“You’re stupid.” Jongin nodded once as a sign of confirmation. He stirred his chocolate milk tea with his straw and took a sip.

“I know.” Sehun’s face was currently buried in his palms, but his response was loud and clear. He let his hands drop onto the wooden table and stared at his best friend with a blank expression. “Can you do me a favor and like, burry me in my backyard or something? Having the ground swallow me up sounds a lot better than having to face Luhan.”

Jongin took another sip. “You don’t have to hide from him.”

“I know I’m stupid, but I’m not that stupid. I can’t see him, and I’m sure as hell he doesn’t want to see me.”

Jongin waved a hand dismissively. “No, I mean you don’t have to hide from him because he hasn’t been in school for like, a week now I think.”

“What? How’d you know?”

“Kyungsoo hyung told me.” Jongin shrugged. “He says Luhan doesn’t even answer his calls. He tried going to his house, but Luhan just wouldn’t come out of his room. Kyungsoo has no idea what happened and he’s really worried.”

“Great, just great.” Sehun groaned, resting his head on the table.

He stayed like that for a couple of minutes. Jongin had to poke him a few times just to make sure Sehun was still breathing. He almost fell off his chair when Sehun suddenly sat up straight, his eyes gleaming with determination.

“The heck,” Jongin’s eyes were almost as wide as Kyungsoo’s. “Don’t do that!”

“I’m going to go to Luhan hyung’s house.” Sehun announced as he stood up.

Jongin looked at him incredulously. “What makes you think he wants to see you? He won’t even see his best friend!”

Sehun’s face faltered a little. “I’m going to make him come out to see me.” He then turned to leave, but before he could, Jongin called him back.

“Sehun, are you sure about this?”

“Yes. I… I like him. I like him a lot. I’m not going to give up on him so easily.”

He heard Jongin sigh. “Then you should know…”

Sehun still had his back turned to Jongin as the latter continued. “Luhan never kissed Minseok back.”

“W-what?” Sehun turned to look at Jongin.

“Kyungsoo knows that much. He thinks it’s the reason why Luhan has been clamming up. Minseok hyung… Kyungsoo says he’d always been pinning for Luhan, but Luhan only saw him as a friend and nothing more.” Jongin’s gaze softened. “Kyungsoo also thinks Luhan hyung likes you a lot. He asked me if I could make you see Luhan. Maybe you could convince him to come back.”

Sehun remained silent while Jongin continued. “He’s really very observant.”

Luhan’s words echoed in Sehun’s mind as he stopped in front of Luhan’s front door.

I’m in love with you, Oh Sehun.

Sehun shook his head, the guilt clouding his heart. He took a deep breath and raised his hand to knock on the door. He couldn’t back out now.

It wasn’t long before Luhan’s mother answered the door with a beaming face. Although Sehun could sense it was a bit forced.

“Ah, Sehun. So glad you could drop by.” She greeted with a polite nod. “Are you here to see Luhan?”

Sehun wiped his sweaty palms on his jeans. “Um, yes, I am.”

The elder woman frowned. “I’m sorry, Sehun, but Luhan specifically requested he didn’t want to see anyone. He’s been hiding in his room the entire week.”

“Oh.” Sehun let his gaze drop. “Is he… how is he?”

“He’s devastated.”

Sehun felt a pang in his chest. “It’s okay, if he doesn’t want to see me yet. I’ll… tell him I’ll be waiting for him outside until he’s ready to come out.”

Mrs. Lu pursed her lips. “Are you sure? It’s pretty cold outside. Don’t you want to come in instead? Wait for him in the living room, maybe?”

Sehun shook his head and offered her a small smile. “No thank you. I know Luhan wouldn’t like it. Besides, this sweater keeps me warm enough.”

Mrs. Lu’s brows furrowed with worry. “Okay, if that’s what you want… but please, Sehun, don’t stay out too late.”

“I can’t promise that, Mrs. Lu. I’ll wait until Luhan’s ready to see me.”

