They decide to give Woohyun a bit of space and go to the meat house around the corner.
An order of samgyubsal and two bottles of soju later Sunggyus stomach feels a bit better but he still can't shake off the unsettling feeling.
He bites into another piece of kimchi, his gaze on the passing people outside the huge window. " You think he'll be fine?"
"Of course he'll be fine.", Hoya puts a few more pieces of meat on the grill, turning the ones already finished. A bit of kimchi in the corner next to the meat and he is happy with his work. " He's just like that from time to time."
"I've never seen him like this."
" That's because you make him happier than he ever was."
"Great.", Sunggyus features darken. " Then I ed things up now."
"Not necessarily you. As he told you… sometimes he just can't help but worrying."
Dongwoo fills another round of Soju. " Is there a particular reason for that?"
Hoya nods slowly." He's pretty open about that story actually so I guess it is fine if I tell you."
"Whatever story you'll bring up now I'm sure I haven't heard of it so he isn't."
"As I told you, Sunggyu. He was happy. He didn't have a reason for telling you."  Hoya drinks his soju in one go and the other two do the same. " In his last year of high school Woohyun started to date a guy named Doojoon."
"Doojoon." Dongwoo says slowly, the name sounding familiar to him.
" You know, the Beast K-pop whatever leader Doojoon."
Sunggyu feels a pang of jealousy but keeps any comment to himself.
"Well… it's a quiet short story. They were together. Woohyuns first love. Then the guy joined a company as a trainee, and soon fame made Doojoon ditch him.", Hoya clicks his tongue.

" Not that he was the best for Woohyun from the beginning. I'm glad he's gone. But it did something to Woohyun. Not anything ridiculously bad … just… he became more careful. A perfectly normal reaction. I think it hit him to a degree, that now he doesn't want to be the one that is left behind anymore. I can just guess that the video you made triggered the memory."
Sunggyu breaks out into cold sweat. "He has still feelings for Doojoon?"
Hoya brush off his question vigorously. " No! Holy ... never. You're his number one now, no question. Not even comparable. And I guess that is the reason he reacts this strongly to it."
"Poor Hyunie…" Dongwoo mumbles, staring into his empty glass.
" If this is doing so much to him of course I won't upload this video. It's not important." Sunggyu says determined, earning Hoyas smile. " Thanks for saying that. You're doing him good. A lot better than any other guy before."
Sunggyu averts his gaze." Don't say that. Because of me he is feeling down and I can't do anything."
"Just listen and be there for him and he will soon  realise there is nothing to worry about. In the end this isn't even a fight. He just needs space."
They turn back to lighter conversations soon after, but Sunggyu can't seem to concentrate on it. He really wants to talk to his boyfriend and soon he pulls his mobile out of his pocket, surprised when he notices two missed calls from Woohyun.
" I need to call Woohyun back."

He excuses himself and leaves the restaurant into the warm night.
" Sorry. I didn't check my phone." he says without greeting when Woohyun answers after the second beep.
"Where did you go?" Woohyun whines, his tone almost back to his old self.
" We went to the meat house close by. We wanted to give you some space."
" I wanted you to give me five minutes. I never said you should leave the house." Woohyun mumbles and Sunggyu can almost see the pout in front of him.
He chuckles. " You needed it."
"I need you. Leave those two and come back to me."
Sunggyu draws circles on the ground with the tip of his shoe.. " I thought you were out of sorts with me."

"Who said that?"

"No one. It just seemed like it."

"I'm not mad at you. Come home."

"If that's what you want then I'll come."

Sunggyu says bye to his two friends inside and leaves his share of the bill on the table before he leaves for their apartment.

" You're sure you want me there?"

" One hundred percent sure."

"Good… it wasn't a nice feeling."

"What feeling?"

"Thinking you were mad at me."
He turns around the corner but can't walk any further when he bumps into someone.

"I'm so--- Woohyun!"

"Hey boyfriend."

A wide smile and someone that hugs him tightly. " I came to get you."

"Woohyun…"

"What?"

"It's late. You should stay at home."

"I missed you." Woohyun says when he takes Sunggyu by the hand and pulls  him back in direction of their home.

" I was gone for an hour." Sunggyu says, putting his mobile back in his pocket.

"Don't tell me you didn't miss me?"

" I did."

Woohyun smiles again, but it vanishes as soon as it appears.

"Gyu. You uploading the video... It is actually a good idea and I think you should go for it."

