A/N: I think it was supposed to be short.  IDK what happened.

I had to hand it to myself, I knew how to mess things up.

It was bound to happen sooner or later.  Everything was going awesome, and I didn't even see it coming.  I wasn't even sure if Kyungsoo would even think about forgiving me.  Maybe he saw this as his chance to finally get rid of me.  If he did break up with me, who's to say if he would stay in my life as my previous boyfriends (and girlfriend) had done.

I was on my way to Xiumin's cafe because I decided that I was going to tell Kyungsoo that my sister was coming.  Consequences be damned, I wanted him to meet my family.  She would be arriving in two days, and if he was up for it, he could meet her.

Come to think of it, I could've just told him in his apartment, but having an mid-afternoon rendezvous at a chic cafe (the owner of which I knew personally) seemed like a cute idea at the time.

So, I was on my way to meet up with my boyfriend, who had most likely gotten there early.  His affinity for punctuality was something I found adorable.  Someone called my name from behind.  "Kai!"

That voice was too familiar, so I whipped around to see Krystal Jung barreling towards me in a blue sun dress, strappy heels, and one of those floppy hats women wear to the beach.  It gave me pause to see her running in high heels; her balance must have improved since we were together.

She threw her arms around me, pulling me down a smidgen so that she wasn't her toes while in heels.  "Krystal?" I asked, despite knowing exactly who she was.

"It's so good to see you!" She squealed; however, her tone changed immediately after, "Kim Kai, I am going to ask you a humongous favor right now."

"Um... okay?" I responded, unsure of how two seconds into our reunion she found a way to ask me for something.  Then again, I'd always admired her bluntness.

She flicked her long black hair over her shoulder before leaning close to begin her spiel in a hushed tone, "I'm trying to get this guy off my back because he won't take no for answer unless I have a boyfriend.  So, in like 15 seconds I'm going to need you to kiss me like you did when we were dating."

I nodded, maintaining my standing a nice person.  If Krystal needed this guy to back off and I was the only one who could help, then so be it.  Of course, I would tell Kyungsoo later, and apologize for not asking first, but 15 seconds was kind of a tight window.  "Krys, what would you have done if I didn't show up?"

"Doesn't matter now." She breathed as she pulled my face towards hers, making our lips meet.

Kissing Krystal was familiar, not particularly unpleasant.  I liked Kyungsoo's lips better.  His were plump and I could always feel him smiling whenever our lips touched. I realized that I couldn't really kiss Krystal the way I used to Krystal because I'd completely forgotten how to kiss anyone but Kyungsoo.  I mentally sighed, and did the only thing I could to make it convincing: pretend that Krystal was Kyungsoo.

I softly pressed my lips against hers, letting her take the lead for the most part.  My eyes fell shut at some point, it made it easier to pretend.  I placed my hands on her hips and gently pulled her closer.  Krystal broke off the kiss and pulled me into a hug, whispering, "Thanks Kai."

"Not a--" I had peeled my eyes away from the sidewalk, to see if I could catch a glimpse of whoever Krystal was avoiding.  Of course, perhaps the worst thing that could've occurred in the situation did.  My eyes locked onto Kyungsoo just as he turned to run away.  Baekhyun was frozen in his place, I could only assume that they both saw what had just happened.

I broke my embrace with Krystal, but it was too late.  "--problem."

Krystal was genuinely confused by the sudden sullenness in my tone.  She turned and saw Baekhyun standing here, eyes wider than saucers with his hand over his mouth.

"Is he your...?" She began to ask.

"No, but my boyfriend was with him." I quietly confessed.

"Oh no." She whispered.

"Has your number changed?" My gaze shifted to her.

"No." She shook her head, "Look, you go after him and explain. I can come help you need me to."

I put my hand on her shoulder, "Thanks.  Good luck with your creeper."  I nodded to her in confidence.  As I turned away from her, I ran after Kyungsoo.

I made it to the building and went straight to Kyungsoo's apartment.  I almost broke down his door until I lost my nerve.  He was going to break up with me.  The revelation smothered me until I couldn't breathe.  If I didn't knock, he couldn't break up with me.

I walked up to my apartment, the weight of my impending break up heavy on my shoulders.  I'd barely gotten into the apartment before falling to my knees as Chanyeol asked me what had happened.

I opened my mouth to explain, but found that sobs had stolen my words.  I tried to form words, but it came out as gibberish.  I roughly swiped at my cheeks, trying to keep the tears from wetting my cheeks.  It was a futile attempt.  Chanyeol knelt in front of me, "Take deep breaths.  Tell me what happened." Chanyeol ordered in a very calm voice.

I fell back, fully sitting on the ground.  "I was supposed to meet Kyungsoo at Xiumin's cafe, but I ran into Krystal.  She asked for a favor."  I didn't want to continue.

