❄  Young and Beautiful (Bryson Andres cover)  ❄

Luhan stares out of the window, snuggling further into the bundle of blankets hugging his body. The only sound that really filled the lounge room was the cackling of the fire as it eats up the wood.

It’s cold—as usual, when you’re living in the same castle as three ice masters. But the town of Arendelle’s freezing up too. The snow hasn’t stopped.

Although it wasn’t crashing down on the people and their tiny huts, but instead softly drifting to land on the ever-growing layers of snow on the roads, Luhan could only watch as the mounds of snow grows higher and higher.

He thought Minseok had nodded off on the couch opposite him, but apparently not.

“Luhan?”

He whips his face towards where his best friend and cousin was sitting, blonde locks swishing gently to frame his face, before he turned to continue looking out the window. The snow looked akin to the soft down of a full-fledged swan’s feathers, gracefully meandering through the air. Some stuck to the window Luhan’s propped up against, some falling to the window sill, but Luhan never keeps his eyes on those ones for too long. The flurries of snow flying through the air carried freely by the wind are the most beautiful ones.

“Yeah?”

“Do you believe in…” Minseok’s blankets rustle a little.

“Unicorns?”

Minseok snorts. “Totally.” He falls silent again, so Luhan turns, dragging his amber eyes from his mesmerised gaze out the window to stare his friend down.

“I have no idea what else you possibly could be talking about then,” he says with 100% seriousness, and only when Minseok raises his gaze to meet Luhan’s does he laugh.

“I meant love,” Minseok finally mutters, quietly, fiddling with the delicately sewn hems of the woollen pink and purple blankets he’s burrowed himself into.

The fraying ends begin to stiffen, half-way to being frozen.

“Do you believe in love at first sight?” he asks, large blue eyes peeking at Luhan from under his light eyelashes, blinking and letting those long lashes flutter.

Luhan blinks back at him, rosy lips pursed in a thin line.

“No.”

Minseok nods, looking back down, abandoning the ends of the wool of his blanket and resorting to playing with his fingers.

“Why’d you ask?”

Minseok shrugs. “Just curious.”

“Must be a reason why you’re curious,” Luhan counters smoothly, eyeing Minseok from under his fluffy golden bangs. “Do you?”

“Do I what?”

“Believe in love at first sight?”

Luhan doesn’t really need to hear what Minseok says, if Minseok’s going to actually answer that question—nor does he really want to, actually.

He doesn’t like the idea of Minseok happily drifting on with his life and growing up, and leaving him behind.

Is he blaming Jongdae?

Luhan can’t find it in himself to really blame the boy who he’s only heard of from Minseok’s endless tales.

“I think I do.”

❄

“Are you sure about this, ‘Seok?”

Minseok only nods.

Luhan’s eyes remain on him for a moment before he zips up the second bag, pats it down, and turns back to his best friend, watching Minseok finish packing the last bag.

“Han?”

Luhan smiles. “Yeah?”

“You know you don’t have to come. It’s gonna be dangerous and stuff.”

Luhan snorts, flipping his neat, beautiful golden bangs out of his brown eyes. “No, I’m coming.”

“Why? It’s not like you have anyone to see in Corona.”

Luhan’s smile softens. “You’re family, and that means we don’t leave each other behind.”

“Luhan…” Minseok whispers, touched.

“How could you even think about going off head first into adventure without me huh?!” Luhan grins boyishly, and grabs Minseok in a suffocating head-lock, the pale boy crying out through the tears filling his startling blue eyes.

Minseok’s chest warmed, ironically.

“Also, you’re hopeless with reindeer.” Luhan adds, Minseok punching him on the arm and getting a yelp in return. But the smile on Minseok’s face remains hanging on his lips.

❄

Luhan peers around the corner, Minseok tugging on his sleeve.

“Can we go now?” he whispers.

“Wait, wait,” Luhan hisses, pressing a clammy palm down on Minseok’s face, the latter grimacing.

Luhan’s large brown eyes dart around the ballroom before lowering the hand he’s clamped on Minseok’s face to grab him by the wrist and dart out. The two of them sprint across the marble floors in their socks, with their shoes in their hands. Luhan glances behind them for a moment, relief washing over him at the sight of no footprints. They slip a few times, gliding across the hall, before they grab onto each other.

