Index:

(DH) - Daehyun speaking
(HC) - Himchan speaking
(BY) - Yongguk speaking
(TY) - Taeyeon speaking
(JU) - Jongup speaking
(Z) - Zelo speaking

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A small sigh escaped his lips as Daehyun stared at himself in the mirror. It had been a long while since he’s had a good look at himself in the mirror and now that he has had this chance, he almost regretted his decision. Everyone had been right about the bags under his eyes and his complexion made him appear as if he was ill. Also, since he was only in a towel at the moment, Daehyun could clearly see that he had gotten skinnier. Sure, he still had muscles, but they weren’t as prominent as they had been before this entire incident. He could practically hear Young Jae’s voice at this very moment, scolding him for not taking better care of himself.

His eyes widened a bit as he looked downwards a bit. The second Young Jae woke up, Daehyun could already tell that his lover would be disappointed in him. Slowly, Daehyun’s gaze shifted upwards as he examined himself once more. Sleep would get rid of the bags and if he started eating more and working out again, he could regain the weight he lost. However, when it came to his pale complexion, Daehyun didn’t have a single idea as to how to fix that. Maybe it was the weather or the lighting that was causing this. Either way, he needed to fix it.

Hadn’t he had this thought before? Whether or not he has, it didn’t matter now. All that mattered was that he actually went through with his word and actually took care of himself better. With a small nod, Daehyun finished drying himself off as much as possible before he began getting ready for the day ahead.

Stepping out of the bathroom about ten minutes later, Daehyun looked around a bit before his eyes landed on the bed directly across from him. With a weak smile, Daehyun walked up to the side of the bed before sitting down next to the person sleeping in it. Reaching up, he lightly caressed Young Jae’s cheek with the back of his fingers. Young Jae’s skin was still soft, still a lovely milky white color, and still warm. The only difference was that, just like Daehyun, Young Jae had also grown skinnier. It was like the very life that belonged to Young Jae was being out of him. “Hang in there, Young Jae. I know that.. you’ll come back soon. Ah.. I tell you that everyday, right? You must be tired of hearing me say that..” (DH)

Daehyun chuckled a bit as he scratched the back of his head. He really has become quite redundant with the things he says to Young Jae. Was there anything new he could say? Only a week had passed, so there wasn’t really anything interesting that he could bring up. Nothing has changed all that much, which could be a good thing for Young Jae. After being away for so long, Daehyun doubted that Young Jae would be happy at all to see that things have changed without him. So, in a way, it was kind of like life was waiting for him to awaken from his slumber.

Once he was finished with his thoughts, Daehyun took the moment to look at his watch. It was nearly time for him to go, which saddened him just a little bit. Looking back up at Young Jae, Daehyun smiled a bit as he stood up. As much as it pained him each and every time to leave Young Jae’s side, Daehyun knew he had to go. “Hey.. I’m heading to work now. You behave while I’m gone, alright? I don’t want to hear from the nurses and doctors that you decided to give them a hard time.” (DH)

Yet another small chuckle escaped his lips as Daehyun adjusted his coat a bit. Glancing back up at Young Jae, Daehyun held his smile as he slowly leaned in close. Carefully, Daehyun gently pressed his lips against Young Jae’s forehead before pulling away just enough to clearly see Young Jae’s face. Reaching up, Daehyun softly ran his fingers along the right side of Young Jae’s jawline as he gave a slight smile. “I’ll try to smile more.. just for you, alright?” (DH)

Pulling away, Daehyun gave a small wave before turning around and making his way over towards the door. Just as he got the door open, he paused for a moment as he quickly checked his pockets to make sure that he had everything he needed with him. The second that he was certain that everything was in order, Daehyun stepped out of the room and began walking down the hallway.

Oddly enough, today felt like a good day.

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“Do you really think it’s wise to invite Daehyun out to go drinking? Young Jae told me about the last time he drank when he was depressed.” (HC) Pushing himself away from the wall he had been leaning on, Himchan reached up and shooed Yongguk’s hands away before adjusting Yongguk’s tie himself. His eyes trailed back up as he made eye contact with Yongguk. His eyes sharpened as Himchan attempted to intimidate Yongguk with a glare of some sort. “If anything happens to Daehyun, Young Jae will kill us both!” (HC)

Yongguk chuckled a bit as he waited patiently for Himchan to finish up. Just as Himchan was about to take a step back, Yongguk quickly wrapped his arms around Himchan’s waist before pulling him in. He smiled, slightly tilting his head to the right a bit as he tried to reassure Himchan with his facial expression. “Don’t worry. Me and the boys will watch over him. He won’t drink too much.” (BY)

