It doesn’t take long for Luhan to become quickly accustomed to the new city, and his work schedule. When he wasn’t filming or partaking in photo shoots around the city, he was getting himself acquainted with the city’s dazzling nightlife.

The time within Phoenix City passes by in a whirlwind for the models and their manager, and Luhan eventually finds himself back in his Capital City apartment, the city of smoke and ashes long behind him.

He hadn't completely forgotten his laundry list of Capital City problems. However, being in a new and foreign city had thrown things out of perspective, it had put a veil over things, and obscured them from view. Being away from the Capital City had helped Luhan forget the severity of all the things he’d brush off, up until he was back in his lonesome apartment feeling the heavy weight of secrets and lies clinging forcefully to his shoulders.

Eventually when being alone becomes too much, Luhan finds his distraction in the form of Kim Minseok. A brief conversation through phone messages has Luhan out the door later in the evening, heading to Nessen to see the secretary. The model had returned back to the city long after Minseok’s lunch, and despite the fact that he could have possibly found something to keep him busy in the large company building, Luhan was doing his best to avoid having as little interaction with President Kim as possible. The older man was another of his many problems, and Luhan knew that President Kim was basking in the newfound power he had over him.

When he arrives at the office, Minseok is not sitting at his impersonal modestly decorated desk as usual. Luhan figures that he’s probably on a small last-minute errand, and retires himself to a seat in the far corner of the room, beside the massive glass window. Luhan doesn’t count the time as he waits for Minseok to come back to his desk, but it’s a good five to ten minutes before he hears a door opening and watches as Minseok leaves President Kim’s office.

There is a deep frown on Minseok’s lips, and he stares so intently at the ground it looks as if he wants to burn a hole through the carpet. The sight reminds Luhan of all the times he’d left President Kim’s office in that exact same manner, and Luhan’s sure if he uncurled Minseok’s tight fists, there would be deep red crescents in his palms from every time he clenched his hands to stop himself from speaking out.

“Are you okay,” Luhan asks, eyes still examining Minseok. Minseok’s eyes quickly look up to meet Luhan’s and a smile that resembles a grimace graces his lips.

“I’m fine,” Minseok says, despite the fact that he still appears extremely perturbed in Luhan’s eyes. He looks as if he wants to head over to Luhan, but instead he drops his gaze and focuses on gathering his few things. “Did you wait long?”

Luhan shakes his head and stands, “I’ve only been here for a few minutes. Did you miss me?”

Minseok looks up to meet his eyes once more, as he puts his coat on. There is a hint of a grin that’s very similar to his usual playful personality. “Of course I did, you’re one of the few people that flirt with me every chance you get.”

“Few,” Luhan repeats, eyes narrowing in suspicion. “There are others?”

“Well I’m not a model or anything, but I don’t think my looks are that terrible,” Minseok replies, stepping from behind his desk to stand in front of Luhan.

“I didn’t mean it that way,” Luhan says voice barely above a whisper as Minseok smiles at him as if he’s the funniest thing to grace the earth.

Minseok doesn’t speak until Luhan’s lips are pulling back into an uncertain smile, and once he does his tone is an effortless mixture of flirty and teasing. “You’re the only one that gets flustered when I flirt back.”

Somewhere in the back of Luhan’s mind there is a voice reminding him that he and Minseok are supposed to be friends, and friends don’t behave in the way they are. It’s a dangerous road to travel down, but Luhan welcomes the distraction from serious thoughts and emotions, and he’s sure Minseok needs it as well.

He’s curious about the conversation that went on beyond the heavy Oak doors of President Kim’s office, but from his own experiences he’d learnt that it was always better not to ask.

****

As Luhan drives Minseok home, he notices how distracted the secretary seems. Minseok eyes were stuck on the window beside him, lips pulled down into a frown, and Luhan can only assume that he was thinking through whatever had transpired in President Kim’s office. Whatever was going through his head, rather it be President Kim or something else, led to another muting tension within the car. Luhan wanted to say something, speak up and get Minseok from whatever terrible thoughts were running through his head, but at the moment Luhan’s very own thoughts and emotions were distracting him.

“I’m curious,” Minseok announces, as they travel through the city, the traffic lighter than the last time Luhan had driven Minseok home.

Luhan’s eyes flicker to him, but refocuses on the road when he realizes that Minseok hadn’t bother to look at him.  “About what,” he asks.

“What did you do before you met me?” Minseok asks. “When it was too early in the day to go to a club or bar.”

