Friday morning, Donghwi woke up around 5 am without his alarm and couldn’t go back to sleep. 

 

He stayed in bed for a little while after checking the time, staring at the ceiling when he realized he wasn’t going to dream again for today. He didn’t know how long he had been laying there like that, probably forever, but when he realized that his alarm still had yet to ring, worrying him, he turned over to look at his phone and-

 

5:04 AM. 

 

Man, how much Donghwi hated life. 

 

Sighing, Donghwi threw off his covers, laying there on his bed without his blankets, thinking if it would be a good idea to skip school or not. It was pretty early in the year for him to already start missing classes, but on the plus side, it will mean his dad will get a call from the school and actually talk (more like criticize) Donghwi for five minutes for once. 

 

What would he do if he skipped school, though? He couldn’t even go back to sleep.

 

Donghwi sat up on his bed, rubbing his eyes. It was still dark outside and he had his curtains covering the window, so it’s not like he was blinded, but it was still goddamn five am; Donghwi had accidently gone to sleep past midnight, so he had only gotten less than five hours of sleep. 

 

Last night, him and Dongin had been hanging around in his room, doing nothing in particular after finishing their homework. Dongin, as always, was very reluctant to leave, and Donghwi didn’t want to be alone in the house again, so he stayed and kept him company. 

 

The good thing was that today they were all planning to go to the forest to where the treehouse was for Jae I’s official existential crisis. For no particular reason, everyone was planning on bringing in pasta, to name the gathering quote unquote I’m Gonna Pastaway. Baekgyeol came up with the title and consequently got hit by Uiyeon. 

 

But yes. Donghwi wasn’t in the mood to eat much, but they liked his cooking, which he thought was pathetic (he had to teach it to himself, after all), so he settled on making baked stuffed ziti, which he planned on making after school. Dongin had told him yesterday that he wanted to make gigantic spicy Mexican meatballs and pouted when Donghwi told him that wasn’t really pasta, so now Dongin was going to make a basic spaghetti to go along with it. 

 

Since he couldn’t go back to sleep, Donghwi figured he might as well do some homework now so that he doesn’t have to do anything later. Sure, it was Friday, but assignments tend to pile up really fast; ask any high school procrastinator. 

 

Maybe I’ll just start baking that baked ziti, he thought to himself as he got out of bed. 

 

***
 

During lunch, Horyeong was in line, grabbing a bowl of pork belly when he heard someone talk to him behind him. “Yo, dude.”

 

Horyeong turned around and saw Dongin and his friend Donghwi getting in line, watching them grab trays. “Oh, hey,” he aid, not knowing what else to say to the two friends.

 

Dongin stood behind him, looking at the food options. “Oh, god, there’s no variety at this school.”

 

“Just grab the bulgogi and move on with life,” Donghwi said behind him, grabbing a bowl of the bulgogi. “We’re having pasta later, anyways.”

 

“Oh, that reminds me, Horyeong, dude, you should come pasta with us after school,” Dongin suggested, grabbing the bulgogi in anger. “Jesus christ, not even ox bone soup? What is wrong with this place?”

 

“Considering Hwalchan’s petition is still under review, I’m not even surprised,” Donghwi mumbled, grabbing a bowl of rice. 

 

Horyeong frowned. “Wait, pasta? What do you mean?”

 

“Oh, yeah, Jae I decided he wanted pasta for his existential crisis,” Dongin explained. “I think- actually, no, he’s not going to invite Daun, right? Since he’ll look pathetic?”

 

Donghwi shrugged. “I think he’s the same as always, but I’m pretty sure if he doesn’t, then Baekgyeol will. Baekgyeol will gladly invite a thousand more people if that means more food options.”

 

“I think Baekgyeol is going to kill him at this rate.”

 

“No, he’s not, he’s like a son to Jae I-”

 

Horyeong greeting the lunch lady cashier as he swiped his school ID on the card reader, which was already loaded with some money to pay for his lunch meals the next week. “Thank you,” he said quietly to her, bowing down a little as he left the line, food in his hands. 

 

“-he is not the most likely to go to jail for murder,” Dongin said. 

 

Instantly, Horyeong turned around to look at him, eyes widening. How in their world did their conversation lead to murder??

