Kai had his hands in his pockets as he made his way to the art club room. He had a free period and thought he'd go see if Sehun was around. Partly because he was bored, and partly because he wanted to see his drawing.

"Hey."

Kai turned around at the familiar voice and smiled on seeing his girlfriend standing there.

"Hey, Vic. Thought you had class."

She shrugged as they started walking together, Kai naturally wrapping his arm around her shoulders. "Mr. Steven is absent today so I'm free right now. Where're you going?"

"The art club room."

Victoria lifted an eyebrow, "Oh yeah, I heard about Kris joining the art club. You too?"

Kai rolled his eyes, "Come on Vic, you know I can't even draw a stick figure right."

"Well I'm sure you're still better than Kris. That guy has three left hands. How'd he manage to get in anyway?"

Kai frowned, not having really thought about it. Kris always thought he was an amazing artist, but his art was simply atrocious. "Good question. I did see him getting bossed around by the club president..."

"Oh, Geez," Victoria laughed, "I think I might have an idea."

"Speaking of which, I forgot to tell you. One of the art club members drew me yesterday. It was for some competition."

"Really? That's cool."

"Yeah. You wanna come with me and see it?"

"I would but Krystal's waiting for me outside..." she said apologetically.

"That's okay babe," Kai smiled, leaning close and pressing a kiss to her forehead, "Another time then."

She glared at Kai playfully, "I told you I hate being called that."

"Sure you do, that blush is very telling."

She shoved him by the chest, rolling her eyes, "Whatever. See you around."

Kai smiled as he watched his girlfriend walk away. Victoria and Kai have been together for a good seven months, and as cheesy as it sounded, he really thought she was 'the one'. He loved running his fingers through her silky black hair that reached a little below her shoulders. he loved wrapping his arms around her and holding her close and just spending time with her in general, even if they weren't doing anything. Not to mention, she was one of the most beautiful girls in school. But he loved her personality and how understanding she was more than anything. Especially since they knew each other since primary school, and have been best friends ever since. They had a certain connection, and she knew a lot of things about him that even Kris, Lay and Shownu didn't.

Sighing, he opened the door to the art room, earning the attention of a few students who were inside. The room was quite big, and the walls were covered with paintings and posters. He found himself taking a liking to the place. It was somewhat cozy. Everyone was focused on their own work but there was this friendly working environment as well. Kai spotted Kris sitting next to Kyungsoo, drawing into an A3 sized sketchbook diligently.

"How is it?" Kris asked with a big grin as he showed Kyungsoo his drawing, whose face contorted in disgust.

"What is that?"

Kris scoffed, "Isn't it obvious? It's a really stylish goat."

Kyungsoo went silent for a moment, "A what?"

"Are you blind? Look, it's even wearing sunglasses."

Kyungsoo simply stared at Kris in disbelief, "This is why you're not allowed to use a canvas. And from now on you're only gonna do still life." Kris groaned at this.

"Dude... I don't wanna draw pots and apples. It's not my style!"

"Then you're free to leave the club," Kyungsoo said nonchalantly as he went back to work on his painting, "And get me a sandwich from the cafeteria, I'm hungry."

Kai shook his head, holding in a laugh as he made his way to Sehun who was painting at the back of the room.

"Hello," he smiled, catching the boy's attention.

"Oh, Kai," he cleared his throat, standing up, "Greetings."

"Greetings? Really?" Kai chuckled, "Anyway, why didn't you text me yesterday?"

"Uh..." he looked around nervously, "I wasn't sure what to say."

"A simple 'hi' would have sufficed."

"Oh... Hi."

"Not now, I mean..." Kai rolled his eyes, "Never mind. So... Did you finish the drawing?"

"Yes I did," Sehun perked up, quickly turning around and almost running into the wall, "Goddamn it, who put this wall here?"

Kai laughed in amusement. Gosh he's cute.

He came back to Kai a moment later, carrying a canvas and placing it down on the easel with a confident smirk on his face.

Kai's breath caught in his chest as he scanned the drawing in awe.

