As Sehun prepared for the barbecue, he felt more nervous than the occasion warranted.

As the meeting time grew near, he fretted over the size of the steak he planned to grill. He worried that the cook cut the salad tomatoes into too-large chunks. He watched his servants set the table, he set the table, and then he kept rearranging stuff. Then he glanced down at himself. Instead of his usual dark blue jeans, he had decided to wear his all-black starched shirt, jeans with a crease and brand new sneakers. Wrong look. Luhan might think he was trying to impress him. Well, he was, but he didn't want to look like he was. This won't do.

He raced upstairs to his walk-in closet, yanked open drawers and threw out clothes until he found a normal go-to-town outfit; worn out blue jeans, a white t shirt, and a slightly wrinkled plaid shirt he pulled from the closet. He exchanged the new sneakers for the pair he always wore to school. After dressing, he observed himself in the mirror, frowning at himself. He fussed with the collar and raked a hand through his hair, messing it up as tasteful as he could.

But before he could try to find another outfit, the doorbell rang. Racing to the door, Sehun quickly stopped his butler from opening the door. He shooed all the servants away with strict orders not to appear until tomorrow. Checking the mirror one last time, Sehun tugged on his collar before heading to the door.

"Hi!"

"Hi yourself! Come on in." Sehun waved a hand to invite Luhan in, a huge grin plastered across his face.

“Woah, the house was beyond huge.” Luhan looked around with wide eyes trying to take in what he was seeing. Sehun let out a little nervous laugh and scratched the back of his head. For the first time in all his life, he felt embarrassed by his rich lifestyle. While he knew that Luhan wouldn’t judge him for that, he still felt somewhat uncomfortable as if he was flaunting his riches in front of Luhan.

As we drew closer to the main stairwell, a boxy white head poked from the corner. Soon the sheer size of the animal emerged at the top of the stairwell and the great dane let out a loud bark. Sehun was completely unprepared for what happened next as the dog charged down the stairs.

“Oh !” Sehun’s mind went blank, not knowing what to think. The great dog was bearing down on them at full speed, a glorious sight to see with its well-muscled body moved with elegance and yet globlets of saliva dripped off its hanging tongue, but a terrifying spectacle nonetheless. “Go into that room!” Sehun yelled urgently and gave Luhan a little shove in the right direction. He then proceeded to wave his arms frantically trying to steer the dog’s attention to him.

To his horror, Luhan completely ignore his urgent instructions and strode back beside him. “What are you doing here? I said, get in that room!”

“Don’t worry; I don’t think it’ll hurt me.”

And, of all miracles, the dog didn’t. As Sehun watched, frozen, the massive dog came to a skidding stop right in front of Luhan who just laughed and moved right in. He bent down ever so slightly to level his eyes with the dog’s and held out a hand. “Hello, big guy.” The dog just whined and tucked his head in Luhan’s armpit.

Sehun felt like all his muscles had disappeared and he was able to dissolve into a pile of liquid.

That dog continued to follow Luhan everywhere he went and for the rest of the evening, Sehun couldn’t help but shoot betrayal glares at the dog for warming up to Luhan so quickly when it hated Sehun just as quickly.

 ~

The friendship between Sehun and Luhan blossomed so quickly that they hardly spent much time apart. They were always spotted together and one never felt complete without the other. Luhan would always have a smile on his face when he thought of Sehun. In school, they were called “Lee Jong Suk and Kim Woo Bin”. They were simply inseparable.

Their friendship then advanced to something more than just being friends.

Sometimes, as they walked to either of their houses after his work, Sehun would brush his hands against Luhan’s, causing the latter to blush furiously at the suggestive contact. That would only cause Sehun to burst out laughing at his innocence. It took a week before Luhan felt comfortable holding Sehun’s hand but he loved the feeling of Sehun’s warmth wrapped around his fingers.

“I like you,” Sehun whispered one day at the bus stop as they waited for the bus to go to Luhan’s house. A rosy red coloured his face as he stared incredulously at the former. A boy liking him? Luhan would have expected to find that repulsive and weird if it had been any other boy. But it being Sehun painted a completely different picture. It was a mixture of shyness and bliss; Luhan was flattered and felt honoured to be liked by him. As he continued to turn a furious red, he stared at the floor and smiled bashfully.

“I like you too.”

~

One night at Sehun’s house, they had finished dinner and were now chilling out in Sehun’s bedroom when Sehun got up from the bed and moved towards the other boy. At first, Luhan smiled up to him, and then, as if he sensed what he meant to do, a look of uncertainty settled over his beautiful face. "Don't be nervous," Sehun whispered, his voice husky with desire that surged through him, "I'll never harm a hair on your head. You've got my word on it."

