It’s a bit warm today… Kyungsoo thinks to himself.

Although he admits to disliking the aura of death during winter, he doesn’t particularly like the warm weather that comes after it either. Warm weathers mean less layers of clothing, and less layers of clothing mean more chances for his powers to take effect. But warm weathers also mean spring and nothing is more pleasant to kyungsoo than the season when he most blends in.

The morning after Jongin’s visit is an uneventful one. Kyungsoo wakes up with a groan because he’s completely forgotten about having to get up early for work. Suddenly Seungsoo’s “midnight dinner” plan had seemed like the stupidest thing he’s ever agreed to. He rolls out of the elder’s bed with the dark blue duvet still draped over him and literally crawls to the bathroom on all fours because his eyes just wouldn’t obey his commands to open and wake up.

Just about then Seungsoo opens the door to his room and when he finds a lump of comforters slowly inching its way across the floor towards the bathroom he raises an eyebrow in judgement and follows it carefully with his gaze.

“World’s first ever living and talking duvet, come one come all…” he finally comments after a painful 3 minutes of staring at his little brother struggle to fight away drowse, mocking a tv reporter’s tone and accent and successfully forcing out a raspy whimper from the highly sleep induced Kyungsoo.  “g’away” he says, and Seungsoo could only laugh at the way he’s completely given up on his journey to the bathroom and just laid there in his pool of comforters. The elder feels like they haven’t grown a day old from elementary.

“get up silly” he says in between chuckles, heaving Kyungsoo up on his two feet and letting the duvet fall back to the ground. Kyungsoo lets out an unattractive yawn and rubs his eyes raw hoping that they would cooperate.

“You’ve got to move quicker than that if you want to catch the 7:30 am train.”

“This is all your fault.” Kyungsoo whines, dragging his feet across the hall and disappearing into his room to pick an outfit for the day (not that he had much of a choice with all the black he had).

“Oh please, this isn’t the first time you’ve stayed up.”

“This is the first time I’ve done it for such a pointless reason.”

“If you didn’t get yourself a boyfriend there would be no reason.”

The younger pops his head out from his room’s doorway “If you weren’t such a weirdo we’d have dinner at normal hours in the evening.”

“If you weren’t arguing so much it wouldn’t be 6:50 am right now.”

 “-“    

At the mention of the time, Kyungsoo is immediately sent running down the hallway half undressed, entering the bathroom and re-emerging a few minutes later holding a toothbrush to his mouth while hopping on one foot struggling to put on a pair of pants.  All the while Seungsoo has already moved to stand by the entrance of their home, holding out a coat and an umbrella, waiting for the other to come rushing down the stairs and zooming out the door. This happens in about three to five minutes later and as Kyungsoo passes they exchange a routinely high five in place of a Bye and take care today.

Seungsoo watches as the younger jogs down the sidewalk and disappears out of sight by the curb. The minute Kyungsoo is gone his expression turns serious and his thoughts are suddenly clouded. He steps back inside the warmth of their residence and closes the door behind him. He’s going to have to skip work today, there are some calls that need to be made.

***

There are a few vacant seats in the train to Hongdae Station but Kyungsoo chooses not to take any. Instead he stands by the doors, leaning his forehead against the glass window and allowing himself to doze off. The skies began to look quite gloomy ever since he left the house and he mentally thanks Seungsoo for the umbrella he would most probably have forgotten on an average day to work. It still wasn’t as cold as it had been in the past few weeks and he felt warm enough to wear nothing other than a shirt and a hoodie, so he was expecting spring to come soon.

Next station, Hongdae. Next station, Hongdae.

The female announcer’s voice over the speakers rattles Kyungsoo awake from his own thoughts. He blinks away the drowse and takes a step back from the door only to crash against the person who was apparently standing behind him the entire time. His eyes widen with surprise as he whips his head around almost ready to splutter apologies, however, his words are caught in his throat once he immediately recognizes the face he meets. A cheeky grin flashes across the person’s face and he couldn’t help but return the smile. “Jongdae!” He greets.

 “Hey shrimp.”

“Hi! Wow I- I didn’t know you took the train…where’s your stop?”

“Hongdae actually.”

“I go down at Hongdae too.”

“Yeah. Your bake shop I recall?”

Kyungsoo nods. “What business do you have there?”

“I work part time somewhere around the area too.”

“You do?”

“Yeah, don’t remember?”

“…Oh no wait, it was when you visited the bakery wasn’t it? I remember I remember.”

“Gotta ring the alarm in that little head of yours shrimp it’s time to wake up.” Jongdae laughs at the way Kyungsoo’s cheeks turn a lighter shade of pink at the comment.

“How come this is the first time I’ve seen you here?”

"Because this is my first time taking the train. I usually drive a motor but, well it’s been acting up lately and I haven’t earned enough to get it fixed for now so…here I am.”  

“ah…”

For a moment they fall into an air of awkward silence until the announcer’s voice over the speaker interrupts their conversation. Kyungsoo wants to turn around and face the window again but at the same time he doesn’t want to come across as rude so instead he settles with looking past Jongdae’s shoulder and watching the train slowly come to a stop. He stumbles a bit when it does but in an instant Jongdae’s hands are steadying him with a strong and vice-like grip. He mumbles out a thank you before shying away towards the doors which had swooshed open upon arrival. Jongdae follows him close behind and they both exit to the sound of drizzling rain and buzzing crowds.

