Childish. Hot-tempered. Snarky. That's the way he's always been with Eujae.

Amiable. Lighthearted. Kind of spoiled. That's the person he is to other people.

Chatty. Impassioned. A bit of a worrier. That's how he has known him as Ten-Ten.

He has seen him get flustered for a couple of reasons. Sometimes it's because of embarrassment; most of the time, it's because of annoyance.

Needless to say, Eujae has seen so many sides to Apollo that he can safely assume that the guy can be temperamental. He had even made him almost cry because of the kiss during the King's Game. Poll might have actually cried after running out of the room at that time, but it was out of anger that he acted that way.

It is different this time.

The tears that had threatened to fall were not of outrage but of fear. The expression that Poll made in the snack bar after receiving the call from his twin sister was something that Eujae had never seen from him before. The male Torres twin was so troubled, and it took some time for the other man to assuage his panic.

It was only when Eujae promised to bring him to the hospital on his motorbike, telling him it would be faster in the middle of the traffic, that he saw the anxiety in Poll's eyes start to abate. He then snatched Poll's stuff and thrust the laptop into the backpack that the guy had had a hard time unzipping, before grabbing his wrist and guiding him outside to where he'd parked his bike. Poll seemed shocked the entire time that Eujae had to put the helmet on him and say a few words of comfort before getting him to hop on his bike.

As Poll settled himself behind Eujae, the latter reached to his back to blindly take hold of his passenger's hand and put it around his middle. "You have to hold on to me," he explained, "I'll go max."

So go for the maximum speed limit, he did.

A few minutes before arriving at their destination, Eujae feels Poll's hold around his waist tighten. Still on edge, he suspects, as anyone would be if they heard that someone dear to them was brought to the hospital.

Immediately after Eujae stops his bike in the hospital parking lot, Poll alights and begins to fumble on the helmet's chinstrap.

"Let me," Eujae offers as soon as he removes his and then extends his hand to unfasten the strap of Poll's helmet.

Once it's off, Poll doesn't waste any seconds as he hastens out of the parking area and to the hospital building, without so much as expressing his gratitude to the other man.

Eujae follows him inside the building after securing the helmets to his motorcycle. Reaching the front desk, he asks, "Excuse me, Ma'am, may I know the room of patient Amelia Torres? She was brought here just a while ago due to fainting."

The female staff looks up at him curiously. "Someone just asked a minute ago. Aren't you with that boy?"

"We're together, yes, but..." Eujae responds with a hesitant smile. "The patient is his mother, and he was in a hurry so..."

The older woman returns his smile with an understanding one. "Oh, I get it. He did look so anxious. The patient is in the general ward, room three-oh-four. It's on the third floor." She motions to the right side with her hand.

With his eyes, Eujae follows the direction that the female attendant is pointing and realizes that she is gesturing at the elevator. When he turns back to the staff, he sees that she is still smiling, but there is a small regret in her eyes.

"Your friend made a dash out of here as soon as he heard the patient's room number and I didn't have the chance to tell him he could use the elevator. He took the stairs."

Eujae thanks the older woman, giving a polite smile and curtsying with a nod, before he walks to the elevator where a young man is already standing by. While waiting for the door to open, Eujae thinks about Poll and wonders if he has already reached the room. He must have been seriously worried.

The sound of the door opening distracts him from his thoughts. The other lad gets in first, with Eujae following him.

After getting off the elevator, Eujae saunters to the place, looking left to right to check each room, but he has yet to see the patients' ward on the floor. He hadn't noticed it earlier but the area of each floor is so wide that one can easily get lost in the place. He should have asked the front desk attendant for the specific direction.

The thought makes him remember Poll again, hoping he's found his mother's room.

He pauses and stares through a glass window of one of the rooms and his gaze falls upon a lady who is working with a desktop computer. Looking at the plate on the room's entrance, he learns that he is currently in front of the billing department.

Eujae returns his eyes ahead, just in time for a male nurse to turn up from around the corner. The nurse is holding a patient's chart and flipping through it while walking in the hallway so he doesn't notice when Eujae walks up to him.

"Excuse me, Sir, will you please tell me where the general ward is?"

The young hospital employee glances up at Eujae with wide eyes, looking surprised. It takes some seconds for Eujae's query to sink in.

