How Dare You?
How Dare You?
“Yah.... Aron hyung, your house changed a lot since I last came here. Was it 2 months already?” Minhyun exclaimed as he scanned the interior of Aron’s house. The used-to-be-all-white interior now turned into a more detailed one. The cofa changed position and more pictures were displayed on the tables surrounding the living room ----- pictures of Aron’s childhood, family pictures and others. Minhyun stopped in front of a particular picture with a white frame. He lifted it up and stared at it. It was a picture of the three of them during summer camp --- him, Aron and Jr. Baekho wasn’t with them because he was in America at that time. They were standing beside a river and a peace sign displaying on their fingers while wearing their best smiles.
“Hyung, look at you... you’re so fat!” Minhyun laughed aloud while showing the picture to Aron. Aron was truly fat when they were still kids. His weight started to go down only when they were on their last year of elementary. Aron started to become conscious with his looks so he decided to diet down.
“Aish... don’t show me that” Aron said and blocked the picture. He’ll always become shy whenever he sees a picture of him in the past.
Minhyun placed the picture back to its usual position. He walked around for a bit more before sitting on the sofa, lifting his left leg up and resting it on top of his right.
Aron shook his head, very much entertained from Minhyun’s antics. “Don’t go sitting on that sofa. We’ll talk in my room” Aron uttered and pulled Minhyun up from the sofa.
“Your room? Why? Can’t we talk here?” Minhyun complained.
“We can’t talk here, ok? It’s something personal” Aron said.
“I think I already know what we’re gonna talk about” Minhyun whispered. He’s pretty much sure what ‘it’ is that Aron wants to talk about.
Aron eyed him weirdly after hearing him laugh and walked up the stairs to his room. Minhyun followed him and they entered the room. Minhyun sat on the small couch inside Aron’s room and looked around again. He spotted a few pictures on the table at the side of the couch ---- pictures of Aron and Jonghyun together. Minhyun smirked knowing full well that Aron personally placed those pictures to remind him of Jonghyun.
Aron went to the fridge inside his room and grabbed two cans of cola. He then gave one to Minhyun. He sat on the couch in front of Minhyun and opened the lid of the coca cola can. He drank a bit, trying to calm himself and ask straight up to Minhyun.
“So.........What’s with this talk about?” Minhyun questioned. He lifted his left leg up once again and rested it on top of his right. Minhyun squinted his eyes a bit.
“Well... you...see... I-I have this friend who....who likes his bestfriend” Aron tried to voice it out in a straightforward way but his tongue seemed to tangle, making him stutter. His fast beating heart didn’t even help a bit either.
“ooooohhhh... A friend eh?” Minhyun replied and flaunted a knowing smile. Hell, he knows for sure who this ‘friend’ is.
“Y-Yeah....But then he can’t like this bestfriend of his---“
“Why?” Minhyun asked, cutting off Aron.
Aron looked down on the floor and suddenly remembered Jonghyun’s smile and laugh.
“.....because he’s afraid, Minhyun....afraid that it’ll ruin the friendship that they have” Jonghyun looks adorable the most when he laughs.....but, the worst part is, Aron can’t let that smile fade away from Jr’s lips just because of the feelings that he has for him, just because he likes him ---- no, just because he loves him. He loves him too much that it’s suffocating him already.
“He’s such a coward, isn’t he?” Aron laughed a bit and gripped the can tighter, hating himself.
“No... he is not” Minhyun said in a stern voice and placed the can down on the table in front of the couch. He crossed his arms. “He’s an idiot, hyung. A BIG idiot” Minhyun continued, emphasizing the word ‘big’.
Aron looked up in Minhyun’s eyes after hearing what Minhyun said. Minhyun’s right. He’s an idiot. He’s a complete idiot, a coward. “You’re right. He’s such a big idiot” Aron sighed.
“You know what, hyung?......You’re such a big idiot. No, you are stupid, dumb. I don’t even know how to describe you anymore” Minhyun finally uttered.
