It all starts one early Friday morning.

 

Because of the rare event that all ten of the active Super Junior members are in the dorm (Siwon had slept over just for the fun of it) and without schedules to worry about, leader-slash-mother Leeteuk wakes up early and, making sure that he does so quietly, cooks breakfast for everyone. Since he’s not as well-versed in cooking as Ryeowook, he opts for simple foodstuffs such as packs of instant spicy ramyeon, scrambled eggs, kimchi, and, after a very quick trip to the nearest convenience store (he supposes he had imagined it but he had seen a blush creep up the male cashier’s face as he’s paying and wearing a jacket, a scarf, and glasses with his pajamas), a plastic full of samgak kimbap with three different fillings. He heats up the kimbap in the microwave and stacks them like pyramids on two plates before putting them on the table with the rest of the food. He also turns on the coffee maker and boils water for tea before putting out the bowls, chopsticks, mugs, and spoons.

 

His hard work pays off when he sees the look on the members’ faces as they wake up one-by-one and are drawn to the pleasant smells coming from the kitchen.

 

“Hyung, did you do this all by yourself?” asks Donghae, his eyes widening. Leeteuk nods with a smile. “Why?”

 

“Can’t I do something nice for my favorite group of people once in a while?” asks the older man in reply. He wipes his freshly-washed hands on a piece of cloth. “Now where are the others?”

 

“Here,” Heechul and Siwon, the latter having slept in Hangeng’s old room, arrive looking as though they had not just woken up by the way their faces are lit up. “Damn, I’ve never looked forward to breakfast like this in such a long time,”

 

“Me, too,” says Siwon. He puts his hand on one of Donghae’s shoulders. “Hey, shall we let’s fetch those downstairs?”

 

“Okay! Hyung, we won’t be long,”

 

“Alright,” says Leeteuk. He turns to Heechul who has already sat down. “Coffee or tea?”

 

Siwon and Donghae reach the other apartment room. Siwon punches in the correct code to unlock the door. All the lights are off save for the sunshine streaming in through the windows.

 

“I’ll get Hyukjae first so he can help us wake everyone up,” declares Donghae.

 

“I’ll start with Yesung-hyung and Ryeowook. I heard Sungmin’s rabid in the morning,”

 

Donghae laughs a little. “That’s true. Let’s all join forces in waking him and Kyuhyun up later,” With that, he heads for Eunhyuk’s bedroom. He knows that Super Junior’s dance leader locks his door only when he’s watching so it doesn’t surprise him when the knob turns easily in his hand. He goes inside without bothering to close the door. When he reaches the bed, a smile almost instantly appears on his face. He kneels on the floor to take a closer look.

 

Eunhyuk is lying on his side with his blanket covering just the lower half of his body. He is in his usual sleepwear: a white wifebeater and a pair of black training pants (he separates the ones he uses for sleeping from the ones he uses during exercise). Donghae then notices that he is hugging a small rectangular pillow against his chest.

 

“Don’t you think stuffed toys are for kids, Hae?”

 

“But I can’t sleep without hugging something,”

 

“Then get a pillow. Get a big pillow if you have to. Those stuffed toys on your bed are just taking up space. I don’t even know how you can sleep there,”

 

“Well it’s not like I don’t move around my bed. I roll over my toys sometimes and they feel all nice and soft…”

 

“Just tell me you’re lonely,”

 

“Wha…what’re you talking about?”

 

“Among all of the members, you’re the one who’s farthest away from his family. It only makes sense for you to be the most homesick. So, admit that you’re just using toys to replace those you really want to hug,”

 

“…Why do I have to admit it? Nothing will change if I do,”

 

“I will,”

 

“Huh?”

 

“Admit that you’re lonely and I’ll sleep beside you from now on,”

 

Eunhyuk makes a sound that pulls Donghae from his recollection. He remembers just what he had come for in the first place and starts shaking Eunhyuk awake.

 

“Hyung, wake up, wake up,” says Donghae gently.

 

“What the hell, Hae?” mumbles Eunhyuk groggily without opening his eyes. “NoscheduletodaysoI’llbebondingwithmybed…” His string of words trails away which can only mean that he’s gone back to sleep. Donghae sighs and shakes Eunhyuk by the shoulder harder.

