~*~

  Friday, 8:45 PM

  Heechul fidgeted uncomfortably in his seat, which was right in between the ‘EunHae’ couple (as they liked to call themselves), who usually couldn’t go one minute without each other’s tongues in their mouth but right now, it looked more like they wanted more than anything to just strangle the hell out of each other.

  “So…” the teacher cleared his throat, in an attempt to make conversation.

  “,” Eunhyuk hissed at Donghae, crossing his arms and legs with the coldest expression on his face. Heechul had never seen him this pissed before.

  Donghae let out a grunt of offense before retorting, “Jerk!”

  “As much as I’d love to see you two get in a fight right in the middle of Sungmin’s living room, I’m afraid we don’t have the time.” Kyuhyun interjected, clapping his hands to get everybody’s attention. “Sungmin will be back from the store any minute and I don’t want him here when I say what I’m about to say.”

  “Well, what is it then?” Heechul asked, his brows knitting together in intrigue. They have had meetings as a group like this before, but never has Kyuhyun been the one to initiate it. He always figured Kyuhyun always secretly hated being around them and was only putting up with them for Sungmin’s sake.

  Kyuhyun sighed heavily; it wasn’t easy saying this out loud, “I think there’s something wrong with Sungmin.”

  “Like what?” Heechul didn’t seem to notice the odd seriousness that laced Kyuhyun’s tone. “Did he break a nail or something?”

  “No, actually, it’s something more than that. Much more.” A part of Kyuhyun really didn’t want to elaborate any further, as talking about the subject would mean that he had to actually accept it as a fact. And Kyuhyun wasn’t sure if he was quite ready for that yet.

  “I don’t know about Sungmin, but I do know that there’s something very much wrong with Donghae.” Eunhyuk remarked bitterly.

  Heechul suddenly recalled Sungmin mentioning something to him about how scary Eunhyuk was when he was angry; he thought Sungmin was just exaggerating as usual, but only now was he realizing how true it actually was. He almost felt sorry for Donghae, even.

  “You were never supposed to find out!” Donghae croaked desperately, tears stinging the corner of his eyes.

  “Ah, yes, that makes everything better now.” Eunhyuk rolled his eyes, “What next? Are you going to marry that bastard without telling me either?”

  “But—I—I didn’t—” Donghae wanted to crawl into a hole and die. Eunhyuk wouldn’t even look at him and he had to admit, he kind of deserved that. At a last resort, he turned to Heechul and declared, “Kim Heechul, this is your fault! I hate you!”

  “I told you, it was an accident!” Heechul replied in defense, his eyes silently calling Kyuhyun for help.

  But Kyuhyun didn’t really give a rat’s about any of their problems right now. Not that he ever did very much in the first place. “Do you guys hear yourselves right now? You have a friend who is need of some serious help and you’re whining about your own damn petty problems?”

  As Kyuhyun’s voice rose, everybody shut up, eyes wide with surprise. Kyuhyun has always been kind of a douche to them (in a loving kind of way), but he’s never yelled at them like this before. Before anyone could say anything else, the front door opened and Sungmin came in, carrying a couple of paper bags from the supermarket.

  “What’s going on?” he asked, scanning the picture before his eyes. “You guys are having a meeting without me? Why, that hurts, you es. I thought we were friends!”

  “Sungmin…” Kyuhyun literally had no idea what to do right now.

  “Kyuhyun thinks something’s wrong with you.” Donghae tattled like a mischievous child, earning an annoyed glare from Kyuhyun.

  “What?” Sungmin set the bags down on the nearest surface within his reach before asking, “Kyuhyun, what’s he talking about?”

  “Sungmin, honey, I’m just worried.” He voiced his concerns as he took both of Sungmin’s hands and squeezed them tight. “I’ve noticed you haven’t been eating much lately. You’ve been spending way too much time at the gym, you keep a dozen bottles of laxatives and diet pills in the medicine cabinet and I’ve seen your browser history—you’re keeping tabs on the amount of the calories there are in the food you eat. That’s not normal, Sungmin. I just—”

  “What are you saying? That I’m…” Sungmin’s eyes widened. “Oh my God, you are…”

  “Sungmin, I saw you in the bathroom. I saw you throwing up,” he shook his head, “no, I saw you making yourself throw up.”