"So....?" Sehun asked expectantly, hands clasped behind his back.

"Sehun it's..." Kai breathed, tracing his fingers across the canvas, "it's beautiful."

He squealed, "I know right?"

"Is that me...?"

"Uh-huh!" Sehun grinned enthusiastically, "I just love how dead inside you look."

"Yeah..." Kai agreed, eyes still stuck on the painting. He couldn't stop staring at it, it was beautiful, yet something about it just made his chest tighten. The eyes, the nose, the lips, the hair... it was all him. Yet at the same time... not. And the way Sehun drew it was just absolutely breath-taking. Even though it was all in pencil, it looked so realistic, like the Kai in the drawing could just pop out and start talking at any moment.

"It really is amazing."

Sehun narrowed his eyes slightly, "Now I can't tell if you're complimenting me or yourself."

"I think both," Kai said honestly.

He felt like he was looking at himself, not the facade he put on. His real self. And he didn't mean to be arrogant, but it really was beautiful. Painfully so. And he couldn't help but think... If only he could be like this all the time, like the Kai in the canvas. If he didn't force himself to smile and put up a front every single day. If he could just be himself.

"Um... You're tearing up," Sehun said slowly, making Kai turn to him in surprise. He realized that Sehun was right- he really was tearing up.

"I-I'm sorry," he forced a smile, quickly wiping at his eyes.

"Geez I mean you're good-looking and all but that doesn't mean you have to cry," Sehun rolled his eyes, looking at Kai judgementally.

Kai laughed, "Yeah, you're right. Sehun. Thank you."

"Why are you thanking me? I mean, you helped me by being my model."

"I know. But let me thank you anyway," Kai smiled, "I have to go now. I'll see you around."

"Okay," Sehun nodded slowly, noticing how distant Kai suddenly was. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Kai said, forcing another smile. Honestly, it was becoming a redundant chore. Right at this moment, he just needed to be alone. He didn't want anyone to see his weakness. Just like his father said, he was a man. He had to pull himself together, he couldn't be emotional.

Sehun simply nodded and watched Kai leave the room, a frown on his face. Something was definitely off with Kai. Did I upset him?

"He must be on his man period or something," he mumbled, shrugging it off and going back to work, not before sparing another glance at the drawing of Kai which had to be one of his greatest works yet.

 

"I'm home," Sehun said lazily as he walked through the front door, closing it behind him. He lived in a pretty average two-room apartment with his mother. It was nothing fancy, but it was good enough for the two of them. He passed by his mother in the kitchen who beamed the moment she saw her son. He couldn't help but notice the dark circles around her eyes and how tired she looked, knowing she only got back from work like an hour ago and barely had time to rest before preparing dinner.

"Hey baby, how was school?"

Sehun shrugged, "Pretty average. I finally finished the drawing for the competition."

"Oh, the one you had that gorgeous model for, right?" She wiggled her eyebrows, making Sehun blush. Okay so maybe he is gorgeous... whatever.

"I never said that," he mumbled, showing her the canvas he was carrying. He always made sure he took his works home and showed them to his mother because he knew how much she loved seeing his art. And, admittedly, he loved the compliments. What, who doesn't? His mother used to be an artist herself, but she neither had the time nor the energy anymore, what with work and the stress of saving up enough money for Sehun's college tuition fees. It made Sehun sad, because he really couldn't imagine his life without art.

She whistled, "Wow, he really is gorgeous!"

"Mom!" he groaned, "Don't be a e."

She laughed and rolled her eyes, "It's great, Sehun. You've gotten so much better over the past year."

"Not better than you though," he mumbled, smiling. She returned the smile before turning back to the food.

"Dinner's almost ready, go change out of your uniform."

He nodded and made his way up the stairs, feeling his stomach grumble at the delicious smell of chicken stir fry. He quickly stripped out of his school uniform before putting it neatly on a hanger and jumping in the shower. Once he was all clean and dried up, he threw on an oversized spongebob T-shirt and sweatpants. Amber usually commented on how he always wore clothes twice his size but he didn't mind it. He just felt more comfortable that way. Sehun didn't like to stand out or attract attention so it made it easier for him to fade into the background.

