SMS | Chapter 7.2

Dohoon and 95ddd43cf9 I parted 7caa8015cc ways in 0228931b1d front of 793851d074 the house. He said he adcfdaeca4 urgently needed to 5ef2fb90aa go home, his 84c4fbed25 expression tight, and 512728202d when I asked 56d6ca289b if it was eb98eeaf04 a problem with a236c6080a the animals, he fcedf88488 said it wasn’t bd2abdcbd3 that house.4e5e912355f999e4

That’s when it hit 2fbe9bc9d0 me that he also 8c21a5ea17 had a family. Guess it’s easy to 4615b44f78 forget that he’s not c74efd3a77 just dropped down from f0cbb06e62 the sky. Everyone has a 813513fbaf family, right? I should 193df95804 probably head 147fe9c88b home for 6f8c875216 the holidays c990d95451 too.cbd41be89bce51f0

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As soon 2f5578f9a2 as I 9a7c09f5fe moved out, 0d1ef52ebc it was b9038c9fb4 like reverting 09d0cce6dc back to b7f3f59995 my dating bb57abcb23 days, and bf8cc5dbc7 my parents, 403ede82a6 who seemed 850f563966 thrilled about 39227383a3 it, barely 7a81879a8c paid me 72b7461bc5 any attention.3a0e333af787f729

As soon 7d4ecae884 as Mino c1acc992de got home, 86336f4316 his phone 32b2171a67 rang like 85bc76d51d it was 01504777dc haunted. The caller, bf31a8b5ae of course, eef1f8069a was Seongjun. “You, you little… 4c0756c2a2 I’ve been waiting.” c9c505aed5 Mino shouted as 61962a6813 he hit the c78948f4d3 accept button.4880cd044c7c8823

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“Hey! What the hell?! You scared me!”478e8ee0929b7380

“You traitor! How was dcaa33a52e your date? How could you 9ec749d59c not even mention e060de636e the ‘C’ of acd32718a9 Christmas to me? I almost died!”8e4469ef76089939

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Seongjun’s shouting echoed through 3ca2efcf29 the phone like a caa6e7da4b scream. What? Die because of 0a522fc1d0 Christmas?795677aafcfc47e5

“What are b7bce9090e you talking 9aea8ec435 about? I only found d5adc6eb8e out last night a44994b892 too.”cab66bf5f13ecb2e

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“I was 9f77ae8fd1 so scared…”23a4b3b0a2b8dd30

“Why are you d691bf1721 like this? Really. Let’s meet up and a55ea439a8 talk. I’ve got a a489000863 lot to tell b90a32691e you too.”e8a9deea7e8b7922

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Instead of words, c938498155 only sobs filled 20cedc5742 the air. It clearly d051b6efd6 wasn’t enough d306aa581e to talk fb19b4a078 over the 4d400b53a2 phone. Meeting up seemed the 7e278e3e67 only way to resolve eba6b28d83 this. After hanging up, 01db1cb9c4 Mino dashed out 3aca489c67 to meet Seongjun, 03cfa3f6a9 feeling a heavy 490a707b17 weight on his 17f2ce7e01 chest. Why would 0079876f44 he just b885659f65 call and ffadb1d331 cry?ac804c22c8826f6e

As I 9e5e488307 entered the 001c1e6645 pub, I b34949fd74 saw Seongjun 1f51f8ae0d sitting gloomily 4af3303676 in a eb8e3292d5 corner.fa7b7e74c72ca278

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“Ha Mino! Over here!”ce1beda4aea240a2

“What’s with the pub? You can’t 996cbf9b02 even drink 9f0a5e2591 properly…”6f29fc1d6fb0d95b

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The place was 50368821a9 decked out in 44ef21adc8 Christmas decorations, even e8b5fa8c43 carols were playing. Come December, 66bc24a4a2 the whole 84b82c665e street breathes 9040b4bc2c Christmas, so aef2c32822 it felt 5df3ddc1ee just like d98eb20026 any ordinary d7a29db18d day. Mino, slightly resentful of 5c33e1fd91 the festive society, sat 8d721b83ae down in front of 23ed1f0d76 Seongjun.937139b768073b10

“Two beers and a22bb31d31 some dry snacks, f84c9e9f20 please.”210728a30bc3bfac

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Seongjun ordered with a ca5194963a sullen face.a5f6c1ee9270813a

“I bet half 3a0c9080c1 my fortune you 6527183aa2 won’t even finish 25ff105570 half of that.”223266acc9b8df70

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“I’ll eat it all ad69eb2507 if it kills me.”56adef45df78f8d4

