‘Good morning, Hyesung~’ Hyesung’s classmates greeted him when he arrived. He smiled and waved hi to them before proceeding to his class. The smile was even bigger when he saw Eric who was walking in front of him. Thinking that he wanted to make himself unnoticed, he quietly sneaked behind Eric and pretended to walk beside him. But the older guy didn’t notice him, because he was too into his zone.

‘Yah, Eric’ Hyesung nudged Eric’s arm causing the older guy to shriek in surprised.

‘What the heck, Hyesung? Since when are you here?’ Eric asked while trying to calm himself down.

‘Since just now… I thought that you notice me’ he pouted slightly.

Eric smiled apologetically, ‘Sorry, I really didn’t see you’

Noticing that Eric wasn’t like his usual self, Hyesung decided to be busybody, ‘What’s wrong, Eric? Do you have any problems going on?’

Eric’s face expression soon changed but quickly hid it before Hyesung could notice any further, ‘Nothing, just tired with assignments’

Hyesung didn’t push him, instead he smiled and patted the guy’s back softly, ‘Well, if there’s anything I can help, just come to me okay’

Eric smiled and nodded, ‘Alright, thanks Hyesung’

That evening…

Hyesung had to stay late at his college because of a sudden class that he needed to attend to. He noticed a figure sitting outside of his house, playing with pebbles as if he was waiting for someone.

‘Eric..?’ Hyesung was unsure if he was dreaming about seeing Eric there.

‘Oh, hey Hyesung’ Eric smiled awkwardly as he stood up in front of the younger guy.

Hyesung pointed his house and Eric repeatedly with the confusion on his face, ‘What are you doing here..?’

‘Hmm…’ Eric scratched his head and continued, ‘Can I crash at your place..? If you don’t mind…’

Hyesung scoffed and dragged him inside the house, ‘Why ask? You know you’re always welcome’

‘I know…’ he shyly said as he followed Hyesung to his room. He figured that Hyesung’s dad was at the hotel helping the staffs there. Plus, the hotel was not far from his house which was located in the city.

‘Wanna talk about it?’ Hyesung looked at Eric as he sat on the bed.

‘Talk about what..?’ Eric replied in confusion.

‘Eric, I know you have something going on and you better tell me about it’ he said honestly. He at least wanted Eric to feel better by telling him or someone about whatever was going on his mind.

‘Oh…’ he sighed and sat beside Hyesung.

‘I had a fight with my family. More like with my father. It’s our first big fight actually’ he started telling. Hyesung just nodded and waited for him to continue. He knew that Eric was very close with his family as he always talked about them to him.

‘It’s not like I disrespect but I don’t like how he wanted to set me up with someone’

‘Why all of the sudden?’ Hyesung asked.

‘I don’t know. Maybe because there was some rumours going on about me’

‘What rumours?’ Hyesung was getting uneasy about it.

‘I don’t know, he didn’t say about it. The only thing I know is he told me to meet his acquaintance’s daughter before the ‘rumours’ are released to the press’ Eric sighed another time before laying on the bed.

‘What are you going to do now?’

‘I don’t know and I don’t want to talk about it. I just want to sleep’ Eric got up and asked Hyesung for a towel since he forgot to bring it. The conversation was put on stop when Eric went to take a shower and the next thing Hyesung knew, they were already getting ready for bed.

‘Goodnight, Hyesung’ Eric mumbled before turning his back away from Hyesung.

‘Hmm, goodnight’ Hyesung nodded. Even though they were supposed to sleep but Hyesung couldn’t close his eyes. He kept thinking about what Eric said because honestly he didn’t know what to feel or how to react when knowing Eric was going to be set up with another girl. He knew that Eric was with Jimin but everyone knew that they were not going to be a real couple because they have gone too deep in the friendzone.

Next day…

Hyesung slowly opened his eyes and when he turned around, he saw that Eric wasn’t on the bed anymore.

‘Maybe he’s downstairs’ he yawned as he was trying to persuade himself to get out from bed.

As he was walking down the stairs, he smelled something delicious from the kitchen and as if on the cue, his stomach grumbled in hunger.

‘Good morning!’ Eric smiled as he saw Hyesung at the corner of the kitchen.

‘What are you cooking?’ Hyesung asked after he sat on the dining table.

‘Nothing much. You’re fine with pancakes right?’

‘Sure. Anything is fine. I’m hungry as hell right now’ he mumbled lazily because he was still sleepy. Eric chuckled lightly as he put the plates on the table. Hyesung straight away dug in after he said his prayers.

‘I met your dad just now. He’s going to be at the hotel’ Eric told him.

‘Hmm’ he simply nodded as he was too focused on eating his breakfast.

Eric smiled faintly and sat across Hyesung, ‘Hyesung…’

The seriousness in Eric’s tone made Hyesung looked at him.

‘I’ve been thinking…’ Eric said as he took a deep breath before continuing, ‘You’re 23 this year. And I never saw you with anyone before. Don’t you want to be in a relationship..?’ he cautiously asked the younger guy.

Hyesung thought about it before replying, ‘Honestly, I want to especially when I always see Junjin and Andy together’

‘Then?’

‘I don’t know… Maybe I haven’t found anyone yet’

Hearing what Hyesung said, there was a slight glimpse of sadness on Eric’s face.

‘Don’t you think that when you’re so close to someone to that ‘more than friends’ level, it means that there’s something going on between you and that person?’

‘Really? I never thought about it’ Hyesung shrugged his shoulder as he definitely didn’t understand what Eric was talking about.

‘What do you think of people around you?’

‘Around me..?’ Hyesung mumbled.

‘They are great people and they are people who I can be myself’ he smiled faintly when he remembered about his friends.

