Jongin watched in anticipation as the spotlight shone on his boyfriend. He thought he looked absolutely ethereal when all the lights went out except the one that was shining down on him. The auditorium went quiet when Sehun finally lifted his head up and the music started playing. 

Jongin had no idea what to expect. He never heard the song or watched Sehun practice before. For all he knew he could go all dubstep breakdown mode and bust out in some complicated choreography. That quickly changed though when he recognized the song- the instrumental version of "Baby Don't Cry." Sehun started to move his fingers along with the piano riff, moves subtle and underplayed at first. But as the song started to build up, he began to dance his heart out, moving around the stage, spinning and twirling and officially marking it his own even if it was just temporarily. 

Jongin felt his breathing speed up. Sehun was doing it again, the thing that made Jongin so infatuated with his dancing in the first place. Every twirl of his body and sway of his arms was pouring with so much emotion that he could almost feel what Sehun was feeling at that moment. He knew it was only more fuelled with what happened between him and his parents just a few days ago. Tonight, he was removing the barrier, he was letting everyone see and feel his raw emotion. Jongin knew everyone could feel it just like he could. He knew Sehun never danced liked this in front of anyone before, heck, even Jongin only saw him dance like this once. But there he was, on stage, feet as light as a feather, movements swift and smooth like the wind, yet everything about it was so intense and powerful at the same time. 

There was one difference between this dance and the one Jongin saw the first time. That day, his movements screamed loneliness, desperation. But this time, it was hope. Moving on. Letting go of the pain and fear of the past and starting over. There was a sense of sorrow with letting go too, but there was also hope for a bright future.

Jongin was completely and utterly mesmerized. As he watched this talented, smart, kind, honest, amazing human being on stage, he realized something.

He was in love. 

Jongin was in love and he knew that no matter what he did, he would never be good enough for someone as perfect and as beautiful as Sehun. That was okay though, because Sehun was still here with him. And he was going to be selfish and take what he could get.

When the of the song died away, Sehun dropped down onto his knees on the stage, shoulders heaving up and down as he slowly lifted his head and his eyes immediately locked with Jongin's. The latter felt something spur up in his heart at the look Sehun was giving him. Abruptly, the lights on the stage went off and Sehun disappeared with it, leaving a speechless Jongin. The audience stood up and clapped, cheering loudly for the dancer, while the brunette simply stood there, too amazed at what he had just seen to speak. 

"Jongin? Jongin?" Baekhyun started shaking the other by the shoulder. Jongin turned to look at him, expression unreadable.

"Are you okay?" His friend asked. Jongin simply looked at him before walking away wordlessly, only one thing on his mind.

And that was to see Sehun.

It was almost dizzying, the cheers from the crowd, getting off stage and going backstage where everyone was patting him on the back and complimenting him. Sehun felt slightly light-headed from it all. It was like deja vu. The post-performance bliss that he felt back at the showcase, he was feeling it again now, and it was one of the most amazing feelings ever. Once he managed to get away from the crowd of people, he made his way to the dressing room to get some peace and quiet to calm his racing heart. 

He opened the door and stepped into the room, but was taken by surprise as he was suddenly pushed up against it, hearing the click of the lock along with it. Next thing he knew, he was staring right into Jongin's eyes.

"Jongin," Sehun sighed, "Do you have a thing for almost giving me a heart attack?"

"I love you." The elder said suddenly, ignoring the question. Sehun's eyes went wide at the sudden confession. Jongin was looking at him almost in a daze, taking in every detail of his face, admiring this perfection that he could rightfully call his. He brought his hands up to caress Sehun's face, "I love you," he repeated, as if re-registering the thought in his own mind.

"Jongin..." Sehun whispered, eyes wide and blinking at the elder in disbelief.

Jongin moved closer so they were now pressed up against each other and inhaled his scent, "You were amazing out there."

Sehun took in the tender look in his eyes and the way he caressed his face as if made of glass, and it sent shivers down his spine.

"I think I realized it earlier but tonight, I've never felt so sure. I'm in love with you. Heck, I'm ready to go up on that ing stage and declare it if you want me to."

"No... I believe you," Sehun breathed, realizing their lips were only a few inches away from touching.

