Donghae stirred lightly. He could faintly smell someone making breakfast in the kitchen and his stomach, aching from hunger and crying, was telling him to wake up. Blinking a few times, he cleared his fuzzy vision and gasped when he was met with the image of Hyukjae's sleeping form.

The red head had fallen asleep at the foot of the couch with his head tilted on his arms so that he could rest comfortably on the couch. Now that he was conscious of it, Donghae could feel the gentle tickles of air from Hyukjae's breathing against his face. The blanket the older boy had given Sungmin and Kyuhyun the night before was draped over his shoulders. He scrambled to sit up, accidentally, brushing his hand along Hyukjae's.

The small action woke the red head who winced from sleeping in an awkward position. Luckily, there was a rug underneath his knees or he would have frozen on the floor. He noticed that Donghae was also awake and smiled softly.

“Morning, Hae,” he said, standing up and hopping on the couch next to the younger boy. He curled up under the blankets and reached for Donghae's waist. He snuggled closer to him, causing the other to stiffen at the sudden intimate touch.

Donghae didn't get a chance to move or say anything because Hyukjae yelped as Sungmin hit him with the pan he had been using to make pancakes. The red head released Donghae's waist and rubbed his head, pouting at his friend.

“Yah! Stop cuddling and come eat,” Sungmin huffed, but he smiled at the cuteness of the two sitting on the couch.

Hyukjae continued to pout and glanced over at Donghae. He smiled and grabbed Donghae's hand, pulling the younger boy with him as he went into the kitchen. Donghae watched as Hyukjae practically devoured the strawberry pancakes Sungmin had prepared. He couldn't help but break into a smile.

When they were done, Sungmin helped clean up and thanked Hyukjae for letting him and Kyuhyun stay over. They left shortly after, leaving Hyukjae and Donghae standing around the kitchen. Hyukjae walked into the living room and began to fold the blankets neatly, placing them on the couch and sitting down. Donghae followed him and shuffled uneasily on the floor.

“Um, Hyukkie?”

Hyukjae immediately looked up as soon as he heard his name falling from Donghae's lips. “Yeah, Hae?”

“About last night...I didn't mean to...I'm sorry...”

The red head smiled softly and tugged Donghae's wrist, forcing the brunette to sit next to him. “It's okay, Hae. You don't have to apologize for crying.” He ruffled Donghae's hair affectionately. “Next time we can watch something like Finding Nemo. You kind of remind me of the little fishy.”

Donghae punched Hyukjae lightly on the arm.

“What? The little clownfish is cute.”

Is he calling me cute? Donghae wondered, blushing at the thought. He bit his bottom lip.

Hyukjae swallowed uncomfortably at the urge to suddenly claim those teasing, pink lips. He settled for taking a calming, yet shaky, breath and standing up. If he looked at Donghae's adorable face any longer, Hyukjae felt like he was going to jump the boy.

Without another word, Hyukjae went upstairs and closed the door to his room behind him. He clutched the front of his shirt in an attempt to slow is heart beat. “Stop,” he whispered. “Stop wanting to kiss him. Stop feeling this way.”

The next week seemed to crawl by. Considering it was the week before winter break, each class felt like torture. More so for Hyukjae because he had to watch Jessica cling to Donghae every chance she got. Hyukjae seethed with jealousy. The emotion kept telling him something. And it was within that week that Hyukjae discovered why he had been so possessive and felt the need to claim the brunette's lips for himself and let no one else touch him.

“I'm in love with him,” Hyukjae admitted one night as he recounted every single time he felt an attraction towards Donghae that was in no way platonic. “I love him.”

So, for the rest of the week, Hyukjae avoided Donghae. He hated doing it, but his realization made him confused.

But by the last day of school before break, Hyukjae's patience was wearing thin. Jessica had dragged a reluctant Donghae over to her lunch table where not only she kept staring at him, but another girl, Yoona, kept batting her eyelashes at the brunette. Hyukjae didn't think he'd be able to handle two girls hanging on his Donghae. Wait, my Donghae? He shook his head.

