“No, no, no, you dolt! It goes like this, see? Na na na, na na na na—“

“You STILL don’t know the lyrics to OUR song?”

“It’s not my part, now is it? Besides—“

Great. Wonderful. Splendid. Yoseob and Gikwang were bickering about choreography and lyrics in his house.

Wait.

Junhyung’s eyes snap open, his brain kicking several gears as he realizes that Tom and Jerry were in his house, and would destroy the place if he didn’t separate them. Sitting up, he groans as he hits his head on the porcelain throne. Feeling his stomach churning like a psychopathic farmer making butter, he clings to the toilet as he heaves. Between the mouthfuls of bile, he notices that his house has gone quiet. Maybe Yoseob and Gikwang weren’t really at his house and he had imagined their voices, or it was just this damned killer of a hangover—

“Ew, our Junhyunggie leaked!” Gikwang crinkles his nose, running into the bathroom to help his buddy.

“You make it sound like he peed himself,” Yoseob says from the door, shaking his head as he shrugs into his jacket. “You do know how to clean and babysit, right?”

“Huh? Wait, Yoseob—“ Gikwang starts, scrambling towards the door.

“And Junhyung, you know you need more than just booze in that fridge, right?” snipped the main vocalist, pushing the whining puppy back into the bathroom and handing him a mop. “I’m off to the mart. Doojoon and Dongwoon are coming to help, so hopefully they’ll bring something you can hold down until I get back. Gikwang, sit. Stay—bad dog!” That, because Gikwang had decided to clock Yoseob with the mop as soon as his back turned. And then Yoseob was gone as the front door clicked.

So. Doojoon and Dongwoon are coming to help.

But help with what? No matter how hard he wrecked his brains as he sat in the tub—Gikwang had ordered him to sit there and not puke while he mopped the rest of the bathroom—he couldn’t think of a single thing that he needed or asked for help with.

Maybe Yoseob and Gikwang have a problem? He thought.

But that hardly made sense, since everyone was either at his house or on their way over. Everyone except . . . He furrows his brows, angrily pushing that last person from his thoughts. If it was about that jerk, he wasn’t about to apologize. But if it was about that jerk, why were Yoseob and Gikwang at his place, snipping at and treating him like an oversized baby that needed scolding and supervision?

He studies Gikwang through half-lidded eyes for a bit, cradling his chin on his arms. “Hey.”

“Yeah?”

“You really do look like the dog on your shirt. Maybe you’re Hyungnim’s long-lost cousin or biological father or something.”

Gikwang rolls his eyes, dropping to his hands and knees to scrub hard at a patch of dried vomit from last night.

“Hey.”

“What now?” he huffs.

“Where’s Hyunseung?” Junhyung asks, fighting to keep his tone neutral and uninterested. He looks up as Gikwang rises, raising an eyebrow at that unfamiliar expression and sadness in the puppy’s eyes.

Placing his hands on his hips and staring at the ceiling, Gikwang paces in and out of the bathroom a few times before kneeling in front of Junhyung. Placing both hands on the shorter man’s shoulders before staring into those confused eyes, Gikwang takes a deep breath.

“Hey, Gikwang—what’s with you?!” Junhyung flails as Gikwang pulls him into a tight hug, nearly squeezing all the air from his lungs. “Hey—“ And Junhyung’s voice trailed off as he felt something warm—a teardrop-- splash onto his cheek. He tried his darnest to jokingly scold the puppy for drooling on him, but couldn’t.

Ah, so everyone is coming to help Gikwang. He thought.

But that didn’t seem right. Because it wasn’t right, was it?

“I’m sorry, Junhyung,” Gikwang says softly, his voice seemingly filling with sea water.

“What for? It’s not like it’s your fault—wait, what did you do this time?”

“No, I’m sorry, but Hyunseung is gone.”

“So? He’ll be back later, it’s not like you—“

What?

What was Gikwang saying? Hyunseung was out doing his individual schedules, so what?

No, he’s not . . .

“No . . . he’s gone, Junhyung. He’s been gone for a while. Last night was the anniversary of his . . . you know?”

END // Chapter 1

20160216 - Happy St. Valentine's Day =)