A/n: Guess who's back? With another split-up spinoff. It is Kyungsoo but it's not Kaisoo and you're all gonna kill me and I'm a little sorry (but only a little). This is probably gonna be a two-part thing but it might be three. Who knows. I'm sorry and you're welcome. 

Edit: I failed to mention. Mureum = "No name". Mu means no, none, etc. Reum s short for ireum, which is name. So yeah, Mureum. You'll understand eventually.

Kyungsoo could literally feel Jongin pouting as they lay in his bed, his boyfriend’s arms wrapped around him, chin pressed to the top of his hair. Or rather, ex-boyfriend? What were they now?

He’d sort of just told Jongin they should take a break for a while, and he wasn’t really surprised the younger was being a big baby about it. (Fortunately, Kyungsoo wouldn’t be around to see it as of tomorrow.) On the bright side, Jongin hadn’t cried, and Kyungsoo knew that was the worse of the two options. Even though he knew Jongin really was sad about it, it was easier to deal with him whining than him being depressed.

“Quit your pouting,” he told him anyway, pulling back and poking at Jongin’s jutted lower lip. “You’re gonna get stuck like that.”

“I don’t care,” Jongin mumbled, and he pouted on. “I’ll probably be like this all year, anyway.”

“That’s your own fault, then,” Kyungsoo said, though he leaned up and gave him a tiny kiss, nibbling on that cute, sulking lip for just a second. “I’m gonna have lots of fun while I’m gone, and you should be doing the same and forgetting about me until I come back.”

Jongin gave a dry laugh. “That’s not happening.” Kyungsoo simply shrugged. Your problem, not mine. “Are you gonna be sleeping with him?”

“Really Jongin?” It took a lot of effort not to roll his eyes. Of course his boyfriend – his not-boyfriend, whatever – would immediately go there. “I should’ve timed how long it was before you brought that up. I don’t think it was two minutes.”

“Well, are you?”

The smack he gave the younger was well-deserved. “Yes, we’re sharing a room and a bed. Whether we’re having or not, I don’t know. Probably not. Don’t start!” He cut Jongin off as he undoubtedly began to protest. “This is why we’re breaking it off while I’m gone, so we’re both free for whatever over the next few months.”

“It’s not a few months. It’s nine…” Yeah, Kyungsoo really wasn’t going to miss his actual-two-year-old boyfriend. “And I’m not gonna wanna be with anyone else, anyway. They aren’t you. I’ve already made up my mind; you’re all I ever want in my life…”

(Okay, he might miss him a bit.) Kyungsoo let Jongin envelope him in his warmth, wrapping the blankets tightly around them even though it was really too hot for any of that. He lost the will to tell the younger that he really should try seeing other people, that it would be good for him to at least experiment, find people different from Kyungsoo to see if he didn’t like them better. Because honestly, as much of a pain as Jongin was sometimes, Kyungsoo got just as jealous at the idea of him being with anyone else. He wanted Jongin all to himself.

But that was just another reason why it would be good for them to be apart. All of their possessiveness towards one another wasn’t healthy. Back in high school, that had been an issue with both of them too, and it hadn’t turned out well then. They weren’t perfect now, either, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t try to improve themselves.

“I’m gonna miss you,” Jongin murmured, lips brushing against Kyungsoo’s forehead softly.

“Mm,” Kyungsoo hummed. “I know. It’s not even a whole year. You’ll just have to actually pay attention to your classes.” He heard a tiny snort escape Jongin’s lips, and smiled, tilting his head back to look up at him, hand reaching up to brush along his cheek lightly. This was the last night he’d get to see Jongin’s face until May. That was a long time. It was the longest they had ever been apart, and even before, they’d at least been at the same school and everything.

When Kyungsoo had found out that Columbia University had a field specifically for Korean legal studies, he had been more than happy to apply to the school. The past few years had awoken an interest in him to go abroad somewhere. It didn’t help that his best friend had been trying to convince him to go over to New York ever since he himself had moved back there. So yes, Kyungsoo had decided to spend his third year of university with Key, attending Columbia after he had been accepted (which wasn’t an easy feat, but with his LSAT score of 182, he wasn’t too surprised).