“Well I was definitely working a lot more,” Luhan says, doing his best to keep the bitterness from his voice. As soon as they arrived back in the city, Kai was ushered off to a photo shoot, while Sehun had a couple of his own to worry about come tomorrow. Luhan’s schedule was clear for the rest of the week.

“You’re still not getting any work,” Minseok asks. There’s something in his tone, and Luhan’s not sure if it’s pity or worry. He figures it’s the former, why would Minseok care if he had work or not, the lack of schedules wouldn’t put a dent in his livelihood.

“It’s to be expected,” Luhan says. “I’ve been doing this for years. Most people want the prestige of Nessen representing their brands without the same tired old face.” Another quick glance to Minseok and Luhan sees him biting his lip in thought.

“How long have you been modeling,” Minseok asks.

“Since fourteen,” Luhan answers. He can hear the subtle intake of breath that gives away Minseok’s surprise and can’t help the smile that graces his lips. “I’m President Kim’s biggest asset. That’s why he’s so taken with me.” He knows he sounds arrogant, and sure he could be arrogant to a fault, but the amount of blood, sweat, and tears shed to become Nessen’s Golden Boy had earned him his bragging rights. It wasn’t the job he had wanted, but it was all he knew.

“I guess I understand now,” Minseok says almost as if he’s talking to himself.

“Understand what,” Luhan asks. They finally meet eyes, but Luhan quickly tears his gaze away to focus on the road.

“You’re his favorite,” Minseok tells him. The word seeps into his mind, and sits there for a moment before he really registers it. His first thought is to laugh, he’s far from being anyone’s favorite especially President Kim’s, but he thinks about it more. There is some truth in Minseok’s words, but favorite isn’t the correct term. President Kim had invested time and money into turning Luhan into what he is today, he was highly valuable to the older man, and that wasn’t as great of a thing as it might have seemed.

The pair arrive at Minseok’s house, earlier than the last time Luhan had driven them, and like the previous time Luhan casts a look around the area. The brightest lights come from the distance, where twinkling gold chemical plant and factory lights shine in the dark. The debilitating feeling of bittersweet nostalgia begins to rear up within Luhan, as he turns off his car and looks over to Minseok.

Minseok’s eyes are trained on him, intense and unreadable in the shadowy darkness of the vehicle. “I’ll get your suit,” he says, voice low. Luhan watches as he unbuckles the seatbelt around him and starts to exit the car. He mimics Minseok, and quickly undoes his seatbelt, following after him.

“What are you doing,” Minseok asks, throwing an inquisitive glance to Luhan as the younger male rounds the car and heads towards his house.

“Coming with you to get my suit,” Luhan answers simply.

“My parents are inside,” Minseok points out, as he follows Luhan through the gates of his house and up the steps.

“I know,” Luhan replies. He stops right in front of the door and looks at Minseok in question. If Minseok tells him to wait in the car, then he’ll go back without a fuss, but he needs to say it. Luhan doesn’t want to be left alone in the dark bleakness of District Eight, but more importantly he wants to see what lies inside the only lit house on the street.

Minseok doesn’t tell him to wait in the car, he stares at him as if trying to guess Luhan’s motives and when he’s done he heaves a heavy sigh and moves towards the door.

“I’m home,” the older male calls out softly as he enters, toeing off his shoes in the process. Luhan follows him in, sticking close behind him as he enters a small cold living room. In the middle of a chestnut brown sofa sits a tiny older woman with a blue blanket wrapped around her thin shoulders.

“Mom,” Minseok calls out stepping forward and holding Luhan by the cuff of his sleeve.

Minseok’s mother turns around, a bright smile already painted on her lips, as she mutters a raspy “welcome home.”  When she notices Luhan standing curiously behind Minseok her smile drops, and her eyes shine with confusion. “Who is this,” she asks next, and Luhan can here the fear in her voice as clear as day.

Minseok’s mother is a gaunt woman, bordering on the line of almost too thin. There are wrinkles around and eyes detailing her age, but the most striking part of her appearance is that one eye is a normal light honey brown, and the other seems to be covered by a cloudy sheet of white.

To cover up the fact that he’d been staring rather blatantly at her bad eye, Luhan gives the woman a small reassuring smile and bows in greeting. If Minseok notices the sudden change in his usually aloof manner, he doesn’t say much and instead rests a hand over his mother’s, and pulls Luhan closer to him.

“This is Luhan,” Minseok introduces. “He’s a model from my company.”

