That Summer

Sehun told himself that he wasn't running away from his problems. He wasn't. He simply preferred to spend time with people who didn't know much about him or his problems, and that meant ignoring his two best friends.

Jongin had claimed that he was being immature by refusing to speak to Luhan, and they had gotten into a heated argument after that. Tao, who usually never take sides, actually agreed with Jongin, and that led to Sehun ignoring him as well. Since then, they've been trying to contact him, but Sehun wasn't ready to face them yet. Deep down, he knew they were right, but Sehun has always been stubborn.

It was difficult enough for him to admit that he has feelings for Luhan, a fact he still has trouble grasping, but to suggest that he should confess was something entirely impossible.

He had no plans to tell Luhan how he felt, not after spotting Luhan and Kris together more than a few times over the summer.

A part of him wanted to snatch Luhan and take him somewhere far away from Kris. Somewhere Kris can't find them.

Somewhere Luhan would be Sehun's.

But in the end, the part of him that chose to ignore the hurt won. He wasn't exactly proud of that side, but it gave him assurance that he won't make a fool out of himself...

It was Friday night, and Sehun was at another wild party hosted by people he didn't personally know, but that was normal. He's been attending these types of parties often, hoping to forget, even if just for a few hours, that he's Oh Sehun, the guy secretly in love with Luhan.

Sehun wasn't sure what he expected to happen tonight at this particular party, maybe meet someone interesting, try a little alcohol, but whatever it was, it certainly didn't consist of watching the person responsible for all of his problems stepping through the front door.

Luhan?

Sehun's eyes widened when Luhan, who looked so nervous and out of place among strangers, closed the door behind him and took a tentative step forward.

A million things went through Sehun's head, but none of which consisted of him walking up to Luhan.

He simply stood there, frozen, eyes glued to the familiar face he's been dreaming about since the start of summer break.

Luhan's eyes were scanning the crowd, most probably looking for Sehun because Sehun was sure he knew none of the people here. These weren't the types of people Luhan should be associating with, in Sehun's opinion.

When Luhan's eyes finally met his, Sehun swore he forgot how to breathe.

Luhan weaved his way around the crowd to stand in front of Sehun, his expression serious. Sehun would have wondered why he looked like that if he wasn't so fixated on the fact that Luhan was really standing in front of him.

“I can't believe you're really here,” Luhan said, and Sehun detected disappointment in his voice.

“What?” Sehun croaked after snapping out of his thoughts. Suddenly embarrassed, he cleared his throat and tried again. “What?”

“What are you even doing here?” Luhan asked, crossing his arms, looking very much like an adult who was in the middle of scolding a poorly behaved child.

Not liking the tone Luhan was using, Sehun narrowed his eyes. “Shouldn't I be asking you that?”

“I'm only here to get you,” Luhan said matter-of-factly. “I have no interest in staying at this party.”

Sehun scoffed. “And why are you here to get me?”

“Because Jongin and Tao told me that you've been ignoring them and coming to these types of parties.” Luhan took a quick look around, frowning at the empty beer bottles on the floor and the messy plates of food on the tables.

He turned his attention back to Sehun. “In other words, I'm here to take you away before you do something you regret.”

“I don't see how my choices, or my life for that matter, should concern you,” Sehun stated, confused and slightly offended that Luhan would take him for someone who made horrible decisions.

“Well, it does,” Luhan stated, eyes staring right into Sehun's own. “Are you leaving with me or what?”

Sehun huffed. “What is this really? Is this Jongin's idea of a sick joke?”

“No. Why do you consider this a joke?”

“Because you're – forget it. I'm not leaving, but I suggest you do.”

Luhan furrowed his eyebrows, frustration slowly creeping in. “And why is that?”

Sehun picked up a random cup from the nearest table and said in a voice that was meant to be condescending, “Because you don't belong here. You should go back to your boyfriend's arms and stay there. It's not safe for someone like you to hang around here.”

The frustration in Luhan was quickly replaced with surprise and confusion. “My boyfriend?”

“Yes, your boyfriend,” Sehun said through gritted teeth, hating the taste of the word. “I don't think Kris would appreciate you being here.”

Luhan's eyes widened. “K-Kris?”

Sehun doesn't understand why Luhan looked so shocked. It wasn't like he was speaking in a foreign language. Kris and Luhan were together, and that meant Kris was Luhan's boyfriend. What part of that wasn't clear?

“Kris and I aren't --” Luhan started, but a voice calling for Sehun cuts him off.

Sehun turned around to find a familiar face smiling at him. It was someone he met a few weeks ago at another party. The guy smiled and beckoned Sehun to come over. Sehun nodded.

“I'm assuming you know where the front door is,” said Sehun, eyes on Luhan.

Luhan shook his head. “I'm not leaving without you,” he said, voice firm, determined.

