Junhwe took a deep breath as he glanced down at the cup of coffee in front of him. He could feel the apprehension building up inside his core, he couldn’t wait for the elder to arrive. It oddly felt like they were going on a date and it made Junhwe’s heart beat faster.

The previous day was a complex blur of feelings and images, and Junhwe couldn’t really remember what had happened. He had somehow found Jinhwan again after four months of being kept in the dark regarding the Lycoi activities and even if he had been overcome by a rush of emotions the first few minutes, the curiosity had started to take over rapidly. He had many questions to ask the elder.

Before he had been able to, however, Jinhwan had rushed away so quickly that Junhwe hadn’t managed to run after him. If he had been completely dejected and sad at first, he had understood shortly after Jinhwan’s antics. The elder had sent him a text, telling him that he was still needed in the hospital for now and that they would meet up the day after to talk.

And so, there he was, sitting at a table in a very packed café in the middle of Seoul. Junhwe had never been there but he had heard that their coffee was pretty good and even if he didn’t like the bitter taste and would definitely not consider himself being a coffee lover, he knew that Jinhwan liked it. That was why he had chosen that place, even if he had had to order a lemonade.

Junhwe sighed as he ran a hand through his newly bleached hair before glancing up at the blue sky. It was a very mild day and although it was only March, Junhwe felt hot in his black sweater. At least, being under the warm sun with a lighter hair colour was way better than with his former jet black hair.

Donghyuk had been the one to suggest that Junhwe dyed his hair. He had never thought about it before but it hadn’t seemed like such a bad idea at the time. He had wanted to go for a few shades lighter, like a light brown and had somehow ended up with blonde hair that almost looked white from afar. It made him look like an old man and even if he didn’t like it and definitely regretted trying to dye his hair on his own, Donghyuk had told him that he looked stunning. Junhwe hoped Jinhwan would think the same.

After a few more minutes of endless waiting that felt more like hours to Junhwe’s rushing heart, a very familiar mop of vibrant orange hair finally turned the street’s corner. The elder’s hair looked shorter and instead of falling on his dark eyes, they were pulled up with gel. He looked his age, a lot manlier and pretty much far from the cutesy appearance Junhwe remembered.

He looked different, but still the same. The way his eyebrows furrowed as he looked ahead, his dark eyes lost on the crowd of people and his nose scrunched up in a very familiar way made Junhwe painfully aware of the time they had spent separate.

Jinhwan looked around the streets, his eyes stopping on the café’s entrance before he roamed his gaze around the tables. Junhwe raised his hand up awkwardly before waving slowly, trying to attract the elder’s attention without looking too dumb to the other customers.

Jinhwan’s eyes shot sideways towards Junhwe’s moving hand, then downwards to meet his eyes. For a second, Junhwe thought he forgot how to breathe. He stared at Jinhwan dumbly, as his heart picked up.

The sight was so familiar and yet foreign at the same time. Jinhwan’s dark eyes still had that same glow that always managed to get Junhwe’s heart skipping a few beats and even if he looked tired, to Junhwe’s eyes he was still as beautiful. He hadn’t even realised that he had missed Jinhwan that much.

Jinhwan swiftly made his way between the other tables before finally dropping down on the café’s chair in front of Junhwe, on the other side of the small table.

Now that he was right in front of him, Junhwe couldn’t even remember what he was supposed to ask. He had so many things to say that he couldn’t tell where he was going to start. He could only stare at Jinhwan, feeling his ears heat up when the elder returned his gaze without blinking.

After a few seconds of silence, Junhwe cleared his throat awkwardly, trying to get himself together. As he was about to finally speak up, a waiter arrived to take Jinhwan’s order, stopping Junhwe in his hardly obtained momentum.

When the man was finally gone after Jinhwan had ordered a very much black coffee that would probably taste like hell itself, Junhwe took a deep breath before locking eyes with the elder once more. Jinhwan was looking back evenly, his lips slightly pulled up in a small smile.

“You look tense.”

