"How does it work?" Myungsoo asked, his eyes plastered on the clearview wall. He watched these yellow and white miniatures bounce around an enclosed room. Myungsoo closed his eyes and took a deep breath of a wonderful smell he had never experienced. He could almost taste the saltiness on his tongue as it salivated for a taste. 

"That thing in the middle heats up, and it turns corn kernels into popcorn." Sungyeol shoved a small paper bag in front of Myungsoo's nose. An order of popcorn for the two of them to share for the movie. "Take one."

Myungsoo stared at the bag with curiosity. Corn had not existed during Myungsoo's time in the Joseon, though the crop is now popularized in ramyun and other various Korean dishes. The prince picked up a single greasy piece of popcorn and placed it atop his tongue. He slowly closed his mouth and allowed for the popcorn to melt in his mouth, swallowing it whole when ready. Myungsoo was in for a treat.

A major artery-clogging buttery treat.

"That is delicious," Myungsoo grinned, his dimples showing all the satisfaction he needed.

Sungyeol smirked, elbowing Myungsoo's arm. "We have to get going. The movie is starting soon." Sungyeol grabbed onto Myungsoo's wrist and pulled him into their theater. 

The Cineplex was reasonably crowded on a Friday night, but lacked blockbusters for the weekend. Other than Grand Cross, the movie Sungyeol and Myungsoo would be attending, a romantic comedy, and two international films, the selection was what you can call unpopular. Not every person in Korea was keen on watching a movie about an outdated king.

This was Sungyeol's first date with Myungsoo. The both of them know there is still uncertertainty with their relationship, as well as many unanswered questions for themselves. Through it all, Sungyeol could care less. All he wanted to do was show the Crown Prince a good time and introduce him to an aspect of Korean culture he may never know about.

"You can have as much popcorn as you want. I can buy more later," Sungyeol mentioned. "Don't worry about anything today, Myungsoo. Just watch the movie and have a good time."

Sungyeol patted Myungsoo on the shoulder as they entered their specific theater, the doors closing in on them as they started their date.

"We're really doing this?"

"Of course we are, why do you keep questioning it?!"

Dongwoo unwillingly pushed through the doors of the Cineplex. Sungjong followed from behind, acting suspiciously with a jet black coat that covered the lower part of his chin. Sungjong had to make the situation as dramatic as possible, clearly drawing the most attention to Dongwoo and himself. There was no other way.

"I can't believe we're doing this. We're spying on your brother and Myungsoo hanging out, and for what reason?" Dongwoo moaned, slamming his palm to his face. "Why is this necessary..."

"Quiet down your voice," Sungjong shushed, covering his mouth to make matters more awkward. "People will hear us. They might hear us." Sungjong stood behind Dongwoo to conceal his obvious self from others, which proved useless because Sungjong was significantly taller than Dongwoo in the first place. He pointed towards the theater with the Grand Cross movie poster in front for their final destination. "Come on, Dongwoo. The movie is gonna start soon."

"Great," Dongwoo hummed, his eyes deadpan as they headed towards the theater. 

Dongwoo and Sungjong entered the back of the theater as the trailers started playing. The two overlooked all the seats, trying to spot the scrawny, long haired boy with the defined, spiked hair prince. "Where are they..." Sungjong mumbled to himself, leaning forward to try and spot them. 

"I can't even see them," Dongwoo groaned.

The room was a quarter filled. Many people were paired in groups of three or four with a few boy-girl pairs in the mix. The audience sat spread out, and it was difficult to spot the right silhouette.

"What about that guy?" Sungjong pointed.

A male sat down in the aisle seat, holding onto a small bag of popcorn. He was wearing a backwards cap, almost similar to Sungyeol's Korea University cap.

"I don't think that's him. He's sitting by himself," Dongwoo hummed.

"Well, what about that guy?" Sungjong pointed. A new person sitting in the middle row. He wore a hood, but a little of his spiked bangs stuck out. The shadows made him look like a conehead. 

"That's not them either. There's three people sitting together."

"Where could they be?"

