Uncle Sunho was asleep on the couch when Byunghun and I came back inside. No one else was downstairs, so Byunghun and I migrated our drippy selves upstairs to the upper unit. Sure enough, we found Changhyun, Jonghyun, Daniel and Min Neul in one of the bedrooms.

                Min Neul was sitting cross-legged on one of the beds; Jonghyun’s bed, I assumed, because his suitcase sat beside his girlfriend. She and Daniel were tossing clothes from Jonghyun’s and Changhyun’s suitcases respectively. Teen Top’s maknaes would then fold the clothes and plop them in the dressers they had claimed.

                “Hey,” Byunghun said, leaning against the doorframe. He crossed his arms over his chest; I tried not to look at his arm muscles.

                Jonghyun turned around abruptly. “Hi hyung!”

                “Hey,” Min Neul giggled. She picked up a striped shirt from Jonghyun’s suitcase and tossed it to him.

                “Hyung! Kirin!” Changhyun cried.

                “Hi,” Daniel said cheerfully.

                Byunghun gestured to the suitcases on the floor. “So I see you two have claimed this room, huh?”

                Jonghyun smiled and nodded. “Maknaes have to stick together.”

                “Does that mean I can stay in this room too?” Min Neul asked, raising an eyebrow. She tossed another shirt to Jonghyun.

                He caught the shirt with one hand. “I wish,” he smirked.

                “Where’s Chanhee?” Byunghun asked.

                “In here!” Chanhee’s voice called from the next bedroom. Byunghun peered into the room and found Chanhee standing halfway in the closet, hanging up some of his clothes on the plastic white hangers.

                Byunghun stepped into the room and sat on one of the beds. He looked down at the floor; his own suitcase was resting at the foot of the bed. He smiled to himself. “Better leave some closet space for me,” he teased.

                Chanhee turned around and grinned. “You know I will.”

                “Ah, I know,” Byunghun giggled with a smile.

                Chanhee bent down to pick up another shirt to hang up. “You look awfully happy,” he noted.

                Byunghun shrugged. “I am happy. I’m in California with all of my friends and my amazing girlfriend, the house we’re staying in is beautiful, and I get to visit my mom and brother sometime soon. And we’re here for two months! I don’t think I’ve ever been happier in my entire life.”

                A smirk formed on Chanhee’s lips. “Happier than when you found out you were going to be a member of Teen Top?”

                Byunghun shrugged. “Possibly.”

                Chanhee laughed and shook his head. “This has been quite a year for you, hasn’t it?”

                Byunghun puffed out his cheeks. “Tell me about it. I’m determined to make this summer perfect.”

                “It will be,” Chanhee assured him. “Especially because all nine of us are together.”

                Byunghun laughed. “Can you imagine the crazy stuff we’re going to get into?”

                Chanhee joined in the laughter. “Can you imagine what would happen if we had the house to ourselves?”

                “Kirin said we might!” Byunghun cried, his eyes the shape of rainbows. “Her parents and Andy-hyung are bound to leave the house eventually!”

                “No way!” Chanhee exclaimed. “You really think so?”

                “Hell yeah!” Byunghun responded excitedly.

                Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Byunghun and Chanhee whipped their heads around to find me standing in the doorway. My short hair was still partially wet, and I still had a towel wrapped around my waist. On top I simply wore my red bikini top. “Mom, Dad, Minsoo and Hyerin are back with food. You guys hungry?”

                “Totally,” Byunghun responded.

                “Then you better come downstairs soon before Changhyun eats all the food,” I chuckled.

                Chanhee laughed. “We’ll be down soon.”

                “See you there,” I giggled as I sauntered out of the doorframe.

                Byunghun gazed out into the hallway a few seconds longer than necessary. Chanhee playfully punched his arm. “What?” Byunghun’s voice cracked.
                “Oh, nothing,” Chanhee responded. “I’m just starting to think you like Kirin better than me.”

                Byunghun laughed. “Aw, you know I love you.”

                Chanhee beamed smugly. “Ah, I know.” He giggled as he stood up. “You coming downstairs to eat?”

                “Yeah, but I’m going to change first,” Byunghun answered.

                Chanhee nodded. “I’ll save you a seat next to me,” he chuckled as he headed towards the door.

                “Better be next to Kirin, too!” Byunghun called.

                “Of course!” Chanhee hollered from the hallway.

