Final

part i

their friendship

“Seongwoo ah. Ong Seongwoo, wake up.” Minhyun barges into the room, one hand holding his laptop firmly and the other hand smacking Seongwoo’s backside to wake his slightly younger friend up. Seongwoo groggily wakes up, his hands rubbing his eyes a little too cutely as he tried to get back to his senses, “What, Hwang?”

“Look at this virus, Ong! It infected my computer and deleted my entire D-Drive!” Minhyun stated, looking a little exasperated. “It’s not the CIH virus though, I think it’s a new one…”

“And what is it?” Seongwoo still looks a little sleepy, though he definitely looked a little more intrigued now.

“It works similarly to the CIH virus since it waited until a certain date before attacking… But how it got here… I’m not too sure…” Minhyun confusedly says, looking a little crossed.

Seongwoo’s ears perked up and previous evidence of his sleepiness was gone as he rubbed his eyes in disbelief, “Oh! So it does work!” Excitement was evident in Seongwoo’s voice as he starts to fiddle around with Minhyun’s computer in delight.

“What,” Minhyun deadpans, “So it was you?! I can’t believe—Ong Seongwoo!”

“W-woah! Stay right there, Hwang! I-I really didn’t know it would work! I just thought I could play with the virus I made!” Seongwoo sheepishly stutters, making a run for the door at the last minute, only to get tackled onto the bed. His arms were twisted backwards and Minhyun is seated on his back. “Recover my D-Drive, you incorrigible brat, my D-Drive!” Minhyun yells. “Get me back my 30-page research paper!”

Seongwoo yells in pain, his head turned back as he thrashed his legs helplessly. “No fair, Hwang Minhyun! You planted that bloody Y2K virus into my computer before and broke it, you replacement for an ! An eye for an eye,” Seongwoo thrashes before he grabs Minhyun’s underarm and flipped the two of them, “An arm twist for a tickle!” Seongwoo goes for Minhyun, tickling his sides vigorously, earning giggles from the two as they tried to avoid each other’s tickles.

part ii

his curiosity

“I’m back, Ong!” Minhyun yells from the doorstep, announcing his presence. He listens for a small hum before walking in, only to see a lithe figure crouching at his computer. He fondly looks over at the smaller working male before deciding to wash up. After washing up, he looks over again, only to see Seongwoo still at the same place, as if he hadn’t moved the entire time. Minhyun lazily lies on his bed before propping an arm to support his head, “Ong, what are you doing?”

“I’m… I’m adding my personal touch to the Melissa virus… I think I’m going to name it the Personal Information Leakage Virus! It’s going to send fifty random files or documents from the infected computer to my own computer, unlike the usual fifty viral emails being sent to the strangers in your contact list. Cool, isn’t it?!” Seongwoo brightly says, his eyes crinkling with pure excitement. Minhyun waves his hands lazily, warning Seongwoo with his eyes squinted. “Just… Don’t send it to me, Ong!”

Seongwoo rolled his eyes at Minhyun, grumbling as he tried to think of someone to send his virus to. Hmm, he thinks, if I can’t send it to Minhyun, then I would send it to Minhyun’s father!

Seongwoo furiously types the details of Minhyun’s father before sending the virus in a word document on the National Police Agency’s human resource affairs.

“Let’s see what Chief Hwang of National Policy Agency has in his computer. It’s going to be so much fun!”

Days later, Seongwoo skips to the lounge and quickly typed in his details. “I’m eager to see what I might find, I hope it’s fun!” When Seongwoo went into his email, to his delight, fifty documents for Chief Hwang appeared, boosting his adrenaline. “It worked, it worked! I’m a genius! Wait till I tell Minhyunnie about this!” As Seongwoo browsed through the documents, the one named ‘Top Secret’ has perked his interest, causing him to click on it to see its contents.

Maybe he shouldn’t have been curious. Maybe he should have taken Minhyun’s advice. Because he wishes that he hadn’t seen this. He wished that his dreams would stop shattering right in front of him.

Chief Hwang had written up a report on Sekang Securities investigating the company’s political slush funds and unfortunately, his respected Chief Hwang was one who had covered such a major crime. Seongwoo was still in the state of disbelief and was trying to get himself back up until Minhyun places his warm hand on Seongwoo’s shoulders.

