my sweetest love // bnd hyeokmyungz

2. "my favourite loser."

Jaehyun liked his best friend a lot.

Every time he took a simple glance at Lee Sanghyeok or even thought about him, he got these awful butterflies in his stomach. The sudden revelation of his feelings for Sanghyeok made him extremely happy and excited to actually be in love with someone. Even if it was one of his closest friends, he still felt elated with this newfound feeling.

Was it love? Maybe not yet? A really deep crush? Maybe. Regardless of what it was, Jaehyun enjoyed being so happy to just think of someone. To simply get excited to see someone was a beautiful feeling. He remembered the exact moment he realised he liked Sanghyeok — the second he started looking at his friend differently, he knew. Jaehyun knew he was quite in touch with his feelings, and he knew what he was feeling the second he saw Sanghyeok differently.

"Your mom is gonna yell at you again."

Jaehyun glanced down from his spot on the rooftop of his family home, smiling as he saw the boy he liked standing at his window with crossed arms. "She doesn't know I'm up here."

"She'll know anyway when the neighbours come complaining again," Sanghyeok said, climbing out his window to sit on the ledge. "Are you okay, though? You don't usually sit up there unless you're... overwhelmed."

"I'm fine, Sanghyeok — just thinking about you."

"Of course you are."

Jaehyun offered a carefree smile to the other as he shifted ever so slightly. "Join me, my sweetheart."

"I'm not your sweetheart."

"Just come up here."

"Jaehyun, my dad would kill me."

"I'll cover for you," Jaehyun scoffed, patting the space beside him. "You won't get into trouble, I swear. I'll wait for you."

Sanghyeok seemed to sigh to himself before disappearing into his room. Jaehyun stared up the sky, humming an unknown tune to himself. He closed his eyes for a moment, his mind once again filling with the thought of the boy he had a crush on. Simply thinking of Sanghyeok's name made him giddy.

"I haven't done this in a while..."

Jaehyun flicked his head in time to see Sanghyeok lifting himself to the roof covering the balcony to his parents' bedroom, grunting and  whining in complaint as he finally managed to raise himself to the roof. Jaehyun laughed, watching as Sanghyeok successfully got onto the roof. "You're doing well for someone that doesn't climb roofs very often."

"Shut up. I'm not coming to your side, though. I can't jump that gap."

"Then just sit with me."

Sanghyeok sat on the dark grey tiling of his roof, legs crossed as he faced Jaehyun. The two sat in silence, smiles decorating their expressions. Sanghyeok put his hands into his pockets as he tilted his head. "I'm here now — now what?"

"Nothing, I just wanted to be with you," Jaehyun answered with a chuckle as Sanghyeok playfully sent him a glare. "I wanted to ask, actually — why don't you want to be with me?"

Sanghyeok fell silent, staring down at the rooftop tiles. His heart felt heavy, for some reason — maybe because Jaehyun sounded hurt. HIs serious gaze was something Sanghyeok wasn't used to. "Jaehyun, we can't be together because my life sucks, okay? I need to figure myself out before I let myself fall in love."

"I really like you, Sanghyeok."

"I know."

"And I like you enough to wait." Jaehyun was smiling again. "I'll wait until the day you say you hate me. I will never stop liking you, Sanghyeok."

"Just give me some time, okay?" the other sighed, finally glancing up at his friend. "I don't know, maybe I'm scared of commitment. Maybe I'm scared of what my dad would say. Maybe I'm scared of...—"

"I'll do anything to be with you, Sanghyeok," Jaehyun said firmly. "I know your parents probably hate me because of who I am, but I'll change for them if they want me to."

"Don't ever change, Jaehyun. I'd hate myself if you changed for me. We're friends because you're unashamedly yourself — it's why I haven't left yet."

"So I still have a chance...?"

"If you promise to never change, then yes."

Jaehyun was grinning excitedly at those words, standing up from the rooftop and carefully balancing himself. Sanghyeok frowned in confusion for a moment before realising what Jaehyun was about to do. "Lee Sanghyeok!"

"Jaehyun—!"

"I love you so much! To the moon and back! From the bottom of my heart!"

"Jaehyun, shut up already! My dad's gonna hear you!" Sanghyeok hissed, glancing about nervously. Jaehyun laughed, finally meeting Sanghyeok's eyes. "This is somehow more embarrassing than last week..."

"I love shouting my love for you from the rooftops," Jaehyun smiled. "I want everyone to know that I am madly in love with you."

"You're such a doofus, honestly," Sanghyeok sighed as he shook his head. "I still don't understand why it's me. I'm not interesting. I'm boring, I'm a loser, I can't skateboard..."

"You're my favourite loser, okay?" Jaehyun smiled, tilting his head fondly. "Loser or not, I like you. If love had an explanation to someone as dumb as me, I would be overthinking how I feel about you all the time. But I'm just an idiot in love, and I'm more than okay with that."

Sanghyeok couldn't help but smile. "You really are an idiot in love."

The two fell quiet when they heard hurried shuffling and a window quickly opening from Jaehyun's house. "Yah! Myung Jaehyun! Get down from there immediately!"

"Mom!"

"Why are you yelling about Sanghyeokie aga—?! Oh, he's over here. Hello, sweetheart!"

Sanghyeok laughed as he bowed his head politely. "Good evening, Mrs Myung."

Jaehyun's mother gave the boy a sweet smile. "Please tell my son to get off the roof before his father takes away his skateboard for a week and he throws a tantrum like a child every day until he gets it back."

"I'm getting down!" Jaehyun exclaimed weakly as he made his way onto the balcony of his family home. "I'll see you tomorrow, Sanghyeok-ah!"

Sanghyeok laughed as he waved to his friend, bowing to Jaehyun's mother before the two promptly left. Sanghyeok was left all alone on his rooftop. He sighed softly to himself, wondering how he would sneak into his house quietly without his parents seeing him. However, that was the thought furthest in his mind. Jaehyun was awfully serious about him, and he found it quite endearing — but Sanghyeok didn't know if he was ready to be in love.

Especially with Jaehyun.