Jin placed his cup upon the table after he took a sip of his hot latte and shot Yoongi a look. Listening to Yoongi's story about what happened between him and Hoseok on that particular night somewhat aroused his interest and curiosity. And it pulled him in when he acknowledged the fact that Hoseok had finally confessed to Yoongi though it was Yoongi who made him said those three magical words. 

     “Though I have felt this before, I'm still not sure if this is love. But, hyung, I don't want to love him because of sympathy,” Yoongi confided in. “I want to love him like I love Jimin. Not because I sympathize him but because I truly and genuinely love him.”

     Jin remained silent and pricked up his ears, attentively listening to every word that fell out of Yoongi's mouth. 

     “Well, of course, I do care for Hoseok. I do think of him though not as much as he thought of me. I feel happy when he texts me. I feel as if I finally have someone I can turn to when everything's leaving me behind. I feel as if I have found a hope. A new hope. Something that I hold on to stay alive. The reason why I should smile even when things go wrong. I do love him. But I'm not sure if this love I have for him is just—”
     “I understand it,” Jin retorted, cutting off Yoongi's sentence. “You're worried if you love him out of pity, or as friends, and you're worried if you couldn't return Hoseok's feelings, am I right?”

     Yoongi sighed and nodded.

     Jin beamed upon seeing his reaction. “Yoongi, let me tell you something. You can never love two persons the same. It is simply not possible. See, each relationship between two persons is different. It's unique. You love them because of who they are and the uniqueness that they drew out of you. So, it's impossible for you to love Hoseok the same way you love Jimin. Because Hoseok and Jimin are two different persons. They have their own charms that attract you. You love them because of different reasons. Therefore you can never love Hoseok the same way you love Jimin. And to answer your question about your love status toward Hoseok, well, it's for you to figure it out yourself. I don't have the answer. I just can help you find it.”

     Yoongi watched in silence as Jin leaned his back against the chair and arched his bushy brows at him. He then averted his focus to the empty cup in front of him, pondering upon Jin's words. 

     “I see that you do have a soft spot for Hoseok after all these time. Well, you should open your eyes wider, Yoongi,” Jin said after a moment of silence.

     “Open my eyes wider?”

     Jin gave him a nod and an approving look. “Because you always miss the little things, the important details.” Afterward, Jin stole a glance at his watch and curved his lips into a permanent ‘O,’ looking a little surprised. 

     “What's wrong?” Yoongi asked in his monotone voice as he noticed the unusual expression on Jin's face.

     “I'm gonna be late for the meeting,” Jin answered in a haste. Later on, he stood up, shot Yoongi a look, and said, “Gotta go now. Don't worry. I'll pay for the coffees. Bye.” And with that, Jin walked away from Yoongi, leaving the other in a daze.

     The small bell above the entrance door rang indicating Jin's leave and soon as Jin disappeared out of his sight, Yoongi heaved a breath and wore his bored look. He ran his thumb around the mouth of the cup and his mind was preoccupied. Every word and every sentence meant something. And Yoongi knew that. He knew he had to figure it out. He knew he had to find it out. But he was clueless as to how and where he should start.

Sitting leisurely on the couch with the television on, Yoongi scrolled up and down his old conversation with Hoseok. Recently, the latter did not text him. Not even once. When Yoongi sent him a message asking if everything was fine, Hoseok's reply came in very late and very short. Yoongi tried to view it in a positive way and thus, he concluded that Hoseok was just getting busy with his work. If that was the truth, then Yoongi would be fine with it. 

     On that same night, Yoongi rang Namjoon up and asked if he knew anything about Hoseok. Namjoon was Hoseok's closest friend after all. He probably would know it if something was going on with Hoseok. 

     “Hoseok?” Yoongi heard the other blurted at the end of the line. “He seems fine. Why?”

     “Really? He's alright? Have you met him recently?”

     “Yeah. Yesterday. Well, since he's going back to Gwangju, he met me to say his farewell.”

