Luhan doesn’t remember being close to a certain boy named Kim Jongin, whose currently sitting across him looking absolutely nothing but lost. He had spent quite an amount of time deciphering when he had known the boy, but the attempt seemed futile, looking as Jongin had been asking him questions the whole time he is seeking his head for some sign. Anything, he pleads desperately to the heavens, because Luhan doesn’t want the same mistake he did earlier when the latter entered all smiles just to have them be erased by a single question of his identity. Jongin had looked offended – mortified even – when he sat across him and introduced himself –again, as the younger have said. Still, with all their burger meals gone and cups of drinks empty, nothing rings. Not a single lead to make him realize that the boy in front of him doesn’t just magically appeared in his life one fine afternoon and hypnotized him so that by the end of the day, Luhan knew in his blood that they were indeed friends.

However, as it turns out, he isn’t too far from that assumption (the part where Jongin did just magically appeared in his life, but Luhan isn’t quite sure if it really is one fine afternoon) when Sehun dramatically plopped himself beside the tan male. And then, everything clicks. Like a light bulb, because befriending Oh Sehun comes with a package deal of having Kim Jongin as a constant in his life – now. Something Luhan undoubtedly has forgotten about. Nevertheless, Luhan, for the sake of his remaining dignity, consoles himself by reminding his poor conscience that, it is not his fault he was born having a memory gap.

Then again, nor was it Jongin’s fault to have not known that. Perhaps, it could be Sehun’s, because Luhan had been sitting in this fast food chain for about two hours straight now (Luhan is amused the security guard hasn’t thrown them out yet) and Sehun did said he’ll be out the last time he checked his watch – exactly two hours ago. Oh Sehun definitely is the name to blame, and boy, did it sound great.

“I swear, once my contract ends, I will never– mark my words, ever, apply to this kind of part time,” he sighed loudly and leaned half of his body towards Jongin’s. “Ugh, I need something sweet. Help me, Jongin.”

Said boy snorted and pushed Sehun forwards (Sehun glares at him when he lurches to the table but Jongin just ruffles his hair) “What are you talking about? You’re only three weeks into your contract and it doesn’t end until your sixth month.”

Sehun grunts, a sound that could possibly compare to a dog’s defeated wail. “Buy me bubble tea then, as a consolation for my hard work.”

“Please,” Jongin raises an eyebrow when Sehun started biting his bottom lip along with his big round innocent eyes, “All you did was to take orders and give change. You don’t wait, and your smile is fake, so why should I? And Sehun, you at acting cute.” He smacks the dead weight on top of their table and lifts his eyes to the almost forgotten boy in front of them – Luhan is alarmed with the way his eyes twinkles, “But maybe, Luhan hyung would be kind enough to buy me bubble tea for offending me.”

Sehun’s ears perks at that and he begrudgingly sits up straight, swatting Jongin’s (who had found his hair a comfortable place to rest upon) hand away. “What have I missed?”

“Nothing,” Luhan spares Sehun a look before glancing back at Jongin, “You accepted my apology and even said won’t bring it up. Why now?”

Jongin shrugs, “Sehun said it, he wants something sweet, now I feel like it too. You just happened to be older than us is all.”

Luhan should’ve just backed away when he met Sehun in the middle of his apartment hunting some months ago. Tao is a toddler, Sehun is a brat, Jongin – he isn’t quite sure which he is yet but Luhan can almost see the telltale signs of another Oh Sehun. “Fine,” he gives up (because Jongin’s eyes were taunting him and Luhan truly believes that he isn’t at fault if he doesn’t remember him) and reevaluates his decisions in life as he slips off the booth.

“Luhan hyung forgot who I was despite us meeting a couple of times already,” he hears the whispered words of the tan and Luhan is sure the latter made them audible for him to hear. To Luhan’s defense, the last time they had probably met was ages ago, but no one would believe him either.

As he takes a few steps away from them, Sehun the brat, takes it upon himself to attach his tired body against the older and have Luhan half of his weight. “Aww, did Luhannie forgot to drink his memory enhancer milk this morning?”

Luhan decides that he had actually made a lot of mistakes in his decisions in life, specifically speaking, having Oh Sehun tour him in college when he was a transferee.

“You know what the best thing in the world is?” Sehun nudges him with his elbow and he makes room for him in the couch.

“What?” he asks, taking the cup of instant noodles Sehun had miraculously bought on their way home (a few minutes after Jongin bid them goodbye, muttering something close to how Yixing badly needs him as he fades away from their sight).

“It’s when they are free, so be grateful and feel my love,” he looks so proud of himself that Luhan is almost hesitant to smack him in the head.

“Shut up, those bubble tea costs me more than this noodles combined,” he glares at the younger, “Did I even mention, you both ordered the extra large cup with an extra scoop of tapioca?”

Sehun feigns innocence and opens the lid of his cup, “Well, it’s not my fault you have already forgotten about Jongin.”

