“Wait. Okay.” Tao said, holding up his hand. Kris was in the back of the room, tucked away with him and trying not to smile as the other truly opened up for the first time in Kris’ memory. “You don’t listen to music?”

“No.” Kris said, shaking his head and pressing his lips together. “I just read a lot.”

“But do you dance?” Tao asked, and Kris shook his head.

“I don’t have the body for dancing.” Kris said, glancing down at his too-long limbs.

“Chanyeol dances.” Tao said, and Kris blinked a few times.

“No.” Kris said. Tao pouted.

“I dance.” He tried instead, and Kris sighed, opening his book again. Tao lapsed into silence for a long moment, letting the other read quietly until he was done the book, and then watching as he dug into his bag for another one, coming out empty handed. “Should we go to the library?”

“No...no, that would be pointless.” Kris said, stuffing the book into his bag.

“Why?” Tao asked, leaning into Kris’ personal space.

“I’ll be gone soon.” Kris said, shrugging and refusing to make eye contact. He really didn’t want to tell Tao this. He wanted to pretend for a little while that he could stay, that he could make friends.

“Where are you going?” Tao asked, looking confused. Kris shrugged.

“Maybe another family in Korea. Maybe to another country.” Kris said. Tao looked utterly shocked, his eyes wide and watering again in an instant.

“Your umma threw you out?!” He asked loudly, drawing attention from around the room to them, and causing Kris’ eyes to go wide. Chanyeol was watching him carefully, and even the teacher looked worried. Kris shook his head quickly.

“No, no, it’s just that being a foster kid means you don’t stay one place long.” Kris tried to explain. Tao settled, but only for a moment before the bell rang, and he took Kris’ hand, leading him off to the side.

“How many people have you lived with?” Tao asked, his eyes looking much too damp. Kris bit his lip and thought back to his file, glancing up at Tao a moment later.

“One hundred and seventy four.” Kris said, something in his gut telling him he was getting way too close to vulnerability. Tao moved like he was going to hug Kris, but the elder side stepped him and shook his head stubbornly. “I’m okay. I’m fine. Don’t...just don’t.”

Kris swallowed hard, picking up his lunch container and heading to the lunch room, loosing Tao in the crowd and heading back to his usual empty table. He sat down, his feet propping up almost immediately on one of the empty chairs as he started digging through his lunch bag for something to eat. Within a moment there was someone clamping onto his arm.

“Come sit with us.” Tao said softly, his expression pleading. Kris opened his mouth to say that he was fine, he didn’t need to sit with anyone, but he thought about the already-read books and how Tao would just make a cute face if he refused, and slowly he nodded. Tao’s face lit up, and he pulled Kris to his feet, dragging him over to the lunch table filled with pretty much everyone he had come to know as Lay’s friends - aside from Luhan, Xiumin, and Sehun of course - and one stranger who was eying him curiously.

“Suho-hyung!” Tao exclaimed excitedly, waving at the stranger, and Kris offered a small incline of the head in greeting as he took a seat, finally letting go of Tao’s hand. He wasn’t exactly sure how to respond when Tao decided to cling to his shirt instead, but he decided he really didn’t mind it, and so he let it be.

Kris opened his lunch, starting to eat and only vaguely paying attention to the conversation going on around him. He was overly aware of the fact that Tao wasn’t eating, though, and he found himself slipping the other little bites of his own food and forcing himself not to think on it. It was another one of those things that Kris couldn’t explain if he tried.

Tao ended up leaning on him, somehow tucked under Kris’ arm as they all chatted about sleepovers that must have taken place before Kris was around, because Lay’s name was being thrown around a lot. Kris found himself tuning out a lot of it, since really nothing that was taking place concerned him in the slightest, aside from Chanyeol’s eyes seeming to be glued to him.

Kris could feel his anxiety stirring, not liking the attention in the slightest, and he ended up pushing his food over in front of Tao and watching as he ate it happily, trying to feed him bites here and there but eventually giving it up as a lost cause.

I know, it's short. Kill me later?