Junhwe swore his heart stopped beating for a few seconds. Jinhwan’s voice was still as sweet and gentle as Junhwe remembered it to be and he had been so focused on its melody that he almost forgot to answer.

“It’s been a while.” Junhwe uttered back, unsure of his own sentence.

He couldn’t really think of anything to say in particular. It seemed as if he had completely forgotten how he used to act with Jinhwan before they had to part.

With one final deep last breath, Junhwe started really focusing. He needed to ask questions, he knew he wanted answers and he would never get any if he didn’t start asking now.

There seemed to be too many things Junhwe needed answers on, but there was definitely one thing that seemed more important than any other.

“Is Dongmin alright?” He breathed out, feeling his heart beat pick up in apprehension and fear.

Jinhwan’s smile widened as his eyes disappeared into small crescents. He let out a small and mellow laugh before shaking his head in a childish manner that completely clashed with his unusually mature appearance.

“Your friendship is adorable.” Jinhwan muttered, more to himself than Junhwe.

But Junhwe had heard him, and it pained him to realise that he needed to disagree on that statement. The last time the two of them had spoken, it had ended up in a fight that could have even become physical. Junhwe reckoned that Jinhwan had probably not heard about it, but he knew that they had permanently altered that bond and that things would probably never be the same between them, if they ever were to meet again.

It didn’t mean, however, that Junhwe didn’t regret his actions or that he didn’t care about Dongmin at all any more. He still considered him to be his best friend and he couldn’t help but be worried about him, even if that care probably wasn’t mutual.

“To answer your question, yes, Dongmin is doing quite fine.” Jinhwan then said, resuming their conversation.

Junhwe raised his head to stare at the elder just as their waiter arrived with Jinhwan’s order. He put down the black coffee – which was in fact darker than anything Junhwe had ever seen in his whole life – before swiftly turning away, leaving the two of them alone once more.

Junhwe was glad that Dongmin was alright, but it felt oddly painful to think of his best friend, being all happy and surrounded by his Lycoi friends while Junhwe was being miserable in college.

He knew that things probably weren’t all great, especially with the war.

That was when Junhwe suddenly remembered the main topic he had questions to ask about.

“What about the war?” He inquired, voice grave and body tense. He wasn’t even sure he wanted to hear what Jinhwan had to say about it.

“It is officially over.”

Junhwe’s eyes widened in surprise as he stared at Jinhwan who was casually drinking down his coffee as if it wasn’t nor more bitter than death, nor hot as fire.

“All of the Snowy Ones, which also means all of the Icy Ones, have been killed during the many battles that have happened over the past few months.” Jinhwan stated as he put his cup down.

Junhwe nodded, slowly taking the new information in. He had figured that if Jinhwan had been able to meet up with him, it meant that things were getting better for his pack, but Junhwe had definitely not thought that the war would actually be over. He had somehow believed that it would never be and suddenly knowing that after short four months all the suffering and the pain were truly over seemed unthinkable.

He was glad, certainly, but it also made him worried and confused. Junhwe wondered if it would even mean anything to him, he didn’t even know if he really ought to be happy. He hadn’t even fought for that war.

He had lost his mother to it, but he hadn’t been the only one.

“There must be a lot of casualties.” Junhwe whispered, his throat tight.

Jinhwan seemed to tense up too and Junhwe could only imagine how strong the pain the elder had underwent was. Losing a pack member, losing family, losing friends, it was something Junhwe did understand and he could only feel empathy as he stared at Jinhwan’s hunched shoulders.

“Yes, indeed. Many.” Jinhwan whispered as he glanced down at his cup of coffee.

Junhwe didn’t feel like asking him for names. He had seen way too many on the sheets four months ago and he didn’t even want to know how many more had been savagely murdered in the meantime.

“Dongmin became the Main Alpha, since Namjoon… Well, since he passed away.” Jinhwan then said, his voice tender.

Junhwe felt a small smile tug at his lips. He remembered seeing the man’s name, he remembered how Haneul had broken down in his arms and even if it saddened him to know that such a great man as Namjoon was gone, Junhwe felt happy for Dongmin.

