I had a lovely time last night. Thank you so much and…I hope that we can do it again sometime.

Sehun smiled, tracing his thumb slowly over the words on the screen of his phone.

He’d lost count of how many times he’d read that message. Some days, he reached for the phone on his bedside table first thing in the morning, knowing that those simple, innocent words would set him up for the day ahead.

“Mr. Sehun? I’m done now.”

Chuckling to himself, he slipped the phone into his pocket and turned towards Magda. Try as he might, he could not get her to drop the Mr. from her address. She’d initially started with Mr. Oh but when he’d told her that that was his father, not him, and suggested that she should call him Sehun, she had immediately complied but tacked the Mr. onto that instead. He’d tried again to correct her but had given up shortly after. She was a stubborn woman. He knew that he should be thankful that she at least showed respect. It was far more preferable to a rude employee, he supposed.

“Ugh, it’s hot out there.”

At the sound of that voice, Sehun immediately perked up, jumping to his feet as Luhan walked into the room, muttering to himself. His hair was slightly mussed and his cheeks were flushed from the heat and exertion.

So adorable, he thought.

“I felt like I was going to die. I was melting, literally.”

Smiling, Sehun stuck his hands in the pockets of his pants and rocked back on his heels. “Everything go okay?”

Luhan nodded. “The boxes were too heavy to bring in on my own so I left them in the car. I had to get help just to load them in the car to begin with.”

Sehun grinned. “That’s okay. It saves us from having to take them back out later.”

Luhan nodded again, walking to his desk – no longer blocked off by the partition – to rest his bag on it.

Sehun turned to Magda. “Shall I take you home now?”

Magda shook her head. “I have to run some errands so I’ll take the bus, Mr. Sehun. Thank you.”

Sehun nodded. “Alright. Let me know when you get home.”

Magda left the room to get her stuff and was out the front door a few minutes later.

“I put in the order for the cakes,” Luhan said absently. “We can pick them up on the way. I instructed them to pack plates, forks and napkins. The cakes will be pre-sliced so we won’t have to worry about that.”

Sehun smiled. “You’ve thought of everything.”

Luhan blushed. “I try.”

It was the day of Sehun’s last class at the university. He had agreed to host another course during the Fall semester, which would give him a couple of months off to relax and focus on his own projects. He had finished his commissions and had nothing pressing in progress but there were offers coming in everyday and he figured it wouldn’t hurt to consider a few. The art world was fickle so it paid, literally, to strike while the iron was hot. Though he was currently comfortable financially, that could easily change if someone new came onto the scene and the offers stopped rolling in.

They still had a couple of hours to kill before they would have to leave for the class so he sat at his easel doodling while he listened to Luhan move around, making calls, setting meetings, typing emails and, more often than not, mumbling to himself. Those simple signs of activity, Luhan’s activity, brought a smile to his lips and he cherished them because when he returned after class the house would be empty and he would be alone. At least until 9:00am the following morning.

He heard him yawn loudly, not for the first time, and finally turned around to look at him.

“Tired?” he asked.

Luhan flushed – naturally – and shook his head. “No. Just didn’t get much sleep last night.”

“Why’s that?”

“Jongin was home and I…” Realizing what he’d almost said, Luhan bit his lip, his face turning crimson.

Sehun frowned. Jongin was home…so he couldn’t sleep? Was that what he’d been about to say? But…shouldn’t it be the opposite? What the hell was going on over there?

Luhan could see the questions in Sehun’s eyes and though he didn’t want to lie to him, he also didn’t want to admit the truth. How could he tell him that for the first time in he couldn’t remember how long, Jongin had come home and slept in his bed, their bed, and he’d gotten so used to sleeping alone that he’d been unable to fall asleep himself? No one knew the state of his relationship with Jongin. It was their private business and though Sehun was a friend, to both of them, he didn’t like discussing Jongin with him. Sehun – his house – was his safe place, the place where he left his worries and stress at the door. Talking about Jongin would certainly taint that. He also didn’t want to put Sehun in the awkward position of having to choose sides. He was Jongin’s friend but there was clearly a conflict of interest where Luhan was concerned. Since he’d admitted to himself that Sehun’s feelings for him weren’t exactly platonic, it made him even more determined to keep his relationship with Sehun and his relationship with Jongin separate and though he wondered what was going on between them and why – it was obvious that they weren’t exactly on speaking terms – he wasn’t about to ask. He didn’t want to know because if, by chance, he was the reason…well, he didn’t think he would be able to forgive himself.