 

“But Hyukkie, Leeteuk-hyung made us breakfast and he might be upset if we’re not there,” Donghae uses both hands to shake the slightly older boy harder. “C’mon, Hyukkie, wake UP!” Upon saying that, he raises his hand and hits Eunhyuk’s behind.

 

“OUCH!” Eunhyuk suddenly raises himself on his elbows and looks at Donghae in disbelief. “Have I not told you to stop spanking me awake?”

 

Donghae frowns and pouts slightly. “B-but…you won’t wake up if I don’t!”

 

“And that’s a good enough reason to hit me that hard? Oh you are so gonna get it,”

 

“What’re you—AAAAHHHHH!” Donghae screams when Eunhyuk starts tickling his sides. “Gaaahhhh, hyung…DON’T!” He twists around hoping to get away from Eunhyuk’s fingers but a good tug on his shirt causes him to fall onto the bed and into Eunhyuk’s arms. “Hyung—AHAHAHAHAHA NO PLEASE HYUNG—!”

 

“I’ll make sure you never—,”

 

“AAAAAHHHHH!”

 

“—wake me up again like that!” Eunhyuk buries his fingers deeper into Donghae’s sides.

 

“PLEASE HAVE MERCY, HYUNG!”

 

“What the HELL IS ALL THIS RACKET FOR?” Donghae and Eunhyuk instantly freeze and find themselves as the target of Sungmin’s death glare that could seriously kick the out of Kyuhyun’s or even Heechul’s. “Come—to breakfast—now—or  else,” The two dancers nod vigorously and, to their relief, Sungmin leaves followed by everyone else who have traumatized expressions on their faces. Kyuhyun, of course, simply passes by yawning and scratching his elbow.

 

“I told you to quit it, Hyukkie!” Donghae says when they hear the door close and gives Eunhyuk a push. “Now look! Sungmin-hyung will probably choke us while we’re eating or poison our food,”

 

“No he won’t. Hyung’s kinder than that; he’ll most likely just give us a flying kick each,”

 

Donghae frowns. “And that should make me feel better how?”

 

“Well, I’m sure you’ll feel better than me afterwards because I’ll be protecting you,” answers Eunhyuk with a gummy smile. “Now c’mon, I feel hungry now,” He slides off the bed, does a bit of stretching, and, ultimately, misses the pink hue on Donghae’s cheeks.

 

“Ah, e-exercise later, hyung. We have to hurry,” says Donghae and quickly walks past.

 

“Hold on a sec, Hae!” Eunhyuk grabs his phone before catching up to Donghae. Once out of the apartment, he sees that he has several unread messages. Since he can’t properly look where he’s going, he places his left hand on Donghae’s right shoulder when they take the stairs up to the twelfth floor. Donghae blushes even more but tries to keep his cool anyway. Eunhyuk looks up from his phone only when they’re inside the other Super Junior apartment.

 

“Oh wow!” says Eunhyuk when delicious aromas fill his nostrils. He puts his phone in his pocket and looks at Donghae. “What’s the occasion again?”

 

Donghae shrugs. “Maybe Leeteuk-hyung’s maternal instincts have gone into full bloom?”

 

“Hush! Don’t say that or else he’ll go ballistic again. He prefers ‘paternal instincts,’”

 

“Oh yeah, I forgot. My bad,”

 

“I hear EunHae!” says Kyuhyun from the dining area.

 

“Starcraft brat!” says Eunhyuk when he and Donghae join the others. He hits Kyuhyun playfully on the head. “That’s ‘Eunhyuk-hyung’ and ‘Donghae-hyung’ to you,”

 

Kyuhyun thinks for a moment. “How about if I say ‘EunHae-hyungs?’”

 

“Use whatever name you want as long as there’s a ‘hyung’ there,”

 

“Oh. Alright. ‘Stinky Cheapskate Monkey-hyung’ and ‘y Cutie Pie Fishy-hyung’ it is,”

 

“WHAT?”

 

“Kids, enough playing so we can eat,” says Leeteuk. “Eunhyuk, Donghae, sit down,”

 

The two check the seating arrangement and find that the only unoccupied chairs are the ones at Heechul’s left and Siwon’s right. They look at each other in silent question before Eunhyuk gently pulls Donghae away by the arm.

