Monday, as always, came around, so that meant another new week at school. 

 

It was, thankfully, the last period of the day, so Daun headed his way to his engineering class, hoodie pulled over his head as he weaved his way through the busy always, groups of people staggered everywhere, blocking his way. 

 

Even though this school was way smaller than their old school in Seoul, it was still always noisy and busy, way too much for his liking. Not that it was the teenagers fault; they had friends they wanted to talk to and hang out with. Daun? None. 

 

His earbuds were in, but no music was playing when he reached his engineering classroom and headed towards the back towards his seat, immediately setting his bag on the desk carefully as he looked around the classroom, waiting for it to fill up. 

 

A familiar face entered the classroom door, and his eyes met with Daun as he rushed towards the back where he was, sliding into a seat next to Daun. 

 

“Hey, how was your weekend?” Jae I asked, throwing his bag underneath his desk before resting his hands over the table. “Did you have fun?”

 

Daun shrugged. He was really lazy Saturday and Sunday, only eating junk food and doing homework. “I guess,” he said. “Didn’t really go out except when I got that ice cream.”

 

“Yeah, you got to admit, Hanuel has some mad good ice cream,” Jae I said, grinning. “Yah, it’s why we always hang out there, that and because we don’t want him to be lonely.”

 

The bell rang in the school, signaling that class has now officially started. However, the teacher continued talking outside of the classroom to another teacher, so they probably still had another minute to talk before class actually started. 

 

“I don’t know why his parents force him to work there,” Daun said. “I mean, why can’t they hire any other employees?”

 

Jae I sighed. “They are just very stingy with money so they don’t want to use any.”

 

Daun frowned. “Wait, stingy? They don’t even pay your friend?”

 

“I mean-” Jae I had his hand out, mouth open for a few seconds, trying to think. “No, I don’t believe so,” he said. “Nah, not really. He has a really small allowance.”

 

“Damn, that’s- that’s kind of pathetic,” Daun said. “I mean, I can’t say anything because I don’t know about him or his family life, but without the right context, to me that sounds wrong.”

 

“I know,” Jae I said. “And trust me, we all know. That’s why we spend all our time though, but I wonder if it makes him feel worse. I don’t know-”

 

The teacher entered the classroom and greeted them, cutting their conversation short, leaving Daun alone with his thoughts with this particular group of friends.

 

***

 

“So I was thinking we can try out this new game on the Nintendo Switch,” Dongin said, holding up a new game cartridge in his hand. “I’ve read tons of good reviews about it during math class.”

 

School had just ended, and the group was splitting up; Baekgyeol got grounded Sunday and couldn’t hang out with them, Jae I was still nowhere to be seen (probably talking to Daun again), Hanuel had to work, and Uiyeon was stalking Haneul at work.

 

“Sounds good,” Donghwi said, trying to think who in their friend group was missing. “Hey, where’s Hwalchan? Do you want to invite him to come to my house and hang out with us?”

 

Dongin shook his head. “He’s staying after school to be at the library doing his homework, but !” He grabbed Donghwi’s shoulders. “You got to help me, I’m taking him to another fancy date Friday and I’m scared -”

 

“He’s literally your boyfriend,” Donghwi reminded him. 

 

“But it’s a fancy dinner!” Dongin exclaimed. “I don’t know anything about rich people etiquette!” 

 

“Olive Garden is not rich people etiquette!” Donghwi shouted back at him. “And calm down, just try your best to look presentable and he’ll be impressed, you know Hwalchan doesn’t care about looks or fashion.”

 

Dongin groaned, shaking Donghwi’s shoulders aggressively. “I’m going to look so bad-”

 

“Aren’t you inviting him to pizza tomorrow for the two of you to study together?” Donghwi asked him. “And can we hurry up, I need to see my dogs.”

