(Italics = flashback)

Chapter 7

Their lips moved in sync, and their eyes were closed, savouring their first ever kiss.

Eunhyuk’s back was against the brick wall and his arms encircled his boyfriend’s waist while Donghae had a hand behind his neck. No one was around when they had stumbled into the alley as it was nearing midnight. This was their third date, after a month of being a couple, and they were sharing their first kiss. Oh, it was perfect; both of them thought it was perfect. In fact, the whole day had been perfect; starting with Donghae picking up Eunhyuk when he saw the other on the street wondering alone, up until they were here. They didn’t want the day to end.

It was the most unforgettable thing ever, a moment that Donghae cherished the most.

So, what changed? As he leaned there against the wall in an alley he ran into, Donghae pondered about it. They kissed before. Not once, not twice, but countless of times. Why his Hyukkie slapped him when he kissed him just now? Donghae’s cheek sting from the slap, but his hand was on his chest as his heart felt like it had been torn like a paper. He fisted his shirt; his heart ache, so badly that it felt like it was bleeding. What did he do to deserve that? Did his Hyukkie stop loving him?

After the sudden slap, Donghae stood on the other side of the cubicle while Hyukjae remained still and unmove. Their backs were facing each other as their mind wondered about the same thing, but in a different way. While staring outside, tears never stopped flowing down Donghae’s soft skin as he couldn’t comprehend what had just happened. His body jerk a little violently each time silent sobs left him.

Hyukjae saw this out of the corner of his eyes and he had wanted to go and calm the other down, but he didn’t have an idea how. He was still shocked by his own action until he was afraid of doing something wrong again. How will he fixed this mess? Hyukjae punched the glass with his fist, getting really frustrated and panicking slightly.

15 minutes past and when their cubicle reached the bottom, Donghae was quick to get off first and he ran from there, leaving Hyukjae behind and chasing after him. While running, Donghae did heard Hyukjae calling after him, but every time he did, he ran faster. He couldn’t face his Hyukkie. It hurts too much to even do just that. The audible sobs left his mouth and his shoulders shook when Donghae went into the alley and slid down the wall. His lips trembled as he placed his head on his knees, trying to forget how this alley look so much like where he shared his first kiss with his Hyukkie, his Hyukkie that didn’t hurt him.

Hyukjae never stopped running. He couldn’t catch up with Donghae and he had no idea which direction did the other took but he wasn’t going to stop. No, he knew he was wrong. This was his fault. He should have known that when he agreed to help this man, he was supposed to do whatever it takes and give it all. He needed to make things right again. So he searched, he kept searching for Donghae. And the exhaustion was worth it. He almost missed it; he almost didn’t see Donghae sitting on the ground with his knees pulled up to his chest and his head down.

Hyukjae slowly went closer and his own heart was in pain every time a sob was heard; those tears and sobs that were caused by him. For a moment, Hyukjae stood there; he stood and stared at Donghae. This man looked so lost to him, so lonely. The way Donghae was almost hugging himself tightly broke his heart. Hyukjae saw a lost puppy in front of him, a lost puppy he felt he needed to help, a lost puppy he needed to send back home. When Hyukjae squatted down next to the other and placed a hand on top of Donghae's head, he promised himself that he would send this lost puppy home, no matter how hard, how painful, or whatever the consequences would be. He would take the risk.

Donghae felt a hand on his head, fingers threading in his hair and caressing it, and he lifted his head, letting Hyukjae looked into his bloodshot eyes and wet face, “Who are you? Where is my Hyukkie?” Donghae’s voice quivered when he spoke, tears still leaked from the corner of his eyes.

“Hae, I am your Hyukkie.”

“Liar! My Hyukkie would never hurt me like this,” Donghae’s talking was a bit incoherent as hiccups kept leaving his mouth.

“Yes, and I am a fool for hurting you. Forgive me, Hae. I’m really sorry,” Hyukjae begged while his hands cupped Donghae’s cheeks and his thumbs wiped the tears off the other’s face.

Donghae shook his head and the tears kept coming, “No! Why did you slap me? I want to know why.”

“Because… because like I said. I’m a fool. It was out of shock. My hand just –“

“Is it fading, Hyukkie? Is your love for me fading?”

“No, Hae! No,” Hyukjae was quick to say, “I love you. My love for you grows deeper every time I look at you. So, please don’t say it’s fading. It’s not, it’s growing.”

“Then why – “

Donghae didn’t get to ask what he wanted to ask. He didn’t get the answer to his question. He still didn’t understand why his Hyukkie slapped him. But slowly, his broken heart was mending with every caress from Hyukjae’s lips to his. Hyukjae was kissing him, and Donghae felt better as he kissed the other back.