"Which was...?" Chanyeol pushed.

"She wanted some guy to stop asking her out, so she asked me to pretend to be her boyfriend." I shifted into a whisper, trying to will it away, "We ended up kissing and Kyungsoo saw and I don't know what to do.  I think he's going to break up with me."  My sobs returned, quaking through my body.

Chanyeol hugged me, tucking my head into his shoulder.  He rubbed my back in a circular pattern as he shushed my quiet noises of sorrow. "It'll be okay."

"How?  He's never going to talk to me again." I said into his shoulder.

He gently pried me away, meeting my eyes, "You two are in love.  He'll listen and understand when you tell him why he saw that."

"But-" I began to complain.

He stopped me before I even started, "Give him the chance to decide for himself.  If need be, ask Krystal to help you explain.  Okay?" I nodded my head in compliance. "Now go find him, but maybe after you clean yourself up."

I chuckled, wiping tears from the corners of my eyes, "I'm a mess huh?"

"It's really rather embarrassing." He said, shoving me playfully.

"Have you spoken to Baekhyun?" I asked, knowing I was slightly at fault for the current rift between the two.

"I'm about to camp out in front of his apartment."

"Don't forget the ring." I reminded him.  He stood up with a smile plastered on his face, offering to give me a hand up.  I grabbed his hand and he pulled me up before leaving.

I walked to the bathroom to wash my face with cold water, so that the evidence of sobbing and my emotional break down was less so.  I finger combed my hair as best I could and took deep, calming breaths before going to face Kyungsoo.

I could do this.  Kyungsoo was the one; that was all that I was sure.  Kyungsoo would always be my soul mate, so the sooner I explained the better.

I knocked on Kyungsoo's door only to be greeted by the stern face of Baekhyun.  What was I to do?  Baekhyun saw, and he didn't have to let me in.

Baekhyun sighed, pulling the door open further motioning for me to come in.  "Follow me." He stated simply.

Baekhyun walked to the bathroom and knocked on the door, "Kyungsoo, please open the door."

"Is he with you?" Kyungsoo's voice was muffled, but I could tell that his throat was raw.  He'd been crying.

Baekhyun sighed, "So what if he is?"

"Well, you can tell Kim Jongin that he doesn't need to bother pretending to care, so he can go away."

Baekhyun moved aside and went into a different room, giving us some semblance of privacy.  I stepped up to the door, "Please let me in."

"Go away."  Kyungsoo didn't want to listen.

I knocked softly, "Kyungsoo, are you even going to let me explain?"  I was going to fight for us, no matter what.

"I don't care, just leave me alone." His voice was soft, I could hear he was in pain and all I wanted to do was hold him and make him feel better.

"I'll just wait here."  I turned my back to the door and sunk to the ground.

"I told you to go away, Kai." His use of my nickname felt like he was throwing acid at me.  He never called me Kai; he said that Jongin was a much prettier name.  He was trying to put distance between us.

"I'll go away when you open the door and let me explain." I persisted.

"Why does the door have to be open for you to explain?" He questioned.

"You won't really listen if I just tell you now." I told him, knowing that he would only hear what he wanted to hear.  He had to look me in the eyes and see my sincerity.

"Yeah because there's a completely logical explanation for seeing your boyfriend face with some random chick." Kyungsoo rushed to say.

"We were not face." I tried to defend.  He needed to truly hear me out.

"If you wanted to break up with me, you could've just told me.  You didn't need to go and immediately find my replacement." He hissed.

"Kyungsoo." I was hurt by his accusation.  Did he think that I already had my foot out the door?  How could he possibly think I wanted anyone but him?

"What?!" He snapped.

"Just let me explain." I pleaded once more.

"No." He refused once again.

I was getting nowhere talking through the door.  I needed to talk to him face to face.  He needed to understand.  Why didn't he trust in the love that I had for him?

I got up from my position on the floor.  I found Baekhyun sitting in the kitchen, flipping through a cooking magazine.  "Is there a key to the bathroom?"

Baekhyun used his head to point to the key on the counter in front of me.  "Thanks." I murmured, taking the key.

I made my back to the bathroom, unlocking the door.  Kyungsoo was in his bathtub, hiding his face behind his knees.  It was as if he was trying to protect himself from me, which hurt.  "Go away." His voice cracked midway through his request.

I sighed, moving to sit in the tub with him.  My legs pressed against his during my attempt to fit in the tub.  "This is really uncomfortable, Kyungsoo."  There was no way he wanted to be in this position.

"You can leave." He murmured.

I took his hand, prying it off of his knees.  He tried to squirm out of my grasp, but my hold remained firm. He turned his face to glare at me.  I didn't like the pain mixed with hatred that reflected in his eyes. "Kyungsoo."