Luhan looks scandalized at that and for a moment, he reminds himself that Oh Sehun is the one at fault, he should’ve told Jongin about it, he should’ve reminded him of someone named Kim Jongin, he should’ve invited Jongin when they went out, he should’ve said that he has a friend who is tan and is named Kim Jongin, he should’ve infor– Luhan groans.

“The least you could do is pay for your own, I don’t have enough money to last me another month if this continues.”

“Speaking of month,” Sehun turns to him, attention suddenly intact, “hyung, your share. Don’t forget.”

The older momentarily regrets resigning in his previous job, but then Tao comes into mind and Luhan, never in his life has wished to look like a panda. Thus, being jobless and has to feed more than one (because the older can’t find it in him to ignore the younger when his cute cards have been out in the open) living thing to survive in the wildness of this world.

“Sehun, I’ve been feeding you the past couple of months,” he stops and opens the lid of his own cup, the younger never miss the grimace that grazed Luhan’s face when the noodles have already turned soggy, “pay the whole rent this time.”

“Okay,” Luhan stops midair, noodles looking all unpleasant in his chopsticks. Sehun doesn’t continue, instead, he stares at him.

Luhan raises an eyebrow.

“But you have to pick me up from work starting tomorrow until the end of my contract.” Luhan was about to agree all the way for the sake of free rent when he remembers that, Sehun works at a fast food chain which operates twenty-four-seven, and that from tomorrow onwards – until his third month – Sehun is in night shift.

He resumes his eating. “I’ll give you the money tomorrow morning.”

“Hyung,” Sehun whines with all of his youthful glory that Luhan despises. “Do you really want me to walk in the middle of the night all alone?”

“If it means of removing you in my life permanently,” the noodles ruined everything, after he swallowed his third batch of them, Luhan stands up. “Then, yes.”

“But hyung,” the younger follows him into the kitchen, “Okay, how about this then, I’ll pay until the next month’s bill? Good?”

The older weighs his options, being a jobless person can only last so long in terms of money, and Sehun offering to pay the rent until the next month is already a legendary miracle in itself. Not to mention, this is Oh Sehun that Luhan knew from college, the guy that gets all he wants with just a single pout and not spend any cent on them. On the other note, Sehun starts his night shift at seven in the evening and ends at twelve midnight and the walk from their apartment to the bus stop takes four minutes. Then, another eighteen minutes on bus to arrive at the heart of Seoul, added to that is another seven minute walk from the station to the fast food chain. In the end, all it says is for Luhan to take a walk at eleven fifteen in the evening and ride the bus then walk again, all alone. Just for Oh Sehun and his two months worth of free rent.

“I need a job,” he sighs, turning on the tap. Beside him, Sehun is smiling from ear to ear Luhan wonders if it’ll split his face into an ugly half. He secretly hopes it does.

“Is that a yes?”

“In every language you know.” Luhan decides then that he had made a deal with Lucifer when Sehun fist-pumped the air with this victorious aura surrounding him. He shoos him out of the kitchen and takes it upon himself to clean the area.

“By the way,” he picks up the change in Sehun’s tone again and spares the younger a glance. “You play piano right? Jongin is in need of one, something about their last pianist going overseas.” Before Luhan could ask how Jongin and piano is related, Sehun was already in his room.

In college, Luhan had taken up business, not because he is a son of some businessman, nor he wants to open his own business. It was more of his parent’s decision. If it were Luhan, he’d rather take up something related to art – music would be better. But everyone gets what they want with a prize (Sehun is the biggest exception and no matter how much Luhan denies it, he kind of is, envious) and him wanting to study overseas landed him in business department. Nevertheless, his four years of hard work isn’t that all miserable, if anything, Luhan had made quite a number of people he his grateful of knowing and can call as friends. It is just that, Luhan isn’t so sure whether Sehun belongs in it or not.

“Are you sure this is the right place?” Tao asks him, one of the guys he met in college that had been Luhan’s home.

“Yes, Sehun even texted me the address this morning when I left. It should be,” he turned around the corner and craned his neck, eyes passing high-end buildings until they land on a building that looked so out of place with its three floors in the middle of skyscrapers.  He vaguely remembers his pale roommate describing it as the midget in between the giants and smiles in triumph, “there it is.”

Tao followed as the older picked up his steps, crossing the lane to the other side of the road where their destination is residing. “Are you sure that’s a school?”

“I’m pretty sure it is,” he stopped in his tracks and pulled Tao by his side, snaking his arm around the younger’s right one, using him as his human shield from the rays of sun. Oh the perks of having tall people as friends. “Well at least that’s what Sehun told me.”

“And you believed him?” Tao wasn’t in business department during their college, Luhan had met him when Sehun suggested that he join the Chinese community club the school has incase of him missing his homeland. It did the trick, especially when important holidays come around the corner and the amount of round trip plane tickets are at sky high.

He brushed off the younger’s over exaggeration that was written all over his face (Luhan wants to ask if this is all that Tao had learnt from his drama classes) and instead slows down their pace. Sehun told him that Jongin will be waiting for him outside, Luhan wasn’t so keen on the idea – because how will Jongin know that he’ll be arriving if there had been no communication from them since yesterday when they part ways – but, most of the times, Sehun was right. Jongin was wearing a simple black tee and sweat pants, his hair was dancing in the way the wind blows, Luhan briefly wonders if the younger had just woken up but dismisses the thought right away when his eyes opened up and smiled at them.

