The journey to downtown Seoul was unusually quiet. An English song—mellow and poignant—sang of fabled foreign tongues, sugarcanes and fragile Capricorns as the music flowed out of your car's radio. Despite the slow rhythm, you bobbed your head along with the tune, humming almost inaudibly. Even with your eyes fixed on the road, you could see Lu Han looking down at his lap, fiddling with his fingers.

You didn't know why things were just suddenly so awkward.

It was never like this. Rather, it had never been like this.

Whenever you and Lu Han would go out, on your friendship anniversary, for instance, the drive was light and easy. You chatted constantly, reminiscing and reminding each other of the past and reflecting on how much the two of you have grown over the years. Lu Han would always start with, "Do you remember the time...?" And then you would laugh at the memory, continuing from where he left off. On normal, daily drives, meanwhile, the both of you would tell stories of happenings during the day when the two of you were separated. Sometimes, you'd rant about the girls who came to you in hopes of getting a date with Lu Han. He would smile nervously at you, gently scolding you for being so icy but never actually telling you to stop. When you released everything that you wanted to, Lu Han would speak up, comforting you in his own, unique way.

"I'm here for you," never quite left his lips.

"I...I'm sure things will get better," he'd say. You would scrunch your face and slouch, grumbling a low, "It better."

Then it would be his turn to tell of his dilemmas, usually something related to schoolwork or choir practice. You’d interrupt him mid-sentence, asking him about his date—if ever he did go to one on that day. He’d look away and out his window, his cheek on his palm as his elbow rested against the car door. “It was fine, but I don’t want to talk about it,” would be his reply.

You never really understood what that meant.

But you’d quickly move on to another topic, and everything would be all right again.

Your drives always went like this: carefree and relaxing. You and Lu Han were the type who didn't say much, but whenever you drove out, words incessantly left your lips, and you two would never run out of things to talk about. Between you and Lu Han, there was no such thing as "awkward."

However, the circumstances were quickly disproving your belief.

"What's wrong, Lu?" you asked, worried about the entire situation. From the looks of it, even if you would start a conversation, Lu Han would most likely not reply. He said nothing and continued to stare at his fingers.

“Tripping eyes and flooded lungs.”

You smiled wryly, fully comprehending the line.

“I’ve been to the USA once,” you said out of the blue. You didn’t know what came over you as you started to narrate your North American experience. You never really shared anything that happened before college. “I was there for an entire year when I was in Junior High. I was pretty good in English, so they sent me there to enhance it until I could speak as well as a native user.” You grinned, "I was really lucky because my school was generous enough to pay for the expenses."

“Tripping eyes and flooded lungs,” you translated, your eyes focused on the backlights of the car in front of you. “Don’t you think it perfectly describes our situation right now?”

Lu Han stiffened, balling his fingers into fists.

Silence took over once more as you racked your brain for a solution to this uncomfortable stillness.

Earlier that night, Lu Han and his Shakespeare org (you still didn’t bother knowing the name) had successfully staged their rendition of Romeo and Juliet. Backstage, you surprised Lu Han with a bouquet of flowers, and invited him to eat out—your treat, of course. You wanted to congratulate him for having bravely taken on the role of Juliet.

He’s been quiet ever since you left the Music Department’s auditorium. The last thing he said to you was, “Where are the others?” to which you replied that it was just the two of you tonight. Since then, he hasn’t uttered a single word.

The atmosphere was killing you.

You wanted to hear his voice.

Traffic was sluggish, and you intermittently maneuvered your car forward. The bumpy series of stop-and-go’s rocked you back and forth as the both of you collided with the leather seats of the car over and over again. You groaned, “Ugh, damn this. I’m so sorry. The night’s going so horribly wrong.” You lightly hit your head against the top of the steering wheel, exasperated and disappointed with everything that’s been happening.

“N-no…That’s…I’m having fun, really. I’m just tired,” he whispered, assuring you that none of this was your fault. 

“Hey, Moon, please forget to fall down.”

You snapped your head towards him, surprised that he even spoke up.

Finally, a sentence.

And underneath the moonlight that penetrated your tinted windows, you saw his gentle, loving smile.

You blinked, processing what he just said. And when you finished, your eyes widened and you slapped your forehead, feeling stupid for not noticing his haggard look. Of course he’d be exhausted. He did, after all, wear a thick, long-sleeved, puffy dress, and a long wig throughout the whole play; plus, he sang at least ten different songs.

Of course he’d be tired. How inconsiderate of you to just drag him out the auditorium like that.

“Ah, I’m so stupid,” you said, sheepishly smiling at him. “I didn’t even think about how worn out you were. We should go home; you need some rest.” You craned your neck, looking for the U-Turn slot a few meters away. “I’ll take a U-Turn as soon as this traffic eases up.” And the moment that the words left your mouth, the traffic light turned green, signaling all the cars to move. You clutched the brake with one hand while the other prepared to turn the steering wheel.

