"How's your mom been?" Nick leans over the headrest as he talks to Tem who is sitting in front of him in the van. "I thought you and Poll would not be able to make it here on our outing because of what happened on that day. Is it okay to leave her alone now?"

Tem sighs before answering, "Well, she's fine now. Or so she said. To be honest, Poll and I considered just staying behind and canceling out on you, guys, but Mom insisted we should go, saying time with friends is important too. As if I'm not already tired of seeing your faces in the university every day. Anyway, she'll be staying with Risa's parents while we're gone, which is at least reassuring."

"Hey, this lady is so cold to her friends," Nick comments, pouting.

"That lady is my girlfriend," Cloud calls out from the front passenger seat. "And your face is too close to her."

Nick feigns a sneer as he looks at Cloud. "I didn't say she's not your girlfriend. And don't worry, she's far from my type so I'll never look at her that way." Turning to Tem, he adds, "No offense, my friend. You're pretty, you are, but you're just not it for me."

With a laugh, Tem presses her palm on her friend's cheek and shoves Nick's face away from her. "Shut up."

"Now, all jokes aside, it's good to know that Auntie's doing well now." Nick goes back to his seat on the third row, in between Risa and Eujae. "Yours and Risa's families are friends, right? Oh, and I'm sorry that I didn't know when that incident happened, so I wasn't able to visit Auntie in the hospital."

Tem turns her head around and peers over the seat to answer, "It's fine. She was hospitalized for less than a day so that's understandable, and it's not like we would have wanted for her to stay longer in the hospital just so you, guys, could have a chance to pay her a visit. Don't worry, aside from Cloud and Eujae, no one else was able to drop by and come see her in the hospital that day."

"Cloud and Eujae?" A sense of wonder is glossing over the young man's question. Nick turns to the person on his left and stares at him. Even his expression is inquiring. "I mean, Cloud is a given because he's usually with Tem, but I'm surprised you were there too."

There is no response as the person he's talking to is engrossed in staring at a certain pair on the opposite side of the seats in front of them.

"Hey, Earth to Eujae. Hello, are you still with us?" Nick slants his upper body to the side, his face just mere inches from Eujae, and blocks his friend's view of Poll and Lia who are having their happy conversation.

The action grabs Eujae's attention, at last. He blinks and slowly leans his head away from his fist. Lowering his elbow from the car's window frame, he asks absentmindedly, "What?" As he becomes conscious of their proximity, Eujae uses the back of his hand to push Nick's head aside. "Get your face away from me, man."

"Whoa, you, guys, are so mean. Why do you keep pushing my handsome face away?" In spite of his complaints, Nick leans back in his seat again.

"Yeah, yeah, you're handsome. I still don't want that handsomeness close to me," Eujae replies in perfect nonchalance, earning laughters from Cloud and Tem.

Nick grumbles about his friends not being cute, before looking at the side where Eujae was staring a while ago. "What is there to look at that you'd rather see than my face? Is there something more interesting than my handsomeness there?" He pauses as if he just saw the thing that will answer his questions. "Okay, I understand that Lia is beautiful. And of course, you find her beautiful too. She's your cousin after all, but I'm pretty sure she's not the one you're looking longingly at."

Another brief pause, and Nick turns to Eujae, wearing an expression that says a thought just hit him. "Before you misunderstand it, I just want you to know that I don't see Lia that way so don't come at me, okay?" Nick raises both hands as if in surrender. "I was just appreciating your cousin's beauty, but she's only a friend to me."

He must have been thinking he should try to appease Eujae by clarifying he doesn't have any romantic interest in his cousin, knowing how protective he can be, but the admission draws out the opposite effect.

Eujae gives Nick a dirty look. "Are you trying to say that Lia is not good enough for you?"

"That's not what I mean, man! Oh, god, don't glare at me like that. You're starting to scare me." Nick exclaims in defense, his eyes looking alarmed. "What's with you? I thought you'd like to know that I only like Lia as a friend, what with your overprotectiveness of her."

