Of food.

Food was flying everywhere and the dining hall was a wreck. An utter chaos. Few students that valued their lives cowered under the long tables, some under the benches and the others thought it was amusing to try to make the food that they supposed to consume in the first place grew wings.

Tao looked past all the flying meals to the centre of the room, more precisely, towards the two students that were standing on top of one of the tables, having an epic battle of food. One of the two was actually winning and the other one was holding his hands up in defeat while trying to avoid from getting slaughtered by the flying food that the former was throwing at him mercilessly.

Tao blinked. Wasn’t that the student council’s secretary? What was his name again?

Ah, Chen. He was losing.

Suddenly, a loud SPLAT was heard near where Tao stood. In fact, it sounded very near, just beside him.

He turned his head to the side and his eyes immediately widen in shock.

Kris’ face was splattered with a brutally destroyed pie and the mushy substance was dripping slowly down his face, covering almost his entire face. He saw Kris’ eyebrow twitched along with the mushy mess that covered the said eyebrow.

Seemed like Tao was not the only one who heard the president got splattered with a pie because he noticed the entire hall had gone silent and was watching the president with matching expressions of dread.

Except the two students that were on the table earlier that were still being loud, oblivious to the murderous intent that Kris oozed.

“You ing cheater!”

“Min-Minseokkie, baby, it’s not like that!”

“DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE!!!!!”

“Aaaaaaahhhh!!!!”

Kris slowly raised his free hand and wiped the mess on his handsome face to reveal a surprisingly calm face. Tao glanced up and saw his vein practically trying to burst from his temple.

He gulped.

“Kai, go take your boyfriend to his room. He fainted outside.” Kris said to the room, his tone neutral.

Tao watched Kai dropped the metal tray in his hands with a loud clang and took quick strides across the room towards them. It was obvious he was relieved to have been excused out of the room but before he could pass Kris on his way out, the latter put his pie covered hand on his shoulder, stopping him in his track.

“I know it was you who threw the pie, Kim Jongin.” Kris grounded out low enough for only Tao and Kai to hear.

Kai paled and he was released with a hard squeeze on the shoulder.

Then, Kris slipped his hand out of Tao’s and strode forward into the room, toward the two boys on the table. The students parted to give way to the president, purposely avoiding his eyes.

“Suho, go get Yixing.”

Before, the students were feeling dreadful but after only hearing the captain’s name, they were downright horrified. Suho rolled out of his hiding place under one of the benches and stood up shakily. Tao felt a spark of sympathy towards the vice-president as he took in the latter’s appearance. The poor lad was obviously a victim in the middle of the battlefield. He looked thoroughly shaken with pieces of food stuck in his once impeccable hair.

Kris stopped beside the table where the two fighters were getting more physical.

“Xiumin.”

The supposedly Xiumin did not seem to hear him because he kept pulling at Chen’s hair mercilessly.

“Xiumin.” Kris tried again.

“You dare to cheat on me?! The perfect me?!!”

“Babe, I’m sorry! Let’s talk this out, k-kay?”

“Kim Minseok.”

“WHAT?!”

Xiumin snapped his head and glared at the unwelcome newcomer but only to freeze, hands stilling from their vigorous act of pulling at Chen’s patch of hair.

Chen blinked his eyes open when the assault stopped. He looked up, his lips started to blossom into a hopeful smile but he too froze when his gaze landed on Kris.

“K-K-Kris...”

Kris quirked his lips in a smile.

And at that moment, Kim Minseok and Kim Jongdae heard the cliché sound effect of a thunder, signalling their doom.

~~*~~

“I expected better from you, Xiumin.”

After the dining hall was finally restored to its usual clean state and the traumatized cooks in-charged were apologized to, the students were gathered in the middle of the dining hall, kneeling on the floor with each a metal tray on their heads.

Xiumin bowed his head shamefully at the disappointment that was clear in Kris’ tone of voice.

“And you guys,” Kris glared at the other students who flinched at his harsh gaze. “You’re supposed to prevent the food fight not join in. You-”

Kris closed his eyes, praying for patience.