"Wait!" Dongwoo squinted his eyes for a closer look at the first person they spotted. "That guy IS Myungsoo!"

Dongwoo and Sungjong went for a second look. 

Myungsoo sat in the aisle seat of the theater, digging his whole hand into the bag of popcorn. He scooped a handful of popcorn like a shovel, opening his mouth and attempting to shove every possible piece of popcorn into his mouth. Myungsoo had never been a messy eater, but nothing tasted as good as delicious, artery-clogging junk food of the 21st century. Myungsoo's cheeks expanded like a chipmunk, some of the popcorn spilling out of his mouth and back into the bag of popcorn. 

"What the hell is he doing?!" Sungjong wondered.

That was when the theater doors opened and a lanky figure appeared at the doorway, adjusting his belt buckle as he rushed down the aisle as one of the trailers finished. The person ran straight towards Myungsoo's seat.

"Wait, that's Sungyeol," Dongwoo realized. Him and Sungjong nonchalantly stood in the back of the theater, and his body tensed up thinking he was caught by Sungyeol. "Oh my god, we have to get out of here. Sungyeol is onto-"

Sungjong covered Dongwoo's mouth with his arm and braced him to tumble over the last row of seats in the theater, rolling over and landing right smack on the aisle floor. Dongwoo scrambled to get Sungjong off his back, close to screaming in the middle of the theater as Sungjong hovered over to keep him down.

"What- who- SUNGJONG!" Dongwoo gasped.

"You idiot Dongwoo, stop making yourself known. We're trying to hide here!" Sungjong lectured.

"WHAT!"

Sungjong did an excellent job exacerbating the situation.

Sungyeol found Myungsoo and quickly grabbed his seat, making it just in time before the introduction started. Myungsoo continued stuffing his face with popcorn as if the bag was infinite. The prince kept to himself and enjoyed his time eating. "Now I remembered why Sungjong peed in that bush that one time... the restroom here ," Sungyeol commented.

"What?" Myungsoo turned with a mouthful of popcorn. His voice was muffled, and popcorn flew out of his mouth as he continued talking. "What did you say?"

"Nothing," Sungyeol smirked. He took Myungsoo's head and turned it back around to face the screen. "Just enjoy your popcorn and watch the movie. I hope you like it."

Dongwoo and Sungjong went on their knees and peeked behind the seats, carefully watching Sungyeol and Myungsoo interact for the first half hour of the movie.

Not much was going on. Sungyeol focused in on a movie he had been waiting to see for so long while Myungsoo ate his popcorn to the bottom of the barrel. Sungyeol fed some background information to Myungsoo throughout the movie. Sungyeol was shocked by how historically inaccurate the movie was and was a little disappointed with Grand Cross portraying him almost like a subservient.

Myungsoo was doing his best to try and take in as much as possible. Myungsoo had grown accustomed to watching sports, music videos, and television dramas on screen at a fast pace. Plays back in the Joseon Dynasty were at a slower pace, but he was surprised how much he understood from the movie. He was also amazed how big the screen was. The prince went from watching people the size of his hand to watching people whose heads were bigger than his own body. Myungsoo's eyes glimmered in an awe-inspired fashion as he thoroughly enjoyed his food and entertainment.

"They aren't doing anything. It's been more than an hour already," Sungjong watched, almost wanting to give up on the spy story. "I guess they really aren't doing anything... do you want to just leave Dongwoo? I wasted 12,400 on a movie ticket to watch nothing."

Dongwoo was silent.

"Dongwoo, let's go back home and drink some beer?"

After a long pause, Dongwoo sniffed his nose. 

"Dongwoo?!"

Dongwoo covered his mouth and sniffed his nose once again, wiping his cheeks in an attempt to hide his tears. At the rise of the film, Emperor Gojong's wife was brutally murdered by a sword. Dongwoo gritted his teeth, biting his lip after as he tried to compose himself. "This is not right," Dongwoo quietly sobbed. "This is not right at all."

"AISH-" Sungjong closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead. "I am surrounded by idiots."

