Two full weeks later, nothing had changed between Sunggyu and Woohyun. Sungjong watched them intently each day, hoping that Sunggyu would approach his boyfriend and fix everything up. But unfortunately, he didn’t. The two wouldn’t even look at each other anymore, let alone speak to each other.

Sungjong let out a puff of air, trying to contain his frustration. What’s up with them?  It was art class, which meant he probably wouldn’t be able to talk to Sunggyu until lunch. He put his forehead down on the table in front of him and stared blankly at the wooden surface.

“You okay?” Myungsoo asked from across the table.

“Mmrrrmm,” moaned Sungjong, without looking up. “No…”

“What’s wrong?”

The younger boy sleepily raised his head to look at his friend. “What are you supposed to do when you’re in love?”

“Huh?”

“If you love and care for someone, but they don’t realize it, what should you do?”

Myungsoo pondered the question silently. “You should tell them.”

“Tell them what?”

“That they mean a lot to you.” He paused and puffed out his cheeks. “Why did you want to know?”

“Two of my friends are in love,” Sungjong sighed, “but one of them doesn’t realize how much the other cares.”

“Ah…so that’s it…” Myungsoo mumbled under his breath.

“Hmm?”

“Nothing,” the older boy said, shaking his head.

“Are you su—”

“Class is over! Have a nice day, everyone.” The chipper voice of Ms. Jung cut Sungjong off.

How weird, he thought. Myungsoo never mumbles. “Waaaaah, everyone is so confusing!” He ruffled his hair angrily and stomped out of class.

---

“Where’s Sunggyu-hyung?” asked Sungjong as soon as he arrived at his friends’ lunch table. He didn’t even bother to sit down.

“Studying, I think,” said Hoya. He was sitting alone with Dongwoo, who appeared to be napping on his shoulder.

“With Woohyun?”

“I doubt it. I haven’t seen those two together all week. Do you know what happened with them?”

Sungjong looked around nervously. “It’s a little hard to explain. But I really need to talk to Sunggyu-hyung.”

“Okay…oh, I know,” said Hoya. He placed his hand on Dongwoo’s shoulder and gently shook him awake. He woke up slowly, rubbing his eyes and blinking sleepily.

“What?” he asked between yawns.

“Isn’t your last class with Sunggyu?” asked Hoya.

Dongwoo nodded. “Yeah, it is. Why?”

“Sungjong needs to talk to him. Can you tell him to wait up after class?”

“Sure, no problem. Can I go back to sleep now?”

“Go ahead,” Hoya said affectionately. He patted his boyfriend’s hair as he snuggled up against him.

“You two are so cute,” Sungjong sighed.

“Envious?” Hoya teased.

“Who wouldn’t be?” he laughed. “Anyways, I guess I’ll let Dongwoo sleep. See you later!”

---

As requested, at the end of the day Sunggyu was waiting for Sungjong near the entrance of the school. When the younger boy approached, he eyed him inquisitively.

“Hey, Jongie. What did you want to talk about?”

“You and Woohyun,” he answered bluntly. “You guys still aren’t talking?”

“W-well,” Sunggyu stuttered. “I’m working on it. But you know, we don’t have many classes together. And we both have some pretty big tests coming up. Do you have any exams next week?”

“Please don’t change the subject, hyung,” said Sungjong, a serious expression cemented on his face. “You’re going to have to talk about it eventually.”

Sunggyu hung his head in defeat. “But I don’t know what to say…”

“Neither do I,” Sungjong admitted. “I’m no expert when it comes to love. Which is why I think you should ask Dongwoo and Hoya for help.”

“Dongwoo and Hoya? Why?”

“Because they’re in a solid relationship,” he explained. “Which means they’re doing something right. They might be able to help out if you tell them what’s going on.”

“I don’t know about that…” Sunggyu seemed uncertain.

“Come on,” urged Sungjong. “Would it really be so bad if they knew?”

