It has been awhile and Sunggyu hasn’t heard from the elite yet. He was there in the school library reading some books about Music Theory but stopped once he realized that thinking about his last date won’t get him to remember anything. He stared at his book as he twirls his highlighter around his fingers. ‘I didn’t even ask for his number.’ He told himself. ‘But then again it would be too bold of me if I had.’ Sunggyu took out his phone and started to dial sungjong’s number. “Hey there!” He began to type. “Can I have your brother’s number?” Sunggyu stared at his message for awhile before he deleted them all. ‘Too casual’ he told himself. He continued to construct messages intended for Sungjong asking for Woohyun’s number but alas, he found that he just did not have the right intentions to ask. ‘Maybe next time I’ll have it’ He told himself. After reassuring himself, Sunggyu went back to studying his lectures.
 

---

Myungsoo has now been constantly sitting next to Sunggyu and their classmates hated it at first but got used to it after awhile. There are a lot of students who tried to pull Myungsoo away from Sunggyu because they think that the two shouldn’t be together. However their efforts were proven useless as they found out that Myungsoo always seemed to find a way to escape them and rejoin the outcasted student of the University. Fan girls of the man often clagged in black swarm him in every given chance they get in hopes to snag a date with Myungsoo during break times. They give him chocolates, letters, and even expensive gifts just to have his attention. However, the flirtatious Myungsoo just takes their gifts, calls a random girl pretty or cute before going on his merry way to eat with Sunggyu. Myungsoo has also been teaching Sunggyu how to dress sometimes and even arranges a schedule for them to go out and shop some clothes. Of course, Sunggyu couldn’t afford any so he just becomes Myungsoo’s entourage and carries all the clothes the latter buys. Sunggyu doesn’t seem to mind though. He thought it was just a normal thing friends do. Myungsoo sometimes buys Sunggyu a clothing or two to compensate for making the caramel haired boy his slave for the day. Sunggyu was just always happy to be given such clothes. Over time, Sunggyu learned to dress well and to behave well because of Myungsoo. The latter didn’t really teach him anything. Sunggyu just observed and over time picked up on his friend’s way of dressing up and talking to which Myungsoo found annoying and pretentious.

“You should wear your hair like this.” Myungsoo said while they were eating after an exhausting day at the shopping streets of Hongdae. The coffee lover seemed to be in a good mood that day which showed when he applied a product on Sunggyu’s hair and proceeded to style it with glee. It looked good on Sunggyu and it showed a bit of his hidden good looks. Sunggyu wore his hair like so for the next days but he was a bit sad because Woohyun wasn’t there to see him look that good. The two formed a bond which was evident to those who are looking. Sunggyu was happy because he made a new friend he can hang out with. At least he thought so.

One night, Sunggyu and Myungsoo were taking a stroll around campus again.It was a deed the two often does during the night shift of the University. Myungsoo said that it was very convenient because there wouldn’t be any moon to fry his milky skin. On that night, when the moon was at its fullest and the fall breeze was slowly creeping in, Myungsoo wore a black trench coat and carried a small cup of coffee. Sunggyu was walking next to him as he struggles to carry the ton of papers he has to study for the finals. But all of a sudden, the topic about Woohyun was brought out. “I heard you were dating the elite Nam Woohyun” Myungsoo started as he sips from his paper cup. Sunggyu was taken aback by the question but just sighed wishfully. “Yeah, I guess we are but it's nothing serious. The first time i met him and talked to him was when we had our first date. But that was ages ago.” Myungsoo nodded. “Well do you like him?” Sunggyu nodded with a shy smile.

“I love him already actually.” Myungsoo gave Sunggyu a funny look to which the latter ignored.

“And why do you say that?”

Sunggyu looked up to the starry night and clutched his paper tightly.

“I don’t know. I just.. do. For the past few years since i came to Seoul I have. ”

Myungsoo huffed. Looking a bit irritated. “How can you love a man you barely knew?” He asked. “A man you barely meet, a man you haven’t even heard of not until you came here to Seoul.”

“I just do.” Sunggyu answered. He was trembling already at this point. He is starting to feel attacked by the person he treated as a friend. “He.. He gave hope to me when I first came down here without a clue.” He began with a trembling voice. He fought the urge to cry.  He didn't want to seem weak now. “He made me think that there could possibly be something for me here.”

Myungsoo laughed in a mockingly way before he threw his coffee at Sunggyu’s face in annoyance. Sunggyu gasped in surprise. He didn’t mind about the heat of the coffee. He was just too surprised that the person whom he thought of as a friend could do such a thing to him. His heart sank as he gazed at Myungsoo’s face filled with anger and annoyance. The Myungsoo he knew for the past few weeks were kind and caring. He did not know his ‘friend’ could look at someone in such a way. The face looked too foreign to him and it terrified him. “You know, you ing annoy me.” Myungsoo spoke which broke Sunggyu’s trance. “You’re such a fake.” He said. “You make people believe you’re ing perfect which is goddamn annoying.” Sunggyu just stood there idle in his place and remained silent in shock. Myungsoo’s burst of anger just came out of nowhere.

