The Art of Cheating | changlix

Question 14

Excited Over Simple Things
-

Sunday afternoon, long after Changbin and Felix had woke up, they had finally begun to sort through all of Changbin's stuff to find everything that Hyunjin had ever given him.

Most of the stuff was hoodies and a large stack of polaroids, with a couple other knickknacks put in the pile too. Changbin wiped the sweat off his forehead, it being hot in his room despite the cold weather outside. Standing from his squatting position, Changbin looked at Felix, who had went out to get matches.

"You got everything?" Felix asked, a somber smile on his face. Changbin nodded, picking up half the pile as Felix grabbed the other half. The freckled boy scrunched his face in disgust, making his freckles scrunch up in a way Changbin adored. "What kind of cologne did he use?"

Changbin laughed, shaking his head in a joking disappointment while leading the way to the back door. Once outside, the sky was shaded in light purples that faded to pink and then oranges. The cherry on top to the perfect scene being the shadow of the luminous moon that was still climbing up from the horizon.

The still, freezing air pricked Changbin's skin, his teeth almost chattering at the bitterness of the cold. He went to the middle of his small back yard, where it was clear of any trees. He laid everything gently on the ground, not wanting anything to get away. Felix followed suit, standing up and backing away to give Changbin a moment.

Changbin was content. He felt like the bonfire he was hosting tonight would heal him, even if it was just a little. He was happy to know Felix understood this was hard.

Burning his stuff hurt, even if many thought it shouldn't. Changbin loved this boy for over a year of his life. Loved, cared, his world revolved around this boy. This boy made him happy before he did what he did. The boy was the love of his life.

With a deep sigh, Changbin turned his body with an outstretched hand. Felix gave him an understanding look, placing the box of matches in Changbin's hand as the shorter boy stood next to him. He pulled out one match, taking a brief moment to let this feeling sink in. A feeling of guilt, contrasted with a feeling of freedom. A feeling of peace.

This singular match was the start of what was going to let him out of a prison of darkness.

Changbin was ready, and he lit the small, flammable object, and threw into the pile of stuff Changbin was glad to get rid of.

Everything except for one thing.

-

Changbin rested his head on Felix's shoulder, letting out a lengthy sigh. His chest felt lighter, the world seemed calmer, and he was a hell of a lot more hotter. The fire was close to dying, but it still provided enough warmth to keep the two of them from going inside.

"I'm not going to say I'm proud because it's too cliche, even though I am," Felix started, turning his head slightly, his cheek now touching Changbin's forehead. "I'm happy for you. I'm glad you're trying to heal."

Changbin grinned, snuggling closer to Felix on the blanket they had set on the ground. "Thank you."

"Your welcome." Felix said, tone soft and welcoming, as always.

"I feel like I don't tell you that enough." The shorter boy muttered, wrapping his arms tighter around Felix.

Felix moved Changbin's face to look at him slowly, giving him a smile. He pecked the boy's forehead quickly before he said, "don't worry about it. You don't have to tell me at all."

Nodding, Changbin laid his head back on Felix's shoulder, a large, goofy grin painting his face. He felt butterflies in his stomach, but disregarded them.

Felix and all of his freckles made Changbin so happy. So content.

Felix unwrapped one of his arms from around Changbin, pointing to the vast, dark blue sky. "The stars finally decided to come out!"

You wouldn't be able to see the freckles on Felix's face, but Changbin knew they were there. He imagined how they were cutely scrunched up due to the big smile Felix had on his face whenever he got excited over simple things. Even if the simple thing was something Changbin could explain right off the top of his head with science.

Changbin never got excited over simple things, though he appreciated them.

"What are you thinking about?" Felix whispered, and Changbin could feel his heart warm and a smile crawl onto his lips subconsciously.

Changbin looked up, kissing Felix's cheek before muttering, "you."

His freckles were probably tinted pink now, but you couldn't see it. Changbin laughed, knowing how he undoubtedly made Felix flustered. Nudging the short boys side, Felix said, "and what about me?"

"How you get excited over simple things. It makes me happy. I don't do that. My parents don't do that. People I'm close to don't do that, but you do. It makes me happy. You make me happy." Changbin said, his tone nothing but adoration and happiness.

"You do get excited over simple things though." Felix pointed out, holding Changbin's face gently in his hands. Changbin noticed how soft they were, and how he could faintly see those amazing freckles dotting the other boys face like tiny paint splatters.

"Like what?" Changbin cocked his head to the side, noticing how Felix's eyes creased into crescents when he smiled. His heart almost jumped out of his chest.

"When I make Hamilton references, you do this little clap thing that I find utterly adorable. When you get perfect scores on test you thought you'd fail, you bounce in your seat, and you tell everyone, not because you were trying to boast, but because you were simply proud of yourself. When a song you like comes on the radio, you can sing every word of it and then you're in a good mood just because you knew every word to a song you'll stop listening to once it stops playing on the radio." Felix listed, bringing Changbin into a hug.

"God, you make me so happy because you get excited over simple things. Just because they're not the same things I get excited over doesn't mean they aren't simple." Felix said, pushing Changbin out of the hug to kiss his forehead. "You make me so happy because even though you go through shit, you come out better, you come out of the darkness ready to heal and move on."

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

It was a simple moment. Simple, one syllable words, that made up such a simple yet big moment in their lives. A simple action of putting his mouth on the others and holding it there.

That moment alone changed their lives, just like many other simple yet complex moments had before and would after.

Changbin got excited over the simple thing called love. He could see it through the darkness, the excited smile Felix got over the simple things.

"Boyfriends?" Felix asked, leading the two of them back into Changbin's house because the fire had finally died and it had begun to get cold again.

Changbin laughed, squeezing Felix's warm hand. "Yeah."

A simple word.