Nerds made him wet. But not shy, clumsy types with out of style glasses. Sunoo wanted the dangerous kind. The arrogant ones, the sharp tongues, the ones who knew their minds were the sharpest tool in the box. He wanted to kneel at the altar of it and, in the same breath, tear it down until all that brilliance choked on his name.

"You said you want to get out? So get the fuck out." Sunghoon's fist shot out, slamming into the door inches from Sunoo's head with a loud crack. "Tell me, does he even fucking care?" Blood seeped from his split knuckles. "Does he know I'm the one you call when he goes back home to his wife? Does it even matter to him?"Sunoo flinched so violently his bag slipped from his fingers, hitting the floor. There was a genuine moment of shock and fear at the realization that he may have finally pushed Sunghoon beyond his breaking point."Sunghoon..." he whispered, "You're scaring me.""Good," Sunghoon replied, clenching his jaw. "Because you should be scared. Not of me, I would never hurt you. But of waking up five years from now still waiting for him to choose you. When you've pushed away everyone who actually gave a damn about you for someone who only remembers you exist when he's bored at home."

"Then let go of the things that hurt you." Jay's voice was gentle, but his eyes were searching into him, like it was asking of the things Heeseung couldn't even begin to say.Heeseung's eyes met him. "And if it still hurts even when I do?"Jay turned fully toward him then. "Have you ever thought that maybe..." he paused, and carefully, "you've let go of the wrong thing?"

"For the record. I would've done this for less money."Jay paused, half-turned. "And I would have paid more."Heeseung folded his arms, bathrobe sliding treacherously low on one shoulder. It drew Jay's gaze for a fraction of a second, just long enough to count as his victory. "I'll do such a good job you will not want to let me go.""I know you will. But I will let you go."

A soft mumbling caught Sunghoon's attention. He glanced over to see Sunoo hunched over his notepad, that fluffy pen working overtime. "Jang PD… regular spot… we… idiots...""Hey, intern. You're writing this down too?"Sunoo's head snapped up, all wide eyes and sunshine. "Yes! Every detail matters. I understood it the first time."Sunghoon pinched the bridge of his nose. "Jay, help me here."

Jay trudged up to his apartment, tired and stressed as usual. He punched in his door code, the beeps were pathetically the most comforting sound he heard today. Home was a safe place after all.Or so he thought.Something faint caught his ears from next door. It was muffled at first, but unmistakable.Moaning.

How strange, to hold one person and feel the ghost of another, to feel someone's kiss on another person's lips.

"Let's be clear about something first," Sunghoon murmured as he pulled away, leaving just a hairsbreadth of space between their lips. His words fanned hotly against Sunoo's parted lips. "This is just sex, nothing more."At that moment, Sunoo couldn't care less about labels, as long as he could feel Sunghoon's lips on his skin again."Yes."One of them lied.

Sunghoon's heart hammered against his ribs. The sound of Sunoo's laughter was everything he'd been trying not to crave.Don't.His hands clenched into fists at his sides. Sunghoon let his head fall forward until his forehead rested against Sunoo's thighs. Slowly, almost unwillingly, he let his body sink lower. His knees bent, the gravel pressing into them as his chest felt like he might float away.Don't make me rely on this.Sunoo's laughter quieted into something gentler in Sunghoon's ears. His hand found its way to Sunghoon's hair, fingers threading through it gently. He buried his face into Sunoo's lap as if he could hide from the world in that small space.

But what if forever wasn't enough time for him to love Sunghoon? Would they have enough time to explore every corner of their hearts and souls? Could they ever reach the end?

"She seems lovely."Sunghoon chuckled. "Oh she is, but she's also really stubborn, keeps me on my toes.""Are you happy?" the question slipped out before Sunoo could bite his tongue.Please say no."I am. More than I've ever been."

He did love Heeseung, he loved Heeseung.And that was why he couldn't tell Heeseung that it still burned his lips every time he'd say Sunghoon's name out loud.

"Don't take it personally, this is really just business to me." There, the words that could make even a saint clench their fists. "Maybe you'd be less grumpy over lunch with me?"Sunoo's mouth twitched in annoyance, the extreme urge to wipe that smug grin off Sunghoon's face coursing through him."I don't fraternize with the enemy."

"He's from Seattle, an international student. 2 years older than you."I speak English just alright." Jungwon nodded. "I don't think age is a problem either."Oh, that's not what I'm worried about.""Then?""He's gay," Sunoo paused before he continued scandalously,"Gay as hell."

Sunoo blinked in confusion as Heeseung chuckled at Jaeyun's antics. But when he caught Jaeyun giving him a subtle nasty look, it dawned on him.Wait…WAITOh, Jaeyun… you WHORESuddenly they were in a passive-aggressive stare-down, each silently daring the other to make the next move.Turned out Sunoo wasn't the only predator in this jungle. Another hunter prowled into his territory. He now had a competition.So the goody-two-shoes club president wanted to try and stake his claim, did he? Well, two could play the game.First come first serve, bitch. Get in line.

"We'll take care of our own lives financially," Sunoo continued to state decisively. "I'll support myself. We can split shared living expenses down the middle, but otherwise what's yours is yours, what's mine is mine—Oh, but you still need to wine and dine me, take me on a date night once every two months on bare minimum. Fake marriage or not, you have to treat me well."Sunghoon's eyes glinted with amusement as he leaned forward. "And what do I get in return?"Sunoo tilted his chin up. "Name your price."Sunghoon's eyes lingered on Sunoo's plump lips before trailing up to meet his gaze again. "Sex."

"In another life, I would have really liked just doing money laundering and tax evasion with you.""Sunoo, I work in law enforcement for god's sake."

"Can you believe this is what humanity has come to?" Sunoo wondered out loud as he watched Sunghoon and Jay confidently strutting across the cafeteria, drawing attention like two badly written bad boy protagonists from a trash romcom movie. Behind them was their entourage of followers, eager to be part of the spectacle. "It's corny as hell."Jungwon fixed his eyes on the scene unfolding before them and shrugged. "Well, I don't support harem either. But have you heard? Being attracted to bad boys means expressing our inner rebel without rebelling at all. In other words it’s a pretty liberating experience."

"I write the music, you do your part and keep the gossip tabloids alive." Jungwon coyly looked up at the singer standing before him. "Am I wrong?"Jay clenched his jaw. "What do you know about rock and roll, idol?"