     His reply got Yoongi shocked and entirely speechless. “W-What?”

     “Hyung, don't tell me you… Hoseok didn't tell you?” Namjoon asked. Based on the way he spoke, Namjoon himself sounded surprised when Hoseok did not tell Yoongi about his leaving.

     “No. He never tells me a thing about it.” 

     “Wow,” blurted Namjoon with less enthusiasm. “You know what, hyung? He's leaving tomorrow.”

     “Tomorrow?” replied Yoongi in disbelief.

     “Yeah. He told me that he's gonna enroll into the university this Wednesday. Today's Sunday already.”

     Yoongi fell silent for a short while, trying to organize everything in a proper way. After a short pause, Yoongi opened his mouth and said, “Wait. So, you are telling me that Hoseok is going back to Gwangju because he's going to further his studies there? Like that?”

     To which Namjoon simply replied, “Yup.”

     An audible sigh escaped from Yoongi's lips afterward. Tongue-tied and dumbfounded, Yoongi had no idea how should he react to this sudden, shocking news. Hoseok was going to leave him and it was going to be tomorrow. And he still had not met Hoseok. Not even once. 

     “Hyung, you okay?” Namjoon's clear voice pulled Yoongi back to the reality.

     “Oh, yes. I'm okay. Thanks for telling me that.” Before long, the call ended and Yoongi dropped his phone on his bed. 

     Lying weakly on the mattress, Yoongi stared at the empty ceiling in a daze, his mind was preoccupied with Hoseok and Hoseok only. Yoongi could not find the right words to define the unusual and uncanny emotions which stirred within his heart at the moment. But somehow the old scar seemed to bleed again, for the second time, after Jimin's death. It ached so much that Yoongi felt as though a part of him was getting frail and slowly died. Like a flower when the Sun is gone and it bends down, gradually losing its aesthetic, its vivid colour, its fragrance, and its petals as the flower wilts and dies.

     Hoseok. Only now did Yoongi know who Hoseok was in his life. Only now did Yoongi know what did Jin's words mean. Only now did Yoongi know what was it the feelings he had for Hoseok. It was love. It had always been love. A kind of love that kindled within Yoongi's heart, not because of sympathy, but a kind of love born out of hope. 

     He said it before to Jin how Hoseok made him felt hopeful again, how Hoseok made him felt as if he had someone who he could turn to whenever he was sad, and how Hoseok became the reason he could smile when things went wrong and out of his control. He had said it before, with his own mouth. But then Yoongi would always be Yoongi. He would never truly realize that if no one gave him a hint. He would never really see that if no one pointed it out to him.

     “You should open your eyes wider, Yoongi.” That was what Jin told him a few days ago. Yet he could only fathom out its meaning tonight when Hoseok was going to leave him by the time tomorrow's Sun rose. Jin did have the answer. And Jin did give him the answer. The latter had been giving Yoongi the answer all along. Yoongi was the one who could not grasp it. He was the one who absolutely had no idea that getting the answer itself was an answer. 

     When the next day approached, Yoongi woke up early and the first person that came across his mind was Hoseok. He rushed as he washed himself up, had a light breakfast, and left his house, only to stop Hoseok from leaving him. Because Yoongi knew now that Hoseok was the other piece of the puzzle he had been looking for all these whiles. Hoseok was the other part of him that went unnoticed for two years long. Hoseok was the one who had completed his heart and made him felt whole again after he lost Jimin. It was Hoseok. It had always been Hoseok.

     He sped off to Hoseok's house, entering the familiar neighbourhood, and noticed the familiar building in no time. Yoongi pulled up before a terrace as he spotted Hoseok's white car moving out of the house yard, ready to make a leave. Yoongi hopped out, ran toward the car, and halted before it, absolutely did not care if the car was heading to his direction at the time. Yoongi saw Hoseok inside the particular vehicle and frowned. 