Seeing the torment on Luhan’s face, Sehun swallowed his questions and moved on. If Luhan ever wanted to talk to him about Jongin, he would be more than willing to listen but he certainly wouldn’t force him.

“Do you want to lie down for a bit before we leave?” he asked instead.

Luhan smiled gratefully. “No, I’ll be okay. Early to bed tonight for sure,” he quipped.

And that was the end of it.

By 4:30 they were on the road. Class didn’t start until 6:00 but driving into the city when everyone else was heading home was sure to be a headache. The city was always congested as it was.

They chatted as they drove, or inched rather, towards the university, but at some point, Sehun realized that it had become quiet in the car and glanced over at the passenger seat. A smile curved his lips when he found his assistant curled on his side towards him, hand tucked beneath his cheek sound asleep. His long, pretty eyelashes fanned his cheeks, his lips slightly parted. A soft, breathy snort slipped from his lips with every inhale, turning Sehun’s smile into a full-fledged grin.

He even snores cutely, he thought.

His fingers itched to touch but he curled his free hand into a fist and kept it on his lap. He settled for allowing his eyes to move over Luhan’s sleeping form, memorizing exactly how he looked in that moment. It would probably be the last thing he saw in his mind’s eye before he fell asleep that night.

He didn’t mind.

Twenty minutes later, he pulled up to the bakery and climbed out, not bothering to wake Luhan. He returned a few minutes later with three large boxes and a bag of utensils. He had to do some juggling and shifting to get them to fit in the backseat with the boxes but he managed. As he pulled back into the stream of traffic, he glanced over at Luhan, laughing to himself when he saw that he hadn’t moved an inch. He wished that he could let him sleep for as long as he needed to, hell he would love nothing more than to sit there looking at him, but they would be at the university soon.

When he pulled into his parking spot and turned off the ignition, he resigned himself to having to disturb Luhan’s apparently much needed sleep. He unbuckled his own seat-belt before turning to Luhan and doing the same. He leaned in so that their faces were mere inches apart, wanting to be as close as possible when he awoke. There was something thrilling about being the first thing he saw when he opened his eyes. It would be even better if it were first thing in the morning – or the last thing at night – but beggars can’t be choosers.

Raising his hand, he gently his cheek, loving the warm, smooth texture of it. He absently wondered if Luhan had facial hair. It didn’t feel like he’d ever shaved.

He wasn’t going to say anything, he decided. He was just going to continue to touch him and see how long it took him to wake up. He had a little more time before he would have to worry about rushing to class.

Being that close to him, it was really tempting to kiss him. It would be so easy. All he had to do was lean in, two inches tops, and their lips would touch. He didn’t want their first real kiss to be like that, though. He wanted Luhan to see, to know, that it was coming. If they ever got the chance to be together, then he would make it his mission to wake him with a kiss every morning of every day but for now, he forced himself to be content with the fact that he could be this close and touch him so freely.

Luhan’s eyelashes began fluttering and a few seconds later, Sehun found himself gazing into unfocused brown eyes.

“Sehun-ah?”

His warm breath washed Sehun’s face, sending tingles shooting down his spine, and once again, he had to restrain himself from giving into the overwhelming urge to kiss him.

Smiling brightly, Sehun tweaked his nose playfully before pulling back.

“Wake up, sleepy-head,” he said. “We’re here.”

“Did I fall asleep?” Luhan mumbled. He looked around bewilderedly, stretching and yawning as he tried to orient himself. Finally, he turned back to Sehun, his customary flush coloring his cheeks. “I’m sorry.”

Sehun shook his head and opened his door. “It’s okay. You clearly needed it. After today, things should be quiet for a while so we can both get some rest.”

Luhan followed suit and climbed out of the car. After a short dispute over who should carry what, he finally took the cakes and its accoutrements to the class, leaving Sehun to deal with getting help to lug the two huge boxes in the back seat to the classroom.

It didn’t take Sehun long to rustle up a couple of maintenance men to assist him. He had seen them around in the month since he’d been there and had exchanged pleasantries with them now and again. One of them was even kind enough to bring a dolly so that they could easily take the elevator without having to manually carry the boxes

Luhan waited outside of the classroom for him. He always entered after Sehun, being the assistant not the professor after all, and would have felt weird standing in front of the class with everyone looking at him expectantly while they all waited for Sehun. Thus, he breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Sehun coming down the hall towards him five minutes after he’d left him at the car

“That was quick,” he commented.

Sehun smiled. “I got lucky.”

He turned to the maintenance guys, thanked and assured them that he could handle things from there.

“Let’s go!”