Jongin gently held Sehun's chin between his fingers and pulled his face closer, attaching their lips together in a soft, passionate kiss that had them both weak in the knees. Jongin let out a soft groan of content and pushed Sehun back, trapping him against the door. Their lips moved together slowly at first but began to move faster as they became more and more intoxicated in each other. Jongin captured Sehun's lower lip between his own and nibbled on it before lightly biting it. He then gently coaxed Sehun's lips apart with his tongue and plunged the wet muscle into his mouth, exploring every corner of his hot cavern while letting out a moan at the taste and feel of it. He wanted-no-needed more. More of Sehun. The younger was slightly overwhelmed by the sensation but reveled in the taste of Jongin's tongue and allowed him to do whatever he wanted. Jongin's tongue finally found Sehun's own and they ru each other as he began to slowly Sehun's shirt. The latter shivered in delight once his palms pressed against his chest, making their way down to his abs before pulling his shirt off completely and discarding it on the floor.

"You taste so sweet," Jongin whispered huskily when he broke their kiss, running his hands up and down Sehun's torso, admiring all the little contours and bends of his body. He then leaned forward to devour the skin on Sehun's neck with his lips. He placed open-mouth kisses along his neck and towards his collarbone, and wherever he felt like it before lightly biting his clavicle.

"Jongin..." Sehun breathed, hands coming up to hold Jongin's own as they went down his abs, "We should stop..."

"I know..." Jongin said in between kisses on Sehun's jawline, "But I can't stop myself." He then crashed his lips against Sehun's again, plunging his tongue into his mouth hungrily and tasting all it had to offer. Sehun groaned deeply, hands coming up to Jongin's chest in the intent of pushing him away but resting there instead. He knew they had to stop but it was so difficult to let go of Jongin's intoxicating heat and his rough, needy yet soft touches. The more it went on, the more he found himself surrendering to the sensation, the harder he found it to stop. Sehun had little to no experience in the ual department, and he was so overwhelmed by everything he was feeling that he could hardly control his actions. Moreover, it made him want to explore more of this side of himself.

Now was not a good time though.

He finally brought himself to push Jongin away by the shoulders, separating their interlocked lips. Jongin stared at him with dark eyes, lips swollen and wet from their previous activities.

"I-I'm sorry," Jongin stammered after he seemed to snap out of his daze, "We were moving too fast. I should have stopped."

Sehun shook his head, removing his hands from Jongin's shoulders and allowing them to rest by his sides instead.

"Don't apologize. I know you wouldn't do anything if I didn't let you."

"Hm... So you're saying you liked it?"

"I'm not saying anything," Sehun said mysteriously, bending down to pick up his abandoned shirt from the floor and put it on himself.

"Here, let me," Jongin offered, removing Sehun hands and buttoning the shirt up for him. Small shivers went down the younger's body every time Jongin's fingers grazed his skin, but he tried his best to ignore it. He silently watched the elder busy himself, and the latter stopped halfway when he felt his gaze on him.

"What?" He asked, blinking up at Sehun.

Sehun smiled, "Nothing."

"You do realize you're being the creepy one right now."

"No I'm not," Sehun retorted indignantly.

"Whatever you say," Jongin said with a chuckle.

"Hey... Do you remember what you said when I first came into this room? Could you say it again?"

Jongin furrowed his brows but they slowly unknitted as he remembered and his lips curled up into a smile. Leaning closer to his boyfriend, he a placed a short, sweet kiss to his lips.

"I love you," He said, feeling a light blush color his cheeks this time.

Sehun exhaled slowly and whispered, "I love you, too."

Jongin's eyes widened. He wasn't really expecting to hear it back from Sehun, he just wanted his feelings to be known. Before he knew it, he was grinning like a child on Christmas day, "Really?"

"Really."

"Damn..." Jongin hugged his boyfriend, "Thank you."

Sehun chuckled, and Jongin could feel the vibrations of his chest against his own, "For what?"

"For loving me, I guess."

"Well, thank you too."

Jongin smiled, "For what?"

"For being someone I can love."

When he pulled away from the hug, Sehun smiled tenderly and gazed at him for a few more seconds before turning around and unlocking the door. Just as he was about to leave the room, Jongin grabbed his arm and turned him around. He buttoned up the rest of Sehun's shirt and patted his chest once he was done.

"This is only for my eyes to see."

Sehun rolled his eyes and proceeded to leave the room, his boyfriend following after him. 

