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"Let's play on the swings!"
The male pulls Taeyong gently by the hand, guiding him to the swing set. "You sit down, I'll push." He offers, to which the latter shook his head. "You go first, Hyunnie. I'll push."
Jaehyun snorts, "Your noodles arms are weak, Yongie! I'm much stronger." He puffs his chest out confidently. "Fine, okay. I'll let you push this time." Taeyong huffs, gripping the metal chain tight.
The eight year-olds played for quite awhile, taking turns until they were both sweaty and tired from the afternoon sun. "Wait here, I'll go get our water bottles." Jaehyun runs off, leaving the boy alone.
A while later he returns, frowning at a few newcomers that were laughing loudly. He spots Taeyong in the middle, looking very uncomfortable. One of the boys proceed to push his best friend off the swing, igniting a surge of anger in Jaehyun who ran as fast as he could.
He didn't care that they were older than him, his fists mercilessly pounding every part his little hands could reach. The bullies ran away, screaming with threats that they'd tell their parents.
"Yongie, please don't cry.." He hugs his best friend, noting that his palms and knees were scraped. Taeyong hiccuped, cheeks flushed pink. "H-Hyunnie, you're hurt!" He sobs, caressing the male's bruised knuckles.
"I'm okay, I told you I'm strong!"
The boy doesn't seem convinced, tears spilling from his doe-eyes as his lips trembled. Jaehyun sighs, leaning their foreheads together with his hands cupping his best friend's smaller face.
"Don't worry. I'm your superhero, remember? Superheroes get hurt sometimes too."
That made a lot more sense to the eight year-old who broke into a small smile. The male pops his dimples, reaching into his pocket for a lollipop. He always kept them because it was Taeyong's favourite.
"Here, eat this. It's a special spell that'll make you happy again."
"Okay."
As the boy sucked on his strawberry-flavoured lollipop, Jaehyun piggybacked him all the way home. Mrs. Lee thanks him for taking care of Taeyong, making him his favourite tuna gimbaps after tending to his wounds.
Later, she calls to let Mrs. Jeong from next door to let her know that her son would be spending the night at her house to which the mother agreed.
That night, the two cuddled close on Taeyong's bed, plastic glow-in-the-dark stars stuck to the ceiling. The boy buries his face in Jaehyun's chest, listening to his gentle heartbeats. The male made him feel safe, an arm draped around his shoulders.
"Hyunnie?"
"Hm?"
"You were sobrave today, beating up those boys." The boy utters in a soft whisper. "Why did you do it? Aren't you afraid that you'll get into trouble?"
Jaehyun laughs, "I don't care. Superheroes always do the right thing to protect people, especially the ones they love." His gaze softens at his best friend. "I had to save you from those evil boys!"
It was Taeyong's turn to giggle, his pearly white teeth in full display. "Does that mean you love me, Hyunnie?" He questions, earning a tight squeeze from the other. "Of course I do. I love you so much, Yongie!" He whines with a small pout.
"I love you too, my superhero!" The boy squeaks, kissing Jaehyun's cheek. It was a good thing the room was dark, or else he would never hear the end of Taeyong teasing his tomato-red face.
Their innocence knew no bounds, the beauty of their friendship promising to blossom into something sweeter as time goes by.