Myungsoo shivered a little from seeing Emperor Gojong's wife, Empress Myungsung, murdered in a bloody fashion. The lady was ambushed on their palace grounds before dying in her husband's arms. It made Myungsoo uncomfortable to watch, especially because he experienced his own father dying right in front of him. He wondered how Korea and Japan grew to have ill-feelings towards each other in the future. Especially because his father emphasized international relations with Japan, it was also heartbreaking to see a future where their closest ally became an enemy. "Is this what the world really turns into?" Myungsoo asked. 

Sungyeol turned to Myungsoo. Myungsoo was upset by the movie, feeling that everything his family had worked for had gone down the drain. Sungyeol shook his head and placed his arm behind Myungsoo's chair, comforting him by rubbing his shoulder. "This movie has a lot of problems and not everything is true. But... even though many things happened in our past, we are in a better place than before. I promise. The world isn't peaceful, but have we ever been?"

Sungjong's eyes opened wide as he watched Sungyeol's comforting gesture. It was the first clear glimpse Sungjong ever saw of something different between his brother and Myungsoo. Dongwoo watched beyond his years, also catching the act. Sungyeol gently rubbed Myungsoo's shoulder in circles, a move that Dongwoo and Sungyeol had last seen when Sungyeol was dating Taeyeon. There was something going on, and this confirmed it.

"Sungyeol just put his arm around Myungsoo... is this really happening?" Dongwoo nodded, admitting that Sungjong had been right this entire time. "I wonder when this started happening?"

Sungjong stayed silent, still.

"What are we going to do? Are you going to tell Sungyeol?" 

Sungjong did not move a single centimeter.

"Sungjong?" Dongwoo tried one more time.

Sungjong finally found out what he'd been curious about for the past week, but seeing it before his eyes gave him a different feeling. It was not a happy or conniving feeling like he would make fun of his brother after. It was a slight feeling of sadness, as if now everything changes. Sungjong did not like that at all. "Let's go home now. We have to wake up early for Hoya coming over."

The sudden change in mood confused Dongwoo, but even he agreed that they need to sleep early for Hoya's arrival the following morning. Dongwoo was also tired of watching the movie, especially because it tugged his heart strings a little more than he wanted. "Ok, let's go."

"There's a lot of conflict going on, and I know it's weird finding out that after your lifetime, the world turns this way. But we're gonna be fine. We'll be ok." Sungyeol pressed down on Myungsoo's shoulder, hoping Myungsoo will feel better. It put his role as a history major into perspective, and he finally understood the footwork his forefathers set for his own future in 2014. "That's why history is important to me... so we can fix the future."

(((())))

Hoya decided that instead of visiting the apartment at 7 o' clock in the morning, it would be easier visiting at 5 o' clock. Not to say Hoya is the biggest morning person in the world, but he is a person who wants to take advantage of his time. The clock was ticking, and Hoya would return to Busan on Monday morning.

The birthday weekend was about to start.

But first, Hoya slammed on the apartment door repeatedly to start the day.

"Hoya, I hate you," Sungyeol cried, wiping his droopy eyes as he sped down the hallway to open the door. 

He passed by Dongwoo, who slept over on their couch that evening. He covered his whole head with his pillow, hoping to drown out the wake-up call. Suffocating by pillow seemed better than hearing Hoya knocking one more time.

Myungsoo followed Sungyeol, half asleep and lacking any cognitive sense. His eyesight was blurry, causing him to slightly stumble into the kitchen as the incessant knocking grew louder. 

Sungjong's bedroom door opened, slipping through the hallway to deal with the pain and commotion Hoya caused. He blinked his eyes multiple times, finding everyone in the living room area. Sungjong wished he had enough energy to grab Hoya and throw him out the window. 

Sungyeol fiercely grabbed the knob and opened the door, finding the prideful Hoya standing at his doorstep with his backpack on the floor and his arms placed in a model pose that accentuated his back and . Hoya smirked, winking at his cousin and marking his arrival. "How are you, dear Sungyeol?"

All four people collectively joined forces to give Hoya the biggest death stare possible. Never had there been a room full of so much animosity and hard feelings.