“I guess not…”

Sungjong scanned the area for his two friends. He knew they always came this way when they were leaving school, so they had to be around somewhere. Suddenly, he spotted them heading down the hallway. Waving his arms frantically, he called out their names to get their attention.

Dongwoo noticed Sungjong first, and immediately waved back. Without warning, he took Hoya’s hand and dragged him towards the two other guys.

“We’re here!” announced Dongwoo.

“Did you really have to pull me?” mumbled Hoya. He seemed annoyed. “You know I hate it when you yank my arm around.”

“Sorry~” the blonde boy pouted, resting his head on his boyfriend’s shoulder apologetically. “I forgot.”

Sungjong nudged Sunggyu’s arm and motioned towards the couple. “See?” he whispered. “They know how to work things out.”

“So, what do you wanna talk about?” asked Dongwoo.

Still reluctant to tell his friends, Sunggyu turned towards Sungjong, a silent plea for him to explain.

The younger boy nodded reluctantly. “I’m sure you guys have noticed that Woohyun and Sunggyu haven’t been talking much lately.”

“Yeah, we have,” said Dongwoo. “It’s been worrying us. What happened?”

“Tell them, Sunggyu.” Sungjong urged his friend to explain.

Sunggyu gulped. “I…well…we…um…Jongie, can’t you tell them?”

“No, you have to.”

“Please?”

“You have to, hyung. It’s your problem.”

“But—”

“Oh hey, I see Myungsoo,” Sungjong announced, cutting him off. “I’m gonna go talk to him, to develop my relationship with him,” he said, staring directly at Sunggyu. “I’ll see you guys later!” He cast one last meaningful glance at his hyung before dashing off in the direction of the school’s entrance.

“What was that all about?” asked Hoya. “You two seem pretty on edge today.”

“Uhm…well…there’s this problem we’re trying to fix.”

“With you and Woohyun?”

“Yeah.”

Dongwoo and Hoya eyed him expectantly. “And…?” they asked in unison. “What’s going on?”

Sunggyu took a deep breath before mustering up the courage to answer. “We’re dating.”

“WHAT?!” yelled Dongwoo. “FOR HOW LONG?? WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL ME?? IT’S ABOUT TIME YOU TWO—”

“Yah!!” Sunggyu hissed, clamping a hand over Dongwoo’s mouth. “Quiet! I don’t want anyone else to know.”

“Ah, right.” He regained his composure. “Finally dating~” he giggled quietly to himself. “But wait.” He looked up in confusion. “What’s the problem, then?”

“Well,” Sunggyu began, “I think…he thinks I don’t love him.”

“Why does he think that?”

“Because I’m too scared to show it in public,” he admitted, facepalming himself. “I’m such a coward.”

“That doesn’t sound like you,” Hoya remarked. “What are you afraid of?”

“Honestly…I’m afraid of what people will say about us. Did I ever tell you guys about my first relationship?”

“No…”

“It was in my first year of middle school, and I was going out with a guy. Everything was going well, until my classmates found out about it. They started calling me names like ‘pretty boy’ and ‘boy ’ on a daily basis.” Sunggyu paused and cringed just thinking about it. “Our relationship lasted three weeks, and I haven’t dated since. I don’t want to be bullied again.”

Dongwoo shook his head and patted his friend’s shoulder. “But, hyung…we aren’t in middle school anymore,” he pointed out. “Hoya and I haven’t gotten any crap for our relationship so far, so why would you?”

“I don’t know,” he said. “I’m just scared.”

“Then man up!” growled Hoya. “Come on. That happened in middle school, so it’s time to move on. Do you love Woohyun or not?!” he demanded harshly, clearly annoyed.

“I do.”

“Then show him.”

“How?”

Hoya turned to Dongwoo, who smirked mischievously and motioned for Sunggyu to come closer. “I have a plan,” he whispered. “Listen closely.”

---

“Myungsoo-ah!” Sungjong called out, spotting his friend walking down the sidewalk. The younger boy ran up behind him and playfully tapped his shoulder.

“Hey, Sungjong,” he said, a smile making its way onto his lips.

