Minho stood outside of the music building, back against a pillar. He closed his eyes and sighed, trying to forget Sungmin’s face from last night. That was the first time he had ever seen the boy so…mad. They had ended up at the gym beating the crap out of punching bags and that, Minho guessed, was the scariest Sungmin he had ever seen.

Students spilled out of the building and Minho straightened, searching for Ryeowook among the flood of whining, laughing and complaining kids. They all dispersed but there was still no Ryeowook.

He frowned, walking into the building to search for his friend. There were a few stragglers here and there, one of which Minho caught by the arm and asked, “Where’s Kim Ryeowook?”

“He’s in Practice Room 4,” the kid replied, leaving quickly.

Minho trailed down the corridor, stopping outside of the indicated room. Just as he was about to knock, serious voices drifted through to him and he leaned back against the door, listening.

“They were really fast,” Ryeowook remarked.

An unknown voice, most likely his composition teacher, said, “Well, they’re really excited. What do you expect? You had such a great person to vouch for you.”

“I’ll have to thank him later,” he answered, chuckling softly.

“So are you considering it seriously?”

Ryeowook paused for a long minute, finally saying, “I’ll get my answer to them by the due date.”

“I have to say that you’re being very strange right now. This is a great chance and you’re not fully positive if you’re going to take it?” the teacher made a disappointed noise.

Minho crossed his arms, trying to figure out what was happening. It was obviously something music related, probably admission into a top university. But why would Ryeowook be reluctant to take the chance?

“I have things I have to figure out first,” he explained, “the decision becomes harder when you get attached to people.”

“Well…fine,” the teacher finally sighed, “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“See you tomorrow. Thank you,” Ryeowook responded before walking over to the door and sliding it open.

Minho met his gaze the moment he crossed the threshold. They stayed locked for a second before smiles broke on both of their faces. Ryeowook abruptly yelped though, scrambling to hide the envelope in his hand.

“I already heard all of it,” Minho stated, amused, “c’mon, let me see it.”

“…but—” Ryeowook couldn’t finish his sentence as the taller boy plucked the envelope out of his hands and started walking off. “W-Wait!” he called out, running after the departing figure, “Why do you want to read that?” He jumped for it, missing and stumbling.

Minho laughed, unfolding the letter and holding it up high. The short boy extended his arms as far as they would go but he still couldn’t reach it. “Why aren’t you more excited?” he prompted after reading the first few lines of the letter, “You were accepted to a university so be ecstatic Ryeowook!” A smile played on his lips and he handed it back slowly, trying to swallow more of the information on the page.

“I am excited,” he replied, carefully folding the paper and tucking it back in the envelope. Ryeowook breathe a small sigh of relief after seeing Minho’s reaction to the acceptance letter. “…Anyway, why are you here?” he asked.

“Oh, right,” Minho shuffled down the stairs, waiting at the bottom for the other boy, “it’s about you and Sungmin.”

He froze, eyes widening at the bluntness of the words. “W-Why?” Ryeowook managed, now hesitant to follow the person.

“Because no one knows what the is going on,” he drawled, rolling his eyes and looping an arm through Ryeowook’s. “I’m not angry at you for breaking up with Sungmin. I’m angry that I don’t know what’s going on with you. Why are you doing things that don’t make you happy?”

Ryeowook fidgeted, looking around for someone who might be able to help him. There were students everywhere but none of them were paying any mind. Sighing, Ryeowook cast his eyes down, “Can we sit down?”

“No problem,” Minho grinned, finding an empty bench in the main square and letting go of the small boy. “So why did you do it?”

“Can I tell you a story?” Ryeowook questioned, idly twiddling with the notebook in his lap. Minho nodded subtly, eyeing the other boy unwaveringly. The latter exhaled slowly, shoulders rising and falling in measured increments. “When I was six, Kyuhyun saved me from bullies at the playground. At seven, Kyuhyun gave me my first birthday present. At eight, Kyuhyun write a poem after seeing me cry about the chance of him being adopted and moving away. At nine, he woke up at Midnight and stayed up all night trying to make a surprise breakfast because it was Christmas. At ten, we spent an entire day lost in the countryside because we fell asleep on the bus. At eleven, Kyuhyun called the ambulance when my heart stopped working. At twelve, he showed me what a kiss is. At thirteen, he cried to me for the first time. At fourteen, Kyuhyun decided to take us to this academy for more opportunities. At fifteen he broke my heart. At sixteen, he taught me what standing on my own is like.”

“And now,” Ryeowook forced himself to stop picking at the notebook’s pages, “at seventeen, Kyuhyun finally needs me. He cried out for help and for all those years he never focused or cared for anyone but me. Whether I’m fully on board with it or not, I owe him this. More than anyone else, Kyuhyun is the most loyal person I’ve ever known. To betray him because of one year…,” he shook his head, eyes hard and decisive, “what sort of person would I be? For all the years Kyuhyun has dedicated to me, I think that one year of freedom for him wasn’t nearly enough to make up for all the time spent on caring for me. I have to repay him.”

Minho took a deep breath, leaning back and blinking a few times. “I’m a little surprised to be honest,” he said after a long minute, “Kyuhyun never struck me as someone caring.”

“He’s not,” Ryeowook smiled uneasily, “but everyone has that one exception. But you asked me why I had to leave Sungmin. Do you understand why I can’t date him?”

Reluctantly, the handsome boy nodded. “I get it Ryeowook. Just I wish you would think about yourself more often.” Minho didn’t let him in, going on to say, “Screw the past, the past few years. I’m saying that you need to make decisions for you, not for anyone else. It’s been a hell of a long time and I don’t know what you’re doing. Why are you working so hard to be everything others need?”

Ryeowook was silent, back straight and stiff.

“You wanted to be the perfect boyfriend for Sungmin. Now you want to be the person who saves Kyuhyun. Back then, you wanted to be the one to help YoungSaeng. Even now, you’re the president of our Student Government. You keep taking on the problems of people but it’s about time you start remembering that you’re a lot more important.” Minho stood up, casually tapping the acceptance letter in Ryeowook’s hands. “Try starting with that. If you make the wrong decision, I’ll personally come and kick your cute little .”

Ryeowook peered up, a strange warmth lighting his eyes, “…Thanks for listening, Minho.”

“I asked you for the info first,” he shrugged, turning away, “See you later.”

For a while, Ryeowook simply sat there, thinking and at times studying the envelope rustling beneath his fingers. It held so much meaning and yet…the opportunities were only for him. How was it fair?

It wasn’t. There was no one to share the fun with.

He slowly shook his head once. A part of moving on was leaving everything behind…right? Ryeowook sighed shakily, closing his eyes tightly.