“I’m glad you made it,” he says as soon as Luhan was in a safe distance of three feet. “Sehun told me you’re coming,” he trails off as his eyes lands on the third person standing tall beside the older.

“Oh. Jongin this is Tao, my friend. Tao this is Jongin,” when Luhan realizes that he was in that part of introducing both, alert rises in his eyes. Sehun was Jongin’s friend, but Luhan had also met him a couple of times as the younger claims, and he did bought him bubble tea yesterday and spend two hours with him –alone. Luhan is fond of the idea of having new friends but, Jongin– he doesn’t exactly know what the younger is to him at the moment. “Sehun’s friend. I hope its fine that I brought a company with me. I’m not really familiar with this part of the city.”

To Luhan’s surprise, there was amusement in Jongin’s eyes when he took the offered hand of Tao. “I might recognize you. Commercials?”

The ear splitting grin that Tao answered with, says all the things Luhan is afraid of. “I think we’re gonna be great friends.”

Jongin toured them around the place, introduced each room, and eventually, led Luhan to the head for some chit-chat because apparently, he was already hired when Sehun threw the job at him last night.

“How?” he asks, too lost at the turn of events. Joonmyun – the head – didn’t even ask him anything regarding his ability to play the piano. All that happened in that little office of his was introduction before he was sent out to an awaiting Jongin. And Luhan did bring his resume.

The look of amusement in Jongin’s eyes didn’t disappear, and to add on that, he was suppressing his laughter as they walk to the lounge room back in the first floor. If Sehun is a brat, Luhan is sure Jongin’s an annoying brat. “What?”

“Luhan hyung,” Jongin tries so hard to contain his laughter’s within him that Luhan almost pities his predicament when he realizes that he was being made fun of, by a boy younger than him. “You didn’t forget my name this time.”

He stops in his track for a second but doesn’t dwell on the fact that Jongin seems to be pleased with that little information.

“Okay, let me introduce myself, properly this time,” the younger puts on a smile that Luhan has never seen of – not that he had known the male for that long. “My name is Kim Jongin, I am currently twenty two years of age and has a brother who is five years older than me. We are not rich, but somehow Joonmyun hyung found a way to have this place running since three years ago. Our parents helped us at first but hyung forbid them when the amount of enrollees increased. It also helped that the people working with us are our friends and that they too, were more than pleased to help in the monthly bills in exchange for a roof to shelter them. I m–”

As Jongin continues on, Luhan thinks, this is the younger befriending him.

The school turns out to be a place for Jongin and his friends to spend time together, a hang-out place that benefits them to not just earn money but also do the things they love. The first floor will be Luhan’s field, the noisy area as Baekhyun – the boy he’ll be helping with in his piano lessons – describes it. Luhan didn’t know what exactly happened with his other partner but Baekhyun just smiled and welcomed him with opened arms.

“You came at the right time, Luhan hyung,” Tao – if Luhan didn’t know any better, he’ll die from heart attack – was already attached to one of the boys in the room. “Kyungsoo hyung makes delicious cookies.”

“That’s Kyungsoo hyung,” Luhan shivers from the breath ghosting his nape, Jongin is too close for comfort. “He’s teaching vocal lessons alongside Jongdae hyung, the guy with fake specs on. Sometimes Baek hyung helps them, and that’s where you come. The other guy, beside Tao was Chanyeol hyung, he teaches guitar and drum lessons.” Jongin pushes him on the other couch, comfortably sitting next to him right after.

Luhan thinks of Sehun, if the younger had also known these guys, if he had once worked here. “Then,” Jongin continues, “that cute little guy next to you is Minseok hyung, he teaches modern contemporary.” Luhan smiles at the guy when Jongin pulls someone beside him, “And this, is my dear friend. Luhan hyung, meet my Yixing hyung. He’s teaching hip-hop and he’s also Chinese, by the way.”

“You’re Chinese?” Tao sputters from Kyungsoo’s side, eyes bulging out (Luhan gives credits to his drama club years), “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Luhan desperately wants the ground to open up and eat him alive, Tao doesn’t know the definition of embarrassment when he suddenly (with all of his tall body, strong built, and long limbs) hugged the boy and knocked him out of his breath. Beside him, Jongin bursts out laughing at his friend’s terrified expression, all the while slapping his arms.

Later when Luhan had cornered Sehun in their flat, he asks the younger if he knew Joonmyun, or Baekhyun, or Minseok, or Yixing. When Sehun nonchalantly answered that he knew all of them; the older punches his arm with all of his strength he wishes it compares to the bruises he received when Jongin thought he was a living punching bag.

It was during his third week that Luhan had the chance to further explore the small building and venture into the second floor. If he remembered correctly, Kyungsoo described them as the disgusting floor with so much distaste in his face, but makes up for it later on when Jongin had sulked and claimed that the place was the reason for their success. Tao had asked them how and all they ever did was to turn their eyes to the person beside Luhan who looks obnoxiously proud of himself within an instant.

