Faded Sun| SunSun

[Chapter 24]

"Oh come on! Can't you get one of them to help you?!"

Jake shook his head, pulling Riki up from the table. He forced a pile of dishes into his hands, stacking a few cups on top of the pile. "No, they're our guests, I'm not making them do the dishes." He said, gathering up the remaining dishes.

"Then can't you just do th-"

"Kid seriously, I cooked a whole ass meal for us all, and you expect me to do the dishes as well." Jake groaned out, picking up his pile from the table, he began to walk over to the kitchen. "Get a move on!" He shouted, and Riki begrudgingly followed behind. 

"It's like Jake got more than a roommate, he got a child too." Heeseung laughed, immediately nudged by Sunoo's elbow.

"Oh leave him be." Sunoo replied lightly. "I think Jake's enjoying having him around."

"Did Jake tell you that? or have you picked up some of Sunghoon's crazy sense." Heeseung slowed his words, realizing how reckless he had just been. He felt immense guilt, as Sunoo's face dropped. He shouldn't have mentioned Sunghoon. "Hey, do you wanna come with me to the balcony? Get some fresh air."

"Oh um, yeah." Sunoo smiled, getting up from the table. He pushed his chair under, then walked with Heeseung to the balcony.

He'd been having so much fun tonight, he almost forgot about Sunghoon. The boy was coming back to Seoul tomorrow, and he had no idea what to do. Things between them had been so weird lately, it didn't feel like a one sided thing. Something was going on with Sunghoon, but he couldn't work out what. Did it even matter anymore? They were going to break up anyway, it's not like he would get the opportunity to understand what he was going through.

As he walked through the glass door, Heeseung handed him a soft, white blanket, due to the chill. Sunoo wrapped himself up in the cozy material, taking a seat on the outdoor sofa Jake had on the balcony. Heeseung sat beside him, staring out at the bright lights of Seoul.

It was refreshing, and calm, just what they needed.

"I'm really sorry Sunoo, for what I did two years ago, and for not being a good friend to you these past few weeks." 

Sunoo turned to Heeseung with a gentle smile. "I already said it's alright, you don't need to keep on apologizing."

"I do though, especially because of what happened with Junseo. You were scared, I get that, I should have been more compassionate." Heeseung paused, in what looked like a moment to think. After a few seconds, he let out a breath, meeting Sunoo's gaze once again. "Though I don't agree with Riki on everything he said, there was one thing he did get right. We're a team, so we're in this together."

Sunoo's eyes widened in wonder, confused to what Heeseung meant by that last point. "You're not telling Junseo about Mi-Sun, are you?" He asked, really hoping that wasn't going to happen. He knew how hard it was going to be to break up with his own boyfriend, he would never want that for Heeseung, and more importantly, he wouldn't want that for his sister.

"No, I'm not telling Junseo about Mi-Sun." Heeseung stated, and Sunoo breathed a sigh of relief. "I meant that whatever happens, we'll face it together. I want you to tell Junseo you've ended your relationship, but not actually do it."

"What if he finds out? You know I hate lying."

"It's either you lie, or break up with Sunghoon." Heeseung explained. He wasn't brushing off Sunoo's concerns, he was just being realistic. Sunoo needed to learn that it was okay to lie sometimes. "Also, if Junseo does find out, which he won't, I'll come clean as well. If you get punished, I will too." 

Sunoo's eyes were glassy, and Heeseung saw a couple tears trickle down his face. Pulling down his sleeve, he carefully wiped Sunoo's tears, giving him a reassuring smile. He knew this would be overwhelming for Sunoo, he didn't need to ask why he was crying.

"So I get to stay with Sunghoon?" Sunoo asked, almost unbelieving of this outcome.

"Yep, I will do everything to keep Junseo from finding out-" Heeseung froze, It wasn't out of fear, it was out of complete relief and happiness. Sunoo cuddled into his side, and he wrapped his arms around the younger, wanting to be a sense of comfort for him again.

"Thank you so much Heeseung."

____

Soapy bubbles over flowed the sink, as water poured onto the floor. Jake screamed, rushing over to the faucet, quickly shutting off the water. Riki stood to the side in shock, only just snapping out of his day dream. Jake looked really mad, he was in for it this time.

"One simple task." Jake mumbled to himself, pulling out the sink plug. Water gargled down the drain, as he turned to Riki, annoyance plastered all over his face. "Grab the kitchen roll, and get on the floor now." He commanded, through gritted teeth.

Jake was kinda scary like this, so Riki didn't waste time in following the order. He knelt to the floor, extremely thankful that he hadn't flooded the whole apartment. Frantically, he ripped away at the kitchen roll, placing piece after piece over the water covered tiles.

"I really can't believe you're eighteen sometimes." Jake flipped on the water, waiting for it to run hot, before putting the plug back in. "Didn't you ever wash dishes at home?"

"Not really, we had a dish washer." Riki replied, causing Jake to laugh. He felt really bad about what he just did, so he was glad he could make Jake laugh. 

He wasn't too pleased about that last comment though. People always treated him like a kid, which he didn't mind too much, since he was the youngest. He just didn't want Jake to see him like that.

"How far have you got on your homework?" Jake questioned, pouring a decent amount of washing up liquid into the partially filled sink.

"I'm almost done, but I was stuck on this one math section." Riki answered, picking up some of the soaked kitchen roll. He stood up, chucking them into the bin, going back to retrieve the rest.

 Jake grabbed a plate, rinsing it, then beginning to scrub it clean. "I'll help you with it later."

"Really? You don't have to."

"It's fine, I'm quite good at maths."

When he was living on his own, he had no one to help him, so he was grateful for Jake. Leaning himself against the counter, Riki fondly watched Jake doing the dishes. He looked really cute for some reason.

"Do you think I'm ready for debut?" As Jake turned to him, Riki quickly darted his eyes away. He heard a little laughter escape him, adding to his nerves.

"What kind of question is that? Of course I do. You're incredibly talented Riki, I'm sure you'll do amazing." Jake gushed, holding a genuine smile. He turned his attention back to the plates, a fake pout on his lips. "It sucks for me though, soon all my friends will be famous. Too bad I won't have thousands of people biasing me." 

"Oh shut up." Riki chuckled, nudging Jake playfully. "You don't need fans, everyone already loves you."

"Like who?" Jake teases.

"Like Me." Riki immediately flushed with embarrassment, eyes widening, mouth hanging low. He couldn't believe he just said that. "Oh uh- that's not what I- uh... I think Heeseung's calling me...I better go bye- bye..."

Jake giggles to himself, as Riki practically runs away. He should put the boy out of his misery soon, and come clean about his knowledge of the crush. He still wasn't sure how he felt about the whole thing, but he did think it was adorable how flustered Riki got. 

____

Might do daily uploads now, since I've got a bunch of pre written chapters and I'm nearly done with the book. Don't quote me on it, the schedule is set to change at anytime.

Hope everyone's doing good, and is enjoying the book.