85.

Three Halves to Make Me Whole

85.

The mystery calls continued, and as hard as ZiTao tried not to be he started getting suspicious. The older was hiding something, he had to be, this wasn’t how he had acted with any of his other clients and it was truly getting to ZiTao just past the one month mark. He didn’t have anyone other than Victoria and Yifan to really talk to about what was going on, seeing how Sehun was… dealing with his own things and the last thing that ZiTao was going to do was talk about relationship things with him. He had Jongin as well, but Jongin had so much going on between his own life and being there for Sehun as he should be. At the same time it left ZiTao feeling… Alone.

A soft click pulled ZiTao out of his head and he perked up, looking to the front door as Minseok entered, standing and moving to give him a welcome home kiss.

“Welcome home, Hyung,” the blond said, Minseok humming softly as he hung up his jacket, pulling out his mobile as it buzzed. Curiosity got the best of the ZiTao and he peaked over Minseok’s shoulder, understanding more of the message than he usually did before Minseok locked his phone screen, offering a smile up at the younger. “Minseok-Hyung?”

“Hmm?”

“Why are you receiving texts in Mandarin?” he asked, Minseok’s smile remaining though his skin paled a little at the question.

“Why is that so strange? I took almost a full year of Mandarin when I was going to college, and I had a best friend whose native tongue was Mandarin,” Minseok replied, stepping past the younger, who followed him closely.

“That doesn’t answer my question. Who are you talking with in Mandarin?” ZiTao pressed.

“Just some client.”

“Minseok, give me a name.”

“Don’t be disrespectful,” Minseok stated. “And I can’t, it’s a breach of confidentiality.”

“Screw confidentiality, you’ve been acting strange ever since you came back from China and it’s been making my skin crawl because of all the things that my brain comes up with that could be the reason. You either need to tell me what’s going on, or I’ll have to give in to the worst scenario, and if that’s the case then okay I get it, we’re even can we put it to rest?” ZiTao rambled, stopping and panting as he tried to catch his breath, Minseok’s smile turning into confusion.

“We’re… even? ZiTao, what are you talking abo-”

“Are you cheating on me?” Minseok’s eyes widened, everything in the room seeming to come to a halt with the question.

“What… what could ever make you think that I was cheating on you?” the older asked, ZiTao dropping himself on the couch.

“Because you’re keeping to yourself more and more and you always go into our room, or out here if I’m in the room, or even outside the apartment when you get calls from whoever ‘Mr. Han’ is. You brush it off as him just being some client of yours when you’re not supposed to have any other clients… You don’t know how many times I’ve almost gone to your work to ask Hakyeon-nim about it to see if Mr. Han is actually one of your clients or if you’re just lying to hide something and- and-” ZiTao’s breathing started to pick up as if he was starting to panic and Minseok took a step towards him.

“ZiTao, I’m not cheating on you!”

“Then who is it that you won’t let me know you’re talking to?” ZiTao asked, desperation ever present in his voice and Minseok bit at the inside of his lip, the two staring at each other for a long moment.

“… LuHan.”

“What?”

“‘Mr. Han’ is known to you and me as ‘Mr. Lu Han’.” Minseok could almost see the gears in ZiTao’s mind trying to process the information, eyes falling down to his lap.

“So this ‘Mr. Han’ that was your ‘special project’ has been LuHan this whole time?” Minseok sighed and nodded. “What is wrong with you?!” ZiTao exclaimed, throwing one of the couch pillows at the older. 

“You act like you wouldn’t have done the same thing.”

“Don’t try to turn this on me, I’m not the one keeping secrets here!” The blond countered, standing as throwing the other couch pillow.

“Will you stop throwing things like a two-year old having a tantrum?”

“Enough with the child-comparisons, I thought you were done with that.”

“And I thought you were done acting like a child.”

“If I’m acting like a child in this, then what does that make you? Are you trying to say you’re innocent in this whole thing?”

“Of course not. Trust me, it hurt to keep a secret from you-”

“You mean from everyone. I’m not the only one that you lied to. I should have known something was up when anytime that anyone asked about LuHan or what happened when you went to China, and you would spout off the same regurgitated lines each time as if they were rehearsed. I thought it was just to avoid thinking about some painful memories where he turned you away or slammed the door in your face, something. Not because it was a lie, and when you start changing how you tell a lie you risk losing the continuity behind it and people start to be able to tell that you’re a liar!” ZiTao’s voice continued to rise, and he took a harsh step back when Minseok stepped towards him.

“ZiTao, listen to me-”

“Why? So you can try and convince me that you were lying for the greater good? To justify yourself?”

“No. I’m not trying to make it out that what I did was right; I’m just trying to make you understand things from my point of view.”

“I could never understand a point of view that continued to cause pain to people that care about. Or at least that I claim to care about.”

“Would you listen to me for five minutes without cutting me off? And you wonder why I still call you a child,” he muttered the second statement, ZiTao crossing his arms over his chest.

“Because as an adult you know to lie to get what you want?”

“For the love of god, ZiTao.” The younger scoffed, sitting on the couch, watching Minseok with a scowl.

“Fine. Try to make me understand,” he said, Minseok taking a breath, letting it out as a short sigh, sitting on the opposite side of the couch.