He pushed the dolly into the classroom, grinning when he was greeted with cheers and whoops of excitement.

“I wonder if it’s me you’re happy to see or what’s in these boxes,” he teased, stopping beside the podium and turning to face the class.

Everyone was there, as far as he could see. All one hundred and five of them.

“Both!”

He looked over to the source of the voice, unsurprised to find that it was one of “the twins”: two young, boisterous boys that always had something smart, or erted, to say.

“So…” he began leaning against the podium as he perused the class. “It’s our last day together. I don’t think there’s anything I can say, any advice I could possibly give, to you at this point that I haven’t already. However, I still maintain what I said on that first day.
Art is 100% subjective. There are no rules or guidelines to guarantee success. It’s all a fluke. Some people get lucky while others strikeout. The most important thing is that you love what you do. It’s taxing, it’s frustrating and it may very well make you a pauper. I do not advise anyone to do this for a living,” he joked. “A hobby, sure, but make sure you have a back-up plan. It never hurts to be prepared.”

“What was your back-up?” someone asked.

Sehun grinned. “Working at Starbucks. I make a mean cappuccino.”

Everyone laughed and as he looked out at them, memorizing their faces as he had Luhan’s, he realized that he would miss them.

“Anyway, I didn’t plan a lesson for today since, like I said, we’ve covered everything so I think we’ll end like we began, but on a sweeter note. We’ll talk and you can ask me anything, within reason,” he stressed, eyeing the twins, “while we have ourselves some cake.” He glanced back at Luhan, who flipped open the lid of the first box, revealing a large, rectangular cake.

“If you’ll please come forward in an orderly fashion…”

No sooner were the words out of his mouth than the twins were at the desk snatching the plates Luhan held out of his hands.

Sighing, Sehun watched the chaos unfold, amused. For the most part, people behaved but there were some who were more eager than others, the younger ones, and grabbed slices of cake with their bare hands instead of using the serving knife.

“There are cupcakes in this one, and that one’s chocolate,” a frazzled Luhan was saying, trying to establish a semblance of order, without success. Eventually, he threw his hands up and walked over to Sehun where he stood at the podium.

“Let them eat cake,” Sehun joked.

“I saved you a cupcake,” Luhan said, holding up a lone chocolate cupcake that he’d managed to sneak from the box before running away from the crowd.

Touched, Sehun graciously accepted it. “You didn’t have to.”

Luhan blushed. “You didn’t have to do this but you did so I think you deserve something sweet too.”

Unconsciously, Sehun’s eyes fell to Luhan’s lips for a split second before meeting his eyes again.

Cake wasn’t his sweet of choice but it came from Luhan so he would consider it a substitute of sorts until he could get what his heart truly desired.

“Thank you.”

He took a bite, appreciating the richness of the chocolate, then without thinking twice, broke off a piece and held it up to Luhan’s mouth.

Luhan’s blush deepened and as he hesitated, glancing around, Sehun thought that he was going to decline but then he opened his mouth and took it, his lips grazing Sehun’s fingers as they closed around the morsel.

A shiver ran down his spine and his eyes once again dropped to Luhan’s mouth, watching as he chewed and frosting off his lips.

“It’s good,” Luhan murmured, completely unaware of Sehun’s thoughts.

“Professor Oh?”

Forcing his eyes away from Luhan, Sehun turned to the student who approached him and thus began a parade of conversations, some one-on-one, some in small groups.

Luhan stood back and watched as Sehun once again did his thing, happy to simply have been a part of it all. He would miss coming to class, miss seeing him in his element. Watching him draw and paint at home was completely different to watching him talk to others about how he felt while he did, what inspired him to keep doing what he loved, or imparting advice to help them achieve their own goals. They were two sides of the same coin and he felt like he’d learned a lot about Sehun during their time at the university. He was probably Sehun’s biggest fan.

Except, perhaps, for…

His eyes unwillingly drifted to “hungry-girl”, his jaw automatically clenching when he saw the way she was looking at Sehun.

He didn’t really consider her a fan. She was clearly more into Sehun as a man than an artist. She had never given up either, never stopped trying to catch him alone or book a private session with him. The only reason Sehun hadn’t kicked her out of the class was because the Dean had begged him not to. He hoped that the new class in the Fall didn’t have anyone remotely like her. One was enough.

“So what’s in the boxes?” one of the twins yelled impatiently.

Sehun glanced at his watch. There was only fifteen minutes left in the hour long class so now was as good a time as any, he supposed.

He excused himself from the person he’d been speaking to and walked over to the top box, taking the box cutter that Luhan handed him.

