“ING HELL!”

Mingyu slammed the front door behind him as he stormed into the living room. Drenched in tears and sweat, he couldn’t see too well. Everything was blurry as he tossed Soonyoung’s key onto the coffee table and threw his body onto the couch, screaming into the armrest.

He was losing his mind. If he tried to speak, words would just sputter out. Nothing was making sense and he was so frustrated. But one thing was for sure…

I failed, he kept repeating in his head. I failed. I couldn’t help. I couldn’t save Wonwoo. It’s all my fault. Jihoon’s going to run the story...that I couldn’t convince him to throw away. It’s going to ruin Wonwoo. He’s never gonna recover from this. He may even disappear after this. He could go into hiding. Or some people could take him...and experiment on him. He could actually die. I failed. I failed. I failed.

Mingyu was dying inside and all of his thoughts sent him spiraling down further and further. It was over. He lost.

I failed.

Crying into the cushion, Mingyu could only hear his self-loathing wails and every depressing thought pounding at the inside of his skull. Nothing could end this pain, but one sound did always comfort him.

“Meow.”

Out of pure instinct, Mingyu’s head flicked up and he looked around. His tears clouded everything in front of him. Wiping his eyes, he looked and saw who was disturbing him in his disturbed state. The grey blob in front of him slowly came into focus. It was the cat with no name. Wait, that wasn’t right.

I forgot I named him, Mingyu realized.

Reaching out his hand, he the cat between the ears. He closed his eyes and purred, very satisfied, as Mingyu pet him. Even in this discomfort, a cat could ever so slightly let him breathe more easily.

“Hey, Wonwoo.”

There was no response, but Mingyu didn’t expect much else.

“How did you get in here?”

Even though he asked, Mingyu didn’t really care. He never needed to question why Wonwoo was nearby. That’s where he belonged.

Laying on his stomach, Mingyu was feeling the pain all over. He was just starting to register everything again when he heard the front door open.

Seungcheol walked in, ruffling through the mail that he just gone to pick up. In his peripheral, he could see Mingyu’s familiar body shape resting on the couch. “Hey, Mingyu,” he said, closing the door behind him. “When did you get home?”

But Mingyu didn’t answer.

For a second, Seungcheol presumed that Mingyu was still going through the same sadness that had taken over for the past few days. But when he finally looked up, he could see part of his friend’s face and instantly knew it was far more broken than last he saw.

“Mingyu, what happened?!” Seungcheol shouted, dropping the mail on the counter and running to kneel by his side. He looked up and down Mingyu, getting flashbacks to the old days whenever he found him physically battered. From what he could see though, the only troubling physical attribute was how much Mingyu was crying. “What happened?” he asked again.

Mingyu’s eyes shifted over to see Seungcheol. For a moment, he had the same reaction as when he saw Wonwoo the cat, a shot of relief. But then Mingyu remembered that, unlike his feline friends, Seungcheol wasn’t so innocent.

Just the other day, when Minghao had stopped by the apartment, Seungcheol had come home...with Jihoon. He was ready to let Jihoon in, and Mingyu couldn’t believe that.

Frustrated and disappointed, Mingyu sniffled and slowly pulled his shoulders off the couch. Sitting up, he was slightly above eye level with his roommate. His heart was pounding. He couldn’t believe this was happening.

“How could you do it?” he choked through a quivering voice.

Confused, Seungcheol furrowed his eyebrows. “Do what?”

Mingyu swallowed, trying to push down his discomfort. Meeting Seungcheol’s worried eyes, he genuinely asked, “How could you get along with someone like Jihoon?” He was so baffled. He had been friends with Seungcheol for years. He never saw this coming. “How could you?” he said through a sob.

Seungcheol was taken aback. He could feel his pulse rise as he said to Mingyu, “What’re you talking about?” he asked. “We don’t get along, Mingyu. I never told you—”

“Of course you didn’t.”

Stunned by Mingyu’s accusatory voice, Seungcheol finished, “I never told you, but I followed him around to try and get back at him for what he was doing. I just wanted to bother him enough so he would stop bothering you and Wonwoo.”

In his state of mind, Mingyu couldn’t even vaguely appreciate what Seungcheol was trying to do. He was just pissed. “Well, that worked out real well,” he spat, not hiding his bitterness.

Seungcheol was baffled. Trying to be gentle, he slowly sat down on the couch next to Mingyu. Leaning over his knees, he asked, “What’re you talking about?”

Not holding back, Mingyu screamed, “JIHOON KNOWS EVERYTHING! He knows every ING thing about Wonwoo and now he’s gonna be ruined!” Losing it, he threw his head back and grabbed his hair. “He found out everything that Wonwoo ever tried to keep hidden and NOW it’s all gonna be out there and it WILL DESTROY HIM! It’ll destroy everyone like him! If this news gets out, I may honestly never see him again and that’s the least of my worries!” Now covering his face, he cried, “He will lose everything! I’ll lose Wonwoo, but Wonwoo will actually lose EVERYTHING that he hasn’t lost already!” Shoulders shaking, Mingyu couldn’t handle himself. The world was spinning out of control.

