Jongin walked into the mostly empty park, hands shoved deep in his pockets and he immediately spotted a familiar petite male standing by the waterfall. Jongin hadn't talked to Luhan for a whole year so he wasn't exactly sure what he was supposed to say. But he had to do it. He had a showcase to win. He was going to listen to whatever the hell Luhan had to say and then he was going to leave. Simple, right?

He walked towards the other male and stood beside him wordlessly. Luhan almost jumped when he saw him. 

"W-What are you doing here?" He asked, slightly in shock. He was supposed to be meeting up with Sehun.

"I'm here to listen to whatever you have to say," Jongin replied, voice gruff and emotionless.

"What?" Luhan had a confused expression on his face.

"I'm guessing Sehun didn't tell you," Jongin sighed, "That's besides the point anyway. If you have something to say to me, now's your chance. You may not get it again."

Luhan took a minute to calculate the situation before it all clicked. Sehun. "Oh."

He turned to stare at the waterfall wordlessly. Silence engulfed them for a few awkward minutes before Jongin finally spoke up.

"I don't have all day, you know."

Luhan was still silent. With a roll of his eyes, the other male began to walk away, "Never let it be said I didn't try."

"I've missed you."

Jongin halted his steps but didn't turn around, wondering if he heard right.

"I miss being your friend. I miss being your partner," He paused, "But I guess it was great while it lasted. I hope you have a great life, Jongin. I hope all your dreams come true." 

Jongin felt like a cotton ball was stuck in his throat and he didn't even know why. He turned around and finally locked eyes with the shorter male. "Is this all an act? An act to make me feel sorry for you?" 

Luhan's eyes didn't change, "No. I'm speaking the truth-"

"Like hell you are! I ing ruined your life! I made everyone turn their backs on you. I was the reason you were getting ing beat up everyday. You're supposed to despise me. Hate me with every fiber of your being. And here you are, telling me you hope all my dreams come true? What kind of sick ing act is this?!" Before he noticed it he was yelling at the other. Luhan slightly winced but stood his ground.

"It's not an act," He said softly, "And my friends never walked away from me... They were ready to stand up for me but I was the one who told them to leave. And yes, maybe you did ruin my life, Jongin. But I never hated you. I never blamed you... I still loved you." He whispered the last part.

"Shut up shut up SHUT UP!" Jongin walked back towards the other with heavy steps and fisted the front of his shirt harshly, "Stop ing lying. Stop pretending to be a ing angel!"

Jongin's angry eyes were burning into the shorter male but they gradually softened once they took in his appearance. Luhan had his hands tightly clenched around Jongin's wrists and his eyes were shut closed, as if preparing to get hit, a tear ever so slowly running down his cheek.

Luhan looked absolutely pitiful.

What... What am I doing?

He felt a thousand arrows being shot at his heart as he stared at Luhan. He remembered that once smiling boy just a few years ago, the boy who everyone liked and adored, the boy who respected everyone and would never hurt a fly, the boy that was once his best friend. The same boy who was in his hands right now, just one breath away from getting hit.

Again.

The boy whose life he absolutely, completely, and irreversibly ruined. 

Why was he feeling so guilty all of a sudden? Why when he didn't even bat an eyelash before ing his life up just a year ago?

"You're the one with the disease."

He let go of Luhan's shirt and stepped back, running a hand through his hair as the other's hands loosened around his wrists and dropped down to his sides. Luhan didn't dare lift his head up but he didn't have to look to see that Jongin was leaving, walking away. He didn't even know if he should've been disappointed or relieved. 

* * *

What the actual is wrong with me?

Jongin's head was a mess right now. Luhan's face kept flashing in his mind. He didn't even know what to think of anymore. 

Am I really feeling sympathy for this ?

Jongin ended up at home in a similar condition as the day before, if not worse. He felt like his head was going to explode from all the thoughts going through it. He didn't want to leave this matter hanging- no. He needed closure. And he knew just the person he needed to talk to.

"Mom!"

Jongin roamed the halls searching for his mother, before knocking at her bedroom door, "Mom, are you there?"

"Yeah Jonginnie, come in." 

When he walked in, he saw his mother standing in front of her mirror, rubbing some anti-aging cream on to her face.

"What's wrong, Jonginnie?" She asked gently, noticing the distressed look on his face.

"Mom... Is being gay wrong?"

She slightly widened her eyes at the question, "A-Are you...?"

"No! I'm not!" He stammered almost indignantly, "It's just... Is it wrong?"

Her eyes softened, "What makes you think so?"

"I... It's because..."

"Jongin," She sighed, "Why are you asking me this?"

"Mom, should I be hating people who are gay?"

His mother stood silently for a while, just watching her son, before sighing again. "Jongin come here."

He stepped closer to his mother and she smiled at him before abruptly smacking the back of his head with her palm.

"Ouch! What was that for?!" He whined, pouting.

"Is this what I taught you, Jongin? I taught you to be kind to others, regardless of what their age, gender or uality is. Love and respect everyone because no one is higher than another."

"But... after what father did..."