“Now, I have a little something for you guys. You may like it, you may be disappointed. I hope that you won’t be but if you are…” He looked up and grinned. “Keep it to yourselves.”

Once the box was open, he pulled out a mound of packaging before picking up a small, square frame. He glanced down at it then looked up at the class, zeroing on one particular face.

“I think this belongs to you,” he said mysteriously.

Confused, the student rose and walked to the front of the class where Sehun handed it to her.

She looked down at it, gasping when she found herself looking at a black and white portrait of herself.

“Oh, my God,” she breathed. Turning to the class, she held it up for all to see.

“There’s one for each of you,” Sehun said, his voice almost drowned out by the excited murmurs going through the class. “They’re not perfect but I did the best that I could with the little time that I had and my horrible memory.”

One by one, he personally handed out the mini-portraits, thanking each student for their interest in him and wishing them luck in their own endeavors, artistic and otherwise.

When it was the twins’ turns, they came up together, arrogant smiles gracing their faces.

“Hmm…” Sehun looked at them a moment, double-checking the portraits before handing them to their respective owners. “This one is for you, and this is yours.”

“How can you tell?” one of them demanded. “We’re identical.”

Sehun grinned. “You’re not nearly as identical as you think. You have a mole on your jaw, he doesn’t. Similarly, his nose is slightly crooked and yours isn’t. Your eyes aren’t the same distance apart either. Your mouths, foreheads and ears all have noticeable differences as well.”

Shocked by his revelation, they gave each other a strange look before dashing off to the nearest window, their portraits in tow.

“How about me?”

At the sound of that lazy, sultry voice, Sehun groaned inwardly. Outwardly, he smiled and poked around in the box until he found what he was looking for.

“Here you go,” he said politely as he handed it to her. “Thanks for coming.”

She took it from him without so much as a glance. “Why don’t you let me take you to dinner? To show my thanks, I mean. You’ve been very helpful.”

“Words are more than enough,” Sehun said, looking past her to the next in line.

“I insist,” she purred. “After all you’ve done for us, for me, it’s the least that I can do.”

“Really, it’s not necessary.”

“Even so…”

“Can you step aside, please?” Luhan asked as he appeared beside Sehun, his tone clipped. “You’re holding up the line. The class is almost over so we really need to move this along.”

If her eyes could shoot daggers, he would be dead on the spot, but thankfully, she did as was requested, albeit with a small “harrumph”.

When the boxes were empty, Luhan moved them aside and placed all of the garbage from the cake-eating in them.

“Uh-oh. I think you forgot someone,” the twins sing-songed, looking absolutely delighted by the prospect.

Sehun frowned. “Did I?”

“It’s no bother, really,” the nice little old lady, Mrs. Kim, said. At sixty-four, she was the oldest student in the class.

“That’s not very professional, is it?” one of the twins asked.

“No, it’s not,” his brother replied.

“Hmm… It seems that I miscalculated,” Sehun mused, not sounding the least bit surprised or upset. “I should rectify that immediately.”

He walked over to Mrs. Kim and offered her his hand, which she took, looking surprised and confused.

Though he hadn’t told Luhan his plan in advance, he quickly caught on and had a chair ready for Mrs. Kim and Sehun’s easel set up. It was such a Sehun thing to do.

“It won’t take but a minute,” he assured her with a smile.

Flustered by the unexpected attention, Mrs. Kim’s face flamed but she managed to sit still while Sehun worked diligently on her portrait.

Other students crowded around him, trying to get the best firsthand view of a professional at work, but he ignored them, completely absorbed in what he was doing.

Five minutes later, he put the last touches on the simple portrait and signed it. All of the students’ portraits had his signature but this one, he dedicated specifically to Mrs. Kim.

To Mrs. Kim, Love Sehun. You are a jewel among thorns, he wrote in English.

“Hey! How come she gets her name on her portrait?” one of the twins complained before being shhhed by another student.

“I’m sorry that I don’t have a frame to give you,” he apologized as he handed her the portrait.

Eyes shining with tears, Mrs. Kim shook her head. “It’s perfect. I’ll buy the most expensive frame that I can find and put it on my living room wall for everyone to see. This is the best gift a man has ever given me. My husband will be so jealous.”

Sehun laughed and rose to give her a hug, kissing her cheek. “He’s a lucky man.”

And with that, the class drew to a close. As the students filed out, Sehun said goodbye to each and every one of them, shaking hands or accepting hugs and kissing cheeks in the case of the older women. He even received a few offers to marry their daughters, one of whom was already married.

And like the first day, she was the last to leave, much to Sehun and Luhan’s mutual displeasure.