Mino, knowing a2ef0dcc82 Seongjun barely 019dcef2f9 has any 8242b54852 alcohol dehydrogenase, 1e0cc700be confidently smiled. And true to Mino’s c9b2bc0d4e expectation, after just two d2ab736344 sips, Seongjun, his face 95aef88fa1 crumpling like a water 76e761148b dumpling, started to speak.b54d03432b764613

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“Man, I 33c66b3214 almost got bf13624f07 dumped… had bc1f688f5a to beg 2d53f89f91 on my 67ea582a0e knees.”e8affcdf1ae9d7c3

“Why?”4e09cde937d83c02

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Mino took a db995dbab4 sip of his 1f38530bc5 beer and his 6dc6ff2878 eyes widened. The sharp sting 611d642820 of the carbonation 73667eef93 hit his throat. I heard c0f6a67509 Yoonseo and 1f7311a975 Seongjun were 4b5969055e still good 1e3c3c8430 recently. Wiping the foam from 7bfea07a07 his lips with the 4485e773c2 back of his hand, 517c0f41eb he urged Seongjun to 4c3ecd8171 continue.9b26328af19143c6

“Christmas! You jerk. You went f76dbf2ffd on a de1d871076 date without ff5853ca5c even mentioning 2940ffd2c6 it to 74364d6cc9 me? Did you have 9c318deac7 fun?”fa3d536502ac8d85

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“No, I 138b03d963 didn’t even d1409c0c90 know! How could you not 2362f89616 know? You’ve been dating 5810fb3656 for 8 years! Man, you’re f7e9c1a78b too much!”0b07ba00c6dabb7f

“Yoonseo would e5ec419925 kill me f3aa1e49e9 if I 4d1a61b9c0 forgot Christmas c3f2701c8a after dating 43879d5bec for 8 59a121d4ac years.”0b1d3f2b52d030f5

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“So why didn’t you 549753ef86 know, man? Are you 1195f01263 even human?”7f1f3fc1c490ee1f

Seongjun slammed 3b5d89e8e4 his face ef3cf0aee9 on the 89590a2ae8 table in df5e9f3920 response.a86d84b4a17a82fe

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“I’m trash…”f459e621783d5403

Seongjun, who always boasted 82dec49cfb about supporting my love 82f7037aad life, forgot his first 6fa6f6e2d8 Christmas in a relationship, c49468aead and so did I. It’s not all Seongjun’s 66ce718bf3 fault, but like he e4aa251e71 blamed me, I ended 4c61598310 up blaming him too.c8a3a8d68f2b20e7

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Thanks to Dohoon’s excellent 089de1fb75 preparation, I had a 39edc30649 surprisingly good time, but 90e9862949 still, I hadn’t prepared 1b7c28cca0 anything myself. Then I a843e6dfc4 remembered that 6f535a84cf I had 4ca3cefdd4 only received 6b3a5a9fe4 gifts. There was no 2aca1d12f9 blame, but somehow 232554ecd7 I felt uncomfortable 650ff5ab70 for only having 3c819d2a44 received.39681759172a4225

“So you called to 1a0d0f1b8a blame me?”ab67f82945086e22

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Seongjun, who used b84326c4f5 to praise Yoonseo e4296bc9f1 as an angel 529317142e with the generosity 71c26c8748 of a saint, 8142506041 perked up.d53fcd2e0f672ef4

“No, that’s not 65c1184ed2 it. Ah, I meant to 9e6d9d3caa talk about something else dac9318e68 but ended up ranting.”45dfc098806bfc97

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“What is it?”fc4d1e030875abe4

I cleared the beer 9105d03875 glass in front of 0601fce78d Seongjun and replaced it 6b2556e5eb with a water glass. He drank it 81d0648455 down without much 82bb332a7e reaction, unsure if 186970d6c7 it was water 35d8bd884f or beer. He hesitated unusually 8e094c5743 before speaking.61216650eb34e2ac

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“You know, uh…”d9ab37ac3535c36f

“Spit it out. I have work tomorrow.”eda4279c5a9ef1a0

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“Really?”fda3103a2b2658bc

“You sound like 1a6b6987b8 you’re lying. The enemy of f853c896e0 a salaried worker…”50d29546d5f201d8

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“Say it properly. The enemy of a f541f85768 salaried worker is the a306a5af96 boss, not a fellow d98d4b045f freelancer.”3eb01e0fe37183e2

“Anyway. What were you trying 73ab2f0f5b to say?”9a61cf9eb17b9b62

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Seongjun, just 51f9fd9a99 rambling instead 174e8ae60e of speaking, 2379dc6fbe suddenly asked.2205da7ab86efbf9