Kyungsoo stops when they reach the sidewalk just at the exit of the station. The rain grows stronger by the minute and with both his hands he holds his transparent umbrella close to himself as rain drops pitter-patter above him. Jongdae holds his umbrella up with one hand, the other holding on to a cigarette he had pulled out the second they exited the station.

“I’m heading south.” Kyungsoo says, turning to face the older.

“Oh well, I’m heading the opposite direction. Should we part here?”

“Where do you work?”

“I’m a part time dj at some club.”

“You must really like working in clubs don’t you”

They both chuckle “It doesn’t sound very pleasant now that I hear it from someone else, but yeah I often do.”

“Okay, well then, take care Jongdae.”

Kyungsoo’s smile is accompanied by a shy wave as he slowly backs away and splashes through puddles towards the direction of the bakery. Jongdae watches his back retreat with something heavy tugging at the corners of his heart, a nagging voice at the back of his head keeps insisting that it wasn’t quite the right sight to be looking at. The smaller boy walks further and further, slowly being swallowed by the people walking to and fro, and Jongdae is mentally debating whether to give in to his urges or not.  He throws his cigarette to the ground and it immediately extinguishes under the rain.

In the end, Kyungsoo whips his head around as he hears a faint call of his name. With wide eyes he watches as Jongdae splashes his way through the busy gush of people and catches up with him.

Well, the older boy thinks to himself, the heart wants what it wants.

“…Did I forget something?” Kyungsoo asks, his head tilted slightly to the side.

“No. No I uh…I just…”

“…You just..?”

"I just- I- I just remembered I think I need to head that way as well.”

“You do? I don’t recall any clubs nearby that area…it’s close to a university after all.”

“The University! That’s where I was supposed to go.” Jongdae facepalms and chuckles a bit too exaggeratedly, to which Kyungsoo just raises an eyebrow at. “I was going to pay the others a visit. Junmyeon…Xiumin and everyone.”

“Oh.” The smaller boy nods his head in understanding before flashing a small smile. “Okay. We can walk together then.”

“That would be great.”

“Do you want to stop by the bakery? I suppose I could offer you some of French toast and coffee for breakfast.”

“That would be better.”

“But you have to promise not to pull out another smoke for the rest of our trip.”

“Got it.”

Kyungsoo’s smile only grows wider, he sometimes wonders how Jongin manages to constantly get himself into an argument with someone as nice as Jongdae. He’s grown quite fond of the guy.

They agree to walk the rest of the way together, and the smaller boy admits that having company in his usually lonely walks to work brightens up his mood somehow. Standing on one end of the street they wait patiently for the blinking red light to turn green. Kyungsoo inhales the smell of rain and smiles to himself at the sudden flood of memories from the previous night.

I think I’m falling in love with you. Jongin had said.

He felt his heart flutter just at the thought of it. He remembers how it feels sitting beside the other, leaning his forehead against his, kissing him, and holding his hand. He gets so carried away by his own memories that he unconsciously grabs on to the hand closest to his to relieve the moment. Which of course turns out to be Jongdae’s, the older boy jumping at the sudden contact but deciding to remain silent about it, simply letting his hand hang loosely to his side.  Kyungsoo seems to realize his actions a moment later, simply letting go of his hold as if it had never happened. He doesn’t notice the sigh that escapes the older boy’s lips.

Kyungsoo lifts his gaze to the pedestrian light. However, he notices not the remaining ten seconds that are left before they could cross, but the figure that practically zooms past in quick long strides on the other side of the road. He recognizes the platinum blonde hair, the tall, lean body, and the tanned skin, and his world momentarily stops. His eyes widen, gaze glued to the boy, who he assumes is none other than Jongin, wearing the same exact clothes from the night before, rushing through the rain with a duffel bag at hand.

“Kyungsoo- KYUNGSOO!” Jongdae shouts, reaching out a few seconds too late to stop the smaller boy from impulsively dropping his umbrella and sprinting across the street five seconds earlier than the pedestrian light. His heart skips a few beats as he watches Kyungsoo dodge the cars that drive past.

Luckily, with adrenaline rush coursing through him, he gets to the other side unharmed. However he finds no time to feel grateful about this fact when he’s too busy weaving his way through the sea of people, finding it harder and harder to keep sight of the tanned boy who walks swiftly ahead of him, turning sharply once and again into the train station.

“Jongin!” Kyungsoo calls out, but noise barriers all around prevent him from being heard. He stops once inside and scans the crowd, spoting the tanned boy rushing across the gates to step into the train which is seconds away from leaving. Kyungsoo pants, realizing he wouldn’t be allowed any closer without a ticket. Soaking wet from having thrown himself under the pouring rain, he shivers slightly before leaning forward, his hands on his knees. The sound of footsteps running towards him has him turning his head, but before he could even realize who it is a coat is draped over his shoulders.

“What the were you thinking?!” Jongdae exclaims, earning a few side glances from the people around. “Couldn’t you have waited at least five more seconds before you crossed?!”

Kyungsoo flinches at the harsh tone of the other, standing straight and clutching the coat tighter around him, drops of water from his hair trickling down to his nose and cheeks. “I- I’m sorry.”

Jongdae simply places a hand over his heart, looking up to the ceiling and letting a long exhale escape his lips before closing his eyes and turning to the smaller boy in front of him much calmer this time. “What were you thinking?” He repeated, “Why would you do that?”