And now he was leaving for New York, tomorrow afternoon, and Jongin would be staying behind and they would be taking their third year (and in Jongin’s case, his final year) separately, as well as ending their year-and-a-half lasting relationship.

Even though Kyungsoo had been very calm coming to terms with the idea of them breaking up – which he had decided at least a month back – and equally collected delivering the news to Jongin just moments ago, he was upset about it, too. He did love Jongin, after all. But going to the other side of the world meant that things were going to have to change between them, at least until he came back. They might not even get back together; he might not even want to come back. Kyungsoo didn’t know what was going to change for them over the next year; that was why they needed to cut things off now instead of getting into drama later.

“Promise me you won’t fall in love with Kibum, okay?” Jongin whispered, and Kyungsoo pressed a kiss to his chin.

“Well, I haven’t as long as I’ve known him,” he noted gently. “But who knows, he may have gotten even more attractive in the past three years. Maybe he even surpassed you in that area.”

“’Even more attractive’?” Jongin echoed sadly. “Are you suggesting you already think he’s attractive?”

Kyungsoo shrugged. “I can appreciate when someone’s good-looking. Doesn’t mean much when their personality . Or when they’re super whiny and clingy and needy,” he added very pointedly. Jongin pressed his forehead against Kyungsoo’s, staring down at him with his sad, puppy eyes.

“I love you,” he said quietly, and Kyungsoo didn’t appreciate how moody he sounded. But he knew how to fix that.

“I know.”

Jongin raised an eyebrow, and Kyungsoo copied him. “I love you,” Jongin repeated.

“I know.”

“I love you, I love you, I love you.”

“I know, I know, I know,” Kyungsoo replied, and he laughed when Jongin began his assault of kisses, just little pecks smattered across Kyungsoo’s skin, adding soft yet eager “I love you”s between each one, and Kyungsoo just kept telling him I know until Jongin was attacking along his jawline and under his earlobe and that one ticklish spot on his neck, and then he was clambering on top of him and kissing down his collarbones until finally Kyungsoo stopped him. He pulled Jongin’s lips up to his own – the one place Jongin had missed – and kissed him for a long, long time.

“I love you too,” Kyungsoo breathed, and Jongin smiled. Good. That was what Kyungsoo wanted.

“What about tomorrow?” Jongin wondered. Kyungsoo pushed him off of him, and curled into his chest.

“I don’t know about tomorrow,” Kyungsoo answered, like he always did when Jongin would ask that. “But I do today.”

Normally that was enough for Jongin, but he was looking upset again. Because for once, they really couldn’t be sure about tomorrow. And Kyungsoo wished he could give Jongin a different answer, but he couldn’t. He couldn’t know how he would feel then.

But he sort of hoped he would still love Jongin, when he came home again.

“

The following day was a bit strange. Kyungsoo went to the airport with his parents and Jongin, and Jongin held onto him until he had to leave, before kissing him so hard and for so long (Kyungsoo was sort of really embarrassed, because his parents were right there and he heard his mom clear and Jongin still didn’t stop) that Kyungsoo’s lips would be physically incapable of forgetting him. Then all too soon he was on a fourteen-hour plane ride – though the time change made him lose only one hour – and suddenly he was in Kim Kibum’s arms and Jongin was long gone.

Key was so different from how he’d been when he’d left three years ago, not that Kyungsoo expected anything less. His features were more mature, his blond hair gone in favour of shorter, auburn hair that lay flat on his head (though, he defended that was only because he hadn’t bothered to do anything with it before coming to the airport), and he was more American than ever.

“But look at you!” he exclaimed. “Like, holy, I didn’t even recognize you! You’re all grown up and everything.” Kyungsoo froze for just a second when Key took his face between his hands, but he only examined him for a moment and let him go with a grin. “I’m so impressed with what puberty has done for you. And look at your smile!” At the mention, Kyungsoo smiled further, bashfully. “You’re so happy now. You’re just so dang cute now, wow.”

“Alright, alright,” Kyungsoo swatted as Key continued to preen over him in amusement. “Let’s go to your place, okay?”

“Fine, but I have to lay down some rules,” Key stated as they began through the bustling airport crowd.