     He knew Hoseok recognized him by the time the latter halted his car in an instant, making sure that it did not hit Yoongi. Soon, everything went silent and both of them spoke of nothing. Yoongi locked his eyes with Hoseok's, standing there stock-still with his hands curled into fists. Hoseok, on the other hand, heaved a breath and was racked with guilt.

     After a moment of intense silence, Yoongi advanced to the other side of the car, at where Hoseok sat. He looked down at Hoseok and knocked his knuckles on the tinted glass, urging Hoseok to roll down the window. 

     Hoseok refused at first, but when he saw the stern and glowering look in Yoongi's eyes, Hoseok eventually gave in and rolled down the window in anxiety.

     “What do you think you are doing now, Hoseok?” Yoongi immediately asked. His brows furrowed at Hoseok. 

     Instead of answering Yoongi, Hoseok looked away and planted his gaze at the dashboard.

     “You told me nothing about your university. You don't even call or send me a message. Is this how you are going to leave me?” Yoongi threw him another question. “Is this how you are going to give up? After all these years?”

     “It's for my own good, hyung.” Hoseok diverted his eyes to Yoongi as he finally spoke. “And yours too.”

     “What? What kind of good are you talking about, Hoseok?”

     A wistful smile graced his features. “Some things never change, hyung. And you and I will just stay friends in the end. After all, you seem troubled thinking about me and my love for you. And I want you to be happy. So, hyung, you can forget about it already because I don't want to bring you any more trouble now. I don't want to burden you with what I supposed as my personal problem. I want you to live happily without having to think of me.”

     His reply got Yoongi speechless.

     “Hyung, I'm sorry.”

     Yoongi's face contorted. “For what?”

     “Everything.” 

     “Hoseok? You—”

     “Goodbye, hyung.” And with that, Hoseok pushed a particular button and he curved his lips into a wistful smile as he locked his eyes with Yoongi for the last time. Before long, the window rolled up, separating him and Yoongi from each other with its tinted glass. 

     Yoongi tapped on the car window several times, forcing Hoseok to stop as he shouted, “Hoseok! Stop! Please, don't go!” The car then began to move slowly, its four tires rolled forward, gradually leaving Yoongi behind. Upon seeing Hoseok leaving, Yoongi ran after the vehicle until his two legs could no longer move forward, until he was tired and soon halted, standing still in the middle of the lane with his droopy shoulders and his empty gaze fixated on nothing.

     Just like that, Hoseok left. Just like that, a part of Yoongi died. 

“Yes?” Yoongi said in his monotone voice as he picked up the phone. He recognized the caller's voice as Jin yet he could not focus on the details of the talk. Yoongi's mind was too preoccupied at the moment, he merely hummed at everything Jin said to him through the phone.

     “You seriously okay, Yoongi?” Jin asked. He was worried.

     As expected, Yoongi hummed.

     “Have you eaten yet?”

     A hum.

     “Yoongi…”

     A hum again.

     Jin sighed audibly. “I'll come over to your house tonight. Would that be okay?”

     “No,” Yoongi retorted. “Don't. I'm fine here.”

     “But you don't sound fine.”

     “I am. I am fine, hyung. Stop worrying about me and stop calling me.”

     There was a moment of silence before Jin heaved a breath and replied, “If you said so, fine then. I'll stop calling you from now on. But that doesn't mean I will stop calling you forever and won't come over to your place. Okay? Yoongi, please take care of yourself.”

     Yoongi fell silent for a while before he hummed in response.

     “Bye.” And with that, the call ended. Yoongi threw his phone on the couch and diverted his eyes to the television, his expression was blank and empty. There was no excitement sparked in his eyes and his face looked dull and gloomy despite his fair complexion. 

