded, after his moment of hesitation. Jeongguk would've had to have seen that Taehyung wanted to truly kiss him, but he didn't. How would that make him feel? 

If I know Jeongguk, it'll only make him feel more guilty.

   He worried about it all the way through the few more minutes they spent together at the park, then walking back to the neighborhood. However, once they parted and each finally headed off toward their own houses at about one-thirty, Taehyung had something else to worry about: how to get back inside as quietly as possible.

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾

im a tradigital artist now