Guess who is back online and with the update. Hope you guys had an amazing Christmas, New Year, or any other holiday you celebrate. Is New Year a holiday? Formatting Isn't working with me though, sorry. Thank you to deliciousyou, nanawawa, _InspiriteDongwoo, and everyone else for subscribing and commenting.
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    Myungsoo crawled into bed next to Sungyeol, he wanted to know more about the others past but he didn’t know how to ask. The older had gone back to being the same after his confession and every time Myungsoo tried to pry further Sungyeol would grow distant. Myungsoo was scared of the game he was playing. It was almost as if his quest for information had turned into some form of a chase, him trying to leave the realm of the known without breaking the delicate balance that kept Sungyeol by his side. He gently shook Sungyeol, smiling slightly as Sungyeol immediately shot up. 
    “Soo?” Sungyeol’s voice had a questioning lilt to it, concerned eyes flitting up and down Myungsoo’s body looking for any form of physical abnormality. 
    “I am fine, want to go out today?” Myungsoo asked, only to receive Sungyeol’s normal overdone smile, lips pulling back to reveal soft pink gums that made his teeth seem pearly white, whether that was truth or muddled perception an issue Myungsoo didn’t really ponder.
    “Really?” if Sungyeol had attempted to keep his joy out of the question, it was clear his voice box didn’t get the message as the high pitched squeal of a question he let out had Myungsoo wincing a little. “Hyun is back!”
    “No, Sungyeol, Woohyun is not back,” Myungsoo said, it coming out more curt than it should have, but Myungsoo couldn’t ignore the prickling irritation that he felt. It must be the start of a headache because Sungyeol’s voice is just too damn high, Myungsoo rationalized fervently before any other more reasonable explanations could be formed. However, the irritation died at the sight of a puzzled Sungyeol with bed hair that just made him want to coo. 
“Soo never takes Sungyeol out, though,” Sungyeol supplied, mind still not understanding the new information presented to him that had gone against all of the correlations he had previously stored.
“Well, do you want to go or not?” Myungsoo asked, his voice warm and teasing. What he got for an answer was a still sleepy Sungyeol stumbling out of bed, his overly long limbs causing him to trip a couple of times before he got to his closet and he hastily pulled out the first pant and shirt he could find. “Hey, we still have time, why don’t we wash up together okay?” Sungyeol looked at Myungsoo a little hesitantly after that suggestion, part of him still wanting to skip the shower and get to the exploring part before Myungsoo left him like Myungsoo had done before because of unplanned rehearsals or shoots. “I’ll wash your hair,” Myungsoo added, and anything stopping Sungyeol from agreeing to the shower was immediately forgotten as he skipped to the bathroom, the clothes he was holding finding purchase on the ground. 
    “Can we see the puppies and kitties in the place with cages,” Sungyeol asked, his hands moving animatedly in his excitement receiving a chuckle from Myungsoo.
    “Yes, we can go to the animal shelter and look at the animals,” Myungsoo assured, Sungyeol looked slightly confused at the new phrase used, tilted his head in a questioning manner. “The place with puppies and kitties in cages is called an animal shelter,” Myungsoo explained giving Sungyeol time to absorb the new information. When the knowledge sunk in, Sungyeol pulled off his clothes with newfound haste, complaining that “Soo” should hurry up when he realized the younger was still fully clothed.
~
    “You know, if Woohyun ever figured out that you had set Mental Breaker as the ringtone for his calls it isn’t going to be pretty,” Howon teased and Sunggyu glared at him slightly.
    “You better not tell him that, plus I felt like he was driving me insane before we actually got together,” Sunggyu halfheartedly explained.
    “I never really ever expected you two to get together, though. You both hated each others guts in college,” Howon murmured, receiving a slight shudder from Sunggyu.
    “I swore to god he would be the death of me,” Sunggyu murmured, pulling a smirk out of Howon. “What?”
    “Well in a way he still is isn’t he, well, at least, the death of all your stubborn manly pride. I mean the Kim Sunggyu ever bottoming wasn’t something I had ever thought about until that day I saw you limping slightly after that recording,” Howon teased.
    “Yah, Lee Howon do you want to die,” Sunggyu threatened, the actor immediately running and the older of the two giving chase immediately. Howon looked back to tease Sunggyu only to collide into somebody. 
    “Sorry,” Howon looked up to apologize only to meet two teary, brown orbs. Howon immediately felt the urge to help, It’s probably just Dongwoo rubbing off on me, he rationalized. “What’s wrong?” Howon asked the taller male.
    “Sungyeol not supposed to talk to strangers,” the brunette murmured, a slight confusion in his eyes as he looked at Howon. He was obviously not dressed for the weather, it had started to snow lightly and flakes laced his hair. His hands were clutching at each other in an attempt to keep his fingers warm and his pale neck was left open to attack from the biting cold air. 
    “Okay then, my name is Lee Howon and the guy standing behind me is Kim Sunggyu. So we are no longer strangers, now tell me what's wrong?” Howon urged, smiling a little as the trepidation in the others eyes faded.
