Luhan tried to sneak back into his apartment – but sneaking into an apartment at noon was a difficult feat. He managed to slip his shoes off quietly, listening for his Mother. When he didn’t hear any movement he mentally thanked the heavens and stepped forward, hoping to make it to his room in peace.

Luhan and his Mother had leased a large apartment once they had decided they would be doing business in Seoul for the next few months. Luhan would have liked to have leased a separate apartment, apart from his Mother, but he knew he had no real reason to do so except for a simple want of privacy (which his Mother wasn’t about to give him).

The apartment was on the other side of the city from Minseok’s. It had a great view of the Seoul skyline, came fully furnished (with the latest in luxury branding), and by all logic was perfect for what it needed to be. A temporary residence for the Lu family to return to when they had called it a day at their rented office suite. Still, it was a strange place. It wasn’t home, it was a transient residence.

Luhan almost made it. He was so close, so very close.

“Luhan, is that you?”

A string of curse words muttered under his breath, Luhan turned and walked into the living area to see his Mother sitting on the sofa, reading something on her laptop.

“Hi Mom.” Luhan greeted his mother with a chipper voice. His only option now was to make something up. He needed to figure out how to broach the Minseok subject; doing so when he snuck back home after his first night in Minseok’s bed was too soon.

“Where were you last night?” Mrs. Lu  - her first name, which of course Luhan never used, was Jia Li – cocked her head at her son, looking genuinely perplexed that he had spent the night out.

“I was hanging out with some old friends.” Luhan answered, sitting down next to his Mother. He leaned over to see what she had up on her screen, “Is that the proposal for the retail line?”

Jia Li moved her computer aside, not ready to switch topics so quickly “Yes, it is. Old friends? I didn’t know you still had close friends in Seoul?”

“They were part of the organization I worked for years back. Don’t you remember when I was all about saving the Mountain Gorillas?” Luhan flashed a smile, trying to charm his Mother.

“Hmm” She didn’t believe him, but she wasn’t going to pry any further. If she wanted to know she would find out, she didn’t need Luhan to tell her the truth. “Kris missed you last night.”

Luhan didn’t say anything. The topic of Kris was a delicate one. His parents wanted nothing more than to see him engaged to Kris- the sooner the better. Luhan was not for the idea and Kris wasn’t either. Or at least it didn’t seem like Kris was for the idea. Luhan hadn’t spent a lot of time with the other man, because if he did he knew he would be subjected to constant questioning from his parents and more pressure to set a wedding date. Plus the two of them seemed to have little in common apart from their families’ business relationship.

In fact, Luhan was surprised that Kris accompanied them to Korea. At first, anyway. Then his Mother let it slip that Kris’s family was also in on the Korean expansion, Kris was there as their representative. It was business, not pleasure, which had him renting the apartment next to the Lu’s.

“I hope you didn’t forget about the dinner this evening.”

“No, I remember. Six o’clock, right?” Luhan answered.

“Yes. I told the driver to pick us up at five.” Jia Li’s expression turned more serious, a slight frown showing “I don’t want to lecture you again, because I hope you are already well aware, but this is a very important dinner meeting for us. Nothing can go wrong.”

Luhan was well aware because it had been the only thing his Mother had wanted to talk about for the last week. But that was his Mother, she drilled things into his head with repetition.

“It will be fine Mom, don’t worry.”

***

Sehun had never been at a fashion shoot before. He found it mildly interesting. He probably would have been more interested in his surroundings if he wasn’t still so sleep deprived. He had slept for a few hours on Tao’s couch, he woke up as Tao got ready for the shoot.

“I can come with you...if you don’t mind.” Sehun offered, not at all motivated by his new role of stalker extraordinaire.

“Sure.” Tao had answered simply.

The shoot was to catalog Tao’s latest fashion creations, which meant Tao was occupied as soon as they arrived at the studio. Sehun watched as Tao rushed from the models to the photographer to the editors to the makeup artists and back. It was fascinating to watch Tao work.