“It’s just…” Kyungsoo’s gaze flickers to the empty terminal “…I think I saw Jongin.”

 “You did?” Jongdae looks to the terminal as well. “I don’t see him.”

“He got onto the train just now…and…and I don’t know.”

“Kyungsoo…Look I know you’re madly in love with him and all that jazz but that was a little uncalled for. You could’ve just called for him…or met up with him some other time. I mean weren’t you just with him recently?”

 "I know. I know. And I really don’t know what came over me. I wouldn’t have done that…but you should have seen him Jongdae.”

"Seen him?”

“You should have seen him. He looked….he looked terrible.” Kyungsoo’s squints his eyes and stares into the blank space in front of him as if to try and recall what he had seen at the fleeting glimpse he caught of the tanned boy “He looked so tired. He wore the same things from the last time I saw him. He didn’t even flinch when I called out for him and his eyes were glued to the ground. His hair was a mess and he carried a duffel bag? I don’t know I just…Shouldn’t he be at the university right now? It’s not like him.”

Jongdae remains silent for a moment, trying to imagine Jongin as he had been described. He had to admit that it wasn’t like the guy at all, although most of the time Jongin manages to look something in between a worn out teen and a trashy thug, he still also manages to look somewhat presentable. What Kyungsoo just described was far from presentable.

“Look let’s just get to the shop.” Jongdae says finally breaking the silence. He fixes his coat over the smaller boy’s body making sure he’s warm. “You could catch a cold at this rate. Just give Jong a call later alright? It’s no use following him now we don’t know where he’s headed.”

“But is he alright?”

“He should be fine. He’s one of the most sensible guys I know, so I’m sure he wouldn’t do anything rash. Relax, okay?”

Kyungsoo could only release a shaky exhale, stealing one last glance at the empty terminal before nodding. “Okay.”

“Good. Great. Now I have a legit reason to take you to the bake shop.”

“You’re not going to the university anymore?”

“I never was going.” Jongdae chuckles.

 Kyungsoo leaves no comment at that and so they resume their walk in silence, doing their best to squeeze themselves underneath Jongdae’s tiny umbrella.

***

“Sorry I’m la- Sehun?”

It’s comes as a slight surprise to Kyungsoo, finding Sehun seated behind the counter, dozing off with a cup of brewed coffee at hand. The youngest doesn’t even spare a glance at him once he enters, his stare fixated on the floor as he rests his forehead against his palm. It’s unusual of him, Kyungsoo thinks, because despite the boy’s stoic expression he’s more often than not the one who moves around a lot, checking inventories, handling deliveries, making calls.  Luhan and Kyungsoo have always had some spare time to chit chat because of Sehun who is almost always willing to be the busy body among them.

But now he’s just sitting there, looking very un-Sehun like.

Kyungsoo wonders if everyone’s mood today is somehow associated with the weather. Gloomy.

The smaller boy exchanges questioning glances with Jongdae who was following right behind him. He cautiously moves behind the counter to put his bag down and crouch beside the youngest, trying to get a peek of his expression. When Sehun doesn’t respond, Kyungsoo finally speaks up in a soft and gentle tone.

“Sehun ah.”

“Huh? Oh-“ finally coming to his senses the youngest blinks a few times before giving Kyungsoo his full attention. “Hyung. Hey. Sorry,      I was…Wait, Why are you all wet?”

“That’s not important. Are you alone?” Kyungsoo stands up, eyes still fixated on his maknae.

“Mm.”

“Where’s Lu hyung?”

“…Home. He’s not coming to work today.”  

“Why not?”

“Hangover.”

“Ugh that guy…Are you alright though? You seem tired.”

“I watched over him last night.”

“The entire night?”

“He couldn’t sleep.”

"You didn’t….did you?”

“No.”

“Oh good. That’s good.”

Sehun opens and closes his mouth unsure of what to say next, he eyes Jongdae sceptically before deciding that the conversation he wants to hold is a private one. “You should get changed first.”

“Yeah but I don’t really have any extra clothes.”

"I have a shirt and a pair of track pants in my locker at the back. You could borrow those.” At the mention of the offer Sehun stands and leads the smaller through the kitchen doors, stopping Jongdae just as he was about to enter after them. “cept you, you stay out here and watch the counter.”

“What?” The older of the two scrunches his face in confusion.

“You heard me watch the counter.”

“Sehun we can’t make him watch for us that’s our job.”

"That’s Luhan hyung’s job to be honest, and he’s not here, so you” he points to a very startled looking Jongdae “can substitute”

“He has a part time job to get to!”

“We can give him Luhan’s pay for the day.”

“Jongdae-“ Kyungsoo throws a helpless look to the other which immediately has his heart melting “you don’t have to. I’ll be back out with your breakfast.”

“No it’s fine. You two could use a helping hand I’m sure.”

“But-“

 “Go on go change, I’ll surprise you with my never ending charms and skills in sales talk.”

Kyungsoo smiles at him one last time, mouthing out a silent thank you before following Sehun to the back where he’s given an orange shirt with some faded print out of a comic on the front and a pair of grey track pants. It’s nowhere close to his style but he’s in no position to complain so he settles for what he has and quickly dries off before getting changed. Sehun stands by the entire time, drilling holes into the wall with his intense stare, waiting for his hyung to finish. Once Kyungsoo finishes, he quietly hangs up his wet clothes somewhere to dry and returns to the younger with a grateful smile. “Thanks. The shirt’s a size too big though.” He says with a chuckle, but Sehun only remains serious.

