The door opened and a lady with curly, dyed auburn hair stood before Donghae.

“Maybe I help you?” She asked.

“Hello. Is Hyukjae home? I need to talk to him, please.” Donghae said. The urgency in his voice was detected by the woman.

“Of course,” the woman said warmly, “Please come in.” The woman welcomed Donghae in the house and he sat down on a red velvet couch. There were paintings and family portraits hanging on the walls. The fire place was burning and the house had a sweet fragrance roaming around. It all felt so cozy, but Donghae couldn’t relax.

A few seconds later, Donghae heard someone running down the stairs and walking towards the living room. He felt a bit nervous since he had never really been in Hyukjae’s house. They always met outside of their houses and went to some place nearby.

“Hey,” Hyukjae said, nochalantly, “My mom told me you needed to talk to me. What is it?”

Donghae bit his tongue. He felt embarrassed talking to Hyukjae in this sort of situation. He felt like he could’ve just searched for Henry by himself, but he needed some help. He may just have been scared, but it was too late to walk away now. Donghae stood up, but his eyes didn’t meet Hyukjae’s.

“Yeah… Umm… I need your help…” Donghae was looking at the ground, his voice shaking, but clear. “Please…” He finally looked up, and a worried Hyukjae was standing right in front of him.

“Of course I’ll help you, what is it Donghae, what’s wrong?” Hyukjae’s voice sounded tender, it was a bit higher than Donghae’s but it was smooth like chocolate.

“Henry ran away, There was some stuff that happened at home and I need your help. I don’t know where to look for him, so Hyukjae, please…”

“What are you standing there for? Let’s go!” Without hesitation, Hyukjae grabbed Donghae’s hand and a jacket with the other one. While dragging Donghae, he slipped on his shoes and shouted, “Omma! I’m going to go out for a bit!”

“Alright! Be safe!” and with that, Hyukjae and Donghae were out on the streets, both still holding hands.

His hand is so warm…

Donghae said to himself. He remembered the soft texture and flawless skin. He didn’t mind, but Hyukjae couldn’t put on his jacket while they were holding hands. Donghae honestly didn’t want to let go of the other’s hand. If he did, re-holding hands would just feel awkward. But Donghae didn’t want the older to get sick. The seasons were changing and winter was only a few months away.

“Your jacket,” The Fishy pointed out, “You should probably put it on or you’ll catch a cold.”

Hyukjae released Donghae’s hand and zipped up his jacket. Unconsciously, he grabbed for the younger’s hand again. Donghae didn’t expect that to happen, but he still didn’t complain. He let Hyukjae hold his hand, only because he didn’t want to get lost. Plus, it was warm.

Excuses, Donghae.

He self.

“Shut up…”

“What was that?” Hyukjae said, stopping while turning around to see what was wrong. The younger finally realized he said his thoughts out loud and tried to explain himself. 

“No. Wah. I mean. Umm. I was. Uhh…Talking to myself. I didn’t mean to say it, well, you know…” His words came out in fragments and pauses, it was embarrassing to Donghae, but Hyukjae found it cute. The older stood there giggling at the younger whose cheeks were turning red, and it wasn’t just from the cold.

He was tired, sleepy, cold, and scared. He never snuck out from home before, and he felt guilty. It was freezing outside and he had no idea where he was heading. It was dark and the streetlamps only lit unfamiliar shadows. He felt like he was sleep walking. His body move on its own, because his mind was thinking about something else. He thought of regret. Maybe he shouldn’t have lost his temper. Maybe he shouldn’t have caused all that drama at home. They were all he had.

Bitter thoughts then popped up in his mind.

Why did we leave Appa? He’s in Mokpo, he’s there waiting for us… And we left him. I hate it. I miss him so much. Donghae doesn’t even care. He’s likes living here… And so does Omma.

Henry had never felt so homesick in his life. He knew of nothing in Seoul, the people, the streets, the mannerisms. He spoke a dialect in school and people made fun of him for that. They told him to speak properly and they called him names. He was so unhappy, and no one understood why. No one paid attention as to why he didn’t talk much to anyone anymore, not even his brother. He was frustrated. He isolated himself from other people for a reason. He used his voice as little as possible, but only to be labeled as antisocial and weird.

People in Mokpo weren’t like this. Their accents were like his. He had many friends, some that he didn’t want to say goodbye to. It wasn’t fair. Donghae didn’t have to deal with this crap because he didn’t have many friends to begin with. He also knew how to speak with a fluent Seoul accent, so kids didn’t make fun of him. He was going out to hang with friends almost every day now and he’s become more social while Henry had become the opposite. Henry felt like a loser. He slowly drifted apart from his family. He felt lonely.

Henry, who wasn’t exactly looking where he was going, continued to walk aimlessly around the streets. Suddenly, he bumped into someone, someone who was definitely bigger than he was. The unknown stranger towered over his little body. He could only see a shadow. It was too dark for him to see. The size was intimidating, especially when the only thing you notice and see is the size.

“Henry?” The shadow spoke, “Is that you?”

The fear instantly vanished once he had recognized the voice.

“Zhou Mi?”

Eunhae and Zhoury both together! Yay! I don't exactly have the entire story planned in my head or written down, but I read your guys' comments and I get ideas from some of them. So thank you for everyone who posted comments of maybe their predictions and so on. :) I have some of my own ideas, but I always love getting inspired with new ones. Thank you~ ^_^