His rules weren’t much. They were in America, so they needed to speak English now – even when they were alone, to help Kyungsoo practice; if Kyungsoo wanted to go somewhere, he needed to confirm it with Key first – not because Key was trying to be over-protective, but because New York City was a seriously dangerous place sometimes, and Key knew where was safe and where wasn’t (Kyungsoo was okay with this anyway; he didn’t feel like dying). And if Kyungsoo wanted to hook up, he needed to take all necessary precautions and if Key was around, check with him to make sure whoever he was interested in was safe, too; again, Key knew people around here pretty well, and wanted to ensure Kyungsoo was safe.

Key explained all of this in the cab to his home, and then they were at his apartment and he was showing Kyungsoo around, introducing him to his roommate, and letting him unpack his stuff. Still, despite having napped for a good half of his flight, Kyungsoo was feeling tired, so they decided to stay in rather than doing any explorations of the city today. Key did make him stay awake until nine-thirty that night before finally permitting him to go to bed.

“I have to go to bed too,” he admitted. “I have to work in the morning. You wanna come see the salon?” Kyungsoo just gave a nod, already tucked in bed, just waiting for Key to turn out the lights and join him. In a moment, he had. “It’s beside a noraebang, so you can go there when you get bored of my work. I’ll take you to that place that’s hiring after so they can talk to you.”

Kyungsoo’s mind was processing everything extremely languidly, and after a moment he said, “They have noraebangs here?” Key just chuckled.

“Oh honey, please go to sleep,” he told him. “I’ve already told you that. I work in Koreatown, there’s a noraebang there. Does that ring a bell at all?”

“Oh yeah,” Kyungsoo mumbled slowly, before giving a loud yawn. “I’m gonna sleep…”

“Good idea,” Key agreed.

It didn’t take long before he was off in dreamland.

“

Several hours later, Kyungsoo woke up feeling like a hundred years had gone by and he no longer knew who he was. Before he even opened his eyes, he was worrying about a hundred things. What time was it? Where was he? Had he left for New York yet or was he still at home? Was he actually going to go to New York, or was that just a dream? Was he still dating Jongin? What year was it?

It didn’t take too long for him to organize his reality. He was in New York; it still had to be morning because he could feel Key beside him; no, he wasn’t dating Jongin anymore.

When Kyungsoo’s eyes opened, Key was very close to him. Kyungsoo had an arm thrown over him, and was using the older’s shoulder as a pillow apparently. At the sign of Kyungsoo stirring, Key’s eyes flitted open and down to him, offering a grin.

“Still as much of a cuddlebug as ever, huh?” he teased. Kyungsoo pulled a frown, but his muscles felt like lead and he didn’t move away because of it.

“I’m used to sleeping with my – Jongin,” Kyungsoo defended. He’d almost said my boyfriend, but caught himself. The idea of being single, sort of, was going to take some getting used to.

“Your Jongin?” Key prodded, sounding thoroughly amused. “Does he belong to you and no one else?”

“Not anymore,” Kyungsoo mumbled. He rubbed at his eyes, before plopping his head back on Key’s chest. “We broke up.”

Key froze. “What?” He sounded utterly shocked, staring down at Kyungsoo in disbelief, but Kyungsoo just shrugged. “Since when?”

“Um, yesterday. I told him we should call it off while I’m over here.” Kyungsoo was feeling a bit nervous because of Key’s reaction. He understood why he was reacting this way, but it still worried Kyungsoo; it made him feel like… like before.

Because they both knew what “Jongin” and “break up” meant in the same sentence: hell. When they’d broken up before, Kyungsoo had been beyond salvaging. Key had tried, it hadn’t happened. And then, after an age, he’d gotten back with Jongin, and he was far more in love with him than he had been last time. Kyungsoo wasn’t really sure what would happen if he had to lose Jongin for real, for good, and neither was Key, but Key knew what before had been like, and it made sense for him to be afraid of that repeating itself. Kyungsoo didn’t even want to think of that time.

“So it’s not a permanent thing?”