  “Sungmin…were you purging?” Eunhyuk seemed to have forgotten his anger towards his boyfriend for a moment as he looked at Sungmin with horror. “Why the hell would you do that?”

  Sungmin slowly backed away, “You’re crazy. You’re all crazy. I am fine, I am ing fine!”

  He ignored Kyuhyun’s pleads to stay and listen as he stormed upstairs and loudly slammed the door, making sure that everyone knew just how furious he was with them right now. Kyuhyun sighed and dropped to the armchair in despair.

  “Kyuhyun, what you just said back there,” Heechul started, “are those true?”

  “Unfortunately, yes,” he confirmed. “Sungmin’s sick. And seeing him getting so defensive just now when we confronted him about it just adds fuel to the fire.”

  “Sungmin’s sick? Wh-what kind of sick?” Donghae asked, genuinely worried.

  “I can’t say for sure. But lately he’s been showing symptoms of anorexia—which is probably the most probable explanation, if you ask me.” He revealed. “It’s not as random as you think, though. His mother has always nagged him about weight and . I always tell him that he’s perfect, but evidently so, I’ve never been able to get through to him.”

  “Well, what are we going to do?” Donghae’s eyes filled with worry. “We need to help Minnie!”

  “I don’t think there’s much we can do right now; Sungmin’s still pretty much in denial.” He rested his elbows on his knees as he continued. “But once we can talk some sense into him, I think we can actually get him some legitimate help. But I’m gonna need your guys’ help…”

  “Anything,” Eunhyuk spoke for everyone, “just name it.”

  “Alright,” Kyuhyun felt a smile tugging at his lips at everyone’s immediate cooperation. “We’re going to need a lot of money and…we’re gonna have to talk to my mother.”

~*~

  One Day Earlier

  Kyuhyun woke up, picking his head up from his now drool-stained textbook, realizing he had probably fallen asleep as he and Sungmin were doing their homework. As he looked around, hoping to find Sungmin sitting there and say that he looked adorable while sleeping (he’s seen one too many chick flicks with him), but there was no one in sight.

  What confused him even more was when he spotted a half-finished slice of pie sitting on the kitchen counter—pumpkin pie to be exact, Sungmin’s favorite. He had only made a few steps into the kitchen when he heard a peculiar, off-putting sound coming from the bathroom. It sounded very much like someone was gagging.

  With baby steps, he approached the slightly open door to the bathroom under the stairs, only to be horrified at the sight that greeted him. It was Sungmin, no mistake about that, kneeling before the toilet, two fingers down his throat as he vomited what looked like the remains of pie down the toilet.

  And suddenly, everything made perfect sense.

~*~

  Two Days Earlier

  Heechul went out into the football field, as he’d promised Siwon a few days ago that he’d go watch him during practice at least once. He thought it’d be real bore, really, until he saw Sungmin sitting in the bleachers all by himself.

  “Fancy seeing you here.” He greeted with a sly smile. “I never took you as one who enjoys watching football.”

  “Are you kidding me? Big, hot, sweaty men running around, touching each other’s asses? How could I not?” Sungmin quipped before revealing, “Kyuhyun’s tutoring someone in the library; I’m waiting for him to finish so we can go home.”

  “Oh, so I take it he’s still not welcome back at his house, huh?” he asked.

  “Pretty much,” he nodded, “I’m just lucky that they’re not pressing charges for the we did to their house. I’m not sure they even realize that it was us.”

  Heechul looked around and realized there was no one else in the bleachers but the two of them. No one, not even Donghae, who always watched football practice for Eunhyuk, was there.  “So, are Eunhyuk and Donghae talking again yet?”

  “Not really talking, but yelling at each other is more like it.” He revealed. “It’s so weird seeing them like that, fighting all the time. You think they’re gonna get over this soon?”

  “Come on, it’s Eunhyuk and Donghae. Of course they will.”

  “What if they don’t?”

  The pair frowned at the prospect, prompting Heechul to change the subject because it was just too depressing. “So, you wanna go shopping tonight? There’s a big sale at Forever 21; I bet those cute shoes you had your eyes on are 50% off now.”

  “Sounds tempting,” Sungmin grinned. “But I’m afraid I have to pass. I have an appointment at the gym.”

  “You go to the gym? Since when?” he asked warily with one eyebrow arched.

