Summer 2002

It was the last night of summer camp, and Sung-min didn't have the slightest idea of where Hyuk-jae was. Not that he had bothered searching for his friend, he personally had been busy hanging with his new friends, which he would part ways with in the next 24 hours.

Unlike them, Hyuk-jae had several years to come where he would follow after Sung-min like a lost puppy.

Lee Hyuk-jae, that boy who had fallen from a tree because he was the biggest show-off. 

Lee Hyuk-jae, the kid who had gotten diarrhoea in school because of the amount of chocolate he ate.

Lee Hyuk-jae, the one who had kissed another boy only because he wanted to kiss someone.

Lee Hyuk-jae, the world's most annoying friend who would eat the first slice of your birthday cake and spend all the bus money on car toys.

Lee Hyuk-jae, the monkey with smelly feet and magazines under his bed.

What a nuisance.

As Sung-min and Ryeo-wook, along with Choi Si-won, who was another (fantastically amazing friend who was nothing like Hyuk-jae because he was responsible and gentle) friend who Sung-min had made, approached the main building where the last party was going to be held before the departure ceremony tomorrow.

It was sad to think he'd have to say goodbye to the great friends he'd made, but he was sure they'd stay in touch. At the moment, he couldn't stand the thought of having to be around Hyuk-jae for the rest of his life.

The party went smoothly, but Hyuk-jae regretted that he hadn't seen much of Sung-min, they had come together to the summer camp after all.

He had no idea of where his friend was, and he could only recall seeing his friend two times the entire evening. Amidst the sweaty bodies of youths jumping up and down in the dance floor, Hyuk-jae had gone to the centre and showed the various dance moves he had learnt throughout the summer (and many of which he and Dong-hae had personally made up).

After getting various cheers from everyone around, he exited the stage to freshen himself up at the bar, and that's when he saw Sung-min kissing Soon-kyu, that small girl that somehow had made it to the summer camp (not to mention that Sung-min had always had the hots for her).

It wasn't an innocent kiss, either. 

Hyuk-jae could swear he saw saliva and tongue and everything as the couple parted their lips, and Hyuk-jae just always knew that when Sung-min kissed, that'd be his way of kissing. 

The second time he had seen his friend, was when the party was going to an end, and he had caught Sung-min exiting the building. He had excitedly hurried past everyone to congratulate Sung-min, because hey, he had finally kissed Soon-kyu, but he stopped once he saw that Sung-min was laughing and having the time of his life with people he had never seen before.

Sung-min had somehow turned around and seen Hyuk-jae in the middle of the crowd, but when Hyuk-jae had waved a single hand at him, the boy had simply turned around and walked away.

Now Hyuk-jae was sitting on his bed, waiting for Sung-min to get to their room. It was past 2 am, and the party had ended over an hour ago.

Sung-min was nowhere to be seen, although the rules stated that after the party, everyone had to go straight to their rooms. And Sung-min was very strict about the rules.

He wondered if this perhaps was his own fault. 

After he had become friends with Dong-hee and Dong-hae, Sung-min hadn't spoken to him if it weren't necessary, hell - he had barely even looked at him.

Before falling asleep in the cold and lonely cabin, Hyuk-jae looked at the clock, 02:46 am, and prayed that he wouldn't lose his best friend in the world.

Winter 2002

The winter had been cold and sad. 

At school, Sung-min would occasionally ask Hyuk-jae things along the lines of "what date is it tomorrow?", "I'm sorry I wasn't able to do my homework yesterday 'cause I went out with Soon-kyu, mind giving me a copy of yours?", or "hey, you owe me a pencil, don't you remember?"

It was clear Sung-min was distancing himself from Hyuk-jae, everyone with a pair of eyes could see it, and it was extremely frustrating how everyone observed but didn't say a thing. Classmates, even his parents, looked at Hyuk-jae with concern when he ate his lunch alone, or when he spent the entire evening locked up in his room, reading manga and even being bored enough to do homework.

Now he hadn't spoken to Sung-min for more than a week, and he was near his breaking point. They had grown up together, but now everything seemed to fall apart because of a stupid choice he had made.