"Oh." The male nurse turns behind him and then points to the side where he came from. "Just turn that corner and you'll see the numbered rooms."

Eujae gives his thanks before following the instruction. What meets him as he turns the corner is Poll standing in front of the door of Room 304.

"What's the matter? Aren't you going in?" he asks once he gets close to him.

Keeping his eyes forward and without sparing Eujae a glance, Poll replies, "Wanna make sure I don't look like a mess when mom sees me."

"In that case..." Eujae lifts a gloved hand to smooth the strands of hair that are sticking out everywhere on Poll's head. "It's all over the place," he explains when Poll frowns at him.

Somehow, he feels relieved seeing the familiar passion return on the other man's face even as he's glowering at him. Eujae prefers this fire to the earlier dread in Poll's eyes, prefers seeing the glare than the tears.

"Alright, all fixed now." He smirks and then holds up his hands in mock surrender when Poll keeps scowling at him.

The male twin doesn't give any response as he looks back at the door and silently turns the knob. Taking a deep breath, he goes in and makes his appearance known by calling, "Mom, what happened?"

"This is the hospital, Poll. Will you keep your voice low?" It is Tem who welcomes her brother's loud entrance.

Eujae enters the room and sees that, aside from the Torres mother and twins, Cloud is also with them. Poll is now sitting on the edge of the patient's bed, holding his mother's hands. Thankfully, the older woman is now conscious and is sitting up in bed, whispering reassuring words to her worried son.

Their male friend is the first to notice Eujae. With a knowing smirk, Cloud greets him, "Hey there, mate. I was wondering how Poll was able to go here that fast. So it's you."

At his friend's acknowledgment of his being there, the Torres women turn to him, curiosity in their eyes.

"Eujae?" Tem asks with a hint of confusion, at the same time as her mother coos, "Oh, it's Eujae. How nice to see you here, young man."

Eujae nods in Tem's direction before turning to the older woman with a boyish smile. "Hi, Auntie. I can't really say it's nice to see you here too, given the situation, but I'm glad to see that you're okay now. Apollo was really..." he falters, noticing that Poll is now peeking over his shoulder to glare daggers at him. Eujae quirks an inquisitive brow, before he finishes his sentence, "He was really worried about you."

Poll scowls at his statement.

Realizing belatedly that the male twin doesn't want his mother to know how worried he was, Eujae sends him an apologetic smile.

The other people in the room appear to be unaware of their silent communication. Amelia speaks up again, "Oh, c'mon. I think these kids were just overreacting. I just lost consciousness because of fatigue. It was nothing serious. Tem just freaked out so I was brought here."

"What do you mean nothing serious, Mom?" Tem asks, the frustration in her voice unchecked, "Who would not freak out if the first thing that greeted them as soon as they entered their house was their unconscious mother? Do you have any idea how afraid I was earlier, Mom? Who knows how long it had been since you passed out by the time I saw you? It was a good thing that Cloud had not left yet, or else I wouldn't have known what to do. I would have just kept panicking the whole time."

Eujae glances at Poll upon hearing Tem's story, remembering how frantic he was earlier. They are twins, alright.

Cloud puts an arm around his girlfriend's shoulder and starts to rub her upper arm, presumably to make her relax.

"Fine. I am sorry if I scared you, sweetheart. I am fine now though and the doctor said I just need some rest. I promise I'll take better care of myself from now on so I don't scare my babies again." The older woman smiles gently at her daughter and turns to her son. Slipping a hand out of the male twin's hold, she lightly pinches the young man's cheek. "Okay? Don't freak out anymore."

"I didn't freak out," Poll mumbles.

"Eh, is that so?" Amelia inquires, but then turns her gaze to Eujae, raising her brow as if to confirm what her son said.

As an answer, Eujae can only smirk, keeping his mouth shut to make sure there's no dirty look that will be thrown in his direction again.

But in the end, Poll still gives him the stare.

"But you know, I wouldn't mind getting sick every now and then if it meant I'd get to see these handsome, young men visit me," the older woman says, causing the Torres twins to whine and make disapproving noises.

Eujae and Cloud just chuckle at their interaction.

They keep talking after that, and at some point in the middle of their conversation, Poll excuses himself, saying he wants to buy some drinks.

