"We became friends because we were lonely, but ended up loving each other so much. For a while it was hard to go a day without his lips on mine." He crossed his legs and leaned forward towards me. "So," he said while setting his coffee on the table between us, "now you have the whooole story." I opened my mouth and closed it again, trying to find what to say. As strange as it sounds, I still felt there was something missing. There seemed to be a gap in the timeline, but I couldn't quite place it. I decided to review the information aloud.

"So you went to camp and fell in love with Woohyun."

"Right" he confirmed.

"Then he cut you off and you fell into a depression, which you were pulled out of by Dongwoo's hugs and kisses."

"Exactly." I scratched my head.

"But wait a second, when did you and Dongwoo end?"

"The day I came here. When Woohyun and I finally made up."

"And Dongwoo was completely fine with that? You were completely fine with it?" He nodded at me. "But I thought you loved each other..." He took a deep breath in and tried to explain.

"I love Dongwoo." He began, "I always have and I always will. But I was never in love with him." I stared back at him blankly. I didn't follow any of that. He sighed and went further into his explanation. "I love Dongwoo the way I love you, or any other friend. I appreciate him and enjoy his company, but I'm not in love with him."

"But you guys made out and stuff..... That's not something 'friends' do." I stated dumbly. Sunggyu shook his head in frustration. Why am I so slow? I thought. This always seems to happen to me.

"That's only because we were lonely. We were just experimenting, seeing what it would be like to be in a relationship." My eyes glazed over and I blinked back at him. I was about to give up when he picked up his coffee cup and held it next to his face. "I love coffee." He said bluntly. "It tastes good. I drink it almost every day. I love it. I'll even kiss it." He held it up and gave it a light peck. I giggled. "I love coffee but I'm not in love with it. I don't want to marry it. I don't need it by my side at all times. I don't love everything about it, like its silly giggle or the way his arms swing around when he walks." His eyes began to sparkle as images of his lover floated around in his head. I could basically see the butterflies arriving in his stomach, fluttering around and making his body tingle with happiness and anticipation.

"Ohhhh," I mumbled as the idea finally began to sink through my think skull. Though his coffee analogy did help me further understand the difference from love and being in love, what really made it clear was that twinkle in his eye. The twinkle that was only possible when he was around Woohyun, talking about Woohyun, or even just thinking about him. It was a twinkle that wasn't visible when he was around Dongwoo, coffee, or anything else, really. "I get it now." I said softly. Sunggyu breathed a sigh of relief. "But hyung, how do you know if you're really in love with someone, or if you just normal love them?"

"Ahh, let's see..." He looked up and scratched his head. "I'm not actually sure." I gasped. 

"You?!?!? The all mighty, all knowing Sunggyu doesn't know something??" He giggled and slapped my leg playfully. I made it sound like a joke, but I was actually really surprised. He'd been so consistent in his knowledge, so helpful. Sadly he didn't really know how to answer the one question I was super curious about. 

"Well, let’s see." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "When I first saw Woohyun, it just kind of hit me."

"What did?"

"I dunno... this, feeling. This feeling that drew me to him. I wanted to know everything about him and I wanted him to know everything about me. I wanted to be close to him I guess." I breathed a sigh of relief. "What are you so happy about?" He questioned.

"I thought for a second that I might not be in love with Sungyeol. That I just love him and that was it. But if that's what it feels like, then that's what it is... right?"

"Sure..." Sunggyu didn't respond as fast or as certainly as I wished he had. It seemed like he had doubts. His eyes drifted past me and towards the front of the shop. "Did you invite him here?" He asked suddenly. I shook my head.

"No, why?"

"Because he just walked in..." Sure enough, when I turned my head and stared at the door, there he stood. His tall, lanky body lifted on its toes and his neck craning around curiously. He was looking for someone, but who? I sunk down in my chair. If he were looking for me he would have gone to our usual spot almost immediately. Sunggyu gave me a questioning look. I pressed my finger to my lips.

"Shhh! Get down!" I pushed him down by his shoulders and he swatted my hand away.

"What? Why?"

"Because," I said softly, "he's meeting someone else here." I looked down sadly and Sunggyu scoffed.