                Byunghun chuckled to himself as he looked down at his suitcase. He fished through it until he found a pair of boxers, jeans, and a wrinkled t-shirt. After dressing himself in faded skinny jeans and a dark gray v-neck, he stood in front of the full-length mirror and ran a comb through his hair. Suddenly, someone else appeared in the reflection of the mirror.

                Byunghun turned around. “Ah, Minsoo-hyung!”

                “Hey,” Minsoo smiled as he sauntered into the room. One hand was in his jeans pocket, the other was loosely holding a white plastic bag. He casually looked around. “Did you and Chanhee move in?” he asked humorously.

                Byunghun chuckled and flipped his orange hair so it fell properly across his forehead. “Yeah, and the maknaes already claimed the room next to this one. So you and Daniel have the last one.”

                “Cool,” Minsoo nodded.

                “Are you coming downstairs to eat?” Byunghun asked.

                “In a few minutes,” Minsoo responded. He looked around the room one more time. “But before that, I was hoping to talk to you for a minute.”

                Byunghun shrugged. “Sure. What about?”

                Minsoo turned around and glanced down the hallway both ways before he shut the door. He shuffled back to the bed and sat down. “I got something at the store.”

                “What is it?” Byunghun asked, sitting down beside his hyung.

                Minsoo looked down at the plastic bag that sat between him and his orange-headed dongsaeng. “Look inside.”

                Byunghun glanced down at the bag. He looked back up at Minsoo, then back down at the bag. He slowly reached for it, and stuck his hand inside. When he withdrew his hand, he was holding a tiny, square package of shiny, white plastic. Byunghun knew instantly what they were. Condoms.
                “Hyung!”Byunghun looked down at the flat object in his hands with wide eyes.

                “Alright, I don’t know for sure if I’m going to use one,” Minsoo began, “I mean, we might not even get the chance to, you know?”

                “Does Hyerin know you bought these?” Byunghun asked.

                Minsoo shook his head. “I don’t think she saw them. I bought these on my own.”

                “Have you talked to her about this or something?” Byunghun questioned further.

                Minsoo’s vision cascaded downward. “No, I haven’t,” he admitted. He looked back up at Byunghun. “But remember that one night we all slept over at Kirin’s? We slept on the couch. Together. She fell asleep on my chest, and she didn’t seem to mind at all. I obviously didn’t mind. Remember that night?”

                “Yeah, I remember that,” Byunghun said, letting his mind wander to that night. Stuff happened that night that Minsoo didn’t even know about…

                Minsoo shrugged. “I’m almost twenty years old, Byunghun. I know Hyerin’s only eighteen, but what difference does it make? I love her. She loves me. I just wanted to be ready if something should happen, you know?”

                Byunghun smiled. “I know, hyung. I get it.” He glanced into the bag. “God, how many of these did you buy?”

                “I bought a handful. There are about seven or eight of them, I think.”
                That brought a smile to Byunghun’s lips. “Damn,” he chuckled. “Just how busy do you think you’ll be?”

                “Yah,” Minsoo punched his dongsaeng’s arm. “I’m not going to use all of them. Like I said, I might not even use one of them. I just thought I should have them. That’s all.”

                Byunghun looked down at the shiny, white square of packaging in his hands. No one knew this wasn’t the first time he had held one in his hands; he had gotten the first one himself much like Minsoo had. In secret, alone. However, he had only ever had one.

                “Hyung?” Byunghun began suddenly. “You said you won’t need all of these, right?”

                “Right,” Minsoo nodded.

                Byunghun looked down at his hands again. “Mind if I take this one?”

                Minsoo crossed his arms and raised his eyebrows. “Lee Byunghun, just what do you think you’ll need it for?” he asked curiously.

                Byunghun looked his hyung straight in the eye and smirked. “Oh, nothing.”

                Minsoo nodded slowly, a smile spreading across his lips. He punched Byunghun in the arm. “You’re only eighteen, kid,” he kindly reminded.

                “Same age as Hyerin, right?”

                “Ah, true,” Minsoo replied. “Alright if you really want it, then it’s all yours.”

                Slipping it into his back pocket, Byunghun smiled. “Thanks, hyung.”
                “No problem. Just, ah…make sure no one knows you have it, alright?”

                “Of course,” Byunghun answered with a nod.

                “Good.” Minsoo stood up, reached for the bag, and tied a tight knot in the top of it. “Especially not Jonghyun.”

