亦凡

Yifan has been moving from one meeting to another and to end his stressful day he has to go on a date with Lu Han's best friend. He was close to being mental by the end of his last meeting; rows of numbers still clear even when he closes his eyes. He's pretty sure the date will be taxing too but he promised his cousin he'd be going and the man he is to meet came all the way from a show in New York just for this date. Apparently Lu Han holds too much dirt against them that they both can't say no to the persuasive Chinese, else their reputation will suffer greatly.

Yifan had been groomed to take over their growing company from the moment he hit puberty. His parents are thankful that he is an obedient son and a diligent student. The young Wu’s looks are rough and sharp that it would be hard to believe that the boy gets good grades out of his own hard work and not because he's bullying the nerd in class. His parents have never really been completely strict with him, allowing him time to hang out with friends during his free time but most of the time those friends would only be his cousin Lu Han and the Huang heir Tao with the rare appearance of Chen and Xiumin, the Kim Brothers from Korea. 

However, since he was young, Yifan's been reared to be the heir, what with his older brother running away from home. He saw how his parents were devastated by his brother’s sudden departure from the comforts of their home because they thought highly of him, even Yifan looked up to him. He was expected to follow his father's footsteps but in everyone’s eyes he wasted his opportunity and left for a life of unsafe freedom. They never got word from him on his own but Yifan knew his father kept tabs on his brother because that's what parents do and he is sure his family will welcome him with open arms if he ever comes back.

From then on, Yifan took it upon himself to be the good son his parents wanted him to be; the good son they didn't find in his brother. He studied hard and endured the long hours of sitting in front of his desk with the same book even if that meant a sore back the next day. High school swiftly passed and college came. It was no question that the Wu heir was going to take up business, nobody even needed to force him. His parents, especially his father, were happy with his decision but somehow there's a constant nagging inside his head telling him this isn't enough; he isn't enough.

Although his father didn’t say it, he knew that what he was doing was still unsatisfactory for his parents so he decided to take up a Masters and a Doctorate degree after graduating. He knew the letters at the end of his name would be nothing if he couldn't prove himself in the business, that's why he started working at the company early on; juggling it with his studies without a care for how much it was taking a toll on his health.

Yifan grew up thinking that whatever he did would never be good enough. He will always pale in comparison to his brother who had everything: looks, talent and brains. That didn't stop him though. If anything it pushed him to focus on bettering himself and try to surpass whatever bar his parents has placed for him to reach and show that he is a good, if not a better, replacement for his brother. But as Yifan grew older and taller and much leaner, he thought, so did the bar; its height only growing unreachable the more Yifan tries.

To this day, Yifan still feels empty. He has achieved so much at such a young age but there's still an empty feeling in his heart when he comes home to a high-rise building, full of colors but not of life. He would always blame it on not being good enough for his parents. So he just keeps pushing to better himself every way he can, missing the fact that it might not be the reason for the hole in his heart.

Studying took so much of Yifan's life that he rarely went out on a date. He could probably count the serious dates that he has gone in…with one hand. It's not that Yifan is picky, it's just that he's busy. And it doesn't help that he feels guilty for going out instead of spending that time he wasted on meeting someone he knows he wouldn't like into something more productive. 

But Lu Han is having none of that anymore.

His cousin would always play matchmaker with Tao but Yifan always shoves the idea out the window much to his cousin's dismay. That's why it doesn't comes as a surprise anymore when Lu Han calls him again to play cupid.

Yifan hasn't been in a serious relationship in a long time; only being in one which to this day Lu Han would still argue as something that doesn't really count as a serious relationship being that it was their parents who forced them to be together. Yifan did like her but not enough to give time for her, he'd had planned to marry her, more out of duty than love, but the young lady decided to call it quits even before he can ask.

"Even if it's just for business purposes, I still would want to feel that I'm important." She'd said and Yifan couldn't do anything but watch her walk away. He knows deep down that that's something he can't do, seeing as the company, his career and pleasing his parents is more important to him than a relationship. It still gets to him though, working aimlessly for a week before Lu Han pulls his body out of his own bed for a few drinks then it's like nothing happened.

He has left the dating scene since then, except for the usual set-up dates his parents have made for him with the daughters and sons of their business associates. Sadly, none of them caught his attention.

It's been a while since he made the effort to meet someone. If not for his cousin's coaxing he would not be in the shower right now, he wouldn't be changing into a new set of suit or wear that new pair of brogues he hasn't been able to use.

But here he is, driving his baby Portia on his own because he might have to send his date home and if everything goes well he doesn't want a driver to get in the way.

"Mr. Wu, going out today?" The guard at the entrance of his condominium building greets him on his way out. He nodded and smiled an affirmative to the guard which took the person aback because Mr. Wu is known to have a permanent scowl on his face. Even Yifan was surprised with himself.

***

He tried his hardest to extract a photo of Yixing from his cousin and from Tao; even bribing the two with a three-day vacation if they allow him to see one photo, just one photo.

"You can't expect me to not know what he looks like when I go there to meet him." He argued with Lu Han on the phone.

"He's beautiful." Lu Han said the word in English and it had Yifan rolling his eyes at his cousin, even if the elder couldn’t see him. "Do you not trust me?"

"I don't know. You're with Tao so you might want to get your eyes checked." Yifan was flipping through pages of documents whilst having a conversation about his date and at the same time teasing his cousin, multitasking at its finest.