    “Sungyeol got lost, Soo said would bring Sungyeol out but then there was a lot of people and Sungyeol and Soo got separated,” Howon couldn’t help the smallest chuckle that escaped his lips at that.
    “Is that it, okay then do you know the cell phone number of the person you are looking for?” Howon was pretty sure his plea fell on deaf ears though as he realized the taller man had locked eyes with Sunggyu.
    “Hyun’s phone,” Sungyeol realized, pointing Sunggyu who looked just as confused as Sungyeol was shocked. “Sungyeol know Hyun. That Hyun’s daddy,” Sungyeol’s voice came out loud and clear, turning a few heads.
    “You must have me mistaken, I don’t have any kids,” Sunggyu stated, misinterpreting what Sungyeol was trying to say. 
    “If not strangers why lie to Sungyeol?” tears filled Sungyeol’s eyes again, his voice beginning to quiver as he brought his hands up to his lips and began exhaling on them in an attempt to warm them up. 
    “Wait, Hyun, as in Woohyun?” Howon asked it was more of a wild guess based on the situation they were in, but when he received a fervent nod he couldn't help but feel slightly proud. “Okay, okay, we do know Woohyun want us to call him?” This achieved Howon another nod, Sungyeol who was too busy trying to warm up his hands to reply. Sunggyu getting the clue dialed Woohyun and put the phone on speaker.
    “Hey, love, you only got off the phone with me, did you miss me that much?” Sunggyu immediately regretted his decision.
    “Woohyun, Howon and I ran into this guy. He talks about himself in the third person, is tall, has brunette hair…” Sunggyu was cut off by a cry of despair. 
    “, Sungyeol, oh my god what is he doing out? Sungyeol, what are you doing out? Where is Myungsoo? What happened to Jonghyun he was supposed to take over for me? Oh my god why is nothing working out the way it was supposed to?” Woohyun started panicking and Sunggyu could envision him pacing around his office and getting weird looks from coworkers.
    “Soo bought Sungyeol out, Hyun. Soo was doing something, lot of people, Sungyeol lost Soo,” the confession brought new tears to Sungyeol’s eyes.
    “Hey, shh, everything’s gonna be alright okay, Howon, do you have Kim Myungsoo’s number, you guys are friends right?” Woohyun asked, voice turning from comforting to commanding in less than a moment. Howon silently dialed up the number and then put the phone on speaker. 
    “Hi Howon, I am kind of in the middle of a situation right now, do you mind calling me later,” Howon heard Myungsoo’s frazzled voice.
    “A situation, you idiot this is more than a situation. You lost Sungyeol, I trust you with Sungyeol and you lose him?” Woohyun nearly exploded the moment Myungsoo made himself heard. 
    “Woohyun? Wait does that mean you know where Sungyeol is, it started snowing he is totally not dressed for this weather. He said he was too hot inside and gave a lot and of what he wearing and he is probably freezing...” Myungsoo tried not to sound phased or worried but ultimately failed. 
    “Oh yes now worry, what would you have done if Howon and Sunggyu hadn’t intercepted him,” Woohyun’s voice was laced with malice.
    “Oh thank god, you do know where Yeol is, where are you guys?” Myungsoo let out a sigh.
-15 minutes later-
    Myungsoo caught sight of Howon, Sunggyu, and Sungyeol, and ran through the rest of the crowd at a faster pace until he was standing right behind them. Thank god actors are required to stay moderately fit, Myungsoo thought to himself, hunching down to catch his breath with his hands clutching to his knees. 
    “S-soo,” Myungsoo heard Sungyeol’s concerned voice as he struggled to bring the air he needed into his lungs, the slight chatter in Sungyeol’s voice forcing him out of his half-dazed reverie. 
    “Yeol,” the name came out soft as if Myungsoo were scared that this was all an apparition that would vanish if disturbed. Of course, even though his voice came out wary, his actions were rash and not preservatory at all, Sungyeol trapped in his arms a mere moment after the name left his lips. “Are you trying to kill yourself, you idiot. I turn my back on you for a second and you weren’t there anymore, do you know how worried I was? What if someone kidnapped you and killed you? Or worse what if they you?” Myungsoo loosened his grip around Sungyeol, pulling away only to pull the others hands to his mouth and puff warm air onto them while rubbing his hands around them to create friction and hopefully some warmth. One of Myungsoo’s hands dropping off off Sungyeol’s to get out all the clothing articles that Sungyeol was missing from his bag. “Your hands are so cold, oh my god Yeol. You must be freezing, what were you thinking getting lost without anything protective on. Never scare me like this ever again…” Myungsoo continued to rant as he slipped gloves on Sungyeol’s hands, then proceeding to wrap a scarf around Sungyeol’s neck. Myungsoo, then reached up and the white snowflakes out of Sungyeol’s hair before slipping a beanie over it, and then pressing a chaste kiss to Sungyeol’s lips. Howon and Sunggyu who had felt awkward before now really not knowing what to do and too busy gaping at the situation to interrupt.