"It’s so confusing hyung…”

The smaller boy blinks up at him a few times before answering back in an equally soft tone. “What is?”

“I couldn’t tell. He’s so vague…I couldn’t read him at all.”

"Who are we talking about?”

“Luhan hyung.”

“Ah…” Kyungsoo nods in understanding, biting his lip in slight hesitation before prying more into the younger’s mind. “Did you…tell him?”

“No. Not yet. I couldn’t. He was a mess last night, and it’s only because he saw him at a club”

“And who is him?”

“The guy he’s dating. Wu…something...”

“Okay, so you saw him last night?”

“Yeah but he immediately chickened out, so it was only a quick glance. But god…” Sehun lets out a long exhale before leaning his elbows on the counter, cradling his face in his hands. “…he was so wrecked.”

Kyungsoo cautiously takes a step closer and places a hand on his maknae’s shoulder, squeezing it in an effort to send comfort before slowly leaning his head against the boy’s back. “You must be confused.”

“Very. I couldn’t tell if he really likes him or not. I couldn’t tell if he really likes me. I couldn’t- I wish I could just ask him to choose, him or me. Him or me. Him..or me…But I want to read him first, make sure he’d pick me because I might not be strong enough to hear someone else’s name other than mine.”

"He hasn’t told you anything?”

“No. Not even in his drunken state.” A hardly audible sob escapes Sehun’s lips and all Kyungsoo could do is rub gentle circles on the other’s back. He’s at a loss for advice to give on such a complicated situation. He feels sorry that his two bestfriends have to go through such terrible emotional rollercoasters and for a moment he wishes that they were really nothing more than just friends to each other, that way, maybe things wouldn’t have gotten so difficult for them.

 “Listen,” he says, stepping back and fiddling with his hands. “I don’t understand what Luhan’s motifs are, I don’t understand why he’s doing this to himself and to you, but…if you’re afraid of risking your friendship, or whatever it is you have between you two, and if you choose to pretend like you don’t know, then I’m afraid that paralyzes you. You can’t do anything, you can only standby, watch and hope he snaps some sense into himself.”

“So…you’re saying I should tell him I know?” The youngest lifts up his gaze, his eyes drowning in confusion and helplessness.

“I’m telling you to hang in there.” Kyungsoo smiles, and it’s all he could really offer.

Not wanting to press further into the subject, Sehun merely returns a half-hearted smile. “So you never told me why you were soaked.”

“Ah…that. I uhm, I just forgot my umbrella at home, but I ran into Jongdae at the train station so…he helped me here.” A little white lie wouldn’t hurt Kyungsoo thinks.

Sehun would have asked more about the matter (his suspicion over funky-smoking-guy growing by the second) if it weren’t for the sudden outburst of chatters that erupted from behind the doors to the front counter. He and Kyungsoo exchange surprised and curious glances as they silently agree upon each other to head out and see what all the commotion is about. Kyungsoo doesn’t really know what to expect when he squeezes half of his body out the door to see.

He first registers the sight of three people, one of them probably Jongdae since the said boy is no longer in his position behind the counter, all hugging and being absurdly noisy. He squints, trying to make out who the two other strangers are although finding it rather difficult with their backs turned to him. Sehun squeezes out next to him not too soon after, wearing an expression that’s something in between pissed off and snoopy, mumbling to himself about not being a morning person. The chuckle it earns from Kyungsoo catches the attention of the tallest stranger who finally notices them, turning to flash a blindingly bright smile which is all Kyungsoo needs to finally recognize him.

“Chanyeol.” Kyungsoo greets with a growing smile, and of course it’s to be suspected that if the tall one is Chanyeol the other must be-

"Baekhyun? Am I right?”

At the mention of his name, the noisemaker of Jongin’s little clique has his head whipping around and his body swiftly skipping across the store to envelop the small baker in a tight and warm hug. “Kyungsoo ohmygod I haven’t seen you since Christmas.”

Kyungsoo’s eyes form crescents as he smiles sheepishly and returns the embrace. He likes how Baekhyun doesn’t exude any sort of awkwardness nor hesitation In his actions, despite the two of them being mere acquaintances and truthfully he wouldn’t mind hanging around people like him more often. 

“Hey there little baker.” Chanyeol pipes in, effortlessly ruffling Kyungsoo’s damp hair before nodding to an unamused Sehun. “Hey there Poker Face. We have come to seek sustenance.”

“If putting food in your mouths would make you all tone down then please by all means help yourselves.”

"Sorry Sehun, were we loud?”

“Very.” The youngest mutters, Kyungsoo merely gives him a look.

“He’s just grumpy don’t mind him, It’s fine really. We were just surprised.”

“You gotta understand that it’s because I haven’t seen these two in a while. Especially that one.” Jongdae points to Baekhyun who responds with a fling of his head and a flip of his fringe.

“Well, my schedule’s been packed so I’m sorry I’m so in demand.”

“Packed?” Chanyeol snorts, “Last time I checked you were playing tamagochi in a onesie at your grandmother’s house for the holidays. Is that what you call packed?”

The mental image this paints in everyone’s mind has them reeling in laughter and Baekhyun could only glare at each one of them. He elbows his tall friend in the stomach and eventually the deep toned laugh in the room dies down into pained sobs.

 “You’re banned from my grandmother’s house.”

