Chanyeol sits outside on the grass until Yifan comes to see Zitao. He doesn't have to, and probably shouldn't, but he'd much rather go to school with Yifan than go by himself. After having called a time out during the middle of a game, his reputation had been tarnished and he felt like he was no longer the popular student everyone seemed to love so much. Baekhyun and Jongdae had followed Yifan home and with them came Sehun because the kid has a soft spot for Chanyeol, but the others are confused and even Jongin calls several times to ask him what the hell happened to him.

But he remains silent about his condition because he doesn't feel like there's a good time to tell the rest of his friends. Considering how Baekhyun and Jongdae have reacted, he's frightened to see how the others treat him after being told and he's admittedly just frightened to lose them before he has to.

He's pulled out of his thoughts when Yifan's expensive looking car pulls up to the sidewalk. He's never actually realized how nice of a car it was but now as Yifan steps out of his vehicle, Chanyeol just can't seem to take his eyes off of it. He realizes then that he doesn't know nearly half of what he wants to know about Yifan.

"Were you waiting long?" Yifan asks as he strolls up towards him, hands shoved into his pockets, and Chanyeol slowly drags his eyes up to Yifan's face.

"No. I just got here." He lies, but Yifan doesn't need to know that he's been sitting out there for over an hour because he was just that excited to see Yifan as well as anxious to see the rest of his friends.

Yifan raises an eyebrow and Chanyeol knows the elder knows he's lying but neither of them mention it. Yifan merely takes a seat beside him because they're both out so early that even Zitao's not outside yet and it makes Chanyeol grin a little because at least they get some more time to spend together.

"Feeling okay today?" Yifan asks, but his gaze is on the sun that's only barely peeking up from over the houses. Chanyeol is grateful that Yifan is looking away because he'd feel much more pressured if Yifan's gaze was on him.

"I didn't faint again, if that's what you're wondering." Chanyeol answers, and there's a small smile on his face as he releases a sigh. He hadn't gotten close to fainting, thankfully, but his speech had gotten out of his control once or twice over the weekend and his muscles are still so sore.

"I meant emotionally." Yifan corrects himself, and now he is looking in Chanyeol's direction and Chanyeol falters for just a moment as they sit together, their shoulders just grazing against one another and their legs stretched out before them.

"As okay as I can be." He admits, and Yifan's own smile is full of pain. Chanyeol wonders why Yifan bothers to stay knowing how difficult it'll be on both of them when he dies, but he's grateful nonetheless.

Without a word, Yifan wraps an arm around his shoulders and Chanyeol feels a burst of warmth covering him as he leans into the taller boy's touch. As cold and careless as Yifan seemed, being in his arms made him feel safe and welcome again. He knows what Yifan means with the simple gesture, of course. It's Yifan, after all, and Yifan doesn't need words to describe that he's there no matter what happens. Chanyeol already knows without being told, anyway.

The door to Zitao's house creaks open and Chanyeol thinks Yifan's going to pull away, but his arm remains where it is until Zitao is before them. He expects a thousand questions demanding to know what they're doing together, but the spark in Zitao's eyes tell him he already knows.

"Well, I'll see you at school, Fan. Later, Zi." Chanyeol grins as he gets to his feet, patting down his uniform so he won't find strands of grass stuck to him later.

"You don't have to leave." Zitao calls after him, but Chanyeol simply holds up a hand behind him in a partial wave and continues on his way to school.

He likes Yifan, of course, but that doesn't mean Yifan can't have time to his friends or to himself without Chanyeol. Yifan's a loner, anyway, and Chanyeol doesn't want to be the kind that Yifan eventually grows to hate. Although they don't see each other every day, they spend a lot of time together as it is and Chanyeol doesn't want Yifan's life to revolve around him considering the fact that he doesn't have much time left. Yifan doesn't deserve that kind of pain.

"Chan." Yifan says, and though he's not shouting, he's loud enough to have Chanyeol pause where he is and turn just enough to look him in the eye, and Chanyeol doesn't know what Yifan is thinking but his eyes are hardening like he knows what Chanyeol is thinking. Chanyeol wouldn't even be surprised if Yifan knew what he was worried about, because he just seemed to know him so well already.

Chanyeol just smiles a little, partially in reassurance and partially in guilt, and walks away. There's no point in staying any further and becoming a distraction while Yifan and Zitao are having a talk. Plus, he's meeting up with his friends in the council's board room today before school to finally tell them what's going on. He knows it's probably best to do it after school so they aren't distracted in class, but he doesn't think he can hold it in any longer. It's getting harder to pretend he's okay as the days pass.

