Sorry for the late update guys. I had finals and so yeah. This chapter is longer than my normal ones though. This occured in the same storm that was brought up in Chapter 8 and so to clear things up Chapter 7 happened a week before Chapter 8. I have no clue how long until the next update because I don't really like writing more than one story at a time, but I am kinda writing another one and a co-author one as well so I apologize for that. How have you guys been as of late. Well I would hope. Thank you for being patient with me and I look forward to your comments. 

~

Sungyeol’s vision was slightly bleary as he tried to focus on the cloudy sky. “Sungyeol!” Wow whoever was shaking him seriously needed to be more careful they needed to be quieter too. There was no light but wait, why were there two Woohyun’s? Sungyeol shot up at that only to clutch his head because he had moved way too fast. “You’re up right? Dongwoo is he sitting up? I was so worried,” Woohyun again, and yup the voice was way too loud.

    “Yeah he’s up, Woohyun,” a deeper voice informed. Sungyeol tried to open his eyes wider only to slam them shut because it was way too bright to be a rainy day.

    “It’s me and Dongwoo’s here too, you didn’t come home and I was so worried so we came out to look for you and you were passed out here,” Sungyeol was finally able to see and his foggy brain had managed to clear a little. Woohyun was there and so was Dongwoo, wow his brain was kinda getting repetitive.

    Sungyeol could only manage an apologetic glance because honestly he wasn’t awake enough to say anything. Dongwoo chuckled at Sungyeol’s grogginess before helping both him and Woohyun of the ground.

    “Let’s go home guys, we wouldn’t wanna be caught outside in the storm,” thunder crackled as Dongwoo spoke and Sungyeol felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. What if they couldn’t make it home in time? He stumbled along as Dongwoo tried to get both him and Woohyun home only for the showers before the storm to begin.

    “What the hell are you guys doing out?” Sungyeol was caught off guard when he heard a voice that was neither Dongwoo’s or Woohyun’s but Dongwoo seemed to know the voice.

    “Oh Howon, we were just heading home,” Dongwoo replied with a tone that was much more timid than Jang Dongwoo normally ever was.

    “Oh and how were you planning on getting there?” Sungyeol couldn’t help but chuckle as Dongwoo seemed to relax the moment he heard the snide in the voice. Whomever this Howon was it was clear that he and Dongwoo had quite an interesting relationship.

    “What does it matter to you, we would definitely be a lot closer to our house if you hadn’t stopped us for something as petty as mockery,” Woohyun was jumping to Dongwoo’s defense. Sungyeol kinda glad Woohyun was blind due to the fact that if Woohyun had seen Howon’s eye roll there would have been a brawl for sure.

    “Well we are in a project together and I want an A so I kind of need to make sure you don’t die. Get in my car so that way I can take you to where I live and make sure you are alive,” Sungyeol smiling as Howon turned his back and walked almost as if expecting they would follow and when Dongwoo did he decided to follow along, Woohyun dragged with them. When at the car Woohyun, Sungyeol and Dongwoo made to sit in the back of the car only to be stopped.

    “What do you think you are toddlers? There is no way three men can sit in the back of a car this small, Dongwoo stop wasting my time and just sit up front,” Woohyun couldn’t help but smile at that. The rest of the car ride was almost like a drama. Sungyeol and Woohyun just watching while Dongwoo and Howon conversed. Well okay calling it conversation was a little too generous. More like Howon interrogated about Dongwoo’s dance skill set and Dongwoo tried to provide an answer that wouldn’t make him seem like an amateur. Of course no matter how amusing the conversation was to watch, it soon came to an end as they had reached their destination. After that Howon led them to the door and when it opened Howon was more than shocked to see who was inside.

    “Hope you don’t mind me staying Howonnie, I was trying to get home when I saw this adorable little girl who was looking for someone named Sunggyu and you talk to me all the time about your friends so I knew he lived with you and by the time we got here it was raining too much for me to go back home,” Howon couldn’t help but cringe at the sweetness is Areum’s voice.

