Later on and after Kris had stumbled like an idiot in front of the cute boy, he tried to look for his stupid friend who brought him here in the first place, while doing his best not to think about those dark eyes. But his friend had just disappeared, he had some doubt were the other could be, probably in the second floor with his baekhyun, still he didn’t go there to call him, feeling like if he drags Chanyeol out with him they would be leaving, and by leaving all the odds of meeting and having few drinks with his angel would vanish, and he didn’t feel like leaving, not until he had someone’s specific number or last name, depend, he may turned out to be a stalker. After cruising the club for a little while, Kris find himself sitting at the bar. He thought about asking for a drink, for a long time the fear of turning like his father and disappointing him kept him from drinking, yet tonight he felt the need to loosen up and one drink wouldn’t make much difference. So he ordered himself a San Pellegrino with a twist. He sat at a table in a corner that had a great view on the entire dance floor, nursing his drink and trying to catch the eyes of a god among the humans.

And their he was, in the middle of the dance floor, dancing like if he’s out of himself, and in that fleeting moment he looked larger, more beautiful and more powerful. He danced while all the other dancers around him tried their hardest to dance and hold him close. But he was in another world, his own world, and no one else matter. Kris first felt a little spasm of jealousy from the dancers who were close to his angel, a feeling he had no idea where it come from, yet he couldn’t take his eyes from the boy, it didn’t matter if the club would catch fire, he’ll die a happy man if the last thing he’ll witness would be that gorgeous body flowing with the music.

A few minutes later, and in a spilt of a second, the sweet stranger disappear from the dance floor, and once again from Kris boring life.

Kris was still sitting there at the table with his empty glass, feeling like the biggest fool in the entire world, because he had let him go from his sight, when a sudden figure stood in front of him, he didn’t catch what the person had said, so he looked up thinking he may find the waiter or his friend who stood him up or maybe someone trying to hit on him. But to his ultimate surprise, it was his own angel talking to him with those plump lips, yet Kris was so busy admiring those lips and wondering what taste would they have if he got the chance to press his own lips to them, that he didn’t hear a single world that come out from that pretty mouth. So he sat there with his own mouth hanging open and his eyes looking so huge from his surprise.

“So you don’t mind?” those were the first words he heard from this beautiful stranger, this stranger that appear to have the ability of making Kris mute, and if he thought before that the angel was pure perfection, hearing that sweet and shy little voice just confirmed it. Still the problem remain that he have no clue what the angel is talking about, neither how to regain control of his mind, his heart and all his senses.

Finally, and by the work of some great magic, he managed to talk back to the other.

“I’m sorry; I didn’t hear what you said before? Is something wrong?”

“No, not at all, I was just kind of hopping you may let me join you at the table, the club is pretty packed and there is no place else empty. It won’t be long, just till my friends come to find me.”

Kris couldn’t believe his own damn luck, he spent the entire evening stalking this beautiful creature, and when he thought he lost his chance, it comes directly to him.

So with a confident that he didn’t feel inside, and a voice that surprisingly wasn’t shaking, he said:

“Yeah of course, it’ll be nice to have some company. I’m actually also waiting for my friend to come down so we could leave. Here, have a seat.”

“That’s great. I was worried I may have intruded. Anyway I’m Zhang Yixing but everyone call me Lay.” He said those last words with a friendly smile that showed the cutest dimples ever.

“Nice meeting you lay, are you Chinese...? I’m Wu Yifan, but my friends call me Kris”

“Yup I am. Guess so does you, right?”

God, he’s so cute. Thought Kris, but he had to do his hardest not to let those words slip from his mouth. Which he succeed with a great difficulty. Instead, he said: “Yeah, I am, but I’ve been living here in              Korea for so long that it doesn’t matter anymore.”

“The same for me, my parents moved couple years ago. And since then Seoul has become my home”

“You don’t seem the kind of person who hangs out usually in Zahir? So what brought you here?”

“What’s so special about the people who come to Zahir?”  Lay asked the last question like he couldn’t understand what Kris was talking about, and he probably has every right, considering that Kris truly didn’t know what was coming out of his mouth. He was so nervous and for what reason he has no idea.

“Actually, my best friend’s boyfriend Baekhyun is the owner of Zahir, and the only reason why I asked you such a question is because I remembered what he told me the first time I ever been here. Do you know exactly what Zahir mean?”

Lay was simply astonished; it was obvious from the way he looked at Kris, he didn’t know where this conversation was leading neither did Kris, nevertheless he couldn’t stop talking.

“Honestly, I have no idea. What does it mean?” Lay asked him.

“I didn’t know either until Baekhyun told me why he named his club Zahir. Apparently, Zahir is an Arabic word, it means visible, present, and incapable of going unnoticed. I guess it can be someone or something which, once we have come into contact with them or it, gradually occupies our every thought, until we can think of nothing else, it can be considered a state of holiness or of madness.”