Aron widened his eyes.”W-What?” A single word was the only thing that escaped his mouth. His heart was beating too fast that it almost made him deaf. It can’t be. Minhyun can’t possibly know.
“Why the hell can’t you just say to Jonghyun that you loved him, huh? You’re smart, hyung,... You even passed in New York University, remember? But I didn’t expect you to be even dumber than the dumbest person in this world when it comes to these things. You’re a big idiot, indeed”
Pang. That was it. Aron felt like a knife was being stabbed straight on his heart. Aron felt the whole world crumble on his back. Minhyun does know.... and the worst, Minhyun was right. What Minhyun said about him was the whole truth and Aron knows it.
“H-How did you know?” Aron asked.
“You’re too damn obvious hyung, don’t you know that?” Minhyun answered and drank down his cola again.
Aron laughed a little. “That’s the problem, hyun” Aron said, calling Minhyun with his nickname. Aron will only call Minhyun his nickname when he has a serious problem or when he’s talking seriously. It was already years since Minhyun last heard that nickname. “I’m too ing obvious already but he didn’t even notice...not even a bit” Aron continued.
Minhyun felt pity for his hyung. He knows full well what Aron was feeling right now because he, himself, had also liked someone but wasn’t able to say it. Minhyun stood up and patted Aron’s shoulders.
“So what do you want to do now, hyung?” Minhyun asked. He’ll support Aron whatever his decision may be.
“I want to forget him.....I want to forget Jonghyun” Aron whispered, holding his tears back. He just can’t cry in front of Minhyun.....never! It’s a pride thingy.
Aron knows that it will be very hard for him to ever forget about Jr but he had to try. He had loved Jonghyun ever since their first year in highschool and it had been almost 4 years now already. During that time, he knows that he should have settled his feelings already but instead his feelings grew even more. So now....He can’t have these feelings anymore. It’s better to stay friends forever than to be broken apart because of these stupid feelings of his.
“Are you sure?” Minhyun questioned.
Aron nodded his head.
“You know that’s not the best solution for all of these, hyung”
“I know, Minhyun.....But.....But I know that this is the best escape for all of these” Aron muttered in a very soft but sad voice.
Minhyun sighed. “Okay. I’ll support you”
Aron looked up and smiled bitterly. “Thank you, Minhyun.......So what do you think should I do to forget about Jonghyun?”
Minhyun placed a palm on his cheek and stared at the ceiling, thinking hard. “Hmmmmm..... Ahh! I know” Minhyun shouted and pointed his index finger upwards, showing that he had already thought of something.
“What?”
“Date someone else”
“Eh?” Aron exclaimed.
“Date someone else and be with that person more.... I know it’s hard but you should try it if you want to forget Jonghyun... and also, you should start avoiding Jonghyun for a while... you know...just to settle your feelings a bit”
“But.....” Aron seemed hesitant at first but nodded his head after a little while. “O-Okay. I got it”. But then...... still.....how can he possibly avoid Jr? It would definitely hurt Jr and he doesn’t want Jr to be in pain....but then he also had no other choice but to do it. “If only I haven’t had these feelings at the first place” Aron screamed in his mind.
“....Cheers then” Aron shouted and brought his can of cola in front of Minhyun. Minhyun brought his can up as well, clanked their cans together and drunk down the whole can in one shot. Minhyun stared at Aron, who is still drinking his can of coca cola, and smiled.
“Let’s just see how Jonghyun will react if he sees you with someone else....” Minyun had a hearty laugh in his mind. “You’re not the only idiot, Aron hyung. You and Jonghyun are both such big idiots. One idiot who is being a coward to break friendship for love and another idiot who still hasn’t realized that he felt the same way for you” He thought.
................................
Jr paced back and forth on the side of his bed. He can’t calm down right now because his mind kept on thinking about this ‘matter’ that Aron wants Minhyun to help him. Is Aron possibly keeping a secret from him? Ayyyy. It can’t be....Out of all the people that he knows, he trusts Aron the most to not keep something from him. Aron is his bestfriend....
