Luhan has never wanted to cuddle someone as badly as he does with Minseok.

They have been friends from the same major in college for over 3 years, take it that they’re currently in the last year now, and he was not as skinny as he is right now. He was not particularly chubby, but he had the squishiest cheeks ever that made him look too adorable for a college student. His arms were quite big because of Kendo exercises he had done in high school, but they were soft and warm and his friends came to like to cuddle him, be it males or females. Baekhyun, the cuddle (as Chanyeol dubbed him), even claimed Minseok’s right arm as his and “you should not do any diet before we graduate”. Minseok is basically an easy going person and fun to be with so he just laughed at what Baekhyun had said and answered, “Anything for you, baby Baek,” and ruffled his hair affectionately.

Minseok lived happily with his life, being cuddled on daily basis and had no problem with it. Until he was rejected by Kris.

It was painfully obvious to our circle of friend that Minseok had been harboring feelings to the tall blonde for quite a while. So when the latter rejected his confession because he was not interested, devastated was an understatement to Minseok’s feeling at that period. Luhan didn’t know when he got that, but he strongly believed that the main reason was he was fat. When he didn’t take lunch for the first time, everybody immediately got concerned. Even Kyungsoo offered to make a lunchbox for him and Sehun to share his mother’s delicious food because none of them wanted to see their adorable friend get upset with his own self, but their efforts went futile. He was too adamant with his resolution to get as skinny as he could.

“You don’t understand, Luhan-ah,” Minseok whispered when Luhan cornered him in an empty class, in attempt to get the idea to the other’s mind that he cared for him, everybody cared for him. “You don’t understand the feeling when you like someone but they just reject you because you’re unattractive. You don’t understand the insecurity from people feeling secured to you not because they feel comfortable to you, but because you won’t be a threat to you in any field in your life. What’s the point of making people comfortable to stay with you if no one wants to come to you from the first place?”

Minseok looked so small in front of Luhan, and he shouldn’t have looked like that, Luhan thought. Minseok was smart and kind and polite and funny and adorable someone must’ve been completely stupid to reject him, but Luhan had to stop his internal debate as he heard Minseok took a short breath as if he tried to prevent himself to cry. He took his friend by his shoulder and cradled him to his chest, caressed his tensed back while whispering, “You’re okay, Minseok. You’re important to us,” to me, Luhan gulped down the words because it was irrelevant at that moment. “So don’t let one stupid brat get you down.”

Since then, Luhan sticked with Minseok all the time. He forced Minseok to eat even the slightest or gave him nutritious beverage, played soccer with him, and gave him hugs every time he felt down. Minseok got cuddles more than before despite of his arms getting skinnier, even Baekhyun once said, “Chubby or not, being with you gives me securities like my mom’s hug.”

Day by day, Minseok got better. He still didn’t take meal as much as he usually did before, but he assured his friends that he wouldn’t do something like starving himself or taking pills, so it was okay. But when Minseok finally laughed as brightly as he did before, Luhan got a message from an unknown number that asked him to meet at the south park of their campus.

Kris’ confession was the least of Luhan’s expectation when he saw the tall blonde waiting for him on a bench. He was beautiful, Kris said, thus he wanted to date him. Luhan only scoffed at him and rolled his eyes.

“Someone is more, much more beautiful than me but you’re just too blind to see his beauty,” Luhan spat. “Minseok is important for me and you make him suffer. I think you know my answer.”

Minseok has shred pounds, lost all fats in his cheeks, and turned from an adorable guy to a handsome man. He’s been confessed to frequently, but he rejects all of them because he knows that they only look at his looks not his personality. He keeps his friends closer and takes Luhan’s hand everywhere he goes. Luhan knows that somehow, even after he got so gorgeous, Minseok still feels insecure that everyone will leave him when he shows any flaw or imperfection, so he caresses the back of Minseok’s hand with his thumb to reassure him that no, he won’t go anywhere away from him.

“Kris came to me yesterday,” says Minseok casually as they walk together to their dormitory. Luhan has his arm around the other’s waist because he asked him to hug him on their way home.

“Really? What did he say?” asks Luhan, mildly amused that it was a year ago Minseok who came to him but now it’s the other way around.

“He apologized to me for hurting me, and…” Minseok pauses a bit. “He wondered if we could try it out.”

“And your answer was?”

“I said that the trial period is void already,” he smiles. “Furthermore, I already have someone I like, so he’s now totally irrelevant to me.”

“I wonder who the one you like,” Luhan smiles at the one in his arm right now, because somehow, he already knows the answer of his own question.

“Well, the thing I like the most from him is when he hugs me I can feel the overwhelming affection from him. When he caresses my cheeks or pats my head, it is as if he tries to say ‘hey, you’re okay, Minseok-ah’. When he holds my hand, he will caress the back of my hand as if to erase my uncertainty and tell me that he will always be by my side. Through my good and bad, he will take it all because he accepts me as who I am not how I look like.”

Minseok doesn’t say that while looking at the one walking beside him, instead to the sun setting in the violet sky. His eyes are so sparkly, Luhan notices, maybe from the effort to let out of his heart to this conversation.

“So I hope,” he continues. “I hope this person won’t get bored of hugging me, even if I ask him to hold me forever.”

Luhan smiles. “That person, do you mean Baekhyun?”

Minseok gasps wildly as if Luhan just threw some nasty profanities to him. When he sees that Luhan is just playing with him, he immediately whines, “Oh come on, Luhan, you know I cannot say it.”

Luhan laughs because he knows the un-romantic side of Minseok and holds him even closer as he apologizes. “Okay, Minseok-ah,” he chuckles at Minseok’s temple. “I love you, too.”

Luhan likes it when Minseok’s pale cheeks blush in pretty scarlet shades, and he likes it more when his newfound lover takes his hand and holds it tight.

But he likes it the most when he doesn’t miss Minseok's soft whisper, ‘I love you, Luhan-ah’.

fin.