His best friend was a man of responsibilities and morals. Junhwe didn’t know anything about what being a Main Alpha implied, but he knew that Dongmin had leadership and that people couldn’t help but like him.

“Jimin became the Main Omega.” Jinhwan then added, his voice even more somber.

It only took a second for Junhwe to realise what it implied. After all, last time Junhwe was informed, Seokjin was still missing, but it apparently wasn’t the case any more.

He let out a deep sigh as he thought of the Main duo. He hadn’t been close to them, really, but he was sure he could have been.

“And you’ll never believe that one, but Dongmin appointed Haneul as the Lead Alpha.” Jinhwan then said with a small laugh.

Junhwe wanted to say that he was surprised, but he wasn’t really. He had known all along that Dongmin and Haneul could get along very well. After all, Haneul was also a strong Lycos, well liked among the pack, it made sense for him to be entrusted with important matters.

Junhwe leaned back against his chair before stretching his arms above his head. It was only early in the after noon and yet he already felt tired. He had assignments to work on with Donghyuk for a few upcoming projects and they were going to need to really start taking care of it.

But it was a Saturday and Junhwe figured that he could take care of that another day, for now he wanted to spend time with Jinhwan. And talk to him.

“So are you going to come back to college?” Junhwe asked nonchalantly as he sipped down on his lemonade.

“Well, I am, but not the others.” Jinhwan said as he averted his gaze, visibly uncomfortable.

Junhwe didn’t really know who Jinhwan was referring to, but he knew that he was probably not going to like what was about to come.

“The few Lycoi left in the Swamp Pack are all living together in Namjoon and Seokjin’s old flat. They’ve decided to focus on getting the pack back on track before thinking of their human life.”

And that meant that Dongmin wasn’t coming back to college. It meant that he wasn’t coming back at all for a while.

Junhwe bitterly nodded as he glanced away towards the skyline. He was really happy to know that at least Jinhwan was coming back. He wouldn’t feel as alone with a familiar mop of orange hair to warm up his heart, but he knew that he was going to miss Dongmin, Haneul and even Jimin.

But Junhwe understood. They had, as pack, things they needed to take care of even if the war was over. He realised that they all had went under a lot of pain and sorrow and Junhwe was willing to give his best friend more time to heal.

He just hoped that he would forgive him.

“So, how have things been for you?” Jinhwan then inquired, bringing Junhwe’s gaze back on him.

Junhwe took a few seconds to come up with an answer. He felt alone, but it had been worse the first month. He was getting better and coming back to an empty home didn’t seem to hurt as much as before.

“It’s been easier.” Junhwe whispered with a small smile that widened when he saw the surprised look on the elder’s face.

The surprise quickly faded to be replaced by a grin that lit up Jinhwan’s face with a genuine happiness that Junhwe had not seen in months. He could feel his heart slowly picking up as a comfy warmth spread out throughout his body, and Junhwe knew that it wasn’t from the shining sun.

Once the two of them had drunk their drinks down and had finished battling to decide who was going to pay the bill – Junhwe had won by using a magisterial paper to beat Jinhwan’s rock – they slowly started roaming the streets of Seoul.

Not much was said, but the silence wasn’t tense or odd, it was merely comfortable and Junhwe had missed this kind of atmosphere. They were walking side by side, simply enjoying each other’ company as they slowly made their way out of down town Seoul and into the more residential area.

As they walked, their hands occasionally brushed and even if Junhwe would never admit it, he did scoot closer on purpose in a childish attempt at making them brush even more often. He didn’t see it, but it brought a smile to Jinhwan’s lips.

After a while, Junhwe began to realise that even without meaning to, they had started to take the path towards his home and he didn’t really know how to feel about it. Ever since his mother’s death, Junhwe had invited no one over at his house. He had somehow felt like it would be disrespectful to his mother, he wanted it to be kept as her haven.

