“I’m meeting up with him at 11. At this place where he would go as a trainee.” You stand in front of the bathroom door.

              Hana who was making small talk with, you assume, Mr. Lee, looks up and raises an eyebrow.

              “Did you talk this over with him though?”

              “Wufan picked up.”

              “Oh…” Hana’s shoulders drop and your eyes turn towards Mr. Lee.

              “Mr. Lee, right?” he gets up from his barstool and stands up and nods.

              “You can call me Dan if you want. That’s my English name.” He is a large stocky man, so you feel awkward calling him Dan.

              “Oh… I’ll stick with Mr. Lee.” He shrugs.

              “I’m assuming when you go to this place, Wufan wanted me to come with you?”

              “Oh…” you hoped to leave that part out. “Yea…”

              “I won’t be a hassle, I promise. I’ll help you out.” He gives you a bright smile which causes his eyes to crinkle and form half-moon shapes. He bows and thanks Hana and you.

              “I’ll be back around 10? I wouldn’t advise you,” he nods at you, “to come out of this room till I arrive. I made sure that the attack was low-profile, but we can’t be too sure. We don’t want any more attention do we?” He smiles at you and heads out.

              Hana cuts the silence. “He was an adorable old man.”

              “I’m pretty sure he was in his 30s.”

              “Adorable.” You hum to please Hana and go back to your bed to clean up the sheets and pillows.

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              Hana left soon after Mr. Lee.

“I need to go prepare for tomorrow, okay? Text me or call me or whatever okay?”

“Yea sure.”

“Make sure it’s clean okay? Don’t make this messier than needed okay?”

“I’m sorry, the last day of you being single .”

 “I can’t wait to get married, Kitty. I’m so ready to leave behind the single me.” Hana hugged you and pulled away soon after, grabbing your shoulders. “Figure this out okay? If you need me to come and whip his or anything I’ll be there okay?” She kissed the top of your head and turned around and left.

You spent the day sleeping and browsing the internet, ordering meal after meal from room service. Mr. Lee comes back at 10 o’clock sharp. You receive a text message.

Dan Lee 10:00pm

I’m in the lobby in your hotel. Leave whenever you want, I’ll be there ^w^

              You chuckle at the cute expression at the end and go back to channel surfing. You end up watching a food program making you hungrier by the second, even though you already had 5 meals that day. The show ends at 11 and with a start you realize you‘re supposed to meet him. You jump up to throw on a jacket and change out of your pajamas. Your phone vibrates against the table.

Dorito Lay Chips Yixing 11:03pm

you there yet? c:

Me 11:04pm

ahhhh, sorry I forgot TT. i’ll be there in 5 minutes??

Dorito Lay Chips Yixing 11:05pm

take your time ^^

              You throw your phone into a side bag and head out in a comfortable sweater and jeans. You try to find Mr. Lee in the lobby and you see him checking his phone. You text him a short here and he replies with I know :). You smile at your phone and start to head out of the hotel lobby. A blast of cold air hits you as you walk out onto the street. Out of the corner of your eyes you see Mr. Lee handing a taxi driver some cash and then taking out his phone.

Dan Lee 11:11pm

You’ll have to pay me back, but take the taxi, it’ll be better :D

              He walks away from the taxi and heads towards another. You slowly approach the taxi driver. The old man beckons you forward and Mr. Lee gives you a subtle nod. You head into the car. The driver drives you to the sidewalk and alley intersection where you and Yixing turned. He grumbles for you to get off and you quickly get slide out. You feel like this was way too wannabe James Bond or Bourne Legacy or whatever.

              You stand and look for Mr. Lee’s car, shivering in the cold. You soon see that he’s having a conversation with the taxi driver who’s parked farther down the street at a pastry shop. The wind picks up and whips your hair making strands hit your face and tickle your nose. You sniff, trying to keep the itchiness in, but you fail, sneezing loudly.

              Your phone vibrates in your bag.

Dorito Lay Chips Yixing 11:19pm

bless you.

              You stare at his text before realizing that you sneezed a second ago. You frantically look around.

Me 11:19pm

WHERE ARE YOU?????

Dorito Lay Chips Yixing 11:20pm

kekekekke. watching you ^w^

Dorito Lay Chips Yixing 11:20pm

go to the room~ i’ll be there in a sec.

              You look back once at Mr. Lee and do one more scan of the street for Yixing before heading into the alley way of his room. After some failed attempts at opening the wrong doors, you find the door with the chains and the lock. You rack your memory to remember what Yixing showed you.

31, 5, 23

              You slowly turn the combination and with a tug, the lock clicks open. You unravel the chains and open the door to a pitch black room. You flip the light switch on and the one hanging light bulb slowly flickers to life. 

               He wasn’t inside the room.

Me 11:27pm

youre not here??

Dorito Lay Chips Yixing 11:30pm

give me a few minutes?? I see a fan sorry

Me 11:30pm

Yea sure.

                You head into the storage room to bring out the pillows he had. You place one in the middle, sitting down on it with a humph. With the light hanging right above you, you take out your phone and check your facebook newsfeed.

