It was the next day, Saturday, and Won Woo was chilling on the couch while watching something on the TV. He and Soo Min left Jihoon’s place earlier after eating breakfast and Won Woo had gone back to sleep the second they got home. He hadn’t slept well because of the call with his mother, he was up late thinking about it while his friends slept peacefully around him. By the time he had woken up it was almost noon, but that was okay, it didn’t matter since it was the weekend. Saturdays were pretty much his free days when he just relaxes and becomes the most laziest sloth on planet earth. Sundays are typically reserved as Homework Day.

 

“Where are you going?” Won Woo asked when he noticed Soo Min passed the couch he was sitting on. She was dressed to go out instead of her typical comfy clothes because she too becomes Won Woo’s twin sloth on Saturdays.

 

“Out.” She chuckled at his confused expression. She looked around the room before holding her hand up to and started to whisper. “A certain Queen’s birthday is around the corner, I’m going shopping.”

 

“Oh, right. Jeonghan’s birthday.” Won Woo said unamused and even snickered at the words.

 

“You could at least pretend you’re a little excited!” Soo Min pouted. “Are you going to even try to get him something other than money this year?”

 

“I don’t know. Haven’t thought about it and don’t think I will.” He said with another snicker.

 

“Whatever!” She rolled her eyes but laughed a second later. She knew Won Woo was just messing around. “It’s not like he wants a present from you either.”

 

“Don’t fight his fights for him!” Won Woo laughed. “Just go before the mall gets too busy.”

 

“Right, I’ll be back soon~! Be sure to eat while I’m out because I don’t think I’m going to bring you back any food, Mr. I-Don’t-Like-My-Best-Friend’s-Boyfriend.”

 

“I’m perfectly capable of ordering pizza, thanks.” Won Woo made a shooing motion at her. “Go before I start disliking you too!”

 

“Fine!” She laughed before finally exiting their shared apartment with her car keys.

 

“That girl.” Won Woo muttered while shaking his head with a cute smile. “Hopefully she doesn’t blow all of her money on her boyfriend like last year.” He added and flipped the channel on the TV. A moment later, his phone buzzed on the coffee table and he sat up to check it. It was a text from Mingyu.

 

Mingyu: Hey! Did you find those notes you mentioned yesterday? TT^TT

 

“Oh.” Won Woo had forgotten! He quickly jumped up from the couch and rushed to his room and started to go through his desk drawer that had all of his past semester stuff in one big portfolio folder. He wanted to be more organized with his stuff so he wouldn’t have to struggle on finding it later. “Math, math, math, math…” he mumbled while checking through the tabs. “Ah, here.” He smiled when he pulled out all the papers from that section. “, this all looks so foreign to me suddenly!” He instantly frowned. He wondered how he could help explain the pieces of paper with numbers and letters without being confused himself?

 

He took a deep breath before pulling out his phone again to reply to his friend.

 

Won Woo: Yeah, I found them. You can come and get them!

 

Mingyu: You’re not going to help me?! OTL

 

Won Woo: …

Won Woo: I can try.

 

Mingyu: I’ll be right over!

 

Won Woo was smiling until he read that last text again. Mingyu is coming over. He’s coming over. I need to get dressed! He thought before rushing to his closet to change.

 

…

 

When Soo Min got to the mall, she noticed a familiar car in the lot on her way to the front entrance. “Is he here?” She muttered to herself before continuing on her little mission to buy her boyfriend’s birthday presents. She must not get distracted!

 

“Hey, Soo Min, fancy seeing you here!” She heard a familiar voice call out to her after she entered and passed a few stores. When she turned around she saw Junhui and another familiar face. Her cousin, Chae Hyungwon.

 

[That’s how they exactly looked jk]

 

“Oh, hi.” She gave a small wave to them after they came up to her. There was a moment of silence before Junhui let out a small chuckle and spoke.

 

“What brings you to the mall on your lazy day?” That earned him a laugh from Hyungwon and a pout from Soo Min.

 

“I needed to do some shopping.” She answered. “Jeonghan’s birthday is coming up.”

 

“Oh, right!” Junhui said while bringing the palm of his hand to his forehead. “I almost forgot.”

 

“Uh…” Hyungwon asked quietly to Junhui. “Who is Jeonghan again?”

 

“My boyfriend.” Soo Min answered since she could clearly hear him.

 

“Ah, that’s right. Sorry.” Her cousin gave a sheepish laugh.

 

“It’s fine. Don’t worry.” She assured him with a small smile.

