♥♜

Luhan thought the funniest thing he’d seen in the last twenty-six years of his life would probably have been Minseok’s face when the Hulk himself was trying to suppress his rage.

Of course, he was failing, and Minseok eventually crushed the plum he was eating under his fist, and threw the purple inners of the fruit at his employee. Tao dodged, naturally, but Minseok didn’t really intend to stop there.

“You insolent,” Minseok growled, and Tao flinched. “You abandoned your first job?”

“I was busy-”

“Busy my .”

“But-” A book was thrown, and Tao didn’t dodge this one. It hit his arm and he made a face. “Ow. You don’t understand-” Another object came at him. A stapler. It hit the ground and Tao gulped. Even Luhan winced. “I was-” This time it was a phone book. “Boss-”

Minseok raised an eyebrow. “What?” He snapped.

“You seriously only respond to boss?” Luhan crossed his arms and leaned against the wall with amusement coloring his face. He was here again.

His only reason was that he needed to de-fury the florist. Maybe make him smell some flowers and forget his anger. But Thursday’s attitude had been forgotten the minute Tao walked in on Tuesday, which was two days later than he was supposed to. Minseok had returned to the catapult method, and hurled another small but painful object at his worker.

“Shut up.”

“I understand my wrongdoing and it won’t happen again.” Tao said with the etiquette and honest eyes of a skilled socialite. “I’ll be diligent.”

It only angered Minseok more. “Do you think this is a joke? This is my career, and you’re ruining it.”

“So you’ll fire me?”

“Do you think I’m letting you get away?” Minseok’s face was practically green in his Hulk-mode and picked up a ceramic paper weight, throwing his arm back to launch it at Tao.

Luhan sputtered and without a second thought, stepped in front of the flying object, intercepting the hit with his arm and hissing in pain as the sharp paper weight slammed against the palm of his hand.

Tao’s eyed widened and Minseok froze. Luhan said nothing. “Tao,” he said calmly. “Why don’t you go stand outside for a bit? Think about what you’ve done.”

Tao blinked. “You mean like a time out?”

“Tao.” Luhan said, and it almost sounded like he was gritting his teeth. Tao nodded and he was out of the shop in seconds.

♜

♪

Tao heard Luhan say something in that calm, unfaltering voice that sounded sickly controlled and overall pissed. He stepped outside and took a long breath. He was glad that was over but he didn’t know why he was still there.

His thoughts drifted to the weekend. He didn’t go to work those past days, but not because he didn’t want to. He wasn’t stupid. He saw them, the goons – men in black and shades and watches, all dressed similarly to the way Tao liked to. The men with the same annoying brutish glares and those looks that watched his every move.

It pissed him off that he’d probably been found, but he prayed his family wouldn’t act on it, if they knew he was here. He prayed they wouldn’t try to take him back.

Sehun wouldn’t really let him go. But Tao was content with staying.

He sighed and dug his hand into his pocket, pulling out the crumpled-yet-folded paper he’d gotten the day before. He unfolded the first quarter of the page.

Heir to HZT Enterprises, Huang Zitao.

Then the next quarter.

Missing.

Another bit.

Parents frantically searching.

He unfolded the page completely.

Reward.

He ripped it to shreds and let the small slivers of paper fall to the pavement. Nobody had to know. His arms were still bruised a bit and his lip, still cut a bit. As a whole he was somehow a mess, but if you looked closely at every inch of his newfound life, he was doing alright.

Tao cracked his neck. He liked the flower shop a lot, but he wouldn’t tell Minseok that. It smelled like flowers and it was sunnier than the rest of the town. And despite the fact that his boss was nuts, he had a good sense of color and honestly, Tao liked to work with him.

The wedding bouquet had honestly slipped his mind.

He snapped out of his thoughts as he heard footsteps approach him, and he looked up expecting Luhan or Minseok. It was a stranger, and Tao would have ignored him if it weren’t for the look in the man’s eyes.

He looked at Tao with mild amusement and raised an eyebrow. He was dressed in mostly black, and he had a face that could’ve been innocent.

Tao figured he was one of his parents’ men, but he didn’t make a move to prove it. He walked around Tao with ease and Tao heard him snicker.

“Hey,” Tao started, but the man didn’t turn around.

He moved around the street corner and disappeared.