 

Donghae speaks first in a volume only Eunhyuk can hear clearly. “I’ll go sit beside Siwon—,”

 

“Like I’ll let you do that. He’s going to fawn all over you like usual,” whispers Eunhyuk back.

 

“He does not fawn all over me—,”

 

“Darn it, but the other one’s Heechul-hyung…” Eunhyuk steals a quick glance at the second oldest member who is putting a proper amount of noodles in his bowl. “This really ,” He looks straight at Donghae. “Next time, I’m giving you permission to drag me out of bed, okay?”

 

“Why’re you acting this way?” asks Donghae, puzzled. “We’re just going to eat,”

 

Eunhyuk huffs. “Whatever. Eat fast. And I’ll sit beside Siwon. Heechul-hyung’s less dangerous,”

 

“Less dangerous? Wha—?”

 

“Shut it, Hae,” Eunhyuk goes ahead and sits between Siwon and Yesung. Donghae puffs up his cheeks before sitting down. As he’s about to grab some rice, he feels Heechul gently nudge his side with his elbow without looking at him. Despite that small action, Donghae immediately understands and turns red.

 

“Ah, are the noodles too spicy for you, hyung?” asks Ryeowook in concern. Everyone turns to Donghae.

 

“Yeah, it is,” answers Heechul all of a sudden, still eating. “Here, this is better,” He gets two pieces of samgak kimbap and places them in front of Donghae.

 

“Thanks, hyung…” mumbles Donghae. The meal continues but the only thing on Donghae’s mind is the almost telepathic conversation he had shared with Heechul in that short moment.

 

“Now what did I tell you?”

 

“Hyung, it’s impossible. It’s only been two weeks since I confessed to him,”

 

“So?  He’s been too stupid for ten years—let him be smart for once,”

 

“But I don’t want to expect anything. I might be disappointed,”

 

“Donghae, trust me—Hyukjae’s head-over-heels for you now,”

 

~

 

“Okay, everyone, MOVIE TIME!” declares Leeteuk when he comes into the living room where everyone has settled after eating breakfast and clearing everything up. He places his laptop on the floor and starts connecting it to the television. Sungmin helps him with it while Yesung and Shindong close the blinds.

 

“Don’t tell us you’ve planned out the entire day, hyung,” says Siwon with an amused smile.

 

“Well don’t you guys want to bond?” asks Leeteuk while searching for the movie in his files. “Anyway, I heard that this Japanese movie’s pretty cool so I downloaded it a couple of days ago,” Before playing the ‘Play’ button, he turns to the group, smiles so his dimple is showing, and says, “When I was about to watch it, manager-hyung suddenly called to tell me about our day-off. I couldn’t watch the movie anymore because…well I’m not entirely sure why—I mean we meet everyday, don’t we—but still…” Everyone notices Leeteuk’s eyes tear up. “I suddenly missed you guys so much,”

 

The person who reacts first is Heechul. He gets up from the couch and embraces the leader. He doesn’t let go so when everyone else approaches, they just mess up Leeteuk’s hair or grab hold of his hands. Siwon hugs him from behind, though, and Kyuhyun smirks before kissing the tip of his nose to which Leeteuk giggles.

 

“Okay, enough!” says Heechul. He lets go and all the members return to their original positions in the area. “We’ll spend the entire day with you, don’t worry. Isn’t that right, everyone?”

 

“None of us are going to leave this apartment until midnight,” says Yesung with a grin.

 

“We can all cook lunch and dinner together!” suggests Ryeowook.

 

“A drinking party, too!” says Shindong.

 

“I have a new PS3 game we could all play,” says Kyuhyun. “Of course, it’s not like any of you will be able to win against me—AAAAHHHH!” He uses two of the circular pillows on the sofa as a shield from Heechul, Shindong, Yesung, and Sungmin when they punish him with kicks to the legs and punches on the arms. “Alright, alright! I’ll lose on purpose for you guys—GAAAAHHHHH STOP!” Eunhyuk joins the torture session. “LEETEUK-HYUNG I LOVE YOU THE MOST!”

 

Leeteuk laughs before getting up and pulling everyone off of Kyuhyun. “I love you, too, Kyuhyun, but I am still scared of you,” He gets in between Kyuhyun and Heechul who smacks the youngest member’s head behind the leader. “Is everyone ready?”

