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The frozen air filled Yunho’s lungs as he stepped outside. The stuffy, overcrowded house had started to get to his head, as had the endless questions from his relatives. Why hadn’t he progressed in his career? Where was his wife? What about kids? Had he gained weight? Had he lost weight? Why wasn’t he eating? Why didn’t he eat more? It was all too much. The most wonderful time of the year always felt a little too much like the most terrible. A breath of fresh air – a minute or two to himself was all he asked for.
A murky, overcast sky reflected the light from the city in the distance, along with the lights from the obnoxiously decorated house to the side of his childhood home. A light flurry of puffy snow dusted his shoulders and melted onto his nose. He hadn’t appreciated how cold it was until he rushed out the door without a coat or a hat, his breath in the air was a cold reminder that he could only have so much time to himself.
“Yunho?” a voice called out.
He whipped around to the door, ready to scold whoever had disturbed his moment of peace, but there was nobody there.
“Yunho,” the voice chimed again. And from the snow appeared Mingi.
A young lifetime's worth of memories flooded his mind. Mingi. Mingi, the boy that was at every one of his childhood birthday parties. Mingi, who he sat with at the lunch table every single day. Mingi, who was always around to play when he needed another imaginative mind. Endless sleepovers, camping out on the lawn, learning to drive, finishing high school, saying goodbye when Yunho left for college, losing touch…
“Yunho! You look great! How have you been?” Mingi asked as he pulled him into a tight hug.
“Oh my gosh, Mingi. You – how long has it been?”
“A decade give or take?” Mingi laughed. “What are you doing out here in the cold? And without a jacket?”
“Oh, I was just, you know, taking a break.”
“Ah, I see. Well, if that’s all you were doing, would you maybe want to come over and help me – I don’t know – move something heavy? And by that I mean have some hot chocolate and catch up ?”
“Yes. Absolutely, yes. I would love to.”
And into that obnoxiously decorated house they went. If it weren’t for the invention of LED bulbs it would have been a fire hazard. The inside was just as covered in endless decorations. And probably some tripping hazards. But oh did Mingi look brilliant under all those lights.
Their first few moments reunited were probably awkward. But their closeness transcended time and kept them from noticing it. Yunho was just as comfortable with his old friend as he would have been when they were 3 or 6 or 10. And that house still felt like his second home.
“Your parents out shopping?” Yunho asked.
“Oh yeah. In Europe.”
“Europe?”
“Yup. They’re doing one of those eight-week tour things. I’m house-sitting.”
“So…did they decorate before they left?”
“Nope. I did it all. What do you think?”
“Well, I’m not surprised in the slightest.”
“Alright, maybe I didn’t have to put up every string of lights I could find,” Mingi laughed. “Now, how bitter do you like your hot chocolate?”
“You don’t actually have to make me anything. I’m just happy to have a place to warm up.”
“But I have really cute marshmallows shaped like snowflakes!”
Yunho smiled, “Then make it however you want.”
After pulling his sleeves up his forearms, Mingi turned his back and got to work.
Yunho settled at the kitchen table and reminisced on all the time he’d spent there as a kid – all the meals and snacks prepared by Mingi’s mom that comforted him after long days of playing. He thought back on a particular day, much like the one they were in, when the air stung his nose and nipped at his skin. They’d spent the day building snowmen and wrestling in the glittering snow. It was the first time he was criticized by his parents for playing at such an “old” age. The last day they truly played together in an imaginative world of joy and laughter, right on the edge of childhood and at the cusp of adolescence; it was the first time something felt different when he looked at Mingi.
To say he’d aged well would be an understatement. To the point that Yunho almost felt guilty at how shamelessly he’d been ogling him. His dark green sweater didn’t allow for the contours of his back to show through, but it certainly accentuated his frame. As did the gray sweatpants cinched at his waist.
“You just home for the holidays?” Mingi asked, snapping Yunho out of his loving trance.
“What? Oh. Yeah. Work starts up again in January. And you?”
“I still live nearby. You know those cute little cottages by the river?”
“It's probably so beautiful this time of year.”
“It's gorgeous year-round, honestly.”
“Well, that’s nice. I’ll bet your parents love having you so close.”
“I love it too.”
“I think I’d go insane if I lived that close to my parents.”
“Oh, come on. You’re only saying that because this time of year is so crazy. Try coming to see them on a boring, average weekend.”
