The walk away from school felt different, charged with an energy that Eunwoo couldn't quite understand. He walked beside Minjae, each step feeling like a question hanging in the air between them. Minjae wasn't saying anything, but the way his eyes darted over to Eunwoo every few seconds made Eunwoo's pulse quicken. It was like they were on the edge of something, but neither knew which direction to jump in.
They ended up at the park a few blocks from school, a quiet place where they'd both spent time before, but never like this. The swings creaked as the wind stirred, the faint rustle of leaves filling the silence. Eunwoo sat down on a bench, his hands resting in his lap. He could feel the heat of Minjae standing beside him, but the space between them felt vast.
"So..." Eunwoo began, not quite sure what he was supposed to say. It felt too easy to let the silence stretch out longer.
Minjae, however, took a deep breath, his shoulders slightly tensing before he finally spoke. "I've been thinking a lot lately," he said, his voice steady but low, like he was trying to make sure Eunwoo didn't miss a word. "About... us."
Eunwoo's heart skipped, the weight of Minjae's words pressing down on him like a wave. He had known this was coming, but it didn't make it any easier.
"I don't know what's happening between us, Eunwoo," Minjae continued. "But I know it's... something. I can't keep pretending it's not."
Eunwoo felt his throat go dry. He had wanted this—had wanted to talk to Minjae, to understand what was happening between them—but now that the moment was here, he wasn't sure he was ready for it.
"Minjae," he started, his voice betraying the uncertainty he felt. "I... I don't know either. Things have been so weird between us lately, and I don't even know how to explain it. I don't know what I'm feeling."
Minjae sat down beside him, close enough that Eunwoo could feel the warmth of his body, but not so close that they touched. For a moment, they just sat there, side by side, the tension palpable. Eunwoo's mind raced, and for a second, he felt lost in it—his emotions tangled in knots, he couldn't untangle.
"I've never felt like this before," Minjae said after a long pause, his voice softer now. "I don't know if it's something I should ignore or something I should act on, but I can't stop thinking about it. About you."
Eunwoo's heart lurched at the words, the weight of them sinking deep into his chest. He wanted to respond, wanted to say something that would make sense of everything, but his mind was blank, the words stuck in his throat.
Minjae looked over at him, his expression unreadable. "I'm sorry if this is too much. If it's too sudden."
Eunwoo shook his head quickly. "No. It's not that. It's just... I'm scared, Minjae. I don't know what's going to happen if we try to figure this out. And I don't want to hurt anyone."
Minjae's gaze softened, and for a moment, Eunwoo saw something vulnerable in his eyes—something that made the walls Eunwoo had built around his heart crack just a little.
"I don't want to hurt anyone either," Minjae said quietly. "But I also don't want to keep pretending like nothing's happening between us. I don't want to ignore what's here. What's real."
Eunwoo took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. The truth was, he didn't know what was real anymore. The feelings he had for Minjae were so strong, so unexpected, that he was still trying to process them. He wasn't ready to give up on his friendship with Hyunwoo, and the idea of confessing his feelings for Minjae felt like opening a door to something he wasn't sure he could close again.
"I don't know if I'm ready for this," Eunwoo said softly. "I don't know if I'm ready to figure this out. I just... I need time."
Minjae didn't look disappointed, though. Instead, he seemed to understand, his expression softening into something like acceptance.
"Take all the time you need," Minjae replied, his voice calm but firm. "I'm not going anywhere."
For a brief moment, Eunwoo allowed himself to believe that maybe, just maybe, things could work out. He didn't know what the future held, but in that moment, he felt a little less alone. The weight of the unspoken was still there, but somehow, it felt lighter.
They sat there for a long time, not speaking, just sharing the quiet. The world seemed to slow down, as if it were giving them the space to breathe, to think, to feel.
For the first time in a long while, Eunwoo allowed himself to believe in the possibility of something more.