 

“By the way, hyung, what’s the title of the movie?” asks Sungmin, settling himself on the floor along with Ryeowook and Yesung.

 

“‘Kokuhaku’ which means ‘confessions’ in Japanese,” replies Leeteuk. “It’s a psychological thriller,”

 

“Ooh,” says Kyuhyun with interest. “Play it, hyung, hurry,”

 

Eunhyuk sits back on the single seater sofa, mildly amused at the sight of the youngest member and oldest member’s interaction. When his gaze falls on Donghae who is on the sofa and is closest to him in proximity, he doesn’t miss the soft frightful expression on the other’s face. He sees that Donghae’s left arm is lazily dangling over the sofa’s side. Eunhyuk shifts so that he’s occupying more of the right side and, slowly, he reaches over to hook his index finger with Donghae’s.

 

Donghae’s eyes widen at the contact. He lets out a small smile, however, and squeezes Eunhyuk’s finger back.

 

“It’s just a movie. And…I’m here,”

 

“I know. So…thank you,”

 

~

 

“That ending…was genius,”

 

“I second the motion, Heechul, I mean hyung,” says Kyuhyun, correcting himself when the older man raises his hand, ready to strike the offender. “I think, though, that nothing really happened. The teacher disarmed the bomb before she took it, didn’t she?”

 

“Oh yeah…” says Yesung. “So that was what she was referring to with that last line?”

 

“I think she was talking about two things,” says Shindong when he re-enters carrying a plastic with several bottles of soju and beer inside. Leeteuk, too, comes into the dining room with bags of chips and snacks cradled in his arms. “First, she was kidding about the bomb thing. Second, it’s not true that the whole thing was just the first step to Shuuya’s redemption,”

 

“I’m thinking he won’t ever be redeemed. Is that it, hyung?” asks Ryeowook.

 

“I guess,” answers Shindong. “Wait a sec. We’ve been talking about this for, what, eleven hours?”

 

Leeteuk takes out some bowls and plates for the drinking party snacks. “If a movie’s good, it deserves to be talked about for aweek,” He says with a smile.

 

Heechul reaches across the table and starts helping Leeteuk with the task. “And cheaters in games should be sent to the police,”

 

“Old, wrinkling, sore losers should be sent to a home,” retorts Kyuhyun.

 

“Why, you—!”

 

Leeteuk puts his arm out thus stopping Heechul’s attack. “Heechul, we’ve all discussed how Kyuhyun was born with a brick game in his hands and how his first words were ‘Super Mario brothers,’ much to the confusion of his parents. He just naturally excels at games,”

 

“But I saw and heard him mumbling something all throughout the game!” complains Heechul. “I’m sure he was reminding himself what the cheat codes are!”

 

“I was mumbling things, but they weren’t cheats. I’ve played the game so many times that I was inspired to write a song about the characters,”

 

Sungmin giggles. “I was there when he was writing it. I still insist on uploading it online, Kyu. I bet it’ll be downloaded a thousand times in the first minute alone,”

 

“EunShiHae! We’re all set in here,” calls Shindong when he finishes putting out the shot and drinking glasses.

 

Heechul is munching on a saltine cracker the moment he sees Eunhyuk walk in. One side of his lips slowly curves up into an all-knowing smirk. He finishes the snack before saying, “Hey, Siwon, come sit beside me,”

 

Siwon’s face brightens. “Oh, sure thing, hyung,” He walks past Donghae and Eunhyuk whose three-second grin is seen by only one person.

 

The drinking party starts with everyone seated around the rectangular dining table. Despite the fact that Kyuhyun is the youngest, it is Ryeowook who pours soju for everyone. Stories and jokes are thrown from every side, and pretty soon the laughter gets just a bit louder and the high-fives more frequent but less accurate. Two hours into the session and half of the group is already showing signs of intoxication. The only ones who appear to be generally sober are Heechul, Ryeowook, Kyuhyun, and of course the non-drinkers, Eunhyuk and Donghae, who have settled for apple juice because Leeteuk had insisted that they should at least drink something that’s similar in color to what the rest of them are consuming.