               Blank is posting Taylor Swift lyrics because she got rejected by Blank. Blank is getting harassed by Blank and Blank for not having a boyfriend. Blank is in a relationship with Blank. Blank called Blank a for dating numerous guys. Blank is posting Taylor Swift music because she is so in love with Blank and the days are endless for her. Blank is no longer in a relationship with Blank. Blank is posting Taylor Swift lyrics because she is angry at her ex.

                You close your eyes and lie down, leaning your head against the pillow. Why is everything centered on having relationships? It all was just so extremely complicated, why would anyone even want to put in the effort? Why couldn’t people just be friends and be over with it? You sigh and roll your head back against the pillow and raise your phone above your face.

                You continue to scroll through your newsfeed and pretend to be interested in the lives of people you do not care for until the door clicks open. Yixing and Mr. Lee come in laughing like old friends and you quickly pull yourself up to stand.

                “Hey.” You smile half-heartedly.

                “Hey.” He grins brightly in contrast.

                “I-uh…” You lose your train of thought and stare blankly at Yixing.

               Mr. Lee nudges him. “Yixing the box.” He whispers.

               Yixing seems to realize the presence of the plastic bag on his arm and he pulls it off. He pulls out a pink box and tosses it at you.  You catch it and look at the box: STRAWBERRY POCKY. You look at Yixing incredulously.

               He shrugs. “I know you like Pocky, so I bought you some. It might lessen the break up pains.” He snorts at his own joke and you throw the box back at his face, which Mr. Lee promptly catches without blinking an eye. You pout at Mr. Lee while Yixing continues to laugh.

               “Sorry but my face is worth more than your life.” Yixing says in between snorts and bends over clapping his hands. You slowly raise your hand to your face and sigh into your palm. Once he stops laughing, you drag your hands down your face and rest your chin on your fingers.

                “Wow okay, you’re more of an than I imagined.” Yixing smiles gleefully, almost popping out a new dimple on his left cheek.  Mr. Lee goes to the corner of the room and takes out his mp3. Yixing bounds towards you and pulls on your arm, sitting down on the cold ground.

                You resist his tugs but then he adds, “You forgot to call me Chips.” You sigh and drop yourself to the ground as dead weight.

                “Why are you being so ridiculous right now?”

               He claps his hands at Mr. Lee and he throws the box of Pocky at Yixing… no Chips. He rips open the box and chomps on the strawberry end.

               “Well, the fact that you’re treating this as a break up tells me something.” He swallows his Pocky and looks straight at you his lips tight, unsuccessfully trying not to break out into smile. “I just considered us good friends.” He winks at you as he takes out another Pocky from the box. You stare at him flabbergasted. Your mouth drops open slightly and you quickly shut it and angrily chomp on a Pocky stick.

               He bursts out laughing yet again and lies down, adjusting the pillow under his head. “Don’t worry, I’m just joking.” He turns his head towards you. “The whole fan thing blew us up as a couple.”

               “Honestly though, all I was planning to do today was tell you that I’ll be leaving soon, so don’t get too attached to me.” He glares. “I never brought up the term break up. You did.”

               “Well, you’re the one that sounded like she was going to cry. People don’t cry telling others not to get attached.”

               “I. Was. Not. Crying.” You snatch the box from Yixing and smack him with every word. He crosses his arms against his chest and lets you smack him.

               “Crying isn’t bad.”

               “Well, crying doesn’t feel too great either.” You retort.

               “True, true.”

               You wait a few seconds before you continue. “Okay, so… is this all resolved?”

               “What is?”

               “Our…” You trail off; he knows what you’re talking about.

               “Break up?” Chips props his side up onto his hand and smiles at you. You sigh and he laughs. “Well, sure, I don’t think there was anything to resolve really.”

               You close your eyes and mentally slap yourself. He never took you as anything more than a friend: it was you who blew it all up. This was all a big mistake and more importantly an embarrassment. You start to get up. “Okay, I think we’re done here.”

               But Yixing sits up and grabs your sleeve, his face no longer mischievious. “When are you leaving?”

               “Day after tomorrow, at 9pm.”

               “Do you think I can see you again before you go?” You do a quick mental run over your schedule but then laugh because other than the wedding there was nothing to do. You return his smile for the first time tonight.

               “Of course.”

               “Good, now get a pillow for you and a blanket for Mr. Lee and then turn off the lights.”

               You head back into the storage room and grab the pillow and blanket. You prod Mr. Lee until he opens his eyes and you give him the blanket. He gives you thumbs up and wads it behind his head, leaning against the wall with his legs stretched out in front of him. You toss the pillow next to Yixing and take out your phone right before you switch off the lights. The light flickers off and your phone’s screen illuminates the room. You make your way back towards Yixing and slowly lie down next to him adjusting your pillow.

               Yixing tells you to turn off your phone and look up at the beautiful night sky; you look at the ceiling and scoff at the peeling glow-in-the-dark stars.

               Yixing opens his mouth to say something but he then closes it and coughs it off. He reconsiders and begins, “Okay, can I honestly ask you why you got so emotional about this?”