“What are you doing, Ong? You were looking like you were in dread just now, are you—” Minhyun worriedly asks, seeing how Seongwoo had suddenly looked so pale. Seongwoo suddenly shuts the computer, making a run for the exit. Or at least an attempt, as sirens of the police cars started to flock to the school, and they are coming for him. Seongwoo could only stare helplessly as policemen came to grab him, the shock he had experienced was still too much to bear.

“Minhyunnie! I didn’t do anything, I swear!” Seongwoo shouts as he got dragged by the policemen. Yet, Minhyun could only helplessly watched his friend get dragged away.

Curiosity kills the cat, they say. I should have known, I should have…

part iii

the interrogation

Seongwoo uncomfortably shifts in his seat, extremely uncomfortable with how the police officers had been keeping him waiting since he was brought in. It was as if they were trying to subject Seongwoo to mental torture even before the real interrogation had started.

Finally, one of the officers had made his entrance, holding onto Seongwoo’s laptop. The officer pushed his laptop towards him and demanded, “Ong Seongwoo, key in your password.”

“Warrant?” Seongwoo snarkily asks, not wanting to give in at all. “None, right? Then I suppose I should see myself off. There is absolutely no reason for me to be here.”

“Ong Seongwoo!” The officer growls, obviously getting irritated by Seongwoo’s unwillingness to cooperate. He slams the table and went forth to grab Seongwoo’s collars. “Sure, leave for all you want. But note this, if you want to be part of the police force, you can’t have a criminal record. Now, we can’t afford for this to happen, can we? So why don’t you be a good boy and type your damn password in so everything will be easier for the two of us.”

Seongwoo was obviously still persistent, not willing to back down at all. “Turning to threaten me, huh? Pathetic.” Seongwoo was about to push the officer away but was stopped by the entrance of Chief Hwang. “Release him, Kim. And leave.” Chief Hwang ordered before sitting in the same chair where the officer once sat.

“Did you see?” Chief Hwang calmly asks, looking quite sombre at the moment.

“See what, father?”

“The report on Sekang Securities’ Slush Funds, Seongwoo yah.” Chief Hwang sighed, worry starting to make its way to his face.

“I did, I did! But father, I swear I’m the only one who has seen it, not even Minhyun has seen it! You have to believe me, father!” Seongwoo eagerly said, nodding furiously at Chief Hwang to successfully persuade him. “But why—Wait, is the report false? Tell me you did not manipulate the situation to mislead the agency into investigating an innocent person… Tell me, father!”

“I’m ready to resign Seongwoo ah, I was going to anyway. I have no regrets regarding this matter. Just… Just don’t pursue the matter, please?” Chief Hwang pleaded, looking desperate. Not wanting to give up, Seongwoo appealed once again, begging Chief Hwang to reveal the truth, only to see his efforts in vain.

Shaking his head, Chief Hwang sadly smiles, “I was like you once, you know, I thought that one day the truth will prevail, and unfortunately, that is not likely to happen. The world doesn’t work that way, you see.”

“But father! You said this too! You are a police man! A policeman should always reveal the truth!” Seongwoo desperately clambers, and yet, silence said everything. Seeing that one of his most respectful figure was silent, his shoulders had slumped, hopelessness taking over his entire being. He nods in understanding, whispering to himself that he would leave the police force voluntarily.

part iv

the day he leaves

It had been some time since he had left the dorm room he shared with Minhyun. It took him so much effort to not break down and give up on leaving. He had almost wanted to pretend he had never discovered anything. But it goes against his belief. To want to stay with Minhyun was almost like a luxury, and unfortunately, it was something he could not afford now.

The police force may have disappointed him, but he should at least have some faith in mankind, right? Wrong. He went to the nearest phone booth in the building, punching the numbers of Korea’s top tabloid news station, only to be scoffed at. “Hey kid, I know we do post a number of ridiculous things, but still, how dare you treat us like we are idiots and try to mock us?!” Seongwoo could only laugh sadly, he had thought that the world wasn’t so bad, that humanity can still be saved, but at this point in time, he wonders if he should drop that idea or not.

As he pulled on his luggage, walking on the wide and lonely road, little droplets of rain fell from the sky and it soon turned heavy. “How fitting for the mood I am in, right?”

“Ong Seongwoo! Stop right there!” Oh crap, I wanted to leave in peace. Am I not even allowed to have that? Seongwoo turns around reluctantly, looking at the ground as he did not want to meet Minhyun’s eyes.