 

After he finishes another glass, Eunhyuk notices that Donghae is writing an invisible message on the table with a finger. He pushes his chair back as though ready to leave and takes Donghae’s hand. “Hae, you must be sleepy,” He whispers. “C’mon, I’ll take you to your room,”

 

Donghae looks around before facing Eunhyuk. “But…everyone else is still here,”

 

“You have an early schedule tomorrow, don’t you?” Eunhyuk makes eye contact with Heechul. “Hyung, is it alright if Donghae sleeps now?”

 

“Of course,” answers Heechul. “Tuck him in nicely, will you?”

 

“Yes, hyung,”

 

At Heechul’s response, Donghae doesn’t hesitate to get up and leave the dining room with Eunhyuk, their hands gently clasped together.

 

“I’ll go brush my teeth,” says Donghae, letting go of Eunhyuk and walking into the bathroom which is right next to his and Shindong’s shared bedroom. Eunhyuk waits in the hallway for five minutes before Donghae comes out. When they get to the bedroom neither of them bothers with the lights since the window curtains have been pushed to the side thus letting moonlight in. When Donghae starts peeling off his clothes (a loose white shirt and a pair of light yellow shorts), Eunhyuk goes to Donghae’s closet to get his pajamas.

 

“I’m really proud of you for still not drinking, Hae,”

 

Donghae takes the pajama pants and puts them on. “Hyung, you’re beginning to sound a lot like mother Teukie,”

 

“You need some congratulating. A Korean man who can pass up on drinking is a strong man,” says Eunhyuk. He gives the pajama top to the younger man and goes to Donghae’s bed to fluff the pillows and push the covers back. When he finishes dressing up, Donghae lies down on the bed and allows Eunhyuk to cover him with the blanket. In silence, he admires the lead dancer’s features. It amazes him that ten years of looking at the same person has only increased and strengthened his feelings. Subconsciously, he reaches out to softly pinch Eunhyuk’s right cheek.

 

“Then you’re strong, too,” mumbles Donghae.

 

Eunhyuk smiles in amusement. “Sleep now, okay? I’ll set your phone’s alarm for you,”

 

“I can go without it,” says Donghae in an unchanging soft voice. “There’s something else I need you to do for me, though, Hyukkie,”

 

“What is it?”

 

A deep blush appears on Donghae’s cheeks. “Kiss me,”

 

The room comes at a standstill.

 

“Hae…”

 

Donghae stops pinching Eunhyuk but keeps his hand on the other’s face anyway. “I know it’s not good to be rushing things like this but…the Hyukjae who loves me…I want him now,”

 

“Hae, he hasn’t come out yet,”

 

“Can’t you force him to?”

 

“I can’t,”

 

“Even for just a couple of minutes?”

 

Eunhyuk looks away. Donghae’s hand slips off. “No. He’ll appear only on his own,”

 

“…….I’ll do the convincing then,” Before Eunhyuk can figure out what’s happening, Donghae has sat up and has pressed his lips to Eunhyuk’s. With a strength that comes naturally with his drunkenness, he grabs Eunhyuk’s wrists so he can’t get away. Then, he positions himself on Eunhyuk’s lap and kisses him harder. He feels Eunhyuk kiss him back so he goes on to wrap his arms around the other’s neck. In the heat of the moment he pulls back a little—barely an inch separating his and Eunhyuk’s lips—and says in a husky voice, “Hyukjae…”

 

Eunhyuk looks into Donghae’s eyes, the left one clearly a dark brown with the moonlight hitting it. For several seconds he gets lost in those shiny orbs reflecting so much of what their owner feels but doesn’t say, but it is those same emotions that cause Eunhyuk to push Donghae away. Though he had not used much force, the action itself and its implications hit Donghae’s chest like a ten-wheeler truck. He immediately backs up on the bed and hugs his knees close.

 

"I think…it wouldn't be hurting this much if I hadn't assumed you've already fallen for me,"

 

"......I had the same assumption, but I suppose that's all it is,"

 

Donghae immediately starts crying at those words, his face hidden by his arms. Eunhyuk reaches out to touch him but Donghae flinches away. Eunhyuk gets the message and gets up from the bed, leaving the room only after he takes one last look at Donghae. When he reaches the living room, instead of heading back to where the drinking party is, he slips out of the apartment without being noticed and goes straight to his room on the eleventh floor. He suddenly feels weak all over and ends up supporting himself by his left forearm when he goes in front of the bathroom mirror. He looks at his reflection. Although he hasn’t physically changed from that morning, he sees something in his expression that has never been there before. The frustration and confusion coil up inside him at the same time with such high magnitudes that, when he leaves the bathroom, there is a large, bloody crack on the mirror.