"You better thank the heavens he's not here or else you're dead." There was venom in Lu Han's words, as it always had that Yifan was immune to it already. "Now, that's more reason for me not to show you a picture." He grumbled and was ready to complain to his cousin when he heard a beeping sound telling him the call's been ended.

Yifan didn't get to find the time to search for a certain Zhang Yixing just so he can see what his date looked like so he went there with only Lu Han's description of the younger man.

"He's shorter than you, shorter than me even. Umm," Lu Han paused to think of the best way to describe his best friend because he wanted to play the role of the best matchmaker, "he has beautiful brown eyes and his nose is sharp but not like Tao's, his is, hmmm, subtler. What else, oh, his lips, I remember every girl in high school wanted to kiss him because of his lips."

So Yifan tried to put them all together and picture how his date would look like.

Not bad, he thinks. We'll just have to see.

***

The young CEO arrives at the hotel just in time. He doesn’t have Yixing's contact so he doesn't know if his date is already there. A waiter ushers him to a private room that Lu Han had reserved for them. When he gets there, he sees a man with soft features, hands delicately playing with the stem of his wine glass while his eyes roam around to appreciate his surroundings.

Yifan feels an overwhelming calmness when he finally meets Yixing. All of the worries that had his forehead scrunched the whole day is suddenly forgotten once he comes face to face with the person Lu Han has been talking him into meeting for years now.

He laughs at how stupid he is for passing up on his cousin's previous offers as he walks closer to where Yixing is. 

He will have to tell Lu Han that his use of the word beautiful to describe Yixing is insufficient; he'd even dare say it's an insult to the younger male. He thinks, as he looks at the seated man with the dim lights casted upon his face, laying shadows on his features, Yixing is sublime.

The waiter announces his entrance and the younger man stands up gracefully from his seat, hand extending with his own name falling from his lips. Yifan takes the proffered hand and smiles at the warmth it relays to his.

His voice is angelic, even. Yifan's mind supplies as the younger finishes introducing himself.

"Hi." The smaller timidly says when Yifan just stands frozen after he had introduced himself.

"Umm, hello." Yifan managed to croak out. The waiter quickly leaves them in privacy to decide on their food.

"Have a seat." The other motions for them to take their seats, something he knows he should be saying.

"Order anything you want." He finally says when the waiter comes back in to get their orders. The dancer smiles and nods, a dimple appearing on his cheek has Yifan staring; only to look away when Yixing notices him.

Lu Han never mentioned a dimple, Yifan thinks as he flips through the menu, glancing at his date from time to time; his eyes gravitating to the adorable hole on his right cheek.

He was waiting for his palms to sweat or his heartbeat to speed up but there was none. Even his business dates managed to make him nervous but with Yixing there's a veil of serenity that has completely taken over him; over them.

He didn’t know what he was expecting but as he looked at the man seated before him, bottom lip trapped between his teeth, he finds himself not caring because he feels that with Yixing it would be totally different.

艺兴

It was different, totally different from when Yixing met Jongin; the young dancer from Korea who he thought was going to be his forever.

He remembers it clearly how his heart raced as he watched the boy audition for their academy. His movements were so graceful, Yixing was easily entranced in his seat a few rows behind their professors and mentors.

The next time he saw the boy was the first day of the new semester. He looked confused as he stared at the piece of paper in his hand. Yixing decided to be of help and use it as a way to get to know the boy. 

"Do you need help?" He asked and the boy looked up with a scrunched up forehead and an open mouth. He was taller than Yixing but he looked so small and so lost in the sea of students running around him.

"Sorry, n-no English." He said timidly while waving the piece of paper in his hand. Yixing took that as a cue and looked at his schedule. With a hand to the younger's arm, he led him to his first class which caused Yixing a good amount of time to be late to his but it was all worth it when the younger smiled at him and gave him his number.

From then on, he thought Jongin was the one. He was shy yet he changes when he takes the stage. There was a certain aura to him that had Yixing's eyes staring fixated on him whether he was moving or not. Their practice hangouts turned into dates that turned into a full-on relationship, Jongin shyly admitting that Yixing was his first boyfriend.

Everything was going according to plan. Jongin was doing great and so was Yixing who had already graduated and had been scouted by a big name company to do choreographies for them.

However, it wasn't part of the plan for a new Korean boy to arrive at the academy and take Jongin's attention away from Yixing.

According to some of their friends and Yixing's lower batch friends, Jongin had been hanging out a lot with the new Korean kid. At first the elder thought that it was normal for the boy to gravitate to something – or in this case, someone – familiar. He didn't give it much thought until Jongin forgot their anniversary.

"Where were you?" He asked when the boy entered his apartment, half-drunk in his mind as he looked at the food Yixing prepared, now cold on their plates. He just apologized and Yixing forgave him because the elder was afraid he will lose him if they argued.

But it didn't take long for their relationship to take a turn for the worse. Jongin wouldn't come home to Yixing's apartment anymore with the excuse that he was tired to take the ride to the elder's place and would rather rest for the next day. They talked less and whenever they did it was usually just them shouting at each other. The sweet pillow talks slowly turned into endless arguments.

It was bound to happen but Yixing didn't expect for the end to be how it happened with Jongin bringing the new Korean kid, which Yixing would later know was named Sehun, into his apartment while he was away in LA. He came home early and what he saw was enough to move out of that place, even if it cost him a lot to get that flat.

It didn't take him a day to turn in the lease for it and pack as much as he can. Fortunately Lu Han and Tao were in New York for fashion week when it happened; they were quick to help and pull him out of the black hole that was slowly out the life in him.

Ye