Sehun thought back to three years before, when Tao had been a nervous, unsure office worker (for a few days any way, he had been a day dreaming fisherman for years). He had tried his best to work hard but he had little to no confidence in himself. The most confident thing Tao had done three years ago was leave Sehun. Now Tao radiated confidence. He knew how the models should pose, he knew how their makeup should be done. He knew. And Sehun thought that was damn y.

Sehun was so wrapped up in watching Tao he didn’t hear the man the first time he spoke. He finally paid attention once someone nudged his shoulder. Turning, he saw the photographer standing over him.

“Are you a model?”

Sehun blushed slightly “Me? Nah.”

“If Mr. Huang doesn’t mind I think you would be the perfect fit for this shoot. If you are interested?”

Tao was quick to notice that the photographer was standing and talking to Sehun. Somehow, through all of his rushing around, he still managed to keep an eye on the blonde haired man that had accompanied him.

The photographer noticed Tao approaching “Tao! I was just telling your friend that he should really model. What do you say?”

Tao looked Sehun up and down, Sehun’s face turned a darker shade of red at the inspection “If Hun-ah wants too I don’t mind.”

“How about it kid?”

It was probably the sleep deprivation, because Sehun found himself saying yes without really considering if he wanted to have his face in a catalog or on a website or on Tao’s computer. Sehun changed his mind once he thought about Tao reviewing the prints. Yes, he wanted Tao staring at his picture. Yes, this modeling thing was a great idea.

Tao smiled and grabbed Sehun’s hand, practically dragging him over the dressing area.

“I have the perfect outfit for you.”

Sehun felt giddy at Tao’s excitement. Yes, modeling was a wonderful thing.

Tao pulled out a button down shirt and slacks. Sehun grimaced. They were the ugliest print he had ever seen- a forest green, mustard, burnt orange, hot pink, and teal monstrosity of paisley and polka dots and stripes.

“This is from my day to night collection.” Tao explained proudly.

Maybe modeling was not such a great idea.

“Uh- Tao, I am not sure if this is really my style.” Sehun wanted to puke just looking at the clothes, he couldn’t imagine actually wearing them. It was surprising how ugly the outfit was given how much he liked Tao’s menswear line that was shown during the fashion show.

“Oh” Tao looked depressed at Sehun’s rejection.

“No! I was just kidding. I love it!” Sehun said through his teeth. Damn y Tao and his frown and- argh, Sehun was pretty sure he was still slipping into madness.

A little over two hours later Sehun was standing in front of a white cloth backdrop, posing. His would be the last shoot of the day, the other models had already started to leave the studio.

Sehun was awkward at first, not knowing how to pose or where to look.

“Hun-ah, look to the side.” Tao instructed him gently. The photographer gave Sehun further instructions on what expression to make and how to stand.

Sehun’s difficulty was evident to the few people that remained in the studio watching him. Finally Tao stepped on the other side of the camera. He walked behind Sehun, grabbing his shoulders he maneuvered his posture.

“Like this” Tao’s words ghosted on Sehun’s cheek, his hands found Sehun’s waist.

Don’t get a , don’t get a – Sehun kept repeating over and over in his head. Tao stepped away just in time and Sehun managed to finish the shoot.

“It’s a wrap!” The photographer announced, turning to Tao he explained that the proof shots would be sent over later that day.

“Thank you everyone.” Tao bowed, Sehun bowed as well. They walked together towards the dressing room, not talking. Then Tao stopped. Sehun turned to see why and noticed that Tao looked scared. His face had turned pale, his posture stiff.

“What’s wrong?” Sehun asked, walking back over to Tao.

“Tao.”

Sehun turned towards the source of the voice. It was a tall man, blonde, with killer good looks. He was approaching Tao and Sehun with a smirk on his face.

“Kris. Leave, now.” Tao balled his fists.

“I just wanted to see you for a minute. You don’t have to be rude.” Kris answered, not bothering to leave. “Who is this?” He gestured to Sehun.