But Hoya's presence was not the only reason.

Sungjong stayed back and caught Sungyeol and Myungsoo in his peripheral. Yesterday, he caught the them in a secret soiree of sorts that had Sungjong reeling in a lot more than he expected. Dongwoo and Sungjong returned to the apartment early, in which Sungjong went straight to his room to sleep off everything he saw. This is his first time seeing Sungyeol and Myungsoo after the incident, and he had never felt so bitter towards his brother. 

"Shut up, Hoya. We're all going back to sleep," Sungyeol declared, slamming the door in Hoya's face and returning to his bed.

(((())))

Hoya's birthday was hot, and not the kind of hot that signifies something is good or fun.

Everyone chilled by the pool in their swim trunks, a couple of people swimming to cool off from the heat. For Hoya's birthday, Sungyeol and Sungjong invited a few of their classmates who had hung out with Hoya before. Sungyeol even felt comfortable inviting Taeyeon to the party, but Taeyeon had to attend a family party in her hometown. Dongwoo, Hoya, and Sungyeol played water games in the pool with a couple of their friends, throwing each other around to make the large splashes. Sungjong cooked food with one of his friends, grilling vegetables and meat by the poolside. Sungjong took the cooking reigns, traversing back and forth to the apartment as today's head chef.

Myungsoo dipped his feet in the water and watched everyone play water games. The Crown Prince was not too comfortable with swimming in the water, but enjoyed his time laughing at everyone's antics.

"Get off me!" Sungyeol shouted, pushing his classmate Hinsung off him and right into Dongwoo's chest. The two of them crash and lose their float, pulling each other down into the pool.

Hoya jumped on top of Sungyeol's shoulders, hitting everyone with his own personal pool noodle while Sungyeol waded in the water. Right when Hoya least expected it, Sungyeol threw Hoya off his shoulders for his cousin to body slam right into the water.

Sungjong took a sip of his beer and flipped the food over on the grill, twirling his metal chopsticks around his fingers to keep both of his hands occupied.

"Are you gonna swim?" Sungjong's friend Yoon Guk asked.

"Not in the mood today." Sungjong took another sip of beer and his lips, flipping a piece of onion over on the grill. Though it was Hoya's birthday, Sungjong had too much on his mind to have even a little fun.

"Sungjong, are you coming in the pool?" Sungyeol got out of the pool, water dripping down as he created a wet path from the pool to the grill. "I can cook if you want to go inside."

Sungjong noticed Sungyeol in front of him. He even heard his question. But Sungjong gave no response.

"Hey, I'll cook so that you can go swimming."

"Your brother is talking to you." Yoon Guk tapped on Sungjong's shoulder.

Still, Sungjong gave no response.

Sungyeol raised his eyebrow. "Ok, nevermind. Let me know when you want to switch."

As Sungyeol walked away, that was when Sungjong finally talked. "Get me napkins," he declared.

Sungyeol paused for a second, questioning whether Sungjong really asked him to get napkins in that tone of voice. It was demanding, like Sungyeol was his brother's own personal slave. The sound was grating. Sungyeol did not appreciate that, but he let it slide to avoid a scene. He walked away to retrieve some napkins.

"Do you swim?" Hoya asked Myungsoo, trying to start a conversation with the Crown Prince. Well, Hoya doesn't know quite yet that he is a prince, or may never know.

"No, I do not swim," Myungsoo smiled. And that was all he had to say, because what else was there for Myungsoo to say.

"Do you like doing things in the water? Kayaking? Surfing?"

"No, I do not know what those things are."

"You WHAT?!" Hoya was shocked.

Dongwoo overheard Hoya pushing for an answer from Myungsoo and swam right to them, making a surprise splash for the both of them. "What's up!"

Hoya and Myungsoo wiped the water off and forced a double splash onto Dongwoo, sending him backwards in an unintentional water flip. Hoya and Myungsoo laughed it off, giving each other a high five. Even though the two were awkward around each other, they were able to share some moments together.

Sungyeol went back to his brother after retrieving napkins from their apartment, holding the plastic bag out for Sungjong to take. "I got your napkins."

