Warning: This chapter briefly references a past death but there are no details or graphic nature so don't worry. It's purely for the purpose of backstory right now, and it won't become actually relevant until referenced again later on in some of the very last chapters.

Kihyun's English literature class finished shortly after hanging out with the others earlier. Thursdays were his easy days, only two classes, one at 8:30am that lasted 2 and a half hours and a much shorter, 1 and a half hour class at 2pm. That meant he basically had the whole afternoon and night to spend as he pleased. 

As mid semester was fast approaching, he decided to meet up with a couple of classmates at the library for a study session, where they reviewed some of the major concepts and tested each other based on them. It only felt like 10 minutes to Kihyun but in reality, it was actually a solid 3 hours. When they hit the 3 hour mark, they spent a final 20 minutes casually talking before deciding to grab dinner. The small group made the short trek to their favorite pizza shop across campus and filled their growling stomachs, taking the time to continue their earlier conversation, as well as laugh at some of the awful puns their professor made in class that morning.

The small male was thoroughly stuffed, so he got up to pay for the meal, insisted it was his treat, and took his leave. Once he left the shop he glanced at his watch and saw that it was already nearing 8 o'clock and thus was too late to fit in some extra vocal practice. He shrugged, thinking it wasn't that big of a deal since he already went yesterday. He unlocked his phone and opened an app, about to text Minhyuk to see if the spunky blonde needed any help with studying, because lord knows that kid gets distracted far too easily, when his phone rang. He looked at the name on the screen only to throw his head back in mirth as the screen read the exact person he had just been thinking of, with a silly display photo to match. He answered the call.

"Hey, I was just about to text yo-" Kihyun started, only to be interupted by a loud, rambling voice.

"Oh my god man, please come help me, I'm dying here. I don't get any of this. I know you're a music student but you're smart and you understand people so I'm sure you could totally explain this to me. I'm normally pretty good on my own with psych but there's this one theory that's seriously throwing me for a loop here." 

Kihyun could hear the desperation in Minhyuk's voice and told him to calm down before he passes out from lack of air. 

"I'm on my way. Did you want me to bring you a paper bag in case you start hyperventalating?" Kihyun commented with a quirk of his brow.

"I'm serious! Just get your tiny over here and help me~" Minhyuk whined, throwing himself roughly onto the bed, sound easily heard through the phone.

"YAH! I'M NOT TINY!" Kihyun stomped his feet as he hollered into the reciever, gathering the attention from another passing student. "Just hold on, I'll be there in 5 minutes."

Minhyuk cheered loudly as Kihyun hung up. The short male pinched the bridge of his nose, and wondered why the heck he thought it was a good idea to befriend the human equivalent of a megaphone, as he made his way to his friend's dorm.

******

Hyungwon patiently waited outside the older boys' classroom, ready to walk home together. The two oldest having already moved out of the school administered residences and were leasing an apartment together, that Hyungwon often found himself visiting on days like today. The tall boy was ranked within the top 5 in all of his classes for as long as he could remember so it wasn't a surprise to anyone that he was already well studied and prepared for the upcoming tests while others were still scrambling to clean up their notes, school had always been one of those things that just came easy to him. He considered himself really lucky because of that. Some of the stress he'd seen his friends and peers under due to school, it was a wonder how some students managed to go their whole school career without developing anxiety disorders.

The model-esque boy pulled out his phone and absentmindedly played a game as he leaned against the wall, having memorized his lover's schedule well enough to know he had another 20 minutes until the class would be dismissed. Sometimes it would actually be a case of Hoseok waiting for him to get out of class, if the material he was learning was easy. But when it came to exams and midterms, Hoseok always chose to sit through the whole two and a half hours of class, not willing to let his grades slip even the slightest. Unlike Hyungwon, Hoseok wasn't just highly ranked in his individual classes, he was also one of the best students in his entire program overall.

Hyungwon won't lie, when he first met Hoseok, he was aware of his reputation as a "protector" among the school and it definitely made him a little nervous around the other originally. But after just a few conversations, he saw so many other sides to the shorter male, one of which was the incredibly soft-hearted and sensitive part of him. Hoseok never got any joy out of fighting, in fact, he only ever felt remorse for inflicting harm and not being able to resolve the issue in a way that wasn't violent. He said the only reason he ever even resorted to violence was out of self-defense or defending another person. If he knew the person wouldn't respond to words and if they wouldn't refrain from antagonzing whoever the victim was, only then would he make physical contact. But as much as Hoseok hated fighting (and conflict in general if he was being honest), his dad had always taught him to defend those who can't or even won't defend themselves, and unfortunately sometimes fighting was the only answer. 