"So are you." He pointed out. I avoided his eyes as he sat up to look at his tall friend. I shut my eyes and cringed. He was being so obvious! After thinking about it for a moment I realized that he was also right. I was here meeting someone else, which meant it was fine if he met up with a friend too, right? "He's just meeting Sungjong, so you can calm down." My eyes widened.

"Sungjong?!?" I whispered frantically. Sunggyu just nodded back at me.

"Yeah... so what. At least it's not some stranger." He reasoned.

"No. If it were some stranger, I could assume so many other things! An old friend, a cousin, an uncle, an employer of some sort, I dunno!" I rubbed my temples frustratedly. "But if it's Sungjong, then that means a lot of things. He could be seeing him as a friend, as a dongsaeng, as a… a…" I cut off, refusing the idea that there could be anything more between them. "The last time they saw each other, Sungjong got sassy and Yeollie knocked him out cold." I thought aloud. "They're making up. That's it. For sure. Good. I'm glad." Sunggyu just shook his head and chuckled. "What?" I said, "That's gotta be it, right?"

"First of all," he began, "how do you get away with calling him Yeollie? He hates that name. I've been trying to call him that for years now!" I giggled and blushed a bit. 

"I must be special I guess..." I mumbled happily.

"Yeah, whatever. Special, sure." He muttered back jealously. "But anyways, he and Sungjong are like brothers, closer than that even. They're more like twins." I cocked my head to the side and gave him a puzzled look. "They're always together and they always fight and then they're completely over it the next day. To think that there’s anything else between them," he cringed and shivered at the idea, "it's like insest, ugh!" I breathed a sigh of relief and glanced at the two boys. They were laughing and joking around while sipping on coffees, Sungyeol's over flowing with whipped cream, as always. I was glad they'd made up so quickly. Before I could look away, I watched Sungyeol reach down and pick up a gift bag that sat by his feet. A pang of jealousy hit me harder than a brick as he handed it over to Sungjong. Sungjong looked inside and clapped happily. Sungyeol's smile brightened and mine fell. He's never given me a gift before, I thought defeatedly. I sank back in my chair.

"Mayb-"

"I think I'm gonna head home now." I cut Sunggyu off. I knew he was just trying to help, but I wasn't really in the mood to hear hypothetical excuses. "If my mom comes home while I'm out, she'll think I'm with Sungyeol." I stood up and put a few dollars down on the table. "Thanks for coffee and story time. It really helped me. You always do, hyung." I smiled sadly and he stood up to meet my eyes.

"It's nothing, Myung. Stop worrying." He said sweetly. I smiled and nodded my head a bit before turning to leave the store. I hurried out, making sure he didn't notice me on the way out. When I got to the car I sat there for a second, just reviewing all that I had learned over coffee.

1.    The story of Woogyu

2.    The story of Donggyu

3.    The spark notes version of YeolJong

4.    I don't just love Sungyeol; I'm in love with him.

But wait; was Sungyeol really in love with me? The question stained my mind like tomato sauce to a white button down shirt. Tonight, I thought as I pit the key in the ignition, tonight I'll ask him. Before I was able to pull out of the parking lot, my phone began to ring. I glanced down at the name: Yeollie♡. I decided to pull out and call him back when I got home. He was out with a friend anyways. I should let them talk, right? After a few minutes I got a text. I looked down at the familiar name and finally decided to pull over and text him back. As much as I hated to admit it, I could only be away from him for so long.

MESSAGE 1

FROM: Yeollie ♡

AT: 4:01 PM

Why aren't you answering me after sending such a naughty text? You really are teasing me, aren't you~~ that won't last long. Just you wait.

Again, my lower half got excited and I swore to myself. He knew exactly what he was doing. Before I could send something back, he sent another text.

MESSAGE 1

FROM: Yeollie ♡

AT: 4:02 PM

In all seriousness, I really do need to talk to you. PLEASE call me when I can come over!

I began to type back:

Yeollie~ you're killing me! I'll make you pay for sure ;) I'm going to ask my mom when she'll be home right now so that we can be together until then. I have to ask you something too...