“Don’t I get a hug?” she asked in a little-girl voice.

Sehun sighed inwardly but shrugged. “Sure, why not? We won’t be seeing each other again so consider it a parting gift.”

He’d intended to give her a light hug with a small pat on the back but before he could pull away, he found himself being devoured. She was wrapped tightly around him, her cloying perfume clogging his nose so that he was swamped by her.

He dropped his arms to the side and waited it out. She had to let go eventually.

He saw the anger on Luhan’s face and shook his head at him. He wasn’t going to acknowledge her pathetic attempts for attention any longer.

She did release him eventually like he’d known she would, her annoyance clearly written on her face.

“Good luck,” he said smoothly before turning away to gather his things.

Luhan followed suit, neither one paying attention to her and finally, realizing that they were going to continue ignoring her, she left, the door slamming shut behind her.

“Thank God, I thought she’d never leave,” Luhan said, finally able to relax.

Sehun chuckled. “She’s not used to rejection. I give her an A for effort.”

Luhan grumbled something about an F for personality which made Sehun smile. He was so cute when he was like this.

They packed up and left the room, rolling out the garbage on the dolly. They met the maintenance men downstairs and gladly relinquished the dolly to them, with the assurance that they would dispose of the garbage for them.

The drive home was a silent one but Sehun found himself feeling agitated. He didn’t want to go home. Not yet…not alone. He wanted to extend his time with Luhan for as long as possible.

“We should celebrate,” he said abruptly.

In the middle of a loud yawn, Luhan swallowed the rest and turned to Sehun. “Do you want to do something?”

Forcing a bright smile, Sehun shook his head. “No. I forgot that someone needs to hit the sack early tonight.”

Luhan’s cheeks burned with embarrassment. “We could get something to eat if you want,” he offered.

“No, it’s okay. We’ll celebrate another day. Don’t worry about it.”

“Are you sure?”

Sehun nodded. “Positive.”

The mood in the car was somber after that, neither one saying anything though both had plenty on their minds.

When Sehun pulled up to the gates, Luhan unbuckled his seat-belt and slipped his bag onto his shoulder.

“I’ll take it here. Goodnight.”

Sehun smiled slightly. “Goodnight.”

He watched Luhan climb out, key in the code to unlock the gates, and begin his walk up the driveway. He watched until he disappeared around the bend before making a U-turn and heading back down the hill.

His earlier moods of satisfaction and contentment were completely gone, once again faced with the fact that all that awaited him at the end of the day was a big, empty house.

“I wonder what’s going on,” Sehun mused aloud. “It must be something big for them to redirect traffic all the way here.”

“Yes,” Magda agreed. “Maybe there was an accident.”

“Mmmm,” he murmured. “So, Magda…Any plans for the long weekend?”

It was Thursday afternoon and Sehun was driving her home. Luhan had already left for the day and since Monday was a holiday and there was nothing pressing going on at the office, he’d given him Friday off so that he would have an even longer weekend. Luhan being Luhan had hemmed and hawed but in the end, Sehun’s word was law and he’d grudgingly left, promising that he would call him over the weekend to check on him and see if he needed anything. Sehun had smiled at that, knowing that Luhan would be shocked if he only knew.

“This is ridiculous,” Sehun swore. “Hold on.”

Making a sharp turn, he headed up a narrow street, passing several intersecting ones as he drove up the incline before turning onto the wide street at the top of the hill. It was a quiet street in an upscale area and he was confident that the traffic wouldn’t reach that high up.

“What are you doing?” Magda asked, sounding strangely agitated.

Sehun flashed her a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry. We’re just going around the traffic. It’ll be much quicker up here than down there.”

“Mr. Sehun…”

He raised a brow, glancing over at her again, frowning when he saw that all color had leeched from her face.

“Magda. Is something wrong?”

“No. No.” It sounded like she had to force the words through her lips, which made Sehun’s frown deepen.

“Magda…”

But she wasn’t looking at him, he realized. She was frozen in her seat, eyes fixed forward.

Following her gaze, he saw that they were approaching a school, the steady stream of cars stopping in front of the tall gates forcing him to slow down as they passed. The children, a mix of ages from kindergarteners to high-schoolers from what he could tell, were dashing here and there, some from gate to car, others from car to car, laughing excitedly like children were wont to do. There were more than a few screaming parents but the children paid them no heed. From their fancy uniforms and the extravagance of the school itself, Sehun figured that it was a private school, having been to one himself, so more than likely, the kids were very spoiled and accustomed to ignoring their parents.