He isn't wrong. If this is an ordinary instance, Eujae would have given the expected reaction. However, this situation is by no means normal for Eujae as he is aware that Nick could be the person that his cousin likes. It's either him or Poll. Given the choices, Eujae would rather it be Nick. And as far as he is concerned, it's not even a matter of who is better between the two.

But if Nick is saying he doesn't like Lia that way, does that mean the young woman is in unrequited love with him? Eujae doesn't want that either. Then again, it is not even confirmed if Nick is the person Lia likes.

Eujae turns his eyes at his cousin, who is sitting between the twins. She is now looking at him too. He assumes Lia has heard the whole exchange and wonders how she's taking Nick's admission of his feelings—or lack thereof—for her.

He scrutinizes Lia's face, gauging her reaction, and then feels his stomach twist at what he sees. There is no sign of being despondent in the young woman's expression. Not in her inquisitive eyes nor in her gentle smile. She doesn't seem affected by what Nick said at all.

He should feel glad to find out that his cousin is not heartbroken even after hearing their friend's statement, but Eujae can't bring himself to revel in the discovery. The fact that Lia is not hurt means her affection for Nick is purely platonic.

Lia likes one of their friends who like anime. There are two prospects, and it seems like it's not Nick. That only leaves the other one. Damn if this realization doesn't trouble Eujae.

His gaze shifts to the person beside Lia and notices him already staring. As soon as their eyes meet, Poll averts his eyes and looks down. Even as they're sitting on the opposite side, Eujae can make out the faint rosiness on his cheeks. It's unlikely that he's blushing because of the hot weather, considering they're inside a perfectly air-conditioned car, so Eujae is curious to know if it's because he's talking to Lia.

He scowls, thinking that's not the only thing he's been noticing from Poll lately. The guy has also been doing a lot of dodging these past few days and he'd be a fool to not realize that Poll has been avoiding him. For what reason, even he has no clue. Sure, Poll has always been wary of him, but his aversion rarely involves running away. In fact, even during that time when Eujae tried to keep his distance, it was Poll who made excuses to confront him first.

Eyes still on the two, he sees Poll lean close to Lia's ear and whisper something that makes the young woman giggle. Eujae clenches his jaw, witnessing the scene.

They're too close; there's almost no distance between them. He feels something squeeze in his chest as he watches the two start to playfully push each other while laughing and looking like they're in their own merry world.

He wants to be happy for his cousin as it appears Poll enjoys being with her too. He does, but Eujae finds himself torn between wishing Lia all the best and hoping Poll's fondness for her is not in any way romantic.

He doesn't want Poll to be the one. Anyone but Apollo.

Because he has the urge to curse out loud when he understands how awful his thought is, Eujae turns away from the source of his gloom and looks out through the car's window to watch the scenic road instead.

There are a lot of greens from trees and faraway mountains, and the sky is a clear blue today. Normally, this kind of scenery can make him relax but, at the moment, he can only think of how fitting the colors are to describe his current emotions.

He presses his lips together and grits his teeth, mentally berating himself for his earlier self-interest. Knowing he'd wish for his cousin's love to not be reciprocated leaves a bad taste in his mouth.

"And that's your cue to keep silent, Nick," Tem tells their friend, probably sensing that Eujae is not in the mood to fool around with them at this time, "Why don't you just be like Risa who's been quiet the whole ride?"

"She's sound asleep," Nick points out, referring to the young woman who is softly snoring beside him.

"Exactly," Tem responds, sounding as if the single word could explain everything.

With a sigh, Nick finally concedes. "Yeah, alright. I'll behave myself now. Okay. I feel like I might get myself strangled before we even reach our destination if I don't. Either by a possessive boyfriend or an overprotective cousin."

At the remark, the said boyfriend just snickers from the front of the car. On the other hand, Eujae doesn't give any reaction as he continues looking at the view outside.

He remains silent until he hears Poll's voice again.

"Eh, you can't swim?"

Looking back at him, Eujae comprehends that he is still talking to Lia.

"No worries." The male twin gives the young woman beside him a confident smile. "I've got you. I'll teach you once we're there."

The prickling sensation inside him is back. His brows wrinkle as he unwittingly narrows his eyes at the pair. Before he can stop himself, he declares, "No need. I'll teach her myself."

