"Psst... Junhong...! They left. Come back in," Jongup said, his head popping out from the front door.

Junhong returned a smile, yet he knew it was wrong. "Why? I can't. It's not my house." Jongup smiled, hearing Junhong talk smoothly for the first time without tears.

"It's okay. In first grade, I learned about poverty... and um... I'm... uh..." Jongup didn't want to be rude when Junhong first smiled.

"I know. I know."

"How long do you want to stay here?" Jongup asked.

Junhong froze as he made his way up the stairs of Jongup's luxurious front porch. "What?"

Jongup stared at Junhong blankly. It was as if Jongup was speaking Japanese. Jongup pretended he didn't hear him and let the breeze of wind pass by, giving Junhong a look to hurry up. "I mean..."

"How long can I stay?" Junhong abruptly asked.

Well, good question, Junhong. When is Sunhwa going to come back? In one week. Jongup thought about it reasonably. When he was little, Sunhwa would avoid any dangers or bad influences from him and now that he's in high school and pretty much knows enough from what his friends told him, she would have to stop protecting and covering him up. He knew Sunhwa didn't really like Junhong. She would hit Jongup for all she cares if she sees him with Junhong.

Debt. That was the word he was searching for. Debt: something that is owed or that one is bound to pay to orperform for another. This was the only way. But from over hearing conversations, he knew that Junhong and his dad were in debt and couldn't pay for rent. Yet he knew he'd get a smack from Sunhwa if he even brought up this question in letting Junhong stay. It was something Sunhwa had against him. Not just Sunhwa, but his friends too.

From school, he knew that the amount of debt has interest on top of the amount they borrowed. But you can't pay a debt for a house in a week. That's just IMPOSSIBLE. Think about it. He can't pay debt in just a week for the whole month. He probably owed the landlord more than just one month. Yet he only has a week to stay. Sunhwa would cut Jongup's head off if he protested but he couldn't blame her. This might be the reason why Sunhwa was covering him up for so long. She wanted him to enjoy childhood. But she knew she would have to tell him sooner or later because she won't always be there for him and he will need to make hard decisions. Just like this one.

But this is a start. A horrible start. Sunhwa might've been covering him up for too long. It's starting to give him a headache and possibly a heartache. This was just something you can't joke about. Making decisions were harder than he thought. Just thinking about how this will affect him, Sunhwa, and Junhong made his chest pang.

Jongup sighed and darkened his expression. "I-I don't know. Sunhwa noona isn't going to..."

"Shall we talk about it later?" Junhong sympathetically asked, putting a hand on Jongup's shoulder.

Jongup smiled. "Yes." He checked his watch and admired the way Junhong was responsible in such a sudden way after sobbing his eyes out about something depressing. It made his heart flutter. "Should we eat lunch?" Junhong's stomach growled loudly. "Y-Yes," he chuckled. "I think we should."

Jongup laughed and the TV. He made his way to the kitchen, but stopped when someone grabbed his wrist. He looked back and found Junhong looking at him. "I-I can make lunch. Y-You don't have to."

"It's okay, Junhong. You're the guest," Jongup smiled.

--

No, this is wrong, Junhong. You can't do this to him. You can't get close. Junhong sternly looked at his hands when he felt his heart pounding loudly. You can't like him either. You can't love him. He's going to hate you, Junhong.

"Junhong?" Jongup's voice woke him up. "Do you want to eat there or at the dinner table?"

"Here is fine." There you go again. "Stop it!"

Jongup's eyes widened as he set the two plates onto the coffee table. "Sorry?" His eyes grew sad and Junhong's glint eyes could see that clearly.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I'm really sorry. I was just thinking," Junhong explained quickly.

"Uhm... okay."

Good job, Junhong. You have to keep the distance. Keep the awkwardness. Junhong thought, smiling sadly at his chest after biting a part of his sandwich.

--

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