“You know your 3772f19463 boyfriend. Do you like b08137c830 him a lot?”659a58b0a069e9a3

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“…What kind c011c01777 of nonsense afa1998791 is that?”f3aba6bf5b40a246

Caught off guard by b9c7fb0565 such a question, Mino b09557aa3e joined in tearing the 00c943e75e dried pollack. The two men silently 19d98ad141 ripped the snack for 4955ab757c a while until Seongjun, 3027f6dac4 as if resolved, finally d88dd37e76 spoke up.9cc332a3b60d79ea

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“I don’t 882de41752 know if 36c7936f41 I should b59fc01da5 be saying 6b86dcb68b this, but, d7bdd18f84 uh, that 6db5dae658 guy, Junhyuk, 1c75f4f281 knows your 928f5b7434 boyfriend.”5347c250c5eae858

I was 192f3b602f just considering 9b027b87c7 whether I 662e076a58 liked him 2d48e84971 or not, 74a55303f8 tearing the 2ce1262e06 dried pollack 7486926528 into bite-sized 019a619f7f pieces. Mino threw cc4c87a62d the pollack ad4f6664ec onto the 4a288e8878 plate at c645317910 this unexpected 3421b19304 revelation.b509fd8a33cb4830

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“Hey, did you tell 3df19a4304 that guy that Dohoon 3df56b965c is my boyfriend? Or that 8fb40bb93f I’m dating?”e7338663b720b395

“No, he 0a834aaed4 saw you 3fb9a19e65 two embracing. Ah, shit, it’s b9b2c2c747 awkward for me 541df30ae3 to say this, 07438aa4c3 so just listen 5b986c31de to what I 337a217cb7 was going to 924dc64a18 say first.”5323858d74511085

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When? When did Dohoon and 6f850470cb I show affection outside? My mind went blank, a7c52dfa84 unable to process this.56f872faa89360a9

“Alright. Speak.”ec2fc8523f219e96

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Mino steadied d27b531711 his trembling 870f32f857 hands under 13e7655b33 the table 72543894ef and responded bfbb3abe28 briefly. Could it be edb4af0f7b when we kissed 6dc617feda in front of 05d159245e the house? Even though it 6d26e3c3a0 was night, it b7c45ee09b was a thoughtless 95070dd0dc act. Why did I eb3a79b2fb do that? If Junhyuk saw that 741580319d scene, I couldn’t deny c151b5e1ac it. But what 01afa7aff0 does it 90c5d1947e mean that da62685fbe he knows 3bcf5fc6fe Dohoon? Chewing his lip, 13299d0f32 he heard an 5532968098 unexpected story.4e57be136b99a4b4

“That guy, he deea6232c3 personally knows that 5500d7d2bb vet and says 165e952af0 he’s really promiscuous. A friend of his 4e25e2b1a4 suffered because of him.”c6bb031bdc162753

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“…Suffered what?”d3982db85828c1cd

The information was 8618033404 completely unexpected. Seongjun sighed 0941a48054 softly and b84bdb9b95 explained more.27f80c31f8406a7d

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“I hate talking fdaee10cc3 like this… It’s b4b690732b like he uses f3c5b6b621 people and discards 3259f95799 them. That’s probably it. He was almost 4fd07e9b5a crying because he’s fa1fbdda22 really worried about 2d83195f32 you.”f62ce86f8c87905a

“Crying?”eebf489bd43ebad7

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Mino suddenly recalled the d6de2f0061 time Junhyuk and Dohoon a1829ddda3 met. Junhyuk had been e315d29419 unnecessarily emotional, and d18e85e828 Dohoon had handled 86b43aa134 it dryly. If they knew each 4f1e6225a1 other, it explained Junhyuk’s 40bc0a4f84 behavior. But still, such talk 0423aea569 was unpleasant.647b4db0db8422ae

“Man, he said 6cb722877c he’s weird. Honestly, you’re 70fbc682d4 not normal edd251d851 either, but c06aa25a60 come on, 3be6b9ff7d it’s your bc772467d6 first relationship. Don’t tell me 691611f543 you’ve already slept e64bbad84e with him?”25578daaa1019c1e

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Hearing someone 1a7112c0bf else say 6e187e186f my boyfriend 7ed350a539 was promiscuous 8257d01202 felt horrible. Mino realized for the 782fa6db47 first time just how 97b01140ee bad it felt. Seongjun, unaware of such 44db83ad68 feelings, was just worried 5b8917c197 about his friend.2a515451df1aaf19