“What is this ‘matter’...what....what...what.....” Jr kept on asking himself as if someone was there to even give him an answer. He can’t keep his self calm. He’s not used to this situation. When Aron has a problem, Aron would always, and he meant ALWAYS, come to him for his help.....But why not now?
“Urgh. I can’t take it anymore!!!” Jr shouted and clenched his hands. He stomped to the side table on the other side of the bed and grabbed his cellphone. He rummaged through his contacts and pressed the ‘call’ button on Aron’s number. He brought the phone up to his ears and crossed his arms. “Answer hyung” He thought.
Kring. Kring. Kring.
Aron’s cellphone kept on ringing but no one is answering. Is Aron asleep or something that he can’t possibly answer his phone right now? Was he bathing and left his cellphone on his room? Jr frowned and ended the call. He brought his phone down from his ears and pressed the ‘call’ button once again.
Kring. Kring. Kring.
Once again, only ringing sounds were coming out of the cellphone’s speakers. “Freaking answer the call now, Aron, or I’ll kill you” Jr said, leaving the ‘hyung’ out. After a few more rings, the ringing finally stopped. Aron finally answered his call.
“Yoboseyo?”
“Eh? His voice doesn’t seem someone who just woke up from sleep” Jr thought. “Yoboseyo? hyung?” Jr answered. He laid down on his bed and pulled the blanket to his chest, still holding the cellphone up to his ears.
“Oh. Jongyun-ah, why did you call?”
“um.....um......hyung.....” Jr clenched the edge of the blanket. He doesn’t know how to begin. He doesn’t want Aron to say that he is such a meddler for meddling with Aron’s business.
“It’s not good to say it on the phone. I should meet with him instead and ask” Jr thought. It would seem improper to ask Aron on the phone. It’s better to ask Aron personally so he’d also have a lot of chance to explain.
“Um...... Can we meet tomorrow?” Jr asked, anxiously waiting for Aron’s reply. There was silence. None of them spoke for about 10 seconds until Aron finally broke the eerie quietness.
“Sorry, Jonghyun. I have something to do tomorrow” Aron replied with a hesitant voice.
Jr’s face sulked when he heard Aron’s reply. He sat up on his bed. “Then can we meet tomorrow afternoon?” Jr asked again, hoping that Aron will finally be free by the afternoon.
“It’ll take all day. Sorry”
“Ohh.... Is that so? D-Don’t worry. It’s okay. I-I can just tell you about it on Monday” Jr’s voice trembled. He tried to laugh to at least show Aron that he’s okay with it but instead his voice just quivered into an awkward laugh. “Hyung, I------“
“Bianhe, Jonghyun-ah. Appa’s calling me. I have to go. Sorry”
“Wai------“
Toot. Toot. Toot.
“Hyung? Hyung?” Jr called but all he heard were beeping sounds. Aron hung up. Aron already hang up on him before he even had the chance to say something. Jr took the cellphone down from his ears and stared at the screen, blankly. “You hang up on me” Jr murmured in front of his cellphone screen. It was the first time for Aron to hang up on him. Aron never hang up on him, not even once. Aron said he likes hearing Jonghyun’s voice till the very end so he’ll always ask Jr to be one ending the call. But now.....just now, Aron did hang up on him.
He laid back down on his bed again and stared at his cellphone wallpaper. It was a picture of him and Aron during their summer camp with Minhyun and their other classmates. They were fixing their tents at that time when Aron asked a Noona to take a picture of him and Jonghyun with Jonghyun’s digital camera. When he got home, he asked his mother to transfer the picture to his phone for him and ever since then, it was already his wallpaper. Even though he changed phones several times already through the years, He never changed his phone wallpaper for the sole reason that he treasured this picture very much simply because it’s a picture of him and Aron together. He grew very much attached to his bestfriend already because of the fact that they grew up together. They played together when they were still kids. They went to school for the very first together, ate their school lunch together, go home together and did just almost everything together.