"I'm not doing it if you don't want me to. If the attention it'll probably bring makes you feel uncomfortable then I won't do it. It's your choice."
Woohyun gives him a suspicious side glance. "Did Hoya tell you something?"
Sunggyu was never good at lying and even in the dark Woohyun can see the red tips of his ears.
"Hoya might have told me about Doojoon."

"Tsk.."
Sunggyu holds his hand a bit tighter. " Now we're even I guess. You surely remember Domgwoos story time about me being karate kid."

"It's okay. I'm not mad. Would have told you either way."

Woohyun stops in the light of a street lamp, closing the distance between them to initiate their first kiss since this morning before he went to work and Sunggyu knows in those moments that he might grew a tiny bit too addicted to this.

How much he actually missed it all day long...

"It's just need to learn that you're not like him... you aren't, are you?" Woohyun says and chuckles slightly in the end but it is a fake laugh and Sunggyu notices immediately.
So he hugs him again because frankly speaking love confessions still aren't his best thing and it is still hard for him… but… if Woohyun needs them he can get them out because that man in his arms became quiet much Sunggyus whole world which is a lot when you take in the fact that he never got farer away than Busan, making the world an unbelievable huge place for tiny Kim Sunggyu.
"I'm not that great with confessions or whatever. But… how do I say this… you know…. People might think that I love you gets old after a while and that  in  today's society it is not worth anything anymore because we seem to love everything. But to me, it is such an important thing to say. You always need to remember you're the only one I ever told to. So, once again because I think I told you a lot already, Nam Woohyun. I really really love you with all I have and as things are now, forever sounds like a great thing to me. I don't know if you'll ever grow tired of me and I hope not… but at the moment I can offer you this quiet long time frame if you want to. I will never treat you like he did. I promise and I hope you can trust me with that."
Woohyun seems to freeze in his arms for what feels like an eternity but Sunggyu is thankful for that because his head looks like a tomato and he might not be able to speak for a while in all of his sudden embarrassment.
He is all the more surprised when Woohyun sits on the ground all of sudden, sobbing like a baby.
"Woohyun… what…", Sunggyu crouches down in front of his boyfriend cupping his face in a miserable try to sooth him. "Are you hurting somewhere?"
"This was the best thing I heard in my life." Woohyun brings out between two sobs. He wipes over his eyes with his fists but it is futile because he can't seem to stop.
"Why are you crying then?" A half hysterical Sunggyu asks.

"Because I'm so happy…"

"Then stop crying."

"I can't!"

"Because you're happy? "

"Because I love you!"

"Oh no… please. Stop… oh no…"

Sunggyu almost starts to cry too, but gets disturbed by laughing and back to almost crying and  they just sit like that for ten minutes because Woohyun is a drama queen and Sunggyu is a boyfriend dyslexic and they never know what to do with each other and still are perfect together in their own and everyone's opinion.



                                                                 OOO



Sungguys video comes as a real bombshell. .

Dongwoo, the best with computers uploads it.

Tracking save, as he calls it.

He is doing it in the afternoon. When they go to bed there are already around 5000 clicks and when they get up in the morning they managed to go over 400.000 clicks, continuously growing higher in a fast pace.
It doesn't really affect their lives as much as they worried. They go on like always over the next two weeks, Sunggyu sometimes making a new video about the questions in the comment section.
Woohyun goes through the comments during the evening, cursing every user name that dares to call "oppa" "cute" or " y". And on top of that he has to endure Sungjongs and Dongwoos new favourite game : who finds the worst newspaper headline.
Sungjong currently is on top due to Kim M. and Woohyun feels the closer coming heart attack. He is currently situated on their sofa. It is a Friday night and he is already wearing his sweatpants and a loose shirt.
Woohyun grabs the newspaper Sungjong brought over with both hands, almost tearing it apart in the middle.
Sungjong behind him, scrutinizing the picture of the woman with the blurred face.  " I don't think that is his style."
"I…don't…care…" Woohyun presses out through clenched teeth and reads out the headline over and over again. " Kim M. - I'm carrying his child. The masked affair is finally speaking up."

Dongwoo almost cries in laughter and barely keeps his body on the couch.
"Why did you even buy this ty newspaper??" Woohyun throws it to the ground, almost trampling on it in a childish fit of jealousy.
Sungjong shrugs, checking his nails. " I need to read my horoscope."
"Carrying his child??? He's as straight as the crooked banana in the song!""
"You know all the copycats. She needs attention and money."
"I WILL GIVE HER ALL OF MY ING ATTENTION WHEN I GET HER!"

