School days passed and Beom finally finished his last year, he received tons of confessions and requests to go out with him from the girls in his school and who visit the café, but he declined them all since he has no time for love and feelings, and since he already has plans with Aera he decided to not stick to someone until he reaches what he wants.
"So? What is your major again~?" Aera asked while walking around X university, which is known to be one of the elite universities in Korea where only those with a lot of money can enter... Or those with scholars. For Han Beom, he managed to enter this university with Hei Park the boy he became friends with after that basketball match, for Beom's luck, Hei Park was a loyal friend, after his parent's death Hei stuck to him through the funeral and the three days before he went back to school, luckily, Aera and Hei were there to help him with the things he missed so he had no problems when went back to classes.
"Hmm, Business Studies" Beom mumbled while checking the papers between his hands, "by the way, hyung? Didn't you study in this university?" He asked while Aera acted busy cleaning his ears, "hmm? What did you say?"
"Hyung?" He giggled then nodded, "I did, as far as I remember I scored the highest in my last year and managed to finish what many are still studying or let's say repeating~" he winked worrying Beom but Aera comforted him telling him there's nothing to worry about since the topics are easy and simple to handle if he at least focuses with his professors.
"Beom!!" Hei Park called while running to them, he panted heavily before he jumped and said his hi's to Beom and Aera who laughed at him and how red he was.
"So what are you majoring in Beom?"
"Business Studies, and you?" They looked at him waiting for something big or might be hard for him since he's stubborn and reckless.
"Teaching!" Beom and Aera looked at him surprised but they were more shocked when hearing what specifically he's aiming for, "and math at that!"
"I thought you always hated math?" Beom threw the first arrow
"Yea, when you two were spending time studying, you'd cry over some equations though they were easy" Aera commented throwing more arrows at him
"I know! I know! And that's why I want to do this! So students don't end up like me and have a hard time when I can explain it to them easily like you did Aera hyung" Aera smiled and nodded his head. That indeed is nice and sweet of him since most students enter some majors just so they can have a name between their families or because there's no more space in the major they want or for other reasons, all those types of students aren't new for Aera since he had met most of them and Hei Park is one of the rare cases that already have plans for their future after they finish their Bachelor studies.
Aera made sure Beom and Hei went to their colleges and they remembered their routes and pulled himself out of its lands, he took one last look at the buildings before he walked into his car back to his apartment to finish some work.
His day is finally over, he walked Hei Park to his bus and he went to the cafe, girls welcomed him and the men their did too wishing good luck after a hard day in university, they tried to comfort him that this is normal in first days so he doesn't need to worry.
Beom looked outside the window after he finished cleaning the tables, the sun was going down slowly, as if it was giving its goodbyes and sending promises for another warm day to take away the coldness of the night, the sky was colorful and for Haneul's surprise, who was peeking at him once a while, the scenery outside was reflecting on his black hair and shiny honey eyes.
"Haneul Hyung?" He called snapping him out of his bubble, "I'll go out for a minute" he nodded and let him out. What he didn't know, Beom saw Aera come back but instead of entering he walked out to the alley.
He walked to where he saw Aera went. He found him smoking while gazing at the rising smoke, "hyung?" he called, but Aera didn't look at him, he just opened his mouth and mumbled "I ain't any different from this burnt dust." Beom shivered from his words, but to his luck, Aera turned to face him with a broken small smile "is there something you wanna talk about?"
"A question, actually"
"go ahead!"
"Before I ask, what made you say what you just said? And why do you look tired like this? Did you cry?" He asked worriedly, but Aera shook his head trying to stop him from thinking about that but Beom isn't one to let such thing pass without talking about it so Aera stuck to one word, "grandpa" he mumbled, "now let's change the topic, what is the other question you wanted to ask?"
Beom breathed in and out before gaining back his courage "Hyung? May I ask you..." he started while pulling out the leaf from his pocket, "isn't it unfair for this leaf to be taken away from its branch? The home where it grew up?" He remembered this question when a leaf fell on his head and Hei helped him with it, it happened in the same day like last year, he asked his father about it and he told him it's normal or it wouldn't has found its way to him to hold onto it.
Funnily, he still keep that leaf since that day in a book he has been reading passionately after Aera gave it to him.
Aera stared at him in shock, wondering what made a kid like him have such thoughts "kiddo? Nothing would stay the same forever, No one would stay the same. Life keeps changing and changing and people with it too. It'd drop us in ups and downs and the worst in the list... Taking away those who we lean on the most" He said while keeping eye contact, reminding him of their parents and how unfair life can become.
Their eyes suddenly started tearing, they wiped them away "haha, look at us, men in their twenties but cry when remembering him" Beom shook his head and smiled softly "not at all. They were important for us and that's the normal reaction to have"
"True... I miss grandpa too" Aera mumbled while taking away his eyes from Beom to the sky.
"He must be very, very important for you to cry when remembering him" Beom said while leaning on the wall beside him, "Yea... He was..."
"Is there something that brought you here?" Aera struck to the point making Beom smile proudly for having an eagle eye brother.