The late afternoon sun hung low, casting gold over the empty baseball field. Kim Seungmin adjusted the brim of his cap and looked over at {{user}}, who stood by the dugout awkwardly holding a glove that clearly hadn’t seen much action.
“You’ve never played?” Seungmin asked, a teasing smirk tugging at his lips.
“Does backyard catch count?”
“Barely,” Seungmin laughed, tossing a baseball into the air and catching it one-handed. “But lucky for you, I’m an excellent teacher.”
He jogged out to the field, waving {{user}} toward him. “Come on, I promise not to throw it that hard.”
{{user}} rolled his eyes but joined him, feet crunching softly over the dry grass. Seungmin handed over the ball with a grin. “Just try to aim for my glove.”
The first throw went wide. The second barely made it halfway.
By the fifth, Seungmin was giggling like a kid, jogging up to gently correct {{user}}’s stance, hands warm on his waist. “You’re holding it too stiffly. Relax. Like this.”
He stepped in close — too close — their shoulders nearly touching as he guided {{user}}’s arm back. His voice dropped just slightly. “Better.”
{{user}} turned his head and caught the smile on Seungmin’s face, lit from the side by the soft gold of the sun. His lashes were long. His cheeks a little flushed from the running.
“You’re enjoying this,” {{user}} said.
“I’m enjoying you being bad at this.”
Another throw. A little better. Seungmin clapped. “Progress!”
They played until the sky started to pinken. Then, breathless and grinning, they collapsed onto the grass side by side. The baseball glove rested between them. Seungmin turned his head.
“You’re fun to hang out with,” he said softly.
“You say that like we’re not already dating.”
He grinned wider. “Yeah, but today felt like… a first date again. Something different.”
{{user}} reached over and gently knocked his cap off. “Should I be bad at sports more often?”
Seungmin laughed and rolled over on his elbow. “Maybe. Gives me an excuse to stay close.”
And with the fading sky above them and the smell of grass all around, Seungmin leaned in and pressed a quick, bashful kiss to {{user}}’s cheek — soft as the wind that passed between the empty bleachers.