“How did this happen?”

“I got angry. He cheated on me. Again.” Xiumin glared at his boyfriend.

“No, I didn’t!” Chen protested.

“I saw it with my own two eyes!”

“You misunderstood!”

“Hah! The same boring excuse! You’re so not creative!”

“Well, excuse you, not everyone-”

 “ENOUGH!”

The dining hall went silent again and Kris sighed, rubbing his temple to keep the oncoming headache at bay. He shouldn’t have asked. This happened many times already, the same reason over and over again. He sighed again.

“You two, I said this already. Please keep your affairs to yourselves. Do you have to destroy the dining hall each time?”

Chen and Xiumin glanced at each other before looking away with a huff.

“Also, Xiumin, I think he cheated on you enough. Aren’t you tired? Why don’t you just break it off?”

Chen in a loud breath at the suggestion. Affronted.

“I am tired.” Xiumin muttered. Chen whipped his head to look at his lover fearfully.

“But I can’t break it off. I love the idiot too much.”

The rest of the students cringed and groaned at the sappiness except Chen who looked like he was about to cry soon. He put down the tray on his head on the floor before scooting towards Xiumin and doing the same.

“I love you too, Minseok-ah. Only you. Please, trust me.” He held Xiumin’s hand in his own.

“Jongdae…” Xiumin looked up with tears in his eyes.

Chen leant in to kiss the older but a shoe clad foot was suddenly jammed in between them and he ended up kissing the side of the shoe instead.

“Now, now. There are kids here.” Came the lazy drawl from none other than the captain of the Alphas.

“Yixing.”

Chen spluttered and moved his lips from Lay’s shoe.

“Yifan. Sorry, I’m late. Had to put Fluffy to sleep. He insisted on coming down with me but no worries, we bargained. I promised to take him out to eat rainbow ice-cream this weekend so all is good.”

“….that’s…good, I guess.”

“Yeah. Anyway, why don’t you go back to your room with Tao? Let me handle this.”

A chorus of terrified gasp was heard at his words.

Kris rubbed his face tiredly and nodded, “Alright.”

He moved towards the door, beckoning Tao who had finished his dinner to follow. The younger scrambled up from his seat and quickly followed the president out of the double doors. Tao chanced a glance for the last time over his shoulder and saw one of the kneeling students on the dining hall floor was looking at him and mouthing ‘Help’ to him before the double doors finally shut close.

Tao looked back at Kris, “Ge, are they going to be fine? Why are they so afraid of Lay-ge?”

A devilish glint appeared in Kris’ eyes at the question.

“Ignorance is bliss, Tao. Ignorance is bliss.”

~~*~~

The next morning saw most of the residents of the boys’ hostel sporting dark eye bags. Tao glanced around the dining hall as he ate his breakfast beside Kris. The boys were unusually quiet that morning, different from last night. Even Xiumin and Chen, the idiotic couple –as Kris had labelled them- looked tired. It must be because of what Lay did to them –Tao shuddered- or maybe it was because it was morning and they were not morning people like Kris. God knew how long it took Tao to wake the older up this morning. How Kris managed to wake up by himself before was a wonder.

Right. Speaking of this morning…

Tao chuckled to himself as he remembered seeing the president cuddling a stuffed llama to his chest and curling in a ball on the bed this morning in his pyjamas, mumbling in three different languages as Tao shook him awake.

Not so scary now, are we?

“What are you laughing at?”

Tao smiled at Kris that was looking at him strangely and shook his head, “Nothing.”

Kris stared at him for a moment until Tao squirmed in his seat and a hot blush rose to his cheeks before turning away to finish his breakfast. Tao subtly cleared his throat and went back to his meal.

I'm back~ Yeah, it's overdue but here you go.

Not much of Taoris this time but! I hope a little bit of Xiuchen will do to satiate you for the time being.

And shout-out to the old and new subbies and upvoters! 

To the lovelies who took the time to drop in their comments, thank you. Really, you guys rock.

P/S: I take it, you know that I'm a bit late when it comes to updating so bear with me, yeah? Yeah? *wink wink*