“I… don’t know.” Kyungsoo was starting to feel tense, anxious. It hadn’t even been a day. “You’re freaking me out, hyung. I don’t know what’s gonna happen over this next year. If I go back and wanna be with him – and he wants to be with me – then I guess we’ll get back together. If we change, then… we don’t.”

“Alright…” Key muttered in reply. Kyungsoo didn’t much like that – very limited – response.

“You think it’s a bad idea?” he asked, but Key just held up his hands to show his disinclination to get involved.

“I’m not touching it, honey,” he said quickly. “That’s all between you and him. I just don’t want you to end up getting hurt.” He didn’t say it, but Kyungsoo could still hear the word, again, at the end. He decided not to say anything else on the subject.

Instead they got up and Kyungsoo began preparing for his first real day in New York. He still had a month until school actually started, which meant a month of getting to know the place and just enjoying it before he had to focus on classes and grades.

As promised, Key took them out to Koreatown (only three blocks down from his apartment) just before ten so he could go to his work and set up for the day. He’d been working in the salon for two years now, and Kyungsoo had seen pictures, but it was still strange to actually be there in real life. And so was getting to meet the people he’d only ever heard about before.

That was where the first problem came in.

It wasn’t that they weren’t nice; they were really welcoming to him and said Key had been talking about him non-stop all summer but somehow failed to mention how cute Kyungsoo was. (That was a relief at first; Kyungsoo had been a bit apprehensive about Key still having feelings for him, but that didn’t seem to be the case.) There were two others and a receptionist working, and they all seemed to fight over Kyungsoo’s attention, showing him around, showing him everything – including the large storage of hair dyes that were precisely organized by shade. Eventually a customer came in and Kyungsoo was sat in the chair beside theirs while one of the workers began cutting her hair, chatting away eagerly to Kyungsoo all the while.

“You seem so wonderful,” he was going on. “I don’t know how Key hasn’t mentioned you more before! We never even heard mention of you until like a month ago. It’s been a lot nicer hearing about you than the other guy he’s always whining about.”

“Other guy?” Kyungsoo wondered, looking around, but Key had gone off somewhere. Kyungsoo was sure Key had never mentioned another guy.

“We kinda just call him Mureum, since Key’s never given us his name.”

“Are you telling him about Mureum?” the receptionist chimed from her desk. The hair stylist nodded. “Ugh. I haven’t heard about him for ages now, don’t bring him up to Key.”

“Yeah yeah,” the stylist muttered. “Key’s been too busy talking about Kyungsoo lately.” He turned to Kyungsoo and raised an eyebrow. “You really are a nice break from him.”

“Who is – this Mureum guy?” Kyungsoo asked again.

“The heartbreaker of the century,” the stylist claimed dramatically, pausing in his work to clutch at his chest before rolling his eyes. “Honestly, as long as Key’s been working here, we’ve had to hear about this guy who totally devastated him like, back in high school.” Kyungsoo’s stomach clenched. “Like, Key was soooooooooooooo in love with him or whatever, and he just broke his heart. Pretty sure it was like, four years ago, and the guy’s been in a relationship for a while now.

“I mean, Key’s the one who left, right?” he went on after a pause, looking exasperated. “And yet he goes on and on about how he should be the one with this guy. I dunno. You’d think having been apart that long, and with all the flings Key has all the time, he’d move on by now.”

Kyungsoo was chewing on his lip, and still was a minute later when Key came back, earning a slightly concerned look. Leave it to Key to still know him so well, to still be able to read his face even after four years without seeing it. In a moment, Key was dragging him off – or maybe Kyungsoo had dragged him off, he wasn’t sure, but they were alone in the bathroom and Kyungsoo was torn between crying and yelling at the older. He just hugged him tightly.

“How have you not gotten over me you idiot?”

Key held him back, and didn’t even seem fazed by the question. “You’re not someone people just get over, Soo,” he murmured, rubbing his back lightly. “I probably should have told them not to mention how much I talk about you.”

“Yeah…”

“I’m sorry for being in love with you,” Key said lightly, and he sounded amused. Kyungsoo just shook his head.

“After I’ve been living here a while, you’ll realize all the great things you think about me are just in your head,” he assured the older. “And you deserve someone a lot better than me.”

