The end! I honestly thought this one would be longer! My bad.

It was fun while it lasted~ 

Fingers crossed for the flow and relevancy~

Thank you all for giving it a read, subscribing and commenting!

Do forgive any grammatical errors as English is not my mother tongue to begin with. ^^

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day…

"Yah Jung Taekwoon sshi. You like him don't you?" Hakyeon's shrill whiny voice caught Taekwoon by surprise as he lounges at his favourite spot on the rooftop. Hakyeon would never come up here unless absolutely necessary and apparently he had done something that Hakyeon feels strongly compelled to confront him for.

"You haven't even introduced us?" Smacking his friend on the back as he sits up grumpily, Hakyeon pouted and took a sip from Taekwoon's banana milk packet without permission.

"You will scare him." Taekwoon grumbled and got back to lying on his side whereas Hakyeon had gone quiet for a long moment. Taekwoon had assumed for a split second that he was reflecting but he was direly mistaken.

"Ok done! We are having dinner at my place tonight and everyone is coming." Putting Taekwoon phone down on his side, Hakyeon smirked and patted Taekwoon on the head. "I've invited him. Or rather… YOU have invited him."

"What?" Bolting up and looking into his message app desperately, Taekwoon wondered briefly what he had done in his past life to deserve involvement with such a person.

"It's only basic courtesy to introduce him to us. We have the rights to know him too." Hakyeon called out as he races back into the shades at the stairwell.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The meeting between Hongbin and Taekwoon's buddies turned out pretty fruitful. Hakyeon liked Hongbin, a lot. Ravi thought he is the most beautiful thing he has ever lain eyes on, after Ken of course. Taekwoon did not quite agree but he wouldn't bother voicing his opinions.

They ended up eating for longer than usual and Taekwoon was feeling so suffocated by their constant questioning that contained so little relevance to their current relationship that he had to excuse himself. It was not like Hakyeon would stop so he quickly decided that Hongbin did not need to hear any more of those relationship advices and philosophies. Heck they are not even dating at the first place.

Taekwoon hadn't gone there with Hongbin yet and though Hongbin is really chill about the haranguing, Taekwoon still felt a little emptiness. Hongbin had entered his life like a tornado and swept him off his feet without him realising it. He was the one who helped Hongbin out of his own dark little phase yet it seemed as though Hongbin had also walked him out of his own loneliness.

He had friends but he needed more. Hongbin had filled up a particular gap in his life and made him feel as though he had lived to his fullest whenever he is with the younger boy. He actually enjoyed himself so much that time flies. They complement one another but it is not like he could tell the boy that.

Walking Hongbin back to the subway station where he would take the train home, Taekwoon took his time admiring the silent boy walking beside him. "You really should cut your hair..." Smoothing a stray piece of hair sticking out from the top of Hongbin voluminous black tresses, Taekwoon commented quietly.

"Says the one who needs a haircut more." Reaching upwards and flicking the antenna like bunch sticking out from behind the older boy’s left ear, Hongbin laughed at the mere reminiscent of Hakyeon's antenna comment. Taekwoon agrees a haircut would be soon since the centre parted fringe is getting a little too thick to be contained beneath the swim cap.

Their small talks went on as usual but for some reasons, neither would breach the topic of dating. What they currently share is perfect. They do not need anything more. Less is more after all. Or rather, that is how Taekwoon comforts himself. Taekwoon cannot be too sure of Hongbin's attraction towards him and vice versa. It's complicated so they will keep things simple for now.

Waving goodbye once Hongbin is ready to head in through the gantry, Taekwoon is finding it harder and harder to let go of his small hands as time goes by. He is aching to kiss the latter again too but it's not like he could actually do it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day was plagued with bad weather and the rain was so heavy that Hongbin was almost late as a result. The atmosphere that day felt different the moment he entered. Struggling with his umbrella and bag while trying not to wet his desk, Hongbin hardly took notice of the commotion happening at the front of the classroom since he had entered from the back.

His classmates were all gathered at the front while a video played from one of their phones. A few posters were plastered in all the wrong places of the classroom and by the time Hongbin did pay attention at all, everyone that knew him was by his side throwing him questions and even insults.

