I slept soundly in my bed. The blankets covering my head from the cold on the other side. It felt nice and warm... but it was all ruined when I heard pounding on the door.

" Open up!"

Upset at the rude awakening, I got up, the bed groaning under my weight, " Hold on, I'm coming.." I slipped on some slippers I had nearby and walked to the door, lifting the latch to open it.

" OPPA!!~" one of the voices yelled.

I squinted one of my eyes open at the high-pitched voice. " Taecyeon, Chansung, what the hell are you doing here this early in the morning?"

" Exercising of course!" the younger one exclaimed. I opened my eyes to see them clad in running clothes.

" That's good for you, now I'm going to bed." I started to close the door, when a hand reached in and stopped it. " Come on, don't be so lazy!" Taecyeon retorted. He pushed me back inside the house, Chansung following behind us.

" Can't you just let me sleep?"

" No, we can't." Taecyeon replied behind me pushing me into my room. " Now, let's see..." he mumbled looking through my closet. I turned away to see Chansung leaning against the doorframe. As I glared at him, he shrugged unknowingly, " You know how Taecyeon hyung is." I looked at my clock on my bedside drawers and saw that it was only 5 in the morning.

Sigh.

With a sudden push, Taecyeon forced a pile of clothing into my hands and pushed me into the restroom. " Now, you get ready. Clean up, do everything you need to!" he replied happily, closing the door behind me. " I'll take care of everything out here!"

" These, guys.." I mumbled under my breath.

I walked out of the restroom rubbing my eyes. I still was feeling tired and groggy, and the weather wasn't making it any better. I walked into the living room and saw Taecyeon and Changsung sitting on the couch eating ramen. " Oh, hyung!" Chansung replied with a mouth full of noodles.

Taecyeon pointed to another bowl that was placed on the dinning table. " You're going to need it." I grabbed to bowl and took a seat on the comforter by the couch.

" Hey, what's this?"

Chansung grabbed at Taeyeon's tape on the table. Quickly, I got up and snatched it away from him.

" It's nothing."

They both looked at each other and looked back at me with a weird stare. " Really, it's nothing..."

" Well," Chansung mumbled," If it's nothing, then we should be able to listen to it." Taecyeon nodded in response. " Chansung's right... unless it's something wrong."

Taecyeon looked at me curiously. He always had this sixth sense about knowing when something was up... a lot like Tiffany actually.

" Wooyoung... did something happen?"

I sighed, knowing that they would find out eventually. I got up and grabbed my tape Walkman tossing it to them. " Just listen to it."

The popped the tape in, and each took one of the ear buds to listen in. I sat quietly as they listened to the tapes. I saw their faces change as they heard each one.

Minutes later, they took out the last tape. They were speechless. " Well... uh." Chansung stammered.

" So the next one is at the Han river?" Taecyeon asked. I nodded. " I was planning to go later."

"Pft. Go later? Let's go now!" I stared at them, my jaw hung open. " You serious, Taecyeon? It's only like what, 5-6 in the morning?"

" So? Come on!" he yelled pulling on my arm. " Give me a break, please!"

" Why not? We can go run there too. We're killing two birds with one stone."

" I don't want to go now. I want to sleep."

" Be more energetic, gosh. Chansung!" he called him over nodding towards something. With one lift, Chansung had grabbed onto both my legs lifting me into the air. Taecyeon reached to get the Walkman, placed it on my stomach, and grabbed onto my other arm. " LET'S GO!" 

" I CAN WALK. PUT. ME. DOWN."

" No, you're just going to walk back in there. I know you Mr. Jang Wooyoung."

By now, they were both out of breath, steps away from the car. They collapsed right in front of the car's door. " Woodong hyung, did you gain weight?" Chansung exclaimed out of breath.

" Hey! I exercise, okay? It's called muscle."

" Yeah, yeah. Go in first, and give me your keys so I can lock the door." Unwillingly, I handed over my keys to Chansung, and he ran off. " Hey," Taecyeon called from the other side of the car, " I know it seems like were barging in and everything, but I know how close you and Taeyeon were. We should go get it early."

I knew he was right.

He got into the drivers seat, Chansung in the passenger, and we drove off.

Ok Taecyeon literally was a lifesaver. He could help me out of any situation, but he had a rambunctious side to him as well. He was filled with aegyo and bad fashion sense. If it wasn't for Junsu and Junho... oh god! He would be a living disaster. But other than that, he was probably one of the most prioritized and neatest people alive.

He, like Tiffany, knew of what had been going on. The both of them could tell even without me saying anything. 

" You just... change." Tiffany began. " Yeah, you don't act like yourself." Taecyeon continued from beside her.

Tiffany and Taecyeon had set up an intervention with me at the local cafe. They had felt as if I was troubled, and to be honest, I was. Taeyeon and I... we had gotten into an argument the night before. It was bad.

" Look, I'm perfectly fine. You two don't have to worry about me."

" Doesn't look like it to me." Taecyeon replied seriously. " Look, if something's going on, I think it's best you tell us, Woo."

" Either that," Tiffany said taking out her phone, " or I can call Taeyeon for the truth."

" Taec, Fany, stay out of it." I warned, getting up from my seat.

" We can't, you're our friend. We need to know if anything happens."

They wouldn't give up, and apparently, they weren't going to. " Why does it concern you about what happens between us? Why does my life concern you? Can't you just forget about it?"