Listening, Seungcheol’s heart sank. Half of him was panicked hearing Mingyu so emotional like this; the other half was frustrated with himself. What Mingyu was describing was what Seungcheol was trying to stop this whole time. But obviously he failed.

Angry, Seungcheol recalled the conversations he had with Jihoon and wondered if he ever was even close to stopping the bastard. All those times they engaged in such irritated banter, was he just fueling the fire? In any of their exchanges, was he ever able to get Jihoon to back off? Through all of Seungcheol’s efforts, did the stupid boy with the pink hair ever show any sort of humanity?

As Seungcheol asked himself these questions, he realized that the answers were a lot different than what he would’ve guessed before. For a second there, he actually thought he connected with Jihoon…

“He’s gonna ruin him,” Mingyu whimpered. Trying to wipe away some of the tears, he said, “I couldn’t stop him...and he’s gonna publish this piece about Wonwoo and…” He couldn’t finish the sentence.

Seungcheol reached out and held his friend by the shoulders as he shook. Going through it all again, he registered something Mingyu just said. “You went to see him?”

Mingyu nodded. “I went to his apartment,” he stammered. Not lifting his head, he pointed at the key on the coffee table. Seungcheol’s gaze followed his finger. “Soonyoung gave me the key and his address and—and I tried to talk to him, but—but it was no use.”

“Soonyoung?”

“It’s a long story.”

Seungcheol could hear the remorse in his words. He couldn’t stand to see his friend like this. But at that moment, the cogs in his head were rapidly turning. Mingyu was broken and defeated, but maybe Seungcheol’s battle with Jihoon wasn’t over yet.

“What’s Jihoon’s address?”

“What?” Mingyu uttered, not fully getting that through his sobs.

But Seungcheol didn’t give him that much time. Reaching over, he grabbed Soonyoung’s key and stood up. “Just text it to me,” he said as he stuffed it in his pants.

He was already headed for the door when Mingyu finally looked up to see him rushing away. “What? Hyung, you’re gonna—”

But Seungcheol was ready for this fight. This was what he’d been working towards the whole time. “Just text it to me!” he shouted again as he quickly left the apartment.

— — —

Sitting at a table in the library, Minghao was very quickly drifting off with his chin propped up by his forearm. His astronomy textbook was not doing a good job of keeping him awake. Fortunately, he had something else for that.

Slam!

Junhui shook the whole table as he dropped his statistics book and plopped down in the seat across from his friend. Minghao jolted awake and could’ve easily screamed if Junhui didn’t immediately start talking.

“Do you believe the truth needs to come out?” he frantically asked, leaning over the table and trying to make eye contact with Minghao.

But the other boy was still figuring out what was happening. “Jesus Christ!” Minghao uttered, sitting up straight and rubbing his eye. “Junhui, it’s a freakin library. Could you not coming busting in like that?”

Collecting himself a bit, Junhui still smiled at Minghao being rattled. “Sorry, but I seriously want your opinion on this.”

Through a yawn, Minghao focused his attention on the person before him. “What was the question again?”

Junhui rolled his eyes and asked, again, “Do you think the truth needs to come out?”

Slightly taken aback, Minghao furrowed his eyebrows. He looked down at Junhui’s homework to see if it would help indicate where this was coming from. It didn’t. “What? Why’re you asking?”

Junhui sighed and sat back. Scratching his head, he recalled the conversation he had with Soonyoung last night. “I’ve just been thinking about it. Ya know how people say that the truth will set you free?”

Thinking about all his own secrets, Minghao hesitated. “Yeah.”

“Well what if there are things that deserve to stay hidden?”

Minghao couldn’t help but agree with this. Because of who he was, he had to. The biggest thing he kept hidden from the world needed to stay hidden. There was no doubt about that.

But who was he hiding from? Maybe that was the better question. Or better yet...were there things he could share?

Like usual, Minghao was getting frustrated with how little progress he’d been making with Junhui. The universe didn’t seem like it was any closer to letting him stop. But knowing his plan, Minghao was willing to wait until he stopped to confess his love to Junhui. That way...everything would be in place. The universe would’ve made it clear that the two of them should be together.

But the longer and longer that took, the more Minghao felt like he wanted to tell Junhui the truth about his love. He wasn’t sure. Nothing made sense these days.

Confused through his own inner workings, Minghao shrugged. “There are,” he admitted. “Some things...should be kept secret.”