 

“Oh, , I forgot all about Kevin! ” Dongin exclaimed. “I love him! And Helicopter, though he’s been giving me these weird dog glares recently-”

 

“Uh, hey-” they turned around to see a familiar person behind them. “Do you guys know where your friend Jae I is?”

 

Oh, right, it was the brother of Daun, the guy that Jae I was in love with. Horyeong, if Donghwi remembered correctly. The guy who glared too much. 

 

“I haven’t seen Jae I, if I’m honest,” Dongin said, hands up as if to say “oh well”. “We’re not doing anything after school today, which is probably why.”

 

Donghwi nodded. “Yeah, he gets distracted often,” he explained to Horyeong. “Doesn’t he have class with your brother, too?”

 

“Hwi, he might be one of those overprotective types, you might not want to say that,” Dongin whispered to him. 

 

Horyeong just sigh. “No it’s just- we just walk home after school, so I wanted to look for him.”
 

Donghwi made an ‘oh’ face. “Huh. Well, if Jae I is talking to him, they’re probably around his engineering class, I think they take it together,” he said, pointing down the hallway. “Haven’t seen him, though.”

 

“I figured,” Horyeong said, talking out his phone for what Donghwi presumed to be texting his brother. “Thanks anyways.”

 

“Man, I always thought Jae I was the type to rapidly run out of school once it ended, not staying there any longer,” Dongin said, laughing. “The things we do for love.”

 

“If an adult heard you, they would laugh while drinking their third glass of wine in an hour while going through the midst of a divorce, their sad child crying in their room alone while their best friend makes a stupid joke through Kakao,” Donghwi said, lifting up his backpack higher. “Let’s go, I guess.”

 

“Wait, hold on,” Dongin said. “Do you want to invite him to come play with us? I don’t think he has friends here.”

 

Donghwi looked at Horyeong, who had walked away from them, typing furiously on his phone. “If you want,” he said, shrugging. “At least he can stop thinking about murdering Jae I for a couple of minutes.”
 

*** 

 

So that was how Donghwi found Horyeong in his house. 

 

Horyeong had refused at first, saying that he wanted to wait for Daun, but then Daun sent him a text saying that Jae I wanted to walk him home, and Horyeong not wanting to be creepy and be the type of guy to follow his brother and potential love interest home, decided to take up Donghwi and Dongin’s offer and play Nintendo. 

 

Donghwi was in his kitchen, serving lunch for his two dogs, Kevin and Helicopter, while Dongin set up the game in the living room. A bit late, he might add; for five whole minutes, they wouldn’t stop circling around Horyeong. “They seem like they’re having fun.”

 

“Oh, please, you know Kevin loves me,” Dongin shouted from the living room, putting in the game cartridge. “Yes, let’s get this thing going, baby!”

 

“That’s what he said,” Donghwi said, laughing to himself two seconds later when he realized the joke he made. “Oh, god -”

 

“Did you just say what I think you said??” Dongin screamed. “DONGHWI-”

 

“I can assure you, it’s probably Baekgyeol’s fault!” Donghwi shouted back, giving one last scratch behind Helicopter’s ears before washing his hands real quick in the kitchen sink. “Are you going to hurry up and tell me what snack you want?”

 

“My boyfriend,” Dongin said, sighing as he sat down on the couch, a few feet from Horyeong, who had only spoken like two words since they got here. “Oh, , you’re not homophobic, right-”

 

“Everytime we meet him, we talk about Jae I’s crush on his brother. I can assure you, he would have said something by now,” Donghwi reminded him, grabbing a bag of pretzels and cheese dip with him in the living room. “Unless that’s why he glares at Jae I.”

 

Horyeong frowned. “I don’t glare at him.”

 

“Yeah, and you’re not glaring at me right now,” Donghwi retorted back, sitting on the floor in front of the television. “Don’t make me record you one of these days.”

 

“Isn’t that illegal, recording people without their permission?” Dongin asked. 