But he reckoned that if it was Jinhwan, it would be fine. After all his mother and the elder used to know each other and Jinhwan had already been there a few times.

Once he stood in front of the deathly cold door, ready to enter the constant loneliness the house was basking in, Junhwe took a deep breath before pushing the keys in. He waited for a split second for his heart to clam down before opening the front door, Jinhwan in his tracks.

As they remained motionless in the dark and chill living room, the usual quietness and emptiness of the house didn’t seem as oppressing as they used to to Junhwe. It was as if Jinhwan’s presence was warming up the dark walls and for the first time in months, Junhwe didn’t feel like a stranger in his own house.

He knew that he had merely been craving a bit of company and now that he finally had someone to talk to that knew everything about him finally made him feel at ease.

“Aren’t you too lonely?” Jinhwan then asked, his voice incredibly loud in the silence of the house.

Junhwe didn’t need to answer for Jinhwan to know what he was thinking. He knew the elder could smell just how much Junhwe had felt lonely.

“I feel lonely too in my flat without Dongmin.” Jinhwan whispered, a bitterness to his voice that seemed foreign to Junhwe’s ears

He had never really understood how deep Jinhwan and Dongmin’s relationship had been but he could tell that the elder was hurt that Dongmin had chosen to leave the flat to live with his pack.

Junhwe sighed as he walked into the living room before dropping down on the sofa. He was quickly followed by Jinhwan as he flopped down besides Junhwe, their knees touching. It brought a small smile to Junhwe’s lips to finally be able to share such simple moments and feel Jinhwan close again. He had missed it.

“Hey, Junhwe...” Jinhwan then muttered, his voice shaky and unsure as he quickly glanced up to meet the younger boy’s gaze.

The elder’s dark eyes were filled with apprehension and it made Junhwe’s heart swell up with expectation as to what was about to come. The last time Junhwe had ever seen Jinhwan like that had been on the day he had asked him to come see the starts and it had turned into the best moment in Junhwe’s entire life.

“What about you move in with me?” Jinhwan asked as he averted his eyes, ears red.

Junhwe was so surprised and at loss for words that he could only stare at Jinhwan’s face, his mouth agape. It wasn’t that the idea displeased him, after all, he had lived with Jinhwan for a few weeks in the den and even a few days in his flat. He was very thankful that the elder had thought of inviting him so that they could both feel less lonely and he would have immediately accepted if there wasn’t the house.

What was he supposed to do with it?

“I meant, paying the rent on my own is tough, we know each other, we attend the same college… It’d be easier and safer than to look for a stranger to help out...” Jinhwan went as his face turned crimson.

Junhwe simply nodded as he tried to come up with the best answer. He didn’t want to leave the elder hanging, he could already see the way his face was becoming redder each second passing by with no answer from Junhwe.

He just didn’t really know what he could say. The truth was that he wanted to run away from that house, leave everything in it behind and live with Jinhwan to put an end to his loneliness but he knew he would eventually regret it. The house was filled with memories of his mother, he couldn’t simply abandon what he had left of her.

“I’ll think about it, thank you for your offer.” Junhwe said, a genuine smile on his lips as he turned to stare at Jinhwan.

He just needed time to figure out what to do with the house, the furniture, the memories. He was willing to move in with Jinhwan, especially if it helped the elder with the rent, even if it was indeed quite sudden.

Jinhwan gave an awkward nod as he stood up from the couch, quickly imitated by Junhwe as the two walked up to the front door, Jinhwan stopping right in front of it. He looked tense and stressed and Junhwe found it adorable that it seemed to matter so much to him to ask such a simple thing.

“I should get going.” He stuttered as he ran a milky white hand through his now shorter orange locks.

Junhwe nodded as he opened the door for Jinhwan to leave. Once he stood out of the house, he turned around to look one last time at Junhwe. His ears were red and his eyes glinting as he whispered with an endearing half smile.

“That hair colour really suits you by the way.”