"So this is what this is all about, huh? Oh dear." His mother rolled his eyes, walked to the bed and motioned for him to sit next to her. He silently took a seat next to his mother on the bed and stared down at his hands.

"Jongin-ah... What happened between your father and I has nothing to do with you or the rest of the world. We were bound to split up someday, anyway," She said softly, "Our marriage was arranged. There was no love between us at all."

"But I saw how devastated you were after he left with that man, mom."

"Of course I would be. After all there was you, and there was all the years we spent together. But maybe it was partly my fault too. I never showed him any love. After a while I came to realize that even though it was wrong of him to cheat on me with another man, it wasn't entirely his fault either. And I had already forgiven him. So you have to forgive him, too"

"I... I can't." Jongin muttered, staring down at his clenched fists.

"Yes you can. I could, so you can. You'll be surprised how big one's heart can be," She lightly tapped the left side of his chest. "And just because of what your father did, it doesn't give you the right to hate all the gay people in the world. In the end they're all human. In the end they're flesh and bone, just like me and you. They have a beating heart and they have feelings. And I believe that love can overcome all that is moral in your eyes. So to answer your question, no, it is not wrong. It is never wrong to be able to choose who you love regardless of gender." 

"... You really think so?"

"I know so." His mother smiled at him. 

He looked up into his mother's eyes, "If that's the case then.. I think I really messed up. I messed up so bad, mom."

"Aw my poor baby," She wrapped her arms around her son and pulled him to her chest affectionately, running her hands through his brown locks, "It's never too late to fix what you've done."

"I don't know if the damage I've done will ever be redeemed."

"Well then, in that case, it's never too late to try."

* * *

This time it was Jongin who was waiting for Sehun in the practice room. The blonde came in after ten minutes, glaring at Jongin.

"What did you do?"

"What?" Jongin blinked.

"Luhan hasn't been answering any of my calls all day yesterday. I checked for him at his apartment but he wasn't not there either. And he didn't even come to school today. I swear to God Jongin, if something happened to him, I'm gonna have your head." The blonde looked absolutely furious and concerned for his friend. It even looked like he hadn't slept all night.

He would have denied it but he knew it was probably his fault anyway. A sense of panic overcame him. What if something happened to Luhan? He knew it would be his fault. He would never forgive himself for it. He tried to rack his brain for all the possible places Luhan could be. Where did he go when he was feeling down? 

That's it!

"Answer me, Godammit!"

"I think I might know where he is," Jongin was already rushing out of the room before Sehun could even comprehend what was happening. He ran as fast as he could down the stairs and towards his car, wasting no time in revving the engine up and driving frantically to his destination. Knowing Luhan, he knew he'd be at the nightclub where he usually drowned himself in alcohol whenever he was out of it. It was about a ten minute drive, and as soon as Jongin arrived in front of the familiar building, he practically ran out of his car. The place was closed so there was no way Luhan was inside. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he made his way to the back of the building.

"Luhan?" He called out and as he half-expected, he saw a sleeping figure slumped against the wall on the ground right next to the back door of the club.

"Luhan," He rushed over to his side and lightly slapped his cheek, trying to wake him up. The smaller boy simply stirred in his sleep but didn't wake up. Jongin carried him up in his arms and made his way back to the car, gently placing him in the back seat. When he arrived at the driver's seat, he saw that Sehun was calling him.

"Hello?"

"Where are you?"

"Don't worry. I found Luhan."

"Is he alright? Can I talk to him?"

"He's asleep right now. I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"... Fine. You better not hurt him."

Jongin glanced at Luhan sleeping form through the review mirror. 

"Never again."

About twenty minutes later, Luhan stirred in his sleep and scrunched up his face in pain. Jongin knew he must have been really hung over. He watched as Luhan slowly opened his eyes and shot up when he realized where he was.

" did I get kidnapped or something?" He murmured to himself.

"No but you could have if I didn't come find you." 

Luhan's head instantly shot to the direction of the voice and widened his eyes.

"Jongin?"

"In the flesh," He sighed as he pulled up in front of Luhan's apartment complex. "You've been drinking."

Luhan was still recovering from the initial shock and didn't reply.

"What happened?" He finally managed to let out.

"You probably drank a little too much yesterday and I found you outside the club a little while ago. Are you feeling alright?"

Luhan blinked before flopping down on the seat again, "Yup. I must be dreaming."

Jongin chuckled, "No you're not." He stepped out of the car before opening the door to the back seat. "Come on. I'll help you up to your apartment."

Luhan looked at him incredulously but stepped out of the car anyway, slightly losing balance. He probably would have fallen if it weren't for Jongin holding him steady. The two walked into the building wordlessly and stopped in front of the elevator.

"I can go by myself from here. Thanks." Luhan said softly, staring down at the floor. His head was throbbing and the fact that Jongin was there wasn't helping.

"Wait..." Jongin grabbed his arm to stop him from going into the lift, "Look... I'm sorry about yesterday. And I'm sorry for everything I've done to you. Please... Please forgive me. I was stupid and unreasonable and I had no right to do what I did. I'm so sorry, Luhan. I know it'll never make up for everything I made you go through but I'll keep saying it... Until you forgive me."

