“You sure you have to move out?”

Let’s be honest, despite the fact that we lived in a tiny little apartment, clearly made only for one, I didn’t want our fourth member leaving just yet. Watching Daehyun back up his things to leave, I found, was one of the hardest things I’ve done yet.

Stopping from shoving his clothes into the bag, he turned up to lift a brow at me curiously. “What, scared Himchan won’t come sleep with you at nights and you’ll have to sleep all alone?” Laughing at his own joke, he threw a wadded up version of my pajamas at my face, squinting his eyes to little slits. “You can always call me if you ever get scared. I’ll come and save you from the scary ghosts.”

I threw my shirt back at him, rolling my eyes with a huff. “The most you’ll do is trip and crash on your face.”

But that didn’t mean that I wouldn’t miss Daehyun when he left. I was going to actually miss scrunching up to a little ball so that the both of us could fit on the bed – it was a tad different from sleeping with Himchan, who never really took all too much space on the bed. The room was going to feel awfully empty without a Daehyun there to liven it up.

“Plus, that’s Himchan hyung to you. He’s older than us.” But that, that one was just an excuse to be able to wag a finger in Daehyun’s face. Himchan didn’t care if we called him hyung or not as long as we weren’t directly addressing him.

The very next day, Daehyun, true to his word, moved out, waving a too cheery goodbye to our used to be family with promises to visit. And after he left, the house fell to an unfamiliar silence. (With the exception of Himchan’s dramatic sigh: “I’m going to actually miss that kid’s dinner.” Yongguk swatted him on the shoulder for that.)

Still, this time, I made full sure to keep in contact as much as I could with Daehyun. He would be living alone now. Unlike me, who still had Yongguk and Himchan stuck by my side, he wouldn’t have anyone to talk to when having a bad day. It was the least I could do.

And this time, with the both of us living just minutes away from each other, meeting up with him was all the more easier. Now, the opposite to how it used to be, Daehyun was the one who made frequent visits to my workplace, lounging around the counter with me in small talk whenever there was a lack of customers. (He’d come so frequently the manager had actually paid him, thinking he’d hired another college student on accident. We made sure to correct any mistakes though; Daehyun wasn’t here to get paid – but the manager did grow an odd fondness for him, often offering him free books and or coffee.)

“So,” Daehyun began one day, slumped over the main counter as I restocked the shelves, “why exactly a book store?”

“Cause’ I can get all the expired books I want,” I sighed lazily, squinting at the title drawn along the spine of the book, recalling to his old excuse for working at a convenience store. Did I really need an excuse beside the fact that the pay and hour was nice? Shouldn’t he, of all people, know that?

“Books expire?”

Daehyun’s education was really questionable.

Hissing, I threw the book I had in hand at his head, succeeding him hitting him straight in the face with the cover of the paperback. “You’re buying that.” Then, I was back to shelving the books, ignoring the soft groans of complaint from my friend. He deserved it.

Since Daehyun often came to visit at work, the lazy work hours I spent day dreaming began to fade away. It was almost funny how we’d always have something to talk about, despite the fact we saw each other practically every day. I suppose Daehyun would have been to thank for that; he always seemed to have something to talk about. (Sometimes, he’d show up with a book in hand, demanding I explain a concept he apparently didn’t get – he was lying.)

Most times, we’d talk about something random, like the weather (you think I’m kidding), but other times, the subjects were darker, dealing with how much things had changed from our lazy childhood days.

“I’m looking for somewhere else to crash.”

Daehyun looked at me funny when I told him his, putting down the book I’d recommended him in question, “Why?”

“It’s not that they’re kicking me out or anything, but,” I sighed. The place wasn’t nearly big enough to huge three grown males. Despite the fact that we’d gone so far without as much as a peep of complaint, I knew the stress was beginning to pile on Himchan. “Just because, alright?” Being a burden wasn’t something that was too high up there on my list.

Then, there was this huge smile lighting up his face. He looked too much like a child who’d just seen what was awaiting him under the Christmas tree after the eve.

“Live with me then.”

And I couldn’t see why not.