It was surprisingly easy to avoid Yifan. There were so many other people around that it was easy to slip away or talk to someone else whenever he saw Yifan approaching. The fact that Junmyeon was always around made it much easier, too.

Yixing pretended that he didn’t notice Yifan’s lingering look, telling himself that this was better. Hopefully, Yifan would get the hint and would leave him alone, saving both of them the trouble that came with confrontations.

It had only been a week, but there had already been several close calls. Like earlier, after lunch, when Yixing had been starting to leave the cafeteria. He’d been at the door, ready to walk out, when Yifan had called after him: “Yixing, wait!”

Yifan was just a few steps behind, so it was impossible to pretend that he hadn't heard. There were others around them, too, and it would look suspicious if Yixing just kept walking. So he turned around, ready to reply, but then Junmyeon was by his side, pulling him out of the door by the arm, his grip surprisingly firm.

“Thanks,” Yixing said, once they’d lost Yifan in the crowd and Junmyeon had let go of his hand.

Junmyeon gave him a small smile. “It’s fine. It just takes a while for him to take a hint, you know?”

Or maybe it wasn’t that Yifan couldn’t take a hint; he was just too persistent to stop, no matter how obvious it was.

So Yixing should really have been more cautious about his surroundings.

When he stepped out of his last afternoon class, it was raining outside. The sky was already dark overhead, and there were occasional rumbles of thunder and lightning streaking across the sky. He’d hesitated outside the front door of the school building, stopping in the middle of the constant movement around him. Somehow, he’d forgotten his umbrella at the dorm, so Yixing was debating whether to run to the dorm or stay in the school library until the rain let up.

A light touch on his shoulder distracted him from his thoughts. Yixing looked up, and nearly jerked away when he noticed that it was Yifan.

“Here.” Yifan handed him a small umbrella, looking out at the rain. “Take it.”

“What about you?” Yixing asked, holding the umbrella tentatively by the handle. It was too small for both of them to share. Besides, the umbrella wouldn’t provide that much cover, considering how heavy the storm was.

“I’ll be fine.” Yifan reached back and flipped his hood over his head. “Let’s go.”

They walked side by side back to the dorm, narrowing avoiding puddles and other students rushing through the rain. Yixing was suspicious at first, wondering if Yifan was going to say anything, but Yifan didn’t. When they reached the dorm’s front door, Yixing took off his shoes and shook the raindrops from the umbrella before looking up at Yifan.

“Thanks.” He held the umbrella out to Yifan.

“It’s not a problem.” Yifan leaned the umbrella by the door and stepped out of his shoes.

Yixing looked at Yifan, wondering if he should say anything. The other looked thoroughly soaked; his blond hair was almost brown, and the sleeves of his jacket were still dripping with water. “You should change into something dry. You’re going to get sick.”

“I’ll be fine,” Yifan said dismissively, walking past him up the stairs.

Yifan’s answers had been unexpectedly abrupt. Yixing wondered if he’d understood after all, and had decided that ignoring Yixing in turn was the better option. Yixing frowned as he watched Yifan go. He should feel happy about it, but somehow, he wasn’t.

“Why are you standing here like that?”

Yixing jumped, looking behind him. Junmyeon had just walked into the dorm, and was looking up at him with a playful smile. “It’s nothing,” he said, quickly moving aside to give Junmyeon some room.

Junmyeon flicked his forehead lightly. “You look so serious. Are you sure it’s nothing?”

Yixing flinched away from him. “You know, about the deal we made,” he began hesitantly, watching as Junmyeon’s expression quickly became serious. “How far do you want to take it? I think he might be getting the hint.” While Yixing didn’t want Yifan to keep bothering him about the subject, he also didn’t want to make Yifan think that he detested him as a person. Even if it could be difficult, he wanted to still be friends with the other. Besides, it wouldn’t be long before Luhan picked up on the awkward situation if they kept this up. Yixing didn’t think Luhan knew about it yet, but he didn’t want Luhan to even get a hint, knowing that Luhan would be able to drag the information out of them in minutes.

“Are you sure?” Junmyeon’s expression had closed off again.

Yixing was tempted to ask him why he even offered to do this. As far as he could tell, this wasn’t directly profitable to Junmyeon. But he still wasn’t sure where he stood with Junmyeon, if they could even be called friends because of this deal. “I don’t know. I don’t know him that well,” he confessed. I don’t know you that well.

“But you have to be sure. You don’t want to mess everything up by ending this too early. Besides,” Junmyeon added, a small smile on his lips, “it’s kind of fun. I didn’t have an excuse to get to know you before.”

Yixing couldn’t really counter that statement, but he couldn’t resist asking, “How do you know Yifan so well?”

The smile faded, and Yixing knew that it was the wrong question to ask. Still, he couldn’t help wondering. “He’s easy to read.”

It was only a partial truth, but Yixing didn’t press. Instead, he asked lightly, “Then am I easy to read?”

Junmyeon laughed, the sound surprisingly pleasant. “I might have to get to know you better.”

Yixing returned Junmyeon’s smile. It was only then that he realized they were probably blocking the doorway. The dorm wasn’t that loud yet, but it was only a matter of time before the others returned, wiping off muddy shoes on the mat and complaining loudly about the rain. He stepped away from the door. “We should go. The others might come back soon.”

“Okay.” Junmyeon picked up his shoes and placed them neatly in his part of the shoe shelf by the front door. He looked up, eyes flickering to Yixing’s face, and suddenly stood again, leaning in uncomfortably close. “Does your hair always get like this when it’s drying?” He brushed a few strands of still-wet hair from Yixing’s forehead.

Yixing stared into Junmyeon’s eyes for a moment before realizing that they were sparkling with mirth. He ducked away from Junmyeon’s hand, laughing. “It’s not that bad,” he protested, running fingers through his hair and attempting to smooth it down.

He turned away from Junmyeon, still laughing as he walked towards the stairs. It was then that he looked up and saw Yifan leaning on the banister, looking down at him. He’d been close enough to witness their entire exchange, Yixing realized, his laughter fading as something akin to cold dread settled in his stomach.