“What’s wrong with you, Ong Seongwoo? We were okay, weren’t we?” Minhyun sighed, not being able to understand the sudden turn of events. Seongwoo winced when he detected Minhyun’s disappointment, it wasn’t something to be proud of, really. “We were, but I wavered,” Seongwoo pauses, shutting his eyes close, “I’m leaving… I don’t want to be a policeman, not anymore. Let me go in peace, do that for me, Min.” He turns around, not wanting to look at the taller male. He knew that even one eye contact would do him no good. He had to leave and not even Minhyun could stop him.

“Ong Seongwoo! Leave and we will lose our friendship!” Minhyun screamed but it is all in vain because Seongwoo had never turned back since then.

I’m sorry, Min.

Let me protect you.

part v

nothing without you

Minhyun had to admit that the following days were as good as . There was no one to rant to, and the dorm room was so quiet and empty. Half of the room was empty, leaving only his side of the room, with a framed picture of the two of them after Minhyun’s soccer match.

It did not help when Minhyun managed to alter a virus, causing him to be a little more excited. “Ong! I altered the CodeRed virus! Come and see—Right, he’s not here anymore…”

Minhyun realises that without Seongwoo, there was no one for him to boast about altering and destroying viruses, obviously because only the two of them plays with viruses like they were toys. And without Seongwoo, no one would wake him up at -o-clock to talk about new viruses. And without Seongwoo, there was no one for him to lean on. It was as if his entire life had revolved around Seongwoo and now, it was really nothing without him.

Would he have hated Seongwoo? He would. But could he hate him at all? He definitely couldn’t. Minhyun rubbed his temples in frustration, choosing to lie down instead afterwards. The day has ended, and the stars outside are bright. Minhyun thinks about the day they had made the promise. He also thinks about past moments he had with Seongwoo. He thinks about everything, but the day Seongwoo had left him.

part vi

his rise

“And Seungri High wins!” The announcer shouts, earning the screams of the people of the left wing and the hesitant clapping of the people on the right wing. Amongst the great mass of people was Seongwoo, who was at the front and screaming.

“Hwang Minhyunnie!!! You are so cool!!!” Seongwoo excitedly cheered, almost seeming like he was the one who had won if people hadn’t known better. He proudly watched Minhyun give his team a group hug and a sense of pride had surged within him. It was like… seeing your spouse achieving something after being there for him for so many hard years.

“Ongie! Ong Seongwoo! Your Hwang Galryang is here!” Minhyun shouts, running towards Seongwoo’s seat. Seongwoo looked down and grinned widely before running down to where Minhyun was.

“Yah, Ong! I was great, wasn’t I? I told y—” Minhyun smugly says, only to get interrupted by Seongwoo… A wild Seongwoo, if he must add. Seongwoo wrapped his arms around Minhyun’s neck, going on his tippy toes to whisper into Minhyun’s ears, “you were great, Minhyunnie. I’m really really proud of you.” Minhyun would only laugh in delight as he wrapped his arms around Seongwoo, pulling him closer. That moment seemed great for him, at least until Seongwoo decided to ruin the moment.

“Go get a bath, you fool. You stink!”

his fall

Seongwoo was there when Minhyun had his first breakup.

“What am I? A plague? How could she break off with me so easily?” Minhyun groans, chugging down another can of beer. He had only gotten himself at a late age of… twenty-two and not even a year had passed and she had decided to break off with him. Seongwoo watched the taller male make a fool of himself before clicking his tongue lamely, his mature image is such a fraud… How can he be like this even when he is not drunk…

“Come on, Min—” Seongwoo tried to help Minhyun up from where he was –the floor in the doorway—to his bed, only to be shoved by Minhyun.

“So I went to ask around and I thought that asking Jay Park would be a great idea just because…” Minhyun slurs, raising his finger and turning it in a circular motion. Seongwoo’s interest had been piqued and he could not help but wonder if the legendary text-Hwang would successfully charm a hip-hop artist.

“But he said, ‘you will live. lol.’. THAT HURTS, YOU KNOW. And why that unnecessary ‘lol’?!” Minhyun groans, trashing his long limbs around. Seongwoo cackles at Jay Park’s reply and decided that really, a drunk Minhyun may be a dumb Minhyun, but a drunk Minhyun is also a funny Minhyun. Though Minhyun had suddenly turned into a sobbing mess, looking more pathetic than he normally was. Sighing, Seongwoo patted Minhyun’s back softly and gave him a hug. “Minhyunnie… You are not a plague, you know? She doesn’t appreciate you as much as I… others do. You did your best, and it’s time to take the next step, hmm?” As Seongwoo pulled away from Minhyun to look at the man, he sees Minhyun with his eyes closed, obviously visiting dreamland without him.