Besides, if he went around wearing tight leather pants and extra small v-necks, the world would probably explode from his hotness. He really was just doing everyone a favor.

He grabbed his phone and just as he was about to leave the room, he stared at it for a moment, remembering Kai. He still hadn't texted him. Biting his lip for a moment, he quickly sent him a text with the most random thing he could think of before making his way out of the room.

 

Meanwhile, Kai was lying down on his bed, listening to music just as his bedroom door opened. He groaned as he pulled out one of his earbuds, glaring at his little sister who stood at his doorway.

"Damn it Lisa, I told you not to enter my room without knocking."

"Sorry big bro," she grinned as she walked into the room and casually sat down at Kai's desk chair, "So... did you ever get around to watching that anime I told you about?"

Kai rolled his eyes, "Yuri on snow or whatever? Yeah, I watched it."

"Yuri on Ice," she corrected, "How was it?"

Kai shrugged nonchalantly, "It was alright." Of course he wasn't going to tell her that he absolutely loved it and it might just have been his new favorite anime. And that Victor was fine as hell.

She chuckled, "Sure. Your gay loved it."

Kai lifted a brow, "I'm not gay. I have a girlfriend."

"You can hide it from mom and dad all you want but not from me. I saw you staring at that shirtless guy at the beach that one time. You even drooled a little. I'm sure Victoria would love to hear that."

Kai glared at his sister, "So what, as if girls don't check out other girls all the time."

"Good point," she shrugged, "But my gaydar never lies. I'm pretty sure I'm gonna casually walk into your room someday and find you making out with a dude."

"Lisa. Out."

She only laughed but didn't make a move to leave the room, which was expected from his stubborn little sister.

Lisa and Kai were pretty close. She was sixteen years old and a sophomore at their high school, but they hardly acknowledged each other at school. She was also a huge anime fan, much like himself, and they often bonded over it and exchanged recommendations. Of course no one at school knew Kai was an otaku because that'd be embarrassing. Lisa even had a huge collection of manga in her room, most (if not all) of which was of the genre. And was inappropriate as hell. She was one of those... What did you call them? Fujoshuas? Fujoshis? How mom and dad never found her collection of male on male a was beyond Kai. He wouldn't be surprised if she had some secret storage room behind her wall where she kept them.

Kai turned his attention to his phone when he felt it vibrate on his dresser, grabbing it and finding a message from an unknown number.

Did you know a mantis shrimp can see 12 different wavelengths of colors? And it can pack a 1500 Newton punch? Geez, sure is fiesty for something the size of a cockroach...

I'm Sehun by the way.

Kai smiled, knowing instantly who it was without having to read the name. He began to text back as Lisa looked over at her brother curiously.

"That Victoria? You're smiling like an idiot."

"Nah, it's Sehun."

"Oh, the art guy? Is he hot?"

Kai scowled at her, "I'm not going to answer that."

"What, it was just an innocent question."

"Please, you're anything but innocent. Go back to reading your gay already. Or I'll show mom one of your 'Embracing Love' comics."

She instantly widened her eyes, "You wouldn't."

"Try me."

"Wait... Did you read my-"

"Lisa."

"Fine, fine... I'm leaving," she stuck her tongue out at Kai and he rolled his eyes.

His thoughts went back to Sehun and the drawing he saw earlier that day. After leaving the art room, he had gone out into the garden to get a breather.

Kai hated living in constant anxiety. Meeting new people everyday and worrying about how they'd think of him. Plastering smiles on his face and always being a people pleaser just so he could be accepted and not be an outcast.... Just so he could fit in.

But when he sat alone and weekly over his day, the side effects of putting up an act 24/7 really came crashing down on him. He just felt miserable and so mentally exhausted.

And then there was Sehun.