He was so depressed about this he hadn't even bothered replying to the emails he had gotten from the friends he had made in summer camp, he was actually pretty sure he didn't remember who was Dong-hae and who was Dong-hee. Not that he cared now when he was going through the end of his friendship with his lifelong friend.

Winter 2003

"Why are you sitting by yourself?"

Hyuk-jae had been sitting on a bench somewhere near a park, it was snowing and he was sure he'd catch a cold, but he hadn't cared.

Today was the first day of the year, which had always been extra special because it was also Sung-min's birthday, but because they weren't exactly close anymore, he hadn't had the chance of congratulating him.

When his parents had asked him if he wasn't going to, he had thrown a fit and stormed out of the house, running as far as he could until he was out of breath and shivering cold.

The sight before him was nothing he had expected to see that cold January day.

"Yesung-hyung!" He blurted out in surprise, covering his mouth with his two hands after the realisation of his sudden outburst.

Jong-woon smiled, and asked if he could take a seat beside him, which to Hyuk-jae fervently nodded his head.

"So why are you sitting here all by yourself? Aren't you cold?"

Hyuk-jae was surprised he didn't ask why he wasn't with Sung-min, but he remembered Yesung-hyung was a bit older than him and had joined an entertainment company to finally set his nickname "Yesung" to use; to finally showcase his amazing talent of singing, which he had owned since he was little.

Since he had been gone for so long, he probably didn't know that Hyuk-jae and Sung-min had spent all their days together, that is, until last year.

He was actually more surprised over the fact that his hyung was able to remember (even recognise) him!

"No, I'm not cold." Hyuk-jae replied, but it was obvious he was judging from the way his body shook.

"Come, let's get you warm again."

Jong-woon brought Hyuk-jae to a small café his parents owned and ran, and made Hyuk-jae take a seat by the window.

He returned with a cup of hot cocoa which he shoved in front of him and offered him to drink it up. "It's on the house."

They sat in silence as Hyuk-jae drank from the delicious drink, it tasted like Christmas, and he just couldn't resist Christmas. He looked at Jong-woon who was sitting across the table, arms crossed and gaze fixed on somewhere outside.

He was grateful in ways Jong-woon wouldn't understand; first and foremost, nobody had been so friendly to him in months. He had been cold and lonely, but now he felt welcomed and cherished, and he wondered how his hyung could have appeared out of nowhere to save his life just like that.

Hyuk-jae was no fool, he knew he was helpless without Sung-min.

But it seemed to him that Sung-min was doing just fine without him, and without Sung-min he was a nobody no one cared to look at, and he would probably have died out there if it weren't for Yesung-hyung.

"You finished it." Jong-woon said and Hyuk-jae took a moment before realising he was talking about the beverage.

When Hyuk-jae didn't reply, Jong-woon spoke again, "Look, I don't know why you were sitting by yourself like that, but I definitely cannot allow someone like you freeze to death in New Year, can I?"

"I guess that wouldn't be nice of you..."

"I may not be your ideal date, but let's go have some fun, it's not like I have anything else to do today."

Hyuk-jae looked at Jong-woon with big eyes, with all hope restored.

He felt bad for Sung-min somehow, it was as if deciding to hang out with Yesung-hyung equalled dumping Sung-min, but he pushed those thoughts aside. Sung-min had been the one leaving his side permanently, what else could he do?

"I want to party." Hyuk-jae said in a determined tone as he looked deeply inside Jong-woon's eyes.

A/N: I know it took more than one month to update this but in my defence I was busy with the last exams in May/June, but now I'm on my holidays! \o/

So now that hyukmin are in a troubled part of their relationship, everything will get far more dramatic from here onwards, and if anyone has any ideas or challenges to give me, tell me so I can add even more happenings as the story goes on~

If you find any typos, oh goodness please tell me because they're embarrassing ;; and if any of you haven't read this amazing compilation of hyukmin's friendship whAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR GO READ IT BECAUSE IT'S BEAUTIFUL 

Oh and if there are any confusions as to why Yesung is named as both Yesung and Jong-woon then it is because although most people know him as Jong-woon, his old nickname was Yesung because of the artistic voice he has had since being a child hmm yes this is a work of fiction after all

Anyway, please comment and give me feedback. ♥  /i swear we'll have more hyukmin in the upcoming chapters