 

Hyungwon is Soo Min’s older cousin from her father’s side of the family tree. He’s kind and caring and can be shy at times. He’s a total Mama’s boy and likes to sleep. He lived abroad for a bit while growing up, thus he and Soo Min aren’t very close, as if that wasn’t clear when he couldn’t remember she had a boyfriend. He’s a part-time model and a part-time student and he befriended Junhui right away because they’re both interested in fashion and like to shop. He can also speak some Chinese which was another thing he and Junhui bonded over in their friendship. That’s how Soo Min had been staying in contact with him recently, through Junhui. They don’t usually talk about her often, which explained today’s encounter.

 

“So… I guess I’ll get to shopping then?” Soo Min said after more silence ensued.

 

“Why don’t we join you?!” Junhui quickly suggested. “We can help you pick out some clothes for Jeonghan, since I assume you’re buying him an outfit like you did last year?”

 

“Yeah, I was.” She nodded. “Well, if you’re not busy?” She asked while eyeing her cousin. Since she knew he was busy most of the time with his modeling job and whatnot, she didn’t want to bother him.

 

“We’re free.” Hyungwon answered softly but he seemed conflicted. She could guess he just didn’t want things to be awkward and was annoyed that Junhui intervened. He seemed to do that a lot when the two cousins met with each other, but at least he only had good intentions and was only trying to bring them CLOSER together. They were family, yet it felts like they were strangers sometimes.  

 

“Okay.” Soo Min smiled before beckoning them to follow her. “Now that I have fashion experts with me, he’ll definitely like his presents.” She added.

 

When Junhui turned to look at Hyungwon, he was several feet away from the two and he frowned before he rushed over and grabbed him by the arm and dragged him over in time before Soo Min glanced back at them to ask which store she should look at first. Junhui pointed to the first one in sight and they entered the store.

 

“Why do you always do this?” Hyungwon asked while he and Junhui were looking at some of the jeans at the back of the store. Soo Min had left to ask a clerk about the sale that was going on and that left the two males to talk.

 

“I had to do something. It’s not like you two get to meet that often.” Junhui simply said while picking out a pair and held it up to his waist and looked in the mirror nearby.

 

“Bu-”

 

“But nothing, hyung.” Junhui sighed and looked at him with a pout. “I get that maybe it’s awkward sometimes since you two still don’t know each other that well yet, but how else are you going to get to know her if you don’t even try?”

 

“It’s not that I don’t want to try…”

 

“Then what is it?”

 

“There’s something that I know, but I can’t tell her.” Hyungwon said quietly while putting the pair of pants back on the clothing rack. “Since it kind of involves her parents, I avoid her because I don’t trust myself to keep quiet. If I open my mouth, so much drama is going to start up and I don’t want that.”

 

“Really?” Junhui had no idea it was like that. “What, was it an affair or something?” The look Hyungwon gave him confirmed it and Junhui brought a hand up to his mouth to mask the small gasp he made. “Okay, I won’t be so quick to intervene next time. I’m sorry.”

 

“It’s fine. I know one day the truth will come out… and she’ll probably hate me for staying quiet about it for so long.” The older model gave a sad smile. “It’ll be my punishment for not speaking up.”

 

“Trust me, you might not know her that well but I do and I can assure you she will not hate you. Soo Min isn’t like that.”

 

“... I guess I didn’t notice that we don’t talk about her that often.” Hyungwon snickered. “So you know a lot about her?”

 

“Well, I am friends with her boyfriend, so yes.” Junhui smiled. “I can tell you all about her if you’d like?” Because Hyungwon really did want to get to know his younger cousin.

 

“I’d appreciate that. Thanks.”

 

“No problem!” Junhui said before holding up a shirt he found on the clothing rack behind them. “What do you think of this shirt?”

 

“It doesn’t suit you.” Hyungwon laughed at Junhui’s offened expression.

 

“Not for me, for Jeonghan!”

 

…

 

“Oh, you brought food?” Won Woo said with a small smile when he opened the front door and saw Mingyu standing there with a bag of takeout in his hands and his school bag on his back.

 

“I’m trying to get an A+.” Mingyu chuckled.

 

“You shouldn’t think so highly of my math skills.” Won Woo pouted after letting him in and shutting the door. “I just looked at my notes and didn’t understand a single thing.”

 

“What?!” Mingyu was frowning when Won Woo turned to face him. “You better be messing with me!”

 

“I wish I was.” Won Woo gave an apologetic laugh. “But maybe if I eat, it will come back to me?”

