It's 3a.m,

and any normal person with a healthy lifestyle would be floating in the dreamland right now. However, Youngjae is far from being normal, nor does he follow a good sleeping pattern. So here he is, lying wide awake on his bed for the past 3 hours, and it doesn't help that the heavy raindrops keep on pelting against his window frame, disrupting the process of counting the sheep in his mind in an attempt to lure himself to sleep...

'4723...4724...472-..' –

"GRRRRH-pheew.. GRRRRH-pheew.."

Oh right, there is also one more thing which largely contributes to the disruption. Daehyun -the obnoxious, food-consuming being that is his boyfriend of 4 months- is currently snoring in such a wheezy fashion next to him that at some point, Youngjae is scared he might die choking on his own saliva and stop breathing in his sleep (he will never tell Daehyun about that one time when he was startled awake by the choked-up sound and had to check if his boyfriend was still alive - thank God he was). But it's fine, really. After 3 months of living together, Youngjae is used to the somewhat endearing snore by now, and can even fall asleep just fine. Now that he is reminded , his boyfriend also confessed to him in a similarly obnoxious way in the past. He still recalls acting hard-to-get back in freshman year, just to get the chance to hear Daehyun shamelessly scream out "YOO YOUNGJAE IS MINE" whenever and wherever he was being close with other friends, male and female alike, or the whiny "Go out with me pwweasee~ Youngjae" whenever he stepped foot in the lecture hall. And it didn't take long for them to officially become a couple and share sweet kisses in between home-made lunchboxes and the fading daylight.

Back to the present, the reason for his insomnia is actually the same thing that has been plaguing his mind for the last couple of days. It might be so insignificant to other people that they would immediately ridicule him atfer he reveals it instead of showing him some sympathy or comfort. On top of that, Youngjae hates being laughed at, or expressing any sign of weakness. It's just a trait that he carries from his childhood and cannot get rid of. His parents were quite open-minded and accepting when he came out to them on his 18^th birthday. However, when it comes to academic performance, they expect him to be on the very top. That’s why he always was, and always has been. To his parents, it's the only way for him to earn a lot of money in the future. One may think that he must be used to the pressure by now. But still, it doesn't mean that he is mentally well-prepared against the notion of failure. Since failures would result in cane marks along the thighs, and bouts of remarks telling him how stupid he is, how disappointed his parents are, and a lot lot more haunting words. He involuntarily lets out a sniffle thinking back to the horrible day when he scored below 70 for one of his exams. Only in this darkness can no one mock him for crying.

"Mhm-... Youngjae?" A deep voice laced with sleep echoes in the room.

 Daehyun, who was awakened by the movement next to him, stirs to lie on his side, facing the wide-opened pairs of eyes belonging to the person he adores wholeheartedly. As if too used to the sight, and knowing fully how to deal with it, he starts in a sweet small voice:

"Exam day tomorrow ?"

"..yeah"- Youngjae mutters absentmindedly and turns to face the other side of the bed.

As the normal course of events goes, Daehyun lightly yawns, then gets up and leaves the room, going into the kitchen where he makes a warm cup of honey lemon tea. With the tea's fragrance permeating on one hand, Daehyun sits back on the shared bed, gently nudging his boyfriend to sit up.

 "Hey baby, let's drink this tea and it will get easier to fall asleep, ok?"- Daehyun coos.

"What if it won't? I've-..I've tried not to think about it but it's just not going away. It is NOT!" Youngjae shouts and pulls at his hair using his two hands. The stress during this exam week and the backlash of nearly 22 hours without sleep finally break his normally apathetic façade. Sensing the inevitable breakdown of his boyfriend, Daehyun quickly places the tea cup down the nightstand and embraces Youngjae tightly in his arms.

 "Shhh it's fine. I'm here. I'm right here. I know for sure that you will ace the tests this time, you always do. And when you are done , i'll do the bungee jump with you at the place that you've always wanted me to go with you to. Sounds good, hm?

"But aren't you most afraid of height?" Youngjae bemusedly asks in his arms.

"You are afraid of failing too. So it's only fair if I get over my fear with you, right? As long as you are by my side, and drink up the tea that your beloved boyfriend made at 3 in the morning, I'll hold you to sleep so stop stressing out and get some rest for tomorrow ok?"

"...How can you still be so cheesy at this hour though, it's overbearing. Ughh" Youngjae whines, then dettaches himself from his boyfriend's hold and reaches for the tea cup. Daehyun lightly chuckles at his words, extremely relieved to know his boyfriend has got out of his panic mode. He teasingly slurred out a "You know you love it babe" and nuzzled into his hair.

It's 3.30 a.m,

and Youngjae is finally drifting off to sleep, with his boyfriend keeping him firm and secure in his hold. Instead of painful whips of cane, he dreams of a certain boy with shining brown eyes, thick lips and stupid antics along with an endearing laugh that puts a smile on his own face. The pressure is still present, and expectations are high. He is so far up now and afraid of the downfall. But he knows, that Daehyun will always be there to catch him.