Yixing started to wake up to the feeling of being observed. He slowly crooked one eye open to prevent the light from disturbing his sight, only to find two black pearls staring right back at him. He squinted both his eyes, blinking rapidly a couple of times before he could focus the silhouette in front of him.

«Creep» Lay murmured.

«Good morning to you too, ge» Sehun replied bluntly before adding «it's the first time I wake up before you do.»

Yixing saw an expression of relief flashing through the younger's features; just a fraction of second, enough to make the Chinese boy wonder if he had imagined it or not. It also made him recall what Sehun had said in his sleep during the night. Was the maknae really afraid that he would have woken up to an empty spot beside him?

He tried to move closer to Sehun, because he wanted to cuddle and at the same time let the other know he would have always been there, but as soon as he scooted nearer, he felt a dull thump in his head, and he hissed. 

«You were sober, yeah.» Sehun retorted, handing him some painkillers.

Yixing bit his bottom lip. He was sure he hadn't drunk more than one cocktail at the club, and it wasn't even a very strong one. So why did he feel like he had been drinking all night long? He shook his head a little despite the spinning sensation. Then it occurred to him that he hadn't been eating for all the previous evening due to the performance, so maybe the alcohol went right through his brain, making him a little bit tipsy, enough to momentarily forget everything and kiss the maknae.

Once the memory of what had happened sank into his mind, Yixing started to freak out. It wasn't that he had forgotten the kiss, the love they had shared, the confession; he had just put it aside. But now it came back, and he was scared. Scared that everything would have started to fall apart right before his eyes. He couldn't deny it anymore, not after all those sweet kisses that he already longed to receive again, not after all those words. He couldn't regret it either, because really, that night had been just magical and perfect. However, without the disinhibition of the alcohol his fears were back stronger than ever, and the fact that Sehun seemed to be avoiding him, or at least the matter, didn't help at all. Why the heck was the younger being so distant?

Lay rubbed his sleepy eyes one last time as he literally felt Sehun standing up and padding around the bed. He still had on the jeans he was wearing at the club, but he was shirtless, and that reminded the Chinese boy how smooth that white skin had felt under his touch, igniting something inside him.

«You should go downstairs and have breakfast, Yixing-ge» Sehun suggested, not even once looking at him.

«Don't feel like it. My head pounds, I want to stay here.» it was true, he didn't want to see the others, to lie directly to their faces, to hide his newfound feelings and have the sensation of being alone among what in fact were his friends and brothers.

«Why don't you go and get something instead?»

«I don't feel like it either. But you should eat to take those painkillers» Sehun declared, finally turning around to face the older.

He seemed to be pondering a really important question for a second, then reached out for his luggage, that still lay open in the room, and took out something. Yixing looked at the maknae perplexed when he stretched out a hand to give the other a snack. The older smiled warmly to the younger, before taking advantage of the heartwarming gesture and lock his fingers with Sehun's.

«I'm not going to let you starve. Let's share!» Yixing chirped, not really wanting to analyse the expressions on the face of the maknae.

He divided the snack into two halves using their joined fingers to apply the right amount of force without waiting for a reply, then shoved Sehun's part in his hand as soon as his own untangled from it.

«Geez, this is so good» the older nearly moaned, while his mouth was full of the sweet snack. «Where did you get this from?»

«I- I brought it from home. You know, I get pretty hungry all the time, so I have these snacks just in case. Suho never noticed.» he answered averting his gaze and biting down on his own piece.

They ate in silence sitting on the bed for some minutes, enjoying that food that to their hungry mouths tasted like heaven. Once they both finished, though, Yixing took courage and spoke up.

«Sehun...» he started, waiting for the other to finally look at him in the eyes for the first time since they woke up «I haven't forgotten what we did last night.»

Sehun's eyes widened. «I thought you had. It's ok if you are regretting it, y'know. You weren't sober, after all.» his voice shook a little, despite his expression being blunt as always.

«I was sober, I've already told you that. And even if I hadn't been, alcohol doesn't make people do something they don't want to, it just gives them the opportunity to do what they want without any fear or insecurity. What I am trying to say is that I don't regret it. I probably wouldn't have kissed you if I hadn't drunk that cocktail, but that doesn't mean I didn't want to.»

«Why are you telling me this now?»

