Everything has been going nicely with Kris and Yixing. After the Christmas dinner at Kris' parents' house, Yixing and Kris had been getting along a lot more comfortably than before. Yixing had become a lot more comfortable and was talking to Kris again. Albeit, there were still some awkwardness between them, Kris could clearly tell that it had lessen a whole lot.

And Kris has never felt so happy before. His whole world felt lighter and every morning, he woke up feeling inspired. The thought of Yixing and Zitao, and him having a family of his own lit up his mind and heart. 

He has not yet told Yixing of his real feelings towards the other. Kris knew that it was not yet the right time and they were still on the phase of getting used to each other's presence again. But Kris could not help but feel his heart flutter everytime he saw Yixing smile. What made his heart flutter even more was the fact that Yixing was now allowing him to see his beautiful dimpled-smile, and most importantly, that the other was doing his best to welcome Kris back into his life.

Kris, who was lying on his bed, got up and headed to the washroom, getting himself ready to start a new day. The smile never leaving his face.

Yixing felt weird waking up to an empty house. He has not felt this lonely in five years, and the feeling of being alone coming back was very unusual. He sighed, shaking his thoughts away as he got up to get himself ready for work.

Mr. and Mrs. Wu had asked if Tao could sleep over at their house for the weekend. Yixing was a little worried because it would be the first time that Tao would be away from him for a long period of time, but he also did not want to offend Kris' parents by saying no. So in the end, after much thought and worrying, Yixing decided that it would not hurt for Tao to spend some time with his grandparents. He also knew that Mr. and Mrs. Wu were good people and would take care of his son during his stay in their place.

Yixing ate his breakfast quickly and left the apartment soon after. He did his usual routine of walking to the bus stop and waiting for it to take him to work. 

Once he got to the mall supermarket, he hurriedly rushed to the staff room, hung up his coat, and quickly went out to open his counter. The supermarket was packed with people due to the post-holiday sales. 

Yixing was kept busy throughout the day and was only given a break for lunch. After his thirty-minute lunch break, he went back to his counter to start his next shift for the day.

The whole day was packed and tiring, but Yixing was very much happy and satisfied knowing that he was doing this for the sake of his beloved son. Everytime he felt exhausted, he just thought about his Taozi, and all the tiredness in his body would diminish away, and leave him a smile on his face. 

When he finally finished his shift, he went straight to the staff room and gathered his stuff to leave. Once outside, he headed to the usual bus stop that took him home. While passing the parking lot on the way, he heard his name being called and turned around to find Kris running up to him and calling his name.

"Wait up." said Kris who was panting. Yixing halted, curious as to why the taller male was there. When Kris finally caught up and was in front of Yixing, the taller male smiled and look at Yixing directly. 

Kris and Yixing's eyes met for a second before Yixing looked away, face blushing madly. "What took you so long to get out? I was waiting here for such a long time." asked Kris. "Oh, I took an overtime since Tao is at your parents' house." said Yixing. 

"Oh ok. Well, since Tao is at my parents' house, would it be okay if I take you somewhere right now?" asked Kris. "Um...I don't know...it is kind of late..." said Yixing, unsure whether he should take the offer. "Come on, I promise you we won't take that long. Plus, there is someone who really wants to meet you." said Kris. 

Yixing was confused as to who would want to meet him at this late hour, but nodded his head "yes" because the apartment felt so empty without Tao, and he did not like the feeling of being alone. 

The drive did not take long, and after a few minutes, they were now at the pub that Kris frequented. Kris and Yixing made their way inside, and Kris scanned the room looking for a tall male with funny-looking ears. It did not take long for Kris to spot Chanyeol and lead the way to their usual booth with Yixing trailing closely behind him.

"Hey man, I haven't seen you in awhile." greeted Chanyeol as he held his hand up for a high five. "I know, I have been quite busy with the mall developments." replied Kris. 

The two were caught up in their greetings, not realizing Yixing, who was standing there awkwardly as he listened to the two talk about their businesses. Yixing examined Chanyeol and how the tall male looked exactly as he did in high school. The thought of their high school days suddenly brought back bitter memories in Yixing's head, but Yixing tried his best to