And less than a second later, Jinhwan had turned the corner of the street, leaving a red-faced Junhwe to stand in the door frame, mouth agape but it closed quickly after to stretch out in a happy grin that Junhwe hadn’t felt on his face for months.

2^nd April 2017, Seoul.

When Junhwe woke up the next morning, the butterflies in his stomach still hadn’t disappeared and the constant flutter of his heart was just as present, both constant reminders of his reunion with Jinhwan from the day before. He could hear ringing in his ears the older man’s last comment about his hair and he made a mental note to thank Donghyuk for convincing him to dye it.

Thinking of his friend suddenly reminded Junhwe that he really needed to call him to choose a place and a time to meet up and work. He really wished he could just give up on his college work and spend the whole day catching up with Jinhwan but he knew his grades would definitely not agree. Plus, the project was a team thing and Junhwe couldn’t leave Donghyuk on his own.

It took endless minutes for Junhwe to finally roll out of bed and drag himself to the bathroom. It was only a shower and a breakfast later that Junhwe found the heart to finally pick up his phone to see that he had quite the number of text messages to read.

Unsurprisingly, all of them were from Donghyuk, spamming him to know where they could meet and threatening to burn down Junhwe’ notes for the upcoming test if he didn’t answer before 10am. His eyes quickly shot up to the upper corner of his phone where the time read 9:50. He blessed all heavens and quickly typed in an answer to Donghyuk before going back into his room.

Junhwe lazily packed the things he would need to work in his bag while waiting for an answer. They always met around 10:30 in one of the nearby café and ate lunch together and Junhwe knew he almost could already head towards their usual place without even looking at his phone.

Only a few minutes later did Junhwe’s phone buzz with a message from Donghyuk telling him that he was on his way – as expected – towards their usual café. Junhwe stretched his arms above his head slowly before picking his bag up and walking down the stairs towards the main door.

Just as he was about to leave, he caught sight of his own reflection in a small square mirror hung on the wall next to the front door and unconsciously stared at himself. He slowly raised a hand up to his wild clear locks and felt a small smile settle on his lips as he pushed the door open, his heart lighter than ever.

When he entered the small café, Junhwe quickly noticed that Donghyuk was already sitting at their usual table in one of the corners, his laptop and many sheets spread out in front of him. His gaze was focused on the screen as he furiously pressed the keys, breaking the silence of the place. A few warm chocolate strands of hair were falling in front of his eyes but he looked too concentrated to mind.

Junhwe walked up to his friend and sat down in front of him in silence, studying him silently. He knew better than to interrupt Donghyuk when he was this focused and chose instead to get his own laptop out before walking up to the counter to order a lemonade. When he sat back down, Donghyuk wasn’t typing any more and was looking at him, his face serious.

“So what did you do yesterday that we couldn’t work?” He asked slowly as he sipped on his own lemonade. There was no bitterness or anger in his voice, but a genuine curiosity as he stared evenly at Junhwe.

“I was with a friend that I hadn’t seen in a long time.” Junhwe answered, trying to keep things as vague as possible.

“He’s also a wolf lover, right?” Donghyuk asked with a knowing smile as if he expected Junhwe to know what he was talking about.

But Junhwe didn’t really know what Donghyuk meant and it made his heart beat faster in fear and confusion. The only link between wolves and Jinhwan was the fact that he was a Lycos and that wasn’t something that was supposed to be known by just anyone, especially not Donghyuk.

It was then that he suddenly remembered one of the conversation they had had a few weeks before, when Junhwe had first admitted to Donghyuk that where he went every Friday at 4 was the forest near Gonjiam. It was well known for the numerous wolves living there and Donghyuk had joked about it. He had said that Junhwe had went the wrong path and should have gone to an animal care college. It had caused Junhwe to laugh awkwardly and nod before swiftly running away, saying he had things to do.

He really didn’t feel comfortable talking about anything linked to the Lycoi, even if it was about mere wolves. That one topic was something that, to Junhwe’s dismay, came around often since Donghyuk was also a ‘wolf lover’, as he said.