  “Just a few weeks ago,” he revealed. “It’s kind of fun; you should come with me sometime.”

  “No thanks, I get enough work-out from fooling around with Siwon. And not to mention with Hongki.” He smirked.

  “Ew,” he grimaced. “Now I have to scrub my eyes out with soap to get the mental picture of you in a with Siwon and Hongki out of my head.”

  Heechul laughed, “Maybe you should join too—make it a foursome.”

  “Double ew,” Sungmin covered his eyes while shaking his head. “Can you actually picture that? You and I having ?”

  “Not really the most pleasant picture in the world, but it’s still not completely impossible.” Heechul sent him a quick wink before turning his head to watch the field.

  He met Siwon’s eyes and for a quick second, they exchanged small smiles. Heechul’s heart fluttered as Siwon attempted to impress him with a move that he couldn’t quite understand, but appreciated anyway. His eyes then wandered to the other side of the field, more specifically where Eunhyuk was, eyes searching the bleachers for his boyfriend, but having no other choice but to continue with practice in misery when he realized he wasn’t there.

~*~

  Three Days Earlier

  After a much needed shower, Eunhyuk came out of the boys’ locker room in just a wifebeater and a baggy pair of sweats. He thought a shower would help his awful mood, but in fact, it did quite the opposite. Eunhyuk had gotten a lot of alone time in the shower, which inevitably led to a lot of thinking and eventually, overthinking and he ended up coming out in a more rotten mood than when he went in.

  He headed to the gym where he remembered he left his backpack in (he didn’t like leaving his bag out in the football field in fear of theft), and he didn’t expect to see Sungmin there, trying comically to do a pull-up.

  “Sungmin, what the hell?” he asked, causing the other to fall off the pole he was hanging onto in surprise.

  “Hyukjae, you little , you scared the crap out of me!” Sungmin complained as he rubbed his sore . “What are you doing here?”

  “I came in here to get my things; what are you doing here?” he asked, a smirk growing on his face as Sungmin climbed back up on the same pole.

  “What does it look like I’m doing, you twit?” he rolled his eyes. “Y’know, this isn’t as easy as I thought it was.”

  “I used to be that way too, but thanks to my football training, I’ve gotten a lot more buff and doing a mere pull-up is just like riding a bike.” He regales smugly.

  “Hyukjae, you dolt, you don’t even know how to ride a bike.” Sungmin grunted as he tried to hold himself up. “God, how does Donghae manage to put up with this new blown-up ego of yours?”

  Eunhyuk’s gaze dropped, “Well, I’m not really talking to Donghae right now.”

  “Why not?” he inquired.

  “Well, we got into a fight and…” he didn’t continue and instead, sighed, “Long story short, he’s falling for someone else apparently.”

  “Oh, well, that .” Sungmin finally managed to get his chin over the pole. “So exactly what’s your guys’ status right now?”

  “I don’t know. I’m pissed at him and all, but God knows I still love that idiot.” He admitted as he slung his backpack over his shoulder. “Whoever this jackass is that’s texting him, I swear I’m going to beat the out of him if I meet him.”

  “Wow, old Eunhyuk would just leave a polite note of complaint.” Sungmin remarked as he let go and landed on the mat with wobbly legs. “New Eunhyuk seems a lot feistier—I like it.”

  “Well, I think I’m gonna head home now,” he said. “Maybe some sleep will help get my mind off this. You coming?”

  “No thanks,” he shook his head. “I’m going to try and lift some weights now. See you later, Hyukkie.”

  “See ya.”

~*~

  Four Days Earlier

  “Hyukkie, I said I was sorry.” Donghae pleaded as he chased after his fuming boyfriend. “Please, please talk to me.”

  “Donghae, I suggest you get away from me right now unless you want to go home with a black eye.” Eunhyuk replied, causing Donghae to gasp loudly.

  “Hyukkie,” in a moment of courage, he grabbed his wrist and turned him around. “Are you really going to hit me?”

  Eunhyuk looked away before softly muttering, “No…”

  “You still love me, don’t you, Hyukkie?” He grasped at the last chance he had, his hands squeezing Eunhyuk’s shoulders.

  “I think the better question is,” Eunhyuk bit his quivering lip, “do you still love me?”