“A model,” she repeats, seeming to relax at his words, she lifts her eyes to Luhan and a hint of a smile resurfaces onto her face. “Ah, well you are rather handsome Luhan.” There’s a lift to her words, a playfulness that reminds Luhan very much of Minseok, and he smiles at the compliment, beaming as he bows his head once more in respect.

“Thank you Ma’am,” he replies. Minseok tugs softly at his sleeve a second later and Luhan straightens up and looks towards him in question.

Minseok isn’t staring at him though, instead his eyes are solely on his mother. “I’m taking Luhan to my room, so that he can get his suit.” His mother remains silent, but eventually she nods her head and turns to face the television once more.

Luhan allows Minseok to drag him along without complaint, and instead takes the chance to look around. Minseok's house isn’t decorated in gaudy accessories. It’s subtle. There are flowers, real inexpensive flowers nestled in water-filled vases, and pretty abstract paintings that aren’t the same old Monet and da Vinci recreations that existed in every District One home.

Beside Minseok’s bedroom is a closed door with bright pink, purple, and yellow flowers painted on it and the cursive spelling of a girl’s name. “I thought you were an only child,” Luhan says once they’re in Minseok’s room.

Luhan didn’t have much of a preconceived idea of how Minseok’s room would look. Minseok was a neat person, it was obvious from the way he’d kept his desk, and his room showed that. There are only a few pieces of furniture, and even less electronics. Just like his desk back at Nessen, his room feels rather impersonal. “Did you stay in this room your whole life?”

Minseok glances at him, and Luhan notices a smile on his lips as he heads over to his closet to get Luhan's suit. “Which should I answer first,” he muses aloud, pulling out a garment bag in the process. “I was the only child my parents were able to keep.” The way Minseok says it, it almost sounds like it wasn’t a painful memory, just a simple unchanging fact, but Luhan doesn’t ask more. He decides maybe he’ll ask later, but for the moment Luhan doesn’t want to turn his visit into something terrible. He had already frightened Minseok’s mother, and the last thing he wanted was to bring up terrible memories from Minseok’s past.

“Yes, I’ve lived here my entire life,” Minseok says next. “I know it’s nothing like your massive apartment.”

“I really wasn’t comparing it to my apartment,” Luhan says, even though he knows Minseok is joking. He was comparing the room though. He was comparing it to his own room from when he was a child. In Luhan’s old house he’d decorated his room with super-stick planet stickers he’d won at school. He’s more than sure that if he had still lived there, some of those stickers would still be on the wall, probably hidden behind something, but still in existence. His own apartment, was still a bit childish in the way it had little sentimental items loitering about. Maybe Minseok tucked all his sentimental trinkets away from prying eyes.

”I don’t really care if it’s smaller than my apartment. It's just I expected to maybe see pieces of your childhood since you've been in this room your whole life."

“Is that why you wanted to come into my house,” Minseok asks. “To see pieces of my childhood.”

“Yes,” Luhan admits, even if that’s only half the truth. “I wanted to see how little Minnie grew up.”

“Little Minnie,” Minseok echoes, barely able to contain his laughter long enough to repeat Luhan’s silly nickname.

“I’m disappointed,” Luhan says, as his lips pull into a fake frown, a twinkle of humor rests in his brown eyes as he continues to play along. He sits himself down on Minseok’s plush bed, hearing the springs squeak softly underneath his weight.

“Are you,” Minseok asks. Luhan opens his mouth to respond, but falters once he meets Minseok eyes dead on. Instead he lets his tongue dart out to at dry lips, and notices the way Minseok’s gaze drops swiftly to watch the action, only meeting Luhan’s eyes seconds later. “What kind of friends are we again?”

Luhan’s eyes widen at the question, recalling their previous conversation in Luhan’s car before he had left the city for a week of work. Minseok wanted to kiss him, and was asking if it was okay for them to do it.

Luhan does want to kiss him, he’s just about lightheaded from want. He wants to, but he doesn’t think he has as good as a hold on his feelings as Minseok seems to. Luhan tends to fall hard and fast, and a few noncommittal kisses might not hurt, but he doesn’t want to take a chance when his mind and heart are already warring over what Minseok really means to him.

“I don’t know,” he admits in a near whisper. It’s a bit funny how the air, thick with desire, seems to become lighter, easy to breathe in, and the fluttering in his chest, as if his heart was doing somersaults, seems to ease up only slightly.  Minseok’s eyes lose their intensity as he gives an understanding smile to Luhan.

“Okay,” Minseok says sticking his hand out to Luhan, which he grabs and allows Minseok to help him to his feet. “We’ll figure it out another time.”