A few minutes later, he nearly slammed his hand down on the table when Jessica had the nerve to sit on Donghae's lap, obviously without the boy's permission, but still. Hyukjae grit his teeth and stormed out of the cafeteria. He was so confused and frustrated that he even threw his unfinished strawberry milk in the trash. He grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair and headed to the roof even though it was snowing and cold out. Anywhere was better than there.

Moments later, Donghae managed to politely remove Jessica from his lap and escape. He saw Sungmin and Kyuhyun sitting at their table, but Hyukjae wasn't there. Simultaneously, the two lovers pointed upwards.

Donghae nodded, knowing that they meant Hyukjae was on the roof. He didn't even bother to get his own jacket and ran down the hallway.

Sungmin raised his eyebrows at Kyuhyun and smirked, suspecting something. Kyuhyun just patted Sungmin's head.

When he got to the roof, Donghae quietly peered around the door.

Hyukjae had his back against the wall an was staring at the sky. His dark red hair was dotted with flecks of snow as it fell to the ground. The boy was banging the side of his fist against the wall, creating the only sound audible on the roof, a slow rhythm, almost like a heartbeat.

“Hyukkie?” Donghae reached for Hyukjae's moving hand, noticing that it was getting rubbed raw from the rough granite of the wall. When the older didn't respond to either his voice or his touch, Donghae asked, “Are you mad at me? You've been ignoring me ever since we watched that movie. Did I do something to make you angry?”

You became my brother.

“I don't want you to hate me, Hyukkie.” Donghae clasped Hyukjae's freezing hand in his own. He shivered.

Hyukjae sighed, then glanced sideways at Donghae. He had been trying so hard since that morning to stay away from Donghae. He didn't hate Donghae. In fact, Hyukjae knew that it was just the opposite.

Donghae could feel tears pricking his eyes. He didn't want to be a crybaby, but he didn't know what to do. If Hyukjae hated him again, Donghae wouldn't know how he would survive. “I don't want to be alone.” Donghae clutched Hyukjae's arm and buried his face in the other's shoulder.

Oh . I made him cry. Good one, Hyukjae. But, how do I explain to him that I've been jealous as hell and avoiding him so I won't ing kiss him every two seconds!?

Hyukjae calmed himself down. He knew that for both his and Donghae's sake, he needed to bury those feelings—get rid of them so he and Donghae could live a normal brotherly relationship. Besides, it wasn't like Donghae loved him any more than a brother would, right?

Noticing that Donghae was ice cold from being out in the snow without a jacket on and that the boy was shivering, Hyukjae shrugged his own off and draped it over Donghae's shoulders. The brunette looked up at him with teary eyes. Hyukjae brushed them away with his thumbs.

“I'm sorry,” he apologized. “I've just had a lot of things on my mind recently. I'm not mad at you and I don't hate you.”

Donghae sighed in relief. “You scared me,” he whispered. He sank to the floor and began drawing circles in the snow.

Hyukjae knelt in front of him and apologized again. Before he could even get another word out, his face was met with two fistfuls of snow.

“Stupid Hyukkie!!” Donghae shouted as he threw more snow in Hyukjae's face, some of it going down the boy's shirt. He pushed the red head so that he fell onto his back.

“Ahh-ahh!!! Hae! Th-That's c-c-c-cold!” Hyukjae stuttered as he struggled to get back up. Each time he moved, the snow melted against his chest and back making him even colder.

“You deserved it!” Donghae stuck his tongue out and ran for the door.

“Oh no you don't!” Hyukjae called after him, standing up and grabbing the brunette's wrist, roughly pulling the boy to him. The jacket fell to the ground. “That wasn't very nice,” the red head said huskily into Donghae's ear. Whether it was from the cold weather or Hyukjae's breath, the latter shivered and Hyukjae smirked. “You need to be punished.”

The next ten minutes that followed consisted of Hyukjae mercilessly tickling Donghae, straddling the boy's hips as the brunette squirmed and laughed beneath him. After a couple times that Donghae begged Hyukjae to stop, the red head halted his devious tickling and let the younger finally catch his breath.

It wasn't until when Hyukjae shifted his weight and Donghae accidentally let out an almost inaudible moan that they realized the kind of compromising position they were in.