The kiss felt genuine, it was genuine. Hyukjae had kissed Donghae out of love, and not out of force. What he said was true; his love for Donghae was growing deeper the more he looked at the other. It may not be the kind of love Eunhyuk had for Donghae, but it was the kind of love that was willing to sacrifice anything for the other.

When the lips detached, tears finally stopped leaking out of Donghae’s eyes. He wrapped his arms around Hyukjae’s chest, hugging him tightly as Hyukjae pulled him up on his feet. They walked home with Donghae still hugging his Hyukkie and Hyukjae had an arm around the other too. It was a bit hard to walk, but as long as it kept Donghae calm, Hyukjae didn’t mind at all.

They reached home after a while and Hyukjae made Donghae stood in front of him in the living room. He pulled the blue scarf off Donghae, and he also took of the other’s coat for him. He caressed the other’s cheek while he said, “Today, you go and take a bath. I’ll cook for dinner, alright?” He was soft when he spoke and that made Donghae obey without much thought even though this was the first time his Hyukkie had offered to cook dinner

After Donghae went up, he took his own scarf and jacket off before he heads to the kitchen. He put on an apron he found hung next to the fridge and he went to look for some ingredients he could use to cook a meal. Half-way through the cooking, Hyukjae felt two arms encircled his waist from behind. He was a little surprised but managed to compose himself before Donghae could notice that he had stiffen for a moment.

Hyukjae continued cooking with Donghae always on his back. He must get used to it, he told himself. This was how he was going to live for a while, though he himself wasn’t sure how long that ‘while’ would be, and he didn’t mind. The meal was done soon after and he plated them with Donghae’s help. The latter told him how he wanted his food to be plated, where he wanted his beef, where to pour the gravy and how to arrange the fries. It was quite fun, Hyukjae admitted.

They sat down at the table, and this time, Hyukjae was the one eager to feed Donghae. The sorrow they felt just hours ago were forgotten by Donghae as Hyukjae showed his affection towards him. Like at the café a week ago, when Hyukjae fed Donghae the fries, the other tried to take his fingers into his mouth. With every fries, Hyukjae’s fingers got closer to Donghae’s lips and at the last few, Hyukjae could feel those lips wrapping around his fingers. No, he didn’t mind at all.

Together, they washed the plate and even played with the water. After Donghae splashed a handful of water at Hyukjae, the other wrapped an arm around Donghae’s waist, making sure the other couldn’t get away, and he wiped his wet hand onto Donghae’s face. They laughed a lot tonight.

Hyukjae said he wanted to get up first and take a quick shower before he would join Donghae on the bed. Luckily, he had brought in his pyjamas into the bathroom and put it on while he was still in there, because when he stepped out of the bathroom, he saw Donghae sitting on the bed with a grin but then the other sighed and went to lie on the bed. Hyukjae had to chuckle at that and felt a little relief. He was still uncomfortable to be or half- in front of the other.

Hyukjae joined Donghae on the bed after he hung his towel and the latter was almost sticking to him when he lied down. Like the usual nights, Donghae would lay his head on Hyukjae’s shoulder and the other would have his arm wrap tight around him. The only different tonight was Donghae had peck Hyukjae’s lips before he said, “I love you.”

And tonight was the first time Hyukjae replied with, “I love you too,” before they both went to sleep.

Heechul was back in South Korea. He had received a call from the detective he had hired to find Hyukjae’s brother. He was speaking the truth when he said he wanted to help Hyukjae, it was not just empty words and he had been trying hard to locate the man’s brother. Heechul had known about Hyukjae having a brother when he did a background research on him on the night he first met the other at the hospital. He was not the kind that will let someone get close to him or those he loved without knowing any information about that someone.

The person he had hired came and went into Heechul’s car before he drove away.

“Tell me what you have,” said Heechul.

“Hyukjae’s brother name was Kyuhyun and he should be 27 by now. His last medical record was written on 12^th February 2011 in London. He was seen leaving for South Korea on 17^th February 2011 and arrived here on 18^th of February. He checked in at a hotel on the same date, fully paid by credit card, and he never checked out.”

“Never checked out?”

“Yes. The hotel management thought he had left in a hurry because he found a few of his things, the less important items, and the room’s key in the room he stayed in.”

“When was the last time the staff at the hotel seen him?”

“On 22^nd of February, around 10 to 11pm.”

That made Heechul stopped and thinks for a while. 22^nd of February?  That was the day Eunhyuk… Heechul sighed as he tried to erase the thought from his mind. He didn’t want to remember that day. No one knew how much the death of Eunhyuk had affected him and if possible, he never wanted to show it to anyone how miserable he felt about it.

This thing had nothing to do with Eunhyuk’s death, he told himself. No, it was all just coincidence… right?

I myself wonder why do I always update when I'm about to get ready for school. It's like 4-6am is the time where my brain can work better.