The older had also added vain in his definition of Kim Jongin that day.

The area was consisted of four rooms, much like the ground floor, with the first room being the all too familiar quaint office of Joonmyun. When the second and third rooms happened to be occupied by Minseok and Yixing, respectively, Luhan doesn’t remember Sehun informing him of Jongin being a dancer. Thus, the unhinged jaw appearing in his usually composed (he really tries so hard to maintain them) face when the tan male twirled in one foot with arms spread wide.

Ballet – Luhan isn’t much knowledgeable when it comes to types of dance, but he did, had seen ballet on TV once, back in China. It could have been a trick of the eye, but nothing beats those ballet shoes on Jongin’s feet.

If only that one spin didn’t leave Luhan awestruck, he will definitely laugh. Because Jongin, the annoyingly conceited brat, and beautiful ballet doesn’t connect. Perhaps, if it were hip-hop that he was teaching, it’ll be too easy to analyze. It would explain the smugness the younger portrays and the over confidence that Luhan can’t even begin to ask where Jongin gets from.

“You should see him dance,” Sehun tells him on their way home when Luhan (as much as he hates but for the sake of two moths worth of free rent) picks him up. “The next thing you know, you’ll be wondering why he isn’t world famous.”

Luhan wonders if Sehun had been hanging out with Tao – again – recently, because that is just plain over exaggeration of someone’s talent. Jongin may only be good with it; however, the older found it too hard to sleep when the image of Jongin earlier chases him in his dream land.

“What are you doing here?” was the first thing that comes out of Luhan’s mouth (aside from the scowl on his face, that is) as soon as he opens the door to a grinning Tao.

“I miss you too Luhan hyung,” he invites himself inside the room and squeals when Sehun suddenly appears in the open. “Sehun!”

“Tao-tao! My Tao!” Luhan can only watch in horror as the two younger males hug each other so dramatically Baekhyun would even flip. It’s two in a Saturday afternoon and Luhan just woke up, stomach empty from any source of food since his junk midnight snack, but Luhan could tell he’ll throw up his intestines if the two doesn’t stop.

“See, Luhan hyung, this is how you should greet me,” he rolls his eyes and instead, quirks an eyebrow at the clothing appearance of them both.

“Are you two going on a date?”

“Not yet,” Luhan doesn’t miss the pout in Sehun’s face when Tao pulled away, “But Jongin texted me and I’m here to get you.”

“Wait, he also texted me last night,” Sehun looks excited on this, “But he doesn’t included you in it Luhan hyung.”

Before Luhan could throw the magazine in his hand (he had somehow found himself holding them without even recalling they keep one) towards Sehun’s face, he remembers Tao and, “You already have his number?” The confirmation nod of Tao only strengthens his forming theory that, it is, most likely, the three brats will inevitably found themselves the long lost best friends forever and will cause Luhan’s death at such a young age.

He could only groan his protest.

“Oh come on, don’t be such an old grumpy gramps, that’s Joonmyun,” Sehun pushes him back to his room and shouts, “Jongin said Kyungsoo made kimchi spaghetti so dress up prettily,” before shutting the door in his face.

Never once in Luhan’s entire lifetime that he knew of Oh Sehun, had he ever so wanted to strangle the boy until now because, “Rude!”

Still, he found himself dressed nicely (there’s really nothing he can do when Tao and Sehun joined forces, he can only shudder at the thought of Jongin joining them) and not so nicely dragged to the private school, that only now Luhan finds out, also served as the boy’s home – the third floor that is. Half of the space was an open area for the living room and small kitchen and dining table, the five doors that were on the other half; Luhan could briefly guess as their rooms and comfort room.

“Sehun!” Luhan dismisses the fact that Jongin had glued himself to his roommate and didn’t bother to spare him a glance. He also straight out focuses his attention on Chanyeol, as he sits down on the couch and watch the giant get killed by Jongdae on screen, instead of admiring how the three devils in his life get acquainted with themselves like little kids.

“Are all of you living here?” he asks Yixing after Chanyeol announces a rematch to Jongdae which the latter smugly accepts. Luhan pities Chanyeol, he won’t even stand a chance on him and that is saying because Luhan wasn’t even good with games to begin with. Sehun just happened to be an addict and his roommate.

“Huh?” Yixing, as Luhan have observed of him the past month, has droopy eyes and mostly kept to himself. Jongin had told him about Yixing not too confident of his ability to speak Korean, but Luhan had seen them interact and Yixing is everything but shy. It must be Luhan that looked like a fool or Yixing had just came back from his out of this world trip, when after a few silence he added, “Yeah. I room with Jongin.”

He gets distracted when another cry of pain surges from Chanyeol and Baekhyun saves him by pulling the controller out of his grasps and throws them at Sehun’s. “You still at playing games, Chanyeol hyung. I don’t even get how you are still playing,” Luhan wants to apologize for his friend’s lack of etiquette but decides not to. Sehun doesn’t deserve anything from him after he had just shut the door in his face.