Luhan follows behind him silently as he gets lost in his thoughts. The time away from Minseok had given him the chance to put some of his feelings into perspective. Luhan was deeply attracted to Minseok, and Minseok seemed to hold some of that attraction as well, but for their own reasons they were both really reluctant in taking things farther and crossing that invisible line that separated them.

Luhan knows his reasons for being hesitant, his feelings for Minseok are vastly different than his past lovers. He wants the relationship he has with his close friends with Minseok. He wants the easy-going playfulness that they currently have, but he also wants to have the love, the , the raw hypnotizing energy, that usually came with a new relationship. He also wanted longevity. With Kim Minseok, Luhan was yearning for something he wasn’t sure even existed.

Luhan breaks from his thoughts when he feels a soft tugging on the sleeve of his shirt. He looks up just as Minseok turns and smiles at him. “My father’s here,” Minseok tells him in warning.

Luhan continues down the steps of the house, following after Minseok once more and stopping in the living room. Minseok’s mother is still sitting on the sofa with her wool blanket tightly wound around her frail shoulders, but beside her sits a man dressed in his winter gear listening as she talks in excited whispered tones.

Minseok calls for them, and they turn to face him, Minseok's mother almost bouncing with excitement, and his father the calmer of the two. Luhan lets Minseok pull him over to the two seated, and takes the time to properly look over the couple in front of him. Minseok looks more like his mother, they have the same eyes, and despite her fragile appearance there is a youthfulness that reminded Luhan of Minseok. Minseok’s father has that common weathered look people who work in factories usually have where the grease of machines have coated them like a second inerasable layer of skin.

Minseok has his father's nature. The man has a strong air around him, he doesn't hold himself as if he's in the lower class, yet he doesn't have any of the pomposity that usually sticks to the upper class.

"This is Luhan," Minseok's mother introduces, with a large smile on her face as if she hadn’t been frightened by him only a few moments ago. Luhan watches from his place beside Minseok as Minseok's father throws his wife a quizzical look. He then turns towards Luhan, and silently studies the model.

"Lu Han," he repeats, staring directly into Luhan's eyes and putting a space in between the two syllables. "Your last name is Lu?"

The surprise comes sudden, and Luhan breathes in a quick inaudible breath. "No," he replies, shaking his head and hoping to disguise the shock he had initially felt. "Luhan is my first name." He can feel Minseok's gaze hot on his skin, and ignores it, instead focusing on Minseok’s father who stares at him just as intently.

The rest of the meeting continues on smoothly, and afterwards Minseok walks him out. "I don't know your surname," Minseok tells him as he follows Luhan out of the door and towards his car.

"I don't have one," Luhan says.

"Everyone has a surname," Minseok replies.

"Saying I don't have one is a lot easier than explaining that I'm not allowed to use my surname," Luhan explains with a sigh. He turns towards Minseok, and smiles just slightly. “How about instead of talking about that, I tell you something about my childhood instead, since you showed me the home you grew up in.”

 Minseok frowns and his eyebrows furrow together slightly, contemplating rather or not he should go along with Luhan’s plan. “Fine,” he says. “Tell me something new about you.”

“I used to live not too far from here,” Luhan tells him. “About ten minutes away I believe.”

The look of disbelief Minseok presents him with has Luhan smile brightening slightly. “You used to live in District Eight?”

Luhan makes an affirmative noise, nodding his head. “It was a long time ago. Now I’m just a boy from District Two.”

Minseok doesn’t speak, but when he does the frown is back on his face. “Why are you telling me this?”

It’s a good question, an understandable question. Luhan’s past wasn’t exactly a secret, but the only people who knew of it were his childhood friends and President Kim. He hadn’t revealed it because he thought Minseok would feel closer to him, knowing they’ve lived in the same place as children. He hadn’t even revealed it to keep Minseok from asking about his surname. The reason he revealed it was because he wanted to.

“You know all these rumors about me,” Luhan starts, “I thought I’d tell you one fact that no tabloid or gossiping coworker of yours would ever know. Plus I wanted to even the score, you let me into something private, and I wanted to do the same, only those I find important know my background.”

Maybe next chapter there will be actual kissing and not almost kissing lol I really want to write kissing. Anyway, I think I told someone in a comment once that I left a few hints throughout the story. I don't think they're big enough for you figure out some of the things Luhan and Minseok may be hiding so you don't need to go back and look for them, but I figured I'd tell you now in case you ever thought there was a secret meaning behind a word or action.