“ ‘I loved him from the start’ ” Myungsoo said as he copied Sunggyu's voice in a mocking manner. “Nobody believes your !” By this time, the students who were out for a break saw the whole ordeal and began to gather and stare in an acceptable distance. Some even began to videotape it. Sunggyu saw this and began to feel ashamed of himself. He looked down on the floor and tears began to pool from his eyes. “Why.. Why are you doing this all of a sudden-? We were just talking then you-”

“Just shut up. You annoy me.” Myungsoo said. The university students began to coo and chanted ‘Loser gyu’ over and over again until Sunggyu bursted into tears and tried to get away from the scene. He bumped into people with big physique and they were all pushing him back to where myungsoo was. They wanted a fist fight but Sunggyu didn't want to fight anyone. Some were too pent up in aggression that they started hitting him in the face as he tried to get away. He ended up getting a cut on the side of his lip and on his eye brows. After much struggle, he escaped the big crowed and ran as fast as he could. He passed by some other students who were all pointing their phones at him.

He stopped running after he ran a far considerable distance and tripped on his own feet. He knelt down on the floor and tried to wipe the tears off his face. All of a sudden, his phone rang with an unknown caller ID on it. He sniffled and tried to calm himself before answering the phone. “Hello?” He said.

“Sunggyu-ah.. ”

Sunggyu’s eyes widened. It was a voice he was too familiar with.

-----

Woohyun was sitting at his desk studying papers and typing down words as usual. Beside him were stacks of cups that once held delicious, freshly brewed coffee. However this time, he was more stressed and agitated. He didn’t want anyone to come to his office so he put a sign that said “Warning: trespassers will be shot on site.” Because of this, nobody dared to come inside. Not even his secretary. It was rumor around the office that he brought a real gun inside his office for shooting anyone who dared come inside his working area. This wasn’t true. It was just a made up story from his people to ruin him. It did not work.

The elite has been tirelessly working for so long now and of course, have not yet slept or eaten in days. His body was wearing out and he could feel it. When the third night came from his escapade, Woohyun began to have a sudden surge in emotions. He started screaming in anger and threw all the papers in his desk on the ground. His laptop was no exception to this too. He marched towards the cabinet in his office and took out as many bottles of booze his two hands can carry. Some fell on the ground of course and this angered him even more. He started downing liquor one after the other and soon, started to enter the state of drunkenness. He took out his phone and began to dial a number he hasn’t really contacted before in ages. He gave out a drunk smirk before putting his phone near his ears. The phone rang for awhile before the contact answered. “Hello?” The man from the other side answered.

"Sunggyu- ah..." He started. "Is your refrigerator running?" Woohyun asked. "Eh? Well.. Yeah I guess so.." The elite smiled in a drunk way while hugging a bottle. "Then you better catch it! Ha!" The elite bursted into a laugh as the person on the other end of the line become confused. "Are you oka--?" The man began but got cut off.

“Han River. 20 Minutes from now. Come or you’ll regret it.” Woohyun said in a tone different from his previous drunk one. He then hang up and took bottles of booze again before marching out of his office.

Sunggyu was confused about the call. But one thing was for sure, it was Woohyun. He gathered himself and started heading out of the campus. He was really baffled. The events of the night were all too hard for him to take in. He walked but paced himself faster until he found himself running away from the University. He was too scared for anyone to see him and was also in a hurry to get to the elite. “Come or you’ll regret it” echoed through his head.

Sunggyu took a bus and after awhile arrived at the meeting place. He looked around and started looking for the elite. The river was quite big so he had to run around before he saw Woohyun seated near the steep edge drinking countless bottles of booze. He ran up to him and stopped to catch his breath. “You’re late” Woohyun said as he downs another bottle. “You didn’t tell me where exactly you were so I had to run around to look for you.” Sunggyu replied and Woohyun chuckled. “Ah right I forgot. I’m sorryyyy” Came the elite’s response as he wore a stupid grin across his face.

Sunggyu sat beside the elite and placed his bag on his lap. “Why’d you call me?” He asked. Woohyun shrugged and turned his head towards the man next to him.  He furrowed his eyebrows at the sight of the Sunggyu’s bloodied face before cupping the face of the person with his hands. He ran his thumb on the outline of the scar as if he were studying it carefully. The latter blushed at the gesture as he was caught off guard. His cheeks flushed pink but he did not stop the elite.

“who did this to you?” Woohyun asked. “Were you beaten up? Do you want me to hurt them?” the elite threw questions one after the other and Sunggyu could barely answer any of them. With each question however, Woohyun's face inched closer and closer to Sunggyu's. “Why weren't you careful?” the elite asked.

Closer.

“Why didn't you fight back?!” Woohyun said in anger as he caressed his companion’s cheeks gently. He was careful not to hurt Sunggyu. He took out a handkerchief and started to gently dab it on the bloody scars.

Closer.