 

“Here! Eat it quickly!” Mingyu shoved the bag of food into his arms. It made Won Woo laugh! The two headed over to the couch to sit and they pulled out the food to eat. “Is Soo Min home?” He asked when Won Woo looked at the third takeout tray in the bag.

 

“Ah, no. She went out for a bit but she should be back soon.” Won Woo answered quickly. “Did you buy her some too?”

 

“Of course.” Mingyu nodded. To him, he didn’t think much about it, but when he saw the happy smile on Won Woo’s face, he started to think about it. Maybe he likes that I included his best friend? By now he knew Soo Min was a special person to Won Woo, he was probably getting brownie points for being so nice to his special person?

 

“Thanks. That was kind of you.” Yup, cosmic chocolate brownie points.

 

“No problem.” Mingyu said with a cute smile.

 

They ate their food while watching something on the TV before Won Woo left to put the third take out tray in the fridge. Now it was time to start studying. “Let’s see if I remember.” Won Woo said after stretching his arms and cracking his fingers.

 

“You better!” Mingyu pouted. He seemed pretty stressed now and Won Woo figured he shouldn’t mess around anymore and seriously help him out.

 

An hour into studying Won Woo’s notes, the older was starting to remember and tried to explain it to Mingyu who seemed to be zoning out most of the time. He was too busy staring at Won Woo to learn how to complete an equation with fractions and mixed numbers in it. “Are you listening?” He finally snapped out of it when Won Woo waved his hand in front of his face.

 

“Huh? What?”

 

“Unbelievable.” Won Woo chuckled. “Can you pay attention this time?”

 

“I’ll try!” Mingyu gave a sheepish laugh. “It’s just… you’re so handsome, I can’t stop staring!”

 

“Uh…” Won Woo was caught off guard when he heard that and looked so flustered now.

 

“Sorry.” Mingyu apologized when he saw how he struggled to respond. That was when his phone buzzed on the table and he grabbed it to check what it was.

 

Jeonghan: Hey GYU~ Please tell me you took notes during math this week!

 

Mingyu: No! I didn’t! Sorry!

 

Jeonghan: We’re SCREWED! OTL

 

Mingyu: No, actually we’re not! I’m currently at Won Woo’s place. He’s helping me study! Maybe you should come over too!

 

Jeonghan: Really? I guess I have no choice OTL

 

“Who is it?” Won Woo asked when Mingyu put his phone down. “Are you friends asking where you are?”

 

“No, I told them I was coming here before I left earlier!”

 

“I see.”

 

“That was Jeonghan. He was asking about notes for math. I told him that I was here and you were helping-”

 

“He’s coming over?” Won Woo interrupted him. Mingyu nodded and Won Woo sighed.

 

“What’s wrong?” Mingyu was worried now.

 

“Nothing,” Won Woo assured him with a small laugh. “I guess we’ll wait for him to get here since I don’t feel like repeating myself a hundred times.” He narrowed his eyes at Mingyu who gave another sheepish laugh. He must really like me if he’s being so obvious! Won Woo thought with a warm fuzzy feeling in his stomach. Could I possibly like him back? He wondered and smiled when he saw Mingyu give a defeated sigh and let his head drop on the table with a small whimper. Maybe I do?

 

…

 

After shopping and buying two outfits for Jeonghan, Soo Min suggested lunch. Junhui was in agreement while Hyungwon was conflicted again. He supposed he’d just stay quiet during the whole thing like he usually does.

 

“So, anything exciting happen this week?” Junhui asked to keep a conversation going. He figured if Hyungwon was going to keep quiet, he might as well talk to her so it doesn’t get too awkward.

 

“Not really.” Soo Min shrugged. “Just homework and homework and more homework.” She added and let out a tired sigh. She seemed a little bothered at the moment and Junhui wondered why? She seemed just fine before they went into the store earlier. Hyungwon had noticed it too and suddenly felt nervous. He was afraid she might have heard them talking! I knew I should have never agreed to accompanying them!

 

“That . I know the feeling.” Junhui said before looking to Hyungwon to see if he wanted to reply. Silence. An intense silence.

 

“Actually, now that I think about it, there was one incident that stuck out the most this week!” Her expression suddenly brightened up, almost like she came back to life. “I bumped into someone who looked familiar but I’m pretty sure he’s a stranger. It was odd, and he had long black hair and was really stylish. It happened so fast that he was gone when I finally snapped out of it.”

 

“Really? That sounds interesting. Maybe you’ve seen him around at school?”