Donghae lay flat on his back against the snow covered tiles, his arms spread out wide. His chest was heaving and his heart was beating rapidly from the tickle attack he had received. His face and ears were flushed with red. He had snow in his hair, which was plastered to his forehead and neck, and his school shirt was practically see-through from rolling around on the wet ground. His tight-fitting T-shirt was visible from underneath the translucent fabric of his white uniform shirt. And, he was staring at Hyukjae with wide eyes.

Hyukjae wasn't in much better shape. He was also soaked through and panting. The sight beneath him wasn't exactly helping him forget the feelings he had just recently accepted. Hyukjae unintentionally moved again, causing Donghae to bite his lip as the pressure on his lower half increased. Watching the blush flood the brunette's cheeks, Hyukjae couldn't keep the sudden predatory emotions from slipping into his stare.

“H-Hyukkie...” Donghae whimpered.

“Oh! Sorry, Hae.” Hyukjae immediately snapped out of it and stood up. He offered Donghae a hand and helped the other boy to his feet.

Since Donghae was a little unsteady and dizzy from earlier, he grasped Hyukjae's arm for support. He stiffened though when he felt one of Hyukjae's arms circle his waist. Through the wet material of his shirt, Donghae could feel Hyukjae's hand pressed lightly against his stomach. The simple sensation sent sparks through his system and he shivered for the nth time that afternoon.

“Come on,” Hyukjae said, lightly pulling Donghae by his waist. He smiled and added, “Let's skip the rest of the day. Besides, I don't think our teacher would be too happy if we showed up for class like this.”

Donghae nodded.

Hyukjae bent over to pick up his jacket, which was also dripping wet. As he and Donghae sneaked through the hallways of the school and out the front gate, they were careful not to be seen. Once they were past the gate and on the road, Donghae silently kicked snow with the front of his shoe.

Feeling obligated to break the silence, Hyukjae apologized again. “I'm sorry, Hae. I didn't mean to make you scared or upset.”

“It's okay. I was just confused. I thought I made you mad.”

“I haven't been mad at you.” Hyukjae hushed the next sentence under his breath, hoping Donghae couldn't her it. “I'm pissed at that and her friends for clawing at you.”

He was jealous? Apparently, Donghae did hear him. The thought gave Donghae hope. He just pretended like he hadn't heard anything and asked, “Where are we going? I'm freezing.” His teeth began to shatter and he clung to Hyukjae for body heat.

Hyukjae couldn't resist pulling Donghae closer to him. Home was too far away to walk in wet clothes. So where? “I know!” Hyukjae announced.

*~*~*

“What the hell happened to you two?”

Hyukjae and Donghae stood dripping ice water on the floor of Leeteuk's cafe as the eldest stared at them in disbelief.

“I viciously tickled Donghae on the roof at school.” Hyukjae grinned innocently at his hyung.

“What-Why-? Never mind. I don't want to know.” Leeteuk glanced around, thankful that there weren't any customers at the moment. “What about classes?”

“We skipped.” Hyukjae defended his blunt statement with, “We weren't learning anything new because we have two weeks off starting tomorrow.”

Leeteuk face-palmed and sighed. “All right, go in the back and put on some spare uniforms. I'll dry your clothes but you're going to have to work, understand?” He crossed his arms in a disappointed fashion but smiled.

“Thanks, Teukie hyung!” Hyukjae cheered, hugging the older man.

“Y-Yah! You're wet! Go change!”

Hyukjae smiled widely and ran behind the counter. Donghae bowed politely and followed Hyukjae into the back.

They spent a few hours helping Leeteuk. Sungmin and Kyuhyun appeared once school had ended and questioned why the two of them never came back from lunch. Hyukjae just told them that it was a secret, which caused Sungmin to think it was something dirty and Kyuhyun to about it.

When it was time to close, Hyukjae and Donghae changed back into their uniforms that Leeteuk had dried for them. Before they started for home, Leeteuk gave them each a piece of cake to take home. They thanked their hyung and left.