However, after almost an hour, he has not come back.

"I'll look for him," Eujae says, exiting the room without waiting for the other to respond. He has not gone far when he hears Tem calling his name.

Turning around, he sees his female friend pulling the knob and closing the door of her mother's room before walking up to him.

"Want me to pick up something else for you?" Eujae asks once Tem is in front of him.

Tem gives him a faint smile and shakes her head. "I could have just texted you if that's the case. No, Eujae, I just want to apologize for the trouble of bringing Poll here. At the same time, I'm grateful. Thank you for coming along with my brother. I assume that kid didn't bother to thank you again, huh?"

Chuckling, Eujae glances sideways before looking back at his friend with a warm smile. "It's no trouble for me. Auntie Amy's the mother of people close to me, so I also consider her one of those I care about. And I was with Apollo when you called and saw him..." He pauses, remembering the expression that the male Torres twin made at the snack bar. "It seems like he doesn't want you guys to know so just don't tell him that I said something like this to you, but... I've never seen him that terrified. So I understand why he had no time to think about thanking me. I didn't even think much about it, to be honest. Just let him get away this time."

"Well, it's not like I don't already know that side of him. He might think he's hiding it well, but he's not exactly that good at acting unaffected."

Eujae stares at Tem curiously, wondering what she's talking about. He doesn't say anything, just waits for his friend to elaborate.

"You know that our dad is not at home most of the time because of work, right?"

Wordlessly, Eujae nods. He knows that the twins' father is a pilot, a job that demands that he be away from his loved ones more often than not.

"Dad used to tell Poll every time he was going away for work when we were kids that he was the man in charge of the house, that he should protect me and mom, while dad was not there to do the job. Well, it was just a pep talk to a child, really, but Poll, as simpleminded as he was, took that to heart and started pretending to be strong in front of me and mom. I don't think Poll has realized that I know that since we were kids, whenever he was hurt, he'd always find a place to hide and cry. He'd cry until he'd let it all out, and only then would he emerge from his hiding spot and return to mom, all smiles as if everything was fine and normal." Tem lets out something that is in between a laugh and a sigh. She averts her eyes, looking to the wall on the side.

The way she blinks rapidly and opens her eyes wide doesn't escape Eujae. It seems like she's trying to prevent something from welling up in her eyes, which is kind of ironic, considering how she's currently talking about how her brother would often hide his crying.

Eujae remains silent and pretends not to notice Tem's actions.

Tem removes her eyeglasses and quickly puts them back after discreetly rubbing the corner of her right eye. She then turns back to Eujae as if nothing happened. "The thing is, I don't think Poll has outgrown that behavior of his. He's sensitive and emotional but likes to pretend he's not. Always thinks he's supposed to act like a man and should not show any weakness, especially in front of mom. That he should just suck it all up, no matter how hurt or afraid he is. Poll is actually that kind of person, despite always acting like a baby when it comes to other things."

"You know, I notice how you often call Apollo's immature behavior out, but the truth is you also adore that part of him, don't you? You really care a lot about him, right?" Eujae asks.

Shrugging, Tem answers, "He's still my twin brother, after all. And Lia was right when she said Poll is just the kind of person that you can't help but spoil. Sometimes, before you know it, you're already letting him get away with his childishness. Not that I am ever going to say it to his face."

Eujae smirks. "And you're telling me all of this because?"

"I don't know. As I said earlier, I am just thankful to you for looking after him. Maybe I am just relieved to know that someone is with him at times like these. And even more, knowing it's you. Although, not gonna lie, you're the last person I expected it to be, given how things have been between you for years."

With a chuckle, Eujae spins on his heels and looks over his shoulder, saying, "I still can't believe it either. I'll look for him. You're worried that he's brooding somewhere else again after what happened today, right?"

Words are not needed to be spoken when Tem's lips curve into a grateful smile which Eujae returns without hesitation.

He walks away from his friend, and he's out of the hospital building in a matter of minutes. The cold breeze meets him outside, his hair fluttering at the breath of wind. The air is gentle but chilly tonight.

So where the hell is that troublesome guy?

Eujae aimlessly ambles for a while and doesn't notice that his feet have already brought him near the highway. He stops and looks behind him, realizing that he's walked too far from the hospital.