Junhui nodded in agreement. Pointing his pen at Minghao, he said, “See, that’s what I think. I don’t think you can use an umbrella term and just say that all truths need to be revealed. I think it’s case by case. I think that if the truth hurts too many for no reason...then there’s no need to let it out there.”

“Well, what if it’s something that you think you really need to say, but it could hurt someone you really care about?” Minghao asked, just trying to pick at Junhui’s brain.

“I think that’s different,” Junhui replied. “That’s honesty, not the truth. To me, there’s a difference.”

Minghao scrunched his forehead. “I’m not sure I follow.”

Trying to find the right words, Junhui explained, “I mean, the truth is just a fact. It’s information that can be proven. Honesty...is tied to emotion.”

His heart beating rapidly, Minghao listened.

Junhui wasn’t exactly sure where he was going with this, but he always liked to venture different concepts and ideas with Minghao. “Honesty constitutes feelings and...response from an immediate person. To me, the truth is just a broad statement that you tell the public or...something like that. It just tells them more about what’s true in the world. Being honest...requires bravery. It...exposes part of yourself.” Junhui sighed and shook his head. “I don’t know. I’m just rambling.”

“No, go on,” Minghao insisted. “This makes sense.”

Junhui smiled. He loved talking to his best friend. “Being honest takes something more than just telling the truth. I feel like if you’re honest, it’s about yourself. You’re risking something that truly belongs to you, so you should choose when to be honest. Telling the truth...well, it’s just the truth. It’s not necessarily yours. So there are times when, even if you believe that truth should come out, maybe there’s a stronger reason that it shouldn’t.”

Minghao bit his lower lip as that processed in his head. Maybe Junhui’s distinction between truth and honesty could help him figure out what to do with his heart. Could he hide the truth about being a Jumper and simply be honest about his feelings? Was that the answer to all of this? If he did that...would that tell the universe something?

Looking into his friend’s eyes, he asked, “So when do you be honest?”

Junhui tilted his head. “It all depends.”

His heart was racing. “Well, say you’re in love with someone,” Minghao asked casually, trying his best to keep it simple. “Do you tell them?”

“I think so,” Junhui answered.

“But you said being honest requires bravery,” Minghao pointed out, knowing his own fear, “because it’s about yourself. It’s a part of you.”

“Yeah, it is.”

Minghao swallowed and breathed softly. “So what if that part of you...gets rejected? What if you’re most personal truth...isn’t accepted? Is that a truth that needs to be revealed?”

Junhui thought it over. His palms got a bit sweaty as he tried to find his answer. “I think...that’s the whole honesty thing again,” he responded. “If you’re in love with someone, that’s the truth. But if you want to tell them and be honest, that depends on how much you want to give them that part of yourself.” He took a deep breath. “If you really love this person, then the risk will always be worth it.”

Minghao felt goosebumps on his arms. His heart felt like it was exploding. A huge part of him wanted to prove to Junhui just how much he loved him by confessing right there, taking every risk and knowing it was worth it. But Minghao knew now wasn’t the time. He could be honest soon.

With a small smile, Minghao nodded. “Can I be honest with you then?”

Junhui looked at him funny. “What is it?”

“You should start a podcast.”

Taking the tease, Junhui laughed and finally opened his textbook. “You would probably be my only listener.”

Watching Junhui start his homework, Minghao smiled a little bigger and thought, I could listen to you forever.

— — —

“OKAY EVERYONE!” Jeonghan’s coach yelled after blowing his whistle. It echoed against the walls that held the massive training pool. Capped and goggled, the swimmers finished their lap before letting their heads emerge from the water to listen. “Great job today! We’re done for the night! Go shower and head home!”

Joshua watched as Jeonghan’s teammates peeled off their swim gear and climbed out of the pool. Soaking wet, they were all smiling and laughing as they headed for the locker room. Joshua could see some of his boyfriend’s friends pat him on the back before leaving. He was glowing, not only from the water, but from this extreme joy he exuded when doing something he loved.

Once he saw that Jeonghan was alone, Joshua smiled. Walking towards the edge of the pool to meet the cute boy, he clapped and said, “Wow, so I finally got to see the amazing athlete that is Yoon Jeonghan!”

Jeonghan met his gaze and flashed a huge grin. Staring up at him, he waited until Joshua squatted down to be closer to his face before saying, “See Jisoo, now whenever you talk about my swimming, I’ll know it’s based on what you’ve actually seen before.”

Being so close to Jeonghan all wet and glistening was making Joshua’s heart race. Seeing Jeonghan’s toned upper body was a lot more overwhelming than he imagined. “Or I could just be lying to you,” he teased. He waited for Jeonghan to laugh before saying, “But seriously, you’re fantastic! Wonwoo wasn’t kidding when he said you really deserved to be out here.”