"Wow, you could've at least cleaned yourself up and dried off before you got these." Sungjong snatched the napkins out of Sungyeol's hands and gave them to Yoon Guk. "Thanks for making them useless."

Sungyeol could barely understand why his brother was acting this way. "What the hell is your problem?" he whispered in Sungjong's ear. He was not planning on making any scene on his cousin's birthday. Especially an unfounded one with his brother. "I don't get why you're acting this way."

"I'm trying to cook and you keep interrupting me. What else do you expect?" Sungjong retorted.

Sungyeol bit his inner cheek, unsure what to say next. "Alright, I'll leave you be." He had no intentions of heading to the pool soon, so it was a good idea to start drying off. "Sungjong, can you get my towel?" Sungyeol asked, pointing out a towel resting on a lounge chair by the grill.

Sungjong saw the towel and quickly grabbed it, carelessly throwing the towel over his shoulder and nowhere remotely close to Sungyeol.

The towel landing right in the pool.

"Oops," Sungjong grunted, placing his final grilled piece of beef onto the serving plate. He completely disregarded Sungyeol's towel and went to something new. "I need to get more food," Sungjong declared.

Dongwoo had just gotten out of the pool when he saw Sungjong throw Sungyeol's towel right into the pool. Sungjong was acting impulsively, and Sungyeol's face drew a blank drained of any life. Dongwoo had no idea what was going on, but he could tell a storm was brewing on this hot day. "Sungjong, do you need someone to get food with you?" Dongwoo knew the feeling had to do with yesterday, but he was confused himself what was going on.

"Yeah," Sungjong nodded, spinning off to go back to their apartment.

Dongwoo took one look at Sungyeol, as if giving him a face that he was sorry for what happened. After, Dongwoo ran after Sungjong to take care of food and hopefully settle a score.

Sungyeol stood there, opening and closing his fist as he wanted to sock his brother in the face. He saw beyond the pool as the partygoers relaxed. Hoya and Myungsoo sat on the edge of the pool with Sungyeol and Sungjong's friends, sharing beer and the grilled plate of food Sungjong had just finished. Sungyeol had an option of returning to the party and dealing with his brother later.

Or, Sungyeol could deal with everything now.

(((())))

Sungyeol stormed upstairs, pushing through the front doors and startling Dongwoo and Sungjong as they retrieved more barbecue. Sungyeol was incredibly upset, biting his lip and looking like he was about to burst. 

Dongwoo took a step in front of Sungjong and shook his head." Sungyeol, I know what you're thinking, but now is not the time to do this. Especially on your cousin's birthday."

"If now is not the right time, then Sungjong should have thought twice before disrespecting me," Sungyeol chided. "I had never seen you act so rudely to me as an elder, as your brother. I don't get what the hell your problem is. Ignoring me this whole day, pushing me around, throwing my things in the pool. You're being an... you're being..."

"What?" Sungjong dropped the plate of barbecue back on the table and provoked him. "What am I being?"

"You want me to say it?" Sungyeol was ready.

"DON'T." Dongwoo practically begged for the Lee brothers to stop fighting.

"Say it," Sungjong ordered.

"An ."

"You two, stop it!" Dongwoo fumed, once again acting like the middle man for everyone. "I don't know what the hell is going on, but if it's about yesterday, then it needs to be said right now!"

Sungyeol blinked, confused by the comment. "Yesterday?"

Sungjong rolled his eyes, refusing at first to speak. 

"What happened yesterday?" Sungyeol asked.

Dongwoo elbowed Sungjong to talk. "You know what's going on, Sungjong. Say it."

Sungjong cleared his throat, taking a breather before he confessed to the events of the movie theater. "We followed you and Myungsoo to the movies yesterday, and we saw you put your arm around him," Sungjong confessed, turning his head away.

Sungyeol bit his tongue, having trouble digesting everything heard. "You followed me?" 

Sungjong shrugged his shoulders. "Yes."

Not only did Dongwoo and Sungjong invade Sungyeol's space and spied on him, but his relationship with Myungsoo was put in a compromising place. Sungyeol had no idea what to do. His heart stopped, unable to react properly to everything. 