He's the first to the board room, though Joonmyeon's close behind him and there's a phone pressed to the elder male's ear as he argues against some teacher about senior year activities. Chanyeol tunes him out for the most part because he's only a junior and he doesn't care enough to listen in the first place. Minseok is the third to enter the room and is immediately at Joonmyeon's side because Joonmyeon's kind of a disorganized mess without him and Joonmyeon shoots him a relieved grin as Minseok writes down the things Joonmyeon repeats for him.

Baekhyun and Jongdae are the next to arrive, though Chanyeol's already told them the night before that he's going to tell the others. They had been a little reluctant considering how their friends are, but they too believe that telling his friends now is the right thing to do, rather than wait until things get even worse than they are now. Yixing comes in with Jongin and Sehun chattering behind him and there's an angered expression on Yixing's face. Chanyeol wants to believe it's because of whatever Sehun and Jongin are talking about, but he knows it's about Yifan the instant Yixing's gaze finds him.

"We drove by your place this morning on our way to get Sehun." Yixing explains upon seeing his resigned expression, and Chanyeol merely sinks back into his chair because he doesn't want to argue about Yifan again,

"I'm begging you, Chan. Please, please stay away from him."

"Why, Yixing? You keep telling him not to be close to Yifan, but you won't tell him why." Jongdae says with his eyebrows furrowed, and Chanyeol's partially grateful because at least there's someone who is trying to understand his perspective on things.

"Yifan... he's the heir to the Wu Corporation." Yixing finally utters, and Chanyeol can't believe his ears for a moment until he remembers Yifan's attire and Yifan's expensive car.

"So what?" Baekhyun retorts, because none of them care for social status and why does it matter who Yifan is anyway?

"Yifan and I are actually... we're actually cousins." Yixing continues, and he's running his fingers through his hair as a sad smile lights his face,

"I saw him get hurt time and time again and I just... Chan, you're not the kind that takes people seriously like Yifan is. I don't want him to get hurt again if you're not being serious about it."

Chanyeol's heart drops because all this time he thought Yixing's problem was Yifan but it was actually him? Was he really that kind of person? The very thought of hurting Yifan made him sick to his stomach and he lowers his head as tears form in his eyes.

"Xing, don't you think you're being a little harsh?" Joonmyeon asks as he puts his phone down, and he has an eyebrow raised in bemusement.

"But think about it. Until recently, the two of them didn't even breathe the same air. What happened to bring them to this point? With how fast they're going, aren't you afraid that the two of them are just going to hurt one another?" Jongin questions, and Chanyeol feels his fists clench because he knows the dangers of being close to Yifan and Jongin reminding him like this just makes him want to pull away from Yifan all together.

"I only know what I've seen, but from what I've seen, Yifan makes Chanyeol happy." Minseok says in a firm tone and Chanyeol barely hears him over the sound of his own heart pounding.

"And speak of the devil..." Sehun mutters from the corner of the room, and Chanyeol glances up from wet eye lashes to see Yifan standing outside of the board room looking back at him. Yifan doesn't know what they're talking about because the room's sound proof and the door's closed, but there's the slighest bit of worry that lines his features.

"Are you okay?" Baekhyun asks, reaching out for Chanyeol's shoulder. Chanyeol just sits there and continues to stare at Yifan because he really hates the person who he is because who he is doesn't deserve Yifan.

"Hey, Chan? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you cry." Yixing says softly, and he has an arm wrapped around Chanyeol's shoulder as if it's going to calm him down but Chanyeol just lets his tears fall.

"No. No. Yixing, you're right. I've known from the start, I've known I should just stay away from him because he deserves someone better than me, but the more time I spend with him... the more I fall in love with him and it hurts. It hurts so badly because I want to be someone better than I was for him, but how can I be any better if I don't have any time to get better? How can I leave him the way his mother left him?"

At the end, he's basically a blubbering mess and his friends just stare at him in worry because they've never seen Chanyeol so distraught over anything and Yifan moves like he's going to enter the board room to comfort him but decides against it and with his shoulders drawn in, just turns and walks off in the direction of his locker. He throws a glance over to Chanyeol from over his shoulder, but he seems to know that right now, it's best that they're apart.

"Chan?" Sehun asks, his voice small like he's afraid of the answer,

"Are you really dying?"

Chanyeol's silence is enough of an answer to have silence take over the room.