“Do you play games?” he hears the small voice beside him and has to remind himself that this is Yixing, probably initiating a conversation.

“Not really. Just when Sehun asks,” he looks at him and Yixing is staring back. “You?”

The younger nods and returns his gaze back at the screen, Jongin’s character (Jongdae had offered his controller to Jongin when Sehun took charge of Chanyeol’s) is slowly defeating Sehun’s – Luhan screams victory in his head. “With Jongdae, but mostly with Jongin. He’s really good.” Luhan agrees, because Sehun is already wailing how he was cheated to death.

When Kyungsoo places the platter of kimchi spaghetti with Minseok in tow holding the utensils in front of them, Sehun gets the first serving. Luhan doesn’t even want to complain that he should be served first for this was a celebration for his first month – as Tao had said on their way. He wasn’t even sure how he’ll manage to get one because it sure as hell looked like a life and death battle he’s witnessing before his own eyes. Everyone was crowding the small poor coffee table and Chanyeol is too big to fit himself in between Minseok and Kyungsoo.

“Why aren’t you diggin’ in?” he gets startled when a weight decidedly drops themselves right beside him.

He pushes Jongin in annoyance. “I could ask you the same question,” and sighs in defeat when Sehun does the same (he is glad Tao found Baekhyun interesting), on the other side.

Jongin just smirks at him when Chanyeol stands up from the battle field and gives him his own bowl. No words were said.

“You always say I get what I want with my cuteness, but Jongin gets what he wants without even lifting a brow,” Sehun supplies.

Luhan doesn’t believe it at first because Chanyeol just might be offering him something for beating Sehun in the game. But when Joonmyun entered the room with Kris (his offending-ly tall – this is coming from Sehun who wouldn’t stop growing) boyfriend with three boxes of chicken – with one box strictly belonging to Jongin only, in hand, Luhan should’ve known better that not all things coming from Sehun’s mouth are lies.

“He likes to pretend that he’s Canadian when in reality he really is Chinese,” Luhan thinks chicken makes Jongin happy, because he’s looking cute right now. “But I like him, he’s funny and buys me chicken.”

The first time Luhan had gathered his courage to finally knock on Jongin’s dance studio after days of lurking around the sidelines looking like an idiotic stalker every after class, Jongin accepts the bottle of water he had happened to buy in the vending machine (for safety measures – he reasons within himself) with a smile. They sit against the mirrors and Luhan isn’t exactly sure why he is glad they did.

“I hear you’re good,” he breaks the silence. “Sehun told me I should see you dance.” He chances a tentative look in his peripheral and realizes belatedly that, Jongin’s jaw can put shame to anyone’s. They were perfectly shaped, sculptured at its best, and flexes beautifully along with his movements. It takes him the whole time Jongin’s drinking the water to admit that he might be infatuated with the younger’s jaw.

Then he looks away the minute Jongin opens his eyes with a loud sigh of satisfaction. “Haven’t you seen me dance? Every afternoon?” Luhan can feel the burn in his left cheek from the stare Jongin is surely boring in him, “I think I’m good.”

He ignores the feeling and tries to act indifferent, “Aren’t you a little too full of yourself?”

Jongin grins and the stretch of muscles leaves Luhan apprehensive. “Why so serious?”

“I did not just hear that from you.”

Jongin laughs, “Okay. It depends on someone’s opinion.”

Luhan doesn’t know where Jongin went in college, what kind of college it was, which group he belonged, or where he usually wastes time when nothing bothers him. He could only guess that Jongin had taken up dance even before he can kill the whole population of ladies within range in just a single flick of his fingers. He’ll never admit – to anyone aside from himself, that is – that the younger’s movements were enchanting and Luhan can assume that Jongin slayed everyone in his college. “And in Sehun’s opinion, you’re good. What have you bribed him this time?”

“Bubble tea,” Jongin’s answer was simple and Luhan is close to melting because Jongin didn’t think staring at someone so intensely can be disturbing.

“Figured.”

“Are you going to pick him up later?”

“Yeah.”

The silence that follows only worsens Luhan’s situation. Perhaps this was a bad idea from the start because the older can only survive enough with two brats; having three sticking to him could surely put him in insanity. Although Jongin hasn’t warmed up to him completely (Luhan reminds himself this because there is no guarantee that the younger would be satisfied and only do simple things like a bit of teasing), having Oh Sehun as a best friend can give away so many things.

There’s a shuffling beside him and Luhan breathes finally when the burning sensation slowly fades away.

“Give me your phone.”

What greets the older, when shock and uncertainty gets the better of him to unconsciously whip his head towards the younger, was Jongin having a glaring contest with his own phone. He’s only a second delayed but complies anyway.

Jongin makes quick and definite movements that Luhan can only stare at his side profile. He reasons that, because Luhan cannot think of anything better to excuse his current obsession with Jongin’s jaw. “Text me when you get there. Sehun’s been bothering me lately. He said I don’t visit him anymore.”