Junhwe slowly raised his gaze up to Donghyuk’s face to find his friend’s black eyes still staring at him. His face looked serious and his gaze was searching as if he expected Junhwe to say something in particular. But as nothing came out of Junhwe’s mouth, Donghyuk’s serious face slowly fell to be replaced by a small smile as he shook his head.

“I’m just pulling your leg man.” He said with a small laugh that seemed forced.

Junhwe forced a small smile too before taking another sip out of his lemonade and opening a new tab on his computer.

The two of them didn’t talk about it any more throughout the following two hours of work. It was due for next week but they really needed to start working on it. The subject was about how animal psychology could be linked to human psychology and the aim was to compare one specie with mankind. Donghyuk had insisted that they took wolves to study, which had surprised Junhwe at the time, but he was now glad he had agreed.

Donghyuk was a complete encyclopedia when it came to wolves and working with him on that assignment had been one of the easier task Junhwe had ever done in his life.

They had been so focused on their work that the only thing that finally forced them to take a break was Junhwe’s stomach, rumbling loudly. It was already past noon and Junhwe’s light breakfast had clearly not been enough.

They slowly packed their things, talking about everything and anything, the atmosphere comfortable and pleasant. Just as they left the café and started to walk towards their favourite to eat at – which was a very unhealthy fast food place – Junhwe felt his phone buzz in his pocket. He quickly took it out, curious as to who would be sending him a text.

It was something that he really didn’t like to admit but Junhwe hadn’t many people that were sending him messages. He still had his old group of friends’ phone numbers but they didn’t talk much any more. He did have Dongmin’s but they hadn’t talked in months and the only friend he really chatted with via phones on a daily basis was Donghyuk.

Since his friend was standing right next to him as they entered their favourite place and were attacked by the strong smell of greasy fries, it only left one person and it made Junhwe’s heart beat faster in apprehension.

As he had expected, it was indeed message from the elder. Junhwe slowly felt a smile stretching out on his lips as he read the message over and over again. It took him quite some time to really understand that Jinhwan was indeed asking him if he wanted to eat out tonight and the mere thought of going on a date with the elder made his heart flutter.

“Junhwe, what are you going to eat?” Junhwe heard Donghyuk’s voice but he didn’t bother looking up.

“Anything, just the same as you.” Junhwe he answered offhandedly as he quickly typed an answer to Jinhwan, his palms sweaty.

He was staring so hard at his screen, an idiotic grin gracing his features that he missed Donghyuk’s pout as he sighed and turned to the counter to order for both of them. Junhwe put his phone away back into his jeans pocket to help Donghyuk get their trail to a table before sitting down.

“What was that about?” Donghyuk asked as Junhwe opened his box of French fries.

Junhwe looked up, eyebrows raised in puzzlement as he stuffed a dozen of fries in his mouth. Donghyuk’s black eyes were staring back evenly, an amused glint lighting up their darkness.

“You seemed really excited looking at your phone, that’s not something I’ve seen before.” He stated simply as he started eating his burger.

Junhwe chose not to answer but picked up his own burger instead, stuffing his mouth very gracefully with junk food once more. He could feel his ears burning and he knew that his face was probably redder than usual but if Donghyuk noticed, he didn’t say anything about it. His friend remained silent as well but chose instead to stare at Junhwe with a small knowing smirk.

It was an hour later that the two of them finally left the fast food place before starting to roam the busy Seoul streets aimlessly. They had both agreed on the fact that they had worked way enough for the day and they deserved to spend some time under the warm sun to relax.

Minutes were quickly passing by and before Junhwe knew it, it was already 4 in the after noon. He lazily stretched his arm above his head as they both came a stop at a cross walk, waiting for the traffic light to turn red.

Junhwe gave a glance to the blue sky, feeling the sun warm up his face pleasantly. It was a very mild day and he had very much enjoyed it so far, even if he knew that it was about to get much better.

Once they were on the other side of the road, Junhwe quickly fished out his phone to check the time and decided that he should start going home if he wanted to have the time to get ready.