Lay seem to consider what Kris told him, and in a quiet voice like if he was talking to himself he said:

“So; from what your friend told you; the Zahir is something which, once touched or seen, can never be forgotten, and which fills our thoughts till the point that we are driven to madness. And this Zahir, this obsession, can basically be anything”

“I never thought of it as an obsession…”

Kris was lost in thoughts when Lay starts speaking once more.

“Still, I don’t get it. Why name a club where people suppose to come to relax, dance and make new friends, after a fixation”

“But the Zahir isn’t a fixation or an obsession; it is something that can lead to it, however not necessary.”

“I think it is more than that. It is more than… let’s say a man obsessed with an object or with a person who represent his Zahir like you said. If something occupies your every thought, then it became a fixation, nothing more... this Zahir would leave no question unanswered; it will take up all the space; and it will never allow us even to consider the possibility that things could change…”

“In that case, the Zahir seem to be born with every human being… “

“Yeah, exactly… it is an obsession that can either vanish or take us to the brink of despair”

Kris didn’t understand how in couple minutes their conversation took such a serious turn.

Lay was agitated, and very interested in the concept of the Zahir… when Baekhyun had explained to Kris why he chose such a name, Kris didn’t give it much thought, however the second he started discussing it with Lay he realized that the word hold more meaning that he could have ever imagined.

He thought about what Lay had said, the sadness that filled his dark eyes, and wondered what is it that occupy his thought at this moment, what ghosts Lay lives with and what Zahir exactly dominate his life.

After that, neither Kris nor Lay said another word; they sat there, listing to the music playing by the DJ, while staring at each other. Kris was about to ask Lay about his phone number, when couple guys come towards them and start talking quietly to Lay, while giving Kris some strange looks, after that they went. Kris was thinking who those guys were, when Lay start talking:

“I’m sorry Kris, those were my friends. It was great pleasure meeting you… I truly enjoyed our talk, but I have to go now…they’re waiting for me.”

“Is everything alright, is your friends okay?”

“Oh yeah, don’t worry, everything’s fine. Thanks”

Lay stood in front of Kris for few seconds, lost in thoughts or maybe waiting for Kris to say something more. Couple seconds later, he said goodbye and took off in a hurry after his friends.

It took Lay walking away to get Kris brain working, so he followed him outside the club, to the dark and cold street, and when he spot him with his friends. He called after him so loud that his throat ached.

“LAAAAAAY…”

Kris was panting by the time he reached Lay, who left his friends waiting while he took few steps back toward Kris, and then it was just the two of them, at midnight, in the street of Seoul. And Kris at that moment, in front of Lay and staring down into the melting deep and dark eyes Kris was beginning to adore. He noticed how fragile, delicate and young Lay looked compared to him. And he saw how intently and hopefully Lay was looking at him, searching his face, checking for something. Kris wasn’t sure what Lay was trying to find, but right there he didn’t care, he needed to convince Lay to give him a chance.

Kris waited for his breathing to become regular, and then said with a nervous smile:

“I almost got scared I may lose you another time”

“When exactly did you lose me?” Lay exclaimed while frowning.

“Twice, actually… You run into me when I had just walked inside the club, but you disappear before I get to talk to you, you didn’t notice me. Then, when you were dancing, I wanted to go to you, however I didn’t get the chance until you sat with me… therefore, I cannot watch you walk away before you hear me till the end“

Lay was smiling, and not the nervous kind, it was huge with the dimple showing and all. Kris couldn’t help smiling back at him.

“You won’t lose me now, I assure you… I’m not walking away till you do…”

Hearing those words made Kris happy more than anything, and right there he understand that he would do anything to keep Lay.

“I like you Lay… you need to know that I’m not the kind of person who hangs out at clubs or for that matter anywhere. I don’t date, ever. I don’t have many friends, and the few I have if you asked them about me, will say that I am a loner and a workaholic… Yet, I never felt as I did being with you for the last half hour… honestly, I don’t know how to do this and I don’t like playing games so I’m just gonna be straightforward and ask you if you could give me you number or I could give you mine so we can go out together and maybe finish our discussion...”

Kris was nervous, he couldn’t fathom what he will do if Lay refused to go out with him and left him.

“You’re very honest…” Lay observed.

“That I am. I like you Lay, you’re smart and beautiful and make me want things I ever did before. So what do you think, could you see yourself hanging out and spending time with me, so we could at least know each other more?”

Lay nodded and answered him “I would love going out with you Kris…”

“Yeah?

“Yeah”

They exchanged their phones numbers, and then stood under the moonlight smiling and in no hurry to leave each other’s company. That lasted of course till Lay friends start calling him, so he left. And while Kris was watching Lay walking and disappearing into the dark night, he remembered what they discussed before about the Zahir, and he understood that his Zahir from now on has a name, and his name is Lay.