“Shixun-sshi, welcome to Incheon! I’m sorry I couldn’t provide you a better welcome dinner, but hopefully you’ll overlook the fact that this is a lacking dinner and enjoy tonight!” Minseok said before raising his beer can, “Welcome!”

Shixun looked around, not knowing what to do, before he slowly reached for his beer can, “I, uh, thank you.”

 “Minseok, calm down a little, you’re scaring him,” Yixing said while watching Minseok slump down against his seat, “and stop drinking so much.”

“It’s okay! Come on, it’s time to enjoy!” Minseok said before taking another large gulp of his beer, “Shixun, don’t be afraid and eat as much as you want!”

Shixun smiled gratefully, “I will, thank you.”

Lu Han watched silently how Minseok indulged himself into more beer, and more, not caring about Yixing’s pleads for him to stop. It reminded him of Yixing’s words, about how things were not going well, and it made him feel bad. It made him feel bad and unhappy and the more he thought about it, the more he wanted to get drunk himself. But sanity was always something Lu Han held onto with dear life, so he stopped himself from reaching for a beer can himself.

A sudden nudge caught his attention, and he looked to his side to meet with Shixun’s eyes, “What’s wrong?”

Shixun looked down at Lu Han’s empty plate, before returning his gaze to Lu Han, “You’re not eating?”

Lu Han did not reply for a moment, before grabbing his chopsticks, “Of course I am.”

Appetite was already far gone, but for the sake of putting up a pretense of carefree happiness, Lu Han forced himself to smile and stuff all sorts of food into his mouth. He must look like a mess, a person who had not eaten for days, but all of a sudden he felt so tired and he wanted to rest so eagerly. All of a sudden, so many thoughts clouded his mind that all he wanted to do is drown himself in the taste of decently cooked meat that could have had a better ending. Pretending to be truly happy felt too tiresome, so he would have to settle with a kind of happiness that was so superficial any person who paid attention to Lu Han would look right through it.

It took him a while before he noticed Shixun’s stare on him, “What?” He asked after emptying his mouth.

Shixun pointed at his chopsticks, “Your chopsticks… You’re holding them upside down.”

Lu Han glanced down, and sure enough, he was holding them the wrong way. Embarrassingly, he said, “Oh.”

“Oh,” Shixun mimicked him, eyes blinking innocently.

Lu Han’s eyes turned into small slits of suspicion as his face went closer to Shixun’s, “Where you imitating me?”

The taller male simply shrugged his shoulder, a blank expression appearing on his face as he turned his gaze back to the food, “I’ve no idea what you’re talking about.”

Lu Han was about to retort, when Yixing suddenly said, “Oh dear, Lu Han, your cousin is so cute!” The words indicating that Yixing must have heard their little conversation.

This caused Lu Han to grin, “So, he’s cuter than me?”

Yixing’s face instantly turned into a serious one, “No way, you’re still the cutest here.”

Lu Han looked at Yixing with so much hurt pride that Minseok burst out laughing and Shixun could not help but chuckle at the sight.

“Yixing, stop teasing him about it,” Minseok said while patting Yixing on the shoulder, “you know Lu Han hates to be called cute.”

“But Lu Han is cute!” Yixing said indignantly, before he turned his gaze to Shixun, “Shixun! You’re his cousin! Tell me, he must’ve looked like a girl when he was young, right?”

Shixun stopped with whatever he was doing, the hesitation swimming in his eyes as he glanced at Lu Han. Lu Han could see the uncomfortable anxiety radiating from the other, and decided to quickly take over.

“We didn’t see each other that much when we were young,” Lu Han lied as easily as he breathe.

“Oh, really? But you two must have a good relationship, for him to come all the way from Busan to Incheon and live with you in that small place of yours!” Yixing said with a bright smile, “It’s good to know that you at least have a cousin that you go along well with.”

Yixing…” Minseok said in a careful one, gaze landing hesitantly on Lu Han, “don’t…”

“What?” Yixing said, genuinely surprised at Minseok’s reaction, “I mean it in a good way!” He then gave Shixun a grateful smile, “Thank you for visiting Lu Han. You might not know it, but it means a lot to him.”