What could he want to talk to me about? I wondered as I continued driving. I was almost home, so I decided to text my mom after I got there. As I entered the house I pulled out my phone and texted my mom a simple Working late? Throughout the day, the memory of last night had crept back into my head. I remembered the pathetic story about her falling for the scum that was technically my father. She was still disgusting to me at this point, and I wanted to say the least amount of words to her as possible. She texted four words back to me; Don't wait up. Love you~! I didn't reply. Instead I texted Sungyeol with only this: Come now and stay the night. Within seconds I got a text back.

MESSAGE 1

FROM: Yeollie ♡

AT: 4:14 PM

On my way.

The doorbell rang only a few minutes later. I was so excited by his arrival that I ran down the stairs and through the kitchen to open the door. Just before reaching the main hall, I slipped on the smooth tile and landed on my back with an echoing thud. He must have heard my screams of pain, because he let himself in and ran to my side. His eyes were wide and filled with fear.

"Are you alright?!?" He said frantically. I just giggled and nodded.

"I'm fine," I said as he helped me to my feet. "Just clumsy is all." He chuckled and I tried not to cringe as he hugged me tightly, squeezing my now incredibly sore back.

"You'd better be!" He said into my ear. "I don't know what I'd do if you were really hurt." I swallowed my pain and hugged him back.

"Me either." I said, leaving a gentle kiss on his cheek. When we broke apart, I reached for his hand to lead him up to my room, but he resisted. I scrunched my eyebrows at him. 

"Hold on a sec..." he said, tiptoeing back towards the door and picking something up. I couldn't help but stare at his cute, little as he bent over. Yes, it was boney, but more importantly it was mine. Nobody could take that away from me. I smiled at the thought as he half-skipped back to me with his hands behind his back.

"What are you hiding back there?" I tried to sneak a peek around him, but he giggled and blocked my vision. He held out one of his hands for me to hold and I accepted. When we went up to my room he giggled again. "What's so funny?" I asked curiously and sat on the bed.

"Close your eyes." He ordered. I obeyed. "Now hold out your hands." I did. Before I knew it, he'd placed something on top of them. I opened my eyes and gasped. The bag from the cafe!!! I thought excitedly. The present wasn't for Sungjong, he was getting Sungjong's advice on the gift he'd gotten for me!!! I just sat there on the bed smiling up at him for a moment, unsure of what to say. "Well?" He interrupted my excited thoughts, "Are you gonna open it or what?!" I peered over the edge of the bag at a small wooden box that lay inside. I carefully removed it from the bag with both hands. The letters KMS were hand painted in black on the front of it. When I opened the box, I found that it was divided in two. The first section held a series of white, X shaped bandages with handwritten notes on them. The second section of the box had only a tube of scar removing cream in it. I smiled at the objects and rubbed the box lightly with my index finger. He began to explain his gift while I took out each individual bandage, reading the handwritten messages on them.

"Personally, I love your scars." He began. "I love that you've struggled. I love that you've almost given up. I love that you've been there before." Chin up! The first bandage had written on it. "It shows how strong you are. It shows how incredible it is that you're still here today, that you made it through." I read the next X: Call me instead! "But I think it's time for you to continue living your life happily, just like you are now." Next X read I'm here for you! "I think it's time you stop dwelling on the past," Never forget that. "That you stop punishing yourself for others' mistakes." And promise me this: "I think it's time you move on." I read the next two bandages together. You'll know what you're worth , And stay by my side. "that we move on from this." Forever. "Together." The last bandage was not an X, not an O, but a +. A cross shaped band-aid for the cross shaped cut I'd made not even a week ago, a cut I wasn't sure he's even seen before. My heart began to beat faster as his spoken words melted into the written:

Because I love you.

[AUTHOR'S NOTE]

HEY! So, I know that the ending can be a little confusing. If you didn't really understand it, I suggest you read it again but this time seperate what's written on the bandages (in bold) from what Sungyeol is actually saying right then and there ("in quotes"). Get ready for loads of cuteness in the next chapter that's all I can say man. Hopefully this chapter lives up to my past ones! ^.^

LOVE Y'ALL AS ALWAYS <3 ~~~~~