     It had been three doleful days since Hoseok left. The latter had stopped sending him text messages yet Yoongi found himself waiting for the phone to vibrate, waiting for Hoseok's name to pop up on the screen, waiting for his messages to come in. But nothing happened. His phone, just like Yoongi himself, had died ever since then. The only time it would function was when Jin called him or when he set the digital alarm so he would wake up the next morning. Other than that, his phone would remain silent the whole day.

     Even though the Sun was blazing outside, Yoongi felt as if the sky was dull, grey. There was nothing lovely with the Sun anymore. Not when Hoseok left. And there Yoongi was, standing still in front of his house with his head lifted, gazing blankly at the open sky. 

     Yoongi liked it more when it rain. Because the rain understood him well. Because the rain understood the loneliness Yoongi felt within. Because the rain understood the pain of loving and losing someone at the same time. Every time the cold droplets fell upon his palm, Yoongi would watch in silence as his hand got wet. The coldness did not bother him, though. Instead, he liked it. 

     Namjoon shot Yoongi a compassionate look the moment he spotted the older male sitting in a corner. He did not join them in rapping. He was quiet all the time with his empty gaze and usual deadpan look. Unlike before, Yoongi had been quite unproductive after Hoseok left. And Namjoon had no idea that it could affect Yoongi in such way. Though Jin did mention to him once about Hoseok's dearly love toward Yoongi, never had Jin told him anything if Hoseok had confessed to Yoongi and Yoongi accepted it. Curious, Namjoon wanted to ask for a clarification, but Yoongi's current condition did not allow him to do so.

     “Hyung,” Namjoon tapped on his droopy shoulder and soon Yoongi turned around to face him. “Wanna join us after this? We're gonna do some composition today. You know, the one you started last week?”

     Yoongi exchanged a look with Namjoon and after a short pause, he said with less enthusiasm, “No. I don't want to.”

     “Oh. Okay then.” Namjoon pulled his hand back to his thigh, sighing. “Bye.”

     Yoongi just hummed in response and before long, he turned his back to Namjoon and walked away. 

     Namjoon, on the other hand, looked on in a slight dejection as the latter left and disappeared out of his sight. Another audible sigh escaped from his lips afterward.

     The small bell rang as Yoongi pushed the door open. He looked around the mediocre place, searching for an empty seat he could sit on and have a drink. It was always the same, though. Right after the underground rappers were done with their performances, Yoongi wasted no more time and headed off to a nearby restaurant to have a drink. And his drink was always the same. Alcohol. Ignoring his diet, Yoongi drank as many as his heart desired, often until he got drunk and almost involved himself in an accident by the time he drove back. 

     Yet Yoongi shrugged it off and continued the same rigid routine tonight. 

     He ordered a bottle of alcohol from the man and leaned his back against the straight-backed chair, waiting lifelessly and staring at nothing. That morning, his boss had just mentioned about the change in his attitude during his shift. He said it all to Yoongi's face and Yoongi could not care less about his boss's complaint. Too preoccupied with his own problems, Yoongi listened with no interest as the older man pestered him about how rude it was to ignore one of their suppliers when they came to check on the stocks.

     Yoongi tousled his hair, snorted in exasperation, and later on propped his head on the palm of his hand. An audible sigh escaped from his lips and Yoongi felt worse. Yoongi felt worse when he recalled the day Hoseok left him. Yoongi felt worse when he thought he could not stop Hoseok from leaving. Yoongi felt worse when he assumed that it was all his fault right from the very beginning. 

     The second the man came with a bottle of alcohol and a small glass, Yoongi grabbed the liquor, poured some into his glass, and drank it all in one shot. He poured some again and drank it and thus, it went on like that until the liquor was drained and the bottle was empty. Yoongi ordered his second bottle and he washed his frustration away with the liquor. 

     Yoongi had no idea just how many shots did he have tonight because he was decidedly drunk by now. His head was spinning and it felt heavy and Yoongi could scarcely open his small eyes. Everything seemed unclear to his sight and Yoongi himself was not sure what was it that he mumbled to the man. But one thing for sure, he ordered his nth bottle of alcohol because the man brought it to him shortly after that.

