[3:46pm] "turn left near the park," you half-yell over the phone to the heavy breathing boy on the other end. best friend!jeno only makes you roll your eyes when he breathlessly mumbles an "okay." the man is just so damn stubborn.
the day before your brother’s 6th birthday party, you rang him, telling him you'd swing by to pick him up, being that it was somewhat of an inconvenient trip to your parent's place from his, but he insisted he'd bike over because it “can’t be that bad.”
yeah...okay.
and that’s why you’re here now, yelling over the phone for what seems like the 80th time over the past 30 minutes, asking the brown haired boy for his location. before you can get an answer, you see a helmet-covered head make a zoom past your driveway. you put down your plate of food that your aunties have forced onto you and bolt out to the front of the driveway, shouting multiple "oi!'s" and "dude!'s" at the boy. jeno turns his head around at your voice, almost running into a street light as he does so.
waving him over, he turns his bike towards your figure, pedaling his way back to the front of your driveway. as out of breath as he was, he plasters what you consider a smile too angelic and bright for any pair of human eyes, while his own were invisible. he climbs off his bike, sweaty from the long ride.
like a parent lecturing their son, you turn towards him as he parks his bike, furrowing your brows. "i told you i would pick you up."
by now he was probably used to your intense nagging and brushes it off, smiling even brighter (if humanly possible) as he approaches your little brother, who seems to be sprinting at the pair of you at full speed, with open arms.
"happy birthday! how's my favorite little human?"
"jeno!" your little brother jumps into his arms, jeno lifting the boy easily and spinning him around a few times before setting him down.
"jumper! let's go play in the jumper!" your little brother squeals. you pretend to act offended, and they both look at you in confusion.
“i asked you if you wanted me to play with you literally 10 minutes ago and you said no!”
“you were on the phone with jeno!” he retaliates.
“you like jeno more than me don’t you?” you pretend-sob at the little boy staring up at you in his spot next to jeno’s leg. jeno looks at you questionably but plays along anyways.
“you do don’t you! you like me more right, little man?” jeno playfully smiles at the boy.
“what if i do,” your brother crosses his arms and stares up at you, tapping his annoying little foot as he does so.
you let out an exaggerated gasp, and jeno turns to look at you, a little surprised, but also looking a little sorry.
you see the look in his eyes and motions for him to brush it off, knowing your brother just prefers your jeno because of the way he literally does EVERYTHING the little boy wants. you honestly sometimes question if jeno was your best friend, or your brother’s best friend with how close the two boys have gotten over the past couple years.
“you turn 6 and now you’re a smarty, huh?” you laugh after a little stare off with your brother, then nudging the boy. he smiles up at you even brighter, and you give him a kiss on top of his head. “go play with your cousins, and we’ll come over to you after jeno gets a little rest, okay?”
the boy pouts a bit, but nods and runs off to the group of kids crowding inside the power rangers themed jumper. jeno looks after your brother and laughs at the jumper, turning to you and pointing his thumb at the banner.
“get in gear,” you motion at him.
“how on brand of him,” he laughs and sets his gift down on the gift table. you know that inside the terribly wrapped package is a “power rangers beast monster morphing toy set thingy” (what jeno called it, not you) since he facetimed you a few days before, frantically pointing between that, and 4 other ranger-themed toys on the shelves of your local toy store.
“super,” you chuckle.
before the two of you could even sit down at the makeshift picnic table, he’s stormed by the aunties. and then the uncles. and then by your parents. and then by everyone else.
“popular eh?” you tease the boy, who seems even more out of breath and tired now than he was when he got here. jeno lets out a little jeno-noise, one you labelled the “jen-oh?” and you laugh at him even more.
“be honest, who’s your favorite,” you chuckle and motion towards the group of adults, either yelling at the kids to be careful, swinging back a couple beers, or just gossiping in the corner.
“you,” he gives you an eye-smile. you smack his arm in response, and you don’t know if it’s the heat of the too-hot-to-be-spring day or the bubbling feeling in your chest, but your cheeks are beet-red.
“shut up.”