It was late when they finally arrived home. Hyukjae wanted his strawberry cake and sat down at the table. Donghae joined him, taking out his chocolate cake and quietly munching on it. When he was done and rinsing his plate in the sink, he didn't understand when Hyukjae started laughing.

“What?” he asked, turning around.

Hyukjae hid his smile with his hand. “You have cake all over your mouth.”

“Oh. I do?” He his lips in order to get the crumbs instead of using a napkin.

Hyukjae froze. After everything that had happened, that sight was the last thing Hyukjae needed to see. He clenched the bottom of his chair to keep himself from attacking the clueless brunette.

 
“Did I get it?” Donghae asked. He ran his tongue over his lips again, not realizing the affect it had on the red head sitting across the table. Wrong move number 1.
“No. You missed some.”

Donghae pouted. Wrong move number 2. “Where?”

Before there could be a Wrong move number 3, Hyukjae was up and leaning over Donghae. He couldn't stop himself. “Here.”

Hyukjae slammed Donghae's back against the wall and finally claimed those lips that had been teasing him for the past week.

It started off gentle, just a tiny bit of movement and brushing of lips. Hyukjae pulled back, unable to take the growing pain of his next question.

“Are you disgusted?”

Donghae blinked.

“You're now my brother and I just kissed you.” Hyukjae stared into Donghae's eyes. “I love you. Do you hate it?”

Donghae didn't know how to react. Hyukjae loved him. His insides were buzzing with pleasure and surprise. His heart beat was quickly getting faster and he could sense that he was blushing.

Ever since Hyukjae saved him, Donghae couldn't stay away from the other. It started out as admiration and gratitude, but when Hyukjae kissed him the other night, he knew that what he was feeling was something more. Every time he cried, he wanted Hyukjae to be the one to hold him. He felt so scared when he thought that Hyukjae hated him. He would die if Hyukjae no longer liked him.

But Hyukjae loved him.

“Say something.” Hyukjae's voice sounded anguished. He looked like he was about to cry. He believed that he'd truly screwed up with Donghae.

“Again.”

Hyukjae's expression was both confused and anxious.

“Kiss me again.” Donghae could feel the heat in his cheeks skyrocketing. “I...I think I love you too, Hyukkie.” When Hyukjae didn't move, Donghae got impatient and shouted, “I love you dammit! Now kiss me ag—!”

His words were cut off by Hyukjae's mouth against his. It wasn't gentle or sweet this time. Hyukjae placed one hand at the nape of Donghae's neck and pulled him closer. He couldn't help but thinking that Donghae was created just for him. The way their lips met perfectly with each kiss was surreal. He ran his tongue along the brunette's bottom lip, asking for entrance, for which Donghae happily obliged.

They both got a rush of strawberry and chocolate as Hyukjae began exploring every inch of Donghae's mouth. Donghae could feel a hand slipping under his shirt and caressing his side. He would have fallen to the floor if he wasn't pressed between the wall and Hyukjae. The younger boy moaned when Hyukjae on his tongue and he shuddered as Hyukjae's fingers drew patterns along his side.

Hyukjae was almost unable to control himself because of the muffled moans and whimpers that were coming from Donghae. This kiss was far better than the chaste one he had given Donghae the other night. This one was passionate and demanding and the reactions he was eliciting from Donghae were driving him crazy.

Donghae didn't even realize that while he was being consumed by both love and lust, he had begun to grind his hips against Hyukjae's. The older boy groaned, feeling a little someone waking up.

Hyukjae pulled back, finally breaking the kiss and leaving both him and Donghae breathless. One more roll of Donghae's hips and Hyukjae was prepared to take the brunette right there in the kitchen. He smiled and wiped the trail of saliva from Donghae's chin with his thumb. He hugged Donghae to his chest and rested his head on his shoulder.

“I love you, Hae.”

Donghae smiled and leaned the side of his head against Hyukjae's. “I love you too, Hyukkie.”

That night, both Hyukjae and Donghae were too exhausted to walk upstairs and slept on the couch together. Before he drifted off to dreamland, Hyukjae kissed the sleeping Donghae's cheek and whispered on more time. “I love you. No matter what, I'll protect you.”