For a second, Sehun wondered what Jongin and Tao promised Luhan when they assigned him this task, but he quickly ignored it. He was here to have a great time, not worry about Luhan and all the feelings that come along with Luhan.

“Well, suit yourself. I'm going to enjoy my time here,” was the last thing Sehun said before he turned to walk away.

When he got to where the other guy was standing, Sehun positioned himself in a way that allowed him to see Luhan from where he stood.

After standing awkwardly for a few seconds, Luhan looked around and made his way to the couch. He sat on the end, mindful to keep a decent amount of space between him and the next person. Sehun noticed the discomfort in his face when the person next to him blew puffs of smoke into the air near him.

Sehun opened his mouth, wanting to say something to the rude person sitting next to Luhan, but then he realized that he was supposed to be enjoying himself. He wasn't supposed to be worrying about Luhan. He shouldn't be.

He turned his attention back to the guy he was talking to, trying his best to pretend like he was genuinely interested in what the guy was saying.

And though he did this for a while, his eyes continued to wandered toward Luhan.

“You wanna meet my other friends?” the guy asked, forcing Sehun back to their current conversation.

“Uh. Sure,” he said, deciding that he could turn away for a bit because Luhan would be fine.

Big mistake.

After Sehun greeted the other guy's friends, he made his way back to the living room, expecting Luhan to still be sitting there waiting for him, but Luhan wasn't there.

Sehun's blood ran cold.

His eyes widened when he scanned the entire room and found no trace of Luhan. “No...” he mumbled, pushing his way in between people to get to where Luhan was a few minutes ago.

“The person that was sitting here,” Sehun said, voice on edge, as he pointed toward the spot, “where is he?”

The guy who was smoking turned to look at him. “You mean the really pretty one?”

“Yes,” Sehun answered, voice cracking a bit, slightly desperate now.

The guy blew out another puff of smoke, this time in Sehun's face, and it took everything in Sehun not to punch the guy in the face. He really needed to know where Luhan was, and this guy may be the only one who can tell him.

“Some other guy came over and took him somewhere,” the smoker said without any emotions.

“What?!” Sehun shouted, panic now taking over.

He knew what some people did at these parties, sick people who prey on the newcomers, the innocent first timers like Luhan, and the thought made him want to vomit.

“Where did they go?” Sehun asked, balling his fists – the only reason behind him not grabbing the guy's collar and shaking him like a rag doll.

The guy shrugged, and Sehun cursed under his breath as he rushed out of there. He frantically searched the entire house for any signs of Luhan. Sehun needed to find him fast before... He rather not think about what would happen if he didn't find Luhan in time. He rather not.

Sehun ran upstairs and checked every room, not caring that people screamed at him for interrupting whatever they were doing. He shouted Luhan's name, but no one knew who he was.

Sehun turned the corner that led to the last bedroom and stopped in his tracks.

There, a few feet in front of him, on the floor, was Luhan.

Luhan was unconscious, his back resting against the wall, head lolling to the side. Beside him was some older guy with greasy hair and tattoos covering his arms.

“You're a lot heavier than you look,” the guy muttered breathlessly as he wrapped his arms around Luhan, trying to pick him up.

Sehun growled. “Get your filthy hands off of him.”

Startled, the guy spun around and upon seeing only Sehun, he raised an eyebrow. “Um. No. What's your problem? I suggest you get outta here because this ain't none of your business.”

The guy turned his attention back to Luhan.

Sehun took a steady step forward, seemingly calm, but internally, he was anything but calm. “That wasn't a question,” Sehun said, his expression murderous.

He took another step toward the guy. “I'm telling you to get your filthy hands off of him.”

The guy stared at Sehun for a second, as if he couldn't believe some stranger was talking to him in such a tone. “Dude, I don't know you. I'm just trying to have fun with my pretty doll here,” he gestured at Luhan, “so I suggest you leave. Find yourself someone else. This one's taken.”

Something inside Sehun snapped, and he ran forward and grabbed the guy by the collar, yanking him away from Luhan. He punched the guy, making sure the punk would bleed when his fist came in contact with his nose. The guy doubled over, hands covering his nose. Sehun grabbed his greasy hair and kneed the guy in the face. The guy howled when his face met Sehun's kneecap.

“Don't ever call him your pretty doll,” Sehun gritted out after he threw the guy against the bedroom door.

The guy groaned and cursed Sehun as he tried to get up. Sehun sent him a hard kick to the stomach before he could get on his feet.

“And don't EVER touch him again,” Sehun spat, eyes blazing with hatred. He grabbed the guy and slammed him against the door.

Forcing the guy to look him in the eyes, Sehun promised him, “If you come anywhere near him again, I will make sure that it's the last thing you ever do. Do I make myself perfectly clear?”

As if he knew that Sehun meant every word, and that any other response would result in him getting another beating, the guy quickly nodded his head, blood from his nose slowly trickling down his chin. “Ye-Yes.”

