leaves crunched and twigs snapped as you trudged through this miserable forest. your arm was practically about to fall off—dragging your best friend through the woods was no easy feat. you were doing great, or at least that’s what you told myself.

and, eventually, your breathing got more rapid as you begrudgingly started walking faster—and the thing is, you weren’t even aware. taking a quick glance at your best friend, heeseung, who was probably completely unconscious at the moment, you stopped—or, maybe, he wasn’t unconscious. you kneeled down on the slightly damp ground—of course it had started to rain. however, that wasn’t the matter that needed to be resolved. there it was again—heeseung's hand slightly twitched and, as if on cue, his eyes fluttered open.

“hey, i-” he started, wincing at the sharp pain in his abdomen. he moved his hand, clutching his side.

“don’t move,” you muttered, taking a peek at his wound—it was bad. “i really thought you were gonna die, hee.” you said, trying to hide the concerned tone in your voice—and it wasn’t working one bit.

“i would never die in these woods, especially not in front of you. it ruins my reputation, you know?” he says, his tone dripping with pure sarcasm. he just had to throw in another joke, didn’t he? so far, he was doing a good job at masking his pain, but you could see it clearly in his eyes. he was scared, and so were you.

“and if i really was dying, i’d tell you all the things i couldn’t tell you before.”

“so, hypothetically, say you were dying. what would you say?”

he paused, staring into your eyes for a moment, before finally answering. “i would say i liked you.” he said, the rain finally giving in and cascading around the both of you.

“hee. not…” you trailed off, completely and utterly confused.

“not platonically. i really do like you.” he says, finishing your sentence.