 

“Yeah, maybe?” She nodded before looking lost in thought about it again. “He just seemed so familiar, I don’t know how to explain it. I don’t remember his face that clearly but I remember thinking to myself at the time that he some of his facial features reminded me of Won Woo.”

 

Once she mentioned that, she noticed her cousin become even more quiet. That description sounded way too familiar to him and he realized maybe in short time the truth really was going to come out. If only he could tell her, but he knew it wasn’t his place to tell her, she should hear it from her parents, not him. He wasn’t a fan of telling other people’s secrets, but this secret bothered him so much since it was hindering the relationship between WooMin and their parents.

 

He remembered hearing how the two were so confused when Won Woo’s parents left so suddenly for their overseas jobs. When Soo Min’s parents didn’t even come to the airport to say goodbye with the WooMin Duo but Jihoon’s parents did. It was to their understanding that they were all good friends, so why did they not come to see them off?

 

There were a few times WooMin had to go with Jihoon and his parents on the plane to visit Won Woo's parents without Soo Min’s parents because they said they had other important things to do, but there wasn’t much to back them up on that. No one said anything about it, though. Something weird had been going on at the time and Soo Min had tried to get to the bottom of it, but it only ended with her parents avoiding her questions about their behavior towards Won Woo’s parents and the time they scolded her for being too nosy.

 

Since then, she hadn’t had that close relationship with her parents anymore and Won Woo lost that close relationship with his own parents after they left, too. Jihoon was sad to see his friends look so alone with only each other and he decided to ask his parents if they knew anything about it. And they did, but they told him that it wasn’t their place to say anything. It angered their son who yelled at them “Can’t you see their suffering? It’s like they lost their parents and they don’t know why?!” Soon his bond with his parents started to drift as well.

 

Within a year, it seemed like the three small families lost their close bond with each other, the only thing that was keeping them from completely losing that bond was their kids. Their kids had remained close through it all, and the small trio hoped that as long as they remained CLOSER, their parents would eventually become close once again.

 

Hyungwon wished he could explain it to them, he’s two years older and even if it didn’t seem like much of an , he knew a lot about the situation because his father is Soo Min’s father’s brother and also knew Won Woo and Jihoon’s fathers during high school. Even if it wasn’t his place to tell his son Hyungwon, he did. And that left Hyungwon with the burden of keeping it a secret these past five years. Even their elders knew about this secret and would tell Hyungwon to be sure and not let it slip up. They told him the parents just needed time to collect themselves before they sit down and tell their children about it.

 

“Hyungwon?” He was suddenly snapped out of it when he heard his cousin speak his name. When he looked over at her, he could see Junhui was gone. Damn! Where did he go?! “Junhui left to get a refill on his drink.” She explained when she saw him looking around.

 

“Oh…” he nodded softly and went back to being quiet.

 

“You know something about my parents?” She suddenly said and his eyes went wide. I knew it! She heard me! “There was an affair?”

 

“I’m sorry, Soo Min. I can’t tell you anything about it.” Hyungwon averted his eyes, he looked so guilty now.

 

“Bu-”

 

“I just hope they’ll be honest with you soon. Just try to be positive, okay? I’ll get going now.”

 

“Wait!” Soo Min got up to follow him but Junhui had returned and stopped her. He could tell Hyungwon was upset and knew it was better if he wasn’t followed. “What are you doing? Let me go!” Soo Min complained and trying to pull her arm away from his hold.

 

“I’m sorry, it’s best that you don’t go after him.” Junhui apologized while keeping his hold on her small wrist. “Calm down, please.” He was worried they would cause a scene and get the wrong idea.

 

“Is that why he avoids me?” She looked up at him with slight teary eyes. She had overheard them talking back in the store when she returned from talking with the store clerk. The second she was about to announce her presence, she heard them talking about why Hyungwon had been avoiding her. She felt hurt that he said he was avoiding her but it was quickly replaced with shock when she heard him say he knew something about her parents. Junhui had mentioned an affair and the silence and small gasp from him confirmed it.

 

What seemed like a happy day suddenly turned into a nightmare in a matter of a few seconds. There was an affair? But who did it? No wonder her parents seemed so angry when she kept asking about why they seemed to be avoiding Won Woo’s parents.

 

“I had no idea it would turn out like this, I shouldn’t have intervened earlier, I’m sorry.” Junhui looked incredibly guilty now after he let go of her wrist and averted his eyes to their table.