Luhan was frozen in his spot. Jongin was here. He was real and he was apologizing.

"I... I've already forgiven you long ago. I've never been mad at you in the first place."

"You're too kind for your own good, Luhan. You have every right to hate me with everything in you... And I would understand."

"And yet..." Luhan sighed, "Don't apologize anymore. I forgive you."

Jongin couldn't help himself and hugged the smaller male, taking him by surprise. Just like he did whenever they won a competition together. It brought back a lot of memories and Jongin desperately wanted to take it all back, rewind to the past and never do any of the things he did to Luhan. But what's been done has been done. 

"Promise me something," Jongin said when he pulled away from the hug, "Don't ever let anyone do what I did to you ever again... And if they do, make sure they pay for it."

Luhan smiled, a genuine smile. He finally felt at ease now. "I promise."

* * *

"So I'm guessing you guys made up." Sehun finally spoke up. After dropping Luhan off at his house, Jongin texted Sehun and told him to meet up by the beach. They were sitting on the sand silently, not really caring much about their clothes getting dirty. The only sounds heard were those of the seagulls and waves crashing against the shore.

"I guess... Well, I apologized to him."

"Why'd you change your mind all of a sudden? Just a day ago you couldn't bear to even say his name."

Jongin stared down at his hands, "Maybe it was your words. Or his. Or mom's. Or maybe a little bit of all three." He chuckled humorlessly, "I've been an , huh?"

"Yes you have."

"You know why I couldn't stand gay people so much?" Jongin looked into Sehun's dark eyes. "Four years ago mom found out that dad was cheating on her... with a man. They got divorced and I saw my mother's condition. She was absolutely devastated. Ever since then I just despised gay people because I thought they were all like my father. And now when I think back to those days, I realize how stupid I've been. This is why Luhan was so understanding about the situation, even though I didn't deserve it. And now he's leaving so I don't even get the chance to make it up to him properly," Jongin shut his eyes and clenched his fists, chanting over and over in his head how stupid he was.

"I'm really sorry about what happened with your father but... that was really unreasonable of you, Jongin. But I guess you understand now, and that's all that matters," Sehun paused before adding, "I'm not gonna apologize to you for what I said the other day, though."

"That's okay. I think I deserved it anyway."

They stayed in silence for a while, just listening to the calming sounds of nature, before Jongin broke the silence again.

"Sehun?"

"Hm?"

"I'm thinking of maybe throwing Luhan a party after the showcase. And since you guys are close now, I could use your help. I'll invite all our friends and make it a surprise for him. What do you think?"

"Not that bad of an idea." Sehun nodded, "Okay, I'll help you out. As for now though, we might wanna go get our dance costumes. The showcase is in three days."

"Yeah," Jongin sighed, "But let's just stay here for a while. This... is nice."

"It is," Sehun agreed. He looked to the side to see that Jongin was lying down on the sand.

"You're gonna get sand all over your hair."

"Yolo, right?" Jongin replied, eyes closed but a small smile on his lips.

"Are we still saying that?" Sehun lifted an eyebrow amusedly. 

"Who cares? I'm Kim Jongin, I can make anything sound cool."

"You're so full of yourself," Sehun shook his head in disbelief.

"By the way... Yesterday, at the rooftop of the school building... you told me I wouldn't see your face again after the showcase."

"Yeah? And?"

"I... I don't want that. I was hoping we could make this partnership thing a little more... permanent?"

Sehun was slightly taken aback by the offer.

"I think I agree with what Mr. Lee said. I think we go well together." Jongin added. "And well, you're not that bad of a guy, I guess."

The blonde lifted a  brow, "Was that a compliment?"

"Take it or leave it," Jongin huffed, making Sehun chuckle and lie down on the sand next to the other male.

"I guess I could say I don't feel like punching you when I see your face anymore so that's a step forward."

"You know, that's the first time you say something mildly nice to me," Jongin was slightly in awe, "I'll take that as a compliment." 

"Okay, Kim Jongin," Sehun chuckled, "Partners."

For once, it felt like the barrier between them had broken down. It wasn't as awkward anymore. No, maybe they could come to actually find comfort in each other's company as they did now. Maybe they could actually be friends sometime in the future. It may have taken a little yelling at each other and a few salty words, but in the end it all just seemed to work itself out. Somehow.

Hi guys! I'll be having an exam in a few days so I may not be able to update as often. Which is why I took the time today to update since I didn't want to leave you guys at a cliffhanger-ish part. As usual, leave your comments and your honesty is really appreciated! I have seen that a lot of you guys are complaining about the lack of sekai action thus far but expect more from now on!

Anyways, hope you enjoyed this chapter and see you next time! Thanks sooooo much for all the subscribers and the upvotes. I was so happy to see that we reached over a 100 subscribers already and 14 upvotes so far! Thank you all so much! I'll try my best to improve this story and my writing! Love you guys~