Taking off his swim cap, he tossed it out to the side. His long hair fluttered out, surprisingly still lucious even after being stuffed away for hours. Joshua got goosebumps as he watched the tips of Jeonghan’s hair cling to his wet shoulders. He was so mesmerized that he almost didn’t notice Jeonghan blush. “Thanks, babe,” he said meekly. “You really need to come to one of my tournaments.”

Every time Jeonghan called him “babe,” Joshua could feel himself fall deeper in love. It had only been three days since he stopped jumping, but he felt like he could spend an eternity with Jeonghan. Dropping one of his knees to get closer, Joshua reached down and held Jeonghan by the chin. With a soft smile, he said, “Definitely,” before closing the tiny gap between them.

Leaving a kiss on the boy’s soft lips, Jeonghan let out a gentle, satisfied sigh. Joshua had a way of making him feel so good, it was insane. Opening his eyes, he loved what he found in front of him. Pressing their foreheads together, Jeonghan playfully asked, “Do you wanna go for a swim?”

Joshua chuckled. “I didn’t bring any swim trunks.”

“Just take off your shirt and you’ll be fine,” Jeonghan suggested, biting his lower lip.

Even though the two of them were now together, Joshua couldn’t believe how things were going. Jeonghan was amazing, and sometimes really forward. One second, he was rosy from a compliment, the next he was trying to get Joshua to strip. “I’m not just gonna take off my shirt!” he laughed.

“Come on!” Jeonghan cheered, smiling and tugging at Joshua’s collar.

Happily flustered, Joshua shook his head. His jeans were already getting wet from Jeonghan’s splashing. “You’re crazy!”

Jeonghan laughed with him as he still held onto his adorable boyfriend. “You know how to swim, right?”

“Of course I do,” he chuckled.

Taking a good look up and down Joshua’s body, Jeonghan asked, “Do you have anything in your pockets?”

Joshua instinctively patted his legs. “What? No, I don’t—”

But before he could even finish his sentence, he was dragged into the water and his entire body was submerged.

Catching himself right on impact, Joshua extended his legs and stood on the pool floor. His head popped up and his wet hair sprayed water everywhere. Totally unprepared for the sudden change in temperature, he was freezing. He felt like he weighed a million pounds because of his clothes dragging him down, but that wasn’t the first thing on his mind. Gasping for air, he could hear Jeonghan laughing hysterically. Quickly wiping the chlorine water off of his face, he opened his eyes and found his boyfriend having a blast. “OH MY GOD, JEONGHAN!” he screamed, more with gleeful surprise and disbelief than anything else.

But Jeonghan was already backing away. “NOW YOU HAVE TO SWIM WITH ME!” he laughed.

Shaking his head, Joshua started to chase after him. Trudging along, he shouted, “You are so gonna get it for this!”

Floating away mockingly slowly, Jeonghan splashed his boyfriend. “You’re never gonna catch me with that shirt weighing you down!”

Consumed by his boyfriend’s good energy, Joshua felt like he could do anything at that moment. He completely forgot that he was even still wearing his shoes. Hopping on one foot at a time, he took them and his socks off and chucked them out of the pool. “You owe me a new pair of shoes!”

Jeonghan couldn’t stop laughing as the water got higher. Holding onto a lane line, he teasingly waited for his boyfriend. “If you get me, I’ll give you anything you want!”

And that was far too enticing for Joshua to give up. Pulling his shirt off over his head, he tossed it away. With Jeonghan in his sights, he dove head first and rapidly swam towards him. The other boy didn’t have a second to react before their skin touched in a magical mess of laughs and hugs.

Joshua wrapped his arms around Jeonghan’s bare torso. It was even easier in the water to hold him up. Smiling like crazy, he couldn’t see his boyfriend as he thrashed the water. But still, Joshua pushed his face through the spray and planted a huge kiss on Jeonghan’s cheek. Overwhelmed with sensation, he said into his skin, “You are seriously something else.”

Jeonghan’s heart was beating out of his chest and he was overcome with joy. Letting his arms rest against Joshua’s shoulders, he finally got a good look. It was no surprise how hot he was. With a perky smile on his dripping face, Jeonghan looked at the boy who made his heart race and said, “Sorry about your clothes.”

Head over heels, Joshua hugged Jeonghan tighter, letting him float right against his chest, and whispered, “It was worth it.”

Jeonghan couldn’t contain himself. Grabbing Joshua’s face, he kissed him on the lips. Even in the cold water, their bodies heated with love and affection. It was incredible.

Joshua didn’t want to let go. He wanted to kiss Jeonghan forever. Wherever it was, he didn’t care. He could kiss Jeonghan in a pool or outside of a cafe. He could kiss him at home or on the moon. It didn’t matter. Even with his life as a Jumper, Joshua knew that the most amazing thing he’d ever experienced was kissing Jeonghan.

