Jaehwan raised his eyebrows at the reply he’d just gotten from Hongbin, it being the last thing he was expecting. He was ready to receive a message full of swearing, no reply at all or a livid phonecall filled with more swearing – not actual advice and a thinly veiled threat to treat Wonsik well.

He’d been surprised at Hongbin readily capitulating a few days ago when he’d told Hongbin he was going to ask Wonsik out, but he’d chalked it down to Hongbin not wanting to cause a scene in the middle of the crowded corridor. But this time – he’d wanted to push Hongbin’s buttons, hurt him a little even for what he’d done to Wonsik; Wonsik had been so reserved the few days after the 613 party and when he’d found out what happened from Hakyeon Jaehwan had been speechless at how callous it made Hongbin appear. Who did that? He thought like that only happened in dramas.

So this, of all things, was not what he was expecting. It actually made him feel a little bad, and more than a little confused. Lee Hongbin was a mystery.

-Why are you helping me?

He quickly typed back, settling down against his pillows to wait for Hongbin’s reply, if ever it came. He was really pushing it, he knew.

-because i want him to be happy.

Jaehwan had to wait nearly five minutes for Hongbin’s text back, as if Hongbin had been debating with himself what to say. Jaehwan had to snort at this, however – Hongbin wanted Wonsik to be happy so he’d kept a possessive leash on him for three years, teasing him almost nonstop, and then just ed him without being soft or gentle or anything Wonsik would have needed him to be the next morning (Hakyeon had been a great fount of information; Jaehwan rather thought Hakyeon had been waiting for someone to vent to) because he wanted Wonsik to be happy?

-Uh, that kinda makes no sense.

-i don’t have to explain myself to you!

-OKOK chill. I’ll let you know how the next date goes. Night!

Jaehwan felt like side-eyeing himself after that last text – why on earth would Hongbin want to know how their next date went?

His phone buzzed again and Jaehwan sighed, sure it was going to be Hongbin caustically rebutting his offer.

-okay.

Okay?

Jaehwan’s eyebrows shot up again into his hair for the second time that night. This was opening a channel of communication between them – Hongbin was going to be expecting his text, seemingly open to news about how Wonsik and Jaehwan were progressing. Possibly open to giving more advice, too?

Lee Hongbin was truly a mystery. Part of Jaehwan was warning him against trusting anything Hongbin said – he’d be stupid to, after everything he’d seen himself and been told by Hakyeon – but another part of him that housed his insatiable curiosity wouldn’t let him back away from this. He could see it in his mind’s eye already: ‘Lee Jaehwan and the Great Hongbin-Wonsik Mystery – Unraveled!’ He could be like Indiana Jones. Or Sherlock Holmes – yeah, more like Sherlock Holmes. Jaehwan Holmes!

He smiled with satisfaction to himself. He would get to the bottom of this or die trying.

*

“Okay, hyung, are you ready for Halloween costume idea number one?”

Sanghyuk brandished his phone in front of Taekwoon like he was unveiling a mindblowing magic trick so Taekwoon could see the picture on the screen.

“Isn’t this fantastic? You love coffee, so it’s great. You go as a Starbucks barista and I’ll go as a cup of coffee.”

Taekwoon was speechless.

*

“Ash and Pikachu!” Sanghyuk said excitedly, grabbing Taekwoon’s arm. “Sungjae already has a Pikachu onesie that he wears sometimes – don’t tell him I told you that – and all you need is a red cap and a blue vest, and, and finger gloves-”

Taekwoon started to edge away from Sanghyuk.

“Hyung,” Sanghyuk said sternly. “If you move away any further you’re going to fall off the bench. And I will laugh.”

*

“Okay, what about this,” Sanghyuk asked, starting to feel desperate. “The ‘Joint Security Area’ movie? One of us can go as Song Kangho and the other one can be Lee Byunghun?”

Taekwoon shook his head.

“Death note? I’ll be L and you can be Light?”

“Who?” Taekwoon asked, brow furrowing in confusion. Sanghyuk just stared at him.

*

“Can’t we go as something that would look relatively normal?” Taekwoon begged, after shooting down Naruto and Sasuke and a pair of zombie high school students. “You promised it wouldn’t be too conspicuous.”

“Inconspicuous is one thing, boring is another,” Sanghyuk huffed. “Should have known better than to go with an old man.”

“I’m not stopping you from going with someone else,” Taekwoon protested, pride stung. “Someone less boring. And old.”

“I’m taking pity on you, hyung, if I don’t go with you who will?” Sanghyuk affected concern, patting Taekwoon’s head. Dimly Taekwoon registered at the back of his mind that this was not how dongsaengs behaved.

