Something inside you snapped when Lay said Kris was back in China and you were filled with many emotions. And before you could fully register what was happening, you shouted, 

"NO!" The car swerved slightly as Lay was shocked by your outburst. 

"It's just. . .he can't. . .he shouldn't," you suddenly felt like the wind was knocked out of you. You didn't know why you were so concerned, all you really knew was that you wanted Kris where you could see him. Lay sensed this and pulled to the side of the road. He turned to you, who was having a small panic attack. 

"He can't go back there Lay!" you rushed. Lay studied you for a moment before speaking taking your face in his palms, 

"Hey, hey, hey, calm down a bit huh? Take deep breaths if you need to," Lay spoke gently while nodding his head, "Kris is strong Jangmi; he's done this before. Nothing will happen without Kris being in control." You looked back at Lay. 

"It's just. . .Lay, people. . .if they know you well enough, can cause the most damage with just one sentence. They can reduce you to nothing with one look, make you feel insignificant with one frown, rip you to shreds with one conversation. Kris doesn't deserve that." 

Lay's eyes stared at you for a long time before he started to drive. You thought you heard him mutter, ". . .you didn't deserve it either." 

~ 

Lay had calmed you down by the time you reached the campus. He told you that Kris would be fine with the trip. He had a feeling that your worries wouldn't subside until he was back in Canada though. 

Lay conviently left out the fact that you were expected to sleep over at Luhan and Xiumin's dorm that evening. Tao had gone with Kris to China, and Lay and Chen didn't live on campus. Kris didn't want you without someone to rely on in the building on the off chance something came up, so he you into the unwilling hands of Luhan and Xiumin. 

Lay patiently waited for you to gather your things into a small duffel, and then extended further kindness by walking you to the dorm. You raised your eyebrows at the hazard sign posted on the door of the dorm. 

"They figured they were less likely to get robbed if they had it; in other words, with baby faces like theirs, they make an easy target," Lay anwsered. He raised his hand to knock on the door, but it suddenly opened to reveal and grumpy Luhan. 

"I don't have a baby face," he quiped, stepping aside to let you enter.

You stepped inside and ignored the Thanksgiving memories that were coming back. You could still make out a faint burn mark on the kitchen ceiling, despite Kris' half-assed job of spray painting over it. You heard the door close, and realized you hadn't said 'thank you' or 'goodbye' to Lay. You figured you could text him when Luhan came back. There was still no sign of Xiumin. 

"Ground rules," Luhan barked while eyeing you up and down, "If you're hungry, alert one of us. If you're tired, get comfy on the couch. If you have to use the bathroom or go anywhere, ask or alert one of us." He continued to stare, when Xiumin made his entrance. He had apparantly been in the bathroom.

"We need to update that poster, it loo-" he cut off when he noticed you staring like a deer in the headlights at Luhan. 

"Outdated," he straightened himself, "Lighten up, man. How bad can she be?" Xiumin said impassively while walking past you two into the kitchen.

Luhan still seemed irked by your presence, but opted to help Xiumin in the kitchen anyway. You were about to ask if they needed help with what you assumed would be dinner, when you heard a bark coming from the living area.

You jumped slightly, but went over anyway to investigate. And as if it was hidden, you saw a dog carrier behind a chair with Tao's dog in it. 

"What was rule number 3?" Luhan called, making you jump and the dog bark. 

"I. . .I just. . .the dog," you stammered. Luhan honestly creeped you out. He seemed like child both in appearance and in action, but there was a very masculine and cold side to him that scared the crap out of you. 

"You could have asked to help us you know. We are making dinner for you," he retorted. You heard Xiumin scoff in the kitchen at his last remark.

"It seems that Tao figured if Kris can dump things on us, so can he. And so we're also stuck with the dog," about the time Luhan finished speaking with his knife sharp tongue, a grape went flying from the kitchen. You said a