Kyuhyun doesn’t know what he really needs to tell Jongwoon but he feels like he can’t do it alone, helping Sooyeon and dealing with Yoona blackmailing him with Sooyeon’s situation and somehow, as much as he doesn’t want to cause any problems to Jongwoon because he’s still thinking of Jongwoon’s health as well, he’s not sure he can survive another avoidance from Jongwoon’s part if ever Jongwoon finds out he’s dating Yoona now. Yes, Kyuhyun has resolved to that because if that’s what it takes to protect Sooyeon, then he’ll have to deal with it this way. What he can’t deal with is probably Jongwoon avoiding him again because of Satan-Yoona (Kyuhyun’s beginning to call her that, seriously.). And because he can’t just tell Jongwoon about Yoona blackmailing him because of Sooyeon, he’ll have to start from the beginning – about Sooyeon.

He doesn’t even muse on the reason why it’s so important for him that Jongwoon doesn’t avoid him. He probably already knows it subconsciously.

“What are you doing at the botanical garden, hyung?” Kyuhyun asks Jongwoon after they’ve settled inside a warm café just around the university.

“Feeding the turtles,” Jongwoom simply says, removing his thermal jacket and putting it on his chair.

“On a Sunday?”

“Yes,” Jongwoon answers. “How do you think they’re surviving without anybody feeding them during weekends and holidays?”

“Do you always feed them?”

Jongwoon thinks for a moment and finally replies, “Most of the time. If I can’t, I ask Sooyoungie or Joohyunie to feed them.”

“Why haven’t you ever asked me?”

Jongwoon pauses and stares at Kyuhyun. Then, he smiles lightly and says, “Because Sooyoung and Joohyun are always available. If I can’t feed them and both Sooyoung and Joohyun can’t feed them as well, don’t worry, I’ll be sure to ask you.”

Kyuhyun smiles and their orders come up.

“Drink,” Jongwoon says. “You’re still chilling. Are you even aware of it?”

Kyuhyun grins and tries to take a sip but noticing that Jongwoon orders him not the usual cappuccino or mocha that he’s always ordering (Kyuhyun can’t really handle black-black coffee) but this weird-looking green liquid which seems to have come from those alien planets Donghae is always talking about, Kyuhyun stops and asks Jongwoon, “What’s this, hyung?”

“Green tea,” Jongwoon says with a small smile.

“Ew!” Kyuhyun blenches and puts the mug down.

“Hey, drink that! You’re chilling!”

“But that’s disgusting!” Kyuhyun argues loudly, earning a few glances from those other people in the café and a death glare from the barista who made the green tea.

“Quiet down, you idiot,” Jongwoon mutters, laughing quietly and covering his face while Kyuhyun wishes he could just vanish – but because he’s yet to learn magic and alien tricks from Donghae, he’s only able to push Jongwoon’s scarf up to cover his face.

“Why’d you even order a green tea for me, hyung?” Kyuhyun mumbles, looking at the odd-green thing on his mug.

“It’s because you’re chilling,” Jongwoon defends himself. “It’s good to remove chills.”

Kyuhyun chills a little.

“See? You’re still chilling. How long were you out there without gloves and a scarf?”

“Um, two hours?”

Jongwoon opens his mouth widely but instead of shouting and hitting Kyuhyun which might have earned them another batch of glances and a death glare and probably have them kicked out of the café, he closes his mouth again and only shakes his head. “You’re really hopeless,” he mutters, looking at Kyuhyun seriously. “What if I didn’t see you? You’re just going to continue walking there with no gloves or a scarf? What if you get sick? You’re going to miss classes and basketball practices and a lot, Kyuhyun. Do you realize that?”

Jongwoon sounds utterly disappointed at Kyuhyun that Kyuhyun remains silent, staring at the whirlpool of his green tea because he’s only stirring it and not drinking it. Then, instead of saying anything to Jongwoon, Kyuhyun puts the mug back to his lips and drinks the alien-tea straight. Fortunately, it’s only warm and not really hot. Jongwoon stares at Kyuhyun, shocked, as Kyuhyun drinks his green tea straight. Then, after drinking the tea, Kyuhyun puts down the mug and catches Jongwoon’s eyes.

One second…

Five seconds…

Ten seconds…

They say that it’s very, very hard to stare into a person’s eyes – like really stare. You can look at any person’s eyes straight and just be blank and get the same blank reaction in return but to look at one person’s eyes and see right through him, that’s different and that’s difficult. They say that you can only do that to persons you hold a very special feeling to or those who have a special meaning to you.

