Seonchan asked Inhan with disappointment.
“Why?”
“I think I’ll be busy with unit activities for a while.”
“Ah. Really?”
“Yes. Let’s watch it together later when I have time. I’ll explain it well to Seokjae hyung.”
“Okay. Let’s do that.”
Inhan was thinking the same thing as Yuho. He didn’t have the confidence to face the same situation one more time and confront his own circumstances.
The many dishes that had filled the table soon began to show their bottoms. And one by one, they put down their forks.
“I’m going to the restroom for a moment.”
Just then, Seonchan got up from his seat and headed to the restroom. Thanks to that, Yuho and Inhan were left alone together.
Inhan found it difficult to choose what topic to bring up first. That’s when Yuho’s mouth opened first.
“Are you okay? Aren’t you uncomfortable?”
At Yuho’s question, Inhan had many thoughts. He even wondered if it was really a question asked thinking he wouldn’t be uncomfortable.
“Yes. Not at all. Let’s hang out together often from now on.”
Inhan spoke to Yuho as if nothing was wrong. At that moment, he didn’t notice that Yuho’s eyes wavered for a bit.
“Yeah. Since Seonchan has a car too, it’d be good to go somewhere nice to hang out.”
“Yes. That would be fine.”
Listening to Yuho’s words that even seemed excited, Inhan finally realized he had come to a place he shouldn’t have.
“I need to go to the practice room now.”
“Yeah. I know.”
“You’re not going with me, right, hyung?”
Inhan asked Yuho with a hopeful heart.
“Yeah. I’m going to stay longer with Seonchan.”
As expected, he couldn’t hear the answer he had hoped for.
“Yes. Have fun for the rest of the time.”
Saying that, Inhan smiled beautifully.
Because it’s good that Yuho hyung is happy. Like that foolish thought from the past when he thought it would be okay even if someone else took Yuho away, he smiled as if nothing was wrong.
Of course, it was a thought he could have because he had never experienced it. And now he realized that thought was completely wrong.
The three people’s meal ended like that.
Before leaving the restaurant, Seonchan and Inhan exchanged phone numbers and said their goodbyes after exiting the building.
“It’s too bad. We met for such a short time.”
Seonchan expressed disappointment at his brief meeting with Inhan.
“We can meet for longer next time. I’ll contact you.”
“Okay. Get back safely.”
“Yuho hyung. I’m going.”
Inhan also greeted Yuho. Yuho immediately responded to the greeting.
“Yeah. See you at the dorm.”
“Yes.”
After finishing his goodbyes, Inhan got into Suhyung’s car that had arrived early. He deliberately chose to sit in the very back seat.
“Yuho. Don’t come back too late.”
Suhyung rolled down the window and nagged Yuho as always.
Yuho answered with a smile.
“Yes. I’ll be back before 12.”
“10 o’clock.”
“Ah. Hyung.”
“Okay. 12 o’clock.”
Listening to the playful conversation between Suhyung and Yuho, Inhan erased the smile that had been like a mask.
Soon the car departed and Inhan deliberately didn’t look out the window.
“Did you have fun?”
Suhyung spoke to Inhan in the back seat. Inhan answered simply.
“Yes.”
“I’ll have to skip dinner again tonight.”
“I guess so.”
The two’s conversation ended blandly.
“Hyung. I’m tired, so can I sleep for a bit?”
Inhan wanted to escape Suhyung’s attention using fatigue as an excuse.
“Oh. Of course you can. Get some sleep.”
Suhyung accepted it naturally. Although the travel time was less than 30 minutes, it was reassuring from Suhyung’s perspective for Inhan to sleep even if he had to make time for it.
“Yes.”
Inhan answered and immediately leaned his head against the window. And with his eyes closed, he thought about what went wrong and from where.
‘……Don’t go.’
Recalling Yuho who had held onto him at the music video filming set, Inhan had been thinking ridiculous thoughts alone.
If by chance Yuho’s confession from the past was true and he had stupidly misunderstood that fact, he was thinking of begging Yuho even now and asking for a chance.
Although it could be a choice that would ruin their relationship that had improved with effort, he still wanted to ask Yuho once.
Whether it was okay for him to like hyung. And that if he told him not to even do that, he wouldn’t.
He had been thinking of at least saying that much.
Soon tears fell drop by drop onto Inhan’s thighs.
Ah. Why am I crying?
Inhan hastily wiped away his tears with the back of his hand. Holding his breath in case Suhyung would notice, he rubbed his eyes hard with his sleeve. Fortunately, Suhyung was humming and concentrating on driving.
Why are you like this, Jung Inhan.
When you said you didn’t care about anything as long as you could be by Yuho’s side.
He felt ugly for not being able to keep those words.
What’s so special about Yuho having a close friend? It’s not like his place was taken, and the relationship with himself wasn’t changing either. And yet Inhan was heartbroken and couldn’t control his tears.
His heart was pounding and his face was heating up, like that day a few days ago when he became short of breath even without moving.
Yes. It was love. In the end, it was love.