“That boy is very persistent.” Luhan’s mother said as she sat down on Luhan’s bed. She ran a hand through her son’s bright pink hair. Luhan remained still, so she continued. “He says he won’t leave until you come out.”

“I don’t want to see him, ma.” Luhan’s voice was weak.

“Why not?”

Luhan’s lips quivered and his eyes were b with tears. “He made a fool out of me. For days… I’ve been trying to build this wall around my heart. Maybe this way I can love him less. But… but I’m afraid that if I see him, all my effort will be useless.”

“Honey… there is no way you can love someone less.” Mrs. Lu spoke gently. “There might come a time when you think you’ve moved on, but there’s still a little piece of your heart that will always be in love with him.”

Luhan started sobbing by this time, burying himself inside his mother’s warm embrace. “But mom, I have to move on! This… this hurts so much.”

Mrs. Lu’s eyes glistened with fresh tears. She rubbed Luhan’s back soothingly. “I wish I could take all your pain away, honey. Mama loves you so much. Just let it all out, it will get better.”

“Sehun,” Mrs. Lu stepped out into their front porch.

Sehun stood up from where he was sitting on the ground and quickly approached her.

“May I see Luhan now?”

She looked at him sadly. “I’m sorry, Sehun. He’s still not ready to see you.”

“It’s okay…” Sehun bowed his head. “I understand him, sort of. If I were him, I wouldn’t want to see me either.”

Mrs. Lu bit her lip and crossed her arms. “If I may ask… what happened between the two of you?”

Sehun looked up at her with wide eyes. “He didn’t tell you?”

She shook her head. “He only told me that he’s hurt, and that he doesn’t want to see you yet.”

Sehun looked at her with sad eyes. “Is he crying?” Mrs. Lu nodded, and Sehun sighed. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Lu, for making your son cry. I did something stupid, and the reason why I wanted to see him is because I wanted to apologize. I know he might not forgive me so easily, but I swear I won’t stop showing him how sorry I am, and I won’t stop showing him how much I… how much I love him.” Sehun heard Mrs. Lu gasp, which made him chuckle lightly. “It’s kind of weird how I’m confessing my feelings to the mother of the person I am deeply in love with. Mrs. Lu, I hope you don’t think my words are insincere. I really love your son, and I wish I could tell him this without him running away before I get the chance to say it. And because I love him, I am willing to wait for him. I will wait as long as I can.”

“Sehun… are you sure?”

“I’ve never been more sure in my life.” Sehun smiled. “Your son is worth the wait.”

To say that Sehun was surprised when Mrs. Lu suddenly enveloped him in a hug would be an understatement. “Oh Sehun, I am saying this as a mother.” She sniffed. “You will never be good enough for my son.” Sehun frowned, but then Mrs. Lu sent him a bright smile. “For a mother, no one will ever be good enough for their child, but I think you’re what he needs right now.”

Sehun smiled back.

“Thank you, for not giving up on him.” Mrs. Lu said.

“I wouldn’t even dream of it. I will fight for your son.” Sehun then had a look of realization in his eyes. He suddenly threw his bag on the floor and began rummaging inside it. Mrs. Lu sent him a questioning gaze. By the time she was about to ask him what he was looking for, Sehun stood up smiling, a bright orange poster in his hands. “Mrs. Lu, I hope it isn’t too much to ask, but could you please give this to Luhan? It’s an invitation to open mic night at my friend’s father’s café. It would mean a lot to me if he came.”

“What are you planning?” Mrs. Lu squinted her eyes at Sehun as she grabbed the poster from his hands.

Sehun beamed. “It’s a surprise.”

Mrs. Lu sighed and rolled her eyes. “Okay. Since I think you’re a very sweet boy, I will do whatever it takes to get Luhan there.”

“Thank you so much! You won’t regret it, I promise.”

Author's Note: HI GUUUYYYSSSS! Whew, this is the second to the last chapter. Thank you so much to everyone who subscribed, commented, and voted for this story. I can't tell you how much it means to me :') I will be posting the final chapter hopefully sometime next week, so you better stay tuned! ADIOS AMIGOS!