The operators already had the wheel's light on by the time they reached it. It was getting dark pretty quickly. Wonwoo bit his lip in impatience. They might not make it to the top before the sun completely sets. They waited in a short line and were on the wheel within the next three minutes. 

As the ride moved up slowly, Wonwoo glanced at Mingyu. they younger's hands were gripped on the edge of the seat in a discreet manner as if he was trying to hide them. His white knuckles looked as if they were becoming a part of the seat; they were almost the same shade. Mingyu was frozen like a statue as he stared at a pink stain in the middle of the small booth. They only way you could tell he wasn't a statue were his quiet wheezes which got louder the higher they went. 

That's when it hit Wonwoo. "You're afraid of heights," he said, feeling a little like an idiot for not realizing sooner. 

Mingyu opened his mouth and managed an almost silent, "No."

Wonwoo almost laughed. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"If you didn't find out now, you would have found out sooner or later."

Wonwoo would have moved to sit next to Mingyu but thought better of it since the booth would most likely sway in result of the movement. "Are you okay?"

"I'm perfect," the other said. He shot a grin at Wonwoo before focusing on the pink splotch again. "Um, how long does this last?"

"Ten to fifteen minutes tops. You're not going to pass out, are you?"

"No. I won't throw up either if that's what you're worried about."

I'm worried about you, Wonwoo almost said. God, this boy was messing with his mind. "Good to know," he said instead. 

They stopped at the top of the ferris wheel. It gave them the perfect view of what was left of the sunset. Wonwoo lifted his camera and snapped a couple of pictures, careful not to move too much. When he was done, he focused his attention back on the male across from him. 

"You're sweating," he pointed out. 

Mingyu slowly reached up and wiped the sweat from his brow. His breath hitched when the booth swayed slightly. 

"You should have said something," Wonwoo said with a sigh.

The turquoise-haired male opened his mouth then closed it. One of the white lights on the wheel illuminated Mingyu's face, and Wonwoo could see a slight blush. He could only imagine what Mingyu had decided not to say. 

"What's your favorite color?" Mingyu asked, lifting his head to look at Wonwoo. 

"Blue." 

Mingyu glanced down at his blue sweater and grinned. Wonwoo shouldn't have said anything. It didn't help that he thought Mingyu looked good in blue. 

"Did you used to come here often?" Mingyu went on to ask. 

Wonwoo didn't want to answer that particular question, but it seemed to be distracting Mingyu from his fear. "Yeah, my friend, Jihoon, and I used to come all the time with my dad."

"Jihoon? Does he go to our school?"

"Nah, he goes to Attacca High," the other replied. "He actually works with me at the library."

"Seungcheol goes to Attacca High. Same with my friend Chan, and Seungkwan's crush, Hansol," Mingyu mentioned. When Wonwoo didn't answer, he said, "When was the last time you were here?"

"A couple of years ago," Wonwoo said carefully. He started messing with buttons on his camera. "So, are you ever going to tell me what's so important about today?"

Mingyu smirked and leaned forward slowly. Wonwoo noticed the younger wasn't holding on as tightly to the seat as he had been at the start of the ride. "I want you to guess," Mingyu said. 

Wonwoo stared blankly at him in thought. "I suck at guessing things," he grumbled after he came up with nothing. So many things were going through his mind at the moment, he was having trouble thinking. 

"Today's my birthday," Mingyu said, still smiling. He didn't seem at all disappointed by Wonwoo's lack of memory for something so important to Mingyu.

"I'm sorr-"

"No, it's fine. I knew you probably wouldn't know. I never actually told you," Mingyu said. He seemed to have forgotten his fear completely. The booth continued to sway a little, but he didn't look at all bothered. 

Wonwoo smiled weakly. "Happy birthday," he said. 

Mingyu's smile grew. "Thanks," he said softly. 

🌈

"You can drop me off here," Mingyu said. 

"Your house is still a couple of blocks away," Wonwoo said. "Are you sure?"

"My dad's probably home, and I don't think you want to spend the rest of the night talking to him. Just pull over here."

Wonwoo did as he was told. He was feeling more guilty as the night grew on. It was true, he didn't even know what day Mingyu's birthday was. Everyone else did because they were all interested in what he did. It's one of the reasons Wonwoo didn't need to bother asking for his birthday. He never took the time to know every single little fact about Mingyu, and Mingyu was perfectly content with this. Wonwoo didn't understand the other male at all. 

"By the way, do you have your own car?" Wonwoo asked out of pure curiosity. Whenever they met up somewhere, someone dropped Mingyu off or Wonwoo had to pick him up. It hadn't occurred to him to ask until now. 

Mingyu put a hand to the door handle. "I don't have my license. I don't think my dad likes the idea of me driving."

"I'll teach you to drive," the dark-haired male heard himself say. 

Mingyu gave him a look, like he couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Really?"

Wonwoo cursed himself inside. He was just putting himself in more awkward situation. Well, too late to go back now. "Yeah, just text me whenever you have time."

"Okay." Mingyu smiled as he climbed out of the car. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Wonwoo gave a slight nod of his head and Mingyu shut the door. Wonwoo idled there as he watched Mingyu walk down further away from the car. He searched his glove box for some sort of object to give to Mingyu as a gift. He blew out a breath when he couldn't find anything even after searching the other little crevices of his car. All he had were some tissues and a car scent tree, but he wasn't about to give any of that to Mingyu as a birthday gift.

Wonwoo climbed out of his car. "Hey, Mingyu!" he called out. He jogged to reach him. Mingyu turned and waited for Wonwoo to catch up. He watched the elder with curiosity. 

"Did I forget something?" he asked looking down at Wonwoo. 

The other took a deep breath. He took a step closer and inclining his head, he planted a soft kiss on the corner of Mingyu's mouth. "Happy birthday," he said before running back to his car. 

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a/n: thank you guys for 255 reads 🫰