Dongwoo looses the battle and sails to the ground.
Woohyuns forehead meets the table. "I hate this…"

" Yah…", Sung Jong tries to console him. " You know that this is just gossip."
"Still….I don't want half of Korea to have a part of him.", Woohyun mumbles. " Go away and let me die in my misery."
"Bad timing?"
"Sunggyu!"
Woohyun jumps up from his seat, almost stumbling over the table in the process and hugging Sunggyu.
His boyfriend stumbles slightly under the extra weight, accidentally walking over the newspaper on the ground. " Ahh. You already saw Mrs. Kim."
" I'm going to castrate you if you're going to tell me it is true."
Sunggyu just chuckles, ruffles through Woohyuns hair and leaves for the bedroom after greeting Sungjong and helping Dongwoo up from the ground.
Woohyun follows him, not before giving his two friends one more deadly look and kicking the newspaper out of his way.
"How were classes?"
"Same as always.", Sunggyu throws his bag on the bed, falling on the mattress with a deep sigh. "But I finished all the work so I can go to the demonstration tomorrow without worrying."
"When will it start?"
"Meeting is around 9."
"So we should get up at 8."
Sunggyu raises an eyebrow. " We?"
"Yes. We.", the mattress sinks when Woohyun takes a seat at the edge of the bed. " You really thought I'd let you go there alone after what happened last month?"
"No. You can't go."
"Kim Sunggyu.", Woohyun pokes his chest.. " You were the one telling me that you are worried about the monthly demonstrations because there are more people and therefore more possible threats. Then you got hurt at that thing. Frankly, without your new… lets call it fame… I would start a riot until you decide to stay home but that video thing seems to be a good idea and you should go there. With me."
He nods to give his words more emphasis.

Sunggyu frowns. " I'm not taking you there. You could get hurt."
"You talked about the matter in one of your videos and got a lot of approval. It'll be fine."
"Therefore you don't have to go. "
"I can't hear you." Woohyun sings.
"You're not going."
"Lalalalala."
"Nam Woohyun! There is no chance in hell you'll be there tomorrow! Only over my dead body!"
 

                                                                      

                                                                       OOO

 

 

Sunggyu frowns again and the corner of his mouth twitches once again.
Woohyun doesn't notice anything. He is looking at the crowd around them, swinging his arms, in a too wide sweater that looks too adorable for Sunggyus liking on open street where anyone can see his boyfriend.
" Can you tell me again why you're here?"
Woohyun smiles brightly at him. " Because you're here~"
Sunggyu feels the upcoming headache and tries to ignore it.
Ignoring things.
He is doing it a lot today.
When he noticed he had lost against Woohyun miserably he decided it was time to set some rules.

Top rule: staying by his side and running away as soon as danger comes up.

Second top rule: no touching between them in public.
Not because he is ashamed or whatever.

He has to admit, in Koreas society it is still hard to go with his feelings for the same gender but it is quiet okay and not the reason for this act.

No.

It is just the simple fact that no one has to know how close he is with Woohyun. No one knows what people out there might want to do to him due to his current position in the demonstration and who knows to what extent they can go. Maybe even involve Woohyun in this.

It is hard.

Not taking his hand, kissing him or whispering in his ear how adorable he looks.
" Don't get rid of your mask."
" Yes, Mom.. You only told me twenty times today. So. Where is my banner?" Woohyun asks, a tiny bit too excited for Sunggyus liking.
" You're not getting a banner. You just follow me."
" Thank God I made one." He pulls out a small paper from under his shirt and Sunggyu breaks out into laughter when he sees what is written there.
"LEE' ave now? Really?"
Woohyun scrunches up his nose, slightly put out. " I think it is great."

"It's a masterpiece."

"Are you mocking me?"

"Never. Let's leave. They're moving."

They walk with the crowd. Here and there someone approaches Sunggyu, shakes his hand and tells him how sorry they were for the wound. Or that they watched his video. Sunggyu gets more awkward by the second and Woohyun just a tiny bit more proud.

" Who is that?"

Woohyun subtly points at a women walking a bit on the side of the crowd, yelling into a megaphone. " Kwon Bo Ah. Her husband is a high ranking member of the Minjoo party. "

"And that one."
Sunggyu looks the way he is pointing. " The one with the white shirt?"

"Yes. Swinging the huge Korea flag."

"That's So Ji Sub.  He might be the leader of this if you need a face."

"Aren't you?"
"I told you I'm not.", Sunggyu softly elbows him. " I'm not even able to show my face like they do."

"Why aren't they hiding it?"