 

~

 

After the magazine photo shoot, Donghae comes home to the dormitory with a mild headache. He chugs down more water from the jug he had brought with him to work as he’s entering the apartment. He checks the time in his watch and realizes that no one should be home; the silence in the usually rowdy apartment confirms it.

 

Donghae goes to his bedroom and, after just kicking his pants off and throwing them in the hamper, boots up his laptop to check his online accounts since his phone had died on him before he could do so in the studio. Twitter is the first website he visits because he gets at least a thousand Mentions—a good number of them in languages other than Korean and English—per day and if he doesn’t check daily he finds himself scrolling down for hours and hours on end. He may not reply to any of the tweets but reading what he can makes him feel better knowing that he he’s not wasting the fans’ love for him and Super Junior.

 

As usual, Donghae notices a lot of the tweets containing his and Eunhyuk’s usernames. Though his English skills are not the best, he is more than aware of the words contained in the said tweets: married, couple, kiss, and, god forbid, babies. He can’t help but smile at that last one just because it amazes him how much the fans want him and Eunhyuk to end up together someday and even make a family.

 

Donghae can’t do anything but sigh because in the entire world, in the entire stinking universe with all the planets and galaxies and black holes stuffed in it, he’s the one who wants him and Eunhyuk to be together the most and yet, even after revealing his true feelings to the object of his desire, he still hasn’t gotten anywhere.

 

"......I had the same assumption, but I suppose that's all it is,"

 

“Dammit!” Donghae hisses at the recollection. He composes himself with a deep breath before reading more of the Mentions. There’s no use in sulking, after all, when the fans and Heechul are onhis side. “Stupid monkey,” He mumbles softly while reading. “Idiotic, moron of an anchovy who doesn’t appreciate me. What doesn’t he like about me? I mean I’m loyal and affectionate. I can beat Sungmin at being cute but I choose not to because I’m already too perfect a creature. Hell, I’m so good-looking and likeable that I always get on the ‘Most Handsome’ and ‘Most Wanted’ lists online and offline, so what is up with that stinky fish and his dislike of—oh…my…maple syrup on pancakes,”

 

Donghae had clicked on a photo link a fan had included in their tweet and what appears in the new tab makes Donghae’s jaw literally drop. It is a photo of Eunhyuk while performing his concert solo, “Down”. With the hoodie covering half of his face, Eunhyuk has his upper body leaning to the right and slightly twisted so his left shoulder is raised higher than the other. That shoulder is bathed with so much light that it looks as smooth and as white as marble. Eunhyuk’s right arm is bent; there’s nothing graceful about his hand but Donghae loves the bony fingers and the webs of tiny veins crawling on the back. Then, there’s the large curve from his waist to his hips, probably the most feminine trait Eunhyuk has. All those details drive Donghae almost to the point of lustful madness, but the thing that pushes him to the edge?

 

Eunhyuk’s mouth.

 

Eunhyuk’s head is raised so his neck is exposed and his mouth…his mouth is open and Donghae can see his teeth and his plump lips are just there begging to be ravished. Donghae can’t stop staring at them because there’s an entire movie that has everything to do with those delectable puckers already playing in his head in fast motion and on repeat. However, he senses that something is off. He looks down and realizes that he’s wrong. Something isn’t off.

 

Something is way on.

 

“Oh god no...” Donghae thinks of what he should do. He could take a quick, cold shower to make it go away, though in his case it’s never really been guaranteed to work. He had tried singing the national anthem before to will it down but it had taken so much effort to concentrate on the song’s lyrics when he can feel the tightness in his underwear. Then, it occurs to him that no one is home.

 

No one—not a body, not a living soul—is in the apartment with him.

 

What perfect timing.

 

Donghae already has his fingers gripping the waistband of his boxers when he hears something. Panicking one hundred percent, he stands up and hurriedly looks here and there trying to figure out what to do about his condition.

 

“Fishy?”

 

Donghae turns his body away from the voice. Of all people, why—.