“I’m going to head back home.” Junhwe stated, making Donghyuk turn suddenly towards him, his face looking quite puzzled.

“It’s still early though.” Donghyuk almost whined as he glanced at his own phone.

Junhwe shrugged before looking away from his friend’s suspicious stare. Junhwe knew he was acting odd as they usually stayed out quite late and that was what was probably surprising Donghyuk but Junhwe couldn’t really give him an explanation. After all, what was he supposed to say? That he was having a date, with a man at that, whom he had not seen in the past four months but it’s cool since he’s a half human being?

He could have lied at some parts but Junhwe had never been a great liar and he knew that if he tried, he would probably find a way to bust himself.

So he simply waved at his friend before walking down another road towards his house. He would need to send a text to apologize but for now he was quite in a rush and he didn’t really feel like being late.

Jinhwan had asked him to meet him in front of a restaurant he had picked at 6 that Junhwe knew to be at least thirty minutes away and considering that it was already half past four, he needed to hurry.

The elder had mentioned that it was nothing fancy and Junhwe knew that he wasn’t supposed to dress to impress but he at least wanted to look good which is why as soon as he had been back home, he had rushed to the bathroom. He had showered the morning and he hadn’t done any kind of sports but he reckoned that showering before going out on a date was probably a good idea.

It didn’t take long for Junhwe to get ready. After his shower, he had thrown on a plain white shirt and black jeans, simple and casual but still better than any of his old worn out hoodies. He loved them for their cosiness, but he knew that it probably wouldn’t be a good choice for a date. He just hoped that he wouldn’t look too plain next to Jinhwan.

Junhwe was really impatient to see what the elder would look like all dressed up, the mere thought of Jinhwan dressing up on purpose just to meet him at a restaurant made his heart flutter. Junhwe just wanted to match Jinhwan’s proper appearance.

He didn’t really know what do to with his hair as he had never really been good with making himself look good, and so he had just pulled it up with a bit of gel as he always did. He then put on the less worn-out leather jacket that he could find in his wardrobe and left his house. It was a quarter past five when he finally sat down in his car before turning the engine on and heading towards the restaurant.

Once he arrived in front of the restaurant, Junhwe took a very deep breath to calm his raging heart down before leaving his car. The place seemed to be a Chinese restaurant, which really eased Junhwe since he knew it was food that he liked.

He had really been scared to enter some really fancy restaurant with French words everywhere that he wouldn’t have been able to understand.

As he approached the entrance, Junhwe could feel his palm become sweaty and his heart beating faster. He was more nervous than he had ever been before and he simply prayed for the elder not to notice, even if he knew that the chances were very low considering his Lycos nose.

Junhwe took another deep breath for good measure before pushing the door open, immediately welcomed with the strong smell of fried food and cooking fish. It made his stomach rumble, even if he had eaten not so long ago.

He looked around the restaurant, noticing the prettiness of the red walls and the intricate carving of gold lines amidst them. The table were of a warm wood, a colour close to reddish brown that looked to be made out of mahogany. Junhwe could see a few paintings and a few sculptures here and there, giving the place a very proper vibe and even if Jinhwan had told him that it wasn’t too fancy, he was really worried about the price.

Just then, a young waitress walked up to him and asked with a heavily accentuated Korean:

“A table for one?”

Junhwe shook his head as he explained to her that he was here accompanied but the other person had probably not arrived yet. For good measure, she gave him a table for two in one of the corners and after Junhwe gave her the elder’s name, she disappeared to ask at the front desk if Jinhwan had already arrived.

It took Junhwe another deep breath to calm himself down. The stress was slowly starting to fade away now that he was sitting at a table, not late and well dressed. He still had the time to regain a bit of composure in a vain attempt to change his smell so that Jinhwan wouldn’t notice anything.

He simply couldn’t help the flutter of his heart as he thought back on all the memories he had with the elder. He hoped that they could get just as close as they used to be, and even closer.

Junhwe simply wished things would turn alright for the two of them.

(6067 words)