* * *

At the end of the night, the team didn't win anything, but Sehun walked away with the solo performance runner up trophy. He priority wasn't winning anyway, he just wanted to tell people a story, to finally show his real self. So, he was quite surprised and not to mention flattered when he was announced the runner up. He was soon enveloped in a tight hug from Jongin once he got off the stage with his prize, and his friends weren't too far off to follow. He was showered with congratulations and compliments from his classmates and even people he had never talked to before. But Jongin didn't leave his side or let go of his hand for a second through it all, which had earned them a few weird looks that they both ignored.

"Oh Sehun, was it?"

Said boy turned to the voice, only to find an official-looking man in a suit and a smile on his face.

"Yeah, that's me."

"I'm Choi Kyu Hyun, an agent from the ****** Performing Arts University in France. I must say, your performance was very impressive. I'm suprised you didn't win."

Sehun smiled at the man politely, feeling his chest swell with pride, "Thank you, Mr. Choi."

"It's a rare sight to see someone dance with so much emotion and delivering it perfectly like you did. Honestly, it gave me chills. You are exactly the type of talent I've been looking for. If you're interested in studying at our university, full scholarship, please, do give me a call," The man said as he handed Sehun a card, "We'd be pleased to have you in our university. As for you, young man," He turned to Jongin, whose eyes widened slightly, "I've noticed you, too. You're very charismatic on stage. Your facial expressions are on point and your movements are sharp and polished. I think you could have a very high chance of getting into our program if you audition. Here, you can give me a call too, and I'll give you the details."

He handed a dumbstruck Jongin his card and after smiling at the two and bidding them goodbye, he walked away. The two turned to each other, wide eyes meeting.

"Do you know what this could mean for us?" Jongin asked, staring down at the card in his hand, "We could go to France..."

Sehun blinked, not believing what had just happened. Soon enough, they were both grinning from ear to ear and hugging each other happily.

"Sehun."

The two boys separated and both were surprised to see the two people in front of them.

"You guys really came..." Sehun breathed, and his parents smiled at him.

"Yes... could we talk to you for a minute, Sehun?"

Jongin's hand tightened around Sehun's and the latter turned to look at him, then back at his parents.

"Okay," He finally replied, letting go of Jongin's hand and following his parents outside the auditorium.

"Well...?"

"You were great out there, Sehun," His mother said, with what looked like a proud smile planted on her lips.

"Th-Thanks, I guess."

"Look, Sehun," His father sighed, "We are sorry. For everything. For all the pain we've caused you, for stopping you from doing what you love, and for being bad parents."

"Tonight... we saw how talented you really are. And we are so proud to call you our son." His mother added, "Please, come back home."

"I can't just forgive you guys like that. And I can't go back home because it doesn't even feel like a home to me."

"We promise to try to be better parents, Sehun. After we lost you, we realized just how much you meant to us."

Sehun shook his head, "You should have realized that when you lost Changjo."

The two remained silent at that. Sehun sighed.

"Thank you guys for coming tonight. Maybe someday I can forgive you. You remain my parents. But as of now, I can't. I need time to mend my wounds."

"Okay. We... We'll do whatever it takes," Mrs. Oh said, "But just make sure you take care of yourself."

"I'll be just fine."

His parents nodded at him and smiled slightly. With one last look at them, he turned away from them and got back into the auditorium.

"Hey... How did it go?" Jongin asked him.

Sehun shrugged, "I'm not really sure," he said with a yawn, "I'm tired."

"Let's go home then, winner," Jongin said, intertwining their fingers together.

"Technically I didn't win."

"You're the winner in my eyes," The elder said with a wink, leading them both towards the exit. The other simply chuckled.

Sehun felt like he won a lot more than just a measly trophy that night, anyway.

Sorry for these late updates guys seriously, I these days. I really wish I had more time on my hands to write. Anyways, here's chapter twenty six! I think there's only like two more chapters to go. I'll really miss this story T_T

And about the Kaistal news, I really don't think it's that big a deal. I think if they're both happy, we should just be happy for them as fans. Plus they look really great together. That doesn't mean I'm gonna stop writing this story, or any sekai story for that matter. Because no matter what, it's just fiction! And we're all free to swim around in our imaginary worlds, right?

Anyway, I'll be back with another chapter as soon as I can! Until next time!