One.

Zhang Yixing wasn’t your average friend. Nope, he was far from it. In fact, if he were to introduce himself to you with three interesting facts, one of them was definitely, that he was a clingy friend. He wasn’t insecure or anything, he was quite pleased with himself on most days. Yixing just never quite like missing out. That was just who he was.

The other fun fact about him was that Yixing had a special number in his life, and it was the number ‘3’. Everything about him circulated around this number. He was raised in a small and intimate family of three. He could play three different instrument, all of them by ear, without formal lessons. And back in high school, he even came in third in that song composition contest. The highlight of his life though, was Yixing’s three best friend.

And lastly, Zhang Yixing had been staying with one of them, more specifically, the ever-reliable Lee Eunyoung, in her apartment for the past 3 years.

The thing was, said best friend, had been ignoring him. Again.

“Are you still angry at me?” Yixing stood at her doorway, pouting slightly, as he rubbed the back of his neck nervously. If there’s one thing Yixing honestly couldn’t stand in this world, was Eunyoung’s silent treatment. He would much rather she yelled, threw and broke stuff even, but it was unbearable when she chose to ignore him completely. The irritating thing was, Eunyoung knew that too.

The short hair girl glared dangerously at him from behind her laptop, as she leaned back against her pillow, perhaps hoping that the bed could swallow her up, so that she didn’t have to deal with Yixing at the moment. She had not moved from that spot had been typing way too loud since they were home and Yixing was increasingly uncomfortable with his pissed off roommate. Growing sick of waiting for her to cool off, he decided to approach the lion’s den instead.

The thing was, Eunyoung had an aura about her that terrified Yixing more than death ever could. Putting on his best innocent expression, he approached her warily. “I was just concerned for you.”

With an unnecessarily loud slam, Eunyoung shut her laptop screen down, before sitting up in her bed. “I told you specifically to stay out of it, Zhang Yixing. I am never going to have a boyfriend at this rate! You want to know why? Because you meddle in all of my relationships!”

Yixing bit his lips at her overly harsh accusation, resisting the urge to comment on her unfairness. Eunyoung was being dramatic as usual. Yixing didn’t meddle in all her relationships. He merely wanted to help her. Eunyoung was the type who had very little friends, and naturally, Yixing was worried about her whenever she was getting closer to someone new. That particular guy, gave all the wrong vibes and Yixing could tell from just a single look that Eunyoung could do much better. Obviously he had to do a background check on him and present all the incriminating evidence to his best friend, that Byun Baekhyun was not the type for her. In fact, he wasn’t even near.

“I didn’t want you to waste your time on someone like him. You two are too different! Do you know that he has a 7 day meal plan which he just repeats every week? And that he played at least three hours of computer games every day? Do you really want to fall for a guy who probably never have any time for you? Not to mention, his piling laundry-”

“No Yixing!” Eunyoung threw her hands up in exasperation, and Yixing flinched from the tone of her voice. “These are the kind of things that I want to find out for myself! Not to be presented with a 3-page report when I just met that guy! I don’t even know who I am looking for, much less you! If he’s not the one, I will know over time. Please, Yixing! I am begging you. I am going crazy here!”

Eunyoung was fuming and she had stood up from her bed to pace her frustration off. Yixing let his gaze dropped to the ground at her words. He knew all this, he really did. But when it came to Eunyoung, it was hard for Yixing to stand by and do nothing. Tucking the sleeves of his white shirt guilty, Yixing wondered if he really did cross the line this time. “Do you want me to leave?”

The two of them had an unconventional housing arrangement after all. Yixing could only stay, as long as Eunyoung wanted him to. The silence was agonizing and Yixing shut his eyes anxiously. Was this going to be the dreaded moment whereby his best friend was finally sick of him? Was Eunyoung going to ask him to go away now?

It was one of the most painful moment of his life, waiting for her next words.

But Eunyoung could never bear for him to leave, could she?

“No. You can stay.”

With his chin propped in his hands, Yixing glanced at the occupied boy from across the table. Kim Jongdae was engrossed in his reading again, and Yixing couldn’t help scoffing. They were catching up in a new café that Eunyoung wanted to try out, and to trust Jongdae to bring his reading materials along when they barely had time for each other now.

If you were to tell the past him, that this fidgety and energetic boy who used to urge Yixing to skip class back in high school, had miraculously got accepted into medical school, he would laugh his head off, probably till he hyperventilated from the lack of air. Then, between the laughter and the gasping for breath, young Yixing would begged anyone who came to his aid to not send him to the hospital. For apparently, their standards had dropped till a worrisome level.

A brown tray was placed noisily on their table, as Eunyoung took the empty seat beside him. At the unglamorous and nosiy entrance, Jongdae finally lifted his eyes up from his book, and he greeted the girl with a familiar curl at the corners of his lips.

“White for you, black for me.” The girl declared as she handled a cup of Americano towards their friend.

Yixing sulked as he watched Eunyoung chucked the tray onto the next table, and proceeded to sip cheerfully from her own cup of coffee. “Where’s mine?”

Neither of them bothered to glance in his direction.

“Thank you, Eunyoung. I will take it that you are treating me then? Seeing as you are now an indispensable team member of the top 10 fastest growing media company of the decade, while I am just a lowly student in debt.”

A scowl appeared on her face as she extended her palm out towards Jongdae, indicating she had quite expected him to pay. “You know very well I am one of many very dispensable and underpaid interns.”

“Doesn’t matter. You are one step out into the real world, and I am still that lowly student.” Jongdae lifted his hands up innocently as Yixing chuckled at the familiar banter.

His two friends, were a funny pair. It was a miracle that they were spending time together when it had been increasing rare for everyone to be free recently. When they first met, Jongdae had not like Eunyoung one bit. In fact, he would whine continuously to Yixing every time he brought Eunyoung along, and of course Jongdae’s obvious and baseless dislike for her, did not exactly impress Eunyoung.

They all said Yixing was the clingy friend, but Yixing knew that Jongdae was the real possessive one. It was not like Yixing had an issue when Jongdae brought Minseok in, making their duo into a trio in their first year of high school. But back then, Jongdae had seen Eunyoung’s appearance in Yixing’s life as a threat. After all, Jongdae was there first, having been Yixing’s best friend since middle school. And he simply couldn’t understand why Yixing was so adamant about having Eunyoung around.

Yixing didn’t quite understand then too, but they just clicked, Eunyoung and him. She was an odd girl, who usually stick to herself. But her awkwardness was just too ent