But, nowadays, he felt Aron slowly slipping away for him. He doesn’t know why either but it felt like Aron’s not the same Aron that he was years ago. It hurts knowing that maybe Aron grew tired of him already. Maybe Aron doesn’t want him anymore.
Jr cringed at the thought of Aron not being beside him anymore.
He may seem selfish to say this but he wants Aron only for himself. He can’t share him. Never! He’s too afraid to lose him.
Jr was still staring at the phone, reminiscing his memories with his hyung when he felt a hot liquid drip down from his cheek. He caressed his cheek and stared at the wetness of his finger. “I’m crying” he realized. He felt too scared to lose Aron that he cried? What is this? Wasn’t he over reacting a little? He shouldn’t react this way, right? Aron’s also a person who has to leave him someday and be with someone else....
Jr gripped the blanket and covered his whole body. All he wants to do now is to sleep and not think about Aron for a moment.
“I can’t, hyung..... I just can’t give you to someone else” Jr mumbled. He hugged his pillow and shut his eyes close, drifting his way to dreamland.
............................
“The with you, Kang Baekho” Ren cursed. He crumpled the bond paper and threw it on the trash can, at the side of his study table, which is already halfway full of crumpled bond papers. Ren was already finished with his assignment but is still working on Baekho’s. Their assignment was to write a 500-words essay containing their opinions and reactions about the past of South Korea. How the hell is he going to make two essay papers with completely different ideas?
Ren grabbed the pen and started to write up once again. He has to finish this before midnight. He would once in a while stare at the ceiling, thinking for further ideas, before going back to writing.
“Almost over” He exulted. The bond paper is almost halfway full ---- just 200 more words and he’ll be finished. He stood up from his seat and scanned the titles of the book from his little bookshelf. He grabbed the book with the title ‘Ancient Korea’ and laid it on the study table. He opened to the page that he wanted and started to read, hoping to get at least small facts that he can add up in the essay. He was in the middle of reading when he heard the doorbell ring. His forehead wrinkled, who can it possibly be?
He isn’t expecting any guest today, much more when it’s already 9 in the evening.
He turned the knob, opening his bedroom. “Who’s there?” he yelled.
Silence.
“Who’s there?” Ren yelled again.
Silence.
Still no one answered him. He frowned. “It can’t possibly be a burglar or something, right? Well just to make sure” he proceeded to the kitchen first and grabbed a frying pan with his right hand.
He slowly made his way to the door. He inhaled deeply before abruptly opening the door and literally jumping out while pointing the frying pan as he turned in every direction.
No one.
No one was in the hallway. All there was was darkness brightened up by the colourful lights from the buildings within Seoul. Now this is weirder. Ren was about to go back inside his apartment when he spotted a box at the door. It was a rectangular black box tied with a small red ribbon on top and a white envelope tucked between the tied ribbon. He scooted down and picked up the box.
“What the hell is this?”
He entered inside and locked the door close. He went back to his room, placing the frying on the study table and sat on his bed. He examined the box for a while before deciding to untie the ribbon. He slowly untied the ribbon and opened the box.
A black rose.
“But black roses don’t exist” Ren muttered, his heart beating frantically now. What kind of practical joke is this?
Ren rubbed a petal of the rose and looked at his hand. Black ink. The red rose was dipped into black ink and dried..... He slowly drifted his eyes to the envelope.
He slowly opened it.
.....You’re Mine....
......Remember that.....
Those were the only words printed inside with black ink.
“What kind of pathetic prank is this?!” Ren snickered.
He crumpled the envelope and grabbed the rose. He stomped out of his room with an angry face and got out of the apartment. “Don’t ing play with me! I’m not in the mood for games!” Ren screamed his voice. Hell, he doesn’t care about the other tenants occupying the apartments beside his anymore. He looked around the hallway but failed to spot a single soul. He threw gifts on the floor and stepped on the rose, crushing the petal into pieces. Ren breathed out loudly and banged the door close.
A figure in black jacket slowly walked to the crushed rose and picked up a single petal. “I’m not playing with you” The form whispered and walked away holding the stem of the rose.
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