“I’ve never been to your grandmother’s house???”

“And you never will.”

Chanyeol continues blabbering on about something but Baekhyun would not have any more of it, promptly giving his full attention to Kyungsoo while ignoring the lanky boy who is currently clutching his abused stomach. Something about the greasy smile and the sticky gaze he wore renders the small baker a bit uncomfortable, though he tries his best not to show it. 

"So,” Kyungsoo mentally braces himself. “I heard you’re getting it on with my friend”

He briefly wonders how he’s supposed to interpret the phrase ‘getting it on’ before the side of his lips twitch up in an awkward smile      “I’m confused?”

"You and Jongin silly! You know, going exclusive” Baekhyun emphasizes on that last word as though it were some juicy story in the front page of a tabloid newspaper.  It makes Kyungsoo swallow, Sehun’s face contorting in disgust somewhere in the background.

“We’re dating…I mean- if that’s what you’re asking.”

“Oh no my Amico, (Kyungsoo doesn’t even know anymore) I’m not asking. Don’t ever think Byun Baekhyun is late on the news because Byun ing Baekhyun is never late on the news.”

“Uhm-”

"So you’ve been dating my friend since new year huh… Oh, mio buon Signore tempo vola.”

Kyungsoo blinks a few more times than necessary at the unfamiliar words.

“You better take care of that dark kid, he’s an actual sweetheart. He may look like a devil dancer on stage but damn that boy’s got the heart of a seven year old kid who’s too in love with his own dogs. So don’t do anything funny, capiche?”  

“Uhm, s-si?”

“Bella. Sono contento per voi due, ma ricordarsi di utilizzare sempre protezione.”

At the sudden flood of foreign words poor clueless Kyungsoo darts his wide helpless eyes towards a recovering Chanyeol who simply dismisses the matter with a wave of his hand.

"Hey don’t look at me, I failed my Italian classes. Baek was a language major before he shifted to medicine so don’t worry, He does this to everyone.”

“Tranquilla si pezzo di merda.”

“Merda means right? You use it on me too much.”

“Merda merda merda merda.”

“Got it.”

Jongdae butts in with a few unfamiliar phrases as well.

“Oh yeah I forgot you speak Chinese. Does anyone else have something bad to say about me in some fancy language?”

“You’re annoyingly tall.”

“Thanks Sehun. That was very blunt of you.”

Ah, Kyungsoo thinks to himself, Jongin sure makes the strangest friends. (Then again, Luhan and Sehun aren’t the ideal partners in crime either)

While the others are busy bickering and what not, the thought of Jongin crosses Kyungsoo’s mind and flashes of this morning’s incidents replay in slow motion. The image of Jongin walking unprotected underneath the drizzling rain in last night’s clothes with his dishevelled hair and tired expression allows a fresh new wave of concern to overflow within him. He furrows his eyebrows as Baekhyun, Chanyeol, Jongdae and Sehun’s voices all drown out in the background, overpowered by the loudness of his own thoughts. Looking closely at the messenger bag slung hastily over Baek’s shoulder, he catches a glimpse of something clean, white, and neatly folded, immediately suspecting it to be the boy’s lab gown from the university. “university…” He echoes silently to himself, a question formulating out of the invisible dots he seems to be trying to connect.

"Do you two have classes today?” He finds himself blurting out, catching the others by surprise seeing on how they all turn their heads towards him almost all at the same time, except for Jongdae maybe, who is too busy attending to a customer who must have came in during their few seconds of distraction. He throws nothing more than a brief side glance at them before smiling back at the young lady who is trying to get herself some coffee.

“Yyyes.” Chanyeol is the one who responds first, “I mean, I’m just about to head to mine after this. Do you Baek?”

“Yeah. I just had one early this morning and I’m currently on a three hour break. Why?”

"Do…any of you two happen to know Jongin’s schedule today?”

The duo eye each other curiously at that. “He had a class with me in the morning,” Baekhyun says, “No breaks though. Why?”

It takes a moment for Kyungsoo to answer, his lips pursing and his eyes looking up to the ceiling in thought, “Have you seen him today?”

“Only for half a period. I suppose he just attempted to come to class today but he obviously wasn’t feeling like it. Come to think of it that’s pretty not jongin-like but I guess he has his days. He looked like anyway, I’d have asked him to leave before stinking up the entire lecture hall.”

“Is there something wrong soo?” Chanyeol asks, expression turning serious for the first time in forever “You look a bit bothered.”

“We saw him.” Footsteps come closer to their circle as Jongdae momentarily abandons his spot behind the counter and stands beside the smallest. “Well, Kyungsoo saw him I mean, this morning at the train station. Yes he looked like which is why we’re gonna ask if you have any idea what he was doing there?”

Sehun raises his eyebrow at the brand new information he seems to have acquired just then and Kyungsoo shrinks under his sceptical gaze. Forgot your umbrella huh.

“Oh, you didn’t get his text? He said something about heading home for a day or two, you know, with his noonas and his ‘children’. I have no idea why the impulsive trip but he didn’t seem interested in offering me any sort of explanation either. Wait, this is honestly- I thought he’d have informed you first? Why hasn’t he informed you? Chanyeol why hasn’t he informed Kyungsoo?”

“Beats me.” The tallest shrugs.

"God he just started and he’s already breaking the boyfriend code, Che idiota.”

“Idiota? That’s idiot! Am I right am I right?”

