'And you let him go just like that?’ Minwoo raised an eyebrow, sipping from his latte. Dongwan was sitting next to him, looking down at his hands. He hadn’t said a word so far, blank-eyed and motionless. Eric looked at him with envy, not having expected the guy to stick around. Minwoo seemed downright ecstatic and Eric realized that these two were beyond saving. He tapped his fingers on the table impatiently, calling the waitress and demanding his Americano to be delivered immediately.

‘And what should I have done instead? Grab him by force and drag him to the altar? And what is it doing here anyway?’ Eric pointed at the short man beside his friend, looking somewhat pissed.

Minwoo chuckled, shaking his head. ‘I’m not sure what’s worse. The fact that you were thinking about an altar or that I can actually see you doing it. And don’t ‘it’ my Wanny. I knew he would choose me instead of your boy so don’t act all stern now. We had a serious talk about this and he realized there wasn’t any use in running anymore. At least not before he stopped acting like a bride in waiting and gave up the sugar’

Dongwan wanted to protest as their situation was nothing like Minwoo had just described because he could not remember any serious talks and just intense , but Minwoo put his finger on his lips, shaking his head and shushing him.

‘Baby, not now’ he told him, smiling at him warmly. Eric grumbled at that, his Americano brought to the table and he took it without as much as a ‘thanks’. He added three packs of sugar instead of his usual one, hoping that diabetes would get him soon. Minwoo turned to ask Dongwan if he wanted something as well and, when the other shook his head, he grabbed his face and planted a kiss on his lips.

 ‘Why would you do that?’ his boyfriend looked at him wide-eyed, mouth slightly open.

‘Because you’re adorable’ Minwoo winked and kissed him again ‘and everything is going to be alright’

Then he turned back to Eric who was now busy with his coffee. The man took his drink seriously.

‘Ok. But tell me what you are planning because I’m not really following’ Minwoo trusted his friend and he did not care much how he wasted his family treasures but he was curious of what Eric’s grand plan was. He could not quite piece it together.

Eric sipped some of the dark liquid, closing his eyes and savoring the taste. The only answer he got was a satisfied mmm.

‘Hyesung will be back when he’ll swallow his pride and realize he’s an idiot for trying to resist the one time good fortune has come his way. If he wants to do everything on his own, fine, but this time he’s going to have a hard time fighting me’ Eric answered when he had savored the last drop and put the cup back down ‘because his most prized possession is not with him’ he motioned to a table behind the other two.

They both turned to look at where Eric had pointed. There, at the window, were sitting two men, drinking coffee and enjoying each other’s company. Smiles decorated their handsome features as they talked, one of them letting out loud, obnoxious laughter from time to time.

In all his life Minwoo had never seen Andy so relaxed before.

Dongwan poked him. When he turned his head, his boyfriend whispered in his ear ‘That’s Junjin. He’s the guy I told you about. Hyesung’s baby’ he muttered, his eyes darting from the couple to Eric in disbelief.

From what little Dongwan had told him, Minwoo knew that this was a sort of a miracle that Junjin was out here. He turned to Eric, noticing a small confident smile making its way onto his lips. At times like these Minwoo wondered if Eric was a genius or just insane.

‘And if he doesn’t come back’ Eric stood up, cracking his fingers one by one and giving his neck a couple of full circles ‘then I’ll have to drag him back by hair’    

Epilogue

Five men dressed in all black, their expressions grim and unmoving, were standing at an open grave. The oldest of them looked up when a few droplets of rain made their way down from the sky, hitting his face. He opened the umbrella he was holding, moving it over the smaller male’s head.

‘What the-?’ there was an immediate response ‘I don’t need your ing umbrella, bastard! I have one on my own’ the man beside him yelled, his tone seasoned with disrespect and annoyance. The taller shrugged and leaned closer, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

‘Eric-ah, no! This is a funeral, pay some respect’ Hyesung hissed and pushed him away. Minwoo and Dongwan glanced up from the grave, exchanging knowing looks. Even after a year together, their quarreling had not ceased.  If anything, it had only turned worse. If both didn’t know these two were together, they would be having some serious doubts about right now.

Junjin was the only one seemingly unaffected by all the commotion. He stood all alone on the side, his eyes red from crying. He seemed lost, looking blankly at the ground under his feet. The white lilies in his hands made him look like an innocent angel fallen from the sky.

‘It’s raining, Jinny’ Hyesung said when he turned his attention from arguing with Eric to his friend ‘we have to go’

At the other’s words Junjin’s head snapped up, his look filled with desperation. ‘But I only knew him for a year. Can I not stay here for a bit longer? I never thought he would just-’ his shoulders started to shake, Hyesung quickly moving to him, giving him a tight hug.

It had been sudden. One day and he was gone. None of them had been prepared for this but the biggest shock came to Junjin, of course, who had been so close to him.

‘It’s so sad Andy couldn’t make it’ Dongwan whispered to Minwoo as he looked at Junjin putting the flowers on the grave and returning to Hyesung’s embrace, his shoulders still shaking. Eric was trying to get somewhere in the middle of them with his umbrella, his jealously rearing its ugly head.