 

“I’m sorry, are you talking about murdering someone?” Horyeong asked in disbelief.

 

Dongin shook his head. “No. I’m saying Baekgyeol would most likely commit a murder. Donghwi here says no.”

 

“Because Baekgyeol would no doubt be filled with intense hatred with someone who wronged him but forget about it two seconds later when Haneul has cotton candy and he wants a piece,” Donghwi reminded him. “And that’s already happened twice.”

 

“Why would he murder someone at the amusement park, that’s where you’re wrong,” Dongin pointed out to his best friend. “I still think he would-”

 

“I’ll remember not to cross him,” Horyeong whispered to himself, wondering if any of them had committed a murder. Surely one of them was bound to hide a secret like that, right?

 

Dongin finished paying for his food and stepped out of the line, standing next to Horyeong as they waited for Donghwi. “Nah, you’re good, I think he’s fond of your brother, definitely thinks he’s cooler than the rest of us.”

 

“That is oddly comforting,” Horyeong said. “But Daun doesn’t believe in the whole cool stigma.”

 

“The whole what now- Donghwi!” Dongin shouted at his friend who also got out of line. “I forgot to get strawberry milk.”

 

Donghwi, holding the tray in his hands, glared at him. He had two bottles of strawberry milk on his tray. “You’re ing with me, right?”

 

Dongin exaggerated a pout. “Can you get me some?”

 

“Just have them,” Donghwi said, walking away as he headed towards their table. “Just make something other than boring freaking spaghetti.”

 

“Excuse me, I am making MEXICAN MEATBALLS!” Dongin yelled at him, running after him. “YOU KNOW THEY ARE THE BEST!”

 

“THAT’S NEITHER ITALIAN NOR PASTA, DONGIN!”

 

***

 

And so, the two brothers were invited to Daun’s admirer’s existential crisis party, titled I’m Gonna Pastaway, as named by the potential murderer Baekgyeol.

 

It was going to take place in this so-called forest a few hours after school at the designated time seven pm, giving them plenty of time to argue about what pasta they should bring. 

 

“I just say we take a bowl of macaroni and cheese and be done with it,” Horyeong, two boxes of elbow in front of him that he raided from the pantry. “It’s fast, it’s easy and there’s possibly no way you can mess it up.”

 

“Yeah, remember when you added sour cream instead of nacho cheese?” Daun reminded him. “Yeah, that’s what I thought.”

 

“Forgive me for grabbing the wrong tub,” he said, sighing. “I don’t want to make your stuffed shells, they sound too complicated.”

 

“You literally just stuff it,” Daun pointed out. “That’s it. That’s all you do. You’re acting like I’m making you milk a cow.”

 

“Well, at this rate in Jeju, I’m pretty sure mom and dad are going to ask us to milk one,” Horyeong said, rolling his eyes. “Why do you care about making a fancy dish, anyways? I thought you just hung out with Jae I for the free food.”

 

Daun opened the box of shell pasta that he had taken out, giving Horyeong a glare. “You’re making me sound like a gold digger.”

 

“I am not saying that- don’t open that-” Horyeong leaned over the counter, pushing the box away from his brother. “How dare you.”

 

“Look, do you want to do rock paper scissors for this?” Daun exclaimed. “We’ve already wasted ten minutes doing nothing, and I’m meeting Jae I early before we head to the forest, I don’t have time for this-”

 

“And why are you meeting Jae I early?” Horyeong asked him. “Isn’t this his existential crisis party anyways?”

 

“‘Party’ and ‘existential crisis’ do not belong in the same sentence together,” Daun muttered under his breath. “And we’re meeting because we want to review our homework, together, idiot, why are you acting like I’m gonna him off or something?”

 

“Well, at this rate you will!” Horyeong yelled at him, opening the elbow macaroni box. He opened the flap incorrectly, only peeling the top part of the flap, so there was the thin cardboard layer covering the opening. “Dammit.”

 

“E-excuse me?” Daun said. “I’m not- I don’t even see him- you know what, do your ing macaroni.” He threw his box of pasta on the counter and bent down to pick up his backpack, slinging it over his shoulder. “Have fun at the existential crisis party-”

 

“Wait, where are you going?” Horyeong said, watching Daun leave the kitchen. “Daun, why are you getting offended- DAUN!”