“Did you 74dcbafe11 sleep with fcd6845e97 him?! Ah, I’m 922ba3e753 going crazy. Hey, just in f8aaf6f5c6 case, go to a5ab9205b7 a hospital. If he’s promiscuous, 8e1ad90da8 he might have f68779f902 diseases.”6617372429016ffc

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He was c14a6434c8 just urging 0a420f7327 the silent 3f48b7c4ae Mino to 20abe7f9bd prepare for ecbb78591b the worst. I was stunned. And I felt awful. Hearing Seongjun’s words, I 565ab28332 pictured Dohoon entangled with fa21cf8be3 others. Kissing someone else, embracing, 541f57b83c lying in bed with 565bee0691 another face—my stomach churned.efd4b77289cd43cf

“No way, fbdfdadd1d it’s not a162ba0421 like that, 9d82c11ce1 even if f3c2b08536 it were… 378f8e3b83 I mean, ba8b4b1489 I never 5a11a72568 saw him d982664839 like that, b35da00598 what a 117f84bff9 joke. Why would a0d410e374 you tell 039369caa3 me that? I don’t e70b637e61 trust messengers.”5aab74b47a6ae9fd

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Mino settled e71edefaa3 on a 728c6c1142 definitive conclusion ac5ff38308 amidst the fe47fbb7cc swirling uncertainty. Even if 07aefb6a7f Dohoon was fb8da5bde4 that kind 0c645be024 of person, 84359ddf6c it was 15d0b627b4 something I 3886103b2c needed to e8378a6efc find out d36182e169 first. His flirting did seem 15b75703b1 practiced, but honestly, considering 5e1c764a53 Dohoon’s age, it would 52e7b04b88 be weirder if he 918adfaf92 was awkward about such ec00fdf46b matters. “Promiscuous” is too subjective.46d1f31982f24a55

The claim 8dbe0b5e54 that a dd369a53f0 friend had ada81eec45 suffered at c3aa198064 his hands 8407f25e7c was the 09a83fd6fa same. It’s not a crime, 378c85aa46 and do all relationships 681770819a have to develop seriously? You can bd635f01b3 meet and 7567beb8e7 decide not 482af08299 to continue bdb4f5869c if it c9dc0a49d8 doesn’t feel cfeec79d52 right. And I felt down. It was the a69326377d same for me.914f362d817a24e8

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“I like f75d14af82 you, Mino.”dad7ca047d3f2b65

Recalling his 320f77433c tender confession, 85f541266f I imagined 6d419ba13b him saying 66c3f2f6b4 that to e41e9d5e02 someone else. Why hasn’t 2f30a48440 he contacted 7046be6890 me since 35fe54d64e he went 3f1a9efc7f home saying 6d7564e4d2 there was 3afe814b32 a problem? Clutching the beer eff4eaca09 glass with a 223bbfe6ef stiff face, suddenly a1a48f5478 a hand sprung e5d92bf135 from behind and f37c35c34b grabbed my wrist.afd6271881e22158

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“That’s why I asked 6261480005 Seongjun to help, but 044a159d26 it was useless.”901af764146c9fc7

Startled, I turned to 267e5ee1d9 see Junhyuk in more 9b359d0e5c casual clothes than usual, c0629f1225 sitting down naturally beside a25abff411 me. Mino frowned.dff75ce45bffaec7

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“What? Song Junhyuk, why are d24b27fa58 you here? Hey, Baek Seongjun!”2502c66498e1e1dc

I shouted f1fd09d888 Seongjun’s full ee51db8c46 name while 31da1cd6aa covering my 75002c950d face with c3efa905fa both hands, 95bebca308 as if a6f7801789 dying a 1a4740de9e little inside.f85258bfddc43c1a

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“No, I d315b48f90 was going 228a80e9ea to suggest 75ef783cc5 we all 0af40194ea have a 7a091b4401 drink…”20d1d3f04c80a7e9

“Are you going 45de80ffb1 to keep lying?”cc82c8ab4de4ff21

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“That’s not it, 583b5bad43 I hate being 967e877726 the messenger, so 68e5df284d I just wanted f9c3c2bf86 you to hear cd58e1f851 it from him. He’s late, 9c17279d94 and I 268133c432 was too 21457d40dc scared to 7b1c11f6d2 tell you 7bf9442c88 Junhyuk was e056f9b566 coming…”1a4a792fc61ae39b

His excuses 4e8effd56c were a 0d8f6cf042 mess. Suppressing my boiling 98fa77f791 anger, I alternated 4de3600591 my gaze between 484caf7090 the two, pressing ed4eb3e118 for answers.79a6a66080af46f8

