When he entered the house, almost everything was quiet. That wasn't strange. He sighed, still happy because of what he and Zhou Mi had done earlier but he forced himself to calm down. He didn't want to have to explain his even happier mood to his mother.

He quickly took off his shoes and was just hanging his jacket onto the coat rack when said woman came out of the kitchen. "Henry! I've already been waiting for you!"

"Mom! I told you not to. I'm a grown man and I told you I would only be at Zhou Mi's and that I might come home late tonight."

His mother smiled. "I don't always stay up because I miss you, my dear. I stayed up because of something I found in the letterbox."

Henry frowned. "Why would you stay up only to tell me we got mail?"

"Follow me and you'll see."

Henry frowned even more, more irritated than before. He followed his mother into the living room and there he saw a white envelope on the table. His mother motioned for him to get it. Henry looked at her strangely and then walked over to grab the latter. On the front it said that it was for him. That was strange. He never got mail! When he turned the envelope around, his heart stopped beating for a second. There was his former best friend's name on it. But... that couldn't be. It wasn't even his handwriting! It was his mother's handwriting!

He swallowed hard, staring at the letters. This had to be a dream. Or someone just wanted to play a trick on him!

"Why don't you open it?" His mother's voice.

Henry looked up. "Because this can't be real. I never got letters from my friends. They don't care about me. They haven't called for over a year! Why would Ryeowook write a letter to me then? Especially when it's his mother's handwriting on the envelope! I'm sure he has never written anything for me." His mood went down as he started to get sad. Even his best friend hadn't cared enough about him to call even once in over a year now.

The sofa lowered itself and when he looked up, his mother sat next to him. "Just open it. I will stay with you if you want me to. If you don't want me to stay here, then I will go to bed. But then you have to tell me tomorrow."

Henry looked at his mother. He swallowed once more, then he carefully opened the envelope. He pulled out two sheets. He opened the first and started to read,

Dear Henry!

I’m sorry that I haven’t ever tried to contact you. You know, this is the hundredth or thousandth letter I already write to you. But I never had the courage to send any of these. I was a coward while you had to live with this disease. It must have felt awful when all of us turned away from you, just like that. I am really sorry. I should’ve kept on calling you. I can’t even imagine how lonely you must have felt, how hurt. I’m so sorry! Please forgive me!

You know, lately a lot of things have happened. I have found a job at a kindergarten nearby. The kids are really nice! I know this is no job that will pay the most money, but you know that I have always dreamed about this! The kids are so sweet! I bet you would love them. My co-workers are pretty nice, too. When I have questions, they will always help me! Most of them are women but there is also one man. He is really cute if you ask me. I know I have always claimed to be straight, but I somehow start to doubt that…

Kibum still doesn’t want to talk to you, saying it would be dirty. He goes to the doctor at least twice a year to let them check if he really doesn’t have cancer. I could kill him for that! But he won’t change… No matter how often I tried to talk to him. He has found a job, too. He works in some office. I don’t even know what exactly it is. Our contact is… well… almost none-existant. I stopped talking to him about a year after he stopped talking to you - right after he forced me to stop talking to you.

Then there’s Kyuhyun… he’s really sad that the contact broke but wouldn’t ever try to call you or write to you. He kind of thinks like Kibum does. But I know that he feels sorry.

I lost contact completely to the others. But I am happy where I am right now. Here are people with whom I can speak freely about most things. And I’m really glad about that! Still I wish you could be here or that I was brave enough to call you. I want to speak with you sooooo badly!!!!

Well, even though I wrote down all of this now, I don’t think I will ever send you this letter. Like I said, I just don’t have the balls to do so. I’m sorry. You have to go through so much and then I don’t even manage to send a simple letter.

I hope I can meet you soon, though. Maybe that will only happen in my dreams, but if that is all that I have, then I will continue dreaming.

I wish you the best,

Your Wookie

P.S.: Omg, I don’t even know if you’re still alive!!! I’m such a horrible friend!!! Please, Henry, forgive me!!!!

He teared up when he had reached the end of the letter. Ryeowook hadn't forgotten about him. Ryeowook still remembered him and wanted to see him!

A tear escaped his eye and he wiped it away quickly, grabbing the other letter. Here he saw the handwriting from Ryeowook's mother again.

Dear Henry!

I saw this letter on my son’s desk and I know he has more of those. I just thought I should send it to you. I sent this letter because I see how much Ryeowook suffers from this. He wants to contact you, but he won’t. He’s too afraid that when he calls he will be told that you aren’t there anymore. But I am positive that you are still there.

When you read this letter, I want to ask you to call my son. He never wanted to end the contact. His ‘friends’ have talked him into doing so. Since then he isn’t in contact with most of them anymore.

I don’t know what Ryeowook wrote to you, I just saw your name on the top and thought it's time to stop this endless cycle.

I only wish the best to you and your family. If you don’t want to have any contact to my son anymore, I can understand that. Then don’t call. But if you want to give him a second chance, you know our number, it hasn’t changed. You’re always welcome to call.

Love, Ayley

More tears escaped his eyes at the words from his best friend's mother. She said he should call them. She said Ryeowook missed him. She said he should come over. That he would be welcome. At least that was what it it sounded like.

"Mom. I love Wookie!" Henry smiled brightly and then hugged his mother as tight as he could. "He hasn't forgotten about me!!!! He's just too shy and not brave enough to call me after what Kibum said!!! And his mother said I am free to call!!! Mom, can I go to Canada once more? Please?"

