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Chapter 45 - Welcome to the Philippines

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"Lee Sungmin, wake up now!"

Sungmin hears someone calling his name. It must have been Sungjin, telling him to wake up because his flight to the Philippines is today.

"Sungmin!"

But then he realizes that it isn't Sungjin's voice. He squints, trying to fight the sleepiness that he is feeling. Using his one eye, he looks around and sees that it isn't  his house, but he is in a bed. It isn't his bed either. It is someone else's bed... probably the bed of the guy whose back is facing him. But Sungmin can recognize the guy by looking at his back. He automatically opens his eyes as he jumps out of the bed.

The guy faces him and once again, he yells, "Lee Sungmin! You have to get ready!"

"F-, what am I doing in your bed?" He asks frantically. He'd been in that same bed once before, that time when Kyuhyun invited him to sleepover. But the thought of him sleeping in that bed again this time makes him feel butterflies in his chest. He feels nervous, he feels giddy, he feels awkward. Maybe because he knows to himself that his feelings change for Kyuhyun.

"Don't ask about the bed anymore. Go home and pack up. It is just four in the morning," Kyuhyun says as he prepares his bag. "Go now!"

"U-Uhm... aren't you going with me? Considering the fact that I took care of you yesterday when you were burning with fever. And do you think you're okay now? You need to rest! Let us just cancel the-"

Kyuhyun almost runs towards him and closes their distance as he takes Sungmin's hand and let the back of it feel his forehead. Sungmin's heart skips a beat because their skins touch. After a few seconds, Kyuhyun puts down his hand. "Look Sungmin. I am already cured. We can go to the Philippines, but you need to pack your things."

"This is what I get after I took care of you," Sungmin hisses. "Fine! I am going alone!"

Sungmin brings his bag and marches towards the door. "Wait," Kyuhyun stops him as he realizes that it is somehow his fault that Sungmin isn't able to pack his things the night before. "I'm going with you. Just wait while I pack my things."

Sungmin does not speak but he smiles secretly. He sits on the sofa and pretends to be angry. "Hurry up then."

After forty-five minutes, Kyuhyun finally closes his traveling bag and inspects the house before he goes out with Sungmin and locks the house. "Let's go. It's almost five. We need to get to the airport at six in the morning."

Sungmin does not wait for another word. He walks away from Kyuhyun and Kyuhyun follows him.

Sungmin's house is on the opposite side so it would take them almost twenty minutes of walking. But the two of them are extra faster. They are also not talking to each other so they reach Sungmin's house in fifteen minutes.

"Gosh, I thought you're abandoning your trip." It is his mom. It turns out that Sungmin's mother has packed his things already. "By the way, your passport is in the bag's front pocket."

"Why are you excited for our trip?" Sungmin asks as he checks the traveling bag. "Are all of my things here? Why does it look so congested? It looks like I'm going to live in the Philippines forever!"

"Sungmin, son, your mom is excited because it is your first overseas trip!" His father, who just wakes up, comes down from the second floor and goes towards the three. Kyuhyun bows as a respect to him, and he acknowledges it. "Your friend is really handsome and I bet he's brainy too. He even went to my office to ask permission. What a kind kid, as expected from an Inhwan student!"

Sungmin snorts as he gets the plane ticket and wallet from his outing bag. "Are you really that desperate to send me off? I'll be gone for three days and two nights only yet you packed almost all of my clothes here! And I am pretty sure you'll miss me later."

"You're exaggerating," His mom says as she laughs. "I just packed the things that you need and put on some extras. At least there are extra clothes if you decide to elope with Kyuhyun and to never come back here."

Kyuhyun snickers and Sungmin blushes as he turns to his mother. "Mom!"

"Sungmin, take care of yourself! It is a foreign country and you need to always stick around with Kyuhyun, alright?" His father tells him. He gets his wallet and put out his credit card. "Use this, but do not overuse it or I'll not give you any allowance next term!"

Sungmin excitedly gets the credit card from his father. "Wow! I didn't know you were this generous, Dad?"

"Go now or you'll be late," his mother says and faces Kyuhyun. "Kyuhyun, we are entrusting you our son. Go home safely, alright?"

Kyuhyun bows. "Of course, Mrs. Lee. I will."

Sungmin pulls his bag after he says goodbye to his parents. He also tells them his regards to Sungjin.

When they are already outside their house, Mr. and Mrs. Lee also goes out. Mrs. Lee shouts, "Goodluck on your honeymoon!"

Kyuhyun giggles. Sungmin eyes him. "What?" Kyuhyun asks.

"She's just playing around. My mom's a mature mother but she always makes weird jokes so stop giggling!"

"Even if it isn't a joke..." Kyuhyun whispers softly that Sungmin does not hear it clearly so he asks Kyuhyun about that. Kyuhyun answers as he chuckles, "Nothing."

There is a silence afterwards. They are on the way to the main road to hail a taxi when someone calls Sungmin. It is Donghae. He answers it. "Hey, Donghae! It's too early!" Kyuhyun stares at Sungmin while listening to their conversation. "Oh, yes, we're going to Gimpo airport now. Yes... We'll make it on time. Yes! We will. Of course!"

Kyuhyun sees a vacant taxi and hails it. He silently puts his bag and Sungmin's bag inside the trunk. He then enters the cab and asks Sungmin to go in, "Sungmin!"

"Coming!" Sungmin answers and steps into the cab. He continues talking to Donghae on the phone. "Please take care of Ryeowook, alright? Someone made him cry yesterday so I guess he's not yet okay."

Kyuhyun rolls his eyes and looks outside the window.