Luhan nods and takes back the phone with startled eyes. He fights the urge to punch Jongin’s jaw (because no one would dare to scar that precious part of his face, not even himself) when the younger laughs at him. “Oh shut it, will you.”

“You’re cute, like Kyungsoo hyung.” Jongin pinches his cheeks but Luhan doesn’t pry away his hands because of the sting, he does because Kyungsoo was small and has owlish eyes. And Luhan would provide Jongin his hundred and one answers why he is anything but like Kyungsoo. Luhan’s high gelled hair would speak for himself.

Feeling offended and a little suffocated (for he wasn’t over Jongin’s jaw just yet and would probably confess his sudden undying love for the said body part if he stays a little bit longer to stare at them) Luhan stands up from his position and stomps his way to the door. His phone weighing a little bit heavy in his pocket and his cheeks a proud shade of pink. Jongin’s surely watching him leave and Luhan tries to think of Tao and pandas, of Sehun and koalas, to distract himself. He also pretends he didn’t just imagine Jongin’s eyes when he shouted, “Watch me dance hyung.”

He didn’t text Jongin.

But the younger was already there when he arrived that Luhan wonders if he had mistakenly sent the message after all. He prays to all the Gods that he hasn’t as he walks to the table, Jongin was smiling and Luhan wants to take a glance at his jaw.

“You didn’t text me,” he says as soon as Luhan takes the seat across from him – he briefly notes that it was the same table they had sat upon last month.

“I was about to,” he lies and secretly thanks whoever answered his prayers so quickly.

“Anyways,” Jongin is jumpy but Luhan is sure it wasn’t on the edge kind of jumpy. He almost looks cheery. Jongin must’ve missed Sehun and Luhan doesn’t know what he should think about that. “Yixing’s craving for calories and came with me, he’s in the toilet. I texted Tao to be fair, but he’s holding up the line for quite a while now – not that there’s plenty in line,” Jongin gestures to the counter with his puckered lips and Luhan doesn’t miss the heavenly sculptured jaw of the younger this time.

What Luhan did obviously miss and wondered how, was his tall Chinese friend undoubtedly flirting with the tall anemic-looking cashier. Sehun is ugly when he smiles, Luhan had told him about it a couple of times already.

“Oh.”

He stops the daggers he’s been sending towards his friends and looks up at the familiar voice of Zhang Yixing. “Hey.”

“Why does it feel awkward?” Jongin interjects, glancing between the two after a few seconds of airy silence and Yixing just standing there.

“I don’t know about you,” Yixing playfully winks at him and takes the chair beside him. He looks at Luhan, “Do you feel awkward, hyung?”

“Not at all.”

For the rest of the time, he watches how Jongin playfully teases Yixing and how the latter answers animatedly. He joins the tan at some point in the conversation just to try not to look like an unwanted guest and slips off some words in his mother tongue in excitement to result in Yixing grinning from ear to ear whenever he opens his mouth. Jongin must’ve meant that Yixing’s been craving for home earlier because after the incident, Yixing seems to be glowing. He urges Tao, and the younger was more than happy to comply that he suddenly turned into Chinese within a second of talking in Korean, when the manager deemed it enough and forcefully clocked Sehun out and them into the sidewalk.

“He’s been talking about stars lately, so I figured he misses his mom.” Jongin tells him as the three walk ahead, too occupied in their own conversation to notice them leaving the two behind. Luhan is sure Sehun doesn’t understand anything that comes out of Yixing’s and Tao’s lips despite him nodding his head countless of times. After all, Sehun’s range in foreign language only consists of hi, hey, and thank you in English.

Luhan wonders when Jongin met Sehun, because as far as Luhan is concerned, Sehun doesn’t have it in him to care for others (aside from Tao, he corrects himself), much more to rub that kindness towards his friends. But maybe, Luhan had judge Jongin a little too early.

“You could’ve just told me.”

“But you walked out on me and didn’t bother to text me,” the older blames it on the younger when he smiles softly at him that he forgets about his retort. “But I told you to do so when you get there, didn’t I? So I guess it was my fault.”

Luhan slowly scratches the word conceited he had added in Jongin’s name.

Maybe, it was disappointment (Luhan isn’t sure but the feeling is too familiar to be mistaken for anything aside from that) he had felt when he boarded the bus with Sehun (he doesn’t want to admit that he had wished for Jongin to be living in another part of the city like them rather in the heart of it) alone.

“Hyung,” the older alarmingly takes his eyes away from the passing scenery and stares knowingly at the younger when Sehun curls himself beside him on the bus. “Teach me Chinese?” Sehun had puckered his thin lips and widened his suddenly glistening eyes. Luhan remembers that Jongin gets what he wants without even doing anything about it and belatedly amuses himself that he wants to teach Jongin instead.

He groans and blames it all on the younger’s jaw. “Have Tao teach you.”