“Oh, you fool. What do I ever do with you?”

the promise

It was just like any other day. The day had ended and the night was painted with bright stars. The moon was round and beaming, boasting its beauty to the Earthlings. Minhyun and Seongwoo had snuck out of their dorm room, running up to the rooftop where the air was the freshest. The two of them sat on the floor and Seongwoo took out two cans of beer.

“The night sky is wonderful,” Minhyun commented, looking up at the sky. Seongwoo turned to look at him and he nods in agreement, “It sure is.”

“Isn’t it unfortunate?” Minhyun asks out of the blue before continuing, “The new case I mean. No one was there for that girl and all she did was type into her computer about how she could not cope? If someone was there for her, or if someone had bothered to ask her how she was, maybe her death would have been avoidable…”

“Yeah, but it all boils down to whether we bother or not. We see people suffering sometimes, but whether we take action or not depends on us.” Seongwoo agrees, this time fiddling with his fingers. Quietness takes over again before Minhyun decides to break it for the last time.

“Will you promise to be there for me, Ongie?” Minhyun teasingly pokes Seongwoo.

“Always, you fool.” Seongwoo chuckles lightheartedly.

part vii

they all grow up, they meet again

It had been a long five years since Seongwoo had left. At twenty-eight, Minhyun was the leader of his cyber police team. At twenty-eight, Seongwoo is the owner of a small tabloid news company, “Real Story”.

“Kang Daniel! You are going to be late for the press conference! If you don’t get a scoop, you know who I am going to blame!” Seongwoo shouts as he looked at his watch, his feet tapping in impatience. Daniel is Seongwoo’s trusty partner in managing Real Story, although he had to admit that Daniel can be too naïve for his own good. Daniel runs to Seongwoo, his left shoulder occupied with his laptop bag as he smiled sheepishly at Seongwoo. The older male shakes his head in pure amusement and signals for Daniel to walk faster. “I will pick you up after the press conference. Don’t be late, you little prick!” Seongwoo warns, starting the engine of his van.

“Don’t reveal any details about the virus, got it? Any news about Hades and the public may go into chaos. We can’t afford that, got it?” Minhyun firmly asks, his face devoid of all emotions. He sure got his dream job, but it seemed like every day had worked like a clockwork. There was nothing to look forward to, except for catching the five-year-old wanted hacker: Hades. He did not understand why, but Hades had always gotten a hold of the cases he was working on and he must admit that more than eighty percent of the solved cases were aided by Hades himself. And something in him tells him that he might have known Hades from somewhere.

His team walked into the press conference room, going up to the podium and introducing themselves. “We are the Cyber Police Squad, let’s have civil press conference and all are to be respectful.” After seeking for the nods of the reporters and writers, the team had started to answer questions that were thrown to the floor. The press conference had gone well at first, until someone had to ask the blacklisted question.

“Did Hades take part in solving this case?” Daniel asks, causing Minhyun to stare at him, his eyes widening for a split second. Darn it, nothing ever goes my way, huh? By now, there were murmurs in the room and everyone looked confused.

Not knowing exactly how to answer the sudden question, Minhyun cleared his throat before talking into the microphone again, “As if now, we cannot determine anything.” He squints at the place where Daniel was seated and noted the name of the company.

After the press conference had ended, Daniel skipped to the porch, feeling proud of himself for asking such a touchy question. He knew that Seongwoo wouldn’t exactly appreciated it, though he didn’t know why, but he thought that Seongwoo might be proud of him.

“Daniel!” Seongwoo yells as he waved at Daniel happily.

“Representative from Real Story!” Minhyun shouts from behind Daniel.

Daniel was obviously confused, deciding to wave back at Seongwoo first before turning around to address whoever that was behind him. Seongwoo got a little confused, deciding to get out of the car to see what was going on.