He hardly talked to anyone and was mostly in his own little world. But he wasn't afraid to be himself. He was weird and he embraced it. He didn't put up an act for anyone and was always his real self. He didn't force himself to socialize with people. He appreciated himself the way he was.

Kai used to be like him, and now he wished he'd stayed that way.

It all happened one day back in middle school. One of his teachers called Kai's father, telling him how he was always alone and never socialised the other kids in his class. His father then called him to his office and gave me a long lecture about how he was still growing and that it was the time for him to start developing his social skills. That it was important if he was going into the family business. And ever since then, every time they talked, he taught him how to fake it, to smile and greet others, to be respectful, to always go out of his comfort zone and be social.

And it worked.

Only he'd gone so far out of his comfort zone that he couldn't find his way back in. He was stuck in an endless loop of lies and deception, because he'd always been told that whatever he said didn't only affect him, but the name of his family. That pressurized him into carefully picking out his words. Until he wasn't even himself anymore... Until he lost his real self somewhere along the way.

But when he looked at that drawing, he saw a piece of himself that he thought he lost. His real self. And it made his heart swell with both happiness and pain.

Most of his friends didn't even know about his social anxiety. Kris and Victoria knew a little bit, but he mostly just kept it to himself. As for Lisa, she heard the same lectures from their father but she never really bothered with it. Their father wasn't quite as strict with her as he was with Kai either because he was the one who was to inherit their father's company.

Kai sighed, lying back down on his bed and turning the music up, trying his best to just forget.

 

Okay Sehun... You can do this. Sehun chided in his head, letting out a puff of breath. Just casually walk by, grab the package and drop it in the trolley. Easy.

He began to make his way toward the aisle, freezing when he saw a woman stop by it and stare at the various different brands of tampons. He let out a nervous sigh and made his way toward the aisle, setting his eyes on the brand his mom asked him to get and reaching a hand out to grab it. So close now, it's almost over...

But then of course Mr. Butterfingers here failed at life as usual and the pack ended up slipping from his hand. What was worse was that the little squeak he let out as he tried to grab it before it fell attracted the attention of the few people in the vicinity. The woman slightly glared at him.

Oh God, this is so embarrassing. He ashamedly picked the thing up and dropped it in the trolley, pretending to ignore everyone who was staring at him weirdly. He wanted to shout It's for my mother! but of course he couldn't do that and just continued on his walk of shame out of the aisle. Only his embarrassment didn't end there because a small chuckle from beside him caught his attention.

"Kai?" he frowned, looking at the tall brunette who was wearing a snapback, dressed in a plain black long-sleeved top and black jeans. And he, admittedly, looked really good. "What are you doing here...?"

When he had managed to stop giggling like an idiot, he spoke, "Uh, you know, looking for giraffes."

Sehun widened his eyes, "There are giraffes here? Oh wait... I did hear about them opening a new pet shop around!"

Kai stared at him blankly before he laughed again.

"You saw everything..." Sehun grumbled.

"More or less."

"Oh..." Sehun blinked, before starting to walk the other way, "Now I have to go kill myself."

"Hey, hey, where are you going? I'm sorry, it was just so comical. How you were trying your best to be all discreet but ended up attracting even more attention. The look on your face was priceless."

"Or I could just kill you..." Sehun trailed off, looking like he was actually considering it.

"Slow down there, we only became friends a few days ago and you're already planning how to kill me?" Kai pouted, but a part of him was a little intimidated by how serious the other boy looked, "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone at school."

Sehun scowled, "Just so you know, these aren't for me. I just came to pick up some groceries."

"Hey, I'm not judging." Kai held his hands up in defense, "It was just funny."

Sehun shrugged, "Whatever." He began to walk away, looking through the list of groceries. Soon enough Kai was walking by him.

"Since we're both here, why don't we hang out for a bit?"

Sehun pondered for a while. He just needed to grab a few stuff, and there wasn't really any rush to get home. But why does he even want to hang out with me? He shrugged, "Okay."

"I shall accompany you then."

"Great, because I at picking out herbs. For the life of me I never know which is which."