     However, soon before the man reached his table, Yoongi spotted someone stopping the man and took away his alcohol. Upon seeing that, Yoongi snarled at the unknown man and began to complain incoherently about how much he paid for the liquor. The man turned his head at Yoongi's direction and shot the drunk one a look. Yoongi squinted his eyes at him, but he hardly could recognize the eyes, the nose, and the lips of the stranger. Everything was blurry to Yoongi.

     The said man approached Yoongi, placed the bottle upon the table, and plonked down firmly in front of Yoongi. Snorting in annoyance, Yoongi seized the alcohol and opened it and drank the liquor out of the bottle instead of pouring it into the glass beforehand. 

     “Yoongi hyung,” the man said. His voice somehow sounded familiar to Yoongi's ears. “What are you doing now?”

     Yoongi did not reply him. He kept on drinking until the man took hold of his hand, stopping Yoongi from getting himself drunk even more. Yoongi grunted as he shoved the man's hand and shot the latter a glare.

     “Yoongi hyung, it's me.”

     “Who? Who the are you?”

     “Hoseok.”

     Yoongi fell silent the moment he heard the name. “Hoseok? Jung ing Hoseok?”

     He noticed the man nodding his head.

     Yoongi burst into laughter. “No. No, you are not that ing bastard. He's not here right now. He left. He left me. Three days ago. You hear me?” 

     “Yes, he left you three days ago. But he's back now. And he's here. I'm here, in front of you.”

     Upon hearing the man, Yoongi smirked. “Hoseok's here? In front of me?”

     The man nodded.

     Yoongi narrowed his eyes to slits and scanned the latter who stood before him up and down and up. Soon, he laughed. “Nah, you are not Hoseok. You are just…you are just… You look like a ing horse.”

     The man who claimed himself as Hoseok sighed at Yoongi's reply. “Well, you look like a turtle,” he said, mocking the other.

     Yoongi gave the latter a stern look and said in his monotone voice, “So funny.”

     “If it's funny, you should laugh then.”

     There was a moment of silence and before long, Yoongi laughed insincerely while looking right into the man's eyes. Everyone diverted their attention to Yoongi whose loud fake laugh rang through the air at the moment. 

     The man, on the contrary, said nothing and merely stared at Yoongi compassionately. He then reached out his hand and held Yoongi's cold fingers. 

     And with that, Yoongi stopped laughing and gazed down at the slender fingers wrapped around his. For a second, Yoongi noticed it. The long, pretty fingers he used to see before. The very same hand that held him tight when Jimin died four months ago. The very hand of someone Yoongi had been longing for. 

     “Hyung, it's really me, Hoseok.”

     “Why did you come back?” Yoongi blurted and shot Hoseok a deadpan look. “Why did you come back, huh? Just go away and leave me alone.” Yoongi pushed Hoseok's hand away and grabbed the liquor bottle. “I don't need you here.”

     There was no reply from Hoseok, though.

     “What's the function of you coming back anyway? When you're the one who broke my heart? You don't get to choose how I would glue myself back.”

     “But I can help you pick up the fragments,” Hoseok replied dejectedly. “Every one of them. No matter how sharp the edges are.”

     A smirk tugged at the corner of Yoongi's lips. “That used to be my words, kid. Don't steal it from me without my consent.”

     “Do I care?”

     “Acting brave, huh?” Yoongi quirked his eyebrow in annoyance.

     “Listen, hyung. You should stop drinking now. You're drunk.”

     “So what? It's my right to drink how many bottles I want. I'm an adult now. Not a ing five-year-old boy.”

     Yoongi left Hoseok with no other option. In the next second, Hoseok stood up and grabbed Yoongi's arm, urging the older male to stand up as well. 

     “What are you doing? Let me go!” Yoongi wriggled, trying his best to shove the latter's hand. Unfortunately, Hoseok's grip was too strong for the drunk one to escape. 