Key snorted. “And what, Jongin just has to be satisfied with you? He doesn’t get any better?”

Pulling away, Kyungsoo sniffled and laughed, rubbing at his eyes. “No. He deserves me. He doesn’t get a good boyfriend, he’s not worthy of one.”

“Well, I guess it’s a good thing you guys broke up then.”

“

Kyungsoo didn’t forget that Key was in love with him, but for the first week or so, he was too busy settling in to really put too much thought into it. There was a lot of settling in that week. Key took Kyungsoo down to one of the restaurants in Koreatown for him to work part-time in, and showed him the Starbucks down the road he worked at when he wasn’t in the salon. Kyungsoo got to know his roommate, Henry, who he was comfortable with in a few days, because the guy was really easy to be around. By the end of August, Kyungsoo had sort of gotten into a routine, and also forgotten all about school.

He was reminded when Key told him they’d be hosting an end-of-summer party.

“It’s a thing Henry always does,” he explained one night. “He calls it the End-of-Freedom party. It’s just like, thirty or so people, music, drinking, lots of snacks. Henry’s kind of a matchmaker – he invites all his friends who are still single after summer, and a lot of them end up hooking up. There’s been a few relationships born from these parties.”

“Do you always go?” Kyungsoo asked, wondering if it was a stupid question. The party was taking place in his home, after all.

“Yeah. It’s nice to hook up. I have standards, of course,” he added quickly. “I don’t just go to any party, and I don’t just sleep with anyone. But Henry knows what he’s doing when it comes to these kinds of things.”

Kyungsoo raised an eyebrow. “Have you ever been with him?”

“Uh, no. He’s straight.” That ended that pretty quickly, but Kyungsoo thought there was more in the older’s voice, something he wasn’t saying. He couldn’t tell if it meant Key was interested in Henry, or if something had happened, or what. But if Key wasn’t saying, Kyungsoo wouldn’t press it; it wasn’t his business anyway.

Kyungsoo kind of didn’t want to be forced to go to this party. He had never been good with house parties (not that he’d been to one in over four years, but the last time he had…). On the other hand, he didn’t want to make a big deal out of it. Key had said no one was allowed in his room, so if Kyungsoo needed he could just go down early and avoid all the trouble. Hopefully Key wouldn’t mind that. But then, what if Key wanted to hook up with someone? Ugh. It all just made Kyungsoo feel so inconvenient.

He didn’t mention any of his thoughts to anyone. He just hoped that everything would turn out okay.

The night of, people began showing up while Kyungsoo was out in the rooftop garden, talking on the phone with his parents. Kyungsoo had glanced at the window from time to time to see what kind of people were arriving – he had yet to see any other Koreans, or South-East Asians in general, and he kept forgetting he wasn’t in Korea anymore while he had his parents speaking their language in his ear. By the time he’d hung up, it sounded pretty busy inside, and he decided to just linger out there for a little while, watching as the sun sunk between the tall buildings of New York.

While he did so, he failed to notice someone else out there with him. That is, until they spoke up.

“Hello.” The nearby and unfamiliar voice made Kyungsoo jump, and he turned to see the stranger by the doorway, looking slightly amused. He looked like he might be older, so Kyungsoo gave a small bow and returned the greeting – in Korean, like the boy had spoken to him.

“I came out to see what it was like out here, and then heard you speaking,” the boy said with a smile. “I’m not really used to hearing our language around here.”

Kyungsoo nodded slowly as the other approached. “Key-hyung doesn’t really let me speak in Korean, but when I call back home, it’s… understandable.” It was weird, speaking his native language now. The boy had reached him, and was holding out his hand for Kyungsoo to shake. “I’m Kyungsoo, Key’s roommate.”

“Oh, Henry mentioned you,” the other noted. “I’m Ryeowook.” He offered a smile, and Kyungsoo returned it, taking in brown hair and pretty eyes. “So you’re living here now?” Kyungsoo nodded. “Are you planning on staying in New York?”

“Just for the year,” Kyungsoo explained. “For school. I don’t know after that. I’ll probably go back home again, unless I decide I want to live here permanently.”

It’s pretty nice here,” Ryeowook said warmly. “I mean, it’s not Korea, but… Where are you from?”