"I kind of stumbled in all of this and become they face without even asking for it. This wasn't my thing from the beginning. Also, I'm accused of a lot of crimes, I didn't do, just for the record. And on top of that I was pretty close to the president due to my internship. Wouldn't want them to make something up against me."

He smiles encouragingly at an all of sudden gloomy looking Woohyun.
A figure approaches them from the side.

" Hyung. Have you been doing well?"

Sunggyu is a bit startled but when he recognises the younger man he relaxes." I'm doing well , Myungsoo. You too?"
The black haired man nods, a wide smile on his handsome face.    " Always, hyung. I watched your videos.  They are great and I hope you will make more in future."

"Thanks.", Sunggyu chuckles. " If you want we can go over your sheets once again next week. How does hot chocolate sound?"
The younger smiles only wider, his eyes sparkling. "Of course! I will text you!  I need to find Sungyeol.  I lost him earlier. Bye hyung!"
Sunggyu waves to the retreating figure, only then noticing the dark aura behind him.
"How does chocolate sound? You're kidding me?" Woohyun growls.
Sunggyu motions him to walk a bit faster. " He's my hoobae from university."
"He knows your face?" Woohyun asks, still not appeased.
" He's actually the one I saved from the police man.", Sunggyu explains. " The one that dragged me into this. And he is Sungyeols boyfriend."
"Your doc?"
"Yes. He introduced me to him. Is that an acceptable explanation?" Sunggyu can't help but to feel a bit giddy inside.

 Jealous Woohyun in small portions is kind of endearing.

Woohyun scoffs. " Your dongsaeng looks like Koreas next top model and clearly has a hero complex. Of course it is."

"Ahh. Don't be jealous. You have Hoya and I never said anything."

"Woah woah. Wait!",Woohyun stops in his tracks. "You think Hoya is hot?"

"Yah.. Come one.", Sunggyu motions him to walk further. "Someone will hear you."

" This is something we need to discuss! I never knew.... Yah! Wait for me!"

Showered with Woohyuns  whispered comments Sunggyu follows the people and in the end he has to admit  it was the most peaceful demonstration he had in a long time.

Just because Woohyun was there.

 

 

                                                                      

                                                                       OOO

 

 

A Wednesday afternoon, the following week.

Woohyun finishes another paper and pushes it far away to the corner of his table. He leans into his chair, rubbing his tired eyes. It has been a long day. His secretary keeps coming inside, bringing him new work to finish and he barely had time to even eat lunch.

He straightens when someone knocks at his door, relaxing when he sees his father in the doorway.

" Hey, son."

His father carefully moves into the room with two cups of coffee in his hands. He closes the door with his foot and offers Woohyun one of the cups before he takes a seat at the free chair in front of the desk. " I needed a break and thought you do, too."

" More than necessary."

Woohyun takes the coffee and gladly takes a sip.

" If she comes in once more with another pile I think I need to kick her out."

" You know, you can't kick her out. If you  do you'll suffer a painful death. That dragon is actually the boss around here."

" Why did we hire her again?" Woohyun asks with a playful frown and his father shrugs.

" We didn't want someone that could distract you from work  but seems like that wasn't necessary at all if we take in your newest... accomplishment."

Woohyun coughs violently when he chokes on another sip of coffee. Now things were getting clearer.

His father never visits without a deeper motive.

The older man laughs out loud. " Got you."

" Who told you?"

" Your mother had a feeling and called Howon."

" Of course she did. She isn't a lawyer for nothing."

His father puts his cup on the table. " Now, when did you want to tell us about... what was his name? Sanggyu?"

" Sunggyu, dad. His name is Sunggyu.", Woohyun takes a pen from his desk and twirls it around. " I would have told you... soon."

" Seems like you've already dated him for a few months. And my source told me he already moved in with you. So it is something serious?

Woohyun feels a bit embarrassed to talk about this to his father, but guesses it can't be helped and nods. " Very serious. As serious as a relationship can get."

" If it is that serious, will we meet him soon?"

" I can ask him."

A happy glint in his fathers eyes. " Do that! I'm so curious. And don't even ask about your mom. She said she first thought it would be one of your crushes again but Howon seemed really determined to convince her of the contrary. Now she is in some kind of Kanggyu fever."

" It is Sunggyu, dad."

" Yes, yes. That' what I was saying." his father looks a little bit too happy about Sunggyus existence and Woohyun starts to believe he must have been horrible in relationships until now. Or his ex boyfriend were just so ed up.

" What is he doing?"