And that desire to protect that was instilled in him at such a young age only got stronger when he lost his mom. It was a fatal impact caused by a drunk driver that happened after a 16 year old Hoseok asked his mom for a snack that they had apparently just run out of. Hoseok said his mom was a wonderful woman and would always go out of her way for anyone, so she decided to walk to the store to go buy some, but she never came back. It wasn't until a neighbour who had been out on their run knocked on the door after calling the ambulance, and told his dad what happened. His dad told him to stay inside the house as he ran to where her body layed on the ground, unconscious. She died shortly after arriving at the hospital, a severe break in her spinal cord coupled with a minor skull fracture meant there was nothing the doctors could do. 

Hyungwon knew the effect that the situation had had on Hoseok. To this day there were still times, specifically the anniversary of her death, where Hoseok had to fight the guilty part of him that said he was at fault, that if he had just settled for a different snack, his mom wouldn't have been there to get hit....But maybe someone else would have been instead. Hoseok was never a fan of that thought either, but it did always serve to bring him back to earth and remind him that the only one at fault was the person who made the decision to get behind the wheel and put the lives of those around them at risk. And even though Hyungwon was younger then him and probably shouldn't have been subject to comforting someone when it came to something so serious, he was still the first one Hoseok went to when it happened, which came as a shock to the younger boy.

Hyungwon's morbid train of thought was broken by the sound of a door opening as students brushed by him. He heard the voices of his hyungs and pocketed his phone, looking up with a soft smile. Hoseok immediately saw him and quickly pressed his lips to Hyungwon's before lacing their hands together as they made their way to the apartment, an easy flow of conversation between the three.

******

After the final class of the day ended for the remaining two boys, the others having returned to their dorms hours ago, Changkyun and Jooheon could be found waiting in line at a Starbucks at the edge of campus debating their game plan for the weekend. Midterms were coming up and although they weren't exactly nervous, Changkyun had missed a week's worth of classes because of an accident at home that landed him in the infirmary. Apparently the smaller boy was rushing down the stairs and fell, messing up his ankle pretty badly. It also explained the bruises on his side...though they did look a little odd to Jooheon, but he wasn't about to question it, knowing the boy to be capable of some really unusual things.

"So, do you wanna go to your house to study?" Jooheon asked, as the line moved forward.

Changkyun scratched the back of his head, "Uhh, I mean, we could. My parents are out of town this weekend, but the house is being fumigated right now and it might take a few days. It's probably best if we just go to your house, saves time, you know?"
 

Jooheon made a sound of understanding. "Hey, don't you think it's kind of weird how after so many years of being friends, I've only ever been able to come over when your parents aren't home. Like, you're practically a second son to my parents but I don't even know what your parents' names are." he said. "I'm not trying to convince you or anything, just think it's interesting." 

"Ehh, they're just really private people I guess. I don't know man, I don't even understand them most days." Changkyun shrugged off Jooheon's comment off in an uncommitted fashion. 

The taller boy nodded, never one to intrude on the privacy of others. Silence fell between the two as Jooheon ordered their drinks. He handed the money to the person at the register and grabbed the drinks from the barista, handing one of them to the shorter male. Changkyun thanked him as they made their way out of the shop.

They got halfway to the park that they were planning to write in, hoping the fresh air would make for some good inspiration, when a sudden shout from Jooheon's side took him by surprise. He turned to see Changkyun, and his previously half finished drink now empty, the contents currently seeping into his clothes.

"What the hell just happened?" he asked, shocked at the state of his friend.

Changkyun sighed heavily, "I don't know man. I tripped slightly and I guess my grip tightened on the cup as I tried to catch myself, or something." 
Jooheon shook his head and sighed out a small laugh. He had never met such a clumsy person in his life until he, literally, bumped into him back in high school. 

"You're a mess, dude." 

Changkyun gave Jooheon an unamused look, "Thanks, man. I appreciate it." 

Jooheon smiled brightly, dimples ever present on his face. "Hey, at least you're a hot mess, if that makes it any better." He threw his arm around Changkyun's shoulder and smiled at him.

"Come on, let's go back to my dorm and I'll lend you a shirt", he gave a brief look in the direction of Changkyun's hips, "and some pants." he added with a chuckle and a slight tap to the shorter male's .

Changkyun finally let out a breathy laugh, the ridiculousness of the situation finally setting in, before a thought occurred to him. "So, you think I'm hot, huh?" he grinned cheekily.

Jooheon rolled his eyes and laughed heartily, squeezing Changkyun's shoulder gently in response.

Chapter 2 DONE! A little bit of backstory on Hoseok in this one which will become more relevant in much later chapters. Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed it!