"Hyung, I'm staying out with Han. We'll be at my sister's party please don't worry or wait out for us. Love you Junmyeonie hyung!"

Oh well, little maknae is growing up too fast, Junmyeon thinks to himself as he rearranges the pillows on their shared bed. The group has just finished some serious amount of recording for their next album followed by outfit fittings for their next concert. This has been a grueling day, let the maknae live he chuckled while saying this. He is once again lost in thoughts soon as his head hits the pillows.

"At least the kids seem to be doing just fine. We've almost finished recording all of our songs for this next album. On top of that, we're also diversifying our talents. Kyungsoo is getting a lot of call-backs for screen tests for dramas and movies. Baekhyun and Sehun has one movie on the pipeline each. Chanyeol and Chen are being given more freedom on composing and drabbling with music arrangements. Xiumin and Jongin have the next months plotted for magazine photoshoots. And Yixing...well, he has a lot on his plate. I hope he gets enough rest, too."

Junmyeon was lost in reverie though he had been talking out loud to himself when he heard the door open softly.

"Hey Junie, who are you with in here? I heard my name, what's up?" He stood by the door frame still holding his backpack over his shoulder.

"Xing?! I thought you'll not be back until tomorrow night? Are you sick? Why are you here this late? Who fetched you at the airport cos manager hyung went home..." Junmyeon can't help but roll out the questions.

"Whoa, whoa wait!" Yixing was laughing all the way while he plopped himself onto the bed beside the shocked Junmyeon. He closed his eyes and lifted his left arm over his forehead. He can't help but relish the feel of this warm bed on his back and the soft pillow beneath his head. Home. Yes, this feels like home.

"Hey, are you sleeping already?" Junmyeon's soft voice.

Yixing turned to his side and stared into his leader's worried face. He roamed his eyes from his ruffled light brown hair with some stray fringes falling on his slightly creased forehead, to his warm brown eyes with that upward crease at each side that pulls up when he's out of breath with laughter, to his soft pink lips to the velvety white skin of his cheeks, his chin, his neck, his collarbones...

Suddenly he was being tickled on his neck and nape. Junmyeon is on top of him holding his neck in a fake strangle but basically just pushing his fingers at Yixing's nape area.

"Hey! Hey...haahgaah...stopp thaht...stohpp.. Junniehh! Oh God stop...hagaahhh!" Yixing is writhing trying to peel Junmyeon's hands off his neck. Their faces are still inches apart but Yixing is about to lose his breath from the sudden tickle attack and the thought that Junmyeon is on top of him on a bed. He knows he has to push Junmyeon off him to end his struggle but heck, he likes this warmth that he feels because of their position. Junmyeon's hands are still around his neck, fingers softly dragging up, down and to the sides towards his nape.

Yixing feels everything and anything that is being done by his fingers. Each poke, slide, a bit of scratch of his fingernails, each touch feeds into his heart.

"Aaahhh Junie..." he moans. Then everything stopped.

"Oh sorry, that must've hurt." Junmyeon's voice was panicked with his flushed cheeks and wandering eyes giving him away easily. He peeled himself off Yixing and stood up from the bed.

"I'm getting something to drink. I'll be in the kitchen, we can talk there." He said but still not looking towards Yixing. The door was shut soon as the last word came out of Junmyeon.

After changing into a comfortable shirt and sweat pants, Yixing joined Junmyeon in the kitchen. The bottle of red wine is almost halfway finished.

"So you finally decided to open this vintage baby. I thought we decided to wait this out for two more years? Hmmm? Cheater." Yixing taunted as he poured himself a good amount of the precious liquid. That first gulp left a hot line from his tongue to the inside of his throat and to his stomach. He his bottom lip after finishing his first glass.

"Please stop doing that." Junmyeon's voice came.

"Huh? Doing what? You brought this precious red wine and I'm just showing appreciation. Good wine needs good reaction. Am i right?" Yixing continues.

"Well whatever. So, you haven't told me why you came back today." Junmyeon asks.

"Prod crew decided to postpone the cf shoot cos my female lead is still feverish. She refuses to come to the set looking flushed red according to the stylist. I highly doubt it but anyway I'm glad cos I'm back here. Now drinking wine with you. Yay!" Yixing let out a small cheer with both his arms raised and shoulders shimmying.

"You're such a child I can't believe we're born on the same year." Jumyeon teases with a quick sip, a small smile on his lips. He is indeed happy, Yixing took the first available flight back to Seoul to be with them. It is always a good feeling when all nine of them are in the dorm. Sure, it can be quite stuffy but they love being around each other anyway.

"And you're so uptight you might as well be eighty, I can't believe we're born on the same year." His little joke didn't quite rest well with the other. Junmyeon pouted at him and motioned his empty glass signaling for a refill.

"Hey, I was joking. Junie stop pouting at me. Okay, that's your last glass cos you're face is so red already." says Yixing while reaching for the cork.

"Wait! No! We'll finish this bottle cos haven't I told you before that a good wine shouldn't see another day once opened? We'll be doing this precious, precious baby a disrespect if we will put that cork back on. Na-ah my dear, show some damn respect to this aubergine beauty!" Junmyeon lets out his slightly slurred drunken speech while Yixing looks on amused. It is only on very limited times that Junmyeon lets his guard down like this. His face a pretty shade of pink, eyes turning into small slits and his full smile gracing his red lips. How he would like to reach out to touch his face. At least, let me do that. His mind silently pleads.