♪

♦

Yixing’s hands shook a little but he ignored it as he hung up the phone. It was early. A Tuesday. There were three people in the shop, including him. As he stood behind the counter, Chanyeol and Jongin sat on opposite sides of a table, halfway in conversation and halfway absorbed in the lights of their cellphone screens.

“Yeol, go like my picture.”

“Ew, I don’t want your nip slips on my feed, you kelp.”

“It was one shirtless selfie, for the love of-”

“All I see is kelp s.” Chanyeol held up a hand.

“Whatever.” Jongin slumped into his seat and kept his phone level with his nose as he scrolled through pictures. “How’s the song going?”

Chanyeol shrugged. “I wrote one.”

“About?”

“Love.”

Jongin put his phone down. “ing spill.”

Chanyeol rolled his eyes. “I don’t need to tell you. You’ll hear the songs when they’re released.”

“When’s that?”

“End of the summer. When are you going back to Costa Rica?”

“August 12th.” Jongin said. “I’m pretty sure.”

“It’ll be out on the 14th,” Chanyeol said. “But be sure to listen to the album.”

“Dude,” Jongin leaned forward. “Would you write a song about me if I asked?”

Chanyeol snorted. “Sure. I’d call it ‘Playboy.’”

“I’m not a-”

“Don’t lie to me, you kelp.”

Jongin sighed and tapped his fingers on the table. There was an empty plate of crumbs in front of him; there had been a molten lava cake there minutes ago. “I haven’t seen Kyungsoo in forever,” Jongin said pathetically.

“Since Thursday?”

“Since I asked him out. I don’t even think he’s left his house.”

“You asked him out?”

“I did a good thing, right?” Jongin’s question was pleading and weak. “I didn’t screw it up, right?”

“Chill.”

“Yeol.”

“For all I know, he had some days off and decided to nap through them.” Chanyeol turned off his phone and set it beside him. “You need to relax.”

“Not everyone naps through life.” Jongin said. “What if he’s sick?”

“He’s probably okay.”

“What if he’s dead?”

Chanyeol almost laughed. “What if he’s just studying?”

Jongin looked at him seriously. “Of course. Do you think-”

He was interrupted by Yixing clearing his throat. “Uh, Chanyeol?”

Jongin blinked and looked at the baker, and then back at Chanyeol. “Hey, he’s talking to you.”

“What’s up?” Chanyeol raised his eyebrows.

Yixing seemed troubled. He had his phone in his hand and an unreadable expression on his face. “Uh…I just got off the phone with Jongdae.”

“Yeah?”

“And he said,” Yixing scratched the back of his neck. “Um, he’s back.”

“He?” Jongin furrowed his eyebrows. “Who’s he?”

Chanyeol’s face went dark and he tensed. “Oh, him.” He let out a cold laugh and Jongin looked more confused than ever.

“Who’s back?”

Yixing sighed and tossed his phone at the counter. It slid and hit the cash register. The air in the morning sweetshop went stale and emotionless. Even the love songs lost their tunes.

“He’s back.” Chanyeol said. Deadpan. “Junmyeon.”

♦

✯

“That’s a lot of luggage.” Kyungsoo said, tonelessly. It was sunny out when they stood out in the lawn, and there was only one suitcase on the dewy grass. It was over-stuffed and ripping.

“Don’t try to be sarcastic when you’re half-asleep, Kyungsoo.” The suitcase’s owner kept his hands in his pockets and smirked. “It makes you look too cute, and that hurts my heart.”

Kyungsoo yawned. “That’s a lie, Hyung.”

The man let out an obnoxious chuckle. “Can you tell Jongdae to stop sulking by the door?”

“Oh,” Kyungsoo turned around and looked at Jongdae, who was, sure enough, absorbed in an unamused and utterly-wronged sulk.

Jongdae scoffed and walked back into the house, picking up his phone from the counter and stuffing it in his pocket. He stormed out into the lawn and passed his roommates.

The household had been reunited, but only a third of the family was particularly thrilled about it.

Junmyeon watched Jongdae go. “Can I least have a welcome back hug?”

“Go hug a tree, you lemur.”

Junmyeon laughed and turned back to Kyungsoo, who abandoned him and ambled back into the house, probably back to his room so he could sleep. Jun