" Like Taecyeon said, you're our friend. We can't just pretend that it isn't there. We would be avoiding the situation..."

I took a deep breath, taking a seat back down. " Is it that important to you?"

Taecyeon nodded silently. " We need to know." Tiffany answered. I could hear the fear in her voice.

"... Fine."

Chansung was almost the complete opposite of Taecyeon. He could be very clueless about things, but he was one of the best when it came to giving advice. He was probably some freaking psychiatrist in his past life or something. Ironically, when it came to solving his own personal problems, he just could never figure it out. He was out of luck when it came to love.

" It just doesn't work that way, hyung." He would always tell me. " It's easier when I help others... it's complicated."

The doors slammed closed, snapping me out of my thoughts. " We're here, hyung!" Chansung called out. I opened the door to be welcomed by a cold gust of wind.

Taecyeon walked up beside me, rubbing his arms. " It's kind of cold, huh?"

" Kind of? Taecyeon hyung, it's freezing cold!" Chansung spat out beside me. " God, I hope my doesn't freeze off."

" We can run it off. Let's go!" the two men took off into a quick jog, leaving me behind.

" You guys go ahead! I'll just walk!" I yelled to them. In the distance I saw one of them stop and turn around. " No you don't! You're coming with us." Taecyeon replied as he pushed me from behind. " We have a mission to accomplish, and it'll be a lot easier if we run."

" But, I can find it while I'm walking!"

" No can do, Woodong. And besides," he said, patting me on the stomach, " you need to lose some weight." he teased.

" IT'S CALLED MUSCLES! JEEZ!"

Chansung was a few yards in front of us. I jogged beside Taecyeon. I noticed that around the trail we ran on, there were a lot of people. There were grandparents, adults, and even little children! I didn't expect to see that many people that early in the morning. It felt kind of... nostalgic.

A while into the jog, I could see Chansung jumping up trying to climb a tree. He was reaching his arm out for something.

" Chansung!" Taecyeon yelled beside me. " What are you doing?"

Chansung turned around and began pointing up at the tree. " I found it!"

" You found what?!"

" THE ENVELOPE, STUPID!"

As soon as we heard that, we took off running to where he was, and like he said, their it was; A yellow-colored envelope stuck on a branch.

" How are we supposed to get it down?" I asked curiously.

" What do you think? We have to climb it!"

" But who could do that?"

We thought about it in silence for a while. " What about scissors, paper, stone? Loser has to climb." the youngest suggested.

" I'm up for it."

"... Sure why not."

"Okay then, it's settled. Ready? 1...2...3!"

" SCISSORS, PAPER, STONE!"

We walked back to the car, envelope in hand. " Nice job you did there, Chansung." Taecyeon replied patting him on the back. His face and body was now covered in cuts from the branches in the tree.

" I shouldn't have suggested that."

" Well, it's too late now."

We reached the car, and I grabbed for the Walkman, leaving the car door open. I pushed the tape in, and closed the top.

" We can leave after you finish listening to it." Taecyeon said, " It might be better."

I smiled at him. " Thanks." With a nod, he walked off to join Chansung in treating his wounds.

I always wanted to come here. Especially at night.

I could hear the water from the river in the background of the tape.

You were never one to really observe your surroundings. You probably don't even understand why I told you to go to this specific place. The tree has a special meaning, even though we never went here together. It shows an everlasting bond. Those trees have grown together, morphed into one big single tree.

But unlike others, it will never part.

Sometimes, I think relationships can be described like trees. One, it can be like this tree. It can stay with that one partner for life, never leaving them. Devoted to help each other grow over time.

However, others just fall apart at the seams. They break down over time, and just split away from each other like splinters.

I wonder what we are, Wooyoung. Were we meant to be, or maybe, were we destined to break up from the start?

I don't really know anymore...

At first, I thought we would last.

I never gave up hope that we would. I wanted to marry you... but...

But everything just started falling around me. Wooyoung, I was scared. Scared for my life, scared for yours. I didn't want to lose you, because everything at that time seemed to be leaving me.

I was afraid you would leave me.

I didn't want to be alone, but it seemed like the only choice in saving everyone else... It feels like maybe I was supposed to be alone.

I could hear her beginning to cry on the tape. I was already crying myself.

I tried to hide it, tried to run away from the truth.. but I noticed the changes in our relationship... we began falling apart, and I knew we couldn't fix it.

I began to notice that we would get into constant fights over the smallest things. It got out of hand. I felt so upset... and I knew you did too.

But... that wasn't why I decided to leave...

I can't bring my self to tell you. Haha, I'm such a fool..

She started crying on the tape.

It's hard for me. I... I just can't yet.

But before I go, I just want you to know... everything I did, I did it for us...

I did it for you...

................

................

................

Cafe Luna in Bucheon. That's your next stop.

" Woo. Woodong hyung. WOOYOUNG!" Chansung yelled, waving his hands frantically in front of my face.

" Huh?"

" You okay?" Taecyeon asked worried. " You've been like that for the past few minutes."

I rubbed my eyes wiping the tears and nodded my head. " Yeah, I'm okay."

" You don't look okay. Mmh... OH! I got it." Taecyeon vanished from view for a bit, and came back with a soccer ball.

" What about a game of soccer?"

" But.. you two don't even know how to play."

" But at least you'll feel better, right?" Chansung smiled happily.

Taecyeon yanked on my wrist, and pulled me out. " Let's get this party started!"

Those two... I really owed them one.