    “Of course I wouldn’t mind, Areum” Howon replied with practiced affection.

    “Oh Dongwoo, what a pleasant surprise to see you here as well. We haven’t really had much of a chance to talk have we?  How have your practices been coming along? Can we dance a little please?” Howon couldn’t help but grimace at that. Areum really wasted no time did she, pouncing the moment she was with him damn. Howon realized just how serious Areum was getting about this.

    “I would love to, you are amazing from what I’ve seen in class,” Dongwoo was smiling way too much, it was annoying. Not to mention the excitement in his voice like seriously. Howon was a way better dancer than Areum anyway so why didn’t Dongwoo look at him like that? Howon couldn’t believe Areum was already showing him up. Frustration causing him to grip the thing closest to him, his script suffering much that day.     

    “Mister Woohyun?” Woohyun would know that voice anywhere, and smiled realizing that this must have been the little girl that the girl named Areum found. Woohyun successfully distracted from listening in on the conversation Dongwoo was having.

    “Soyeon?” he heard a giggle at that.

    “You remember me! Come on let’s go to Gyu-gyu’s room,” Woohyun couldn’t help but chuckle at the ridiculous nickname.

    “Soyeon I told you not to call me that,” Woohyun knew that voice as Sunggyu. Woohyun and Soyeon had made been visiting the graveyard together for a few days and getting closer to Sunggyu had just happened too.

    “I find it cute, Gyu-gyu,” Woohyun teased only for Sunggyu to groan.

    “Please don’t I just got Howon to stop, I don’t want to deal with being teased again?” Sunggyu groaned, something about the other man seeming aged.

    “Of course, grandfather, I know it’s bad to disrespect the elderly,” Woohyun couldn’t help it but to his surprise he found himself being mercilessly tickled. He laughed so hard tears found their way to the edge of his eyes and he was soon begging for mercy.

    “That’s more like it, hope you’ve learned your lesson for trying to sass me,” Sunggyu said only for Woohyun to punch him. “Okay, okay, you win.”

    “Gyu-gyu can you read me stories?” Soyeon asked, tired of being cast to the side. and Sunggyu couldn’t help but smile at that. Soyeon beaming because she rarely got to see Sunggyu smile.

    “I’ll tell you one. It’s about a girl. She wasn’t really that pretty, or skilled, or anything special. She just was kind to everyone, stubborn too. When she set her heart on something there was nothing that could change her mind. Now this girl, well she became friends with a boy. A boy who and joked with her and promised to always be with her. They were friends for a long time but then, then the girl got sick. The boy was sad, heartbroken even because he knew that the girl wouldn’t get better from this sickness, he kept his promise though, staying by her side until the girl decided to make him break it. That was the last day he saw the girl, her small smiles, her mixed scent of lavender and sweat well those were things he would never have again,” Sunggyu stopped almost as if he himself was caught up in the story he was telling.

    “Is that the end, does the story not have a happy ending?” Soyeon being the child she was asked obliviously.

    “No it has no happy ending, only a decent one. After he lost the girl the boy learned one thing, that no matter what the girl’s kind heart always beat strong and continued to beat on in another girl who was just as kind and just as lovable,” Sunggyu finished his hand resting on Soyeon’s wrist, his thumb right above her pulse point.

    “What’s the characters names Gyu-gyu?” Soyeon asked, excitement in her voice as if this story was the best she had heard.

    “That is a story for a different day Soyeon,” Sunggyu replied, trying to ignore how Soyeon’s face fell a little.

    “Oh Mister Woohyun, how come you can’t see anymore? Were you born that way?” Soyeon asked after a few moments of silence, much to Sunggyu’s mortification.

    “Young lady do you know how rude…” Sunggyu was cut off by Woohyun.