“Right you are my friend, very smart, It’s also a word highly synonymous to Park Chanyeol.”

And the bickering continues.

Kyungsoo is no longer interested to hear any of it however, silently excusing himself and retreating into the back room to think for a moment. What had happened? Why was Jongin leaving? Missing out his classes? Not informing him at all? He tries to recall every single detail of the night before and wonders if anything, anything, had gone wrong. Was it something he said? Something Seungsoo said?

Or perhaps something that had happened after they separated?

But really how much could happen in the few hours that they spent away from each other?

He stares at his phone, as if doing so would somehow give him the power to make it ring, to make Jongin’s name flash across it’s bright screen.

Nothing happens.

He picks it up, his fingers hovering above the touch screen keypad, a long two to three minutes spent contemplating on whether to press “call” or “send” or just ultimately “cancel”. The tanned boy was just being exceedingly strange today and Kyungsoo feels determined that something isn’t right about him. But then again he also wonders that if this is true, why is it being kept from him? He likes to believe that there is a reason, a reasonable reason behind Jongin’s secretive actions which stops him from making the call. Trust is a core element in all relationships and if Jongin felt the need not to break anything to him at the moment then Kyungsoo wants to trust that. He locks his phone and sets it aside, glancing at it long and hard before turning away and focusing on sifting two cracked eggs to perfection. He had guests to attend to.

If there’s anything Kyungsoo is used to it’s routine. Setting aside the thought of Jongin for the rest of his afternoon at work he tries his best not to worry too much. I’ll know when I’ll know. He’ll call me when he’ll call me. He repeats to himself like a mantra. After leaving one, simple text to hopefully drop a hint to the other, he dismisses all thoughts immediately, immersing himself in his world of cinnamon and dough.

To: Jongin

Everyone is gloomy today, even the skies seem to be crying.

***

A boy taps his foot impatiently on the dark grey carpets of the Tokyo Airport.

His appearance is attention catching. With his sharp, slanted eyes hidden behind expensive looking opaque shades, his dark blue turtleneck rolled all the way up to his chin and his skinny jeans tucked into a pair of shiny combat boots, he had passers-by double taking and wondering which magazine cover or newspaper headline they’ve seen him from. Truthfully he’s been in none, but maybe it’s that mysterious and snobby aura he exudes that completes his celebrity look. He ignores the pointed stares of many and simply continues to hold his (top of the line) phone to his ear, hating the sound of its constant ringing as it goes on undisturbed. Sighing exasperatedly, he checks his watch and counts the minutes he has left before he boards the plane. Approximately forty-five seconds before so, there is a soft click on the other end of the line and finally finally someone picks up.

He stands, grabbing the handle of his stroller and slinging a bag over his shoulder before slowly making his way towards the terminal. Its hard to miss the way the golden Gucci and Louis Vuitton labels glint against his luggage.

“Tao? Huang Zitao?”

“Seungsoo hyung, couldn’t you have picked up any faster?”

“I had to wait till Kyungsoo left.”

“Is he gone now?”

“Yeah. Where are you?”

“At the airport, about to board the plane actually.”

“Already!?”

“Yes! Didn’t you read my letter? I sent that weeks ago!”

“Er…Well…”

"You’ve been putting off your mail again haven’t you.”

"Look I read it okay, just last night. Couldn’t you have sent a text or called or emailed? It’s the 21st century Tao, and you’re in Japan for Christ’s sake.”

“And what risk Kyungsoo reading it? I know you let him use your phone and laptop occasionally. But he’s never the one checking the mail we both know that.”

“Alright fine point taken. What time will you arrive?”

“I don’t know, probably in a few hours. Will you help me settle?”

“Of course. I’ll get a hotel booked for you. When will you leave for Anyang?”

"I’m not sure of that either. I haven’t called my parents to tell them.”

“That’s fine you can do that when you get here.”

The boy, who has now been identified as Tao, struggles a bit to lift his luggage into the compartment. A flight steward comes to his rescue and he smiles politely at him before making himself comfortable in his seat by the window.

“Sir, If I may inform you that we’ll be asking all phones to be switched off before the plane takes flight.” The steward comments as soon as he finishes securing Tao’s luggage.

“Yes, thank you I’ll end this call soon.”

“Enjoy your flight sir.”

He waits for the tall Japanese man in a uniform to walk further down the aisle and help some teenage girl with her own luggage before he returns to the call.

“Hyung, I need to go, the plain will take flight shortly.”

“Okay. Have a safe flight. Call me when you arrive, make sure it’s before five because I have to be home before Kyungsoo.”

“Understood. Oh, and hyung…one more thing?”

"Yep?”

“Keep this a secret okay? He can’t find out that I’m back. He can’t.”

The passengers slowly fill in and settle themselves into their seats as a soft ding through the speakers signals their near take off. Tao listens to the thick silence on the other line which is later broken by a sigh.

“Understood.”

Tao ends the call, and soon, he’s above the clouds. He enjoys as much of this peace and beauty as he could before he’ll have to descend to his awaiting problems.

***

There’s been no word about Jongin since this morning and it’s probably the reason why Kyungsoo is closing the shop today with furrowed brows and an evident frown. Sehun’s words hold true when Luhan doesn’t show up to work that day so to avoid an unusually lonely bike ride home he offers Kyungsoo a ride to the train station, which the other politely accepts. He holds on tightly to the younger’s waist as they breeze past the busy streets, his mind trying not to dwell on the feeling of a still and silent phone in his pocket.