 

“Get out!” says Donghae, his face beet red and his hands curled into fists at his sides in frustration. He realizes that he had spoken in a too harsh manner but he doesn’t take it back because he really wants Eunhyuk to leave, at least until Donghae calms himself down. A train of curses both in Korean and in English pass by his brain when he hears footsteps approaching. “Don’t come near me!”

 

Eunhyuk stops. Donghae hears him sigh.

 

“Donghae…I’m sorry,”

 

Donghae is dumbfounded.

 

“To tell you the truth, I’m still confused about my feelings for you. Ever since you confessed to me I’ve been thinking about everything: you, me, us, but I just…I still can’t grasp anything. I don’t know if I really like you or if this is an effect of your confession. I…I don’t want to be wrong about this that’s why I didn’t give in last night,”

 

“Then what you said before you left…that wasn’t true?”

 

“…….It wasn’t true but it wasn’t false, either,”

 

Donghae smiles. “That’s good enough. For now,” He bites his lip at his present state. “But please, Hyukkie, I need you to leave me alone right now,”

 

“Why?”

 

“Don’t ask. Just go!”

 

Eunhyuk takes a step forward. “Hae—,”

 

“GAH!” Donghae does the only thing he can think of to prevent Eunhyuk from seeing him: he dives on his bed face first and stays still. He doesn’t see it but Eunhyuk’s eyebrows shoot up at his extremely strange behavior.

 

“What…what in the world is going on with you?” demands Eunhyuk. He sits on the bed and shakes Donghae by the shoulder. “Hey! Look at me!”

 

Donghae turns his head in Eunhyuk’s direction but the rest of him doesn’t move. “Happy now?”

 

“Not until you tell me why you’re being like this!” answers Eunhyuk with a pout that sends Donghae deeper into his problem.

 

“This is nothing!” insists Donghae. “GET AWAY! I’ll talk to you later!” He looks away again.

 

Eunhyuk glares at Donghae for a few seconds before giving up and standing so that he can leave the apartment. Before he can get far, though, he notices Donghae’s laptop, particularly the photo that’s being displayed on the screen. He frowns at it, wondering why his photo is there, and then the light bulb that should’ve never even been in his brain comes to life.

 

“Donghae…”

 

“WHY ARE YOU STILL—oh god,” Donghae sees an I-know-what’s-going-on look on the other’s face. He grabs one of his pillows and throws it at Eunhyuk. “Out! OUT!”

 

Eunhyuk catches the pillow and doesn’t remove his eyes from Donghae. “Are you having an—?”

 

“DON’T YOU DARE SAY IT!” Donghae throws all of his pillows like a crazy person. When there’s nothing left to throw, he buries his face in the mattress. “It’s…it’s not like I can control my body. I know you’re furious now so spare me the lecture and go home to your own dormitory. And please don’t tell this to the other members,”

 

A moment of silence comes between them.

 

“You…” Eunhyuk blushes before he continues his sentence. “…like me that much, don’t you?”

 

Although he doesn’t want to answer and wishes that his blanket can turn into Harry Potter’s Invisibility Cloak, very slowly, Donghae turns his head to look at Eunhyuk, a pitiful expression painted on his handsome face. “Do I have to confess again for you to understand how much I want you?”

 

At Donghae’s words, Eunhyuk can’t think. He decides that it won’t do him or Donghae any good to do so anyway. Therefore, he doesn’t answer. Not with words he doesn’t. He lets go of Donghae’s pillow and walks over to the bed.

 

“What—?” Donghae nearly loses it when, without warning, Eunhyuk’s lips descend onto his. It is an innocent gesture, free of lust or malice. Unbelieving and shocked, it takes a few seconds for Donghae to close his eyes and press his lips back on Eunhyuk’s. For years Donghae could only look on as Eunhyuk his lips, bites them, forms a cute pout out of them, and, worst of all, kisses both girls and boys with them. At that moment, however, one of the fantasies—that Eunhyuk kiss him on his own accord—has become real, and the feeling is unlike any other.

 

Eunhyuk pulls away but just enough to look Donghae in the eyes. Donghae can barely breathe. He watches as a smile forms on the lips that have just kissed him.

 

“Donghae, help me give in to you one hundred percent,”

 

Donghae swallows his nervousness. “H-how?”

 

“Go on a date with me,”