 

“It’s okay. It’s not like you knew about it either.” She said in a dejected tone. “I guess I should go home now. I’ll finish shopping some other time.” She added and stepped over to grab her things.

 

“I’ll walk you out.” Junhui offered and she didn’t deny that. She figured he didn’t want her to be alone right now. He took her shopping bag for her to carry like a gentleman and they started to head out after clearing off the table they were eating at.

 

“Do you need a lift home? I’m assuming Hyungwon had picked you up earlier to come here, right?”

 

“Correct.” Junhui nodded with a sad chuckle. “Sorry to burden you.”

 

“No, it’s fine, don’t worry about it.” She assured him with a small smile before she faced forward again. She suddenly stopped in her tracks when she saw that familiar face again.

 

[INTENSE JK]

[Let’s imagine him wearing black]

 

He was walking towards them since he came through the entrance and they were currently leaving. It seemed like it was slowmotion when she watched that familiar stranger pass them. He hadn’t noticed her staring at him and continued to mind his own business like he hadn’t saw her.

 

“What is it?” Junhui’s voice snapped her out of it.

 

“Did you see him?!” She blurted out after turning to look at her friend. When she turned to point, the guy was gone, out of sight. “Am I hallucinating?!” She asked out loud with such a confused expression.

 

“You probably had too much soda to drink this afternoon.” Junhui chuckled and walked over to guide her out of the entrance. “Maybe I should drive.”

 

“Shut up!” She nudged him with a small pout and he laughed.

 

…

 

“I don’t understand!” Jeonghan complained for the third time and threw his pencil down on the table. He ruffled up his hair while Mingyu chuckled next to him while Won Woo pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance.

 

“Were you paying attention the first five times I explained it?” Won Woo asked calmly. He was about to blow a fuse with this guy, but he was trying to keep it cool since Mingyu was here.

 

“Yes! And I still don’t understand!” Jeonghan said while falling onto the ground behind him on his back. “It makes no sense to me!”

 

Won Woo let out a defeated sigh. He wasn’t sure how much longer he could put up with this and was about to text Soo Min for help, but just his luck, she came in through the front door.

 

“I’m home!” She called out at the door. Jeonghan immediately jumped up from his spot on the floor and rushed over to greet his girlfriend. “What are you doing here?!” She almost shouted and quickly hid her shopping bag behind herself. She looked startled now.

 

“Won Woo was giving free math lessons.” He joked and they could hear Won Woo deny that a few feet away. “I don’t understand anything! Can you help us?!” Because he knew she took the same class with Won Woo last semester and got an A+.

 

“Math?” She asked and he nodded. “No thanks!” She said before running off to her room with her shopping bag.

 

“Wait!” Jeonghan ran after her. Won Woo and Mingyu were watching the two and laughed when her bedroom door slammed shut in his face. “Babe!”

 

“Fine, okay!” They heard her shout from inside her room. “Just give me a minute, I just got home!” She added.

 

“Okay!” Jeonghan was pleased and came back to the living room and sat back down in his seat. “Don’t worry, my King will solve our problems.” He grinned.

 

“I sure hope so!” Mingyu whimpered while staring at the math problem on his paper.

 

When Soo Min came out after hiding away Jeonghan’s present in her closet, she joined them at the coffee table and asked what they needed help with. “Why does this look more complicated that before?” She frowned and looked to Won Woo.

 

“I thought the same! It seemed so easy when we were taking the class.” He sighed. “I tried my best to explain it to them, but they still don’t understand.”

 

“We’ll, let’s see what I can do!” She also stretched her arms and cracked her fingers.

 

…

 

“I think it’s time for a break.” Soo Min said and the other three looked at her with a laugh.

 

“It’s only been ten minutes!” Jeonghan blurted out.

 

“Have you two even looked at the textbook? Why are we just looking at the notes? The textbooks have examples!” At her question, Mingyu quickly pulled out his textbook with a sheepish smile and Won Woo face palmed. Why hadn’t he thought to look at the book either?

 

“The textbook never makes sense though!” Jeonghan pouted after he also got his textbook out.

 

“That or you don’t even try!” She clicked her tongue and took his book from him to open up to the page he left his bookmark in. Jeonghan just sighed and let his head rest on her shoulder while she read the pages. Won Woo had also done the same to Mingyu, minus the affection. LOL

 

“Right here.” Won Woo said after spotting the perfect example to explain the notes he wrote down. “Read that and tell me if you understand it.”