  “I do, Hyukkie, I really do…”

  “Then why do you keep talking to this guy?” he asked, his throat starting to itch as he felt his eyes well up. “Donghae, I try so hard to make you happy and all this time, you were flirting with some behind my back. How do you think that makes me feel?”

  “I…I don’t know what to say, Hyukkie,” Donghae sniffed, “I was…I was just lonely, I guess. You’ve just been spending so much time on football and that leaves no more time for me, and I miss you, but I can’t complain because I know you love being on the football team, but…but I need you, Hyukkie. But you’re never there for me anymore.”

  A look of guilt waved over Eunhyuk’s face. “Do you like this guy?”

  “He’s nice. And sweet. And I enjoy the attention. So, I guess, yeah.” Admitting such a thing to his boyfriend was possibly one of the hardest things he’s ever had to do. “But that doesn’t mean anything, Hyukkie. I love you, not him.”

  Eunhyuk shook his head, his voice but a pained whisper, “But you still like him.”

  With that, Eunhyuk walked away, leaving Donghae alone with tears in his eyes in the middle of the hall.

~*~

  Five Days Earlier

  “Say, Heechul, I have an idea,” Siwon proposed as he hugged Heechul (who was sitting on his lap) closer. “Why don’t you go watch me in football practice sometime? You can be my inspiration.”

  “Gee, I don’t know,” Heechul rubbed his chin in thought. “I don’t really find football all that entertaining.”

  “You’re telling me you don’t like seeing sweaty men running around in an open field?” he joked, earning a hearty chuckle from the older boy.

  “Well, if you put it that way…” Heechul pressed his lips against Siwon’s soft ones, and he responded by tangling his long fingers in Heechul’s hair. Just when things were getting hot, the door opened and Eunhyuk came in, greeting them with a surprised, “Oh, sorry. I didn’t realize you two were…sorry.”

  “At this point, we’re already used to your ing ways.” Heechul rolled his eyes and gestured for him to come in. “What do you want?”

  “I was hoping you’d know where Sungmin is.” He said. “Donghae wants to go out for manicures after school today, but I have football practice, so I was hoping Sungmin would go with him instead.”

  “Well, he was in here earlier, asking something about where to get some cheap and effective diet pills.” He revealed. “But I’d be glad to go with him. My nails could use a good cleaning anyway. Where is he?”

  “He’s waiting for me outside in the field.” He revealed. “Thanks for this, Heechul. I really owe you one.”

  “Chullie, if Donghae can tolerate watching two hours of football practice every day, then why can’t you?” Siwon asked, his fingers tracing Heechul’s jawline. “Come on, for me?”

  “Oh please, I bet Donghae’s just doing it out of guilt,” he remarked mindlessly. “Especially since he’s having so much fun flirting with this secret admirer of his or something.”

  “Donghae has what?” Eunhyuk couldn’t believe his ears.

  Heechul’s jaw dropped open as he realized what he had just said. Not wanting to be the one to explain everything to Eunhyuk, Heechul buried his face in Siwon’s shoulder and said, “Siwon, save me.”

~*~

  Friday, 9:15 PM

  “Hyukkie, can we talk?” Donghae approached him, his voice tiny and hesitant.

  “Yeah, I think that’s a good idea.” Eunhyuk agreed, pursing his lips together as his boyfriend took the empty seat beside him. “Let me go first, okay?”

  “O-okay…” Donghae was almost scared to hear what was going to come out of his mouth next.

  “I’ve been thinking about this and I’ve finally come to a decision.” Eunhyuk’s hand found Donghae’s thigh and he patted it reassuringly. “I’m not gonna stop you if you want to keep talking to this guy. If you’re really falling for this guy, then it must mean that I’m doing something wrong and he’s obviously doing something right.”

  “No, Hyukkie—”

  “Hae, please,” Eunhyuk interrupted. “I’m not gonna do anything, okay? You know why? Because I want you to figure out on your own whom you really want to be with. Him or me.”

  “Are you…breaking up with me?” he croaked.

  “God, Hae, no,” he cupped Donghae’s face and picked it up to meet his eyes. “I’m just giving you the freedom to make your own decisions. I certainly can’t control you. But I’m really hoping that you’ll soon realize that I’m the one you want to be with. I’m the one you love and I’m the one who loves you.”

  Before Donghae could reply, he felt his pocket vibrate and he took his phone out, only to see a message on the screen.

“Hi handsome ;) busy?”

~*~