    “Well me and my family were in this really bad crash and…” Woohyun paused a little thinking of the most elegant way to put it, “well the bus was in ruins and something got in my eyes and after that I couldn’t see anymore.”

    “Is that the family you were visiting at the place where Ji is?” Soyeon asked.

    “Ji?” Woohyun asked confused.

    “Silly Mister, Jihyun who I gave the album too,” Soyeon said and Woohyun smiled.

    “Oh, then yes, my family are at the graveyard,” Woohyun answered, still smiling while Sunggyu just kept his mouth shut because he didn’t want to be the one that ticked Woohyun off.

    “Oh have you heard about the e?” Areum asked a little too loudly and it was enough to get everyone in the room’s attention, Sunggyu sending Soyeon to a different room.

    “Yeah don’t you find it disgusting, like why would a person go to such extremes for money? Do they have no shame?” Woohyun bit out, the e was known by every student.

    “Well maybe he has his own reasons,” Myungsoo who was silently studying piped up.

    “What reason could justify doing what he does? No he is just greedy and that’s that. It’s a disgrace such a person was even let into a school as prestigious as ours,” Dongwoo snapped, shocking Howon. After all the practices they had together, Howon didn’t think someone as gentle as Dongwoo had that sort of spite in him. Of course as the conversation got more interesting no one noticed two people slipping out to a separate room.

    “You had the same idea huh?” Myungsoo asked as he saw Sungyeol sitting down across from him. Myungsoo was met by silence and then his eyes widened with realization. “Oh right you can’t talk and you left your stuff in the other room, let me get you something to write on,” Myungsoo expected to be slapped but instead all he was met by was a big grin.

    Yeah, I mean who are we to judge a situation we can’t understand? Sungyeol wrote. Why’d you come out?

    “Uhm well I just feel like he probably doesn’t have a choice and they don’t understand,” Myungsoo wanted to believe what he was saying but what if the e did have a choice. What if he was nothing but a good to the boy who stole his heart.

    I’m sure they would think differently if they did know his situation, Sungyeol wrote. Sungyeol never thought he would be here without his mask, here in the bedroom of Kim Myungsoo. The boy he could never give up. Even when Chanhee offered to cover for him on a busy night and do Myungsoo he wouldn’t allow it. That’s when his curious wandering eyes fell upon a clear chest full of black feathers, the black feathers he gifted the man.

    “Have you ever wondered if a e could feel love?” Myungsoo asked.

I am sure he does, but because of his profession he’d never let himself actually fall. He wouldn’t let the person he loves feel the pain of having to share their lover. So it’s best you move on. Sungyeol would know what was in Myungsoo’s eyes no matter what, they had spent too many nights together for him to not realize what it was. Lovesickness, no matter how much Myungsoo tried to hide it Sungyeol could always see it. After all Myungsoo was like a book written in code. To those who couldn’t understand it they would never see Myungsoo’s true feelings, but if one learned how to read the code it was extremely easy to know exactly what was on Kim Myungsoo’s mind.

“I am not in love with him-” Myungsoo was cut off by Sunggyu calling them in for food, Sungyeol leaving the room without even giving the other a chance to finish of his explanation.

~

The storm had cleared and Areum excused herself from Howon’s house. “Aren’t you having a little too much fun? You haven’t forgotten your real objective have you?” She turned around to find a man in a black suit.

“Me, fun, no not really. I just knew someone was looking into the e and I found our culprits. After all, wouldn’t it be a hindrance if someone got to the bottom of this first. Speaking of which, here is some information on the last customer that they had,” Areum informed, pissed that she had to be respectful.

“Oh and what is this little competition you are starting with Lee Howon have to do with anything?” Areum hated that condescending tone.

“Oh why don’t you figure that out yourself boss?” Areum snapped not caring about consequences and stalking off. Things had just gotten more risky and time was starting to run out not for Areum but for the boys that were unintentionally risking their lives by changing their target customers.