“Fine. Something normal. Something – stop glaring at me, hyung, I’m trying to think – oh my god, that’s it, I’ve got it!” Sanghyuk bounced excitedly in his seat, eyes shining. Taekwoon braced himself.

“Hyung, all you’ll have to do is wear a school uniform and glare at everyone like you usually do.”

“I don’t glare at everyone-”

“Okay, make your normal resting face then. Yes, exactly like that, like you’re a secret serial killer.”

“Han Sanghyuk, I am not-!”

“You’re going as Haru from Free!. I’m going as Rin.”

“What the hell is that?”

“You’ll see.”  

*

Hongbin was trying to break through a block he was having with the main point of the paper he was writing, rephrasing and rephrasing until he got the right wording in order to get the impact he wanted. It was late, nearly one a.m. – nothing really much to a college student but when said college student had an early lecture the next day with a famously crotchety professor Hongbin was dicing with death. Taekwoon had gone to bed ages ago – old people had to sleep early, Hongbin supposed – but not before making Hongbin a cup of Taekwoon’s good coffee to help keep Hongbin awake as he struggled with his paper. His hyung could really be very sweet when he wanted to be, but then Hongbin was also smugly aware that Taekwoon had a huge soft spot for him. Not everyone got to drink Taekwoon’s good coffee.

His phone vibrated and Hongbin absently opened the message, thinking it was one of his basketball people texting something to do with training the next day; his heart sped up when he saw it was Jaehwan’s number – which, incidentally, he’d just saved in his contacts as ‘that guy’.

-Date today was good, I think! We went to the aquarium like you suggested, and he was so cute getting all excited over stuff like the penguins and the stingrays. He tried to touch one of the stingrays at the petting area and it flapped water at him, getting him all wet hahah. He was so embarrassed~

Hongbin could imagine only too easily an excited Wonsik pressing himself up against the tank glass walls to peer at the fish and animals within – and being scared about touching the stingray but wanting to do it all the same. In Hongbin’s mind, however, twenty-two-year old Wonsik transformed into high school senior Wonsik, skipping his last homeroom period with Hongbin and worrying all the way to the aquarium that they’d be found out and punished severely, Hongbin laughing at his fidgeting. Once they’d reached the aquarium, however, all Wonsik’s worrying had vanished and he’d pulled Hongbin from one exhibit to another, exclaiming over the jellyfish and the seals and the huge manta rays.

They were found out, of course. Somehow in Hongbin’s memory the detention and gym cleaning punishment they’d gotten hadn’t seemed so bad – spending three hours together in the wide gym going up and down with mops and talking nonstop about everything and nothing.

Hongbin found himself smiling absently like a fool at the reminiscing and snapped himself out of it.

-sounds like a good time. i’m glad. Hongbin made himself type, focusing on how happy Wonsik must have been and trying not to dwell on if Wonsik had found himself thinking about their own aquarium trip four years earlier too.

-Are you? came the reply, and Hongbin grit his teeth. What did Jaehwan want from him?

-why, would you prefer it if i wasn’t?

-No.. but I’d understand it better.

-there’s no point in me being sulky about this.

-So you admit there is a reason for you to be sulky about it?

Dammit, Hongbin thought.

-i told you i don’t have to explain myself to you. if wonsik is happy then that’s all there is to it.

-So noble!

Okay, that stung. Hongbin could feel the heat in his cheeks rising, knowing what Jaehwan was implying and knowing that Jaehwan was right. Hongbin had behaved anything but nobly towards Wonsik, but here he was going on and on about Wonsik’s happiness as if it was a huge sacrifice Hongbin was making to ensure it.

-it’s not like i’m proud of my actions, alright? Hongbin sent hotly off, and then immediately regretted it. He didn’t want Jaehwan of all people to know his own personal feelings about the whole disaster when he was refusing to talk about it to even Taekwoon, but there was an irresistible urge in him that he couldn’t explain to make sure Jaehwan didn’t think Hongbin didn’t care about Wonsik.  

-Does Wonsik know that?

-i think it’s way too late for apologies now. he doesn’t want to hear it from me, anyway.

-You sure?

Hongbin put down his phone slowly, heart suddenly beating fast. He pushed his phone away under a textbook, trying to figuratively put as much space between him and Jaehwan as possible. He had no idea what Jaehwan’s game was, and he couldn’t help but be suspicious – Jaehwan had nothing to gain from Hongbin and Wonsik making up. Or was Jaehwan aware of something Hongbin didn’t – was he trying to make Hongbin seek Wonsik out to try to talk things over, knowing Hongbin would get shot down horribly? Was that what all this was about? To just hurt Hongbin in a sort of secondhand revenge?

Hongbin bit his lip. The seed of doubt had been irretrievably planted now, however. Was it really too late to apologise? Did Wonsik want him to apologise?

*