     “I'm taking you home,” said Hoseok firmly and before long, he pulled Yoongi, dragging the latter to the counter. He voluntarily paid for the bottles of alcohol Yoongi had had tonight and he admitted that Yoongi did have a lot of it. 

     Yoongi was still trying to escape though it was just a futile effort. He cursed and grunted at Hoseok. His brows furrowed with rage. However, Hoseok ignored it all and dragged the latter out of the place. Opening the door to the passenger seat next to the driver's, Hoseok pushed the grumpy Yoongi with force. He then hurried to the driver seat, started the engine, and sped off. 

     He felt the death glare of Yoongi on him, however, he decided not to look back at the latter. After all, he was drunk. He simply was not in his right mind now. Soon after that, he noticed Yoongi's head swaying from left to right, his small eyes were barely opened by now. In the next second, the latter was knocked out, unconscious.

     Hoseok lifted Yoongi up, carrying the older male in his embrace as he entered his house and room. Carefully, he put the unconscious Yoongi down on the bed with a mild grunt. Hoseok seated himself beside the sleeping one and stared down at the peaceful face of Yoongi. An audible sigh escaped from his lips as he ran his hand gently through Yoongi's bangs. Looking at his peaceful face, Hoseok curved his lips into a small smile.

Yoongi shut his eyes open and scrunched his nose as he woke up. He grabbed his head in dizziness and somehow it felt like the whole room was spinning at the moment. Yoongi massaged the temples of his forehead and grunted and later on, looked around the room. Blinking his eyes several times in a daze, Yoongi scanned around the place for the second time and reassured himself that this was not his room. Yoongi then diverted his eyes to the bed and the duvet and frowned. This place, though it was not his room, seemed familiar to him. The scent of the duvet and the room reminded him of one person. Jung Hoseok.

     Yoongi immediately shook his head. It could not be him. Hoseok left him three days ago. His voice saying the farewell word was still lingering in his head and Yoongi still could not cope with it well. The room, however, did look exactly the same with Hoseok's. He knew it. He had been in here before. Yoongi could already recognize the furniture, the pictures on the drawers, the comics and the figurines on the shelves, and the mild fragrant of the scented gel on the small table. Yoongi could even find his way around here alone even if it was dark. Because he had been in here before, Yoongi had always been in here, in Hoseok's house, in Hoseok's heart, even until today.

     It was still blurred, the last night incident. All that Yoongi could recall is just him drinking bottles of alcohol and then everything went blanked. Yoongi got out of the bed and staggered to his feet as he walked out of the room, still dazed. If this was just a dream, Yoongi hoped it was true. Yoongi hoped it would last like this forever. Even if it was not real. Even if it was a dream.

     Standing still before the door, Yoongi held the metal knob and twisted it open. He pulled it ajar, revealing the other side of the sacred place. Yoongi's eyes lingered around the living room, gaping. Indeed, it was Hoseok's house. Stepping forward, Yoongi wandered about the living room until he spotted a figure, soundly asleep on the couch. It was Hoseok.

     Yoongi froze on his spot for a brief second before he slowly approached the sleeping one. Lying on the couch with a blanket covering half of his body was Hoseok, the one who said his goodbye to Yoongi three days ago. Hoseok looked peaceful and innocent when he slept. He looked as though he was pure, like the colour white, and free of sins. Hoseok looked as though he was born to an angel who then left him on this world only to get his heart broken over and over again.

     Before long, Yoongi sat down on the couch with his eyes adjusted on Hoseok. He heaved a breath and later on took hold of the latter's warm hand. Yoongi rubbed the back of the warm hand with his thumb and little did Yoongi know, it was real. Hoseok was here, in front of him. What Yoongi was seeing right now was not a dream. Instead, it was a reality, a truth. A sweet reality and a sweet truth, indeed. A wave of hopefulness washed over Yoongi and a genuine smile spread across his pale complexion. 