"Calm down!" His mother laughed before she seemed to realize what he said in his last sentence. "But... you know, Henry, we don't really have enough money to pay for a hotel and so on..."

"I don't care, I'll just call Wookie!"

"Remember the time difference!"

"The... oh my god, right, what time is it at their's?"

"I can't believe you forgot it after talking about it so much back there! It's 9pm here and we have eight hours of difference. So, what time is it in Canada?"

Henry thought about it for a second, then he pouted. "Mom, it's only 5am there! But I want to call Wookie right now!!!"

"Just wait until tomorrow, okay? And rest a little until then. Doctor Park won't approve of you just staying up for too long after you were in the hospital. I bet your circulation wouldn't welcome it too enthusiastical either..."

Henry sighed. "Okay, okay. I'll wait until tomorrow." He pouted. "But can't we just act as if it already is tomorrow?"

"No, my dear. Go to bed, rest for a while and then you can call them later."

Henry sighed but then did as his mother had told him, though he felt like he was unable to sleep. He had finally gotten a letter from Canada!!! From his best friend!!! And Ryeowook seemed to truly miss him!!! Because he knew the other well enough to see that even if he was only able to judge by his writing style. He could somehow bet Ryeowook hadn't changed even the slightest bit in those four years that they had already been seperated. He felt really bad now that he hadn't called Ryeowook in such a long time. They had been best friends. How could he have thought they could grow apart just like that? Well, maybe he shouldn't set his hopes too high... maybe this letter was already years old...

Whatever, he would just call the next day! But that was soooo far in the future!!! How was he supposed to survive the next few hours?!

He pulled out Ryeowook's letter again and the lamp that stood by his bed.

You know, this is the hundredth or thousandth letter I already write to you. But I never had the courage to send any of these. I was a coward while you had to live with this disease. It must have felt awful when all of us turned away from you, just like that. I am really sorry.

That sounded so much like his Wookie... And that co-worker he mentioned... Henry couldn't help but wonder about him. Was there maybe even something going on between the two of them? That would be really great... He wished for Ryeowook to have found someone he loved! And hopefully, the other loved him, too...

It was only half past five in the morning when Henry decided he couldn't take lying around and not doing anything anymore. He hadn't been able to sleep for most of the night and even though he started to get tired, he wanted to get up and do something useful!!! But no one besides all the buisiness men who always were in a hurry would be up already... Besides... there was a faint chance that someone actually was up...

He quickly got dressed, grabbed the two sheets of paper he had stared at most of the night and which's words he partly knew by heart by then and then he walked out of his room. He decided to leave his parents a note that he would be at Zhou Mi's place and then he quietly left the house.

On the outside, he started running. It felt good to run and just let out the energy and the frustration about not having been able to call until then. But at some point he fell back into walking.

When he reached the high rise Zhou Mi lived in, he hesitated briefly, then opened the doors - which were strangely not even locked. The receptionist glanced up and then jumped up. Henry lifted his hands. "I'm not here to steal anything, if that's what you think. I only want to visit someone. Zhou Mi. Do you know if he's already up?"

"You little stickybeak! You can tell me whatever you want! I am going to call the police right now!" the other man screamed and Henry flinched.

Behind him the door was opened and cool air blew in, then the door was closed. "What's going on here?"

"That little boy wants to steal something! He's a thief! We have to call the police!"

The man from behind him rounded him. Somehow he seemed familiar to Henry but he couldn't place him anywhere... at least not until he laughed, turned around and said his next words, "Don't do that. As far as I'm concerd he's come here around noon with Mr Lee and Mr Zhou lately. Or am I wrong?" Henry shook his head. "I knew I was right. He's no danger. You can go, little boy."

I am no little boy! Henry thought with a slight pout but only showed a greatful smile. "Thank you." He bowed slightly and then left for the stairs.

"And why does he take the stairs if he is no thief?! He just doesn't want to take the elevator because there are cameras in there that would record him having been here!" the first receptionist screamed, but Henry couldn't hear the other's response anymore because the doors of the staircase fell shut. He quickly made his way up until he reached the eleventh floor. There he paused for a while to catch his breath. A brief glance into the reflecting windows showed him that his hair was a mess and that he had dark circles under his eyes. Well, now it was too late to do anything about it. He ran his fingers through his hair to not let it appear as messy as it was but of course was it no use. He sighed, gave up on his try immediately and instead opened the door to the eleventh floor. There was a red light blinking in the otherwise completely dark hallway and he was sure that the receptionists already had him on their screen. He took a couple of steps into the hallway but didn't know where to go without having any numbers to guide him. Over there was a light if he wasn't wrong...

Suddenly the lights went on and Henry flinched again but instantly relaxed. He looked at the numbers and then found out he had to turn into the direction of the light he had seen before - not to say he had to go to exactly that door. His hand shook when he knocked silently. After ten seconds he knocked again. This time he heard steps and a key that was turned around, then a still not quite awake looking Zhou Mi opened the door. Henry smiled. "Hey! I-I... hope you don't mind me being here right now?"

Zhou Mi just stared at him, then yawned and stepped aside so he could go into the room. "Why are you here already?"

Henry hesitated, but then didn't see any reason why he shouldn't tell the other. "Well... I got a letter from my former best friend yesterday. And I wanted to call him - but then my mother reminded me of the time difference we now have and I wasn't allowed to call him. But right now it's about 2pm where he lives. But I guess my parents would kill me if I called him from my home. And... well... maybe... I don't know, maybe he has written the letter a month after our contact stopped and Ayley only found it now and it isn't even up to date..."

"So you came here to call h