"Ah...I have to go now. I need to pick up Sophia with my mum. Sorry guys," Hansol pouted as he got up," Bye Jihoon! It was nice meeting you. Hangout soon okay?"

Jihoon bumped fists with Hansol and grinned at the boy, assuring him he'll hangout with him soon. Half an hour after Hansol left, Wonwoo had to drag a reluctant Minggyu home. After quite a struggle Wonwoo managed to drag a whining Minggyu out the door.

"But I want to spend time with Jihoon hyungggg" Minggyu gave Wonwoo his best puppy eyes.

"Your mum holds me responsible to get you home in time so shut up." Wonwoo grunted as he tried to haul the older out of the house,"Bye Cheol, bye Jihoon. See you guys soon!" 

Jihoon waved at the two,laughing at their antics. Seongcheol just shook his head. He honestly wondered how Wonwoo put up with Minggyu.

"Hey...Seongcheol? Thanks for introducing me to your friends...they're nice." Jihoon looked and sounded way happier than when he first came.

"Glad to do so. Are you staying for dinner?" Seongcheol ruffled Jihoon's hair. 

Jihoon nodded shyly causing Seongcheol to chuckle, Jihoon was all shy again. Dinner went well. Sort of. Well, at least Seongcheol had some company while his adopted sister took all the attention of his parents. He didn't understand why his mum doesn't want Jihoon as a son.

"Jihoon...is it okay if you stay? It's late and all...I don't think it's safe to go home like this," Seongcheol shot a worried glance at the younger who was halfway out the door. "Unless...you have to...I can get my-"

"It's okay, I don't want to be more of a burden."

Seongcheol frowned and bit his lip. He then called for his mum asking for permission for Jihoon to stay over. Jihoon realized Seongcheol was really mature for his age. He didn't complain about the lack of attention, he naturally took the lead among his friends and knew what had to be done. Honestly Jihoon admired him so much.

"YAY mum said you could stay." Seongcheol squealed and dragged Jihoon to his room, "We'll get ready for bed okay?" 

Jihoon quickly cleaned up and settled on the rug in Seongcheol's room. He presumed he was sleeping on the floor.

"Oh no you don't, you're sleeping on the bed with me."

"No no no...it's like invading your privacy.I should sleep on the floor," Jihoon refused to budge. 

"In that case.... PILLOW FORT!" Seongcheol grabbed his blankets and two chairs. He draped the blanket over the two chairs and tossed a few pillows onto the ground.

"Really? You don't mind?" 

"It's nice having sleepovers like that. Impromptu sleepovers" Seongcheol grinned, patting the space beside him. 

Jihoon lay down,pulling the blanket up to his chin. Seongcheol  thought of the reason why he had invited Jihoon over in the first place. 

"Hey...so about just now. When you called. Want to talk about it?" Seongcheol asked cautiously.

Jihoon sighed and squeezed his eyes shut. Seongcheol read that as a sign that Jihoon didn't want to talk about it. He let out a soft sigh of defeat and turned away, his back facing Jihoon.

"After everything, after you left, after I cried..Everything just got out of control. They....they shoved me down the toilet and tried to drown me..." Jihoon let out a soft,muffled whimper.

Seongcheol turned around and his heart broke. Jihoon's eyes were sparkling; not with joy but with tears. Quickly, the older scooted closer to wipe them away but Jihoon kept crying. At a loss, Seongcheol pulled Jihoon to his chest and let the boy cry. 

"Let it all out Jihoonie, I'm here. I'll protect you. " Seongcheol whispered into Jihoon's hair. They stayed like that until Jihoon stopped crying. 

Seongcheol was about to unwind his arms from Jihoon's waist when he  a pair of cold hands pulled them back.

"Can we stay like this...please?"

"Sure," Seongcheol smiled slightly and hugged the shorter tightly, running his fingers through the younger's brunette locks.

Jihoon let out a soft sigh of content. Just like that, two young boys who barely knew what love was, spent the night in each other's arms. A sense of security and comfort blanketed them, a feeling they will come to know as love in the coming years. A feeling they'll never lose no matter how long they would separated.