“Someone who is a thousand times better than you. Nice to meet you.” Sehun stepped in front of Tao. So this was Kris. The Kris. The ex-boyfriend. The one Sehun hated before he even knew who he was.

“So you must be the new boyfriend?” Kris cocked an eyebrow, looking Sehun up and down “Honestly Tao you could do a lot better than this kid.”

Sleep deprivation, the confidence that comes with a sudden modeling gig, and pure jealousy sprang into action as Sehun stepped forward. He was ready to tell Kris where to go with his fists – but Tao stopped him.

“Hun-ah, let’s go.” Tao grabbed Sehun’s hand and dragged him towards the exit. Kris didn’t bother to follow them.

When they were near the exit Sehun spoke “Are you okay?”

“Yeah. Just ignore him. He thinks he is better than everybody else.”

Sehun nodded, then he realized he was still wearing the ugliest outfit he had ever worn in his life. He wanted to tell Tao he HAD to change, it wasn’t an option. But he couldn’t, because changing meant leaving Tao with Kris (if he was still in the building) and Sehun was not about to do that. Instead he went out, in public, dressed like a clown. The things he did for love lust.

***

 Suho and Jongdae were enjoying a late lunch. Or maybe it was an early dinner – either one. They had gone to see a movie after their embarrassing time at Minseok’s apartment (Suho could swear he went blind for at least a minute after walking in on his brother and Luhan in bed). They had eaten at the theater, but it wasn’t enough.

They ended up at their favorite Hanok restaurant, a place with great ambience and an amazing menu (if a bit pricy), enjoying a few more hours in each other’s company before they returned to their respective homes. All of which was promptly shattered when the door to their private dining area opened (the restaurant was designed this way – with each set of diner’s having their own room, a feature that added to the cost of eating at the place).

“Hyungs!” Sehun waved, stepping into the room with Tao following behind him “Soojin said you guys were here.”

Soojin, the hostess, was great at her job. Friendly, she was on a first name basis with the Kangs (Ji Hyo loved the girl, greeting her with a hug every time she came to the place). It wasn’t surprising she would have told Sehun that his brother and Jongdae were already dining, if just a bit unfortunate.

“Hey.” Suho wasn’t especially enthusiastic with his greeting. He knew his little brother well – Sehun would join them for dinner because he knew Suho would pick up the tab.

“Sehun, what are you wearing?” Jongdae asked, shocked to see the youngest Kang in such a flashy outfit.

“I designed it, do you like it?” Tao answered proudly, sitting down next to Jongdae.

“It is…very…unique.” Jongdae smiled, trying to be polite.

“So how about some drinks before dinner boys?” Sehun sat down next to Suho and grabbed for the soju.

“Only if you promise to not turn this into a drinking contest” Suho eyed his brother with suspicion.

“Me? No..never!” Sehun laughed. They were in for a long night.

***

The driver was prompt. Luhan guessed it was because he feared his Mother as much as all of their other servants, assistants, and workers did. She was not the type of person you wanted to anger.

Kris would be attending the dinner as well, the back seat of the town car was a little crowded with the three of them sitting together. Luhan had his tablet in hand, reviewing the proposal. It had been a feat to schedule this dinner. The Kim family ran one of the larger retail chains in South Korea, and so far they had kept their company private. They were partially owned by a larger business, but that information was not public. Luhan had done a lot of digging, so had the team back in Beijing, but the mystery investor, the largest investor in the Kim business, had not been identified.

If the dinner went well Lu Industries had a very real chance at convincing the Kim family to do business with them instead of their current investor, to turn over a large portion of private ownership to the Lu’s with an end goal of expanding the retail space into the Chinese Market.

“It is the largest potential deal we have.” Luhan’s Mother explained (yet again) “Let’s not mess this up boys.”

***

Kyungsoo glared. Baekhyun thought he would have to hold the younger man back, because he looked about ready to slam Chanyeol’s head into the counter.

