*on that same day*

"And a 5,6,7,8 go- wait no," he pushed off the wall he had been leaning on and stabbed the stop button on the player. "Huijun was half a beat fast. Let's start again." He rewound the music and pushed the play button. "And go- oh dear." He paused the music once again. "Now Yuna was one beat too slow." Enormous groans echoed from around the room as each of the dancers collapsed onto the floor, sweat dripping off their faces almost as densely as the rain they could hear pitter-pattering outside the studio. The instructor, hearing their complaints, slowly walked to the large standing fan, and turned it on. Immediately, every single one of the fallen beings gained immeasurable strength and made beelines for the cool air. "That's so much better..."

"Hyung, can't we just continue the practice next week? We're all really tired and this really isn't our full potential." Chimes of agreeing sentiment came from a number of others as well.

The teacher looked up from where he had been seated next to the stereo, reading through his notes on the dance. Hearing what his students had to say, he sighed, stood up, and strode to the one who had brought up the point. Before speaking, he knelt down till he was eye level to the other. "I wouldn't mind letting you all have a rest, and maybe I do owe it to you from a physical standpoint. However, what I care about more is the value you cultivate. Say I did let you stop now, let you all leave early, I know it doesn't apply to all of you, but my first thought is that I'd be allowing you to give up. And that," he paused for a moment, "would be the last thing I want to teach you."

"It's not a big deal, sir! We can just work harder next week." More chimes of agreement.

"It seems you aren't convinced yet. No worries." He stood up from where he had been crouched and walked to the fan, now blasting at full force. "Let's be more literal. If the person who found out about electricity had given up-" He unplugged the fan, amidst the shouts of extreme opposition. "Please plug the fan back." "It's boiling in here." Following that, he picked up the fan, which was no easy feat, and headed toward the light switch. "Again, if the person who found out about electricity had given up-" He flipped the switch, and most of the room was flooded with pitch black darkness, except the portion near the door, which was dimly lit by the stairway light outside. Nobody could see a thing, but they all clearly heard the faint click of the lock.

"Yah!"

The ones seated closest the door hurried to switch the light back on, but by then, their teacher had locked the door, AND he had also brought the fan outside. Some of the stronger ones attempted pulling the door open but failed. Desperately, they pounded on the wood, hoping the wooden door god would perform some miracle. While they went about their little tactics, Yunho sat on the steps and drafted a short note, which he slid under the door to the students.

"If you wanna get out, try the dance one more time. But be warned, should anyone make a mistake, we're starting again, and no one leaves. Including me. So hurry up! I want to go home too."

Every single pair of eyes glanced upward at their teacher on the other side of the clear plastic panel, who only shrugged and gestured with his palms upward, as if to say "Go on."

Nothing else could be done except to execute the dance at least one more time. They all trudged to their places, all except the one closest to the stereo, who started the music before running to his spot. A satisfied smile appeared on Yunho's face. It was well-executed, without a single flaw, possibly due to the consequences that they might have to face. As the final beat dropped, he yelled out: "Bravo!" causing each head to whirl around in surprise. In their state of concentration, they had not even realised their teacher had re-entered the studio. "See! Y'all did it! Maybe I should lock you in more often... It gets better results." He peered at his watch. "And not a moment too soon. See you next week!" Waving at each person as they exited, he gathered his things and was off on his way.

Just as he was leaving the room, by chance, he bumped into one of the senior teachers. Not much senior by age, but by nature of the job? Indeed so. "Good afternoon, Chan hyung."

"Aish- I told you not to call me hyung! We're the same age, for good heavens' sake. Just call me Dino. Anyways, how was the class today, Yunho?"

"It was quite exciting, actually."

"I thought so. The chatter coming from the changing rooms was alarmingly loud. Today's your 3rd day here, yes?"

"Yeah, so I still need your guidance, don't I. Hyung?" A twinkle flashed in his eyes, a glint of cheekiness.

"Ya! I told you not to. No stopping you, I guess. Well, I'm not gonna bother you any longer. Have a good rest! I'll see you... tomorrow?"

"Yep, I'm taking the 11am class. See you tomorrow, Dino hyung!" "That's an improvement of sorts..."

They bid each other farewell, Dino to a different studio while Yunho headed outside to his car, parked about one block away. It was pouring outside, and he hurriedly opened his umbrella. A text message buzz sounded from his front jacket pocket, and he eagerly pulled his phone out, only to be disappointed by its contents. Another telemarketer. After all this time, he should already know. Yeosang isn't the kind of person to initiate such meetups. But there's always that one glimmer of hope, and that one glimmer was all it took for Yunho to continue hanging on for this relationship.

Walking along the grey concrete pavements by himself, watching the groups of people pass by; be it couples or groups of friends huddling close together under umbrellas seeking shelter, he couldn't help but feel lonely. Not a superficial loneliness where he just doesn't have any friends, a deep, heart-tugging loneliness like there's no one to comfort you when you needed it most. But he shook all the self-defeatist thoughts aside like a dog would shake off water after a bath. He still had Yeosang, and to him, that was all that mattered.

A click sounded as he unlocked the driver's side door of the bright red sports car. Bending over, he threw his bag onto the front passenger seat before getting in and slamming the door shut. Why did cars have to be so short? As he adjusted the seat, a thought occurred to him. If Yeosang didn't want to meet up, so be it. But no one said he himself couldn't be the one to initiate the process.