A sharp gasp beside him drew his attention back to his housekeeper.

“Magda?”

Once again her eyes were glued outside, but this time she was looking out the window.

Looking past her head, Sehun saw a woman standing beside a car. She was small but chicly dressed, her expression serious, severe even. Her entire countenance changed when a boy walked up to her, a huge grin on his face. She smiled back at him, draping an arm across his shoulder when he hugged her around the waist, her other hand threading through his thick, black hair.

Sehun didn’t need to look back at Magda to see the resemblance. It had clicked in his mind as soon as he saw the boy smile. That was David, her son.

A strangled sob tore from and it was the most heart-wrenching sound he’d ever heard. He longed to comfort her, to hug her and give her a shoulder to cry on, knowing how alone she was in the world, but he didn’t. Pain was a personal thing and Magda was a proud woman. It was bad enough that he was even there to see her agony, he didn’t think she would appreciate his sympathy too. She would probably mistake it for pity.

Looking back at the woman’s face, the wheels in Sehun’s mind began to turn.

So this is Mrs. Kim, he thought. He stared intensely at the woman, memorizing every detail of her face for later.

If her reaction to the boy was anything to go by then she had indeed embraced him as her son, which he was thankful for. There was no reason that the child had to pay for the sins of his parents. But how long was Magda supposed to pay? A decade had passed already, Mr. Kim was long gone yet she continued to suffer. It didn’t seem fair. If Mrs. Kim could find it in her heart to be a mother to David despite how he had come into the world, couldn’t she also find it in her heart to forgive Magda?

He wasn’t going to give her much of a choice.

As the road cleared and he drove away from the school, his mind was already plotting. First he’d have to find Mrs. Kim, which would be difficult enough since he didn’t even know her real name and Magda would be no help there, then he’d have to think of the best way to approach her.

He was still thinking about it a week later when his phone beeped, signaling that he’d received a text message.

Distracted, he absently opened the message, needing to read it twice before it sank in.

Can you meet me for lunch? I’d like to talk. Jongin.

His stomach clenched and his mouth went dry.

What could Jongin possibly want to talk about? He hadn’t seen him since the day he’d dropped off the painting and that had been a painfully awkward meeting. Then there was the one-sided conversation when he’d been sick, which had pissed him off on Luhan’s behalf. It didn’t bother him that Jongin hadn’t seemed to care that he’d been sick but he’d been disgusted by Jongin’s attitude towards Luhan, who was only trying to be a good friend, employee and overall human being.

He was curious though.

Sliding off his stool, he reached for his jacket on the nearby sofa, slipping into it just as Luhan came into the room.

“Sehun-ah, what do you…” Luhan’s eyes widened. “Oh. Are you going somewhere?”

Sehun forced a bright smile. “Just a quick meeting. It shouldn’t take long.”

“A meeting? Did we have something scheduled for today?”

He started to reach for his day planner but Sehun stopped him.

“No, something just came up.”

“Do you need me to come with you?”

Sehun shook his head. “I’ll be fine. Don’t worry, I’ll be back before you know it.”

He could see the nervous apprehension in Luhan’s eyes and mentally cursed himself, and Jongin, for putting it there. Knowing Luhan, he would probably see it as a criticism of his efficiency as an assistant.

“Tell you what: I’ll buy us lunch on the way back, okay? I won’t be long, I promise.”

He turned and walked away, forcing his feet to keep moving until he was out on the sidewalk.

That Luhan could undo him with a single look was frightening. The intensity of his feelings scared him and they were growing by the day. He couldn’t allow Jongin to see, to even suspect, that they were there.

They were meeting at the hotel bar, the same place they’d last had their one-on-one guy talk.

For all the good that did, he thought sourly.

The closer he got to the hotel, the more his curiosity – and anger – grew. Once again, he told himself that he shouldn’t hold Jongin’s actions towards Luhan against him. Theoretically, he knew that it was none of his business. Their relationship was their relationship. His brain, however, had no control over his heart and all his heart was concerned with was the fact that the person he cared about most had been hurt by Jongin. Try as he might, he couldn’t separate the two. Luhan’s hurt was his hurt.

As he strolled into the hotel and turned towards the bar, he forced himself to calm down. He had no idea what Jongin wanted to talk about, although he was 100% positive that it had something to do with Luhan, so he needed a level head. He would try not to let his feelings get the better of him. He used to be good at being objective…until Luhan.

He smiled wryly.

Infatuation did strange things to a man.

He spotted Jongin as soon as he walked in. He was sitting at the same table that he’d occupied the last time.