“He only wanted us here because my uncle is here.” Kyungsoo said under his breathe, his words full of anger.

Kyungsoo wanted to be at home, with Baekhyun, doing…other things. He had waited all day for Baekhyun to finally have time to stop over at his apartment. But instead he was sitting at a diner with Baekhyun, Chanyeol, and Yixing – all because Chanyeol had called, saying he was upset and needed to talk about it. Chanyeol usually didn’t get upset, so Baekhyun and Kyungsoo had come as fast as they could - only to find him sipping a milkshake and staring at a corner booth nervously.

Song Joong Ki, Ji Hyo’s younger brother, only sibling, and the object of Chanyeol’s affection for years, was sitting alone in the corner booth. Chanyeol explained he had shown up at the diner with Yixing to get a bite to eat, and then noticed Joong Ki. Which meant a perfect opportunity to “accidently” run into him and eat dinner together. The only problem was that he needed a more plausible reason for the sudden dinner date.

“Does my hair look okay?” Chanyeol asked, smoothing down his sideburns as he looked towards his left than his right for confirmation.

“Yeah, you look nice.” Yixing answered, not at all bothered by the real reason they were at the restaurant. Chanyeol was never the most courageous of their circle of friends, he needed backup if he was going to see his crush after a couple of years.

“We need a signal – in case something goes wrong.” Baekhyun suggested, only to be elbowed by Kyungsoo. “Ouch! Hey, we are already here we might as well help.”

“Kyungsoo, you need to come with me.” Chanyeol stood up and waved for Kyungsoo to follow, ignoring Baekhyun’s suggestion.

“Why?”

“Because what other reason would I have to eat with him?”

“No.” Kyungsoo crossed his arms.

Chanyeol pleaded “I will buy you dinner! Or lube or handcuffs or whate-“

“Yah! Shut up!” Kyungsoo reached up and clamped a hand over Chanyeol’s mouth “Fine, I’ll do it. Just shut up.”

Chanyeol tried to hug Kyungsoo in thanks but was swatted away by the shorter man.

Kyungsoo walked towards the booth first, Chanyeol following immediately behind him. The diner wasn’t an upscale place – it served a smorgasbord of food for cheap.  It was L shaped, the kitchen and a large counter taking up one section of the restaurant. It was a perfect place for Chanyeol to spy on Joong Ki without being seen – he was in a blind spot as he sat near the corner of the place eating. Chanyeol could see him but he couldn’t see Chanyeol.

“Uncle? Uncle, is that you?” Kyungsoo smiled, all of his anger masked by his acting.

Most people that met Song Joong Ki were easily charmed by him. He gave off a friendly aura which was only enhanced by his baby face. He was past thirty years old now- there was a large between Ji Hyo and himself. Honestly he was closer in age to his nephews than he was to his own sibling, which often put him in that awkward position of being their friend and their uncle at the same time.

“Soo?!” Joong Ki’s face lit up when he saw his nephew. They had seen each other briefly at Joong Ki’s welcome home party a few weeks back, but the party had been so packed full of well-wishers their time together had been too short.

Joong Ki stood up and walked over to his nephew, pulling him into a hug.

“Hi Hyung.” Chanyeol grinned awkwardly, bowing slightly at the man that had been his ideal type for the better part of his adult hood.

“Chan….um- Chanmyeon, right? Hey!” Joong Ki extended a hand, Chanyeol nervously took it, hoping Joong Ki wouldn’t notice how sweaty his palms were. Chanyeol was often bothered by the fact that Joong Ki never seemed to remember his name. But then Joong Ki just had to do something like breath or smile or say something funny and Chanyeol always forgave him.

“It is nice to see you hyung.” Chanyeol was pretty sure he was blushing. He tried to think of something other than the perfect human being in front of him. Like a puppy being kicked or his favorite manga being eaten by an angry badger.

“Yeah, it is nice to see you too. I was just thinking that I should call up my nephews sometime soon so we could go drinking.”