“On your way home?”

He nodded.

Of course he’s on his way home, Sungjong realized. What kind of stupid question was that?

“Is your house this way?” Myungsoo asked, interrupting his thoughts.

“Huh? Yeah, it is,” he confirmed.

“Mine is too.”

Sungjong’s eyes widened. “Then…do we live near each other?” he asked excitedly.

Myungsoo nodded. “Probably.”

“Then how come I never see you when I’m walking home? I always go this way.”

“I usually take the bus.”

“Ah…” Now that Sungjong thought about it, there probably was a bus that went through his neighborhood. He just never bothered to take it because he liked walking home. “Can we walk home together then?”

“Sure,” Myungsoo laughed. “Of course we can. Let’s go!”

The pair walked in silence for the first half of the journey. Sungjong continuously stole glances at Myungsoo, observing his perfect side profile and sighing in happiness. Even if they weren’t talking, they were still spending time together, and that was enough to put Sungjong in a good mood.

“Hey, Sungjong?”

“Mm?”

“Why don’t you live with your mom?”

Sungjong stopped in his tracks. He was unprepared for Myungsoo’s sudden question. “W-well,” he stuttered.

“Sorry,” Myungsoo said. “You don’t have to talk about it.”

Sungjong glanced at his friend and noticed that his cheeks were flushed red with embarrassment. His expression softened and he put on a small smile. “It’s okay, I don’t mind talking about it. I’m just not used to being asked that.” He paused and thought about what he should say. “I do miss my mom,” he began, “but I’m glad I came here. I’m able to get a better education here than in Hokkaido, where I used to live.” He looked to Myungsoo for a response, but the other boy just stood there silently, waiting for him to continue. “My dad came here for a new job, but my mom was completely against it. She tried to convince me to stay with her, but…she tried so hard that it got on my nerves. She’s said some really mean things about my dad that make me uncomfortable, and that’s actually what convinced me to go with my dad. I can’t stand to be around her negativity all the time!” He kicked the ground angrily. “But…I feel bad. I’ve been avoiding her phone calls for a month now. She must think I’m a terrible son.”

“I think you have a reason to ignore her,” said Myungsoo. He smiled reassuringly at Sungjong. “It’s not good to be around people that bring you down.”

“That’s true,” he agreed. “Thanks for listening, Myungsoo. It means a lot.”

He flashed Sungjong a genuine grin. “No problem.”

“Oop, this is my house!” Sungjong said, pointing at the home in front of them. “How far from here do you live?”

“Just a few blocks down.”

“Wow, that’s not far at all!” he clapped his hands together happily. “In that case, do you want to walk home together again sometime?”

Myungsoo nodded enthusiastically. “I’d like that,” he said.

“Awesome! Bye~” said Sungjong, opening the gate leading into his front lawn. Halfway up the path to his porch, he stopped. We’ve been friends for a while now, he thought. So I want to try something. “Myungsoo, wait up for a sec!” He ran back down the path to his friend, who was still standing there. Without giving him an explanation, Sungjong wrapped his arms around the other boy’s neck and pulled him into a hug. “I just realized I’ve never given you a hug before,” he giggled into Myungsoo’s neck.

When he let go and stepped back, Myungsoo’s face was bright red. “T-that’s true,” he said, trying his best to keep his composure.

Upon seeing the color of Myungsoo’s cheeks, Sungjong blushed as well. Was I being too forward? he wondered. “I-I’ll talk to you tomorrow, Myungsoo,” he stuttered. He smiled awkwardly and shuffled back up towards his porch without another word.

Myungsoo watched the other boy enter his house. “He’s so cute,” he mumbled, putting a hand to his cheek. “Which is why I don’t deserve him.”

a/n: You guys do not even know how fun it is to write those MyungJong moments. I'm super awkward in relationships, so when I'm writing about them it's practically a reflection of my life xD sigh. And I just realized that there's no Sungyeol in this chapter...so I'm just going to say he had a sick day. Haha~ thanks for reading and commenting!