Sehun visibly brightens on that and claims that Luhan was the best gift he had received in his life. The older doesn’t even bother to cover his ears when Sehun takes everything back right away – because Tao is the best gift I had received, I know you understand hyung. You’ll be my favorite hyung instead, how’s that sound? Or do you want me to start calling you gege? I’ve heard Tao calling you and Yixing hyung gege all night. What’s that mean? And Tao looks so hot while he speaks Chinese, he’s much cooler. But his Korean is also cute, it makes him so adorable. Ah, Luhan hyung what do I do? What d––

Luhan had taken it upon himself to start small conversations with Yixing and indulges in the younger’s smiles when their language turns to Chinese. Mostly, it was Luhan who speaks the language first – for the older had figured that Yixing is not only shy to start them but also to speak them around others. Luhan doesn’t mind though, Yixing has beautiful dimples and Baekhyun had been praising him how the Chinese turned a little attentive since that night.

“Minseok hyung went to China with an exchange student program for a year and had met Yixing hyung,” Baekhyun tells him as they walk back out of the building. Kyungsoo had announced during their last break that he’ll be making a feast regarding Yixing’s comeback and went upstairs, leaving his remaining class in the hands of Jongdae. Yixing doesn’t know any of this, though.

“And when Yixing hyung came to Korea to pursue dancing, he contacted Minseok hyung,” the younger continues. “He had a few classes with Jongin and the two were always paired up, then everything just flows.”

The flat looks exactly the same the last time he was there. The only difference would be the added cheerfulness in the atmosphere. The distinct laughter of Jongin and the newly found happiness in them, Luhan would dare say that he looks glowing as he plays with Yixing and he would even say the same for the latter.

“See what we mean?”

He gets pushed down in between Chanyeol and Kris on the couch. Luhan tries so hard not to feel humiliated with their sitting height but when Sehun barges in like he owns the place (the older glares at the hand he’s holding while Tao does a lame attempt to hide behind the walking stick) and nonchalantly points that out, Luhan questions his life.

“You’ll get used to it,” Chanyeol pats his back and gestures at Kris’. “He’s dating Joonmyun hyung, and you’re taller than his boyfriend.”

Luhan doesn’t know what Chanyeol is trying to say but smiles anyway.

“Small guys are cute,” Jongin throws in the air and Yixing shoves him until he lands on his side.

“Shut up Jongin,” Minseok shouts from the kitchen and Luhan is curious but at the same time wouldn’t want to know why Kris’ stares are so intimidating.

“Guys, Jongin says I’m cute,” Kyungsoo says appearing from the kitchen with a spatula in hand that Luhan doesn’t think of as a weapon to hurt others. But Kyungsoo thinks otherwise, as he smacks Jongin upside down while winking at the older like he’s petting a dog.

The next time Luhan picks Sehun up, he finds himself sitting on the same table for the third time with a grinning Yixing, a glaring Jongin, an amused Baekhyun, and a lost Chanyeol sitting across him. He also finds himself in disbelief when their table gets longer by the time Kyungsoo drags Minseok in with him, and Tao leaves Sehun do his job to sit by his side. It’s already midnight and normal people should already be sleeping by this time, unfortunately, Luhan accepts the fact that he had befriended the opposite of normal.

“At least call Kris hyung or Joonmyun hyung to feed us.” Jongin grunts, squeezing Yixing’s cheeks in an attempt to erase the smile.

“Stop it. Ow,” Yixing pries Jongin’s unrelenting hands away in failure. “Luhan ge, help me.”

“Jongin”

The amusement in Baekhyun’s eyes deepens when the younger dejectedly backs away and Luhan doesn’t know what to do with that. He hears Jongin grunting something more under his breath before he left the table. “What’s going on?” he asks.

“Don’t worry about it,” Kyungsoo supplies. “It’s Jongin’s time of the month.”

Luhan is about to point out that time of the month are only for girls but decides to swallow them, rather, he watches as Chanyeol fumbles in his phone with clumsy fingers.

“Baekhyun caught Jongin while he was trying to sneak out and Yixing had asked if he’s meeting you,” Minseok whispers next to him as they walk to the bus station. Jongin had glued himself to Sehun and declared world war three to all of them. Tao tried to protest but Jongin had flipped him off before he could even start. Sehun also tried his luck to convince Jongin that Tao didn’t do anything wrong but the tan male began narrating their history as best friends since diapers and how Jongin introduced Sehun to his one great love – bubble tea, and that did everything. Sehun started cooing how no one understands Jongin beside him, how nobody appreciates Jongin aside from him.

All Luhan gets from this was that, Kim Jongin was one hell of a giant baby with an equal plastic giant of a best friend. When they reach home, Luhan ungracefully shuts the door in Sehun’s face and boy, did it felt satisfying.

He didn’t think it was possible for him to get used to the beauty of Jongin’s jaw, but Luhan did. And now, his twinkling eyes wander down instead of staring at them when he used to. But somehow, Luhan found Jongin’s hand a little beautiful, too. Although, Baekhyun claims that no one would compare to his hands (the older agrees on that), Luhan thinks Jongin’s hands were beautiful just right.