He should go back and start looking for Poll, but something is telling him that he's on the right track.

A large, illuminated billboard to the left makes him look up. It's an advertisement for an event featuring a celebrity he doesn't know. And that thing is not what catches Eujae's attention the most, but the pedestrian bridge just below it.

Before he realizes it, Eujae is wending his way to the overpass even if he doesn't have any reason to cross to the other side. Pausing at the foot of the stairs, he presses the side button of his timepiece. The light green led glows, displaying the time on his wristwatch. It's 7:17 p.m. now.

Eujae begins climbing the steps, occasionally looking to his side to read the signage of some establishments. He reaches the top of the stairs in no time, gripping the newel post cap to swing himself at the landing. The view that greets him as soon as he's up on the overpass makes him come to a halt.

There he is, alone in the middle of the bridge, leaning over the guardrail and looking at the space, chromatic lights reflecting off his face.

Eujae watches him for a moment before he decides to walk near him.

"What are you doing here, Apollo? They have been waiting for you to come back," he asks, raising his voice by a fraction so he can be heard amidst the noisy vehicles below. "Visiting hours at the hospital will be over soon, so you need to go back."

Predictably, Poll turns his wide, surprised eyes to him, and Eujae anticipates a snide question to follow. Yet, after waiting for a complete beat, he doesn't receive any kind of snark from the other man.

Just as when Eujae thinks Poll is not acting like his usual self, the male twin surprises him even more when he steps closer to him and suddenly lets his forehead fall into his front shoulder.

Eujae freezes at Poll's unexpected action. He isn't able to react immediately, doesn't know how to react in this kind of situation.

He slowly turns his neck to peek at the head that is still leaning against his right shoulder. His mouth and nose brush against Poll's hair, catching a whiff of its comforting fragrance like last time. It's citrus mixed with something sweet.

Apollo smells like fruit candy. Even his scent is very much like him.

"I was scared," Poll mumbles, pulling Eujae away from his concerns and making him fully aware of their circumstance.

They must look strange to anyone who can see them at the moment. After all, a picture of two grown-up college men standing with little to no space between them is not something one sees every day.

Poll keeps talking, his words almost muffled as his face is still buried in the other man's front shoulder. "I thought I had to be tough, but I just totally panicked even when Tem told me over the phone that mom was already conscious. I always tell myself that I have to take care of them, but how can I do that when I am like this?"

Tentatively, Eujae raises a hand to pat Poll's head, unsure if this is the kind of consolation that he needs, if he even needs one. When Poll doesn't show any sign of resistance, he smiles and turns the gentle pats into soft strokes, feeling slightly disappointed that he's still wearing his biker gloves. "You did well," he whispers against the upper side of Poll's head, "And it was a natural reaction. Even I would have panicked if something bad happened to someone I really care about, you know."

"You're only saying that."

Eujae gives a soft chuckle but says nothing to refute Poll. There is no use having a trivial argument right now.

Silence takes place, but it's different from the ones that passed between them through the years. The quietness is not awkward or uncomfortable, but companionable, giving off an easing atmosphere. Even the street noise sounds too far away from them at the moment.

Eujae continues to brush his hand against the shorter man's hair as though doing it is one of the most natural things in the world. He then turns to his side to look at the vehicles below. It must be the red light, it must be the traffic, but they are currently at a standstill. He studies the different headlights, and then they are moving again.

He turns back to Poll, surprised that he has not pulled away from him yet.

This must have been the most peaceful time they have spent with each other's company, and Eujae wonders how long this calm will last until things between them start spiraling again.

He promised to keep trying until he makes Poll believe that he sincerely cares about him, but how much time will it take for the guy to let him in? Does he have enough time before the lid of the secret about their two worlds will be blown off?

Eujae is no more certain if he can still keep the thing about Gaele and Ten-Ten under wraps for much longer. If the time comes that he has to tell him the whole truth, when that time comes—because he knows it will happen sooner or later—will either of them be ready for it?

He lets out an anxious sigh. Screw what's going to happen tomorrow; he just wants to focus on what's happening today. Just this time. If only there was a way to freeze or extend the moment. Even just for a single second.

Tilting his head upwards, Eujae observes the night sky.

Cloudless firmament. Crescent moon. Twinkling stars.

The sky is really beautiful tonight.