When Minho Was There • Minsung

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Jisung and Hyunjin spent a couple more minutes discussing their drawings, and Jisung even let Hyunjin briefly flip through his sketchbook.

The two decided they better get back to work, and so Jisung situated himself back on the grass, grabbing his pencil and getting ready to draw.

"Better hurry up and finish your drawing." Hyunjin said, dipping his paintbrush into a lime-colored green. "Before the new folks move in."

Jisung froze. Surely he'd misheard.

Hyunjin kept speaking, not noticing how quiet Jisung had become. "The new renovations are underway."

He turned to face Hyunjin, brows furrowed and lips pulled into a deep frown. This was the first time he'd heard of it.

"What?"

✧

Jisung wasn't sure what he was doing. One minute he was sitting on the grass, talking to Hyunjin, and the next he was rushing through the shallow water on his way to the mansion.

As he got closer, that's when he noticed all the construction workers. There was no more quietness; instead, there was the buzz of chainsaws and the clanking of riveting guns. Hyunjin was right; they were renovating the mansion.

He should've come earlier. Not that it would've changed the fact that new people were moving in, but to see the house one last time before it was completely remodeled. If only he hadn't been so caught up in his feelings.

What about Minho? What about the guests? His parents? Nan? The maids? Where did they go?

The house was starting to become unrecognizable as he got closer. There were tarps covering some of the windows, buckets of paint left in the sun, and red ladders that stretched up to the second floor.

Jisung watched as the workers moved, not paying any mind to him. The only thing that made him even more confused was the rattling that came from one of the windows, the window from Minho's bedroom. Jisung squinted his eyes, trying to figure out what was causing the noise. That's when he saw him—a boy now younger than him was pressed up against the window, struggling to open it.

He must be one of the news owners.

After a few seconds of pushing and shoving, the window finally gave way and bursted open, the boy almost falling backwards at the force.

Jisung didn't move; he just watched. That was, until the boy looked down, eyes trailing over the waters, and then paused at Jisung.

I've been caught.

He quickly pivoted on his heels, getting ready to wade back through the water, retrieve his sketchbook, and head home.

"Are you Minho?" A single voice broke through all the noise, and Jisung knew that it was the boy speaking to him. He turned around, cocking an eyebrow.

Who is that boy, and why does he think I'm Minho?

✧

One thing led to another, and now Jisung was following the stranger across the street. He'd never seen this side of the mansion before, and apparently the front entrance was even grander than he'd imagined it to be. Jisung had always stayed near the back of the house, so it was interesting to see the entire building.