double take | renmin

19

The car ride back to Renjun's house was a long and uncomfortable one. Though Renjun and I were both exhausted, neither of us could sleep in fear that we'd never wake up, because of one of my parents murdering us in our sleep. It was a bit extreme for us to worry about something like that, but since I've known my parents, I've known them to be quite homophobic.

The car tires seemed to bump on every small rock and pebble it rolled over, resulting in a physically and mentally uncomfortable ride. You could say that it was a long ass ride. "Are they mad?" Renjun whispered to me. Our hands were holding eachother's, both sweating from nerves, but we couldn't care less since this may or may not be the last time either of us had hands. 

"I hope not." I replied, licking my lips afterwards. The car seemed to stop sooner than later. I gave my boyfriend a quick peck when I was sure my parents were looking away— or I guess not, because when I turned back around, I met my father's evil glare through the rear view mirror. I sucked in a shaky breath, rubbing Renjun's hands and helping Renjun with his luggage. 

I trudged my feet against the concrete walkway to my boyfriend's front door, fully cautious of my parents death glares in our direction. I leaned in for a stiff hug, immediately thriving from the feeling of Renjun's arms wrapped around my back. "Stay safe. I'll miss you." I said, voice low so my parents couldn't hear. "You too. I'll miss you too." Renjun said quietly. "And thank you for inviting me. I'm glad I went." Renjun smiled softly. "Yeah, me too." I watched his careful eyes as he swallowed his nerves.

"I'm sorry." 

Those two words hung in the air as if they were the only things existing in the entire universe. No other words were needed to know how he felt. Renjun's brows furrowed and I watched as his eyes slowly became teary. "Hey, it's okay. Don't be. It's not your fault." I tried, wiping away the only teardrop Renjun let escape from his watery eyes.

"We'll figure this out okay?" Renjun nodded. "I love you." I reminded him. I expected silence to follow after my statement, but a soft voice filled my ears. 

"I love you too." Despite our circumstances, I felt a jolt of happiness splurge through my chest, a feeling of pure joy and excitement blossoming from within. I couldn't hide my grin, stretching out from one side of my face to the other. I bit my lip at an attempt to silence my laugh, but it was pointless. 

My laughter rang out, unstoppable or mutable. I couldn't have been any happier in that moment. Renjun smiled too, letting out a few unmissable giggles that fluttered in the wind like fallen leaves, unable to avoid the effect of my contagious laughter. 

I forced myself to stop, my smile still contagious to the other male. "Well, I guess this is goodbye for now." I said. Renjun nodded. "Take care." I watched the smaller, pull his front door open, closes it behind him. His voice announced an I'm home just as I walked away from his front door.

I slid back into the backseat. Feeling emptier now that the prescence of my boyfriend wasn't around to keep me company. "Jaemin." My father's voice bellowed just as I shut the car door. I cleared my throat, replying with a simple yes in hopes that it wouldn't somehow be the wrong way to answer. 

"You lied to us." My father started the car. "You pretended to be our straight son. What happened to you? Did that boy force you to like him?" I almost laughed at his illogical assumptions. "I didn't lie. You never asked, but I also fell for him first." I admitted. I wasn't sure if they'd believe me either way, but it was worth trying. 

"When did you find out?" My mother's voice piped up. I relaxed into the black cushions in the backseat, feeling like this might not turn out as horribly as I'd thought it would. "I always knew." My mother sighed, placing her hand on her forehead rather stressfully. Maybe this conversation would be as bad as I thought.