“I’ve tried that.”
“Have you? I mean, in the last seven or eight years?” Mingi prepped some mugs as he spouted wisdom. “I thought my heart was going to pop out of my chest when I saw you standing out there. It’s been that long since I’ve seen you around here.”
“Okay! I get it.” Yunho laughed. “I’ll try harder to visit.”
“Good.” Mingi sat down, “I wouldn’t mind a visit every once in a while.”
The innocence in Mingi’s eyes threw Yunho into a state of vulnerability he hadn’t felt since they were teenagers, sparking something he’d buried deep in his heart. The brilliant and intricately shaped marshmallows in their mugs signified Mingi’s endless sweetness, and Yunho's never-ending desire to cherish him.
“You know, I’m really sorry I didn’t keep in touch with you, Mingi.”
“Don’t worry about it. I know life can get in the way. Other things take priority.”
“But we were so close. You should have been a priority.”
“We were close, weren’t we? Really close.”
“Mingi, you were my best friend. The best friend I’ve ever had.”
“Right. Friends.” Mingi pursed his lips into a partial, but fake, smile, “We were…such good friends.”
“Is something wrong?”
“No. Of course not. I just – I made the hot chocolate too hot to drink. My bad.”
“Mingi, come on. You’re still as easy to read as you were back then.” Yunho scooted his chair to sit right beside Mingi, “Are you mad at me? It's okay if you are.”
“No! It's not that. I wouldn’t be doing this if I was mad.” Mingi smiled down at the marshmallows dissolving in his mug, “It's just – I have a little secret.”
“What kind of secret?”
“The embarrassing kind. The kind that might make you want to run out of here.”
“It would take something pretty bad to make me want to go back home right now, Mingi. Come on.” Yunho placed a hand on Mingi’s shoulder and shook him the way he would have all those years ago when a secret needed to be shared. “I won’t tell anyone. I never have. I still have all your secrets locked up tight.”
“Oh, God. Please tell me you don’t remember the one about the goldfish.”
“I do now. And the one about the fire extinguisher. And what you did in the community garden…”
“Okay! Okay.” Mingi huffed, “But you have to promise not to run out of here. And promise not to tell anyone.”
“Yeah, that's kinda how secrets work.”
“Alright, well,” Mingi sighed, “I used to have the biggest crush on you.”
“You – you did?”
“Um, yeah. You know – you were just always so nice to me. You looked out for me. You knew how much I needed a little extra help. And then, when we were, I don’t know, 16? It just… happened.”
“16?”
“Mhmm.”
“You had a crush on me…” Yunho repeated like he was trying to convince himself. “I think mine really started when we were 14.”
“Your – what?”
“My crush on you.”
Mingi chuckled, “ You had a crush on me ?”
“Isn’t it hard when you love someone as a friend your whole life, then everything just falls apart?”
“Well, I guess it's in the past, now. It's a shame we didn’t tell each other sooner.”
Yunho pouted, “Are you taken, now?”
“What? No. Are you?”
“Nope. Single.”
“Oh.”
“Listen, I know it's been a long time but maybe we could –”
Cut off by a chaste kiss, Yunho’s eyes went wide with admiration and a gentle satisfaction he didn’t know he craved so deeply. Mingi. His Mingi. His best friend and confidant stuck to his lips and pulled him closer. Mingi, loving and gentle Mingi .
Yunho wrapped his arms around Mingi and pulled him against his body, nearly falling out of his chair in the process. He fought against his smile to keep a steady connection but gave up when he started to giggle. Every touch tickled, every spark was amplified by the lights shining through the windows, and the smell of chocolate in the air made everything a little sweeter.
Mingi pulled back, “Gosh – I’m sorry. I don’t know what got into me. I –”
“Don’t be sorry. Please.” He grabbed Mingi’s hand and tilted his chin to keep their eyes locked, “Thank you, Mingi. That meant so much to me. Really.”
“Could this really be something real? Could we really try?”
“I’d love to learn your heart again, Mingi.”
“It hasn’t changed much.”
“Even better. I’d always hoped you stayed as kind and creative as you were all those years ago. I think the hot chocolate and the lights on the house prove both are still true.”
“Oh no!” Mingi gasped as sorrow clouded his face. “Our hot chocolate is going to get cold.”