After that day, Sunggyu and Hoya started talking, a lot more.

Every night, they would chat online for an hour, at least. What time are you going to bed?, Sunggyu would ask, and Hoya would usually respond with 12:00, but when 12:00 hits, it’s postponed, more and more. Sunggyu drew a strict line at 2:00 am, because he knew that if he didn’t, he and Hoya would be able to talk the night away. Literally.

Hoya was a really fun guy, and really easy to talk to; he was one of the easiest people to talk to that Sunggyu has ever met, which is saying something, since Sunggyu usually has too many conversations with people that lead to awkward silence within the first 5 minutes.

Sunggyu liked Hoya. On Fridays, they would eat dinner, then go to the movies together. Sunggyu insisted on paying half the bills, but Hoya would always insist back. Every other Saturday, Sunggyu would take peaceful walks with him around university campus.

“You really shouldn’t be doing this, Hoya,” Sunggyu observed as Hoya paid the restaurant bill, yet again, before going to the movies. “I really insist.”

“Nope!” Hoya smiled back. “I have too much money on my hands; I have to spend it somehow!”

“But…Really, I think this is too much.”

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it!”

“No, I’m worrying about it. I feel like I’m freeloading off of you. And if there’s one thing I hate, it’s freeloading.”

“You’re not freeloading,” Hoya handed the bill to the waitress with a smile.

“Yes, I am,” Sunggyu pouted.

Hoya almost choked, “No, you aren’t. And Sunggyu,” he gasped, “are you using aegyo on me?”

Sunggyu’s eyes twinkled, “What if I am?”

Hoya crossed his arms, his nose in the air, “Well, it’s not going to work!”

“I am freeloading off of you! And it’s killing my conscience, Hoya.”

“…What if I like you freeloading off of me?”

“What?” Sunggyu said incredulously. “That doesn’t make sense.”

Hoya stood up from where he was sitting. “Okay. Let me put it to you this way.”

He came closer to Sunggyu, who immediately stood up also, to diminish their height difference, which Sunggyu found a bit infuriating.

Hoya was taller than Sunggyu, and usually Sunggyu wouldn’t mind people being taller than him, but for some reason, with Hoya, it just seems a little…infuriating.

But just a little.

Sunggyu looked up at Hoya, eyes challenging. “Okay. What?”

Hoya lowered his voice, and in a half whisper, “Let’s put it this way, that I’m exploiting your valuable study-time to invest in your conversation. Now, is that not worth paying for?”

If Sunggyu had not been paying close attention to the content of Hoya’s words, he would have been blown away like some love-struck high school girl, but upon paying close attention (and ignoring the butterfly-feeling in his stomach) Sunggyu shot back, “What kind of bull reason is that?”

Hoya dropped his act, “I don’t know,” he confessed, “I thought that just sounded cool, like in the dramas or something.”

Sunggyu elbowed him, and laughed, “I can’t believe you!”

“What!” Hoya feigned hurt, “For a second I thought it did work, actually!”

“Well, it didn’t!”

“Maybe it didn’t, for the whole part, but for the first second, it did!”

“No, it didn’t!”

“Are we going to go see the movie now?”

“Oh!” Sunggyu suddenly remembered, and checked his watch. “, we’re going to be late!”

Hoya and Sunggyu rushed out of the restaurant, and towards the movie theatre that was next door.

But little did they notice an extra pair of angry eyes across the street, watching their every move.

-

Woohyun snarled in disgust as he watched the scene across the street unfold in front of his very own eyes.

Hoya, eating dinner at the restaurant.

With Kim ing Sunggyu.

-flashback-

It’s been weeks since Woohyun had gone on an outing with his Hoya. Usually, Woohyun would always off-handedly accept his best friend’s offers to go out, since that was what they always did, but recently that hasn’t been happening.

Hoya hasn’t been talking to him that much, at all.

And Woohyun was pissed. And concerned. But mainly pissed.

“Hey man, you want to go see a movie tonight?” Woohyun asked Hoya, trying his best to sound as if he didn’t care.

Hoya looked up from his phone. (Was he texting someone?) “What did you say, Woohyun?”

“I said,” Woohyun grunted, “let’s go out tonight. Like how we used to.”

“Oh,” Hoya finally put down his phone. “Oh.”

“…Alright?” Woohyun sighed.

“I’m busy tonight. I uh, have to visit my mother,” Hoya said. “But next week, alright?”

Hoya will not be available this week, or the next week, or the week after that. For the past many weeks, Hoya’s Friday nights have been booked, and Woohyun doubts they will be open any time soon.

He feels like he’s losing his best friend. The question is though, to whom?

Woohyun sighed again, and got straight to the point. “Alright, what is it? Who is it?”

“W-What?”

“We used to spend Friday nights hanging out together, Hoya,” Woohyun looked concernedly at his best mate. “Are you really meeting up with your mother tonight?”

Hoya looked at him for a second, then gave up, “No.”

“I thought so.”

“I recently met a…really awesome person.”

“Seems like you’re in love.”

Hoya profusely heated up, “W-What! No, of course not!”

Woohyun broke into a cheesy smile, one that only his best friend is allowed to see. “Now, now, Howonnie, don’t lie! You’re totally in love! Only that type of person is able to whisk you away from our hangouts together! Who’s the lucky girl, anyway?”

Hoya was vigilant not to reveal who it was. “Are you jealous, Woohyunnie?” The avoid-the-question tactic.

“What! Of course not!”

“But…I guess I’m sorry. I’ve been so busy these days, we haven’t been spending enough time together.”

“…” Woohyun pouted, “She had better be one heck of a pretty girl to steal you away from me like this.”

“Aww,” Hoya gave the other man a playful squeeze. “No matter what, you’ll always be my best friend, alright?”

Woohyun softened at that. “Promise?”

Hoya pushed him. “Gosh, you little kid. Promise.”

“I’m older than you!”

“Then act like one!”

-flashback end-

That had apparently been one of the most memorable conversations that Woohyun had had with Hoya in a while. It was just like their old childhood days – talking back and forth, pushing and playing with each other, laughing at their own silliness in the end….They may both be 20 years old now, but they’ve known each other practically since they were born, and some things never change.

But now, things are changing, and Woohyun clenched his jaw at the sight in front of him.

He had tailed Hoya, with the intent on seeing some hot girl that Hoya’s been spending all his time with. He intended on dropping by that restaurant, meeting the girl, then the three of them going to some bar or something like that.

Well, definitely it’s not a girl.

It was that idiot who was too stubborn to get out of his face a few weeks ago at his store. It was that bastard who insulted his own worth, because of his father, because he was rich.

And, now Hoya’s hanging out him. His. Own. Best. Mate.

Woohyun feels like he’s lost his best friend. He feels betrayed, and angry, and most of all, hurt.

Sunggyu’s pulling something here, Woohyun figured. Why else would some lowly university student befriend the chairman’s son, so much that they went out, every single week?

And oh God, Woohyun snarled in anger as he saw Hoya pay the bill. That bastard’s mooching off of his own best friend and he doesn’t even know it!

This is all an act to get to Hoya’s money. His money. Sunggyu’s out to get him, isn’t he? Just like all of the other wannabe-rich boys.

That’s it, Woohyun decided. He’s going to have a talk with Hoya tomorrow. He will never be seeing Kim Sunggyu, ever again.

After tonight, Kim Sunggyu will not exist in his life. Both of their lives.