"We know something is going on between you two," Dongwoo added, lowering his head in shame. "I'm sorry, Sungyeol. I'm sorry we followed you."

"Now you two know..." Even though it was putting an arm around someone else's shoulder, the intimate moment revealed a chemistry that Sungyeol and Myungsoo could not hide. Sungyeol came clean.

"Yes, we do. We followed you to find out."

"I just don't get... why you did it," Sungyeol sighed. The matter is complicated now that more people know. "Also, when did you know?"

"There were moments this past two week that were a little obvious." Dongwoo scratched his head, looking to Sungjong who was completely avoiding the conversation. "Do you have anything to say?"

Sungjong crossed his arms and rolled his eyes once more, caught between a rock and a hard place in admitting he was acting rudely to his own brother. 

"Why did you do it?" Sungyeol asked one more time.

"Because..." Sungjong closed his eyes. "You can't date Myungsoo."

Dongwoo and Sungyeol both did not expect an answer like that, bewildered by the youngest. 

"Sungjong, what's going on?" Sungyeol was lost and surprised his brother would say something like that. "Why did you say that?"

"Because... Sungyeol, you realize that you like someone from a completely different era? You know, I know, we all know... Myungsoo isn't gonna be here forever. You're messing with Myungsoo's feelings if you do this, and you're especially messing up with your own. You were miserable when Taeyeon broke up with you, and what's gonna happen with the inevitable? You can't keep Myungsoo here because that's selfish, and you know it, too." Sungjong shook his head. "When I finally saw you two together, I knew this was gonna end badly for the both of you. I didn't like my brother when he was hopeless. I don't want that brother ever again."

"Sungjong," Dongwoo had no idea this was how Sungjong felt about everything.

"When I started liking Myungsoo recently, I knew this wasn't a typical relationship. I knew this wasn't gonna be a happy ending, at least on my own terms." Sungyeol walked over to Sungjong and grabbed him by the shoulders. "I knew all of this when it started. It's my decision to go about everything this way, and because of that I'm taking things slowly. I'm not shotgunning this because I care about Myungsoo and his state. We both understand the future is fuzzy, but at the end of the day, Myungsoo makes me really happy. For now, I'm enjoying this time."

"I don't want to see you or Myungsoo hurt," Sungjong confessed, clearing his throat as his voice broke up. The youngest was almost tearing up about his brother, a moment that had happened much frequently when Myungsoo came around. "I like all the fun the four of us have. I don't want that to change. I don't want you to change when Myungsoo has to go back home."

Sungyeol pulled his brother close and embraced in his arms, the two Lees holding each other tight as they shared in one of five brotherly moments in their lifetime. That's an exaggeration, but the two honestly do not have many moments like this one. "Nothing is going to happen to us. Things will never be completely peaceful, but I'm not that same person I was before. I learned a lot about relationshiops because of that dark moment, and I know what I want, but have become a lot more rational than before. Things will change, but not in the way you think. I'm different in a good way. There's only one thing that's the same, and it's that we're still brothers. No matter what."

"Myungsoo made me all emotional and stuff," Sungjong complained, punching his brother in the shoulder. "He's ruining my life!"

"There, there," Sungyeol laughed, patting his brother on the back.

The front door opened, and Hoya and Myungsoo both appeared. "There you guys are," Hoya smirked, catching the two brothers mid-hug. "We expect more food, and you two look like you're about to make out."

Sungyeol and Sungjong's eyes widened, pushing each other away as fast as possible.

"It's nice to see two brothers hug it out," Dongwoo smiled, placing his hands on both of their shoulders like a proud father raising two imbeciles.

"We're still hungry. It's so quiet, Myungsoo only talks to me with his stomach," Hoya complained, pointing to his mouth and stomach.

"Alright, calm your horses." Sungjong grabbed the plate of barbecue and raised it in the air. "Let's eat!"

(((())))

Hoya's birthday was winding down.