“I lived in Seoul a lot of my life.”

Ryeowook nodded. “Yeah. It’s a little different here, but if you like the big-city feel, New York… you can’t really go wrong here.”

They stayed out and chatted for a long time after that, content in the familiarity of their common language, and just around each other. Ryeowook reminded Kyungsoo of home; he wasn’t very Americanized like Key (not that Kyungsoo minded Key). The people at his work were alright too, but they were all middle-aged; with Ryeowook, Kyungsoo felt a sort of instant friendship.

Only when it was too dark to stay out – the sun having set – did they head inside, stealing the couch, Ryeowook getting a drink though Kyungsoo declined. He’d sworn himself away from alcohol, and stayed true to it. Fortunately, Ryeowook only seemed to become nicer when drinking, and he didn’t flirt with Kyungsoo or try anything on him or anything like that. Then again, just because he was here didn’t mean he was interested in dating. And even if he were, it didn’t mean he was interested in guys. Kyungsoo had too many gay friends; he needed to stop assuming all guys liked other guys.

By the end of the night, he had Ryeowook’s number and was feeling pretty happy about his new friend. He felt comfortable around the older already, and was kind of looking forward to hanging out with him in the future.

School started a couple of days after the party, and Kyungsoo was pretty damn nervous about it. He couldn’t remember the last time school had made him nervous, but he’d never gone to an all-English school before. Everything was going to be in English, everyone would be speaking it, it was all just… Kyungsoo wasn’t particularly bad at English, but the idea of having to go there, without Key (aka, no translator), and survive on his own… It was stressful, at least.

Key was nice enough to walk him to the bus stop and wait with him that first morning promising he would be okay and the bus would drop him right outside the school and he’d be able to find his class. He would be alright. Kyungsoo didn’t even know how many times Key said that; he had to believe it though, otherwise he wouldn’t be. Still, the moment he was on the bus and watching Key fade away, his heart started racing. He texted Jongin, even though it was night there and the other was likely in bed by now. When Jongin did indeed not reply, he considered panicking at Key, but knew the older had to work today and couldn’t be babysitting. For some reason, his next option was Ryeowook.

“Gah, school today Ryeowook-ssi, how do you handle this?”

He wasn’t sure why he added the ssi; it wasn’t really necessary. He was kind of just hoping Ryeowook would say it wasn’t, so he would know he could be comfortable around the older. The replying text didn’t disappoint.

“No need for formalities, Kyungsoo ㅎㅎ How do I handle what?”

Kyungsoo smiled a bit, and the little skip in his heartbeat went unnoticed amongst the flurry of pre-existing nervousness. Ryeowook didn’t want him to be formal. Did he feel like they were already close too, or was Kyungsoo just projecting his own feelings on the older?

“Sorry, hyung. ㅋ How do you handle going into situations alone in this city? I feel like I suddenly don’t know anything in English and I’m gonna die.”

“Aww, don’t die. I’m sure you’ll be okay. Just pay attention to your teachers and take lots of notes.” Kyungsoo could feel the motherly love in his words, and found it sort of cute. And then a second message came in, and he couldn’t not notice his heart stuttering, chest tightening and blush warming his neck. “I can be a tutor if you need one. :)”

He didn’t even ask if Ryeowook had gone to university or studied law or any of that; his fingers got ahead of him, typing out immediately, “Okay :)”

That’s when he knew he had a problem. There were caterpillars crawling in his stomach, their tiny feet tickling his insides. Soon they were going to become butterflies, and he knew what that meant. This had never happened to him before. He didn’t send smilies in texts; he didn’t get close to people like this, and he didn’t hope they felt close to him too.

“Are you free tonight then?”

Da-dum.

“Yes. Done at 7 :)”

Da-dum, da-dum.

“It’s a date then! ㅎㅎ Pick you up at 7.”

Yes, Kyungsoo had a problem. So why didn’t it feel like one at all?

A/n: Who knew Kyungsoo was one for gushy lovey-dovey feelings? Lol. Anyway, casually promoting this KakaoTalk RP I'm in. Everyone join~! (And stay away from my Jongin!) Go here for details~