Himchan narrowed his eyes as he stared at Yongguk with suspicion. As much as he wanted to believe that Yongguk would mess up, Himchan knew that Yongguk was going to end up staying true to his word. Well, it was probably for the best anyway. With a seductive smirk, Himchan gave Yongguk a few quick pecks on the lips before pulling away. “Okay, fine! Keep Daehyun from drinking too much! See if I care!” (HC)

The two of them stared at one another for a moment before Yongguk chuckled a bit. Himchan raised a single brow as he eyed Yongguk suspiciously once more. Regardless, Himchan merely shrugged before pulling himself free from Yongguk’s grasp. “Just go to work already! Oh, before you go..” (HC)

Hands quickly searched through pockets before one of Himchan’s hands produced a folded up piece of paper. Stepping up to Yongguk, Himchan pressed the piece of paper against Yongguk’s chest. Yongguk looked down at the piece of paper before looking up at Himchan. “What’s this for?” (BY)

“Bring home the groceries! You’re not allowed back home ‘til everything on that list has been purchased. Got that? Good! Now, get going!” (HC) With little to no warning, Himchan turned Yongguk around before he began pushing Yongguk towards the front door. Yongguk attempted to get a word in, but every time he tried, Himchan would babble literal nonsense to keep him from speaking. Before he knew it, Yongguk found himself out in the apartment hallway.

Turning to look at the door, Yongguk stepped a bit closer to it before knocking a few times. He waited for a few seconds before the door opened up once more. Himchan quickly held out Yongguk’s work shoes and gave him one last peck on the cheek before closing the door on Yongguk yet again. With a small smirk, Yongguk put his shoes on and put the folded up piece of paper into his pocket before he began walking towards the elevator.

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Finally, Friday was here! That meant that the weekend was here to give students the time off that they so desperately deserved. There was still school that they had to contend with, but there was going to have to be a slight change of plans. After all, something this important just couldn’t be delayed for so long! Sure, they had about less than two months to complete their task, but it just wasn’t enough time! It needed to be done now.

Zelo waited patiently as he leaned against the wall by the front entrance with his head facing down, arms folded, and his eyes closed.They still had plenty of time before classes were supposed to start, but today was going to be different. Yes, once Jongup arrived, they were going to set his plans into motion. They just needed to make sure that they didn’t end up getting caught. How well that would turn out, well.. they’ll just have to wait and see.

The question now was... where exactly is Jongup? He was supposed to be here about five minutes ago! Jongup wasn’t going to show up late, was he? There’s no way that he would! If Jongup came to school late, then that would jeopardize the entire mission! All of his planning would go to waste and then they’d have to wait until tomorrow! Even then, it wouldn’t be as fun. No. He wasn’t going to allow it! Digging into his pockets, Zelo fished out his phone and had just began scrolling through his contacts when a voice attempted to grab his attention. “Who are you calling?” (JU)

“Not now, Jongup. I’m trying to call you.” (Z) He paused for a moment before slowly turning his head towards the source of the voice. Jongup was right next to him, staring with a confused look on his face. Slowly, Zelo put his phone away before turning his body towards Jongup and placed his hand on his shoulder. “How long have you been standing there, exactly..?” (Z)

“When you closed your eyes. I said hi, but you didn’t say anything so I just stood next to you!” (JU) The second Jongup grinned happily, Zelo face-palmed as he let out a sigh. He knew that he had heard a voice earlier, but he hadn’t thought that it would have been directed at him. Well, that didn’t matter now. Since Jongup was here, then that meant that they could initiate his plan! Looking back up at Jongup, Zelo grinned as he held his backpack straps together.

“You ready to go?” (Z)

“Why? Class isn’t for another twenty minutes. Are we going early?” (JU) Zelo merely grinned as he slipped his hand into Jongup’s. Without much, if any, warning, Zelo pulled Jongup out of the building before casually walking away from school. Jongup’s eyes widened, confusion and panic setting in as he continued to follow behind. “Where are we going?! We don’t have a lot of time before class starts!” (JU)

If they were going to go out and eat, then they could just grab something quick and come back. If that was the case, then Jongup didn’t have anything to worry about. Then again, why did they have to leave school to get something to eat? They could have easily just gotten food at the cafeteria and that alone would have been enough to fill their stomachs just enough until lunch time. Sadly, Zelo wasn’t planning on only eating somewhere else. “We’re not going to class today.” (Z)