“That would be great.” Chanyeol answered, even though the statement did not apply to him in any way. Kyungsoo shot him an annoyed look.

“Yeah, that would be great. We should get together sometime.”

“Cool. Hey, I hate to be rude but it looks like my date is here.” Joong Ki looked past the two men, waving at whomever was approaching.

Chanyeol spun around to see Lee Kwang Soo walking across the restaurant. Of course it was Kwang Soo, Chanyeol thought. He had always been the problem. Joong Ki and Kwang Soo were best friends, which was a little odd given the fact that Kwang Soo had ten plus years on him. But then again Joong Ki had some years on Chanyeol and that hadn’t stopped the younger man.

“Hi guys. What are you doing here?” Kwang Soo asked, looking from Chanyeol to Kyungsoo and back to Chanyeol with a goofy grin on his face.

“We were just leaving. Have a nice date. Bye.” Kyungsoo grabbed Chanyeol’s arm and dragged him away from the booth- hoping to avoid seeing Chanyeol have a meltdown in front of his Uncle.

“Are they dating now? Is that it? Huh?” Chanyeol muttered over and over as Kyungsoo dragged him back to where Yixing and Baekhyun were waiting.

“I don’t know – and if they are does it really surprise you?” Kyungsoo was never the best at comforting his friends when they were upset.

“Hell yes it upsets me!” Chanyeol looked close to tears.

“Is he okay?” Baekhyun asked, pointing at Chanyeol (who honestly appeared to be on the verge of a breakdown).

“No! I am NOT okay!” Chanyeol stomped his foot like a three year old before spinning on his heels and stalking out of the restaurant.

“We better go after him.” Kyungsoo sighed. He really would have rather have been doing almost anything else but this. Stupid Chanyeol.

***

Minseok was a half an hour away, by his estimates, of finishing the proposal. He had worked on it all afternoon, drowning his uncertainties- his anxiety over his burgeoning relationship- with work. Then his phone rang.

“Hyuuuunnnnng!” It was Suho and he was plastered.

“Where are you?”

“At a restau-“

“Hiiiii hyung!”

Minseok groaned. It was Sehun. Then he heard Tao and Jongdae in the background. “Are you guys all drunk?”

“Uh huh. Hyung, can you pick us up?” Sehun had the phone now.

Minseok wanted to tell his brothers to get a cab, but they sounded so far gone he feared they would stumble into the road instead. They barely managed to tell him which restaurant they were at “Fine, be there in a half an hour.”

He closed his laptop. Work would have to wait.

***

“Do not tell me he went running in there crying.” Kyungsoo eyed the familiar Hanok restaurant. Yixing, Baekhyun, and Kyungsoo had followed Chanyeol here (a short walk- or tear filled jog in Chanyeol’s case) from the diner.

“Looks like it. Come on, we better go get him.” At this point Baekhyun wanted to slap Chanyeol too.

Soojin greeted the three of them as they walked in “Kyungsoo, Yixing, Baekhyun! The whole family is here!”

“What?” Kyungsoo was confused.

“Your brothers are dining right now, Minseok just arrived. Will you be sitting with them?”

“Is Chanyeol with them?” Kyungsoo asked.

“Yes, he just went in. Must be quite the family party today.” Soojin winked, leading the three men to the dining area.

Baekhyun grabbed Kyungsoo’s hand, feeling how tense he was. Kyungsoo squeezed back, a little too hard, because the pain and all.

Soojin was about to open the door when the door slid open violently, a weepy Chanyeol standing in the doorway.

“No one cares!” He wailed, leaving the room he rushed down the hall.

“He grabbed a bottle of liquor and started chugging. We better follow him.” Minseok explained, pushing past Kyungsoo. Suho, Sehun, Tao, and Jongdae – who appeared inebriated – followed after the eldest Kang brother, stumbling down the hallway.