This caused Lu Han to bite down a little too harshly on his lower lip and his fingers to clench onto his chopsticks a little too strongly. He knew that Yixing was oblivious to who Shixun really was, that Yixing knew nothing and could not really be blamed for his comments, but that did not make the pain any less. It did not make things less worse for his heart.

Shixun’s eyes fluttered in shock, before he gave a soft reply, “I… I didn’t know.”

“Lu Han’s not the kind of person who’s good with words when it comes to how he feels, but he really does care a lot,” Yixing said sincerely, “and to have you live with him must mean he cares a lot about you. That brings me to something I’ve been dying to ask,” He pointed at Shixun’s bandage, “what happened to you?”

“Ah,” Shixun said while consciously touching the bandage around his head, “I just had a little accident, that’s all.”

Yixing nodded understandingly, “Take a good rest, then.”

Shixun smiled politely, “I will.”

“Hey, Yixing, help me get some beer,” Minseok said as he stood up, placing the napkin on the table, “we need more.”

“More?” Yixing said with wide eyes before he sighed, already standing up, “Alright, alright, I’m coming with you.” He then looked at Lu Han and Shixun, “You two enjoy yourselves. We’ll be right back.”

Yixing was already on his way inside the hostel to get more beer, oblivious to Minseok who was had stayed behind and had put a reassuring hand on Lu Han’s shoulder, looking down at the slightly younger male with a kind of soft sympathy that Lu Han was used to getting from Minseok. No words were spoken before Minseok left too, but Lu Han could feel his heart swell while the corners of his mouth tugged up into a little smile. He shook his head while watching Minseok’s figure, always pleasantly surprised at how the other always seems to know what he was feeling.

“I…”

Shixun’s voice caught Lu Han’s attention, and he was quick to turn his head a look the other in the eyes. Shixun was hesitant, the words lying on the tip of his tongue but he was not sure whether he should be saying them. In the end, curiosity won.

“Do we get along well?”

The question was an innocent one, nothing Lu Han did not expect Shixun to ask him. Honestly, Lu Han had expected questions that would be more personal, touching the deeper realms of his being, but Shixun was innocent, and he stayed in Lu Han’s comfort zone. Whether Shixun did it purposely or not, Lu Han was still grateful.

A smile appeared on his lips as he put a piece of meat in Shixun’s bowl, “Of course we are. You’re my only cousin.”

And Lu Han could not help but taste a little bit of bitterness that he had not expected as he smiled at Shixun, who smiled back at him, the words he had just spoken burning a little bit too uncomfortably on his tongue.

»

Lu Han’s place consisted of a small living room with an open kitchen attached to it in the corner, one claustrophobically little bathroom and one bedroom that was just big enough for one person. Clearly, Shixun’s appearance was something this place would have rather not preferred, but with the help of an old mattress placed on the ground next to Lu Han’s own bed, a few clothes thrown in the corner and a table shoved into the living room, Lu Han’s bedroom turned into a room that was borderline suitable for two people to sleep in. Shixun never complained about having to sleep on the ground, not knowing any better, and Lu Han fought back any uncomfortable feelings about having to share his bedroom with another person. Shixun was not that bad.   

“I hope you enjoyed the dinner,” Lu Han said as he lied down on his bed, glancing down at Shixun who was lying on the mattress, a thin blanket barely covering his body.

Shixun smiled, “I did.”

Lu Han smiled back, “I’m glad.”

It was not that Lu Han was particularly tired, but sleep was something he welcomed with open arms these days. It was not always like that, though, but he learned to appreciate sleeping. It took some time, lots of practice, but he managed to appreciate it. Insomnia was the worst you could experience, especially chronically.

“Could…” Shixun started, “Never mind.”

Lu Han moved his body to the side, looking at the wall in front of him while his attention was on Shixun’s voice, “What’s it?”

“I…” Shixun’s voice was gentle, but hesitant as always, “I wanted to ask about my family, but… Never mind, it’s okay, let’s sleep.”

Lu Han heard a soft movement, and he knew Shixun was turning his back to Lu Han while trying to make himself fall to sleep. Lu Han knew that kind of feeling way too well, having so many questions lingering in his head but never knowing what to do with them, whether to ask them or not, whether he wanted answers or not, but they would always haunt him at night. He knew way too well how it felt, and he never would wish anyone to feel the same. It was deadly. It killed a person from the inside.