Sehun bids him goodbye with a light pat on his cheek before pedalling away and leaving Kyungsoo on his own to board the train home. It’s yet another silent trip where he tries to convince his itching hands not to take out his phone and check for any notifications, although he finds himself sighing in disappointment on the few times he fails to do so. He stares out the window as they glide past the city’s colourful lights, eyes skimming upwards until his gaze falls on the dark skies. He spots a plane, its blinking red and yellow lights disappearing and reappearing whenever it passes through the unseen clouds, and he finds a strange kind of feeling tugging lightly at the back of his heart.  He ignores it.

He’s a bit more distracted on the walk home thanks to the absence of rain and the sudden abundance of stars in the night sky above him. Its still a bit cloudy, but through the gaps between he could see the glimmer of a few constellations and it has him taking his sweet time with his head craned back and his eyes wide with wonder. He only breaks his gaze away when the streets grow more and more familiar and when his house comes into view.

“I’m home.” He calls out lifelessly, not really expecting a reply until he actually hears one.

“Hey.” Seungsoo pops into view, jogging down the stairs while tugging on a shirt. “Hungry?”

“Uhm, no? You’re early.” Kyungsoo tries not to show how weird of a fact this is to him and simply eyes his brother warilly while toeing off his shoes.

"You know how irregular my schedule is. And where’d you get those clothes? Orange? Oh that is definitely not yours Do Kyungsoo who have you been sleeping with.”

“I haven’t slept with anyone! This is Sehun’s, he let me borrow it for today.”

“Do I really not provide you with enough food and shelter and clothing that others take pity on you?”

“I got a bit messy in the kitchen today that’s all.” Little white lies.

“We’re gonna be normal and eat dinner at a normal time today so be down in thirty minutes!” The elder’s voice calls out through the kitchen while Kyungsoo simply hums in response, climbing up the stairs two steps at a time, placing his phone on his desk and immediately flopping onto his bed face first.

Face buried into the pillows he almost doesn’t hear the ringing and vibration that rudely interrupts the perfect silence of his room. He listens, allowing one, two, three seconds to pass with the ringing piercing through the jumbled thoughts of his mind until finally he jerks his head up and finds that his phone screen is brightly displaying the name he’s been wanting to see so badly since this morning.

There’s a soft squeak that escapes his lips once he finds himself falling off the bed in his struggle to get up, but he manages to crawl quickly to the desk and reach out for his phone to press answer, dropping to the floor with a thud which seems to have been loud enough to be heard on the other end of the line.

“Kyungsoo? Are you okay??”

 Hearing that voice, Kyungsoo feels like he’s never been better.

“Jongin?”

“What was that?” there’s a few rustles on the other end accompanied by what seems to be the soft bark of a dog which the tanned boy promptly shushes.

“I- I’m fine I just…dropped something.”

“Oh” A chuckle. “Silly. Sorry I didn’t reply…”

“It’s fine. Are you alright?”

This morning, You seemed … lost.

Kyungsoo bites his lips. “…Chanyeol and Baekhyun came to the shop today, said you weren’t in class.”

“Ah. Blabber mouths.”

“It’s not because you’re sick or anything right?”

”No, no. I’m fine. I just felt like paying my noonas a visit today... Jjangu! Jjangu-yah come say hi!”

Kyungsoo lies still on his back, staring up at the ceiling as he listens to the sound of Jongin coaxing what sounds like a couple of dogs to perhaps come closer or be carried. When a bark resonates on the other line, he couldn’t help but smile. “Jjangu’s being stubborn. But here’s Monggu.”

“Hey there monggu. Are you as cute as you sound?”

Jongin chuckles “don’t my phone you smelly dog- no- no! You’re not allowed to kiss him!”

"Jongin…”

Kyungsoo continues to stare up at the ceiling, the clear image of the tanned boy rushing through the rain this morning still etched into his memory and itching to be brought up. The more he listens to Jongin the more he wonders, the more he hears him laugh and smile and sound so normal, the more he questions whether he really is as happy as he sounds.

“Go on get lost you stupid dog.”

“Jongin.”

"Yeah?”

“Are you okay?”

"Yeah, I already said I’m fine don’t worry soo.”

“Are you…okay?” Kyungsoo repeats, much slower his time, his worry oozing from each word. It’s momentarily quite on the other line as Jongin seems to struggle to find the right words to say.

“…Don’t I sound okay?”

"Baekhyun mentioned you didn’t look too well this morning.” Don’t lie, I saw you.

"Well I’m not really a morning person.” Jongin chuckles but Kyungsoo isn’t amused.

"Jongin, I’m not joking, are you really really okay??”

“Kyungsoo…”

“Because I’m worried.”

Silence.

“So worried.”

A long and slow sigh resonates on the other line and the smaller boy couldn’t help but notice how sad it sounds. “I’m sorry for making you worry” Jongin begins all traces of playfulness long gone “But trust me, I’m doing okay now. I’ll admit…something…something kind of happened when I got back to the dorm from last night’s dinner with you and your brother and it’s kind of bothering me. So I decided to come here to clear my mind off things for the time being.”

“…May I know what happened?”

“I…Maybe not now soo. I just…I haven’t really registered it myself. But I’ll talk to you about it. I will, I promise. For now please, just don’t worry okay? I’m doing fine, my noona is taking care of me and the only problem I have in here are these two lazy dogs who wouldn’t come out for their dinner.”