Eagerly, he pulled out his phone once again.

You: hey sangie! Wanna meet up for dinner later?

Yeo my bby: sure, I'm free

You: see you in a while 😊 *seen*

Satisfied by the response, he dropped his phone in the side cup holder, switched gears, and turned out of the parking lot.

Yunho reached the apartment about 20 minutes later. An apartment that he shared with Yeosang. It wasn't very big, but it suited their fancy. Or rather, it suited Yeosang's fancy. No matter how hard he tried, the place never felt like a home to him. It didn't have warmth, it didn't even have love, but he still cared about it as though it meant the world. Upon his entrance after unlocking the door, he hung the keys on the hook beside the light switch panel, before dumping his bag on the shoe bench and slipping out of his sneakers. Shuffling about the house in his slippers, he ultimately decided that his only way to combat this awful weather was a hot drink. Heading into the kitchen, he opened the pantry and selected a sachet of hot cocoa powder. He poured its content into a mug, and patiently waited for the kettle to boil before adding water, almost scalding his fingers in the process, and taking the cup with him over to the glass doors leading to the balcony, taking slow sips as he did so.

The rain outside was slowly letting up, which he took as a good sign. Not before long, Yunho finished his by now lukewarm beverage. Glancing down at his watch, he realised he still had an hour to spare; might not be a bad idea to have a shower and freshen up before going. He could definitely afford one, that's for sure. Gathering a set of clothes, he headed into the bathroom. As he stripped from his sweat-drenched attire, he couldn't help but glance at what the long-sleeved shirts had been hiding. Up along the lower left arm were at least 10 thin scars. That was the reason why whenever he felt warm, he would only roll up his right sleeve, and not the left. Scars of the past's wrongdoing, left behind as remnants to remind us of our failure. How could anyone like you? You're a loser! The ghosts screamed at him. Not wanting to bask in his failure as a human being, Yunho hastened into the shower, letting the warm water wash his sins down the drain.

15 minutes later, he was wiping the steam that had condensed on the mirror, while drying his hair with the towel. In the Sims video game, they can become flirty after taking a hot shower, and it appeared to apply to real life too. Right now, he was marvelling at himself and wondering what Yeosang did to deserve someone like him oop. But it wasn't long before he reached a consensus in state of mind, and moved quickly in getting ready to leave once again. 10 minutes later, he was fully clothed and had put on a light layer of makeup. 5 minutes more and he had packed his things and was out the door, remembering to bring an umbrella due to the unpredictable weather.

It was almost closing time when he reached the record shop, parking 3 lots away from the entrance, which was the closest he could get. Shifting the car into park, he slipped his phone out from the coat pocket and sent a message.

You: I'm here! <33

He then got out the car and strolled to the entrance, standing in front of the glass window where he was sure Yeosang couldn't miss him. A few minutes pass before he sees a familiar figure.

"Hey Jisung."

"Hi..."

"Had a rough day?"

"You could say that. Haknyeon and Changbin had an argument today, and normally they're really great friends. It was to the extent that they almost physically fought. I know they're just kindergartners, but still, wouldn't want them to cause any harm to each other. But hey, something cute did happen. I caught Moonbin and Seungkwan holding hands while sleeping during nap time. Imagine if they end up like me and Minho aaaaaaaaa! Let me show you."

He picked his phone out from a back pocket and tapped on his gallery, not before Yunho noticed that his wallpaper was of himself, meaning Jisung, and Minho. A tiny bit of jealousy blossomed within him. Yeosang had never taken any pictures with him like that. But he let that little demon tire itself out as they fawned over the two young children. Their sighs of adoration was cut short when a voice called out.

"Sungie! Let's go!"

It was Minho, who was exiting the shop with another, unfamiliar guy. "This is Seonghwa, by the way. He just started work today."

Both parties greeted each other, formally, yet with a touch of familiar warmth before the happy couple skipped off with their hands laced together down the block to a 24-hour diner. Being the extra person that he was, Jisung had hooked the umbrella handle on the back of his hood, and combined with the skipping, the umbrella had fallen off every few meters. Each time, he would turn around and pick it up, before rehooking it and sharing a bout of raucous laughter together. No qualms of what the world saw, about showing how ridiculous they could be with each other. That was what Yunho truly desired for his relationship.

"They're really a match made in heaven, aren't they?"

Seonghwa had spoken up, sensing the uncomfortable silence.

"They really are. Did you see Yeosang?"

"Didn't really see him much today. I could go back in and check if you'd like me to?"

"No, it's fine, no need to trouble you. It was nice meeting you, Seonghwa."

"Nice meeting you too, Yunho."

And with that final statement, Seonghwa headed down the block to the bus stop to catch his bus ride home. The sky grew darker and darker, the streetlamps turning on as Yunho continued waiting at the front of the shop, wondering how long more would he have to wait.

Half an hour after everyone left, and 51 messages later did Yeosang finally appear. "Where were you? I was so worried. Everyone left and you still didn't come out."

"Sorry, I got caught up with some last-minute work. One of the suppliers had issues."

He didn't fully trust what had been said, but Yunho gave him the benefit of the doubt and ceased the interrogation that he had considered. They walked to the car together, side by side, not hand in hand but with occasional brushing, courtesy of Yunho. It was only when they got into the car did Yunho realise something.

He hadn't introduced himself. How did Seonghwa know his name?