Chapter 36

"You're an idiot," Hongbin muttered before he gave his ice cream a . "You're the biggest idiot ever, Han Sanghyuk. Don't think that just because you bought me an ice cream that you can –"

"You're a bigger idiot than I am, hyung," Sanghyuk countered him. But when he saw how Hongbin immediately reacted to his words, he quickly changed the course of the conversation, "I... I accepted an offer today..." Sanghyuk admitted softly. His ice cream was already melting and he still had not given it a ever since he bought it. "It's a school overseas and..." He paused, biting down hard on his bottom lip. Should he really be telling Hongbin about it? –

"Congratulations!" Hongbin exclaimed, his smile wide and his dimples evident on each of his cheek. Although Sanghyuk's words and decisions were influenced by the feelings he never even asked for, it was only natural to congratulate anyone for achieving something as good as studying overseas. It made his heart ache knowing that they would be far away from each other after just making up, but the fact that they were going to remain friends gave Hongbin at least a bit of relief. "Make sure to take photos and send them to me. I'll see if I can visit that place someday and take my own photographs. You can ask your sister to buy you a nice camera – actually – just use a phone camera. You might not read the instructions and break it – And ah! Your ice cream is melting!" He cried, taking notice of Sanghyuk's ice cream rolling almost near his hand.

"I'm not going after all..." Sanghyuk sighed as if he did not hear what Hongbin just told him. "I'm staying here. I mean... Who would you hang out with? What if girls keep flocking around you again? You won't be able to handle that!"

Hongbin stared at him for a moment before he eventually started laughing. And he laughed for a good while with thoughts of, 'I haven't felt this free in a long time.' It was a good feeling and it was Sanghyuk's confused face that kept him in his world full of laughter.

"Stop laughing, hyung..." Sanghyuk pouted his lips. But right after that, he felt something cold and sticky dribbling down his hand. "Ah, ..." He cursed to himself, finally giving his ice cream kittenish while Hongbin took over the turn to speak,

"Just do as you wish like you've always had," he told him, passing him a tissue to wipe the ice cream off from his hand. "It's a nice feeling..."

"That's why I said that I'm staying here!" Sanghyuk whined, snatching the tissue from the former's hand. "Now, I gotta tell N-hyung that I'm not going..." He turned to look behind them and noticed that N and Leo were conversing and whispering to each other's ears. Sanghyuk was about to call out his N-hyung but didn't in the end. Hongbin soon followed his gaze since Sanghyuk was no longer wiping his hand with the tissue that he handed him. "Hey hyung..." Sanghyuk murmured, eyes stuck on their hyungs, "Did N-hyung really just come back or has he been around for a while? I thought for sure that Leo-hyung didn't care about him anymore... What's with this development?"

"I don't know, Hyukkie..." Hongbin answered, mouth hanging a little. "I asked Ravi about it and he said for sure that they aren't connected in any way and that –" He immediately slapped a hand to his mouth after realising what he was just disclosing to Sanghyuk.

"What? Connected? What are you saying, hyung?" Sanghyuk asked him, raising an eyebrow but his gaze did not leave N and Leo. When he did not receive an answer, that was when he decided to look at him. "What did you say?"

Hongbin shook his head and his ice cream as if he did not utter a word about the red strings. "I said that I asked Ravi what he thought and he said that they don't have anything going on. Besides, even if they do date, it probably won't last..."

"Mhmm..." Sanghyuk bit on the cone of his ice cream. "What makes you say that, hyung? Is it because they're too different? I think that they're actually good together. You know that saying: 'Opposites attract'? Doesn't that apply to them? They'll be fine! They look happy together anyway. If it doesn't work then it doesn't. Oh but hey, I thought Leo-hyung had a girlfriend?"

Hongbin shrugged. "I don't know, Hyukkie... I don't know..."

Wonsik was quick to his brother's side, covering his ears with his freezing cold hands as soon as he saw him on the floor. Hongbin's mother was shouting at Hongbin again, demanding to know why Wonsik's attendance and school performance was not as good his. And as usual, Hongbin did not answer back. One, because he was brought up not to and two, he barely had the opportunity to say a word. "Shhhh... Don't listen to her..." Wonsik cooed, embracing his shaking brother. "It's not Hongbin's fault. He would always tell me to go to school but it's me who wouldn't listen to him. Please don't blame him," Wonsik said, back facing Hongbin's mother. His brother was not shedding any tears and that was what he was thankful for. He did not like seeing Hongbin in the kind of state that he found him in when he returned. "If there is anyone to blame or who should receive your words, it should be me and not Hongbin. If you will ground me, then I'd accept it as long as you leave him alone..."

Hongbin shook his he