They were big. But not as big as Chanyeol’s, nor was it that monstrously huge like Kris’ (Luhan swears he had felt shivers running down his spine that one time Kris patted him on the shoulder). The younger also has beautiful long fingers which slightly curve upwards at the tip. Though not in comparison with Baekhyun’s model like, lady like, fingers. But Luhan saw just how elegant Jongin’s fingers were every time he dances ballet.

Those long, bony, yet slender (at the edges) fingers, dances like wild daisies in the middle of an open vast of green fields.

Jongin doesn’t even need music to have them moving along, neither the needed for choreography to have them mesmerize Luhan each time it catches his eyes. Yet they do and Luhan is starting to have trouble keeping his eyes trained on anything but the younger’s hands. They just simply land on places normal people wouldn’t think of anything twice about them.

Luhan used to belong to the population of normal people, used to – he repeats to himself and sighs.

“Something wrong?” For once, Luhan isn’t sitting on a fast food chain in the middle of the night with Jongin.

However, the older still found himself sitting across from Jongin on a Sunday afternoon. “Oh, nothing.”

Jongin’s staring at him inquisitively and Luhan offers him a small smile. The cafe is mostly occupied by couples and the smell of freshly brewed coffee heightens the almost romantic atmosphere. Luhan should not be affected by any of it, for he was already over high school. But Jongin’s gaze doesn’t falter that all the older could do is to back off and land his eyes at their table.

Where Jongin’s hand are placed – one around his mug and the other on his phone.

Luhan should really not be affected by any of it. Then again, Sehun had frankly pointed it out just before he leaves their flat that Luhan is a little over-dressed for a simple coffee. Luhan had stumbled in his steps then but regained his composure and slammed the door before Sehun could add more to his growing humiliation.

The older had already resigned and found a new job, been into a couple of employee gatherings and such things. Still, when he woke up to a new message from an unknown number this morning, Luhan didn’t think graduating from high school would chase him down.

“Ow!” The older glares at Sehun and slaps his fingers away.

“What are you thinking of so seriously that you cannot be bothered to listen to what I just said? Did you even know that I’m here?”

Luhan thinks of Jongin dancing ballet, of his pointing toes and curling fingers. Of him biting his nails as he anxiously think of what went wrong. Of Jongin waving his hand as Luhan bid them goodbye. And Luhan is still thinking of Jongin’s fingers curling around his wrist as the younger drags him into the lounge that afternoon. Sehun is looking suspicious right now but Luhan can feel the heat around his wrist.

“What are you even doing here at this time? Shouldn’t you be at work?” He dodges the question and throws one to mislead the younger.

But Luhan never had luck in his name when Sehun scoffed and, “See? I’ve been telling you this whole time that they moved my day off to Tuesdays instead of Fridays. I swear they’re plotting some conspiracy behind my back, this is so sudden. I think someone’s jealous of me. Don’t you think so? Anyways before I continue ranting on you and you hearing nothing from it, what’s been occupying your mind lately? Jongin said you’ve been spacing out these past few weeks, he’s afraid that Yixing hyung is rubbing on you. Is he?”

Luhan isn’t aware. And that’s the only thing he understands from what Sehun had just said.

“Come on, tell your handsome best friend what is wrong. Go on, I’m all ears, don’t be shy.”

However, he is aware of the fact that Sehun looks so nauseating with his shining thin lips and sweet vomiting voice. “You make me sick.”

“Aww, you poor baby deer. Want me to pamper you?” Luhan throws the nearest object his hand had happened to land on – the remote control, at Sehun. To his dismay, it only managed to hit his shoulder.

“If that thing broke, I swear I’ll make you pay for a new TV set,” Sehun glares at him but Luhan has more things bothering him than to cower at that stare. Like, what Sehun’s wearing.

“Dude, your shirt is gay.”

“If you haven’t noticed, I love sword fighting and I’m obviously aware that I’m far more attracted to Huang Zitao than Chanyeol hyung’s sister, thank you very much.”

“He has a sister?” Sehun nods. “Wait, that doesn’t matter. Why are you wearing that hideous shirt? Haven’t you seen how many smiling hearts it has?”

Luhan shudders the moment Sehun brightens up. He had just called Sehun’s shirt ugly, the younger shouldn’t feel happy about it. “Luhan, Luhan, Luhan. It’s February, the love month. Don’t you feel it in the air?”

That time in the café last Sunday, the amount of lovebirds he saw walking pass them, the amount of love songs playing back then, the atmosphere. It explains. Luhan sighs, high school wasn’t out to take him. It is just the month, he thinks – believes – as he unconsciously wraps his fingers around his wrist. “So?”

Sehun animatedly deflates, “Ugh. Why aren’t you getting any of it? Its Valentine’s this week, on Friday! Hello? Friday? I can’t have a date this Friday with Tao if my manager doesn’t change my schedule back. I seriously swear, that if I can’t get any this Friday, I won’t let her have some too. Why does Valentine’s even fall on that day? I don’t even have chocolates yet. Do you know how to make one? Or should I just buy some and melt them and remold them after? Couldn’t it j––”

Luhan thinks this is what Kyungsoo meant, “Sehun.”

“What?” He asks irritated, definitely on his man-period.

“I was just asking about the shirt.”