“No,” Lu Han said, voice a little raw, “ask.”

It was silent for a moment before Shixun’s voice filled the room, “What kind of family do I have?”

It was a bomb, once again. Lu Han should have realized that with him giving Shixun permission to ask about his family, he would need to lie again. Come up with a brilliant story that would make sense, and it was not that Lu Han could not do that. It simply was tiresome, exhausting to come up with stories that were fabricated. It was not something he would want to do for a lifetime. But life never really gave him any chances to stop lying. Lying was an easy way of dealing with problems sometimes, and that was really all that mattered for Lu Han. It was not like he was a supporter of lying. He just really did not have a choice.

“You’re…” Lu Han threw his head back against his pillow, gaze landing on the ceiling of his room, “Your parents left in an accident. You… You were their only child. You were loved unconditionally.” A suffocating silence followed for Lu Han as he gulped down whatever unhappy feeling was bubbling inside of him, “Yeah, your parents loved you endlessly.”

It was not really Lu Han’s intention to come up with a sad story, but since Lu Han did not know who Shixun was, it would be for the best that Shixun did not have anyone left aside from Lu Han. Lu Han was not sure whether he would be able to take the continuous questions about Shixun’s parents otherwise. It just made things a little bit easier.

Nevertheless, Shixun seemed to accept everything quite easily. Lu Han did not know whether it was because of his memory loss, which made him vulnerable for any lies that came his way, but Shixun never questioned his lack of luggage or how he got into an accident. Maybe those questions did linger in Shixun’s mind, but he just did not know whether he should ask them. If Shixun were to ask all the questions that were in his head, Lu Han was sure they would never be able to sleep. Or maybe Shixun really just trusted everything Lu Han said, not knowing why anyone would lie to him. Lu Han would never know.

“Really?” Shixun said softly, a hint of sadness laced around his words.

Lu Han closed his eyes, “Really.”

“And I came here because?” Shixun asked.

“You came here because you wanted a little break from everything,” Lu Han said, moving the blanket a little bit higher to cover himself more, fingers clenching onto it tightly, “and you missed me.”

“Will you miss me?” Lu Han asked with teary eyes.

The woman turned her head slightly to look back at Lu Han, who was standing behind her so brokenly, but she did not reply. She could not even bring herself to nod. All she did was smile sadly before walking away. Lu Han’s eyes landed on the luggage in her hands, not being able to look at the other’s figure anymore. Not without wanting to burst into tears.

“You’re a nice cousin,” Shixun said in a lightly and happy tone, “so I’m sure I missed you.”

Lu Han forced his eyes close a little too harshly, causing a single tear to roll down, “Yeah.”

»

“We need to call the police.” Chanyeol said as he looked at Kyungsoo, “It’s been two days, Kyungsoo, we can’t keep on waiting like this in futility.”

“We can’t!” Kyungsoo said hastily before burying his face in his hands, “we can’t… Sehun is the General Manager of ROYELL. If the news come out that he’s gone, what’ll happen? I can’t afford anyone to threaten Sehun’s position as the General Manager of ROYELL.”

“But Kyungsoo, we can’t risk Sehun’s life like this! Nothing means as much as his safety! I know what you’re scared of, because I know there has been some unhappiness ever since Sehun took over, but we can’t hide this! Do you want to lie to everyone and say Sehun is on a sudden trip or something?” Chanyeol sighed, a hand moving through his hair, “we don’t even know when Sehun will be back!”

“He’ll be back!” Kyungsoo said, angrily, “He’ll be back soon, so that’s why we shouldn’t say anything! Let’s just go search for him silently, on our own, but no need to call the police. If Sehun’s disappearance gets on the news, it’ll only take a few cold words before Sehun is dragged down from his position.” Kyungsoo gritted his teeth as he slammed his fists on the table, eyes full of determination, “and I’m not going to give Byun Baekhyun any chances to steal my Sehun’s position.”

Chanyeol gave Kyungsoo one last look of desperation before he looked away, just hoping that things will turn out well and his best friend will be back soon.

»

“Lu Han, we’ll sell the bags this Wednesday on the market, you still in?” Jongdae asked through the phone.

Lu Han’s eyes shone with excitement as he answered, “Of course, of course!”