When they finally released, Joshua let out a quivering breath, making Jeonghan’s insides tingle. It was all so much.

Overrun by senses, Jeonghan finally opened his eyes and said, “But seriously.” Joshua’s eyes fluttered open to find his boyfriend’s glowing face. “I’m sorry about your clothes.”

Chuckling, Joshua looked down and could see the distorted image of his jeans below the surface. “Yeah, I’d swim a lot better without these on.”

Smiling back, Jeonghan raised an eyebrow at him. “You could take them off now,” he said suggestively.

Totally unprepared for that, Joshua blushed all over. Loosening his hold on Jeonghan, he felt the need to hide his pink face. “I—I’m—”

But Jeonghan couldn’t mess with him for too long. He was just too cute when he stammered like that. Laughing, he smacked the boy’s chest and said, “You are so cute, Jisoo-ah! Don’t worry, I’m just kidding! Please keep your pants on!”

Scratching his head, Joshua couldn’t look at him. “I’m—I’m gonna do that.”

Leaving a peck on his cheek, Jeonghan rubbed his nose against his boyfriend’s wet face. “I can’t believe I can say these things to you,” he said behind a light chuckle.

Surprised by that, Joshua asked, “What do you mean?”

Now it was Jeonghan’s turn to get shy again. Unhooking himself from Joshua’s torso, he stood on the pool floor, slightly bobbing. Brushing his hair out of his face, he said, “I mean….I just can’t believe we’re together.”

Seeing this cutie in all his different states was a gift and Joshua wanted to in every second. Holding his hands under the water, Joshua smiled back at him. “I know. It’s kinda...crazy.”

“I know it’s been kinda fast,” Jeonghan admitted, nervously looking at Joshua. “And I know I only have so many weeks left here, but…”

A strand of wet hair fell over Jeonghan’s eye, but Joshua reached up and brushed it behind his ear. “Yeah?”

Jeonghan smiled his big, toothy smile. “But I couldn’t be happier.”

Everything Jeonghan said was so true for Joshua too. He couldn’t have asked for a better person to help him stop.

Leaning in and gently kissing his nose, he said, “Me too.”

— — —

Alone with nothing but his computer and his ambition, Jihoon typed away. The article that would kickstart his career was finally coming together. The story was flowing out of his fingertips and he could hardly believe how beautifully everything made sense. It was a masterpiece, and he was the artist. Overjoyed with this sense of accomplishment, Jihoon read his headline again: “Every Night, Another City: The Story of Jumpers.” This was going to change everything.

It was all coming together. The only thing that could’ve made this better would have been if Soonyoung was there too. But Jihoon was willing to let that go. For now, all he cared about was this piece. Nothing could stop him.

Focused on his work, Jihoon didn’t notice the creak of the front door opening. He didn’t even notice the sound of footsteps coming into the room. But the second he heard that voice, the hairs on the back of his neck stood up.

“Nice place you’ve got here,” Seungcheol casually said as he glanced around the room.

Jihoon hesitated for a split second before continuing to type. Somehow, Seungcheol’s presence threw him off, but he wasn’t too surprised. With Mingyu barging in earlier, it was only a matter of time. Without looking behind him, he flatly said, “So they sent you in too, huh?”

“I wasn’t sent here,” Seungcheol said as he made his way closer to Jihoon. He took a seat on the boy’s bed so he could see the side of his face. “Just wanted to stop by.”

Unamused, Jihoon refused to look at him, but for whatever reason, his heart was pounding. “Well, thanks. I’m kinda busy.”

Seungcheol swallowed nervously as he watched Jihoon type. He wasn’t focused on the monitor. He didn’t want to see what he was writing. Trying to remain calm, Seungcheol asked, “What’re you working on?”

Jihoon scoffed. It was ridiculous how he was going about this. “Seungcheol, I know you’re not that stupid.”

Unexpectedly, Seungcheol lightly chuckled. Leaning over his knees, he said, “Ya know that’s the first compliment you’ve ever given me.”

Jihoon felt a twinge in his arm, but he ignored it. He ignored everything and just kept typing.

Silence filled their conversation as tension filled the air. Both of them knew why Seungcheol was there, but neither of them knew how to start this.

The room was so dark. Seungcheol could only see what was in front of him thanks to the light of Jihoon’s screen. But knowing what Jihoon was up to, he would’ve preferred to be in the dark. He couldn’t get Mingyu’s broken face out of his head. He had to do something.

Finally, Seungcheol spit it out. “Jihoon, don’t do this.”

This time, Jihoon didn’t flinch. “Of course you’re telling me that.” But even without a reaction, Jihoon was ever so slightly hurt from having Seungcheol against him, even though that’s how it always was. To his own dismay, that small part of Jihoon that let him believe things were getting better between him and Seungcheol started to crumble.