Moving slowly, he settled his mouth over Luhan's. When the innocent boy failed to part his lips, Sehun gently encouraged them open with the press of his fingertips and thumb on Luhan’s cheeks. The instant he gained access and tasted the sweet recesses of Luhan's mouth, his yearning for him intensified, a want, no, need so powerful that his body tightened and his pulse slammed against his temples.

Now that was the excitement he had long craved. No girl he had ever been with could hold a candle to the sparks that flew between him and Luhan. He couldn't hear, could barely think. Sweet, so sweet. Luhan melted against him like a cube of butter on hot toast. So sweet. Luhan was so sweet. And all his. He who opened for him. Moaned into his mouth.

Need and longing obliterated Sehun's common sense. He slipped his hand under Luhan’s white T-shirt, and moved to trail his finger over Luhan's chest. In one smooth swift move, Sehun whipped the tee over Luhan's head, exposing his chest. The boy jerked when Sehun grazed one turgid with his thumb. Suddenly, Luhan twisted his face to one side, ending the kiss.

"Stop, Sehun, please."

The slight trembling of Luhan's voice immediately snapped Sehun out of his deep trance of longing as he pulled back, releasing the boy from his arms. Taking a step back, Sehun stared at the ground and awkwardly scratched his head. Was he going too fast? He didn't want to scare Luhan away...

"Sorry."

"It's okay... I well, um, I sure didn't expect that coming to your house tonight," Luhan gave a small nervous laugh. “That’s my first kiss.”

“Well, I um hate to say this but to be honest, I’m not sorry at all. To be your first, I am honoured to be your first.” Still staring at the floor, Sehun smiled slightly.

“Well, I glad my first is with you.”

Glancing up to look at the beautiful boy he had come to love, Sehun didn't even have time to feel ecstatic by Luhan’s words when he couldn't help but let out a gasp of surprise.

"What happened here? Did someone bully you again? How come I didn't know about this?" Sehun reached forward to trace his fingers over the blue and bruises that cover Luhan's chest and back.

Luhan looked up from trying to find his shirt and look at where Sehun was staring. "Hm? Oh these. They were from the time you stepped in to defend me. After what you said that day, no one dared to bother me anymore." Luhan gave a little laugh.

But Sehun didn't find anything funny about the situation. "That day? That was weeks ago. You should have healed by now."

"Nah. It has always been like that. Well not exactly. But after all the bullying and hitting I had in my middle school days in China, let's just say my body's recovery system is slightly messed up."

"Did you get this checked up?" Sehun's parents, being avid adventurers, were often reckless and couldn't care less about their own safety. Honestly speaking, the place where Sehun had spent the most time with his parents was in the hospital. So it was safe to say that he had seen his fair share of injuries to know that bruising should disappear within two weeks max. The bluish grey coloration on Luhan's skin looked nowhere near recovery.

"Stop staring at me like that. I'll get shy." The blush on Luhan's cheeks deepened into a bright red as he turned away to continue looking for his missing shirt.

"Did you get that checked up?" Sehun repeated again, his eyes still trained on the huge bruises.

"Ah! There it is," Luhan fished out his shirt from behind a lamp. "Anyway, quit worrying about me, Sehun ah. I feel fine."

He did look fine. There was a glow of a healthy pink under his skin. But somehow, Sehun just couldn't shake off the nasty feeling of worry. But now that the bruises were out of his sight, his attention reverted back to the boy standing in front of him. Grabbing him by the hand and noticing with a smile that Luhan neither flinched nor backed away, Sehun pulled him to his gaming room. "Come on, let me show you something."

~

The next two weeks went passed without any event. Some nights were spent at Luhan's house; others were at Sehun's. In school, they were still as close as ever, causing rumours to fly. Many thought they were a couple. Well, to be honest, Sehun and Luhan never really did make anything official but they were very much in love and thoroughly enjoyed each other’s company. They both smiled a lot, even Sehun who usually walked around school with a scowl on his face. Sehun no longer slept in classes; instead he was listening attentively and taking notes studiously. They would compare notes sometimes and study together for tests. Luhan was still working at the ice-cream shop for extra cash, all the while refusing any cash or financial help from Sehun. Sehun knew that Luhan would not accept because he didn’t want to owe Sehun anything so eventually Sehun stopped pestering him about it. Evenings were reserved for the both of them and sometimes Luhan’s family. On Luhan’s insistence, Sehun began building a relationship with the staff of his household.