“WHAT?!” (JU) Despite Jongup’s current state, Zelo continued to pull him along with ease. It may have had to do with Jongup thinking up of all the possible consequences that they’d face if they were caught, but at least it made things easier for Zelo. Coming to a stop at one of the many bus stops in New York, Zelo finally released his hold on Jongup before humming happily to himself. Since it was early morning, there were a lot of people heading either to work or to school. The bus seemed like a rather busy option, but what else were they going to use? The subway would be ham packed and it would make theft a lot easier. Plus, they could easily become disorientated if they weren’t paying attention to what stop they had to get off at. “Where are we going, then..?” (JU)

“Chinatown!” (Z) Zelo turned towards Jongup as he held his backpack straps once more. They had gone to Chinatown last week in hopes of getting the perfect birthday present for Jongup’s dad. After all, with how things are, it seemed like Daehyun needed some cheering up. Sadly, Taeyeon wouldn’t let them go too far from them, so they had just done a bunch of grocery shopping. They were able to go around to some of the stores that sold interesting things, but it just wasn’t enough. Now, though, they had the perfect opportunity to go to the stores that they wanted to head to.

“But.. I don’t have any money on me.” (JU)

“What..?” (Z) Zelo stared at Jongup with both disbelief and slight annoyance. Even when Jongup cutely rubbed the back of his head with an apologetic look on his face, that still didn’t help the situation. With a small sigh, Zelo folded his arms as he tilted his head a bit. What were they supposed to do? “We’ll think of something. We have to head to your house first, though..” (Z)

As Zelo began walking, Jongup hesitated for a moment before quickly catching up to Zelo. It didn’t seem like a good idea, but he followed Zelo regardless. Jongup really hoped that they didn’t end up getting caught, especially by their guardians. “What do you plan to do? We might get caught..” (JU)

“Don’t worry! It’ll be easy. There’s a bunch of furniture before we get to your room, right? So we’ll hide behind them! Piece ‘o cake!” (Z) It sounded easy enough, but it only slightly decreases their chances of getting caught. Plus, if they both went in, then there’s a higher risk of them getting caught. “Hurry up, Jongup! I wanna get to Chinatown soon! I heard that there’s this really good restaurant that sells dim sum.” (Z)

Was that the reason why Zelo wanted to skip school and head to Chinatown? Well, luckily, Jongup didn’t have any major assignments, projects, tests, or anything of that sort today. Hopefully, things turned out as well as Zelo hoped. Jongup didn’t want Zelo to end up getting in trouble, so maybe that was the main reason why he hadn’t protested Zelo’s actions just yet. Of course.. it probably would have been better to do so, but would Zelo listen? Well.. not really, so what other choice did he have?

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As quietly as possible, Zelo opened the front door before peeking his head inside. He carefully looked around, making sure that no one was in sight before looking down at the slippers that were located nearby. Zelo took a moment to count them, making certain that all of the slippers were present, before pushing the door wide open. Letting out a relieved sigh, Zelo stepped into the apartment and stretched a bit as he turned to a worried Jongup. “All the slippers are here and it’s all clear. Don’t worry! We’ll just get your wallet and then go. Easy, right?” (Z)

“Yeah.. I guess you’re right.” (JU) Jongup managed to calm himself down a bit as he closed and locked the door behind him. He still had a bad feeling, but it was just a quick errand. It’s not like they were robbing a bank or anything else illegal, right? Just as Zelo said, they were just going to get his wallet then head back out. Nothing complicated at all with that plan.

After they switched into the slippers, Zelo happily skipped towards Jongup’s bedroom while Jongup made sure to examine the keys on the nearby key rack. All house keys, except his mom’s, were currently off of their hooks. Hopefully, things would go as planned. If not, then Jongup hoped that Zelo had a plan to get them out of trouble. “Wonder where they went.” (Z)

“I think they went to work. They’ve been helping dad with the bills so that he has money saved for the babies.” (JU) Zelo hummed in response as he opened the bedroom door and stepped inside. Walking up to the doorway, Jongup watched as Zelo walked around while searching for the object in question. “Um.. Have you.. always wanted to have a baby before..?” (JU)