«I've gone too far to pretend everything's ok. You heard me last night: I don't know why -Gosh, I don't even know if that's possible!- but my body reacts to yours and my mind can't stop thinking about you. Only you.»

«What changed? A week ago you turned me down, so why are you so eager now?»

«I've thought about it a lot. After your confession, I was shocked and confused. I knew I should have noticed how you acted around me, but it was as if I was blind. No, I wanted to be blind. Then I also thought that telling you I couldn't see you as anything more than a friend could have been the right thing to do, but deep down there was something that every time stopped me from doing so. I kept on telling myself it was just an instinct of protection towards you, I was sure that was the only real explanation. But then...» he trailed off not knowing if telling the younger about the call with Luhan was a good idea or not.

«What, ge? You saw me there wasting my life?»

Yixing took a deep breath, deciding that he had to clear things up for once. Their secrets had already created a lot of problems -not only to the two of them.

«I called Luhan-ge up the night before leaving for Taipei. I was really exhausted by this continuous thinking about you and your feelings and your body and your words... I told him what had happened and how I was feeling. Don't worry, I didn't tell him it was you the person I was referring to. He asked me if I was in love with that person, if-if I wasn't just being in denial. And then, he told me to let myself go and concentrate on my sensations. It was after that call that I started to doubt every fixed point I had in my life. I started questioning myself about what I felt toward you, asking myself if it was really an instinct of protection or if I was, in fact, in love with you, as Luhan-ge had suggested. Maybe I had always been in love with you, and I was just too afraid to admit it.
Because I realised that when it came to you, everything felt different, was different, and it always had been.
Everything started crumbling under my feet, but I was so afraid to find out the real truth... I had a lot to lose either ways. Until I saw you with that girl. Even though the original plan wasn't to get pissed off, well... You should understand me, right? Isn't it the same thing that had happened to you that night? In that moment, I knew I couldn't deny it anymore, at least to myself. Screw everyone and everything! The alcohol made the rest, and how it ended I'm pretty sure you know.»

«Luhan-ge really knows how to talk to you» Sehun smirked. Yixing didn't know if that meant the younger boy was happy or annoyed or disappointed, but he couldn't care any less, at that point; and that smirk was immediately erased by a pretty and plump pair of lips.

«So, to be perfectly clear, I don't regret it. I don't regret having kissed you. Actually I would do it all over again. It's just- I don't feel brave enough yet to accept it completely, even less to tell the others.» he said with a smile as soon as he parted from the younger. Then, moving so that his mouth was grazing the maknae's ear, he whispered: «But the offer still stands, I want to try this out. I really love you, Sehun. You asked me to heal you, that night; but the truth is that there's no other healing power that’s better than love. I want to heal you because I’m in love with you. And at the same time you will heal me, because love is always mutual, isn't it? We'll heal each other's soul, we'll fight together.»

He gently nibbled at Sehun's earlobe -something that drove the maknae crazy, as he had discovered during the night- before returning to his lips and tenderly kiss them. He felt the younger smile against his mouth and he smiled back, relieved by the fact that he had finally voiced out everything he had been bottling up inside. Yixing leaned in closer, shifting his weight forward to press his lips harder against Sehun's. Their eyes shut in synchrony as their lips savoured each other's and then slightly parted to deepen the contact. It was again a sensual game of tongues and caresses, so simple yet so complicated.

Yixing felt himself light-headed, as if he had been dreaming, when Sehun put his hands on his waist and pulled him closer, nearly making the older straddle his lap. Without interrupting the kiss, the Chinese boy encircled the younger's neck with his arms and let out a low moan as the kiss became hotter. But they also needed air to breathe, despite their desire to live by only taking in each other's scent and presence, so they unwillingly parted, panting a little.

«You taste like sweet» Sehun grinned «I like it better than alcohol»

Yixing chuckled while jokingly slapping the younger on his right arm that was still wrapped securely around his hips. The older leaned in for another quick kiss before replying: «You too taste like sweet, y'know.»

Sehun stretched his lips in one of those rare bright smiles that only seemed to appear when the Chinese dancer was around him. He felt the younger's grip lightly tighten on his waist, while a glint that was at the same time kind and serious passed into his dark eyes, and he knew that the boy was about to say something really important. That, and because a cute frown formed on his forehead, tempting Lay to trace with his fingers every line those wrinkles were creating.