The poster was a picture of him and Taekwoon kissing at the gym. There was a website link to go along and he was sure the main characters of the hype are Taekwoon and him. His head was spinning and he honestly thought he would faint on the spot. Then the last blow came in a form of the school radio broadcasting the website link for the entire school to check out an 'interesting' video and Hongbin lost it.

Hongbin recognised the voice. He would remember the speaker even if he were a hundred years old. The bunch of hooligans Taekwoon had walloped a month ago have amped up their act. It's only natural that they would want revenge on Taekwoon since he had screwed them so badly that day. They are not only able to use this chance to destroy Hongbin for good, they can also potentially damage Taekwoon's reputation.

Hongbin couldn't care less if they were after him since he does not have anything left for them to trample on anyway. No more pride. No more reputation. Nothing. Taekwoon on the other hand is different. He is the leader of his swim club. He is a respected senior. People looked up to him. He plays for the school soccer team as an adjunct player. He performs in musicals during school festivals. He is a public figure and Hongbin had just dragged him down into the spiralling hell hole he was stick in as well.

Bursting into the broadcasting booth, Hongbin pulled out every plug and wire he could reach and threw them into his enemy's face. The whole group is there this time and Hongbin is greatly outnumbered yet he is raging and too crazed to care. One of them was holding a basketball and Hongbin could not stop himself from using the ball as a weapon.

Playing basketball with their faces as the net, Hongbin scored goals after goals like he had never done before. By the time he was done, the station is a bloody mess of teeth and broken glass but Hongbin was not satisfied. Dashing out and ripping every available poster along the stairs and in the classrooms, Hongbin did not realise he was sobbing as he did what he did. Tears of anger so hot and stinging was coursing down his cheeks.

He would be suspended for damaging school properties and openly assaulting a group of fellow students but he could not care less. Life was being bloody unfair towards him and he would willingly trade everything he has for some peace and tranquillity. Nevertheless, all that had happened up till now was tolerable and he had done nothing but tolerate, but not when Taekwoon is involved. Especially since Taekwoon is the only person he does not want to see hurt because of him.

Flashbacks from the past kept replaying themselves inside his head. He was bullied but no one cared and to think he was actually thankful that the rest of his class did not bother to join in the fun. Now, even though this bunch was not nearly as physical as the previous bunch, they were just as bad with the mental torture. To top it off, they are trying to screw the one person of utmost importance to him.

Panting by the time he arrived at the classroom of the final year students, Hongbin ran right into his favourite person. A wall of hard muscle yet the hands soothing his head is gentle and loving. The person did not seem too affected by the posters surrounding them, or the broadcast so Hongbin assumed he is not fully aware of the situation yet.

"Hyung... I'm so sorry..." Speaking in a smaller than usual voice almost like a mewling, Hongbin would have loved a hug from Taekwoon had the situation not forbid him from screwing things up further. “I didn’t expect to implicate you as well so please forgive me!”

Then, dashing down the stairs and out of the school into the rain, he is starting to get a dramatic vibe from his current circumstance. His life is a living nightmare. He had made someone else’s life a living nightmare and he cannot handle himself anymore. God forbade he turns crazy. He needs to stay away from all the turmoil within to keep a clear head. The cold rain helps with thinking so he ended up lying in the middle of the field under the pouring rain.

Spotting a figure coming towards him with a small pink umbrella, Hongbin could not keep in a loud ugly half sob half laughter upon seeing who it is. Taekwoon in his full glory under a pink hello kitty umbrella. "Come." Pulling Hongbin by the arm, the older boy was unable to make Hongbin budge.

Lying there stubbornly and allowing the rainwater to soak every pore on his body, Hongbin is unable to tell the tears from the rain. Taekwoon looked angry to a certain extent but Hongbin was not able to read his expressions any further than that.