And oddly, Seungcheol shared the same feeling. “Jihoon, I know what you’re doing,” he said. “Mingyu told me you know Wonwoo’s secret, and that if you publish this piece, it will ruin him. And, apparently, there are others like him, so you’d be hurting a lot of people.”

Jihoon couldn’t stand hearing Seungcheol speak so ignorantly about a subject that would literally change his career. Finally turning his chair around, Jihoon could look straight into Seungcheol’s eyes. They were the same ones he’d always looked into with such irritation. “You clearly don’t know what this is about.”

“I don’t,” Seungcheol admitted, “and I don’t need to know.” Face to face, they almost had their knees touching. “And neither does the rest of the world.”

Rolling his eyes, Jihoon covered his face and leaned back in his chair. “Oh my god, how many times am I supposed to hear this?” he groaned into his hands.

Seungcheol took a deep breath. “Jihoon, you—”

“Don’t you get it?!” Jihoon interrupted him, dropping his hands to reveal his intense gaze. Furrowing his eyebrows and clenching the air, he said, “I can’t believe nobody gets it! Soonyoung even left cause he doesn’t get it!” Thoroughly annoyed, Jihoon ran his hand through his soft, pink hair, gripping it angrily. “This is what I’ve been working for for years!”

Trying to combat his aggression, Seungcheol softly said, “Jihoon, I know—”

“No, you don’t!” Jihoon yelled over him “If you did, you wouldn’t tell me not to do this!” Dropping his arm in supposed exhaustion, Jihoon shook his head. “This is the truth, Seungcheol!”

Seungcheol was prepared to try and chime in, but he could see something in Jihoon’s face. He decided to just listen.

Jihoon squeezed his eyes shut with a groan. “God,” he mumbled. His head was spinning with pure irritation. “The truth is the answer,” he said before opening his eyes again. He spoke more quietly, but with the same fervor. “Nobody seems to understand that.”

Shaking his head, he leaned back in his chair. Staring at the ceiling, he could recall every moment of success and failure along the way to the end of this story. He could picture every time his boss handed him another stupid assignment. He could remember every time he was struck down for trying to work on something bigger. All the late nights with Soonyoung just going over theories about Wonwoo. Every time they followed him...was for this. “The truth...means something.” Dropping his gaze to meet Seungcheol’s, he felt his insides twirl. Squinting at him, he said softly, “You said you don’t want to know what this is about, right?”

Seungcheol bit the inside of his cheek. “I don’t want to know.”

Jihoon scoffed. “Well, you’re missing out.” With the smallest tinge of a smile, he said, “This story...could truly change the world.” All of a sudden, Jihoon got flashbacks to the times when it felt like his world would never change, when he was being helplessly bullied. It was then that he learned what the truth could do. Not only that, but it was then that he learned what he wanted to do with the truth. He let out a dreamy sigh. “What if this story creates a world where this information could be used for good? What if it unveils a million other truths?”

This was different to Seungcheol. He kept listening.

Jihoon’s palms were getting sweaty. Sitting up straighter, he wiped them on his dark jeans. Still looking right at Seungcheol, he leaned in a little closer. Seungcheol looked...interested. In that moment, he was reminded of who he was talking to and what this boy came here for. He knew what Seungcheol must be thinking, and normally he wouldn’t care. But he also knew that there were times that they...connected? Jihoon wasn’t sure, but there was something about Seungcheol that seemed to understand, that seemed to want to understand. So maybe, just maybe, Jihoon could convince him what he was doing wasn’t the worst thing in the world.

He spoke gently. “This story isn’t just to boost my career.” Thinking of how that must’ve sounded to Seungcheol, he chuckled and shook his head at its absurdity. “No, this is so much more. This is to do what I’ve always dreamed of doing: creating a truthful impact that could honestly change the way people see the world.” Jihoon could feel his heart pounding in his chest, and why wouldn’t it be? He was being completely honest with Seungcheol. It took a large part of him.

“I’m a reporter, Seungcheol,” he said easily. That title meant so much to him. “The truth is the most beautiful thing. I want to give that to the people.”

For a second, there was complete silence. No typing. No talking. Hardly any breathing. Jihoon was done spilling his truth and Seungcheol didn’t know how to react.

Still looking straight at Jihoon, Seungcheol could feel his heart thumping against his chest. He was overwhelmed by this strange feeling. It was the same feeling he got every time Jihoon sounded vaguely alright when they talked, but times a million. It was intense and consuming.

As Seungcheol stared at Jihoon and processed what he just heard, he couldn’t believe it. It was then that Seungcheol finally found that part of Jihoon he had a feeling was in there. Jihoon just wanted to share the truth, something he held to be sacred and powerful. He wanted to give that to more people. That’s what he vowed to do as a reporter. That’s all he wanted to do, above all else. It was then that Seungcheol realized that Jihoon’s motives were so incredibly human, to the point that he almost suppressed the urge to stop him.