"Let. Go." He seethed.

I ignored his request, remembering to chant 'true love' in the back of my mind to give myself the courage to continue.  "I'm going to tell you what happened, and then you can decide whether or not you want to stop being mad at me.  I was helping out an old acquaintance.  She was trying to send a message to a guy who wouldn't stop pursuing her."

"I don't believe you." He said through his teeth.

I could change that if...  "Do you believe me when I say that I'm in love with you and only you?  Or when I say that I know you are the only one for me?" I asked.

"I want to." He breathed, his eyes softening.

"What's stopping you from believing it?" I needed to know.

He let out a soft chuckle, "Reality.  Have you seen yourself?  Have you seen me?  You are light years out of my league.  Even that is an understatement."  He looked everywhere but me after that.

I let go of his hand, "I'll call her, and she can confirm my story."  I climbed out of Kyungsoo's tub.  I leaned down and planted a soft kiss on the top of his head.  "And you're wrong.  You're out of my league." I whispered to him.

I left his apartment, wondering how in the world Kyungsoo could think that I was too good for him.  It was absurd.  If I wasn't in love with him, I wouldn't be with him.  I ended relationships when I knew that it wasn't mutual.  With Kyungsoo, I couldn't even imagine breaking up with him.  Leaving him would mean leaving my heart behind.

I slept in my bed, which felt particularly cold even though Lady was cuddling next to me.  I was down, so she was down.

I awoke to the sound of my phone buzzing.

From: Kyungsoo ~ ♡ ~

Aunty Jung's BBQ. 12:15.

I smiled.  Kyungsoo was giving me a chance to explain.

I turned to Lady who had begun stretching in preparation for her morning walk.  "He's going to forgive me." I told her, barely containing the happiness that was threatening to burst through.

I yanked on my clothes, a simple gray t-shirt and jeans.  I ran into the kitchen, filling Lady's bowl.  Chanyeol's door was open, but he wasn't there.  It seemed as though he was still with Baekhyun.  I wondered if Chanyeol had proposed yet as I slipped into my shoes.

Lady finished scarfing down her food and came to be put on her leash.  I snatched my phone off of the table and walked out of my apartment with my keys in my back pocket.

I dialed Krystal's number.  It rang several times before I heard her pick up, slightly breathless, "Hello?"

"Krystal.  It's Kai."

"Oh! Hey did your boyfriend hear you out?" She asked before she burst out in giggles and whisper-yelled at whoever made her laugh, "Not now!"

"I need you to come to Aunty Jung's BBQ at 12:15." I told her.

"Okay! 12:15 at Aunty Jung's, I'll be there." She practically screamed as she hung up.

I arrived at the restaurant to find that Krystal was already sitting across from Kyungsoo in front of a grill, talking animatedly.

Kyungsoo looked confused and on the brink of terrified.  Krystal had apparently decided to chat with Kyungsoo. I walked up to the table, and Kyungsoo's hand immediately shot out to grip my wrist. He yanked me down into the seat next to him.

Kyungsoo leaned to whisper in my ear, "Make her stop."

"Did she already explain?" I murmured back; Krystal was so far into her story, she only acknowledged my arrival with the flick of her wrist.

"Yes.  10 minutes ago and has not stopped moving since I waved her over to the table." He whined.

"Krys." I said, interjecting my voice into her story.

"Hm?" She snapped out of story mode.

"Do you have somewhere else to be?" I asked.

She read between the lines, "Oh.  Oh, yeah, you're right.  Luna has a thing.  She needs moral support." Krystal snorted and back away from the table.

"Kyungsoo..." I turned to face him.

He looked at the menu.  He muttered, "You're forgiven."

"What?"

"I forgive you.  You were being a good friend." He sighed.

"Oh what convinced you?" I asked, pushing my luck and I knew it.

He turned and pursed his lips, "She's not your type.  Like at all."

I gave him a light peck on the lips.  "Of course not, there's only you."

"Don't do it again, without like conferring with me first." Kyungsoo turned back to his menu.  "They're my lips to kiss." He said quietly.

I moved to sit across from Kyungsoo.  When I faced him, I could see the blush on his face.  "You're cheesy." I said; he glanced up to glare.  "I like that you're cheesy when it comes to me."

Kyungsoo bit back a smile.  I let my lips stretch impossibly wide.  "Love you."

Kyungsoo set the menu aside, looking me straight in the eye, "I love you more."

"Impossible."  I paused, "Do you want to meet my sister?"

Kyungsoo's eyes widened slighly, then he smiled softly, "I'd love to."

a/n: YAY team emotional rollercoaster.

Guys.  The final chapter is next.  Prepare yourselves.  Fluff and a time jump.

I love you guys!

PS (If you like me and XiuChen, I'm writing a XiuChen centric fic : HERE. <3)