"Why are you drinking anyway? Is anything up? Did the kids try anything bad? I checked our group chat and there's nothing there before I left Changsha" he asks.

"Shhhh...nothing. Nothing bad happened. Nothing bad is about to happen, well at least as far as I can see. I'm happy with eveything going on. You know I was thinking on the stuff we are doing these days. I'm just so happy to realize our group survived the start of this year. Our comeback was successful. Our fans still love us. Our concerts are sold out. We are getting offers outside of the music scene. We are accomplished. And the plans ahead are looking pretty good, too. We are happy, Xing. I am happy." Junmyeon ends while looking pensively at Yixing. His eyes lingered to the boy in front of him and he breaks into a soft smile.

God, that smile. Thank you heavens. Oh God, I love that smile, Yixing says inwardly.

"I'm glad to hear that Junie. I'm really happy that I'm back here to hear you saying that. Sharing this" Yixing says.

"And that are all the reasons why we should drink this baby up! Cheers,Xing! C'mon fill your glass some more!" Junmyeon cheerily adds raising his glass.

"Hey not too loud. I think Chanyeol and Baekhyun are already asleep" Yixing says.

"Oh no Xing, you are completely wrong! Those two are likely getting on it at this hour. You should gift me some noise cancelling earphones next Christmas cos Baekhyun's a moaner and Chanyeol's a groaner. God, I swear I'm sending them to their own apartment next year!" Junmyeon explains.

"I think those two will never change. They're so wrapped around each other's world. So in love. Well...they're brave and that's admirable." There's a tad bit more of disappointment in his tone than he planned. Must be the wine, damn. Yixing caught Junmyeon stealing a glance at him while he let out that last words. He finished his glass while staring at Junmyeon's flushed cheeks. The other one trying to avoid his gaze by moving his own glass in circles. Thoughts lost into the red liquid tossed around inside the glass.

"It's brave yes, but it's bound to be difficult at some point. Sooner or later they will have to break up and move on from each other. I just don't think it's a long term affair. It's cute, funny, all rosy these days but some things will get ed up along the way in the future." Junmyeon continues.

"They're happy now that they have each other. They cherish each moment, each time that they're together. You see how both of them have brought each other up to try new things? Try their hardest to improve alongside each other. Rivalry can do that too but growing together, learning more about yourself while being with someone to lean on when times get rough or rocky, I think love does that best." Yixing explains. His heart skipping a beat while his mind rallies himself. Are they really finally settling this?

With a small smile Junmyeon adds, "And they also say that love is only for the brave. No contention there." Junmyeon looked straight to him when he said these last words. He means it. Every word of it and every emotion that came with it. This is happening, Xing.

Was it the sulphites in the wine speaking? Was it tiredness in his voice at this late hour? Was it a sorry mix of sorrow, regret and resignation in his soft voice? Yixing couldn't discern clearly cos he too is lost in Junmyeon's words.

"True. But love is also for those who wants to take a chance. For those who are tired and finally breaking free from hiding behind their self-made walls" Yixing says as he holds Junmyeon's stare. Inwardly he hopes that the weight of his words reaches the man across him.

They stare at each other for a while. Bottle of wine finished. Glasses emptied. Yixing was the first to move reaching out for Junmyeon's hand still resting on the empty wine glass. Junmyeon averted his gaze to their hands. He sees and feels Yixing's warm hands covering his own. He looks back to the man in front of him and offered him a smile then a small shake of the head as he slips his hand away. He turned his back after collecting the empty glasses into the sink while Yixing stood still. Junmyeon stayed by the sink with both hands resting on the counter thinking back on how this brief wine session has turned from bad to worse. He just wanted to relax a bit. He didn't mean to open this issue between them. He knows he has been stalling this and Yixing will not wait for long no matter how he promised to. Besides, to Junmyeon that promise should not have happened anyway. He didn't ask for Yixing to do it. If not for this slightly-drunken exchange, Junmyeon wouldn't have remembered it again.

"Why aren't we brave, Junmyeon?" Yixing asks abruptly.

His voice laden with so much sadness and he knows it is not the wine speaking. He looked forward to this chance of finally being forward. Finally taking this step to get something out of Junmyeon on what they should be. What they could be. What they ought to be. He can't believe they've come to this. Why wouldn't Junmyeon just take his hand and take this chance? Yixing feels his eyes sting but he doesn't take his eyes off Junmyeon's back. His mind is filled with so many words he wants to say. So many things he wants do to show him they can make it.

"I want to hold your hand after each of our stages. And it's perfectly okay with me even if you'd only let me do it off-stage when the cameras are not rolling. I want to rest my head on your shoulders so I can feel more of your warmth. And it's really just fine even if you'd only let me near when it's only the two of us. I just want us" Yixing ends.

"There are too many dreams, people and plans on the line, Xing. It's not just the two of us in this." Junmyeon says quietly.

"I'll be brave for us if you'd only let me. You're killing me here, Junie."

"Letting us go is also being brave, Xing. Believe me, it is."