But after a few blinks, he remembered Mingyu and Wonwoo, and the illusion was broken.

“The truth is beautiful to some,” Seungcheol said, completely going on a limb, “but beauty...is in the eye of the beholder.” Letting out a deep breath, he stared back at Jihoon’s softer face. This was hard. “Such a beautiful truth...might actually be the thing that could completely destroy someone.”

Jihoon didn’t respond.

Seungcheol looked into the boy’s passionate eyes and told him, “What you’re about to do...could hurt a lot of people, so I’m told…” He paused. “But you also think it could benefit way more, right?”

With a firm nod, Jihoon said, “Exactly.” Just hearing that someone understood let him breathe a little better.

Seungcheol felt his chest clench up. Trying to find the right way to say this, he said, “Well, I’m gonna beg you to forget about the masses and just think about one.” He looked straight at Jihoon. “Wonwoo.”

The second he heard that, Jihoon’s shoulders dropped. He gave Seungcheol the most unamused, unphased look. “Are you kidding me?” he said so flatly, bothered by what could only seem like mockery.

But Seungcheol wasn’t mocking him. He was serious. Leaning over his forearms, he was even closer. “Jihoon, you have the power to ruin this one person more than you could ever imagine,” he calmly said. His head was lower than Jihoon’s at this point, so he glanced slightly up. “And I know you don’t think in small scale, but please just imagine the enormity this could have on one person.”

For a moment, Jihoon pictured what could happen to Wonwoo when this news got out, but he refused to think too hard about it. Shaking his head, he clearly pointed out, “This is bigger than Wonwoo!”

“But it will destroy him!” Seungcheol shouted, raising his voice for the first time. Jihoon was taken aback. He could see the fire in Seungcheol’s eyes. But he didn’t look angry. He looked like he was prepared for battle. “It just takes one, Jihoon!”

Jihoon didn’t interrupt.

Taking in and letting out a deep, heavy breath, Seungcheol closed his eyes for a second, calming down. He said, “If you can picture how it will break him, imagine how it will break his family, then his friends. It’ll break Mingyu, then Seokmin and me—”

Looking at Seungcheol with all the judgement people ever gave him, Jihoon hostilly interrupted, “Oh, so you’re just being selfish?”

“Yes!” he shouted, “Because it just takes one!”

Seungcheol paused. Breathing heavily, he could see that Jihoon wasn’t budging, but he was listening. “If you can see how much this can hurt ONE, then you shouldn’t publish.”

Jihoon couldn’t take it. Even if Seungcheol made the tiniest bit of sense, he refused to give in so easily. He refused to give up everything he believed just because someone told him to. “But this is the truth!” he reinforced, his blood boiling. Jumping to the edge of his chair, he shouted, “This is what the world deserves!”

“But is this what Wonwoo deserves?!” Seungcheol fired back. Raising his hands by his head, he asked, “Who are we to say what the entire world should have?!” Squinting at him, Seungcheol sighed. He pointed at Jihoon and lowered his voice. “But you can make that choice for one person and you know for a fact it will make a difference.”

Shaking his head, Jihoon threw his arms out, letting them flop by his side. “So you’re telling me to get rid of everything I ever worked for...for this one person?” He asked like you would ask your insane next door neighbor about his claim that he lit his pants on fire that morning making waffles; it was so ridiculous that you needed it reiterated just so you could make sure you weren’t going crazy. “You realize this is a person that I don’t even like.”

Seungcheol sighed again. It felt like they weren’t making any progress, but he needed to convince Jihoon. He just had to. And somehow, he believed in Jihoon enough. “Just imagine if it was the other way around,” he said softly. “What if it was your life on the line and it could all just be okay because of one person’s actions.”

Jihoon felt a chill run down his spine. Suddenly, he was taken back to those days of being bullied, of being tossed around like garbage. He was teased to no end and treated like less of a person. Living that nightmare was the worst time in his life. And before he could even control his thoughts, Seungcheol’s gentle voice got to his subconscious. He imagined a world...where that never happened. Before Jihoon could even realize how much he hated the fact that Seungcheol’s words resonated with him, Seungcheol’s words resonated with him.

Taking a moment to just breathe, Jihoon said nothing.

Seungcheol could see the sparks in Jihoon’s head going off. “From what you found, has Wonwoo hurt anyone?” he asked.

That threw Jihoon off. “What? No—”

“Have people like him hurt anyone?”

“No, not—”

“Then they don’t need to be exposed,” Seungcheol simply stated.

At this point, Jihoon was so done. “Seungcheol, you don’t—”

“They did nothing wrong, Jihoon,” he made clear. “This isn’t some big government conspiracy. This isn’t about bad people getting away with something. This isn’t about some kids running an illegal dog fighting competition in their basement.”