Could he call it their table? If this was going to become a habit, he supposed he might as well.

Jongin stood as he approached, extending a hand.

How strange, Jongin thought. Once upon a time, they’d been close friends. Inseparable. Even after Sehun’s return to Korea, they’d easily rekindled their friendship. What had changed in the past few months that had made them almost strangers to each other now?

“Thanks for coming,” he said.

Sehun flashed a brief smile. “No problem.”

“Can I get you a drink?” he asked, already flagging the waiter.

Sehun put in his order and silence fell across the table as they waited for it to arrive.

“Well, this isn’t the least bit awkward,” Jongin joked, finally breaking the tense atmosphere.

Sehun smiled slightly but didn’t say anything.

“What happened to us, Sehun-ah?” Jongin asked, sadness creeping into his voice. “And don’t pretend that you haven’t noticed that things are strained between us. Our last meeting was downright cringe-worthy.”

Sehun chuckled softly, remembering how he had been thinking the same thing just a short while ago.

“No argument there.”

“I can’t shake the feeling that you’re mad at me about something,” Jongin said honestly. “Luhan perhaps?”

A wall came down over Sehun’s face, his expression purposely blank. He’d known that Luhan would come up at some point but he hadn’t expected Jongin to be so direct.

“Why would I be mad at you because of Luhan?” he asked nonchalantly. “Your relationship is none of my business.”

“You didn’t exactly approve of the way things were the last time we were here having our little heart-to-heart,” he began, pausing when the waiter returned with Sehun’s drink before continuing. “I’m sure you know that after the excellent advice you gave me, I went ahead and ed things up again.”

Sehun took a long, fortifying sip of his drink before answering. “I didn’t, actually. Luhan never mentioned it.”

Jongin seemed genuinely surprised, his eyes widening. “He didn’t?”

Sehun shook his head. “We don’t talk about your relationship. He’s never brought it up and I’ve never asked.”

“Huh…” Jongin took a sip of his own drink as he considered Sehun’s admission. “I thought for sure that he would say something to you because…well, it’s you. You have a calming effect on people, it makes them want to unburden themselves to you. And he positively idolizes you so I thought for sure…”

Sehun’s ears perked up at Jongin’s words. “Why do you say that?”

Jongin scoffed. “You’re all he ever talks about. Well, you and his job. You know, when you offered him the position, I thought that it would just be something that he could pass the time with. I knew that he was bored at home but I was too busy with work to really think of a solution to the problem so when you came along, it was a godsend. I had no idea that it would make things worse.”

At Sehun’s frown, Jongin flushed.

“That’s actually why I asked you to meet me here.” He took a deep breath, released it slowly. “I feel like I’m losing him, Sehun-ah,” he admitted.

Sehun heard the echo of pain in Jongin’s words and it struck something inside of him. Regardless of how he felt towards Jongin, what he thought of him, he didn’t doubt that he cared about Luhan. But that made his treatment of him all the more disappointing. He should be holding him close and loving him every day, not taking him for granted.

“Why do you say that?” Sehun asked.

“We live together but we’re like strangers sharing the same space.” Jongin laughed bitterly. “I can’t help being busy, you know. Work is very demanding and if I want to make partner before I’m thirty, I have a lot of asses to kiss. I thought that Luhan understood and supported that. I know that it might be asking too much of him but in the past, at least he tried, you know? I couldn’t always make it home for dinner, sometimes I didn’t come home at all, but he would still try. He’d send me little messages or hold dinner for me, or leave me a plate or something if I was coming late. Ever since he started working for you, though…In the beginning, I could see how happy he was to have the job and like I said, I just thought of it as something to do. I had no idea he would make it into a career. I don’t know what you two do over there but I get the impression that it’s almost as time-consuming as mine. Most nights when I get home, he’s already in bed and when I leave in the morning, he’s still asleep. The few nights when I do get home in time for dinner, it’s just a simple meal. He doesn’t go all out like he used to, doesn’t even call or text to see if I’m coming home. When I text him to tell him that I won’t make it, he just says “Ok.” No “Stay safe, remember to eat and don’t work too hard,” like he used to. Just…Ok.”

He paused to take another sip of his drink. “We don’t talk, we don’t have se…” he broke off on a blush.

Sehun had occasionally found himself wondering about Luhan and Jongin’s love life so to have it confirmed, or the lack thereof, put his mind at ease. It might be small of him but he was happy with the answer to his unspoken question.

Schooling his features, Jongin continued. “The few conversations that we do have are always about work and once he starts talking, it’s Sehun this and Sehun that. You’ve got yourself quite a cheerleader there,” he said wryly. “It’s obvious that he has a little crush on you. Who can blame him? You’re probably the best boss in the world.”