 

Daun turned around. “You know what’s getting me offended?” He said, crossing his arms over his chest. “First of all, Horyeong, you need to drop this whole being protective of your younger brother act, it’s getting really suffocating-”

 

“I am not being overprotective,” Horyeong argued. “You’re exaggerating-”

 

“I think you suddenly asking why I’m hanging out with certain people and criticizing me for it falls under that category, Horyeong, for your information,” Daun said. “I told you once and I’m telling you again: I don’t have feelings for him- actually, it shouldn’t even matter if I like him or not.”

 

Horyeong opened his mouth, ready to say something, only to close it again. He couldn’t think of what to say. 

 

He wasn’t overprotective, right? He wasn’t like those older brothers in the movies who prevented anyone seeing their younger sibling, stalking them everywhere to make sure they weren’t alone, and making them tell them everything, right? That is not what he was trying to be. 

 

“I’m not being overprotective,” Horyeong finally said. “I’m- I’m sorry, Daun, I’m just- well, I don’t know, you used to tell me everything and now I feel like you’re hiding me stuff.”

 

“I’m not hiding anything,” Daun repeated. “And, you know, maybe there’s stuff I don’t want to tell you.”

 

Daun turned around, opening the door to the basement where their room was when Horyeong called after him. “What do your stuffed shells need?”

 

***

 

“Can you, like, calm done,” Haneul told Jae I, who was hitting his head on the tree. “Respira, idiota.”

 

Baekgyeol squinted his eyes at Haneul. “Why the are you speaking Spanish?”

 

“It’s not Spanish, it’s Italian,” Haneul corrected him. “Remember? I’m Gonna Pastaway?”

 

Hwalchan, who was carrying a pot with chicken noodle soup, set it down on the floor so that he can take his phone out of his pocket. “It’s both Spanish and Italian,” he explained. “Since they’re both romance languages, it’s no wonder it sounds really similar-”

 

“Wait, why are you telling Jae I to calm down when it’s his existential crisis party?” Dongin asked him. “Isn’t him getting worked up over nothing the whole point?”

 

“When doesn’t he get worked up over something,” Haneul muttered under his breath. “JAE I!”

 

Jae I had slumped against the tree, hiding his face behind his hands. “Don’t look at me, I’m pathetic,” he whined, letting out a sniffle.

 

“Finally, some advice I can get behind,” Baekgyeol said, sitting down on the grass. “This day couldn’t get any better than Jae I admitting he’s pathetic.”

 

For a few seconds, Jae I took his hands off his face so that he could look at the group. “I was going to meet Daun early but he said he was going to come late.”

 

“Well, at least you know he’s coming,” Haneul mumbled. “Where the is Uiyeon?”

 

“Someone is anxious for their appointment,” Baekgyeol said.

 

Since Haneul had a tray of lasagna, he opted to kick Baekgyeol’s shin instead, the latter yelping in pain. “Don’t say that out loud!”

 

“We’re still missing Donghwi and the two brothers as well,” Dongin pointed out to the group.

 

“Shut up, Mr. I Get Laid,” Baekgyeol said.

 

Hwalchan started choking, clutching his phone hard in his hands until his knuckles turned white. 

 

Dongin’s face turned red. “Even if I were ing Hwalchan, I wouldn’t tell you anything about it! You’re just jealous, you- you .”

 

“Wait, you guys haven’t slept with each other yet?” Haneul asked, carrying his tray of lasagna with one hand; it was burning his arm. “Really?”

 

“I am really uncomfortable with where this conversation is heading!” Hwalchan yelled at them, picking up his pot of chicken soup before walking down the path, heading towards the tree house deeper into the words. 

 

Dongin sighed. “Only you would be interested in talking about your friends’ lives.”

 

“No one is interested in anything,” Baekgyeol said. “Don’t think too highly about yourself-”

 

“OH, , HE’S HERE!” Jae I screamed, standing up rapidly. From the distance, he could see Daun and Horyeong heading towards them, with Horyeong carrying an aluminum tray in his hands. “DO I LOOK GOOD?!”

 

“No, brutto culo,” Haneul muttered, either in Spanish or Italian, who knows.