 

“Okay.” Mingyu nodded and took his book back and proceeded to read. Won Woo glanced over to Soo Min who was watching Mingyu read, her finger was also on the same page the other had told the youngest to read. Jeonghan was in the processes of his soul being crushed from the Mental Abuse To Humans. MATH.

 

“Does it make sense?” Soo Min asked after a moment of silence.

 

“Um…” Mingyu gave a sheepish smile and she let out a small sigh but had a smile on her face.

 

“Alrighty then, let’s officially start.” She said to Won Woo who nodded. “Get off, we’re starting again.” She added while shrugging her boyfriend off her shoulder. He only whined at her coldness and the other two laughed at them.

 

…

 

Finally, after two hours of explaining the math problems properly, both Mingyu and Jeonghan were finally getting the hang of it. The WooMin duo were glad that they were able to be of assistance in the end. “You better pass that test.” Soo Min warned her boyfriend.

 

“Or what?!” He frowned.

 

“Nothing, Just pass it, okay!” She laughed when he pouted and nudge her away. “If you two pass with at least an 80, I’ll treat you out!”

 

“Really?” Mingyu perked up at the promise. “I’ll try to get a 100!” He said with a bright smile and looked to Won Woo this time. He was surprised and blushed a bit before looking away. Why did he have to do that in front of the couple! They were looking at them with goofy grins on their faces now.

 

“Anyone hungry?” Jeonghan asked. “Maybe we should go get dinner now? I’ll pay.”

 

“Let’s go!” Mingyu was the first one up and at the door. It was adorable to the other three.

 

“Actually,” Soo Min spoke up after they all headed to the door, “why don’t you two go ahead without us. I think Won Woo and I should go and check if Jihoon is still alive.” She added with a weak laugh.

 

“Are you sure?” Mingyu asked with a small frown. He was looking forward to eating with them.

 

“Yeah, we can eat out when you pass your test!” She assured him with a stronger smile this time. “So, remember to read the examples and study hard, okay?”

 

“Okay!” Mingyu nodded and looked towards Won Woo who had been spacing out and was staring at him. “I’ll talk to you later then!”

 

“Oh, right… later.” Won Woo snapped out of it and managed to give him a small wave before he and Jeonghan left out the door. When he turned to face Soo Min he could already tell something was bothering her. “What is it?”

 

“We should go check on Jihoon, for real.” She answered while grabbing her car keys. “There’s something I have to talk to you two about.” Won Woo simply nodded and followed her out to her car.

 

When they got to the lot, they saw Mingyu and Jeonghan were still there waiting by her car. “You didn’t leave?” She asked.

 

“I didn’t realize we didn’t properly say goodbye!” Jeonghan said dramatically before grabbing her into a koala hug and held her tight. “Thanks for saving the day, my beloved King!”

 

“No problem.” She giggled and patted him on the back. “Good luck with your studies!”

 

“Thanks. I’ll text you later. Tell Jihoon we said hi when you get there.” Jeonghan said after giving her their usual goodbye kiss.

 

“Bye again, Won Woo.” Mingyu chuckled when he saw Won Woo snap out of it again. He was totally staring! You must like me too… He thought to himself before he turned to leave with Jeonghan.

 

Once they made it to the first crosswalk a block away from their apartment, Jeonghan spoke. “I guess Won Woo is starting to fall for you!” He said with a bright smile.

 

“Really?” Mingyu was surprised to hear that from Jeonghan. He had thought only he was noticing Won Woo’s behavior, but he thought wrong.

 

“He was definitely staring at you the whole time! He was looking at you like you were the only one in the room and you did the same a couple of times!” The older explained with a look of awe. “It was so cute!”

 

“You and your girlfriend are so alike sometimes, hyung.” Mingyu chuckled.

 

“I can definitely tell he’s fallen for you. After being around him for 15 years, he hasn’t acted like that in broad daylight before.”

 

“You mean, you’ve also been friends with him that long?” Mingyu was shocked.

 

“Well, I wasn’t friends with him until high school, but we’ve gone to the same school growing up. He and Soo Min were known as the quiet duo until Soo Min started to act out when they were bullied.”

 

“They were bullied?!” Mingyu looked so hurt hearing that and Jeonghan gave a small chuckle.

 

“Don’t worry, Soo Min protected the both of them just fine!” He assured him. “Seungcheol and I had a few encounters with them before high school started and then we officially became friends. They did just fine during high school, so don’t worry.”

“Wow, you must know a lot about them!” Mingyu felt a bit envious now.

