“Ah, are you even listening to me?” Kwangmin tossed a couple shirts into the suitcase that lay open on his bed, stealing a glance at his twin, who was lying on his own bed on the other side of the room.

“I’m listening, I’m listening,” Youngmin mumbled, rubbing at his eyes tiredly. He rolled over and pulled the covers higher while Kwangmin continued to move about agitatedly.

“So you’ll take care of Pikachu while I’m gone?”

Youngmin rolled over again so that he was facing his twin and held out his hand, closing his fingers in a fist but holding out his pinky. Kwangmin gave him a confused stare. “What?”

“Pinky promise.” Youngmin opened an eye, impatiently waiting for the other to link pinkies. “So you stop worrying so much.”

The two looked at each other for a moment longer. Kwangmin could see that Youngmin was being serious, so he reached over and sealed the pinky promise. Youngmin closed his eye and let his arm drop, grunting when his hand smacked the bed frame. Kwangmin returned to packing, cramming some underwear unceremoniously into the suitcase.

Youngmin was just dozing off again when something soft hit his face. With a startled yelp, he sat up, and the object fell onto his lap. Pikachu stared up at him with an innocent smile as another Pikachu landed next to him. Youngmin looked around in time to see Kwangmin pick up a third Pikachu and toss it at him. The older twin caught the stuffed Pokemon and threw it back. “What are you doing?”

“Keep Pikachu on your bed!” Kwangmin lobbed the Pikachu back at Youngmin, who caught it and sat it next to its friends. “They’ll get lonely without me so you have to keep them company.”

Youngmin heaved a sigh and laid back down, feeling more Pikachus land on his bed. By the time Kwangmin had moved all his stuffed Pikachus to Youngmin’s bed, more than ten of the toys were smiling adorably at the older twin. Youngmin gathered them up and placed them in the corner of his bed. Kwangmin finished packing and flopped down on his bed.

“I wish you were coming with me.”

Youngmin rolled over so he was facing Kwangmin. “Me too, but it’s a trip for your class only.”

“How about I hide you in another suitcase and bring you with me?” Kwangmin suggested.

Youngmin laughed. “I’ll die by the time we get there. It’ll be cramped, and I won’t be able to breathe. I won’t have anything to eat or drink either.”

“I’ll poke holes in the suitcase and pack some bottled water and sandwiches for you,” Kwangmin joked, chortling along with his brother. The two of them bantered until their mother came upstairs to tell them that it was time for Kwangmin to leave. The younger twin started crying a little when he heard he needed to start heading for the airport. Youngmin hugged him and, being the sensitive boy that he was, started crying as well. Loneliness was already eating away at Youngmin even though Kwangmin hadn’t even left yet. It was going to be a long week.

After a week in Japan, Kwangmin was eager to return home. He grabbed all his stuff from the car and trudged up the steps to the front door, waiting for his father to open it. Tired from the trip, Kwangmin immediately dragged his things to the room he shared his brother.

Opening the door to the bedroom, Kwangmin was disappointed to see no one there. He had been looking forward to being greeted by Youngmin, but who knows where his twin was right now.

“You’re not going in?” Youngmin was suddenly behind Kwangmin, making the other jump a foot in the air.

“Ah, you scared me!” Kwangmin gasped, clutching at his chest. Youngmin gave a short laugh and  pushed Kwangmin into the room, taking his suitcase for him despite Kwangmin’s protests.

“Welcome home, Kwangminnie.” Youngmin hugged his brother, happy that his twin was finally back. The loneliness that had made a nest for itself in Youngmin’s chest was finally chased out, and Youngmin couldn’t be happier. Releasing Kwangmin, the older twin excitedly pointed towards the mass of yellow on his bed.

“Look, I took good care of Pikachu while you were gone!”