Sehun released the guy, who immediately ran away. With his fists still clenched, Sehun took a few deep breaths. A few seconds ago, he wanted to snap the guy's head off, but right now, he needed to calm down. It was over. He made his point. He momentarily closed his eyes, refusing to let the image of that guy touching Luhan invade his mind. He was never going to touch Luhan again. Never. There was no way in hell Sehun would ever let that happen.

A soft groan from Luhan brought Sehun back to his senses.

Sehun bent down in front of Luhan, his right hand reaching out for Luhan's face. He paused when Luhan suddenly mumbled his name.

“Sehun.”

Sehun's heart stopped.

Did Luhan mumbled his name? He wasn't dreaming, right?

Before Sehun could pinch himself to make sure this wasn't a dream, Luhan started sliding toward the left, and Sehun's hands automatically reached out to cupped his face, stopping him from hitting the floor.

With his hands on Luhan, Sehun's heart started racing.

He could feel the world shifting around him.

With his eyes studying the sleeping face in front of him, taking in every flawless detail, Sehun finally came to terms with the undeniable truth.

He is hopelessly in love with Luhan.

After putting Luhan on his back, Sehun made his way downstairs, ignoring the questioning gazes from the others. He made his way to his car and opened the passenger door. He settled Luhan down, and after adjusting the angle of the seat to a reclining position so that Luhan could be more comfortable, Sehun buckled him in.

Once he was in his seat, Sehun couldn't help but look at Luhan. There's so many things going through his head right now, the most important one was how he was going to explain this to Luhan's parents. Should he take Luhan to his house instead since his parents were out of town? That would be easier, he supposed, but he still had to come up with a reasonable explanation as to why Luhan was spending the night with him.

Luhan shifted a little in his seat, and Sehun immediately held his breath, afraid that any sudden movement would disturb him. Eventually, Luhan stilled, and Sehun exhaled.

He puts the key in the ignition and drove away with a destination already set.

After gently placing Luhan down on his bed, Sehun began taking off his shoes and his socks because if he remembered correctly, Luhan didn't like sleeping in them. He pulled the covers over Luhan and sat down next to him.

Sehun was bombarded with all kinds of emotions as he sat there, watching Luhan. The most prominent emotion was guilt, overwhelming guilt. It was essentially his fault Luhan got in this mess in the first place. If he had just left with Luhan like he wanted, none of this would have happened. Sehun thought about what could have happened to Luhan, and he again felt sick to his stomach. If only he wasn't so stubborn.

“I'm a bad guy,” he whispered, eyes trained on Luhan. “Maybe it's a good thing you're not with me..”

Eventually, guilt was replaced with resentment. The thought of that guy, or anyone else, taking advantage of Luhan angered him to the point where he felt his whole body burning up, unimaginable rage threatening to consume him. Sehun squeezed his eyes shut for a minute, his hands gripping the sheets. He mentally counted to twenty before opening his eyes again. He had to remind himself that it was over. No one was going to hurt Luhan.

Luhan was here, safe in Sehun's room.

An hour later, Sehun realized he was exhausted and that everything ached, but he couldn't bring himself to rest. Call him paranoid, but Sehun was afraid that if he closed his eyes, Luhan would be gone when he opened them again. That thought was absolutely terrifying, so while Luhan slept, Sehun simply sat there, close to him. And occasionally, he would put his palm over Luhan's forehead to check his temperature. He doesn't know why he does it, considering Luhan wasn't sick, but it gave him comfort nonetheless.

Maybe he just liked being able to feel Luhan – to assure himself that Luhan was actually here with him.

It was actually amazing that his heart was still pounding feverishly against his chest whenever he looked at Luhan. Was this a symptom of being in love? If Sehun had realized this sooner, would things be different? Most probably, but there wasn't anything he can do now.

The whole room may have been quiet, but Sehun could hear his heart thumping against his chest loud and clear.

The sad part was that the person his heart was beating for could not hear it, no matter how loud. No matter how strongly it beats.

*******

Feeling as though a dark fog had lifted, Luhan slowly opened his eyes. He still felt a bit dizzy, but more aware of his surroundings than before. When he realized that he was laying down on a warm bed, Luhan gasped and immediately sat up, instantly regretting it when his head started throbbing from the sudden movement.

“Are you okay?”

Luhan yelped and scooted back towards the headboard, surprised by the voice. When his eyes finally met a pair of familiar brown ones, he was even more surprised.

“Se-Sehun?”

“Yeah..” Sehun got up from his spot on the bed to turn on the lights, even though the lamp on the nightstand was on.

Luhan took a quick look around and realized that this was Sehun's room. “What? What am I doing in your room?”

Sehun leaned against the door frame. “You were unconscious when I brought you here.”

“Unc