"Thank you for everything!" Standing up abruptly and taking a deep ninety degree bow, Hongbin broke free from Taekwoon's grasp and disappeared into the blinding rain before Taekwoon could keep up with him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day and the day after the next passed by painfully slow for Taekwoon. Hongbin is nowhere in sight. Hakyeon had told him about the wreck at the radio station and how Hongbin would probably be suspended.

Finally seeking audience with the school management for the first time ever in his schooling life, Taekwoon told them everything he had witnessed and what Hongbin had to go through. The principle's response was promising and so Taekwoon waited everyday by Hongbin's classroom for the latter's return.

What was supposedly an exposure of something taboo in the school was quickly brushed off as a prank using photoshop technologies and angles. Bullying was highlighted and awareness was heightened. Hakyeon had even started a anti-bullying campaign for his friend's sake yet nothing is bringing Hongbin back. He simply stopped showing up in school ever since.

Realising how little he knows about Hongbin, Taekwoon does not even know where to find the latter outside of school. His number had been cut and there was no other ways to contact him. No home address since Hongbin never did tell him anything about his family. It is disappointing. Their relationship is disappointing. The spark they shared. The special feeling they had for one another. All reduced to nothing.

If there was one thing Taekwoon could have done differently, that was to find out more about Hongbin and break the invisible barrier between them. They shared something more than friendship and he could not convince himself otherwise.

Hongbin needed him and it is clear now that he also needs the latter.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Half a month later...

Watching his friend wallow in grudge, self-pity and a lot of misery, Hakyeon had decided to give Taekwoon a piece of his mind and bought the latter a train ticket back to the place Hongbin had come from. The popular radio dj had searched high and low for everything Hongbin related but there isn't a lot to know.

Thankfully, Taekwoon had been receptive towards his crazy idea and almost seemed to cheer up thanks to it. The permanent frown and barely noticeable pout was irritating him to no ends and if he were to continue with that 'not in the mood' attitude, the swim team will not win a single medal at the upcoming competition this year.

Hongbin had been absent for two full weeks and if Taekwoon hadn't been counting the days, it would have seemed like a decade. No one would tell him if the latter had quit school or whatever he was doing. Hakyeon tried too but there was nothing they could do with the confidentiality act firmly in place.

Hongbin didn't have anyone he was particularly close to in this school so Taekwoon really did end up going to the school that Hongbin used to go to instead of coming to school. The people there seemed to like him a lot. Some simply attributed his change of school to his parent's relocation. Others thought he had simply moved on to somewhere more prestigious.

Hongbin was a basketball player. Pictures of him are still on display in the corridors. The trophies his team had won. They were all there. Hongbin did not seem to be anywhere near the oppressed young man hiding from the world. He had a lot of potential if only he had not met the bunch who had destroyed him.

Digging deeper, Taekwoon did manage to find the reason for his isolation. Apparently some of the jocks hated him. He was everything they could not be and they resented him for it. This is as baffling as it is sad and Taekwoon is aching to throw some punches at this point.

Managing to coax the latter's email address out of Hongbin's friend, the senior student was going to type him a long message but nothing is coming to mind. The long train ride back home did not clear his mind either. He had so many things he wanted to say to Hongbin but it was not like he could put it into words. He might not even be able to say it to Hongbin's face.

Whatever it is, the message revolved around three words. Difficult for Taekwoon since he had never said those words to anyone besides his mother on parent's day. I love you.

He loved Hongbin with his entire being.

"I love you. Come back to me. I need you." Taekwoon typed slowly into the small screen. Maybe it would be better to say these words without looking Hongbin in the eye. They might not mean anything to Hongbin but they meant everything to Taekwoon.

Taekwoon hit the send button.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day...

The sun is high up in the sky and summer is at its end. The competition season is almost over so the crowd had flocked to the only outdoor pool to catch a glimpse of the action as well as join the hype. The annual inter-school swimming competition is starting but the swim team is in no condition to compete in the relay.

Taekwoon hadn't been practicing and Hakyeon had made a final decision to host the event rather than participate. The morale was low. All hopes were on the maknae yet he had strained a major muscle due to over practicing, in an attempt to compensate for Taekwoon's part.