“Alright, just make sure you come on time. I’ll message you the exact time and place later on. Don’t worry too much, my friend has some connections with some of the local police men, so it shouldn’t be too much of a problem. But be on guard, and if something happens, just get the hell out of the scene. But I’m sure you already know how to deal with these kinds of situations.”

It was not the first time Lu Han sold replica bags. It was not exactly legal – clearly not – but it was a fast way of earning money. Just say the right words and the bags will sell fast, and when the bags are gone then the evidence was too. Lu Han was quite skilled at it too, being the quickest to sell his stuff and the quickest to get away from the scene when it was needed. So it never really bothered him that much.

However, Shixun’s stoic and unpleased expression certainly did.

“Hey there, beauty,” Lu Han said smoothly while waving at one of the ahjummas who walked by, the kind of people that were always easy targets, “why don’t you buy a nice bag for yourself?”

The ahjumma stopped on her tracks, looking at Lu Han with genuine interest after she saw the pretty, golden-colored bag, “How much is that?”

“This is a real Chanel! But since it’s one from last year’s collection, it’s on a big sale, so,” Lu Han pretended to be press some buttons on his counting machine, although he already had the right price in his mind, “100.000 Won!”

“100.000 Won for a Chanel bag?” The ahjumma with curly hair said, eyes widened in shock as she moved closer, reaching out for the bag and examining it closely, “Is this a real Chanel?”

“Certainly not lying to you, beauty.” Lu Han said before pointing at the stitching on the front of the bag, “See this? Perfectly stitched, just how a genuine bag should be. And see the inside,” Lu Han ped the bag, pointing at the stamp, “See the stamp here? That’s how you see whether it’s a genuine one or not.”

The ahjumma nodded her head at this, completely trusting Lu Han’s talk, “So this one is real?”

Lu Han nodded his head, “We sold a lot of them already today, beauty! I’m telling you, if you don’t buy it now, you won’t be able to buy it when you come back in an hour! Trust me on this one, beauty.”

The ahjumma smiled at this, and Lu Han knew he had caught her. His eyes shone when he saw the money bills she took out from her wallet, quickly wrapping the bag in some thin, white paper that made it look expensive before putting it into a plastic bag which had CHANEL printed on it obnoxiously ugly, the L already lightly smudged. Lu Han decided to ignore it.

“Here you go then,” The ahjumma said as she handed him the money, which he eagerly took.

“Thank you beauty!” Lu Han said as he gave her the bag, “Here’s your beautiful Chanel! Have a nice day!”

He watched her turn around and walks away before gleefully putting the money inside the metal box that he always had in his backpack. It made things easier when he needed to run, because he only had to grab his backpack and rush out. Lu Han smiled brightly as he zipped his backpack, a smile dancing on his lips before his gaze landed on an unhappy, frowning Shixun.

“What’s wrong, Shixun?” Lu Han asked with a smile, “Are you feeling unwell? The sun’s shining bright today, maybe you should take a seat and rest for a while.” Lu Han grabbed the foldable chair, wanting to place it next to Shixun, when Shixun’s cold voice stopped him in his tracks.

“Why are you selling fake bags to innocent people?” Shixun said emotionlessly.

Lu Han looked at Shixun, before he looked away, “I don’t know what you’re saying.”

“Those bags are fake. I know it, because I held onto one of them and the material feels like plastic. Also,” Shixun carelessly grabbed one of the bags, zipping it open way too brutally for Lu Han’s liking but he kept his mouth shut, “the stamp is fake. You can see it’s not a clean one. A real Chanel bag would have a clean stamp. The E is almost invisible on this one.”

Lu Han gritted his teeth, “Be quiet, Shixun, we don’t need anyone to hear this.”

“I’m telling the truth,” Shixun said with dark eyes that bore into Lu Han’s, “and I don’t mind anyone hearing it.”

“It’s to earn a living, okay? I mean, I’m not stealing anything,” Lu Han said as he forcefully grabbed the bag out of Shixun’s hands, gently putting it back next to the others, “I’m not pointing a gun to anyone’s head and forcing them to buy it. I’m just selling bags.”

“You’re selling fake bags while claiming that they’re genuine ones,” Shixun said before he grabbed Lu Han’s wrist, “you could get arrested for it.”