It was a feeling he had hidden deep down for a very long time. Inhan had been harboring that dangerous emotion all along.
He only realized it now. And he had come too far to turn back.
Inhan, who arrived at the practice room, participated in the b-side track choreography practice with a hardened face throughout.
“Inhan. Are you sick somewhere? Why does your expression look so bad?”
“Ah. I think my lunch didn’t sit well with me.”
When Yeomin asked worriedly, Inhan quickly found an excuse and answered.
In fact, his stomach really had been bothering him ever since lunch.
“Are you okay? Should I go buy some digestive medicine?”
Suhyung asked Inhan in surprise. After thinking for a moment, Inhan nodded.
“……Yes.”
Answering like that, Inhan hoped that the stuffy feeling of his chest being tightly blocked was just indigestion. It would be nice if it was pain that could be solved with digestive medicine. Even though he knew it wasn’t, Inhan held onto false hope.
“I mean, going on a secret date without me?”
Yeomin picked a fight with Inhan as always. Inhan responded smoothly.
“I mean, who told you to have a schedule?”
“Wow. Just wait. When you’re busy, I’m going to hang out with Yuho hyung all the time.”
“Go ahead.”
At Inhan’s bland answer, Yeomin made a dissatisfied expression. And he asked a random question.
“Hey. You’re going to the dorm after practice today, right?”
After some thought, Inhan answered.
“No.”
Inhan didn’t have the confidence to face Yuho for a while.
He was afraid that the feelings that had risen to his chin would finally overflow and trouble Yuho again.
Perhaps this time he might lose Yuho forever.
Inhan didn’t want to experience that again.
“Why?”
“I don’t think I should go.”
“What are you talking about?”
“It’s just like that.”
How should he suppress and contain this feeling that he couldn’t tell anyone?
When it had already grown so large that it was beyond control and couldn’t be hidden again.
Knowing it was a feeling that would only end after ruining everything, Inhan was afraid of himself.
Now he really didn’t have the confidence to remain as a good younger brother by Yuho’s side.
In fact, it had been like that for a long time.
Yuho couldn’t hide his complicated feelings as he watched Suhyung’s car getting farther from view.
He had some doubts, but he didn’t know Inhan would accept the entire situation so naturally.
Seeing his occasionally stiffening face, he held onto some hope, but it was a futile act.
“Yuho. What should we do now? What do you want to do?”
“Uh…… I don’t know.”
Seonchan asked, but Yuho couldn’t think of anything in particular. Above all, he didn’t have the confidence to enjoy whatever they did.
If he knew how to drink, he felt like having a drink even in broad daylight.
“Should we go get some fresh air then?”
“Okay. Let’s do that.”
Still, Yuho readily accepted Seonchan’s suggestion. Since he had unintentionally used Seonchan, he wanted to spend all the remaining time accommodating him.
Hearing Yuho’s answer, Seonchan smiled pleasantly. Yuho thought it was fortunate that Seonchan didn’t seem to notice anything.
The place the two chose was a nearby Han River park. Seonchan had hoped to go to the beach, but the timing was awkward to go and come back in one day, so they promised to do it next time.
At the Han River park, the two spent a quiet time.
They deliberately chose a place with few people, and since neither of them had particularly high recognition, there were few people who recognized them.
If they had been with Inhan, it would have been unimaginable.
“Isn’t that him?”
“Who?”
“That Jung Inhan group’s youngest member.”
“I don’t think so. He’s blonde.”
“Ah. Is that so?”
Even the people who recognized them were uncertain and just passed by.
The Jung Inhan group’s youngest member is Jung Inhan though. Yuho thought to himself and had to suppress the urge to at least make his own name known.
The time Seonchan brought Yuho back to the dorm was 9 PM.
Seonchan really wanted to send Yuho off only when it was 12 o’clock, but seeing his tired face, he couldn’t bring himself to be greedy.
Before getting out of the car, Yuho expressed his gratitude to Seonchan.
“Thank you so much for today.”
“Was it fun?”
“It was fun too.”
“Then that’s good. Next time let’s really go see the beach.”
Seonchan tried to get confirmation for the next meeting as always. Yuho readily gave a positive answer.
“Okay. Next time let’s go see the beach.”
“And eat the hamburgers we couldn’t have today.”
“Okay. Let’s do that too.”
Satisfied with Seonchan’s happy appearance, Yuho was about to get out of the car. But Seonchan’s mouth opened before that.
“Yuho.”
“Yeah?”
“You said you’re not seeing anyone right now, right?”
“Ah. Yeah.”
Yuho wondered why Seonchan was curious about this at this point. He was thinking calmly, wondering if he was going to introduce him to a girl or something.
“Then do you want to date me?”
With no change in expression and a smiling face, Seonchan spoke to Yuho. Even his tone was calm. Yuho wondered what Seonchan was talking about.
“Huh?”
“How about trying to date me?”
Before Yuho could respond, Seonchan’s unfiltered confession was delivered to Yuho. Yuho’s mind went completely blank.