“Imagine if you were in my shoes, like with Yifan when he left. You got no word of warning just like I did. What if someone gave you Yifan’s new mobile number, his address even? We both know that you would have tried to go and convince him to come back to Korea during the whole thing.”

“Or I would have moved home, considering I thought you were done with me.” Minseok frowned, ZiTao holding his hands up as a half-hearted gesture of apology for interrupting again.

“So you get his information and you go to China and do everything to convince him that what he’s doing isn’t what he really wants… that he has a life here, and people that love him and want him to come back, but no matter what you say he just won’t listen. And you’re scared that it’s the end, that’s all there is to your relationship with him even though you both know that you’re bonded… But then he says that you two can keep in contact, but on one condition- no one can know. Because it would be unfair to rub the fact that you get to be close and talk with him again while others still are unable to,” Minseok explained. “I knew how badly it would have torn Sehun up to know that I was talking with LuHan while he couldn’t, that LuHan would tell me why he left, that-”

“Wait, he told you the reason?” ZiTao asked, the anger disappearing from his face.

“Yes.”

“What was the reason?” 

“I…”

“Let me guess, you can’t tell me, just like you weren’t supposed to tell me about any of this.”

“It’s not my reason to tell,” Minseok reasoned, the blond staring at him for a moment before his arms uncrossed and he placed his hands on his thighs. The slipped to the couch cushion he was sitting on, pushing himself onto his feet, and Minseok’s mouth opened, ZiTao’s voice silencing his own.

“You know what? you. I’m going to hang out with Sehun because I actually care about him,” he stated, making his way over to the coat rack by the front door.

“I care about Sehun,” the older argued, ZiTao looking back at him after he slipped on his jacket.

“If this is how you show that you care about someone, then I don’t want it.”

“Don’t want what?”

“I don’t want you to love me.”

“ZiTao, you’re being dramatic, I would never do something like this to you.”

“After this I don’t think I can trust that anymore,” ZiTao said, Minseok standing and taking a few steps towards the blond.

“ZiTao, don’t do this, don’t leave angry,” he pleaded, reaching out towards the younger who jerked away from his touch.

“Oh, I’m not angry. I’m hurt, and that’s a hell of a lot worse.” Minseok’s hand dropped to hang at his side, watching as ZiTao stepped into his boots. “Maybe I would have done something similar, maybe I would have tried to keep Ge all to myself if I had the chance to talk to him after he left. But at least I would have felt guilty about it, and it wouldn’t have taken me a month of secrets and you happening to see a text on my phone before I confessed. Yixing-Ge and I have our differences, but I couldn’t live with myself knowing that he was suffering while I wasn’t. The pain he and I went through, the pain that you and Sehun were going through- no one should have to go through that, especially alone.”

“There are differences between the situations though, ZiTao. Sehun’s not broken up about this like Yixing was. Sehun admits that LuHan’s gone, he’s not stuck in some kind of fantasy where he’s just gone for a short while and he’ll be coming home any day.”

“You don’t think Sehun’s broken up about this?”

“Any time I see him he seems alright. A little sad, yeah, but at least he’s not like me where he ends up misdirecting his feelings and gets sent home from work for yelling at his boss,” Minseok explained, ZiTao scoffing again.

“You don’t know that. You know nothing about Sehun. He’s hurting just like you, he just hides it well behind that poker face of his. But his grades are dropping.”

“That doesn’t mean it’s because of-”

“He’s failing dance, dance of all things. Does that sound okay to you?” ZiTao snapped, Minseok staring at him, his shoulders dropping and his gaze following after. When the older didn’t seem to have any ammo left for his counter argument, ZiTao turned to the door, opening it and stepping through. “Don’t wait up,” he added, slamming the door behind himself.

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Jung_SooyeonBD
#1
Chapter 7: this is AMAZING
Djatasma
#2
Chapter 105: Bless. *claps*
Moneylovefashionfame
#3
Chapter 105: nooooooo I can't believe it's over!!!!!!!!!!! I await eagerly for the epilogue!!
this was such a great story idea and such a great story!!! I'm glad it ended happily although that car crash scared me, suchen will always be my otp but I have a soft spot for xiutao in this. I think my favourite chapter is actually when jongdae confronts baekhyun after he leaves cy. idk there's something so precious about baekhyun running away only to run into the big red sign that is jongdae saying "wrong way, go back". man I can't believe this story is over but I'm also happy that it ends well, i don't think i could take another round of drama (seriously??? baekhyun with taehyung as a son????? I'm crying ) idk everything about this is good I love it all <333333333333333 x 100
Moneylovefashionfame
#4
Chapter 103: it was taehyung!!!!! i didn't even figure it out until you said it!!!!!
XiaoShixun #5
Chapter 105: awwww hunnie hannie
XiaoShixun #6
Chapter 104: Why would he said No?
Djatasma
#7
Chapter 104: What is up their sleeves? Yaaay Wus!
XiaoShixun #8
Chapter 103: Awwwwww
Djatasma
#9
Chapter 103: OMG why am I misting about the eyes
Teaspoone #10
Chapter 102: Omg don't do that to me! What is it with the boys and cars? Probably didn't help that I just read a fic where these two got in a wreck and Yeol actually died. *sobs* I was so scared you were just gonna off one of them XD. Great chapter, as usual. And a tiny bit of angsty-fluff at the end to wrap it up, well done. :)