     Hoseok was back. Hoseok was home again.

     A few minutes after that, Hoseok wriggled and shut his eyes open. Instead of panicking, Yoongi stayed there, his fingers were still intertwined with Hoseok's. The warmth radiated from Hoseok's hand was cozy and Yoongi did not want to miss it. 

     “Hyung?” Hoseok blurted out by the time he spotted Yoongi. Diverting his eyes to his hand, Hoseok then furrowed his brows and shot Yoongi a questioning look.

     “You are here now, in front of me,” said Yoongi, smiling.

     Upon hearing him, Hoseok woke up, yawned, and sat properly on the couch. Hoseok was about to wipe the sleepiness off his eyes went he noticed that his hand was enveloped in Yoongi's. Hoseok lifted up his head, looking full into Yoongi's face. “Hyung?”

     “Why did you leave?” asked Yoongi. “Why did you leave without telling me anything?”

     Silence followed after Yoongi's questions. Hoseok looked down, racked with guilt.

     “Three days but it felt like a year,” Yoongi said. “Three days but it felt like a hell. So painful. I wonder how you could bear this pain for two years long.”

     Hoseok locked his eyes with Yoongi's, still speechless.

     “But it's okay now that you're here.”

     “H-Hyung?”

     “You owe me an explanation, kid. Tell me where did you go, why did you go, and why did you come back.”

     There was a moment of silence. Hoseok stuttered a bit when he saw the stern look on the latter's face. Heaving an inward sigh, Hoseok then took a deep breath, mustered up his guts, and started to speak. “I went back to Gwangju. Because I got an offer to further my studies there. I…”

     Yoongi arched his brows, waiting for the answer to his third question.

     “I came back because I forgot something.”

     “Forgot what?”

     “Um, hyung, you owe me something.”

     Yoongi frowned.

     Hoseok hesitated a bit. He wondered if he should say it out or not. But looking at how their hands were intertwined together and how Yoongi was sitting close to him at this moment, Hoseok opened his mouth and said after a short pause, “Your reply. To my confession.”

     Yoongi beamed upon hearing Hoseok. He gently squeezed Hoseok's hand. “You know what,” said Yoongi, “I've been asking myself all these time if I could ever return the love to you. If I could ever return the same love I gave to Jimin to you. But Jin taught me that I can't. I can never love you like I love Jimin. Because, like you had told me before, Jimin and you are two different persons. You can never be Jimin and you will never become Jimin. I love him because of different reasons. But then, I love you because of another different reason that I couldn't tell even to myself. Hoseok, though you and Jimin are different, both of you did have one thing in common. You and Jimin are both a part of me. A part of my heart. Another piece of my set of puzzle. I can't have the bigger picture without you two and I would never feel complete without you two. Although it's late, I've just realized that Hoseok, I love you. I've always loved you back.”

     And with that, the two of them exchanged a look with each other and smiled meaningfully. It was good. It was great. When someone reciprocated your love. When someone returned your feelings the same way you had given them. Hoseok felt as if he was alive again. Hoseok felt as if he was born again. The feeling when Yoongi's skin came into contact with his was ineffable. Somehow Hoseok felt as though he was holding a butterfly instead of Yoongi's hand. Hoseok could feel its delicate wings fluttering and little did he know, he needed to hold it carefully and gently.

     “Thank you, hyung,” Hoseok said in a low mutter, smiling from ear to ear.

     “No. I should be the one to thank you. For waiting. For still loving me.”

     Hoseok looked away for a brief second. Normally, in love stories, this was the moment when the two people slowly leaned forward and their lips touched. This was the moment when the first kiss happened. This was the moment when the love stories reached its resolution part and ended on a positive note. 

     Hoseok's cheeks flushed a faint pink at the thought of them kissing each other. Soon, Hoseok shook his head slightly, shrugging such thought off of his mind. He reminded himself that only happened in the dramas, in the fictions. Not in reality. At least, in his case. Because it seemed awkward. They felt a little bit awkward. 