“I’m not going to get arrested for it if nobody knows,” Lu Han said, trying his best to get out of Sehun’s grip, “and I already sold so many. I only have five bags left. Five bags and it’s over. You can just pretend it’s nothing.”

“Nothing?” Shixun scoffed at this, and Lu Han had to blink his eyes because he had never seen Shixun like this, only mister filthy rich, which Shixun seemed to resemble so much right now, “You’re lying to them!”

Lu Han looked around with wide, scared eyes, frightened someone had heard Shixun’s loud voice, before giving Shixun a glare, “Shut up, will you? I know you might not like this, but this is what I do for a living, okay? I work at the hostel and I earn extra money like this. If you don’t like it, then you can either pretend you don’t care or leave. Don’t bother me while I’m trying to earn some money to spend on the both of us.”

“You know what?” Shixun said before he let go of Lu Han’s wrist, “I’ll leave.”

Lu Han’s eyes blinked at this, panic filling him all of a sudden, “W-What, wait- you can’t-”

But Shixun had already walked away. He felt uneasy with Shixun walking away like that, because Shixun had nothing with him, but he would just have to find him later on. It was not that Lu Han had any feelings for Shixun, other than friendly ones, that made him feel anxious by the other’s sudden leave. No, it was the fact that Lu Han hated people walking out on him like that. He disliked it so much, so horribly much. And the sight of Shixun’s back turned to him made him feel lonely all over again. But this was nothing, absolutely compared to the memories branded in his mind for a lifetime. It was merely a trigger for those haunting memories.

 “Will you miss me?” Lu Han asked with teary eyes.

“Why won’t you say you’ll miss me…” Lu Han said, choking on his tears as he did.

Lu Han shook his head, forcing the memories to return to back to his unconscious as he turned to his bags, trying his best to smile and to sell the remaining bags. He did not want whatever Shixun said to affect him, but of course it did. Lu Han just pretended it did not. And he was good at it, because the next person to stand in front of him, curiously looking at the bag, did not even notice the smile on Lu Han’s lips was smile.

Only one more bag to go and Lu Han was ready for today. Jongdae had already messaged him, telling him that he already sold everything and that he had earned a lot. He also told Lu Han that he could give the 10% tomorrow. Jongdae invited him for lunch, and Lu Han never said no to invitations.

However, all of a sudden he heard a yell, the words police! echoing in his head. He snapped his head to the sight, eyes widening when he saw the police man running, recognizing him being the one that was in charge of this area. Several people were already busy packing their stuff, because you were not allowed to sell stuff in this place, and Lu Han was quick to follow because replica bags certainly would not give him any mercy points. He quickly grabbed his backpack, put the last replica bag in it before zipping it, swinging it hastily over his shoulder. When he saw that the police man was dangerously close, he decided to leave the foldable chair and table and rush out. His life definitely had more value than those worn-out objects.

“Hey you, stop running!” The police man yelled, running after him.

Lu Han did his best to avoid bumping into people as he ran as hard as he could. He was literally running to save his life. In his fright, he did not even really register where he was running to, and it took him moments before he realized that the police man was getting too close to him. He looked back to his front, sprinting for his life, before a sudden arm came into his view, tugging at his wrist forcefully. The hand pulled him into a small side street, and the person dragged him as they ran. Lu Han looked in front of him, eyes widening before warmth began to tug at his heart.

It was Shixun.

The yells of the police man were getting more and more distant, and before Lu Han knew it they came to a stop somewhere in a small park he never went before. He was out of breath, desperately gasping for air while his eyes were glued to Shixun, who was standing in front of him.

“You…” Lu Han managed to say, a hand covering his tummy that hurt from the large amount of running, “You’re still here…”

Something swam in Shixun’s eyes, something that Lu Han could not describe but it was quite pretty, “I don’t have anywhere else to go. I was waiting for you to finish up.”

Lu Han shook his head at this, the corners of his lips curving up, “You… You…”

Shixun’s eyebrows knitted together at this, “What? What’s with me?”

Chuckle escaped Lu Han’s mouth at this, “Nothing.” A genuine smile appeared, “Thank you, for saving me from getting into jail.”

Shixun smiled back with the same sincerity, “You’re welcome.”