This is really the last time, Yuel said, seeing the name of the caller on his phone screen. At this point, he said that more out of habit than anything else. It was clear he wouldn’t be able to completely free himself of Kyungwon anytime soon.

“Hello?” Yuel answered.

“Yuel Oppa!” Sori happily called out.

“Oh, Sori. Hi.” Yuel let out a quiet sigh.

“Hmm?”

“What?”

“You sound kinda sad. Are you okay, Oppa?”

She definitely gets that from her dad, Yuel thought. Both Kyungwon and Sori had a knack for being able to tell when Yuel was feeling down. Plus, there was no way Sori could have taken after her mom in that respect.

That woman never showed any interest in Yuel at all. She probably treated Sori the same, seeing how she practically spent more time at work than at home. Considering that, Yuel was glad Kyungwon was her dad. As much as it hurt him to think about that…

Yuel forced a smile and replied, “I’m fine. Thank you for worrying about me, though.”

“Hehe, you’re welcome.”

“Did your dad let you call me?”

“Yeah. He’s making dinner. Curry.”

“That sounds good.”

“Can’t you come over for dinner, Oppa?”

“Sori, you know I live far away now.”

“Yeah… I know…”

Sori paused. From the soft sniffling, Yuel could tell she was either crying or just about to. Out of everyone, Sori was the one who missed Yuel the most.

Knowing that, Yuel said, “Hey, I’ll come visit this weekend, so don’t cry.”

The sniffling stopped immediately. “Really?”

“Wait… Were you pretending to cry so I would say that?”

“Uh-uh.” Sori sniffled again, but much louder this time. “Daddy! Daddy! Yuel Oppa says he’ll come visit this weekend!”

Yuel instantly regretted his words. There was no getting out of it now.

“Really?” Kyungwon said. “Sori, could you give me the phone for a moment?”

“But I wanna talk to Yuel Oppa more.”

“It’ll only be for a minute. I’ll give it back to you.”

“…Fine.”

“Thank you.”

Yuel held his breath hearing the rustling of the phone being passed from one hand to another. He had been relieved thinking he wouldn’t have to talk to Kyungwon today, but what an idiot he was. Of course he would end up talking to him, as he did nearly every day.

“Hey, Yuel.”

Yuel exhaled all the air he had been holding in. “Hi, Hyung.”

“You’re coming this weekend?”

“I guess so. I haven’t seen Sori in a while, anyway.”

“What about me? You don’t miss me?”

Even without Kyungwon’s light chuckle, Yuel knew he was joking around. If only Yuel hadn’t had feelings for him, Kyungwon would have been a really great older friend to have. He was easygoing but also a careful listener when it mattered. He was the best hyung anyone could ask for.

Unfortunately, these feelings Yuel had harbored for years made it impossible for him to joke around with Kyungwon like a friend. The truth was, the two of them could never be friends. They couldn’t be anything because Yuel had already screwed things up from the start. And they had now come too far to be able to fix any of it.

Then again, this was a problem only Yuel knew about. Kyungwon likely did consider them friends, maybe even family at this point, considering their ties. So the best Yuel could do was to keep quiet and pretend the problem didn’t exist, which was why he chose to run away. He was supposed to keep his distance from Kyungwon, at least long enough to make things feel somewhat normal between them. Yet not even a month in, Yuel was going to go see him again.

“I…” Yuel started but wouldn’t dare finish.

He was afraid to express even the tiniest bit of honesty toward Kyungwon. He thought that once he did, he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from showing a little more of his genuine feelings, and a little more, and a little more—until he would eventually slip up and let it all out.

But never mind the consequences, what would even be the point of doing so now after all these years? If he had truly wanted to confess his feelings, he should’ve done so back in middle school, back when his love for Kyungwon was at its hottest peak. Now, that love had cooled down to a simmer, its smoke just barely visible but still capable of being inhaled.

Yuel took in a deep breath, recalling Kyungwon’s familiar scent all over again, even though he knew how wrong that was.

“Is everything alright, Yuel?”

Yuel let out a sharp exhale, expelling all the air out at once. “I’m fine.”

“You’re not having a hard time at school, are you?”

“I’m not, Hyung. Actually… I’ve made a friend.”

“Really? That’s great,” Kyungwon said, sounding genuinely happy for him. “I know you’re in your final year and studying’s important, but make some good friends and good memories, too. You’re only a high schooler once, you know.”

“Right…”

“Daddy, the curry!” Sori called out in the background.

“Oh, shoot! I totally forgot! I’ll talk to you later, Yuel!”

“Sure. Bye, Hyung.”

Completely forgetting that Sori wanted to talk more with Yuel, Kyungwon hung up to get back to making dinner. Yuel didn’t even get to tell him exactly when he would come over on the weekend, but he could always just text him.

Speaking of text, a few messages came during Yuel’s phone call.

[Yang Edin: Finally free from hakwon T_T]

[Yang Edin: So exhausted O_O]

[Yang Edin: Wish you were here walking home with me >_<]

[Yang Edin: Just seeing your face would make me feel much better ^_^]

“Oh, jeez…”

Yuel shook his head with the tiniest grin. He wasn’t sure what was more absurd: Edin’s last message or his excessive use of emojis.

[Ye Yuel: Why are you messaging me?]

[Yang Edin: Because I want to talk to you ^_^]

[Ye Yuel: It’s dangerous to text while walking…]

[Yang Edin: Then can I call you? >_<]

[Yang Edin: Please??? >>_<<]

Yuel immediately typed “No,” but he stopped just before pressing the send button. Kyungwon’s words came back to him.

“Make some good friends and good memories, too. You’re only a high schooler once, you know.”

Even though Yuel told Kyungwon that he had made a new friend, he wasn’t sure if he could consider Edin one at all. Edin clearly didn’t want that. He wanted more than that.

Yuel was sure he needed to draw a firm line with him or else Edin would continue to think he had a chance. Considering that, the correct response to give the boy would indeed be a “No.” But that wasn’t what Yuel ended up sending.

[Ye Yuel: Fine.]

Yuel’s phone rang immediately.

“Hi,” Edin said the second the call connected.

“Yeah, hey.”

“I didn’t think you’d actually let me call you. Do you finally like me?”

Yuel shook his head at this ridiculous boy and all the ridiculous things he said. He wasn’t even surprised anymore. Perhaps he was growing a tolerance for him.

“Too soon.”

“Okay, I’ll keep waiting. But, Yuel?”

The way Edin spoke his name in his low, tired voice made something tingle within Yuel. But he didn’t want to elaborate on what it could be, especially not while talking to the boy who was responsible for making him feel this way in the first place.

“…What?”

“I like you.”

“I’m hanging up.”

Yuel didn’t even wait for Edin’s response before rapidly tapping the button to end the call. The weird feeling wouldn’t go away. Yuel fell back on his bed and closed his eyes, focusing on the way the soft tingling in his chest transformed into hard thumps.

With his hand over his pounding heart, he muttered to himself, “Is this considered a good memory?”