“From now on I'll be taking you to school. Is that okay with you?” by this point Sunggyu was beyond confused. The Woohyun he knew, and everyone knew was heartless and full of condemnation. Perhaps it was just the liquor that made him act like this tonight.

Closer.

“On second thought no. I don't care if it's okay with you. I will take you to school every damn night of your life there.” Sunggyu could smell the sweet liquor from Woohyun's mouth with each word he spoke. It smelled like peaches and strawberry with a hint of bourbon and scotch.

Closer.

Sunggyu shut his eyes off and let out a loud “Stop!”  his cheeks were so red at this point and he was already leaning towards the river. An inch more and he's about to fall.

In a matter of seconds, after Sunggyu leaned his hand on the pavement which he thought was there but wasn’t, he lost his balance and fell. The elite caught him by the hips and brought him closer to him. Woohyun looked sternly at Sunggyu. The trace of drunkenness gone all of a sudden. Their lips were almost touching and they could feel each other's breaths.

“Stop running away from me.” Woohyun spoke in a tone that emitted strictness and gentleness at the same time. Sunggyu was in a trance and just stared at the elite’s eyes. “You have no idea what I went through looking for you and what it took me to stay calm when I finally found you.” Woohyun was letting his free hand roam the features of the person he was with.  He ran his hands from Sunggyu's cheeks and to his lips. He seemed so captivated and fascinated.  “you look different today. You did something with your hair?” he asked.  Sunggyu smiled uncontrollably and nodded.  “I styled it this time. It's something I haven't done before.” the elite smiled. “you should do it more often. It suits you.”

Woohyun let go of Sunggyu once he was brought back to his senses. He inched away from Sunggyu and started to become silent again.  He started to drink the contents of the bottles he brought with him.

“I didn’t think our second meeting would be like this.” The caramel haired boy said. “Although I’m not really complaining.” Woohyun just looked at him with a gentle smile. “I'm glad you're here.” he said. Sunggyu was baffled by the sudden change of behavior the elite has been displaying to him that night. It’s like Jekyll and Hyde but the transition of behaviors happened much faster. There was silence and the two didn't seem to mind. Woohyun continued drinking as he occasionally hummed a song. Sunggyu just stared in awe at the flowing waters of the river with the city lights reflecting on it which made it seem like it was twinkling.

“It’s late.. Let’s go home.” Woohyun said which broke the silence. Sunggyu just nodded and got up. The elite started to walk in an unstable manner and dragged his feet across the asphalt. Sunggyu furrowed his eyebrows at the sight but did not question his movements. He figured the elite might just be really drunk.

Black spots began to cloud the vision of the elite and his head throbbed all of a sudden. Everything was spinning around him and he soon found breathing difficult. The elite brought his hand to his temple to massage it in hopes that it will make him feel better but alas, it only made him more sick. Suddenly, Woohyun fell down on the ground hard and hit his head on the asphalt. He could only hear ringing in his hears and the frantic beating of his heart. Sunggyu’s eyes widened at the sight and he immediately rushed to the elite. Sunggyu brought his body up and supported Woohyun’s torso. A string of cuss words flowed out from Sunggyu’s mouth as he began to try and wake up the elite Woohyun fluttered his eyes open and threw himself at Sunggyu and hugged the latter tightly as if his life depends on it. He bursted out into tears and Sunggyu was left dumbfounded. Sunggyu was unsure of what to do and he was afraid to touch him but after short while of contemplation, he decided to comfort the elite. He caressed Woohyun’s hair and spoke of reassuring words as he tried to be as gentle as he possibly could. The elite nuzzled his face to the crook of Sunggyu’s neck which made the caramel haired boy feel Woohyun’s high temperature. He also noticed the labored breathing of the elite which made him worry more. “Am I really not good enough?” Woohyun whispered with sadness. “Of course you are.” Sunggyu answered. “You’re so hardworking and smart. Of course you’re good enough.” Woohyun just cried a little harder. “I’m so tired..” He said in between sobs. “I’m so tired..” Sunggyu sighed in worry and started to loosen up his grip on the elite as he prepares himself to carry him. Woohyun thought differently of the gesture and began to panic instead. “N-No!” He yelled. “Don’t leave. D-Don’t leave me here alone..”

Woohyun was sobbing hard this time and Sunggyu didn’t know what to do anymore. He just hugged the elite tightly again and rocked their bodies back-and-forth. All of a sudden, Woohyun felt a surge of pain go through his body and he screamed in pain. Sunggyu was surprised and thought that he had injured the elite in some way. He pulled away a bit and found out that the man in his arms had lost consciousness. “!” He yelled loudly at himself. He then frantically looked for his phone and dialed up someone he knows can help him. Tears streamed down his face in sheer panic. His heart sinks more as he hears every beep of the dial tone go by. He started crying out and redialed the number again. After a few beeps, the man on the other side answered in a happy tone and yet Sunggyu greeted him with messy sobs. He was relieved yet worried at the same time. He thought he would be blamed for what happened.

“Sungjong-ah.. Your brother..”