 

“I think I know them good enough, but I think it’s impossible to know someone completely, you know? Things are always changing in the world. It’d be nice to know a person completely, but that’d probably take a lifetime.”

 

“True. I never thought of it that way before.”

 

“I’m known for overthinking things, that’s probably why I’m saying all of this!” Jeonghan gave a sheepish laugh. “Sorry.”

 

“No, it’s okay! Don’t worry, that was interesting what you just said. I’ll remember that from now on. Thanks, hyung.”

 

“No problem.” Jeonghan flashed him a bright smile. “So, where would you like to eat?”

 

…

 

“We brought food.” Soo Min said softly when Jihoon opened the front door to his parents house. He was getting ready to scold whoever was at the door for interrupting him, but he could tell by her greeting that something was up.

 

“Come in.” He said calmly and stepped aside. He looked at Won Woo who gave a small shrug hinting he didn’t know what was going on with her at the moment. “What did you bring?” He asked after they all sat down on the couch.

 

“The usual.” Soo Min answered while passing out their food. Since it was indeed dinner time, they all dug in, but Soo Min was the only one who didn’t eat most of hers. She spent most of that time thinking about what happened at the mall earlier and how she was going to bring it up to her friends.

 

“Did something happen while you were out earlier?” Won Woo finally spoke up after he finished his food. “You seem bothered.”

 

“Yeah, you don’t seem like yourself right now.” Jihoon added on. “What is it?”

 

“I saw my cousin today at the mall. He was with Junhui.” She said with a small sigh after putting her food back onto the coffee table in front of them. “They helped me shop for an outfit for Jeonghan’s birthday, but when I left to ask about a sale going on in the store, they started to talk about me.” She could see her friends become highly interested in what she was about to say. “When I came back to them, I overheard their conversation and long story short, Hyungwon has been keeping a secret and that’s why he’s been avoiding me.”

 

“A secret?” Jihoon repeated. “What kind of secret?”

 

“It’s about my parents. I heard Junhui ask what it was and he guessed an affair. Hyungwon didn’t deny it and I heard Junhui gasp so we can already assume that was the secret. I even confronted him about it after we ate lunch. He seemed upset that I overheard him and he told me he couldn’t tell me anything about it and left. I tried to go after him but Junhui stopped me and said it was best that I didn’t go after him.”

 

“... things suddenly got intense.” Won Woo muttered while they sat there taking it in.

 

“I’m so curious now. Which one had the affair? My mom? My dad? Both of them? I always found it weird how things went back in high school when Won Woo’s parents left all of a sudden. My parents didn’t even come to say goodbye to them.”

 

“You don’t think…” Won Woo suddenly trailed off and Jihoon looked between the both of them before his jaw dropped. “We can’t assume anything, though.”

 

“Right.” Jihoon nodded. “I wonder who else could tell us?”

 

“Do you think halmoni would know anything?” Soo Min put out there. There might be a chance since the elders were always so wise and knew a lot.

 

“We should go visit them soon. Maybe they do know something about it.” Jihoon suggested. The other two nodded in agreement.

 

“How about after midterms, during fall break?” Won Woo said and the other two agreed. “That’s still about a month away, so let’s just forget about it for now and focus on school, okay?” He added after resting a hand on Soo Min’s shoulder.

 

“He’s right.” Jihoon also placed a hand on her other shoulder since she was sitting in between them. “You won’t get any real answers until we see the elders, so try not to think about it too much.”

 

“I’ll try.” She nodded and tried to give them a smile, but she was so worried right now.

 

“Want a Choco Pie?” Jihoon asked in hopes it’d take her mind off the situation.

 

“She hasn’t finished the ones from her birthday yet.” Won Woo pointed out with a small laugh.

 

“One more wouldn’t hurt!” The blonde snickered before getting up to fetch said snack.

 

While he was out of the room, Won Woo nudged his best friend to get her attention. “Will you be okay?”

 

“Yeah.” She nodded quietly. “Once I eat that Choco Pie.”

“Good.” He could tell she was already going back to her old self.

 

“Uh, I’m sorry. I’m out of Choco Pies.” Jihoon returned to the couch a moment later. “But I do have this chocolate bar.”

 

“That will do!” Soo Min snatched it from his hand and proceeded to open it.

 

“Are you going to share that?” Won Woo teased.

 

“I don’t want to, but here.” She said with a small smile and broke it into three pieces and kept the biggest piece to herself. “Enjoy!”

 

“Figures.” The other two snickered before eating their pieces alongside her.