 

Donghwi shrugged. “I don’t know, but I know trespassing is and Baekgyeol does it all the time.”
 

Dongin grabbed his control and the television, navigating through the Switch main screen. “So we can try this game out and then go back to Mario Kart thirty minutes later when we’re bored,” he said, extending his palm out towards Donghwi. “Excuse me, sir, my pretzel?”

 

“I hate being best friends with you,” Donghwi said, throwing one at him, startling him. “I feel taken advantage of.”

 

At that moment, Kevin marched his way towards Donghwi, standing right in front of him, blocking the television screen. He kept wagging his tail excitedly, Donghwi’s face. 

 

Donghwi whistled at him. “Yo! Kevin! Dongin put on a game!” he said, patting on the ground next to him. “Here, Kevin, here boy!” 

 

“Ha! Kevin won’t listen to you today!” Dongin shouted excitedly. “Yo, Donghwi, tell Horyeong over here the name of the other dog.”

 

Horyeong tilted his head, confused. “Hold on, what’s wrong with your other dog?”

 

“ Nothing is wrong with my dog,” Donghwi said, giving Dongin a look, the latter now choosing to ignore him. “Dongin just hates how I named him-”

 

“The other dog is named Helicopter!” Dongin exclaimed proudly. 

 

“I tell you every day, HIS FAVORITE PLUSHIE AT THE ANIMAL SHELTER WAS A HELICOPTER!”

 

Horyeong covered his mouth, stifling a laugh. “I’m sorry, you named your dog helicopter ?”

 

“Is there a problem ?” Donghwi asked. “No, because he’s my dog and I love him. Dongin over there can it.”

 

“I can one of those pretzels in your hand that you still refuse to give to me-”

 

Donghwi threw another pretzel at him in response. “Shut up.”

 

Horyeong shrugged. “I’ve never had pets before,” he said. “So I don’t really know how they’re like.”

 

“Small apartment or strict parents?” Dongin asked him. “It’s always one of those two responses.”

 

Horyeong nodded. “Yeah, small apartment. It was kind of cramped in there sometimes, we would have never had room for a dog.”

 

Donghwi grabbed the bag of pretzels and extended it out to Dongin, the latter snatching it up gleefully. “Yeah, I want another pet, but my father thinks I’m irresponsible yet he forgets my birthday every year, but yet he can list you all the meetings he has planned for the next month and what time.”

 

Horyeong frowned. “Oh, geez, that’s-”

 

“Yeah, it’s a bull excuse, but I can’t really say anything about it,” Donghwi said, scratching the back of Helicopter’s ear, the dog wagging his tail excitedly. “But I love you, Helicopter, don’t I?” he said in a high-pitched voice.

 

“Helicopter is a good boy and no one can change our opinions,” Dongin said, splitting his controller in his and handing one end of it to Horyeong. “Here, let’s play,” he said. “I’m going to beat everyone’s  in this room.”


***

 

“Uiyeon, this is the third ice cream cone you have ordered in twenty minutes,” Haneul said, handing Uiyeon his change back. “I can’t afford you dying.”

 

Uiyeon shook his hand. “Nah, I’m not going to die,” he said, leaning his arms against the counter as he watched Haneul scoop up his ice cream. “I’m just craving something sweet right now.”

 

“Well, these cravings are not good for you,” Haneul said, handing Uiyeon his newly-purchased ice cream cone. “We’re gonna have to start hitting up the gym at this rate if we don’t want your sugar intake to go up.”

 

“I am perfectly fine with my sugar intake going up,” Uiyeon said, his ice cream cone while staring at Haneul. 

 

Haneul sighed. “Uiyeon, go sit down, there’s customers here waiting for their order.”

 

Uiyeon pouted. “They always have to ruin my plans,” he muttered under his breath.

 

“What plans? Uiyeon, stop playing games, I know you haven’t started your project for your science class.”
 

“School is a joke and you know it.”