As if on cue, Seungsoo’s voice shouts from all the way downstairs. “KYUNGSOO. ENOUGH PHONE YOU HAVE FIVE MINUTES TO COME DOWN.”

“…looks like Seungsoo hyung’s got a lazy dog to worry about himself.”

Kyungsoo sighs to himself, cheeks blushing a light shade of pink at the unexpected embarrassment his brother had put him under. He furrows his brows in concern and stares at his phone for a good fifteen seconds, just tracing the letters of the other’s name displayed on the screen. He places it back against his ear and if he listens extra carefully he could almost hear Jongin’s soft and regulated breathing. Almost instantly he feels okay.

“Will I see you tomorrow?” He asks the moment he realizes that Jongin couldn’t really see him nodding.

“You will see me tomorrow.” Kyungsoo could practically hear him smilling. “and the days after that.”

“Okay.”

“You better go. Before your brother learns my address and has me arrested for ual harassment or something.” Jongin laughs, Kyungsoo relishes in the sound.

“Okay.”

“Bye Soo. Love you.”

Still not used to hearing those words, the smaller boy’s face turns redder than it’s ever been “J-Jongin-”

“It’s okay. No rush.”

And just like that the other’s warm, comforting, soft voice is replaced by a click and the silence of an ended call.

Five minutes pass and Seungsoo raises his brow at the absence of a certain little brother of his at their dining table. He places the bowl of stir fried rice on the kitchen counter before deciding to make his way upstairs and drag Kyungsoo down with his own hands. His brow only raises higher once he hears strange sounds coming from the closed door of the other’s room, a somewhat mixture of a falling cat and a clapping seal. He hopes this isn’t the day he dreads, when his jokes finally turn real, and suddenly he regrets making one about phone just a few moments ago. Holding his breath he carefully he swings the door open…

There on the floor lays his little brother, kicking and flailing his feet in the air while covering his tomato red face with a pillow, his phone thrown carelessly to the side.

 Seungsoo unconsciously clutches a hand to his heart as he exhales in relief before proceeding to grab the boy by his ankles and drag him out of the room like promised.

***

Rain. Kyungsoo wakes up to the sound of rain.

It’s not really the right time of the day to be waking up just yet, his digital clock reading 3:10 AM in bright red digits. But Kyungsoo squints his eyes open anyway, watching the blurry blotch of colors in front of him slowly come into focus, eventually becoming the four familiar corners of his room and all the objects in it. His eyes fall on the window first, the only source of light at the moment in the dim unlit room. Outside the skies are yet again clouded and dark, a heavy downpour of rain creating loud pattering sounds against the glass as beads of water slide down in quick gliding motions. It’s joined by the sound of rustling sheets when Kyungsoo wills himself to stand up, feeling slightly parched. Stumbling a bit from drowse, he outstretches his hand and blindly makes his way out the room.

To his surprise, there’s a soft glow of light coming from the downstairs entrance that’s currently illuminating the lower half of their stairs. Kyungsoo scrunches his forehead in confusion, later clucking his tongue and shaking his head in disapproval thinking that Seungsoo must have fallen asleep in the living room again.

His assumptions are proven false the minute he takes slow and quiet steps down the staircase, for the first thing his eyes fall on is the sight of Seungsoo crouched over, tugging on a pair of sneakers. The older appears to be fully dressed, with a pair of jeans, a jacket and a backpack, it would seem he’s about to head out. Kyungsoo could only wonder where on earth he plans to go at 3 in the morning.

By the time he reaches the last step Seungsoo finally stands, and based on the way he slightly jumps on his spot with his eyes wide and his mouth agape, he definitely isn’t expecting to be seen.

“You…going somewhere?” Kyungsoo asks, eyeing his brother from head to toe. It takes a while for him to get a response, but after a few blinks and stutters, Seungsoo finally speaks.

“T-to work.”

“…At three. In the morning.”

“They said it was an emergency.”

“Couldn’t it wait?”

“No. No, uhm, something about a hard drive crashing and all the files missing. Some of those are needed today and such, we have a scheduled appointment with a client and..and yeah.”

“Oh…” The younger says, slow and slightly doubtful.

“I didn’t want to wake you up. Sorry, I was gonna leave a note though.”

Kyungsoo nods his head. Admittedly he’s not entirely convinced, however this isn’t the first time his brother has received calls during ungodly hours of the day. So for now, he chooses not to question the other’s odd behaviour and just excuses it as a just-woke-up state of being of some sort. All he wants right now is to return to bed after having a nice and cool glass of water.

“Okay. It’s raining, do you have an umbrella?”

“Sure do.”

“Well, wait here, I’ll lend you some things.”

Maybe if Kyungsoo didn’t rush up the stairs in such a hurry he would have heard the other’s silent protests, maybe if he hadn’t slept in Seungsoo’s room just the other night he wouldn’t have left his gloves on the older’s desk, maybe if Seungsoo just kept his desk much cleaner Kyungsoo wouldn’t have had to rummage through the multitude of random clutter of papers, calling cards,

And Letters.

Maybe if the name scribbled neatly onto the back of the white envelope wasn’t so familiar to him he would have ignored it.

But maybe isn’t always the case.

A/N: Happy New Year Guys! I know there isn't much kaisoo action in this one but its necessary. I think i've lost my touch sobs, was just so lazy writing this. sorry if it reflects orz im struggling with the plot.