“Don’t!” he spluttered, shooting a hand out to the brake. His fingers made contact with yours, and you abruptly retracted your hand, the tingling sensation burning your skin.

It was too warm.

“I…I still want to eat out, so let’s not go home yet, all right?” he said, slowly pulling in his own hand. He thanked the heavens for being so dark, because his face was just too red right now.

You rubbed the back of your hand, trying to alleviate the scorching feeling his warm hands gave you. It was strange, because it was not like the blazing sensation that attacked you whenever someone touched you.

It was hotter. And yet, it was pleasant? You didn’t know. You couldn’t decide which one it was. You didn’t know, so you shoved it at the back of your head, focusing on removing it from your hand.

“Oh. Okay,” you smiled, “Good! That’s good! I’m glad you’re still up for it—“

The car behind yours honked, the driver clearly irritated that you have yet to move your silver vehicle. You eyebrows furrowed. “Geez, we get it! We get it!” you grumbled, grabbing the brake and pressing down on the pedal.

Lu Han chuckled. “We took too long choosing what to do.”

You grinned, happy that the tension finally disappeared. “But at least we’ve made a decision. Although…are you sure you’re fine?” you asked him, stealing a quick glance at his condition.

“Don’t worry about it. I’m not tired to the point that I would fall down any minute. And besides,” he smiled cheekily, “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity of being treated by you. You’re always so stingy.”

“Hey, I’m not like all of you rich, secluded children. I come from a very humble town, and my parents worked their backs off to send me to high school, and now, college. Being thrifty is the least I can do for them,” you defended.

He laughed.

Lu Han’s laughter always sounded like a beautiful song to you because of his silvery, velvety voice.  

“And I thank you because you make sure to control EXO’s expenses.”

“That’s right, you better thank me. I am the reason why you twelve aren’t broke and homeless yet.”

He smiled. “Hey, are you sure you want to treat me? I like fine-dining, you know,” he said.

You smirked. “Bring it on, man. Like you said, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity—for you and for me. It’s not bad to splurge every now and then. Oh, speaking of…Where do you want to eat? You haven’t answered me.”

He tilted his head to the side, pondering. “Well, there is this place…”

“Just guide me, and I will navigate us through this traffic!” you cheered, finding new vigor to make Lu Han enjoy the night as much as possible.

“Are you sure about this?” he asked again still uncertain about your own certainty and willingness to spend a lot.

“Dude, I’m telling you, it’s all right! This is my gift to you after you’ve gone and embarrassed yourself in that dress of yours!” you laughed, remembering how much of a cherry his face resembled during the play. 

Lu Han pouted. “Thank you very much for bringing that up,” he said sarcastically, crossing his arms and turning to his window.

“Aww, LuLu, no need to be ashamed. You did really well!” you , earning a sour face from Lu Han at the mention of his dreaded nickname. “But you know, that Romeo of yours…Well, he was a good singer and all, but I didn’t really like the way he delivered his lines,” you mused aloud, “Not to brag, but if I could just sing, I would have grabbed his script and stolen his role. I would make a better Romeo anyway,” You halted the car as the lights went red. “Ah , this traffic is getting on my nerves,” you muttered, tapping your fingers against the steering wheel. You sighed, looking at the car's clock. 

8:30.

Damn, you were getting hungry.

Lu Han stared wide-eyed at you.

Did you realize what you just said?

You probably didn’t because you were too busy glaring daggers at the cars that came before you.

But.

Oh, god.

Oh, god.

Why didn't you?

You would make a good Romeo.

You were, after all, his Romeo.

“Weather vanes, my one and lonely.”

This night, his instincts told him, was about to get better.

“Hey, Moon, don’t you go down."

Author's Note:

Hey, everyone! I'm sorry I haven't updated until now. Busy college is busy T.T

Anyhow~ Part 3 is coming up soon, although...I can't promise that it'll be today. I have to study. Huhuhuhu. 

In other news, do you guys know the song I used?

Guess~8D

Clue: IT IS SUCH A BEAUTIFUL SONG AND I CAN'T BELIEVE I ONLY REALIZED HOW AMAZING IT IS A FEW DAYS AGO. I think it's the perfect song to describe their situation <3 

And...what the hell was this chapter? It's super messy, with thoughts and dialogues just flowing and going without any transition :)) But I think that made the chapter even more symbolic of Lu Han's and the roommate's messy, whacked-up relationship with and thoughts about each other :)) 

And I do apologize for the fail skinship here :)) This is as skinship as it can get XD

Thank you so much for reading, subscribing and commenting!

Please do comment, I love to hear your thoughts!

Till next time!