" He is majoring in politic science. And music."

" I see. Politic science."

" And music." Woohyun adds.

Someone, most probably a client, calls him on the phone on his desk.

His father motions to it. " Answer it. I need to go back to my own office either way. But how about  we grab something for dinner together after work? We can ask your mom if she has time."

" Sure, dad."

His father winks at him and leaves Woohyun alone again with his load of work.

 

 

 

OOO

 

 

Sunggyu comes home to an empty apartment in the late afternoon after his shift at the cafe.

The first thing he does is to change into comfortable clothes and to make himself something to eat. Then he takes out his sheets and starts writing one of the essays that he has to complete until the end of the week.

A noise at the door attracts his attention.

He pricks up his ears.

There, another scratching noise.

He gets up from the table, slowly walking to the front door.

Sunggyu notices the white envelope only when he wants to open the door. Someone pushed it through under the door frame, half way, and Sunggyu can easily pull in through. Before he opens it he takes a peek outside, but there is no one.

" What the hell..." he mumbles while ripping open the envelope.

A second later his heart misses a beat.

 

 

OOO

 

 

" So. Why did you want us to come over?" Hoya asks.

He grew suspicious when Sunggyu called him with a shaky voice and now that the caramel haired walks frantically up and down in front of him and Dongwoo, he feels only the more restless.

" I got this today.", Sunggyu throws an envelope on the table and pulls a white paper sheet out of his pocket. " And this was in it."

Hoya sees a bright red " Quit!" on it.

Dongwoo already took the envelope and pulled a few pictures out. His eyes widen after he took a look at them and now Hoya also takes a closer look.

Pictures of Woohyun.

Black and white.

His friend coming out of his company.

Smiling at the supermarket cashier.

Waiting in front of the cinema.

His mouth grows dry.

" What are those..."

" Someone wants to threaten me! Or us! I don't know!", Sunggyu stops his pacing, his voice growing louder with every word. " They are ing stalking him!"

Dongwoo looks up helplessly. " Why would someone stalk Woohyun and send you those pictures?"

" Someone that wants me to stop what I am doing knows he's my boyfriend, Of course he is the biggest reason for me to quit!", he pulls his mobile out of his pocket. " I tried to call him at least five times but he is not answering his phone..."

Once more he dials his boyfriends number and his face falls when again there isn't an answer.

" He's at work, Sunggyu." Hoya tries to reason but he feels as disturbed as the other.

" He always calls back as soon as possible. I never had to wait for this long.", Sunggyu runs his slightly shaking fingers through his hair. " What if something happened to him?"

" Nothing happened to him. Whoever did this just wants to threaten you."

" Hoya is right, Gyu.", Dongwoo intervenes. " He's fine. Did you try to call his office? Or his home."

Sunggyus eyes light up.

In all his nervousness he didn't think about that possibility.

They try to call.

But neither at home, nor in the company someone answers the phone.

 

                                                                                                       OOO

Three hours later Sunggyu is a nervous mess and Hoya almost hopes Woohyun won't be back for another while so he has enough time to calm Sunggyu down.

He just has the feeling nothing happened to his friend and he trusts that, but try to tell that a restless Sunggyu.

The door opens around nine in the evening.
"Why are all of you here?", Woohyun asks, putting his keys on the kitchen counter after he walked into the room.
"Where the have you been?!"
Sunggyu is by his side with a few steps, grabbing him by the shoulder.
"Why are you yelling?", Woohyun glances at Sunggyus hands. " Can you let go. It hurts."

" I asked where you have been!"

" I was out with my parents."
Hoya hears the slight threat in Woohyuns voice.

He massages his temples, awaiting the inevitable blow.

Woohyun has never had a weak temper.

" Can't you answer your damn phone??"
"I accidentally left it in my office.", Woohyun wipes his hands away, clearly pissed off now.

" What the hell is wrong with you?"
"What the hell is wrong with YOU? I tried to call you over thirty times!"
"No need to ing scream at me!"
"Guys…" Dongwoo tries to sooth their anger but it is useless.
"Keep out of this Dongwoo. If Sunggyu thinks he can treat me like that let him! I'm curious what he wants to tell me!"
"Just get out of my side!" Sunggyu yells, leaving them to lock himself in the bedroom.
"Fine!" Woohyun yells at his retreating back, the anger still choking him.
"He was worried, Woohyun…", Dongwoo tries to tell him. " His temper got the better of him..."
"Well. him and his worries. I'm out of here."

 

 

 

Things are straining the relationship ... thanks for reading ~~~~