 

…

 

The WooMin duo left Jihoon’s place shortly after eating the chocolate. They were tempted to stay over since Jihoon’s parents were still on vacation, but he assured him that he’d be find by himself. He already had planned to work on his music some more before going to bed, they’d get bored after awhile so it was best if they went home. The duo promised to check on him again tomorrow and then they left.

 

Won Woo was the one who drove them home since Soo Min was getting tired from their eventful day. She had gone out shopping and had to teach math, her most hated subject. She managed to put the situation with her cousin behind already but it was hard to get her mood all the way back up. Maybe once she sleeps it off things would be better.

 

When Won Woo’s phone vibrated in his pocket, he reached for it in his pocket to take it out and it was confiscated the moment he held it up to look at it. “What do you think you're doing? You are driving! No looking at your phone while driving!”

 

“We’re at a stoplight!” Won Woo complained and tried to grab his phone back when she saw the notification in the status bar. A huge grin spread across her lips and while he was glad to see she wasn’t too upset anymore, he didn’t like the fact that she took his phone from him and looked at his notifications. She could be so damn nosy!

 

“Hey Won Woo, thanks for helping me earlier, I really appreciated it! Winky face. Oh my god!” She mimicked Mingyu’s voice until she fangirled.

 

“Yah!” Won Woo snatched his phone away right when the light turned green and she snatched it back. Won Woo let her since he saw a police car on the other side of the street and sighed in defeat. “Go ahead and text him back since you want to be me so badly.” He snickered. He knew he could just clear up that it was Soo Min trying to mess with them.

 

“What should I say?!” She said excitedly.

 

“Nothing!” He pouted before he found a spot to pull over. “Give it back!”

 

“Gosh, you’re no fun.” She sighed while handing his phone back.

 

“I don’t think Jeonghan would appreciate you texting Mingyu like that.” He pointed out after he sent back a reply that was a “you’re welcome” and she gave a sheepish laugh. That was true. Her boyfriend could get easily jealous sometimes, even over friends. It was the cute kind of jealousy, though.

 

“So does that mean you guys flirt over text?” She suddenly grinned. “That winky face totally means he’s flirting, right?”

 

“How would I know! I’m not the one with dating experience!” He exclaimed before his phone buzzed again.

 

Mingyu: Did you eat with your friends?

 

Won Woo: Yeah, I did. Did Jeonghan spoil you at dinner?

 

Mingyu: He did! He told me to pick whatever I wanted, I was so happy! :D

 

Won Woo: That’s nice…

 

“What is it? What did he say?” Soo Min asked when she noticed Won Woo’s expression die down.

 

“I guess Jeonghan is cheating on Jisoo with Mingyu now.” Won Woo said with a hint of jealousy and she caught that.

 

“Are you jealous?” She asked and waited for his reaction.

“Of course not.” He tried to say calmly but he was clearly flustered now. “I’m not jealous at all.”

 

“Doesn’t look like it.” She laughed. “Do you like Mingyu?” She was met with silence and just like earlier at the mall, silence confirmed it. But then again, she didn’t want to assume anything just yet. “Do you still dislike Jeonghan?”

 

“Yeah.” Won Woo didn’t even hesitate with his answer!

 

“I understand!” She assured him with a few pats on his shoulder. She had dislike him before as well so she could relate! “But things change, one day you might like him!”

 

“When hell freezes over.” Won Woo said bluntly. The jealousy was strong with this one.

 

“Hell is too hot to freeze.” She said and he looked at her quickly with a pout. “And pigs can’t fly.”

 

“I really don’t want a monkey coming out of my either.” (American movie reference XD)

 

“Gross.” She frowned.

 

“Whatever, we’re done talking about this. Let’s go home.” He laughed and proceeded to drive them home again.

---

Chapter nine~!

 

A COMPLETELY NEW CHAPTER~!

And oh shiiiiiiiiz, there’s the new developments~!

Hyungwon turns out to be Soo Min’s cousin… interesting.

It’s obvious why, right? Lol Chae Hyungwon, Chae Soo Min.

I bet we’re all gonna guess who his cousin is, right?

I haven’t decided but that’s okay aha~ as mentioned in one of my progress updates that I wasn’t going to put too much light on those characters, even though it would be nice! I just don’t have a lot of plans for the others other than I.M, Hyungwon, Wonho, and Minhyuk. So I apologize if your fav Monsta X member didn’t make it into the cut XD but I will try to mention them sometimes~!

Alrighty, NEXT CHAPTER~!