    “Why Soo do that a lot?” Sungyeol asked, genuinely confused at what the gesture meant hoping that having a definition would help him figure out why it felt nice.
    Myungsoo let out a slight chuckle at the question, “It is what you do to someone you really love, Yeol, it is called a variety of things, kissing, lip locking, and so on.” 
    “Oh Sungyeol can do it to Hyun then?” the innocent boy asked.
    “NO!” both Sunggyu and Myungsoo yelled, earning a whimper from Myungsoo’s bag at the loud noise. Sungyeol’s reached out for the bag, which was still open, even though the flap was in a position that stopped snow from entering but granted air passage.
    “Sungyeol, listen to me first, kissing is something that you can only do with the person you want to spend the rest of your life with, okay? Do you understand, you can only touch the lips of the person you want to spend forever with,” Myungsoo explained, Sunggyu vehemently nodding in the background.
    “Then Soo took to long,” Sungyeol flatly stated, causing Myungsoo’s cheeks to burn crimson. Sungyeol was too busy trying to open Myungsoo’s bag to register the change in Myungsoo’s behavior, but sadly, Howon and Sunggyu did.
    “Oh my god, the Kim Myungsoo is blushing, how adorable,” Sunggyu teased only to receive a dark glare. 
    “Kissing like that in public, though, do you want to get caught?” Sunggyu tried to change the subject, pretending that the glare that seemed like it wanted to banish his soul to hell did not phase him.
    “Well I might have forgotten we were in public,” Myungsoo mumbled, hoping to god they would leave the reason at that only to have Howon’s laughter crush his hopes.
    “That’s our Kim Myungsoo, to odd for his own good,” Howon teased, but the mirth of the conversation only lasting a mere moment before turning serious.“So this is your secret, huh? Well you have some explaining to do,” Howon requested, but Myungsoo felt it as more of a command.
    “I would rather not explain this to you guys,” Myungsoo tried feebly only to be shut up by the look Howon shot him.
    “Right, you don’t have to explain then, you just have to tell us everything that is going on,” Howon sarcastically muttered, Myungsoo wincing. That is approximately when an over excited Sungyeol let out a litany of thank you’s, diverting the other men from the tension between them momentarily. “What is it?” Howon asked kindly, stepping closer to Sungyeol who was clutching something to his chest. Sungyeol revealed a puppy with a tan peach back which faded to a light almost white near its legs. Howon smiled affectionately at Sungyeol who was to enamored with the puppy to pay attention to him before turning to Myungsoo, “I thought you trusted us as friends, but you hid something this big from us.”
    “No, Howon, I really didn’t mean it that way, I trust you guys a lot. Just, Sungyeol means so much to me, I don’t really feel like I can trust anyone with him. I mean homoual relationships are only partially acceptable to the public and that to loving someone who is mentally retarded, I just don’t want Sungyeol to get hurt,” Myungsoo said, knowing fully that Sungyeol’s attention was to occupied by the puppy to pay attention to anything he was saying.
    “Well, this conversation seems a bit too serious for a public place,” Sunggyu stated, trying to abate the awkwardness of the situation, or, at least, to push it away to another time.
    “Do you guys wanna come over to my house, Yeol and I walked here so it isn’t too far away,” Myungsoo implored.
~
    “Woohyun, there is no way, that can’t be…” the older looked down at the other for reassurance only to be welcomed with a set jaw.
    “We were presented with facts as well as pictorial evidence, what is there to prove it wrong. The explanation is also sensible,” Woohyun steeled himself, analytically dissecting the book below him. That was until Dongwoo wrapped his arms around Woohyun who was on his lap.
    “Calm down Hyun, you aren’t alone. I am not fragile, trust me, you don’t have to close up around me. I am not one of your patients, you don’t have to be strong for the both of us,” Dongwoo slowly ruffled Woohyun’s hair to a state of disorder. Woohyun looked up at him something in the other’s eyes that Dongwoo had never seen before, it was mesmerizing in a way. Not a mesmerization that made his heart jump, not one that made his throat dry from the butterflies in his stomach, definitely not one that made him feel any comfort. No it wasn’t but he couldn’t bring himself to look away as he felt himself drop lower, his vision turning bleary as a searing pain shot through his body, Woohyun clutching his shirt vaguely registered somewhere in his mind. Hyun is hurting, something ached at the name a sense of turmoil like longing replaced content, fear eating away comfort. 
~
    “The fools should have known something like this would happen but can’t say I regret it. Keeping secrets from me, they should have known better,” Sungjong pushed down the slight panic in his system. The panic he justified as the loss of valuable resources, the panic he justified as the time crunch on finding Kim Myungsoo. A gentle smile wrought itself upon his features at a fleeting memory and he pulled out a framed photo he kept hidden in a drawer feeling his digit caress the photo as it sliced through a curtain of dust. “Oh Lee Sungyeol, I promise to show you exactly why Kim Myungsoo wasn’t meant for you, why you weren’t meant for him.”