                Byunghun scrunched his eyebrows. “How come?”

                “I don’t want him and Min Neul getting any ideas. You know how they are; they can’t keep their hands off of each other. I don’t trust them. And either does Hyerin.”

                Byunghun shrugged. “He’s not a kid anymore, hyung. He’s sixteen.”

                “I don’t care, he’s still too young,” Minsoo stated, crossing his arms. “I don’t want him knowing about this. Alright?”

                Byunghun nodded. “My lips are sealed.”

                “Good.” Minsoo stood up slowly. “Now, how about we get some food?”

                Byunghun and Minsoo came sauntering down the stairs and into the kitchen nearly fifteen minutes after everyone else had started eating. Some of us were seated at the kitchen table and others were just standing around it. There were three pizza boxes open on the counter: one pepperoni, one sausage, and one cheese. Uncle Sunho and my father were drinking beers with their pizza, but everyone else was drinking Sprite. I sat between Chanhee and Daniel, the three of us already munching on our second pieces of pizza.

                “Pizza?” Byunghun asked as he stepped into the kitchen.

                “Help yourself,” Mom said, handing the boys some plates.

                “Very American,” Byunghun said in English as he reached for a piece with sausage.

                “When in America, do as the Americans,” Mom replied with a smile.

                Minsoo loaded his plate with two pieces of pepperoni as Mom poured each of them a glass of Sprite. Minsoo and Byunghun reached out to accept them. “Kamsamnida,” they said at the same time.

                “Ah, now wait a second!” Mom said suddenly, raising the glasses a little higher. “Now, how do you say ‘thank you’ in English?” She looked around at the other seven kids. “Anyone but Kirin and Byunghun can answer.”

                “Thank you!” Jonghyun cried.

                “Correct!” Mom declared as she handed the glasses to Minsoo and Byunghun again.

                “Thank you,” Minsoo repeated in English.

                “Thanks Mrs. Lee,” Byunghun beamed.

                “You are welcome,” my mom replied in English.

                “I can feel myself getting smarter already!” Changhyun cried. His hands flew to his head as if his brain was literally growing with a plethora of knowledge.

                “Basic English is pretty easy to learn,” Hyerin spoke up.

                “Yeah, once you learn the basics it’s not so bad,” Byunghun agreed.

                “Did you learn English quickly, hyung?” Jonghyun asked.

                Byunghun shook his head. “At first it was really hard. English is very different from Korean. It takes a lot of practice.”

                “Well, now your English is comparable to a native’s!” Mom commented.

                Byunghun smiled. ”Oh, Mrs. Lee, you’re always so kind!”

                “I’m going to be as good as Byunghun-hyung someday,” Daniel said defiantly.

                “Maybe you will,” Minsoo said.

                “I doubt it,” Byunghun retorted smugly. Everyone laughed.

                When all the pizza had been eaten and all the Sprite bottles had been drained, Changhyun yawned. “I’m exhausted,” he announced.

                “I am, too,” Min Neul agreed quickly.

                I glanced over at the digital clock on the stove. It was only six-thirty, but I already felt like heading to bed. Between swimming, traveling, and kissing, today had certainly been a tiring day.

                Minsoo was passing all the dirty dishes to my mother. “I’m going upstairs and falling asleep,” he chuckled.

                “The second you put your head down you’re always asleep,” Daniel giggled.

                Everyone laughed again, and Minsoo smirked. “Yah, shut up!”

                “Do you need any help Mrs. Lee?” Byunghun suddenly asked sweetly, popping up beside my mother.

                “No, Byunghun, but thank you for asking,” Mom responded with a smile.

                “Are you sure? There’s an awful lot of dishes to clean,” Byunghun continued.

                “Don’t worry about it, I can handle it,” Mom assured him.

                Byunghun smiled sweetly. “Well if you need any help, don’t hesitate to ask me.” He took a step away from my mother and towards me.

                “Thanks, Byunghun,” Mom replied appreciatively. “You’re always so sweet.”

                One by one, everyone began to exit the kitchen. Dad and Uncle Sunho had left a while ago to go sit outside by the pool with another round of beers. The maknaes had been the first to head upstairs, Hyerin and Minsoo close on their heels. Chanhee, Changhyun, and Daniel were the next to disappear upstairs.

                “Wanna go hang out upstairs with everyone?” Byunghun asked.