It must have been because of the dour tone that makes his friends turn to him questioningly. Despite their expressions, no one dares to speak and argue with him.

Nick laughs awkwardly, as he may have been trying to defuse the tension that's built up because of the way Eujae is acting. "Of course, man. You'll do it." He touches his friend on the shoulder a bit hesitantly, maybe to try to conciliate him, as he adds, "Relax. You're too serious."

"Are you okay, Eujae?" Lia asks her cousin and looks at him with concern. "You don't look well."

Feeling guilty, Eujae returns Lia's gaze with an apologetic smile. He can't believe he's trying to sabotage this sweet woman's chance of being with Poll. As much as he despises the feeling of knowing there's a high chance that Lia is into Poll, he despises himself even more for allowing it to get the better of him.

He rubs his face and then runs his hand through his hair, muttering, "No, I'm sorry. It must have been because of a lack of sleep. Don't mind me."

If there is any reaction to that, Eujae will never know because he turns away from his companions once more. Wordlessly, he pulls out a pair of wireless earphones from his pocket and puts them on. Choosing the right setting on his phone, he starts to blast the music in his ears in the hope that it will finally distract his mind.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

"Do you need a hand, Apollo?"

Surprised at how close the voice sounds, Poll jumps and almost drops the portable grill that he's carrying. He turns around, unprepared for the view that's waiting for him, and then stiffens as he comes face-to-face with Eujae in all of his drop-dead glory. For a brief moment when he gets a good view of the man's appearance, Poll feels like he's going to have a heart attack.

He stays frozen in place as he gapes at Eujae's scantily clad form. The guy is not topless, but the hoodie that's loosely hanging over his shoulders is not exactly doing anything to hide his body. Don't even get him started on how the man's short trunks are riding dangerously low on his hips.

Poll's gaze starts to travel down, following the drop of sweat that trickles from Eujae's bare chest to his stomach. The thin stream slows as it passes through the man's navel and then flows down to god knows where.

Clothes are deceiving, Poll muses. He's seen Eujae well dressed most of the time, but he never thought the guy has this kind of build under his modishness. Not bulky, not plump, but just the right amount of lean muscles to make him look fit.

Just what in the world is a business student doing with a physique that personifies gorgeous anyway?

As his eyes unconsciously stay glued to the body of the person in front of him, Poll can't help but note that while Eujae doesn't have the overrated six-packs—or at least they're not that defined—there's no denying that his body looks toned enough, and Poll is certain that if he runs a hand over that abdomen, he'll discover how firm it really is.

Holy fuck.

He cuts the fantasy short before it goes deeper into something more inappropriate. Mortified, Poll looks away and prays to all gods that Eujae didn't notice the way he stared at him.

Fucking stop this! he screams internally, feeling like his head is just about to blow up because of too much blood. Stop trying to embarrass yourself! What the fuck?! What do you mean you want to touch him?! Oh my god! Pervert! You're a fucking pervert, Apollo Helios Torres!

Face on fire, Poll replies to Eujae in gibberish, uncertain if he's supposed to utter apologies or thanks. Without so much as glancing at Eujae's face because he's sure doing that will not be much of a help, he beats a hasty retreat and ignores the guy calling after him.

Whoa, what the fuck?! What the fuck?! Get a grip, Poll! Why am I feeling like this? What the hell is this? He thinks and continues to sprint away from the guy. Idiot! Stop acting like a fool just because... Just because... He gulps as the image of a half-naked Eujae replicates in his mind.

Heavens, what the hell is wrong with him? It's not like it was the first time he saw a bare-chested man, so what gives now? Not to mention, he also has that kind of body. Or, at least, something close to it, so what's the deal? Why is he acting like this?

He stops running only when the beach house they rented comes into view. Panting, he holds the griller close to him and ambles to the place.

That short encounter sure freaked him out. A few more seconds around that guy, and he'll definitely get a heatstroke.

What's more, he can't attribute it to the weather if it happens, as he is aware that the burning sensation all over his entire being has nothing to do with the sun anymore.