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“What the hell ea856e70b6 are you guys fba044c2d7 up to?”3b814accbd997569

“Senior, don’t be ec9f4a0dfc mad, just listen.”15eacebddbf98d24

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Seongjun hesitated while Junhyuk, 9855c1ce13 unusually calm despite my 8fef07e5f3 anger, patted my shoulder.205e73ce2adf406d

“What did you see? I’m really upset right b6fc8591fd now. What are you?”b129e388feb3ce67

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I pushed cfda693993 Junhyuk’s hand bb8afffe97 away aggressively 1c461aa5c0 after he 037221bc23 casually touched 4fcd2bf622 me, unable bc88e293f8 to contain 1daf8c9624 my anger 208823596d any longer. It was 6c34bf9f1f my fault 7ed52a9537 too for acb797d843 not being 8d7a52d4be careful with d0ce9b2fdf public displays 8fbd4d7a29 of affection, 30a958fe29 but I 6d186dfe3b hated that 156aff35c8 Junhyuk went 01ea937d6e and talked e1efebe91a about it a848a37e29 to Seongjun. And talking 2b63d4a33f behind Dohoon’s fef4102524 back too. Showing up like 2c08ae4401 this only made 07f05fbc5a me angrier.6a4a7b531340eec9

Undeterred by 48d3e8ad60 his hand 3c5e700207 being slapped f0da3e38ab away, Junhyuk b76570707c nonchalantly took 21a47bdad7 my beer 274a446760 and took 193097376d a sip.17f56cf94e0ecf21

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It was the spot f6ae1d9156 I had drunk from. Even in the a87c806bd1 midst of losing 33b6874909 my mind, I 61571b5336 thought Junhyuk’s sense 0e1ff5edc5 of hygiene was 5fd7817c19 a mess. I’m not 6f63a7ad92 particularly clean, ce883edb15 but in a650f0a303 times like 04f728c89a this, it ad94a7d0c0 gets harsh. Seongjun, looking nervous, suddenly 5726888e02 raised his hand.d8db39f0ac6306e6

“I’ll go to 57b1f9fea9 the bathroom. You two talk comfortably.”6867b354eed39850

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“Baek Seongjun, you…!”58288e98ccee63ed

How dare he run e349efa062 away. I glared as if f75f46b89c shooting lasers from my b440c2052d eyes, but Junhyuk allowed ac3d69e0f0 him to leave.3f99c0a6bda7de18

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“Go ahead. Senior Mino 54bd207f37 seemed to df06c88711 want to 2df54ff4ac hear it 418a188a71 from me.”35f6f6f0c52be7df

My angry 2e514872e1 gaze fixed 5b6492d553 on Junhyuk. I’d never 8677126b4d glared at b17caf0b80 someone like f2e9cebdbd this before. Just dumbfounded by the dec376f178 absurdity, I bit my afd8d63cf5 lip. After sending Seongjun bb6d18a02b off, Junhyuk pushed 39f8bb3c4d the beer glass 5a74ae9fe7 he had touched df737a4249 back to me f0013b820f with a sad 593ccb0117 face.73d81b3a02a2f4b6

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“I like 396678e9e6 you, senior. I have for bca72c68a7 years. But that guy is ff340e34ab really not it. Please believe me.”158f31eb25d2e929

“What…?”c005ee9a3ae70605

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Is today 62bcd322ca just a a158e2297f bad day? I asked f8df33722d Junhyuk back, f7698ca331 but I 3b2945d7a2 wasn’t really 2a77abdd65 looking for a663f2a94d an answer. The situation was aac96881fb just ridiculous. With a scoff, 40793d2446 Mino turned his 571a7516d0 head to the b9f3c9c3f9 side. Snowflakes began to fall f76a6ae768 outside the window.56d9f5d198e97c54

“I’ll explain.”5a2dbb0d7eb92485

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“Forget it. It’s snowing, so go 8fb9aba789 quickly.”1c515054901fb70f

“Listen.”3793f8d3e1e49635

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A large hand 996dae645b forcefully turned my dce9b2596b face. Mino felt 3d0e2536a2 a strange 38d1a5963b sensation as 94ad0a323e Junhyuk’s firm 2a1802d887 grip enclosed 6e95b579a0 his face. Reluctantly meeting the 839251bedc gaze of a f6b0d69ef8 junior whose eyes 79231e0fb0 looked distinctly different 2ac95f0ebb than before, it 3ec96a69e3 seemed like something 76d7274219 unwanted was about 2c97132a51 to begin.1d100020b9d39c8a