“What made you ask—” Minhyun asks as he looked at Daniel, before turning to look at Seongwoo, his eyes widening in disbelief, “Seong… Seongwoo?” Seongwoo was equally shocked, but quickly recovered to mask his feelings. He gave a quick smile at Minhyun, muttering that he had to get Daniel and go soon. “No wait. Mr Daniel, I believe? What made you ask about Hades?” Minhyun tugged at Daniel’s arms, still as unrelenting as ever. Seongwoo snapped his head at Daniel, masked anger on his face. Daniel looked at Seongwoo sheepishly, scratching his scalp nervously, “…I was just curious… I won’t ask about Hades anymore, hyung.”

Seongwoo shook his head and muttered a soft “It’s okay. Let’s go back.” and pulled Daniel with him, leaving Minhyun by himself. The ride back to their company building was quiet, and Daniel could easily see that Seongwoo was having a battle with himself. Daniel has always acted like he was clueless, but in the span of five years, he was already to see through the older. There was just one part he needed to uncover, and it is just the reason why Seongwoo had to go to the extent of putting an electronic lock for his room.

Seongwoo quickly punched in his password and slipped into his room, his frustration finally showing. Looking at the stack of case files that he had helped the cyber team with, for the first time in five years, he was wondering if creating Hades was even the right choice.

part viii

the truth

When Seongwoo had finally gotten out of the room, he jumped in shock, his hand clutching his heart as he looked up and glared at Daniel.

“You’re supposed to get off work! It’s long past your bedtime, kid. Shoo!”

“Hades. That’s what you are, right?” Daniel asks, staring hardly at Seongwoo. Seongwoo raised a brow, trying to look as if he was unfazed. “What?”

Daniel pleaded, wanting Seongwoo to put his burden down for once and to at least confide in him, “Hyung, you can’t lie to me. You’re Hades, right? You can trust me, you know that. You basically brought me up. I will never have the audacity to betray you, hyung.” Seongwoo sighed, knowing that Daniel was the most persistent person he has ever met. “Come in,” he whispered, placing his palm on the small of Daniel’s back and pushing him into the room.

“So you have been helping the cyber team solve cases? But somehow, you came off to be their competitor? That’s why the police force sees you to be a threat? But I don’t understand, hyung. Why?” Daniel had already long known that Hades has been aiding the police force, but as to why Seongwoo had even started on doing such a thing… He was still very puzzled.

“Because…” Seongwoo trails off, “… So I can stay by his side…”

“Being Hades, and leaving the police force… Has it always been for him, hyung?” Daniel asks.

“Always.” Seongwoo gives a small smile, but all Daniel sees is love and longing for the mystery man.

part ix

realisation

Minhyun watched as the van drove off, his heart feeling heavy when he saw that he was not able to bring Seongwoo back to him.

Who is Daniel to Seongwoo? His boyfriend? A replacement for him?

After five long years, he had never earned peace. Seongwoo had left him so suddenly and he was still clueless as to why. He was so sure Seongwoo had told him everything, but ever since he left, he wondered if he had been so satisfied with himself that he forgot to check on Seongwoo once in a while. It wasn’t just Seongwoo who had left him, his father did too. His father who did so well in the agency, so well respected by everyone, had decided to leave the police force a day after Seongwoo did. He had always put off the thought that them leaving had to do with each other, but seeing Seongwoo today, he felt a spark within him to seek for the truth.

“Father,” Minhyun greets, “What had happened five years ago? Why did Seongwoo leave?” The former chief knew that the day would come, but he did not expect it to be so soon. Knowing that he had to spills the beans sooner or later, he pushed himself to reveal the truth, although he knew that Minhyun may turn to hating him.

It was a day of realisation for Minhyun. He had met Seongwoo for a short while, then got his father to tell him the truth and now, he is running towards the humble building of Real Story. Knocking on the door loudly, he shouts for Seongwoo to come out. “Ong Seongwoo! Come out! Ong Seongwoo!” Daniel groaned at the sudden loudness, wondering if Seongwoo had caused a ruckus outside. Opening the door, he made sure to roll his eyes twice before staring straight at whoever was at the door. “Ong S—” Minhyun shoves Daniel aside and Daniel groaned again, the bloody disrespect! “He is not here.”

Unfortunately, things don’t quite work the way Daniel wanted them to, for Seongwoo had peeked out from his room. “Niel? What’s going on… What are you doing here, Hwang?” Daniel was about to reply Seongwoo, only to watch Minhyun push Seongwoo into his room, closing the door behind them.