     “So, what are you gonna do now?” Yoongi opened his mouth first, breaking the silence which had swept over them. Squeezing Hoseok's hand lightly, Yoongi began playing with the boy's long, slender fingers.

     “What am I gonna do now?” Blanked, Hoseok arched his brows at Yoongi. 

     “I mean you turned down the offer to further your studies and came back here. Did your parents know this?”

     Hoseok fell silent for a short while before he answered, “Of course, they knew it. I told them myself. Well, mom was really mad at me.”

     “Then? What did you do?”

     “I told them the truth that I don't really want to further my studies there. I don't think I could do well in studying anymore. Because I already have a job and I love it. Though it's not a big job like Jin hyung, I feel happy. And I should do things that make me happy, right?”

     Yoongi nodded in silence and beamed.

     “But, mom still doesn't like my decision. She still wants me to get enrolled in the university, but luckily, dad convinced her. He told her that I'd be alright. I'm a grown up now. I can take care of myself. After all, I believe that everything will turn out just fine if you are here.”

     “It will,” Yoongi replied with a reassuring smile. “As long as we are together.”

The flower which had long wilted was now alive and blooming. Just like Yoongi's heart. A pale hand could be seen touching the vivid pink carnation and before long, a smile graced his complexion. Engrossed in his own reverie, Yoongi did not notice the other who stood still behind him. Only when the latter tapped on his shoulder did Yoongi acknowledge Jin's presence there.

     “You shocked me,” Yoongi said in his monotonous voice.

     Jin merely beamed. “What's up with the flower?” asked the man while jutting his chin toward the carnation in Yoongi's hand.

     Yoongi averted his eyes to the pink carnation and smiled wistfully. “It's for Jimin. It has been a year since he passed away. Today's the day he died of the car crash.”

     Jin nodded understandingly. “I see. Are you going alone?”

     Yoongi shook his head. “Hoseok.”

     Jin nodded again and curved his lips into a permanent 'O' upon hearing his reply. “Okay. Mind if I join you two?” Jin quirked his brows, asking.

     “Sure,” answered Yoongi without hesitation.

     The two men walked down the street together, heading to where Hoseok was at the moment with the car. Jin occasionally stole a glance at Yoongi and flashed a smile at the other. 

     “How's life going?” asked Jin.

     Yoongi smiled. “Good.” 

     Upon hearing him, Jin was contented. He stuffed his hands into the pockets of his brown coat and heaved a breath. 

     “Thank you,” said Yoongi. “For opening my eyes.”

     “Well, I'm just doing my job as a friend.”

     “You did great as a friend.”

     “Absolutely.”

     Yoongi grimaced at the reply and looked away in a slight annoyance. Yet the grimace did not last long for Jin threw him a question, breaking the silence that was just about to sweep over them.

     “What's your plan, Yoongi?”

     “What plan?” 

     “Well, your future plan with Hoseok, of course. What else?”

     “Ah… I, well, don't know yet…”

     “You don't know? What do you mean by you don't know?”

     “Well, um, I don't have any specific plan yet.”

     “Yet. You said yet. So, you're going to have a specific plan later?”

     “I don't think so,” replied Yoongi, pouting his lips in a hesitant manner.

     Jin raised his brows and heaved a sigh. “What about your plan for this time? This moment? Now?”

     Yoongi shot Jin a look and twitched the corner of his lips upward. “Stick together.”

     Before long, they reached the car and Jin paused as he spotted someone familiar. There he saw Hoseok, smiling brightly like he always did as he rolled down the car window. The latter waved his hand in rapture by the time he spotted Jin and shouted out the older male's name. 

     Jin waved back and reciprocated the smile. Later on, he approached the car, greeted Hoseok briefly, and hopped into the vehicle. Just like today's weather, everything was fine and well.