---

“Hyung, why do you have to go?”

A fourteen years-old Sungyeol sighed to a crying twelve years-old Sungjong who’s currently sat up while tightly hugging a big white teddy bear on his own bed, in his own bedroom.

“You said we will be friends forever!”

“We will, Jongie. Who said-”

“But you’ll leave next week!”

“Hey, does that mean that we will stopped being friends? We won’t, Jongie. We won’t.”

“Hyung,” Sungjong said in between his sob, “You.. like Myungsoo hyung, don’t you?”

“I do, Sungjong-ah. Why do you mention that all of the sudden?” Sungyeol smiled sadly.

“Does liking Myungsoo hyung wasn’t enough reason for you to stay? I don’t want you to leave me and Myungsoo hyung..”

“It’s not that simple, Sungjong-ah. I’m just a kid, what can I do?”

“So you can stay if you’re a grown up then?” Sungjong wiped his tears and then looking at Sungyeol with eyes full of hope.

“Sungjong-ah..”

“Can you, hyung?”

“I don’t know.”

“If you can, will you?”

“I will.”

“Comeback when you’re a grown up then. And stay here.”

Sungyeol laughed and ruffled his younger best friend’s hair. “I don’t even know when will I become a grown up, Jongie.” Sungyeol was serious. He didn’t know what does being a grown up means. Turning twenty? Having a stable job? Living on your own? What?

“Three years. That’s enough time for you to become a grown up.. I think. In three years you’ll graduate high school already, hyung. High school graduate is a grown up man.” Sungjong said innocently, tugging his hand into Sungyeol’s shirt.

Sungyeol laughed, again. He didn’t know where did that logic come into the younger’s head, but well, that’s not completely wrong either. People did say that real life will start after high school. A life where it only happened in the real world, which is full of grown ups. So, see the connection there?

“So you’ll come back, right?” Sungjong stared at Sungyeol, again with that hopeful eyes. Sungyeol saw that eyes and immediately understand one thing. Twelve years being an only child and having a super busy parents has made Sungjong become a lonely kid. He might look bright and cheery, but deep down, he’s lonely. That’s why when he started to live with his aunt, Myungsoo’s mother, and her family, and then quickly became friends with both Myungsoo and Sungyeol, he immediately take these two person who’s older than him as his big brothers. Now Sungyeol finally understand completely of why Sungjong freaked out and desperately held onto him, much more desperate than Myungsoo did, when he first talked about his parents’ move out plan.

“Sungjong-ah, Myungsoo will still be here, you know. Moonsoo will also be around. They’re your cousins, with them around, you won’t feel lonely even though I’m not here.”

“I know, I won’t. But..” Sungjong’s eyes started to get teary again and Sungyeol felt guilty about making his younger best friend cried. After all, despite the constant pranks he threw on Sungjong and the endless ‘I hate you!’ he received from Sungjong after each pranks, Sungyeol always had a soft spot for the younger.

Sungyeol sighed and brought his thumb to wiped off the tears streamed on Sungjong’s cheek. He then smiled to the younger while patting his head. “Hey, don’t cry. I’ll try, okay?”

“You’ll come back?” Sungjong gazed at the older.

“I said I’ll try, Jongie.”

“Okay.” Sungjong paused, but his eyes still gazing at Sungyeol.

“I need you to promise me one more thing, hyung.”

“Another one?”

“Promise me you’ll confess your feelings to Myungsoo hyung.” Sungjong grinned, tears stain still visible on his cheeks. One second he’s crying, and the next second he’s grinning, Sungyeol started to think that Sungjong actually got a double personality.

“What?” Sungyeol gaped. This little kid (he himself was also a little kid though) must be joking, right?

“Confess your feelings, hyung. I know Myungsoo hyung like you too.”

“No he doesn’t.”

“Yes he does. I heard him said it.. while talking to himself.”

That did sound like something that Myungsoo will do. Talking to himself, that is. Not go around saying that he likes Sungyeol.

“You’re lying.”

“No I’m not.”

Sungyeol sighed. It’s always easier to handle a crying Sungjong than a stubborn Sungjong. Why did this little brat suddenly changed mode by the way? “And why should I promise YOU such thing in the first place?” Sungyeol snorted.

“Oh yes, you have to promise ME such thing."

"And why is that?" Now Sungyeol starting to get annoyed. Just one minute ago he was actually felt guilty for making Sungjong cried, but now he preferred to see this brat cry again, instead of saying nonsense like this.

"Because, I wanna see my hyungs together." Sungjong said innocently. He was actually telling the truth. Right from the start, Sungjong knew both of his hyungs likes each other but too thick-headed to realize it. But in Sungyeol's eyes, who's currently annoyed, Sungjong's truthful and innoncent words and smile came across as sickening and annoying, as if Sungjong tried to pull a prank on him instead.

"Whatever you say, I won’t say anything to him, and that's final."

"You tell him, or I’ll tell him instead.” Sungjong said, still grinning, still being a stubborn, still being annoying, at least in Sungyeol's mind.

“No no no no no!” Sungyeol screamed in horror. “Okay! I will tell him!” Sungyeol said, but then continued the rest of the sentence in his head, ‘But not now.. Not when I’ll leave him within a week.’

---

There's no way that a 12 y/o boy will act like that! Oh God. But maybe.. Twelve years-old Sungjong can? >_<

In case you got confused, this whole chapter is a flashback of some sort. Yeah, I know this is a very short chapter, sorry about that. I'm starting to think that this whole story isn't good enough. /sigh/ Because even I, as the author, still kinda vague about the whole story. Though I do have an actual plot in mind, I don't know how to write it. /double sigh/ Oh well, as usual, thank you for reading! Ah, thank you for all the commenters and subscribers too! ^^