Heechul's blonde hair was fluttering in the wind, drooping around his pale cheeks. His eyes were focused, watching the endless darkness in the afar. The river looked so glimmering at noon but when it was pitch black like this, it, still, did not lose the beauty. The cold air softly hit his skin and he shivered, rubbing his arms to create a little heat. He glanced sideways and saw Jungsoo jog to him with two steaming cups on his hands.

"Instant coffee. The coffee shops around here closed already," Jungsoo explained, panting as he handed the coffee to Heechul. The latter only smiled, actually grateful for the small thought. He blew the hot drink and gulped it, feeling the liquid flowing down his body, warming him up. 

"Are you cold?" Jungsoo asked, leaning on the fence. 

"What do you want to talk about?" Heechul nervously asked, facing the river. And it seemed that he should have brought a thicker coat because Jungsoo took forever to start. It felt like an eternity when the professor finally opened his mouth.

"After you left, all hell broke loose," Jungsoo chuckled, remembering the turmoil. Each day felt like he was drowning deeper and deeper. And he knew Heechul would only give him silence. Thus, he continued. 

"But out of the three of us, someone cried the least. Can you guess who it was?" 

"You?" 

Heechul answered without a pause, knowing for sure that Jungsoo probably hated him the most to ever want to shed tears. The memory of him opening up to Jungsoo just to get his stiff professor to break his shell was still vivid in his mind. It was easy for Jungsoo to fall into his old habit of locking his emotions. But to his dismay, the answer was unforeseen. 

"Hyuk," Jungsoo smiled. 

"Hyuk was the strongest. He was our pillar. He stayed composed... He even comforted Donghae when the kid fussed. And he—"

Jungsoo suddenly choked up, concealing his breakdown by chugging his coffee. 

"He was the one who kept saying you would come back... He said that he believed it was true because—" 

"I'd promised. I promised him that I would come back," Heechul already knew the continuation. His remark left Jungsoo stunned. He never knew that Heechul would acknowledge it. 

"That's true. That was what he said," Jungsoo breathed. 

What came next was another long pause that made Heechul begin to feel uncomfortable. However, Jungsoo suddenly broke the silence at the time Heechul was off guard. 

"Why didn't you promise me, too?" 

Heechul widened his eyes. His breaths were already uneven—short and painful. But Jungsoo was unstoppable. 

"Why didn't you tell me you would come back?" 

Heechul could hear it; he could hear the heart-shattering, the cry, and the loudest frustration in the way Jungsoo spoke. And it hurt him. It still hurt him to know that he was the reason. He stared at his coffee and blinked his eyes. A tear dropped straight to his cup, not that he was surprised. He chuckled. 

"Promises... Haven't we learned our lesson, Prof. Park?" 

Heechul turned to his side and leaned on the fence, facing Jungsoo who looked perplexed. 

"Honestly speaking, in my life, I never dare to promise. But our stupid agreement made me."

Jungsoo fixed his gaze on Heechul. He badly wanted to wipe away the tears but he knew he had to wait, just a bit longer. 

"Do you know why I don't make promises, Prof. Park?" 

Heechul lost in the staring battle as he shifted his gaze to the sky.

"Nothing is as certain as the night comes after the sun has set," Heechul took a deep breath. 

"Kibum... He once promised to never leave me but he—" 

Jungsoo held Heechul's hand all of a sudden, knowing that continuing was painful. Heechul only smiled. 

"He shouldn't have promised if he didn't trust me. Thus... I never dare to make promises because—"