Once again, Jongin’s words were music to Sehun’s ears but this time, he couldn’t really enjoy it, knowing that the admission was a painful one.

“But you know what really told me that we were in trouble?”

Sehun shook his head.

“The distance between us isn’t just physical, it’s material too. He doesn’t use the things that I gave him anymore. Do you know that he’s stopped wearing the clothes that I bought him? He has a completely new wardrobe now, which he bought for himself with his own money.”

Sehun did know since he’d been the one to take Luhan shopping on a few occasions but he didn’t think it prudent to say so.

“I know how fulfilling that can be since I felt the same once I was out from under my parents’ thumb but it makes me feel like…he wants nothing to do with me. It’s stupid, I know. It’s just clothes, right? And it’s not like he can wear $1000 suits to work at your house but still…I don’t know. Maybe I’m just overreacting but sometimes I feel like one day he’s going to offer to start paying rent.” He laughed, taking another deep swallow of the rich scotch. “If that day comes, I know it’s really the end.” He shook his head sadly. “How did it get so bad, Sehunnie? How did I let it get to this point? The last time, everything you said was right and I went home and did exactly what you told me to. I told him I loved him, I showed him that I loved him and for a few blissful days, everything was perfect.”

Sehun nodded. “I remember.”

“But then…it changed. It didn’t just go back to how it was before, it got worse. I know that it’s my fault – isn’t it always? – but I honestly don’t know what I did. And you can’t help me, can you? You don’t know either.”

Sehun didn’t have details but it didn’t take a genius to figure out what had gone wrong in Jongin’s relationship. The answer was always the same.

Against his better judgment, Sehun found himself saying, “Hyung…you were right when you said that I am mad at you and yes it does have something to do with Luhan. I can’t stand idly by and watch you throw away a good thing. I can’t watch Luhan suffer because of it without feeling like I want to pound some sense into you. I told you once before and I’ll tell you again: you’re a very lucky man. Luhan doesn’t want anything from you, he just wants you. He wants to know that he matters. If he didn’t still care for you, lo…” He stumbled over the word but forced himself to continue. “If he didn’t love you, he would have left. The fact that he’s still there means that you’ve still got a chance to fix things. Don’t wait until it’s too late because even I can’t help you then.”

Jongin sighed wretchedly. “I’ve been so busy lately. I want to sit down and talk to him, I want us to get back to where we used to be, to a good place, but the time…I just don’t have time right now. I don’t want to start a conversation that I can’t finish or make promises that I can’t currently keep.” He smiled suddenly, becoming more buoyant. “Things should settle down soon, though. We have a huge project going on right now but it’s in the end stages. No more than a month left to go. I think I’ll take him away then. I have a lot of vacation time saved up. We’ll go somewhere nice and I’ll make it up to him, or die trying,” he joked. “You’ll help me, won’t you? You’ll give him the time off?”

Fool, Sehun thought sadly. You’re a damn fool, Kim Jongin. Have you heard a word I’ve said? Don’t you know Luhan at all? Don’t you know that he doesn’t need or want grand gestures to prove your love? He just wants you, you idiot! Three simple words and you’d have everything you want. He’d be putty in your hands. How many times do I have to say it before you get it through your thick, stupid skull?

Sehun kept his thoughts to himself.

He was tired and he was done.

He’d gone above and beyond the rules of friendship to help Jongin, even putting aside his own feelings yet again to give his friend a chance to win back the man he loved. But if Jongin was too blind to see what was staring him in the face then far be it for Sehun to point him in the right direction. He’d given Jongin the shovel to dig his way out of the mess he’d gotten himself into. It was up to him to use it. Although, if it were up to him, he would take that shovel and beat Jongin over the head with it. His sheer stupidity alone made him undeserving of Luhan.

And that was why he wasn’t going to lift a proverbial finger ever again.

“Okay, Hyung,” he finally said, smiling slightly. “I’ll help you.”

A/N:  Okay, so from the comments I think that there's a little confusion about where Sehun stands right now. That last paragraph was him saying that he's done with being Jongin's little helper. Jongin is on his own. Sehun isn't going to give him any more advice. He's just going to sit back and watch him fail, or continue to dig himself a deeper hole rather. Saying that he'll help him was basically just a lie, although all Jongin asked for was Sehun's "help" in giving Luhan vacation time when he finally gets around to taking him somewhere, which, Sehun assumes, Luhan might not even want to go by then. Is it clearer now?