Kyungsoo, Baekhyun, and Yixing followed too – they had come here to find Chanyeol after all. Soojin watched them go, clearly apprehensive at the Kang brothers (and their friends) latest antics.

The hallway was long, with dining rooms to the left and the right. Minseok was hoping that Chanyeol was heading to the restrooms and wouldn’t make the mistake of entering a room where people were eating.

It was debatable if Chanyeol thought the room was the restroom or if he just didn’t care. Minseok wasn’t sure, but what he was sure of was that Chanyeol opened up the door to one of the dining areas- sobbing loudly.

“. We better get him out of there.” Minseok rushed forward, the other men on his heels. He was going to have to make sure to give Soojin a bigger tip than she had ever received.

***

Luhan took a sip of his water. The dinner was going well, very well. Mr. Kim was an affable man and he hit it off well with Luhan, talking soccer and business interchangeably. Kris was polite, but vaguely distant, only engaging in conversation when it turned to the business side. Mrs. Lu had her game face on, laughing and socializing expertly.

Luhan was certain they had opened the door to investing in the Kim’s business. And then another kind of door was opened – that to the dining area

 “Chanyeol?!” Luhan blurted out, watching in disbelief as the tall Monday Enterprises employee stumbled into the room, weeping. The situation only worsened when hot on his heels came the Kang brothers, Yixing, Tao, Jongdae, and Baekhyun – all entering the room. Some of them were clearly drunk.

“Luhan?!” Minseok stared at his boyfriend, who was presently seated across the table from Mr. Kim, the owner of one of Monday Enterprises largest investments. His heart was beating fast. Was Luhan only using him? What was going on? Why was he meeting with one of their pivotal clients? Was the night before a joke?

“Krissss? How do youuuu know Luhan? ” Tao slurred, swaying slightly, eying his ex-boyfriend suspiciously.

“Mom?!” Yixing looked at Mrs. Lu with wide eyes.

“What?” Luhan looked from his Mother to Yixing and back to his Mother, who looked down. What in the hell…”Why is he calling you Mom?!”

 “The Kangs!” Mr. Kim blurted out, looking embarrassed.

“Mr. Kiiiiim?!” Suho was shocked to see their top client about to make a deal with their rivals. “Whaaaat are yoooooou doing heeeere?”

“Minseok...” Luhan could see the hurt on Minseok’s face. He should have known. His Mother probably set this whole thing up. Of course Monday Enterprises was the mystery investor. How could he have been so stupid to not think of it? Luhan watched as Minseok looked away.

“Taooooo, get awaaaay from him.” Sehun slurred, staggering into the room, putting his fists up like he would fight Kris then and there.

“IS EVERYONE FORGETTING I AM THE ONE WHO IS CRYING?!” Chanyeol yelled.

“I’m out.” Kyungsoo grabbed Baekhyun’s hand and backed away slowly, leaving the mess behind. He knew he should never have answered Chanyeol’s damn phone call.

-------------------------

a/n-  Well that was unexpected. The scene at the restaurant had to happen, because Mrs Lu said nothing could go wrong. It is a law that then something had to go wrong. Or something. Or maybe I just really wanted to write a scene full of everyone looking at each other like “YOU!” “YOU!”. It made me laugh, okay *Runs and hides from my update*

*Returns from hiding for a moment* Yixing called Mrs. Lu Mom (he met her three years ago, and didn’t recognize her then or)?! Whaaaaaaa?! And what will Minseok do now – does he really believe that Luhan betrayed him? What about Mrs. Lu – will she pick up on the fact that Luhan and Minseok have some unresolved feelings (not that she didn’t already suspect as much)? These questions will be answered (most of them anyway) in the next update of Marry Him if You Dare *Runs back into hiding*

Thanks for subbing, voting, and reading. I feel humbled seeing the sub count for this story. Thank you so much! <3

PS- Working on the next chapter now, so I should probably have an update tonight (editing it right now). So if you hate me for this chapter never fear, there is another chapter you can hate me for (or preferably love me). Hugs!