The ultimate decision was for Taekwoon to compete since he did not want to let the other members down any further. All geared up physically but nowhere near mentally ready to compete, Taekwoon was falling way behind even during the short walk of 'glory' on the way to the pool.

Hakyeon had left the broadcasting stand and approached him but it was not like Taekwoon cared. They are still one relay short of dominating and even though the lovebirds of the group have done a great job up till now, Taekwoon knows he would end up disappointing everyone. He would choose to think he is in no condition to compete yet he is not given a choice.

"Taekwoon ah." Placing a hand on Taekwoon's shoulder just before the line up, Hakyeon leaned in and whispered into his ear. "I have spoken to Hongbin. He is here today. We have made a pact. If you win this one for us... he will come out from where he is hiding."

"Fighting~" Skipping off as soon as he is done threatening Taekwoon, Hakyeon did a small wink while the other senior student rages on internally. Scanning the spectator stands for the one face he had been searching for since half a month back, Taekwoon finally sees Hongbin.

Hongbin looked just as angelic as when they last met. Hair shorter. No glasses. No face mask. He looked gorgeous. However, it was not the looks that mattered to Taekwoon. It was his smile. So genuine and innocent. Taekwoon is finally able to see it again and he adored it.

The horn went off and Taekwoon dove in without a single second worth of hesitation. Slicing through the water like a stream lined mammal, the swimmer is reminded of how much he missed the water. So cooling. So quiet and serene. Somewhere he could think. Somewhere he had met the love of his life. If he hadn't been swimming, he would not have met Hongbin. If Hongbin did not need saving, they would not have spent the time they had spent together. If they did not have the time together in the pool, Taekwoon wouldn't have fallen so madly and deeply in love.

He needed to see Hongbin again. He needed to win and win he did. Beating his own best time, Taekwoon emerged triumphant.

The gold medal came relatively quickly since his relay was the last event of the competition but Taekwoon did not need it. His trophy is still on the way down with Hakyeon. Half dragged to be exact but nothing else mattered. Even if he were on a wheelchair, Taekwoon wouldn't have minded.

Jumping off the winner's platform and running over to the still relatively shy latter as he shuffles his feet behind Hakyeon, Taekwoon threw everything behind him and wrapped the small body in a tight embrace. He is still wet but it was not like Hongbin ever minded in the first place. Hongbin smelled like summer and even though the smell of chlorine still lingers in his nostrils, Taekwoon was only able to take in Hongbin's scent.

"I'm drowning. Please save me." Taekwoon rasped.

"Gold medal." Hongbin presses gold plate to Taekwoon's chest, reminding him he is not one to simply drown.

"Not in a pool. In you." Taekwoon whispered into his left ear and started nibbling at Hongbin's ear lobe. Hongbin didn't say a word, simply hugging him back.

"Me too." Came the response Taekwoon was waiting for all this while and it was magical, like a dream come through.

Arcing his neck downwards for a kiss, Taekwoon did not mind the crowd watching them. "I don't believe you. Prove it to me." Taekwoon threw a brief tantrum and Hongbin could not but laugh heartily, finally sealing their lips together on his own accord.

"By the way Mr detective, I was only uncontactable because my lung had collapsed on me and my phone had died because of the rainwater." Hongbin whispered as soon as he was able to catch his breath. "I won't run away anymore because I have you with me."

"You've made me strong Jung Taekwoon, and I'm drowning in you too." He continued gently before running his fingers through the taller male's dripping wet longish hair.

"So you saw my email? I need a reply before I go crazy." Taekwoon demanded for an answer, not bashful. He needed reaffirmation.

"I love you too, so I'm back." Hongbin said while Taekwoon simply continued to indulge in their moment as well as the public skinship. "Just felt that it was more appropriate for me to reply face to face instead of dropping you an email reply." Hongbin taunted and Taekwoon had to take a few seconds to understand his meaning.

The second it dawned on him that Hongbin is capable of being more irritating than cute was the moment he realised their life together is going to be infinitely more interesting. Pulling the fully dressed Hongbin into the pool, Taekwoon laughed on their way down. A laughter he had never shown to anyone before. Bright and filled with elation.