                I shrugged. “Sure.”

                Just as we were leaving the kitchen, Mom looked at me from over her shoulder. She smiled admiringly at me, but I knew the smile was for Byunghun.

                As we rounded the corner from the kitchen to the staircase, Byunghun laced his fingers between mine. His hands were soft and warm. He led me up the staircase and into one of the bedrooms, bypassing the living room where everyone else was, except for Min Neul and Jonghyun.

                “Don’t you want to hang out with everyone?” I asked, looking at them over my shoulder.

                “We have two whole months to spend with them,” Byunghun shrugged.

                “Well, you have two whole months to spend with me as well,” I giggled.

                Byunghun turned around to face me. “That’s not enough time.”

                 We were standing in the center of Byunghun and Chanhee’s room. The door was wide open; anyone could walk in. Byunghun didn’t seem to care, though, because he hooked a strand of hair behind my ear and leaned down to kiss me. He looped his fingers through the belt loops of my shorts and pulled me close to him. I responded by slipping my hands into his back pockets.

                As soon as I did that, I not only felt Byunghun tense up, but I felt something in his pocket. It was flat and smooth. I took my lips off Byunghun’s and gripped the mysterious object in my hand.

                Byunghun bit his lip. “Ah…” he trailed off nervously.

                I pulled the small package out of his pocket; it was exactly what I thought it was. “Is this a ?”

                “Wait!” Byunghun cried. He turned around and sprang for the door. He quietly shut it and turned sharply back around to me. “Okay, let me explain,” he began, holding his hands up in a you’ve-been-caught-red-handed kind of way. We sat side by side on the bed while I waited for him to explain himself. “Today when your mom and dad and Minsoo-hyung and Hyerin went to the store, Minsoo-hyung bought some of those.”

                I raised an eyebrow. “For him and Hyerin?”

                “Obviously,” Byunghun answered.

                “My parents don’t know, right?!” I exclaimed worriedly.

                “No, they don’t, I promise! Minsoo-hyung said he bought them when he was alone,” Byunghun explained.

                I felt a sharp decrease in my stress. “Oh. Okay. Good.”

                “Don’t worry,” Byunghun assured me. “No one but Minsoo, me, and now you know about them.”

                “So Hyerin doesn’t?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

                “What? No,” Byunghun answered. He shook his orange head. “Look, this isn’t about Minsoo-hyung or Hyerin. This is about you and me.”

                I felt my face soften. I closed the packet in my hand and tilted my head to the side. “Minsoo gave you one, didn’t he?”

                “Actually, I asked for one,” Byunghun admitted, his face turning red.

                I felt my stomach tighten; not in a bad way, in a good way. My brain filled with thoughts much like they had the night I had all of Teen Top, Hyerin, and Min Neul over when my parents weren’t home.

                “Byunghun, I—”

                “Wait a second and let me talk, please?” Byunghun asked timidly. I nodded. He was unable to look me in the eyes as he spoke again.  He was talking animatedly with his hands. “Okay, I just figured that, well, we did it once already, and we’d be spending a lot of time together this summer and we’ll probably have some alone time eventually, so I just figured that this would be a good thing to have in case, I don’t know, something happened again, so I guess I just wanted to be ready and—”

                I smiled to myself. He’s rambling again, I thought, a dead giveaway that he’s nervous. I didn’t even bother to interrupt him by saying his name over and over again. He wouldn’t listen. I simply leaned forward, placed a hand on his thigh, and kissed him. That shut him up better than anything else could have.

                Byunghun dropped his hands and kissed me back.  We kissed for about seven seconds before we separated. “Okay,” he said slowly, timidly. “What…”

                I chuckled and shook my head. “Byunghun, if you want to do it again, then that’s fine. You can tell me, you know.”

                He smiled shyly, adorably. “Well, I didn’t want to pressure you into it. I didn’t want you to think I was being pushy,” Byunghun explained hesitantly.

                I chuckled again, looking down at the plastic square in my hand. “You’re not. Don’t worry so much, alright?” I quickly pecked his cheek and dropped the package into his palm. “Keep it. Okay?”

                Byunghun nodded, this time a little more confidently. “Okay,” he said finally. He slid the thin, square packet into the back pocket of his skinny jeans. “If you say so.”

- - - - - -

Sorry if the story's been boring so far...the pace will pick up and it gets really good, I promise ;)