"Yes, I will! Please tell Ryeowook that I am already going! Yes!" Sungmin continues talking to Donghae until they reach the airport. The travel time is about forty minutes so they arrive at the airport at six in the morning. "I am hanging up, we're inside the airport now. Bye! See you after three days, Donghae! Don't forget about Ryeowook, alright?" He ends the call. Kyuhyun does not wait for him anymore. He goes straight to the queue. Sungmin walks faster towards Kyuhyun. "Yah! Why did you leave me?"

"You're too slow," Kyuhyun comments as he moves forward. Sungmin ignores him and texts Ryeowook. "Stop acting like you're leaving them forever!"

"Eh, you are so overacting Kyuhyun," Sungmin says without looking at Kyuhyun. "I am just texting Ryeowook about you and-"

"We're going to the Philippines together yet you're still pushing me and Ryeowook together. I already told him that I wasn't interested in him okay?" Kyuhyun snaps and faces Sungmin.

Sungmin sighs. "If only I could change that."

"Why are you so desperate for us to end together?" Kyuhyun asks, his voice is now softer than the earlier. "I told you before that I am in love with someone else, and that it won't change."

"I made a promise to Ryeowook. I also want him to be happy, as his best friend. Besides, you never mentioned any name. How would I believe you?" Sungmin looks on the ground. He knows for sure that it somehow hurts his heart because of that. If only Kyuhyun does not end up with him, Sungmin would rather choose Ryeowook for Kyuhyun. What am I saying? He thinks. "Why can't you say the name of that person? Or why can't you confess to that person?"

"Because I... I need to take him back first," Kyuhyun says. "I need to take him back."

Why does Kyuhyun desperately want that person back? Who is he exactly in his life? 

"Once we find him and take him back, then I would tell you. I would tell everyone," Kyuhyun promises. "You don't know how much I regret not telling you my feelings."

Sungmin immediately looks at Kyuhyun who is looking away. There is something in what Kyuhyun said. Something that he wants to believe in but he chooses not to. Stop being so delusional, Sungmin. 

It is finally their turn. When they present their tickets, the person attending to them says, "I am sorry, but your tickets aren't valid."

"What!?" Sungmin exclaims in shock as he looks at Kyuhyun. "Kyuhyun! What are we going to do?" Then he turns back to the lady in the counter. "Please double-check!"

"These are fake tickets. You've probably been deceived," she says and returns the ticket. "There were a lot of instances of such recently. The victims usually won in a raffle draw, but the draw wasn't really recognized officially. We've been catching the culprits, but they are really notorious. I am sorry."

"Kyuhyun!" Sungmin frantically shakes Kyuhyun. "What are we going to do?"

Everyone in the line is looking at both of them. Some are pissed, some are worried. Kyuhyun keeps a calm expression, while Sungmin is getting nervous. "Hey, aren't you going away? We'll be late for our flight!" one passenger shouts at them one after another.

"Can't you see we're trying to figure things out!?" Sungmin scolds the passengers. The lady who attends to them tells them politely to move aside so that she can serve more passengers. "Shall we just go home or bust the-"

"No," Kyuhyun suddenly mumbles.

"What?" Sungmin asks.

"We are still going to the Philippines. It doesn't matter how long we'd wait. But we need to go. We need to go together, because you promised to help me take him back. I will also do this because I want to be free. Do you understand?"

Before Sungmin can react, Kyuhyun has proceeded back to the line, asking the woman if there are still available seats or available flights. She says that there still has, but they still need to wait for another two hours. Kyuhyun agrees and buys the ticket. He goes back to Sungmin.

"We are leaving in two hours. Let us go inside now."

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They wait for another two hours. Neither of them is speaking. Kyuhyun is reading a newspaper, and Sungmin is just looking around.

Then after two hours, they get in the plane. After fifteen minutes, it successfully takes off.

Sungmin feels sleepy so he finds something to play in his phone. But he gets so bored that he feels sleepy. He also lacked sleep the nght before because he was taking care of Kyuhyun. He finally dozes off, thinking about what happened the night earlier.

He could not believe that he cooked a porridge for him that night. He assisted him to eat. He dressed him up. He never imagined doing that. Never once.

After the hug, he struggled to take Kyuhyun to the bed and laid him there. He was afraid that Kyuhyun would catch cold more, he opened his closet to find him some comfortable clothes. After a few hours, Kyuhyun woke up, and that time, he had finished preparing porridge for him. He asked Kyuhyun to sit on his bed so that he could eat. And Kyuhyun obeyed him in just a matter of seconds. After eating, Sungmin advised him to go back to sleep. But before that, Kyuhyun pulled him once again into a hug and he thanked him. It was not the first time, but because it was rare for Kyuhyun to thank him, he felt really giddy inside. He did not go to sleep not until Kyuhyun's fever was finally gone. He let sleepiness took over. He ended up sleeping in Kyuhyun's bed the next day.

He woke up after almost four hours of flight. He woke up with his head leaning on Kyuhyun's shoulder. He immediately pulled himself. "W-Why didn't you wake me up?"

Kyuhyun smiles. "You almost didn't sleep because of me, so this is my way of paying you back. Even if your saliva is dripping," Kyuhyun said.

"You are teasing again!" Sungmin pouts and crosses his arms.

Kyuhyun smiles once again as he looks outside the window. The plane is only fifty meters high and they are now landing. "We are finally here."

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《Yeah, I know, this isn't satisfying enough. Hahaha. But look forward to the next chapters. Haha. And by the way... I already have a job! I'll be starting on the 21st, and I have a lot of requirements to submit and to take care of. Because I already have a job, the updates won't be as 'frequent' as before. I apologize. But I will try my best to finish this fiction before new year.》