‘What about me..?’ Eric looked at him seriously and continued, ‘We became friends all of the sudden yet we are very close’

Hyesung nodded eagerly in agreement, ‘Right! I love hanging out with you. Sometimes more than I’m with Dongwan, Junjin and Andy. I mean, we don’t have to talk when we’re together because we’re already comfortable with each other’ he smiled while looking at Eric.

‘And what do you think of that?’

‘Hmm, I don’t know. I don’t really think about it deeply’

Eric sighed and let the subject dropped. He got his answers already from Hyesung.

‘Oh okay. I think I have to go back home now and talk to my dad about the set up’ Eric said after he was done with his breakfast.

‘Aww really? I thought we could watch a movie or something’ Hyesung pouted.

Eric didn’t say anything, instead he went upstairs to grab his stuffs while Hyesung waited for him downstairs. Before Eric went back home, he said something to Hyesung that made the younger guy confused and somewhat felt differently.

‘Hey, Hyesung… I don’t mean this in a bad way but maybe we should keep a distance between us for awhile’ Eric said softly as he avoided looking directly at Hyesung.

‘Why..?’ Hyesung asked nervously. He didn’t know what he had done or what had just happened.

‘I don’t know. Maybe I need some time alone. You know, when someone has some stuffs to think’ he smiled weakly.

Hyesung barely nodded and with that, Eric just bid goodbye before leaving.

A week later…

Ever since the talk between Hyesung and Eric, they didn’t talk to each other at all. Especially when Eric tried hard to avoid the other guy at college when the brunette tried to say hi. At first, Hyesung understood that Eric needed some time alone but it had been going on for a week and it was making Hyesung dying to know. Did he say something wrong? Did he do something that made Eric pissed? He literally squeezed his brain trying to think what he had done but so far, he got nothing.

‘Yah, what’s wrong with you?’ Dongwan nudged Hyesung’s elbow during lunch time. Actually, Dongwan, Junjin and Andy noticed Hyesung’s sudden change and they were sure that it had something to do with Eric.

‘Nothing’s wrong’ Hyesung sighed.

‘You’ve been playing with your food for the past minutes’

Hyesung blinked his eyes and smiled embarrassedly, ‘Really? I’ll eat now…’ he said and started eating.

‘Hyung, don’t you want to tell us what’s wrong?’ Junjin persuaded.

Hyesung stopped eating and put down his spoon. He took some time to think whether he should ask his friends’ opinion about his problems. And he finally opened up to them.

‘It’s all because of Eric…’ he mumbled sadly.

‘What’s wrong with him?’ Andy asked.

‘I don’t know… He changed’

‘Change as in?’ they raised their eyebrows.

‘He said that he and I should keep a distance from each other. When I tried talking to him, he would avoid me’ he whined.

‘What did you do?’ Dongwan cautiously asked.

‘I didn’t do anything!’ Hyesung protested but later sighed, ‘Or I think I didn’t…’

‘Come on, hyung. Tell us the whole story’ Andy told him. And he did. After he told them everything, it was their turn to sigh.

‘Hyung…’ Junjin started.

‘Don’t you think that you actually have feelings for Eric hyung..?’ Andy helped.

‘What do you mean..?’ Hyesung frowned as he didn’t understand the simple question.

‘What they meant was don’t you think that you actually like him. We all know that the relationship between you two and the relationship between us are totally different’ Dongwan tried to make him understand but he didn’t.

‘I am more confused’

‘The way you act around him is so different, as if you guys are a couple. We saw how you look at him once and that’s love I tell you’

‘N-No…’ Hyesung said as he looked away. Honestly, he didn’t know what to think about it. He wasn’t saying that he looked at Eric as a friend but at the same time, not as a lover too.

‘Really, hyung?’ Andy facepalmed.

‘What kind of person who check on what his ‘friend’ was doing if he wasn’t at school? What kind of person who would go out on weekly dates with his ‘friend’? What kind of person who would act like a husband around his ‘friend’?’ Junjin listed down what Hyesung and Eric had done together since they first met.

‘Ahhhhh! I don’t know!’ Hyesung slammed his head on the table due to frustrations.

Then, as if on the cue, two people walked into the cafeteria and one of them accidentally made eye contact with Hyesung and immediately looked away. Once again, Hyesung sighed and continued eating.

‘But why did he keep a distance?’ Hyesung asked himself but the others heard him.

‘Hyung, you really don’t know?!’ Andy looked at him in disbelieved.

‘Don’t know what?’

‘That Eric hyung likes you!’ Junjin exclaimed.

‘H-He likes me..?’ Hyesung felt his head was going to explode due to dizziness.

‘DUHH!’ they all rolled their eyes.

On the other hand…

‘Yah, Eric! Why aren’t you talk to Hyesung?’ Minwoo finally asked the question he had been wanting to ask.

‘I don’t know. Don’t feel like it’ he replied by shrugging his shoulder.

‘Yah!’ Minwoo hit his head.

‘Ouch! What the hell, Minwoo?!’ he said angrily.

‘You did something to him that made him pissed right?!’

‘NO!’ Eric quickly protested.

‘Then?!’ he glared at the taller guy.

‘Because I need some time to think!’ he glared back.

‘For what?!’

‘On how to get over him!’

‘Why?!’

They noticed that their voices were getting louder and louder that people started to look at them. With that, they immediately shut up but the glaring competition was still on.

‘I asked him about his feelings towards me but he said he never thought about it okay!’ Eric became sulky as he remembered his last conversation with Hyesung.

Minwoo sighed and patted his friend’s back for comfort, ‘I’m sure it’s because he didn’t even realised his own feelings’ he said.

‘Hmm…’ he replied as he didn’t want to talk about it over lunch.