But their favourite time was definitely the weekends. That was when they had the whole day to themselves to do anything they liked. Sometimes they went to the amusement parks, other times they went to a park. Their favourite place was still Sehun’s house, where they could spend time with just the two of them. They could spend hours chatting and talking, sneaking kisses here and there. After all, it was the other’s company that made the time spent so fulfilling and wonderful, though sometimes that stupid great dane would demand some love and attention from Luhan and growled at Sehun if he got too near.

But all good things just had to end, did they?

~

That fateful day was the week before finals.

The day everything started going downhill.

Sehun was waiting for Luhan to finish up some project he was on before they made their way to the ice-cream store. Nothing seemed out of the blue, other than the fact that Luhan was running a little late. Wondering what was holding him up, Sehun made his way to their classroom where Luhan had mentioned was the venue of his project meeting.

“Lu?” Sehun called out and poked his head into the classroom.

What he saw next made his blood boil and his hands shake. Luhan was sitting on the chair and that girl… That girl from the clubs. Nara. She was on his lap, her mouths directly on his. Luhan’s eyes were wide opened as he quickly pushed her off and looked at Sehun with those traitorous eyes of his.  Sehun fumed as his heart raced from the hurt and anger of the betrayal. How could he do this to me?

“I can explain.”

“That’s what they always say.” Sehun sneered and slammed the classroom door before stalking down the long hallway. He heard the classroom door slide open again and Luhan’s footsteps as he chased after him. Then he felt the familiar hands of the boy he had once loved grip his wrist and turn him around. Though it wasn’t a long distance, Luhan was panting breathlessly but in all his anger, Sehun failed to notice or even pay much attention. The only thing on his mind was the scene he had come across in that classroom.

“It’s not what it seemed, Sehun ah. She threw herself on me. She was saying that she wanted revenge on you for leaving her standing alone in the clubs or something when she asked you for a dance.”

“Excuses! I saw you kissing her! You didn’t seem to mind!”

“No, Sehun ah, you have to believe me.” Tears were welling up in his eyes as he pleaded desperately.

“Let go of me.” Sehun replied coldly.

“Sehun ah..”

“I said, let go of me!”

“Please…”

Angrily, Sehun violent shook his arm, effectively causing Luhan to lose his grip. Then he his heels and exited the school, never once turning back. No matter how much Luhan screamed his name, he didn’t turn back. He was stupid to have trusted Luhan. All his life he had just wanted someone to call his own. A family, a friend, anyone. But now the one person whom he had given his heart to completely shattered it into shards. No, he couldn’t turn back. He couldn’t risk getting hurt any further.

But perhaps he should have.

Because then he would have seen Luhan collapsing to the ground and lying there motionlessly.

~

Luhan didn’t come to school the next day, and the day after that.

Sehun wanted to say that he didn’t care but he was just lying to himself. He left so alone again. No one to talk to, no one to have fun with. He felt like an important part of him was missing. But his pride stopped him from going to see Luhan. Even when school ended as students were given a study break to prepare for the finals, Luhan didn’t return to school. No matter what Sehun told himself, the empty gap in his chest just didn’t want to go away. No matter how he tried to convince himself that it was better this way, his heart still ached for the deer-like boy.

Most nights were now spent sitting on the stairwell, doing nothing but trying to get Luhan off his mind. But never once did he succeed. Sometimes the darn dog would join him and whined endlessly beside for the boy.

“Shut up.”

It would fix those accusing eyes on Sehun before whining even louder.

“What are you looking at? Look buddy. I know you miss him. I miss him too but hey, he was the one who didn’t show his face.”

The dog would then respond by putting his huge head on Sehun’s lap and prodding him to do something until Sehun pushed it off and stood up to leave.

But it didn’t take much to learn when the bridges that he burnt left him stranded and feeling alone. It didn’t take much to cry when every room reminded so much of him.

One day, he couldn’t take it anymore so he decided he would just sneak a peek at the boy from afar. He just had to see him; he missed him too much. So he dropped by the ice-cream store. No Luhan. He stalked all the places they frequented together. Still no Luhan. The last place he went to was Luhan’s house. He didn’t want to have to come here because he didn’t want to face his family. Part of him knew that this was his fault; there was definitely a nagging feeling that he might have blown this way out of proportion. But his need to see Luhan outweighed any reluctance to face the consequences.

But the house was empty.

Entirely vacant, complete with a pamphlet taped to the door for a new tenant.

He moved? And he didn’t tell him?! Once again, anger filled the fibres of his body. Yet another one to leave me. But this time, along with the anger, came a feeling of unease. Unable to shake that feeling, Sehun made a phone call to his butler to make arrangements with a private detective to track the boy down.