“Why do you ask?” (Z) Zelo paused for a moment as his thoughts revolved around Jongup’s question. Slowly, he turned to look at Jongup as his eyes widened. He could see the uncertainty on Jongup’s face and that alone filled Zelo with all sorts of thoughts that practically turned his face a deep shade of red. He rubbed his left arm as he looked away, trying his best to come up with an answer for Jongup’s question. Sadly, he couldn’t come up with a good enough answer. “Um.. I.. I guess I have, but.. um.. I-I think we’re not ready to have a baby and, I mean.. I don’t think we could anyway. We’re both boys and I’m almost certain that neither one of us can get pregnant anyway..” (Z)

Jongup’s eyes widened as his face turned red as well. Where had that come from?! Jongup quickly raised his hands in a defensive manner as he shook his head. “I-I wasn’t asking because I wanted a baby! I..” (JU)

His hands slowly lowered back to his sides as he looked back down towards the ground. Uncertainty filled his mind before he finally worked up the courage to say what was on his mind. “Since my parents are having babies.. I just wanted to know if babies were something everyone wanted, but when they come.. then.. would they still care about me..?” (JU)

Zelo frowned slightly as he saw the expression on Jongup’s face. Walking up to his boyfriend, Zelo put on a small smile as he placed his hands on Jongup’s shoulders. Jongup looked up, almost all of his worries being cast away as he made eye contact. “Why are you worried about that? Your parents will love you and care about you always! Think about it. With a wet nurse and a baby sitter, they’ll have loads of time for you!” (Z)

The things Zelo said did make sense to him. Maybe he shouldn’t have doubted his parents, though, he couldn’t help it. He rarely saw his dad now and if his mom stayed in his current state when the babies came, then he wouldn’t be able to spend any time with his dad. Still, for now, he would believe Zelo’s words. “Thanks Zelo.” (JU)

“Don’t mention it! Now, come on! Get your wallet and let’s go! We shouldn’t be here for too long, ri-” (Z) Zelo was abruptly caught off mid-sentence as they heard the sound of the front door unlocking. Both males had a panicked look on their face as Zelo quickly closed Jongup’s bedroom door before pressing his ear to the door. When he looked at Jongup, Zelo made sure to speak as quietly as possible so that only Jongup could hear him. “I thought that they were supposed to be at work.” (Z)

“I don’t know! I was guessi-” (JU)

“Jongup? Are you home?” (TY) Both boys froze as panic practically plastered itself all over their faces. What were they going to do now?! They had no way out and because they had left their shoes at the front door, they made it that much more obvious that they were here! Zelo could faintly hear the sound of heels clicking against the tile floor before all went silent. Quickly, he pushed himself away from the door as he looked around.

His eyes quickly spotted the nearby closet before he began pushing Jongup towards it. Once inside, Zelo closed the door as quietly as possible before the two made their way into the back of Jongup’s closet. Here and there, Zelo moved as fast as possible to get all of Jongup’s clothes in front of them. Sadly, they didn’t have anything to cover their legs. The best they could do at this point was try to stay as hidden as possible and hope that Taeyeon didn’t notice them whatsoever, assuming she decided to check the closet.

The sound of a door opening indicated that Taeyeon had entered Jongup’s bedroom. They held their breath, their heartbeats practically racing as they heard the sound of shuffling outside in Jongup’s bedroom. “Anyone here?” (TY)

Jongup and Zelo remained silent as they tried to stay as still as possible. Time seemed to move slowly as they continued to hear Taeyeon moving around. Why did it sound like she was thoroughly searching for them? The only places where they could have hidden were Jongup’s bathroom, underneath his bed, and the closet. Even with these obvious choices, it didn’t seem like Taeyeon was actually checking these locations. It felt like decades had passed before finally, they heard the click of Jongup’s bedroom door. Both boys let out a relieved sigh before they began making their way out of the closet.

Stepping out into open space, Zelo stretched happily as Jongup made his way over to where his wallet was. Quickly pulling it out of its hiding spot, he put his wallet into his back pocket before he took his backpack off and emptied it of most of its contents. He set them onto his dresser before putting his backpack back on and looking over at Zelo, whom was at the door once again. Jongup watched as Zelo carefully opened the door, peeking ever so slightly around as he tried his best to locate Taeyeon. Jongup walked up to him, crouching down low so that he could peek through the small crack as well. “Why do you think she’s home?” (Z)

“She might have forgotten something..” (JU)

“I did.” (TY) The two instantly froze when they heard Taeyeon’s voice come from behind them. They didn’t want to turn around, especially if Taeyeon really did turn out to be behind them. How did she get behind them anyway?! They had made certain to look around before walking to the bedroom door, though that wasn’t important now. In an attempt to escape from Taeyeon’s possible wrath, Zelo slowly opened the door, but Taeyeon’s voice instantly caused them to pause once more. “Oh? Where are you two going?” (TY)