The night was lovely. A nice breeze swept through the pool area, cooling off the hot day for everyone. The skies were clear, constellations surrounding a bright, gorgeous full moon. 

The boys split up to clean up the apartment after a successful hangout. All of their friends left home. Dongwoo, Myungsoo, and Sungjong took to cleaning the apartment and washing the dishes, and Hoya and Sungyeol returned back to the pool to straighten out the chairs and retrieve their grill. Hoya and Sungyeol shared a good conversation with each other, updating the other person on their life since the previous visit. Sungyeol summarized the end of his run with Taeyeon and how he was doing.

"Honestly, after the last time I visited, I was still worried about you and Taeyeon." Hoya confessed, kicking a lounge chair by the jacuzzi in place. "I didn't know how long you would be like this."

"Hell, I didn't know how long my slump was gonna last," Sungyeol joked, fluffing up the pillows. "I have good people on my side taking care of me."

"Glad to hear it. And what was up with you and Sungjong earlier?"

Oh... about that? Well, I like Myungsoo, and Sungjong was opposed to it at first. But it's ok now, is that what you wanted to hear? That's solved, and that's all you need to know. "We got into an argument last night, but everything was resolved. An argument about Myungsoo's living situation and where he sleeps."

"He sleeps in your room, right? When is he moving out?"

"I don't know yet." Sungyeol picked up some trash along the pool, segwaying into a new topic. "What are you gonna do when you go home?" 

"It's nice. I don't have anything too important for about a month. Just one paper and a midterm, but that's all. I'm thinking of applying for an internship-abroad program in Australia." Hoya picked up a chair to move it towards the jacuzzi. 

"That's really cool! Did you tell your mom yet?"

"Not exactly." Hoya hoisted the chair over his head. "The deadline is not for another two months, and I want to look more into it. It's a work study, where I get to work research at the University of Melbourne. I have to pay for all expenses except for room."

"That sounds expensive, but should be worth it. All that experience would look really good on a resume." Sungyeol wished he could afford to do something like that. Hoya's side was a little more well off, and Sungyeol's parents only told him he could leave the country after he finishes college.

"This is all in the works. I'm not worried about everything just yet because-" Hoya's feet slipped into a puddle, the weight of the chair throwing him off balance.

"Hoya!" Sungyeol was across the pool reacting as fast as he could to get to his cousin.

"!" Hoya saved himself the fall on the concrete and adjusted his body towards the jacuzzi, falling into the water with the lounge chair in hand. In a matter of seconds, Hoya landed in the water with the chair right on top of him, splashing water all over the concrete area.

Sungyeol ran around the pool to find the chair right on top of his cousin. "Hoya, god are you ok?!" 

The water rippled from the floating chair, no struggle appearing from under the chair. Hoya was unresponsive.

Sungyeol stepped into the water and grabbed onto the chair, pushing it over to save his cousin from drowning. "Hoya!" Sungyeol yelled frantically. Water splashed everywhere as he reached his hands into the pool hoping to grab his arm. The chair dangled on the edge of the hot tub, but something was not right. No one was under the chair.

There was no figure in the jacuzzi at all.

What?! Sungyeol was worried. The jacuzzi lights revealed no shadow in its depths. The tides splashed over the jacuzzi, and not a single sign of Hoya in sight. 

"Hoya! Oh my god, someone please help!"

Sungyeol could barely think, splashing water everywhere in a desperate attempt to find his cousin. Sungyeol held his breath and dipped his head into the water, submerging his whole body into the heated jacuzzi. Water that would be too hot for anyone underwater to handle. Sungyeol searched for a body, any sign of Hoya in the jacuzzi.

On the surface, the fizzing dispersed. The ripples died down, and the jacuzzi returned to its original, placid form. 

Hoya and Sungyeol did not resurface.

Jamie back from the (studying) grave to finish this chapter! Also, I'm expecting to catch up on everything now that school just ended for me and I have Christmas break. Oh, the beauty!

College applications are finished well. I hope I get to be in San Diego, California or Long Beach, California for college next year!

What happens next? Can you guess? Let's just say this chapter foreshadows many things in the future ;D