“The disrespect! The nerves of the man to disrespect me!” Daniel yells, making sure his voice could be heard by Minhyun.

part x

hey, i missed you

Minhyun pushed Seongwoo to his chair, making sure that the slightly younger boy was seated. Looking around at the room, he spots his case files and squints at Seongwoo’s desktop wallpaper. Isn’t that Hades’ hallmark? Is Seongwoo Hades?

“What are you doing here, Hwang?” Seongwoo sighs, not wanting to deal with Minhyun when he had such a long day, only to see Minhyun getting distracted.

Wait, so Seongwoo had been protecting and helping me all this time? From the dirty secrets of the police force, to the normal cases that I see every day? Realisation came knocking on Minhyun’s skull as he was taken back to every moment Seongwoo had been there for him. From when he had his first win to his first breakup and even to this day, he kept his promise…?

“Minhyun, I swear, I’m really tired—” Minhyun turns around swiftly, causing Seongwoo to pause and look at him questioningly. He then bended down to give Seongwoo a tight hug. “Seongwoo ah,” Minhyun breathes out, “Seongwoo ah, you fool. I missed you so much. So so much, you know that?” Seongwoo had his eyes shut tightly, nodding his head as he took in Minhyun’s smell, the same old clean cotton smell.

Later that night, the two males were seated side by side, staring out at the night sky, the same old night sky that was painted with pretty stars.

“You have always been there, haven’t you?” Minhyun whispered, turning to Seongwoo.

“Always, Minhyunnie. Always.” Seongwoo warmly grins.

part xi

always

Years had gone by, and Seongwoo and Minhyun had finally gone back to their old ways. Seongwoo had moved into Minhyun’s apartment, much to Daniel’s reluctance to let him go. “For bonding purposes, to make up for the lost years,” they had said to Daniel that day. And just like any other days, the two would take turns to plant altered viruses into each other’s computers, to the point where it had soon become a competition to see who would cave in and admit his loss.

Today was very much different, though. Seongwoo had jolted out of his bed in shock, looking at his computer that was blasting the song, with red painted all over the screen. Oh my… Am I the next victim?!?! Minhyun had told him yesterday that a serial killer had emerged, killing his victims after playing the song and subjecting them to horror. Seongwoo looked around, fear taking over as he was not ready to die yet. Heck, he hasn’t even got to see Minhyun become his boyfriend!

“W-Who?” He squeaks, but heard no reply. Deciding to crawl out of bed, he carefully trudged out of his room, his head turning around every few seconds. Sure, he had once trained to be a policeman, but he was still human. Surely, he had the right to be scared—

“Boo!” Minhyun shouts, causing Seongwoo to trip on air and fall. Minhyun was expecting to hear chuckles but when he looked down, he saw Seongwoo sulking, his eyes b with tears. He quickly got down and cupped Seongwoo’s cheeks, whispering words of apologies.

“Sorry, sorry,” Minhyun cooed, “I just wanted to surprise you and uhm, confess to you?”

Seongwoo scoffs, rolling his eyes though Minhyun couldn’t see it, “Well done. You failed.”

Pulling away from Seongwoo, Minhyun looks at Seongwoo, before taking out a ring, “Seongwoo, the years I have spent with you were long and I don’t know how, or when, but I had fallen for you. It’s been years since we reunited, will you let me gain the honour of being your boyfriend?”

Seongwoo punched Minhyun’s arms lightly, his ears red from shyness. “Of course, you fool.” Minhyun grinned at him, pulling Seongwoo for a kiss in delight, his heart bursting in happiness. “Now, let’s cuddle in bed! I’m sure I stole a lot of your sleep.”

The two stayed in bed and Seongwoo was pulled closer towards Minhyun’s chest. Minhyun had wanted the two of them to go back to sleep but Seongwoo’s heart was beating so fast that he could not succumb to his tiredness. Deciding to pull away from Minhyun, Seongwoo poked at Minhyun, earning a hum from the taller male.

“Will you stay with me forever? And love me?” Seongwoo whispers, his hopeful eyes fixated on Minhyun.

“Of course, I will,” Minhyun replies, looking at Seongwoo warmly.

“Always?” Seongwoo implores and Minhyun pulls Seongwoo closer towards his chest before whispering into the younger’s ears, “Always.”

For the time you had protected and stayed with me,

I will do the same until the day we perish from the soil of the Earth.

A/N: Don't say I didn't warn you keke. You have made it through my sixteen microsoft word pages long story! Thank you for reading this. Do leave comments (if you want). I love comments a lot hehe.