Zelo silently cursed as he quickly turned around, a nervous laugh escaping his lips as he rubbed the back of his head. Jongup didn’t necessarily know what Zelo had planned, but he soon turned around as he stood next to Zelo. “Well.. uh.. you see, Jongup forgot his wallet and we just wanted to come back and get it!” (Z)

“And yet he’s leaving all of his books behind..?” (TY) Their eyes widened as both boys quickly looked over at the stack of books, spirals, and binders on the dresser. Zelo nudged Jongup, whom looked at him with an apologetic look on his face. Zelo nervously laughed once more before taking a step forward in an attempt to open the door a little more.

“Well.. uh.. you see, he doesn’t need those books! So.. uh.. he decided to leave them behind instead of bringing them with him! You know, it’s tiresome to carry so many books and all that, right? Especially if you don’t need them! So uh.. well, we better get going and all since class is going to start soon. Right, Jongup? Right! Okay, well if you’ll excuse us.. we better get going!” (Z) Zelo had just turned around and was about to take a step out of the bedroom when Taeyeon’s voice, once again, stopped him.

“Ah..! Not so fast.” (TY) They soon heard the sound of the bed shifting, indicating that Taeyeon was no longer sitting on it. That sound was soon followed by the sound of slippers slightly dragging along the carpeted floor, causing the two to stiffen before they quickly felt a hand on their shoulders. “Did you think you could get away so easily? Now..” (TY)

Taeyeon slowly had the two turn back around to face her. She may have had a motherly smile on her face, but they knew that she wasn’t exactly going to let them go like a proud parent. “Tell me why you two really are here or... would you two like to receive a punishment for trying to skip school?” (TY)

“We..” (JU) Jongup looked over at Zelo, whom was looking back at him. Zelo let out a small sigh before nodding. As much as they wanted to keep things a secret, they also didn’t want to receive the punishment that Taeyeon was talking about. Sure, they didn’t know what the punishment would be, but considering it was Taeyeon, they were fairly scared of her. Looking back up at Taeyeon, Jongup took in a deep breath before he continued. “We were going to go to Chinatown and.. um.. we were going to get a present for dad. Since his birthday is in June and with how everything is going, we.. we just wanted to make him happy again.” (JU)

Taeyeon slightly nodded, understanding the feeling all too well. It was a nice gesture by the two, but she wasn’t necessarily convinced that skipping school to buy a present would be the best option. With a genuine smile, Taeyeon ruffled the hair on the two before turning them back around and leading them out into the living room. “It’s nice of you two to want to do something nice for Daehyun, but.. you shouldn’t skip school for something like that. Daehyun wouldn’t necessarily be happy if he found out that you two were skipping school, right? Plus.. you could have just told me so that we could go tomorrow. I was wondering why you two were so eager to go to so many stores last week..” (TY)

“Aw... Does that mean we have to go to school then?” (Z) Taeyeon let out a light laugh as they stopped by the front door. She thought on it for a moment as the two boys slightly turned back around to look at her. As much as she wanted to let the two boys go out and get something nice for Daehyun, their education was far too important to just simply skip out on.

“Yes. You two have to go back to school and Jongup, go get your books.” (TY) Jongup quickly nodded before shuffling back over towards his bedroom. Taeyeon smiled a bit before looking back up at Zelo. Was he always this tall? “Now Zelo. You’re staying over for the weekend again, right?” (TY)

Zelo blinked a few times before nodding innocently. He didn’t necessarily understand why Taeyeon has asked, but it wasn’t like she had a plan or anything like that. Taeyeon just simply needed to know whom would be around at the time so that she could plan out what food to make on which day. “I have my stuff now.” (JU)

The two turned to look at Jongup, whom was standing just a small distance away from them. Taeyeon smiled as she motioned for everyone to switch to their shoes, to which they obliged with reluctance. Taeyeon made sure that she had everything on her this time before looking at the two. “Okay. I’m going to take you to school now. I better not hear that you two cut class after I dropped you off there myself. Understand?” (TY)

“Yes Ma’am..” (Z & JU)

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[[ My Own Thoughts:

I hope everyone likes this update!
Sure, not much happened, but don’t worry. x3
Next chapter will be a bit more interesting. -/nod-

Comments are loved!
I want to make sure that these chapters are to everyone’s liking. x3 ]]