Upon reaching the front door, they both slip on their shoes, which aren’t theirs at all, but instead, boots they found old and dusty in the backyard shed.

The blizzard’s going absolutely crazy, the entire town blanketed under a thick metre of snow—the best weather.

Minseok looks behind him for a moment at the dark castle before running right out into the storm, Luhan rushing to catch up.

And while Minseok’s dressed simply in an all-white pressed shirt with delicate silver linings with a slim hoodie over the top and ripped, black skinny jeans, Luhan’s bundled so much in coats and furs he looked like a burrito, barely keeping up with Minseok’s pace.

The snow made way for them, the blizzard continuing on all around them, Minseok confidently holding out his right arm, the snow forced to detour around them, leaving Luhan shielded from the biting winds.

Looking behind, the snow’s already covered their footsteps.

“How much further, Luhan?” Minseok chirps.

“A few more minutes—we turn right at the giant tree near the end of the bridge.”

Thank god for Minseok, or Luhan would still be freezing under all those layers—his lips would be turning purple and his teeth would be chattering and his fingers would still be turning numb, but they aren’t.

Minseok’s squinting, finally making out the giant form of a lifeless tree, proudly standing at the foot of the bridge that would lead straight to the Arendelle castle. Before they left, they checked the windows that faced the direction of the stables they’re heading in, Minseok freezing over each of the windows that could disclose their whereabouts.

He rushes towards the tree, Luhan almost tripping over his cape and the knee-high snow that threatened to bury him under.

There—the stables.

Minseok throws the great big wooden doors open, the blindingly white snow and the shine of the full moon the only things illuminating the rows and rows of horses. They rear up a bit, making a hassle out of the billowing storm outside, but as soon as Luhan runs into the stables and lowers his hood, smiling angelically, they quieten down.

But Minseok and Luhan walk right past the lines of expectant horses, Luhan petting each on the nose fondly, but Minseok’s eyes are fixed on the area at the very end of the stables.

No animals are residing here, but Minseok runs towards an average-looking cart, inwardly apologising to whichever worker owned this cart. Luhan runs around, collecting the straps and buckles, before they head out the other end of the stables and towards the paddocks.

The reindeer have a shelter too, though they are less sensitive to cold weather, so living away from the stock of horses. Minseok’s always been a good rider, and so has Luhan, but taking their very own horse from the Royal herd would be much too suspicious. Horses don’t survive as long in the harsh weather conditions too.

Sven seems to be the first to notice them, trudging out from under the roof of the shelter and into the snow to greet them. Minseok and Luhan give him a little attention, but it’s really Sven’s son they’re looking for. It’s Luhan’s own reindeer.

Although Minseok wanted to take his white stallion since Luhan’s taking Dawn, his reindeer, Luhan protested, saying they really can’t afford to risk such a beautiful horse in such horrid weather, and he has no choice but to take his working partner—it’s rather hard to bond with any random reindeer.

Luhan straps reins to his full-grown deer before handing Dawn to Minseok and heading back to the herd for one more. With Arendelle’s ice industry, especially with their unique all-year round frosty weather, the reindeers have just grown exponentially in number, the boys taking two deer with no shame.

With Minseok leading Dawn and Luhan another deer, they lead them out of the paddock, Sven easily trusting his own son with the boys he’s watched grown up. Dawn is a tall and strong bull, young and energetic, with impressive antlers Luhan boasts about to anyone that listens. Luhan’s chosen the other from the younger generation, afterall, the older deer are stronger in transporting carts of heavy ice, whereas they’re just two boys.

They trudge back into the stables, where the boys hurriedly tie the deer to the cart, strapping them firmly down while the two reindeer casually nudge at each other, their antlers gently scraping against each other’s. Back through the stables, Minseok waving a goodbye to his beautiful steed and they’re shutting the doors of the stables behind them again, emerging back out into the blizzard.

They hop on and after Minseok entirely erases their tracks with an instantaneous new layer of snow, they set off, Luhan gently reaching out to pat the deer. As the reindeer gain speed, the castle draws further and further away, and the cart with the two boys plunge into the snow.

❄

For the fifth day of Christmas~

Thank you for the upvotes

There wasn't any Jongdae in this chapter, and it's a little short, but I'm hoping to make it up to you later :3

❄