Jihoon stopped at that last part. For a second, he just couldn’t believe that Seungcheol remembered that from their bus ride.

And Seungcheol could tell. “This truth...isn’t the same as those.”

With an exhausted sigh, Jihoon covered his face. Brushing the hair out of his face, he felt like he had just run a marathon, when in reality he’d just been sitting there debating about his whole life philosophy. Staring at Seungcheol, he couldn’t deal with what was going on inside of him. He hated second guessing himself. He hated it so much. Jihoon hated even more that it was him that made him feel this way.

Trying to remain calm, Jihoon continued to stare at Seungcheol. His chest slowly rose and fell. “This is the story of a lifetime,” he said quietly.

Seungcheol could tell that Jihoon was running out stamina. He knew their conversation was coming to an end. This was his last shot. “To me, a good story has a happy ending.”

Jihoon scoffed. “Not all of them have happy endings.”

“True, but you’re the author of this one.” Keeping his gaze with Jihoon, Seungcheol slowly stood up to go. Looking down, he firmly said, “You can give him a happier ending than this.”

Afraid to linger in Jihoon’s stare, Seungcheol walked out of the room and shut the door behind him without a second glance. When he was finally out of the apartment, out of Jihoon’s hearing range, he hunched over and let out a huge breath. His arms were shaking and his head was spinning. As confident as he may have sounded in there, Seungcheol just wasn’t sure if that was enough. As they spoke, he could see parts of Jihoon’s compassionate self come out, but…

Was it enough? he couldn’t help but question. But no matter how much he asked himself this, it was out of his hands.

Alone in his room, Jihoon sat in the darkness, the only light coming from his monitor. His heart still racing, he breathed angrily. Every puff of air was like a punch to his existence. Seungcheol’s voice rang in his brain as he turned back to face his screen.

“Such a beautiful truth...might actually be the thing that could completely destroy someone.”

“Jihoon, you have the power to ruin this one person more than you could ever imagine.”

“It just takes one, Jihoon!”

“If you can see how much this can hurt ONE, then you shouldn’t publish.”

“Who are we to say what the entire world should have?!”

“But you can make that choice for one person and you know for a fact it will make a difference.”

“What if it was your life on the line and it could all just be okay because of one person’s actions.”

“This truth...isn’t the same as those.”

“You can give him a happier ending than this.”

He didn’t start typing again. For a moment, Jihoon just blankly stared ahead. His head was spinning. He was so dizzy. But the second things started to clear up and he realized what had just happened…

Slamming on hand on his desk and the other to his face, Jihoon was furious. Everything around him shook.

“GOD DAMN IT!”

He hated everything. He hated how easily he could remember Seungcheol’s words. He hated how he managed to make him feel guilty. He hated how he just barged in there and told him what to do. He hated how Seungcheol seemed to understand but still took the other side. He hated how he was second guessing himself. Most of all, he hated how much sense Seungcheol made.

He couldn’t take it. Getting up and flinging his chair behind him, Jihoon turned to his bed and fell face first where Seungcheol had been sitting.

“ING HELL!!

hi guys! so i made it my goal to post three times this month and looks like we made it!! WOOO! agh i hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! it's always a huge mix of things with all the different story lines. like youve got the middle groumd china line then the fluffy jihan and the craziness with meanie and everyone kinda in korea basically XD also, special thanks to all of you guys who helped me name jihoon's article!! seriously they were all great and extra special thanks to @cgao753 whose title i went with <3 as always thank you guys so so much for reading and subscribing and upvoting and commenting gosh it all means soooo much to me! schools been really busy but i try to keep up with this fic cause i love sharing with you guys <3 hopefully another chapter soon!!

oh also!! more of a side note, but I saw B1A4 in concert in LA last week!!!! agh i love seventeen to death but my number one group is actually b1a4 (dont kill me trust me when i say seventeen is JUST AS UP THERE YALL XD) and it was just AMAZING seeing them live! agh it was such a small venue so it felt like you were just there with them and they were having so much fun agh but yeah so if you see my b1a4 references in there thats why XD idk if ive mentioned how much i love them before but yeah XD i guess something to just point out is any artist or group i kinda just mention through this story i really really love (so like bigbang and mamamoo and royal pirates and bts and eric nam XD) just a little thing lol ANYWAY! THANKS AGAIN AND HOPE TO TALK TO YOU GUYS SOON!!

edit: AND OH MY GOD SORRY BUT I REALIZE I KEEP FORGETTING TO SAY THIS!! i started this story over a year ago! This story e year old last month and i cannot express to you how much i appreciate you guys who have been here from the beginning to those subscribed literally yesterday XD seriously its been awesome and thank you for sticking around for this long! i promise it wont be another year before this storys finished ;) I LOVE YOU <3