«It's ok if you don't feel ready yet, Yixing-ge. I understand that. I’ve had years to come to terms with who I am and I know it can be scary at times, especially here where loving someone of the same is still considered a blasphemy, but I'm going to wait for as long as you need. We can keep it secret and just enjoy what comes, it's not like the others need to know anyway. It's just about you and me, and that's enough for me. I love you. I will try to heal you, if you let me to, even if, well, shouldn't I be creating tornadoes?»

«Tornadoes are pretty amazing, though.» Yixing shot back, flashing a playful smile while wriggling his eyebrows  to the maknae who seemed confused.

«I was trying to be serious here, Yixing-ge»

«And I'm really grateful for that, Sehunnie» he replied as he went closer to the younger, his breath grazing the other's lips «but I happen to really enjoy kissing you»

Yixing smiled before pressing once again their mouths together.  Because right then, the only reassurance the Chinese dancer needed was the touch of Sehun. He knew the other wasn’t going to make any pressure on him, he knew that they had nothing more to say with words, they had already laid out their feelings and emotions and fears, now it was time to let their actions speak.

He heard the maknae mutter a “that’s totally fine with me” against his lips and he chuckled a bit, the vibrations of his body sending shivers down the younger’s spine.

«Oh, and by the way, you can stop calling me “ge” when we're alone, if you want to» he added, interrupting for a second their connection.

«Can I call you “my fluffy unicorn”, then?» the younger teased playfully.

«Don’t push your luck, brat» and with that, Yixing captured Sehun’s lips once more in a searing kiss.

They kissed slowly, tasting every single second of that amazing contact. And slowly were moving their hands, caressing and touching every inch of each other's bare chests, with feather-like pressures and delicate touches that only meant affection and complete dedication, able to generate goosebumps right where their fingertips brushed the other’s skin. Slow was also the motion of their lips, that gently nibbled here and there with tenderness, not pushing to take the kiss to a more passionate level. Slow but fierce was the fire that those touches were igniting inside both boys, a fire that burnt without creating any suffering.

Lay moved one of his hands to Sehun's face, tracing on his skin delicate patterns before resting it on the younger's cheek, softly rubbing on its smoothness. Only then their mouths opened again, letting their tongues dancing a wonderful duet full of feelings and unsaid words. There was no inch of their mouths that hadn’t been touched and tasted and by the other. Once more they were brought into their own world made of mutual love and longing, where no one could reach them. A world where there were no worries and no lies, no people to judge them, making them suffer. They were so immersed that everything around them seemed to disappear, and the time itself seemed to stop.

How long had they been kissing, caressing and holding each other with loving gestures? Neither of them was able to tell.

The Chinese boy felt himself being slowly pushed backwards, until his head softly hit the fluffy pillows on the bed, and he let out a little whimper of surprise, that was immediately swallowed by the thin yet plump lips of Sehun, now a bit red and swollen after all that making out. Their kiss was so intense that they didn't even hear the mechanism of the door of their room clicking and the entrance being opened. They didn't notice the quiet whispers of “be silent” “shhh, maybe they're still sleeping”, but they surely couldn't miss the loud scream that echoed between the four walls of that hotel room.

«What the is going on here?»

A wide-eyed and frightened Lay immediately pushed Sehun away, abruptly interrupting their kiss, as soon as he saw two figures standing right in front of the bed with equally shocked and confused expressions. He gasped hard as he realised the trouble they had just gotten themselves into, while the silhouette that had kept silent until then finally spoke, its words engraving Yixing’s soul like fire with skin.

«Oh my God»

AUTHOR'S CORNER... YAY! 

Sooo yeah! This is the 13th chapter (I guess I'll have to edit the forward... this isn't a "short chaptered fic" anymore). 
I'm not sure about many parts of this chappie, and I also wasn't sure if cutting it right where I cut it would have been a good idea or not. So I'm really looking forward for your feedback, especially on the kissing scenes, since I'm not really good at writing them. 
(Also, a friend of mine has started reading this fic -when you'll arrive here, you'll know who you are- and I want to thank her for her effort to understand my mental problems that made write this, LOL)
As usual, I really want to thank you all, for your upvoting and subscribing, because I feel like I should hug each one of you, but that's actually impossible... I want you to know that your last comments were really inspiring. It's because of them that I keep working hard on this story. Thank you a lot. See you for the next chapter... Who do you think the two boys are?