As they walked through the mall, Sehun getting the stuff on his list while Kai picked up some chips and soda, they bumped into Kyungsoo and Kris who were at the stationary section.

"What are the odds of all four of us being here today?" Kai chuckled at the coincidence, "What are you guys doing here?"

"Nothing, just grabbing some art supplies for the club."

"Oh yeah, I heard Kyungsoo made you his little bi-"

"Assistant," Kris said, glaring at his best friend. Just then Kyungsoo carelessly dumped a couple of paints and paintbrushes into the basket Kris was carrying. "Are we done yet, Kyung?"

"Oh hey Sehun. What're you doing here?" Kyungsoo said, completely ignoring Kris and smiling at his fellow club member.

"Grabbing groceries. Then I ran into Kai, who was looking for giraffes."

"Oh," Kyungsoo's eyes shifted down to the box of thampons in the trolley and Sehun quickly spoke.

"Those aren't for me."

"Yeah, I figured," The shorter boy shrugged, "Well anyway, we have to get going. Come on, slav- I mean, Kris."

"Wait, what did you call me?" Kris asked as the two walked away and disappeared into another aisle. Kai shook his head and the two of them continued their shopping trip.

"So, when are the results of the competition coming out?" Kai asked as they stood at the cashier.

"Tuesday," Sehun said mindlessly as he placed his things on the conveyor belt.

"Do you think you'll win?"

"Of course."

"You're so humble."

"Thank you, I get that a lot," Sehun said with a smile, making Kai roll his eyes. Bless him, he didn't even know when people were being sarcastic. But at least he was honest.

After they finished shopping, they went to a cafe and hung out for a while. Kai wanted to get to know Sehun better. They talked about all sorts of random things, like hobbies and interests. Kai found out Sehun loved to read and often wrote as well. Which honestly made Kai a little jealous. Not only was Sehun a genius, he also knew how to write, sketch, paint and do martial arts. What's next? He can fly? Sehun got to know more about Kai as well, like how he often danced with Lay and posted dance covers every week and occasionally worked out at the gym. Kai found himself easily opening up to the other boy, actually smiling and feeling comfortable with someone new for once. He didn't even feel like he had to pretend in front of Sehun, he was just so easy to get along with.

After that he drove Sehun home on his motorcycle, and Kai found himself wishing he could spend some more time with him.

"So you're going to the dojo tomorrow?" Kai asked as Sehun got off his bike.

"Yeah, I have a shift in the morning. Why?"

"I thought I could stop by and maybe we can hang out after you're done?"

Sehun seemed genuinely surprised at that.

"Um... Why?"

"Well, partly because I wanna see how you look when you're all Bruce Lee mode. And because you're fun."

Sehun pointed at himself in disbelief, "I'm fun?"

"No , why else would I want to hang out with you?"

Sehun blinked at the other boy, feeling a little blush creep up his cheeks. "Th-Thanks."

Before Kai could reply, he got a call. He pulled his phone out of this pocket and looked at the caller ID. Victoria.

"Well, I'll get going," Sehun said, biting his lip, "Thanks for the ride."

Kai nodded, silencing the call. He could always call her when he got home.

"Anytime," he winked, "See you tomorrow then. Text me the address of the dojo."

Sehun nodded and watched Kai leave just like he did a couple of days ago, deep in thought.

He found a smile stretching across his lips as he made his way into the building, carrying the grocery bags. For someone as antisocial as himself, this was the first time someone actually said he was fun. It actually... made him really happy. He suddenly found himself excited to see Kai the next day.

I think I might just have made myself a new friend.

Okay, I'm so sorry for the late update. I had a lot going on the past week, let's just say there was a lot of staring at excel spreadsheets for hours on end. And believe me, the only spreading in sheets I can accept right now is one that involves sleeping because I am so done with excel. The next chapter might also take me some time because I have even more work to do, but it'll be out sooner or later.

Anyway, sorry if this chapter was kinda crappy. But hey, it was slightly longer. That's what she said. Lol. I'm so mature.

Also, Ramadan Karim to all my muslim readers :D