“I’m sorry, hyung. I’ll make sure to wear gloves and scarf next time.”

“You better, silly. You’re making me worried, don’t you know that?”

“That’s why I’m sorry,” Kyuhyun says again, still locking his eyes into Jongwoon’s.

“It’s okay,” Jongwoon says with a small smile. “Do you feel better?”

“Miraculously yes, hyung,” Kyuhyun says after a moment. “I thought I’ll die after drinking that.”

Jongwoon only laughs and Kyuhyun enjoys it, hearing Jongwoon’s laugh. Then, Jongwoon asks, remembering why he’s even with Kyuhyun now when he’s supposed to be heading back home. “What do you need to tell me, Kyu?”

Kyuhyun stops for a moment, thinking where to start. Then, he takes a deep breath and decides to just tell Jongwoon everything from the very start because even he wouldn’t feel alright leaving little pieces for Jongwoon. It’s like for him, Jongwoon deserves to know and again, Kyuhyun doesn’t even muse on the reason as to why he thinks that because then and again, he probably already know why.

“Remember that time when Sooyeon almost crashes himself to you, hyung?” Kyuhyun asks and Jongwoon nods. “You suggested for me to check on her because she seemed to be crying and I did.”

Jongwoon smiles.

“Well, she’s in love with another girl named Hwang Miyoung.”

Jongwoon gasps but nods understandingly.

“She sees Miyoung kissing another girl but it’s not that Miyoung’s cheating on her, hyung. Miyoung only mistook the girl for Sooyeon because she’s wearing a sleeping mask. That’s why she’s crying that time, hyung.”

Jongwoon nods again.

“Miyoung came to apologize at their house and auntie, Mrs. Jung, isn’t very happy with what happened. She’s practically devastated. She tells Miyoung that Sooyeon doesn’t really love her and she locks Sooyeon in her room. She wants Sooyeon to change schools so she’ll never see Miyoung again.”

“That’s – That’s not right,” Jongwoon says after a long while, searching for the right words.

“I know, hyung,” Kyuhyun agrees. “Nothing can ever talk Mrs. Jung out of it except uncle, Sooyeon’s father but even Sooyeon doesn’t have an idea where uncle is and there’s no way auntie will let me contact uncle if she learns why I want to contact uncle. But I need to talk to uncle for Sooyeon’s sake, hyung.”

Jongwoon hears the desperation in Kyuhyun’s voice. “I understand, Kyu. I’ll help you – for Sooyeon-ssi’s case.”

Kyuhyun stops and stares at Jongwoon because he’s not really expecting any help from Jongwoon when he decided to tell him what about Sooyeon. It’s like he’s only telling him about Sooyeon because that’s what Satan-Yoona is using as a blackmail for him to date her and that’s what Kyuhyun wants to tell Jongwoon – that he’s not going to date Yoona because he wants to but because he needs to protect Sooyeon.

“Are you sure, hyung?”

“You want to help her, right?” Jongwoon asks with a smile.

Kyuhyun smiles back but unfortunately, that’s not the end of it. “Um, and hyung?”

Jongwoon looks up after taking another sip from his already cold cappuccino. “Hm?”

Kyuhyun takes the longest deep breath and says straightly, “I don’t know how Yoona knows about Sooyeon’s situation but she knows it, hyung, and she’s using it to blackmail me to date her.”

He looks at Jongwoon’s face which doesn’t seemed to change much like he expected but instead, from stoic expression, Jongwoon only swallows the information and the large lump in his throat before asking, “I understand.”

“But it’s not like I want to date her, hyung!” Kyuhyun argues immediately.

Jongwoon only smiles and nods his head. “I know.”

“Is it really alright?”

“Why are you asking me that?”

“I don’t know, hyung. But is it really alright?”

It isn’t alright, of course. Yoona, that devilish creature who has the face of a beautiful maiden but has the deeds of Satan’s daughter, has already kissed Kyuhyun so who knows what she’ll do now that Kyuhyun finally agrees to date her because of Sooyeon? But what could Jongwoon do? He knows how important Sooyeon is to Kyuhyun.

“You want to protect Sooyeon-ssi, right?”

Kyuhyun nods.

“Then, do it for Sooyeon-ssi,” Jongwoon says with another smile.

Kyuhyun smiles back.

“I’ll wait, you know.”

Kyuhyun looks at Jongwoon, not sure what he just heard. “What, hyung?”

Jongwoon shakes his head and only smiles. “Nothing, Kyu.”