               You blank out and begin to stutter. “Well… Hana was overreacting and-”

“Tao told me about Luhan and Kris.”

               “It was their fault.” You quickly mutter out. Yixing turns his heads slightly towards you but then straightens out and looks back up at the ceiling.

               “Luhan and Kris are my two best friends. They’re both two extremely different people and they make up for the weaknesses in the other.” He pauses and you could sense that he was thinking about what to say.  “I don’t know any better way to describe it other than: Kris is that really awesome best friend that stands up for you no matter what but gets angry at the little things you do, and Luhan’s that really perfect, sweet, and loving girlfriend that sometimes gets protective over you.”

               “Cute.”

               “Jeez, I’ll tell Luhan to say sorry. They have their moments but they’re all really great people.”

               “You don’t need to make him say sorry: Luhan meant well.  The stuff he said was all true; I think that’s why I got…emotional.” You cough and awkwardly clear your throat. “Okay but moving aside from me. Luhan and Kris told me that you had a -fit with the manager. Explain.”

               “Can we just move on from this topic?”

               “No, you made me answer your question.” 

               Yixing sighs “Give me a minute to think.”

               “Alright.” What follows is a long silence. It’s not awkward, but silence and darkness starts to settle into your eyes and make you lethargic.

               “Did you finish thinking, I’m about to fall asleep.”

               Yixing, still lying on his back brings a single finger to tap your lips and shush you. “Okay story time.” You give a fake cheer and he laughs. “Okay, it’s long so don’t fall asleep, please.”

               “Go go go.”

               Yixing claps his hands and rests them on his chest. “I was 5 at the time when I read this great book about this boy who lived in a meadow and every night he would go to sleep under the stars. I begged my mom to buy me these glow in the dark stickers I saw at the supermarket so that I could put them on my ceiling and pretend to be the happy boy in the meadow. My mom bought them for me and I slept happily under the stars… Did I ever tell you that I was a child star?”

               You shake your head.

               “I was on a few singing competitions and TV Shows, and I guess I could say that I was pretty popular. I never was really bothered by the attention I got, but sometimes I got overwhelmed and I would go under my bed and turn off the lights and watch the stars; if I wasn’t at home I would close my eyes and pretend that I was out there on that meadow, sleeping under the stars.”

               He pauses and you hum to let him know that you were still listening.

               “When I came to Korea for training, I was always under a lot of scrutiny. I was the Chinese trainee in a Korean company; I didn’t belong. I spent countless nights wandering outside and sleeping wherever it was quiet and the sky was clear. SM finally gave me a dorm with Kris and another Chinese trainee, and I felt more at home, but I still was bothered by the other trainees. I mean, every trainee goes through some sort of slump, for me it was a getting along with the others. I always had a good temper, but being scrutinized for every single mistake I made was overwhelming and I would respond with anger and it would never go well.”

               You shift your pillow and turn to your side so you could listen better.

               “I met this old lady at a convenience store, right outside of this room. I learned that she was Chinese and she really reminded me of my own grandparents. I would visit her as often as possible and we would drink green tea and reminisce about life in China.” He pauses and you can see his lips curl into a smile. “One day I was getting really emotional over having her as a second grandmother-” You curtly laugh but Yixing shushes you and continues with his story. “-and I told her that talking to her was really nice because it gave me a place to relax and breathe without worrying about being chided. The next day she gave me the keys to this room and she told me that it could be safe haven from all the attention. I was suddenly reminded of that little boy sleeping peacefully under the meadow-I forgot about him in my year and a half of being in Korea-and so the next day I went out and bought glow-in-the-dark-stickers. I would leave the dorms often and come here to sleep, I brought Kris here once, but he just laughed. I’m pretty sure he actually really liked it.”

               Yixing laughs and you let yourself fall onto your back and smile. Kris is a big softie; of course he would like it.

               “A few weeks later, the lady told me that she was moving back to China because her son was unsuccessful in his job search. I began to clean out and prepare to move my stuff back into my dorms, but the lady stopped me and told me that she would keep paying the rent as a gift for being so nice to her. After she left, I came here more often because it was calm and quiet. I could sleep under the stars peacefully and not have to worry about losing my temper anymore. I should probably find her address and tell her to stop paying the rent, but, I’m not sure. I actually forgot about this place until last night? Two days ago?” He turns his head at you and smiles. “But it’s nice to be back.”

               You nod and look at the stars. He put these up 3, 4, years ago, yet, most of them still shined. You wait for him to continue the story and maybe answer your original question, but you realize that it’s silent except for the small wheezes, progressively getting louder. You get up and look at Yixing; he’s fast asleep. You look at Mr. Lee; he has his ear buds in and his eyes closed, still leaning against the wall. You slowly lower yourself back onto the hard ground and move your pillow. Your eyes watch the stars twinkle above you and your ears listen to Yixing’s soft snores until your eyelids begin to flutter shut. You slowly fall asleep under the stars next to the boy who believed that the cold room with the hard floors, dusty walls, and peeling stars was a beautiful and peaceful meadow. 

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i hope you guys understand yixing's little speech~