In a way, Dongwan understood the man. Hyesung and his baby were inseparable and he had to fight for his lover’s attention every day now when Junjin was living in his house.

Minwoo smiled, messing up Dongwan’s hair, and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

‘You worry too much’ he grinned as he linked their arms. ‘Let’s go’ and they led the way to the two cars parked in the small lot. It was a sad day, the weather accordingly dreary. Finally it felt like a real drama.

Andy had wanted to come with them but he had his check-up. So far his new heart was working perfectly and the doctor had said there shouldn’t be any complications. It was a relief. They had promised to meet him at their favorite cafe so that he wouldn’t feel left out and could participate in Junjin’s little ceremony.

To Minwoo, Andy and Jinny seemed like a great couple. Now that Andy was not doomed to an impending death, their friendship maybe could take a more romantic form. Whatever it was, there was a promise of a very interesting future for both of them and maybe a hope for Eric.  Right now, however, they had to act sad. With all six of them together Minwoo was sure that Junjin would get over the death of his hamster pretty soon.

‘It died so young’ Junjin muttered, unable to hold back some more tears which fell down his cheeks while Eric and Hyesung were squabbling over who was going to drive.

‘You had a chauffeur, for god’s sake’ Minwoo heard Hyesung say, which Eric countered with the excuse that he usually was too busy to drive, not that he disliked driving.

‘And you should not have gotten Junjin that hamster at all!’ the shorter yelled without any regards of keeping the topic of the fight somewhere remotely close to its original roots. Junjin gasped in shock, hitting Hyesung hard and freeing himself from his embrace. He rushed over to where Minwoo and Dongwan were standing, asking if he could drive with them instead.

‘Sure’ Minwoo nodded, feeling pity for Eric. How did he manage to live in that house without losing his mind?

Dongwan waited for them to get into the car before starting the engine. They never argued about who was driving as Minwoo found his boyfriend-chauffer too hot and loved to feed into the fantasy. Instead of waiting for the two to settle their argument, Dongwan drove off, leaving them to figure out their .

‘I cannot wait to see Andy’ Junjin chirped happily, the death of the hamster already forgotten.

---  

‘Such a nuisance you are’ Hyesung glanced at Eric as he watched Junjin leave with the others, a pouts forming on his face.

‘And you’re even worse than all of us combined’ Eric grabbed him from the back, letting his umbrella fall in the mud. He buried his face in the other’s fluffy hair, loving the smell of it. It had grown out even more since a year ago and had to be pulled back in a small ponytail. He loved every strand of it despite it tickling him in all the wrong places, at all the wrong times.

‘It’s your punishment for all the you put us all through. That’s why you’re stuck with me’ Eric muttered as he waited for his lover to stop fighting him. He knew he always would. Sometimes that took a few seconds, sometimes he kept the fight up for over ten minutes but this time it wouldn’t last as they were soaking wet in the cold rain.

‘I haven’t put you through nearly enough’ Hyesung protested as he kept struggling, hating the cold rain on his face ‘but Ok, fine’ he soon gave up, tired of his futile fight ‘I’ll just give you back that necklace so you can stop complaining and let me go’

He had never thought things would turn out this way yet the other had fought for him with every step he tried to walk away. He had somehow made their broken relationship work, stitching together those torn pieces of their trust until there was nothing left for Hyesung to complain about. Without having his anger to hold onto, he could do nothing else but fall in love with the most unlikely candidate for that position.

‘I don’t want it’ Eric mumbled, pulling his lover even closer ‘I never wanted it’ he kissed the back of Hyesung’s neck, feeling like the world was pouring all of its unshed tears on both of them.

Hyesung stood still for a while, then laughed.

‘Ok, I’ll sell it then’ and he stepped on the taller’s foot, finally managing to wiggled out of his grip. He rushed off to the car, sprinting like a candy man made out of sugar.

‘Hey, no, you cannot do that!’ Eric shouted as he ran after him, worried that he would slip and break something and then he would have to take care of him and listen to his unending complaining for weeks.

‘But you said you didn’t want it!’

‘But it’s still family treasure! Besides-’ he panted heavily when he stopped to catch his breath ’I’d have to hunt it to the end of the world to get it back for you’

Hyesung snorted, looking at the tall man disapprovingly.

‘Well’ he opened the door, grabbing Eric’s arm and pulling him close ‘I’d expect that much from you’ and then he planted a quick kiss on his lips, pushing him inside and getting in the front seat.

‘I’m driving’

Eric blinked, shaking the rain out of his wet hair as he pushed himself in an upright position. He could let Hyesung drive. Life was all about compromises, after all, and he had become a master at those. Even if it was a stingy, nagging thief he had fallen in love with, he could make it work.

‘I don’t even like driving’ he said as he closed his eyes, letting his body relax.

Happiness was, indeed, a strange thing.

End

a/n: Well. This is over. I cannot believe it. And this is how I envisioned it from the very start. I could have done so much damage if I only had wanted to- Hyesung could have not returned, Andy could have died, Dongwan could have broken up with Minwoo (and I have written terribly unhappy endings before)- and yet this is what felt right. So yeah, thank you to everyone who followed this till the end and hope you enjoyed it! I cannot believe I wrote a whole novel here...