Yixing is busy chewing his footlong sandwich that he bought in a food stand. There are a lot of people in the area while loud music can be heard. He can see the cute Halloween costumes of the children as well as adults who are participating in the event. Because there will be a Halloween parade in their area, Yixing decided to go out of his condominium unit to interact with other people. And besides, he wants to be a normal person even just for a night.

            More people came into the parade. The creativity of the participants is amusing. Their costumes are all scary. He laughed when he saw some people ran away when they saw the costumes; especially the children who tried their best to hide themselves from their parents’ backs. He was busy laughing at the other when one of the paricipants—acting as the classic Sadako—suddenly appeared in front of him. Due to his shock, he shouted so loud and dropped his food.

            “What the—hey! Pay for my food!” He said to Sadako who quickly crawled away. “You think you can get away from me, huh!? Come back here!”

            But when he tried to squeeze himself into the crowd, someone grabbed him by his waist. It’s natural for him to panic so he squirmed and tried to slap the bastard who holds him.

            “Hey, stop it!”

            Yixing immediately recognized the voice so he stopped. “Sehun?”

            He saw a pair of amazing brown eyes, now made even darker and ier under the poor-lit street.

            “I was just trying to get you out of trouble. You don’t have to be that violent.”

            “Sorry. I thought you are a ert so…” Yixing noticed that Sehun is rubbing his arms and chest that he slapped a while ago. “Sorry. Does it hurt?”

            “No.” Sehun answered sarcastically.

            “It’s your fault. Why did you suddenly appeared behind me, anyway?”

            “I was already here earlier.”

            “Why aren’t you talking, then?”

            “I was busy.”

            “With what?”

            “Watching.”

            Yixing doesn’t have an idea why Sehun’s answer feels like it means something else. Maybe because he was intently looking at him. And his heart doesn’t even help. He doesn’t want to think about it, but it seems like he is the one that Sehun is watching.

            “It’s better to watch the participants than bother you.”

            So much for thinking that he only watches you. Yixing frowned. Yes, he feels disappointed that he is not the one that Sehun is watching. He just looked at the poor footlong sandwich that is lying on the pavement.

            “Damn that Sadako! If ever I see her again, I’ll throw her in the well myself! Look at what she did with the food. Because of her, it was wasted like that.” He looked at Sehun. “Of course I’m not blaming you why Sadako is gone. She just crawls fast, that’s why.”

            Sehun doesn’t answer. Yixing saw him trying not to laugh in front of him. Then he sighed and turned to him.

            “I’ll just buy you another sandwich. Where did you bought that?” Sehun said, pointing at the sandwich.

            “There—” Yixing shrieked when he saw another “monster” appeared beside him. He immediately latched himself onto Sehun who wrapped his arms around him to move him away from the being that scared him.

            “Back off, buddy.” Sehun said. “The guy is not in a very good mood tonight.”

            The hideous creature walked away, scaring other people it came across with. But Sehun stayed by his side, “protecting” him from the other Halloween participants. Yixing doesn’t react to how sehun holds him. He doesn’t even have the nerve to ask why Sehun did it either. He wonder why he calmed down when he felt Sehun’s warmth. Then he felt relaxed wrapped in Sehun’s arms. This was the first time he ever let someone hug him this way. The truth is, he’s not letting anyone hug him in front of many people, except now.

            You just like him so you’re making him an exception to the rule.

            Yixing doesn’t bother to answer that small voice in his head because he might say nonsense things to himself. Especially because he is not sure anymore of where his feelings are coming from these past few days. It’s because he always see him and talk to him longer than usual. He always notices his feelings for Sehun because he is always with him.

            Now, everytime he tries to forget about Sehun, the younger always appear in front of him. Then his plans dissolve just like that. Now he knew there was something in those feelings of his for Sehun that he knows wasn’t ordinary. Because these past few days, he always think about Sehun every time he writes his novels.

            A handsome inspiration. Yixing secretly grinned. Yes, Sehun had become his inspiration, the thriving force behind those novel of his that seemed to have gone dull before Sehun became visible in his life. Yixing secretly smiled and slowly raised his arms to wrap around Sehun’s body. He slowly closed his eyes to even feel Sehun’s warmth.

            “It’s raining.”

            “Hmm.” Wow, if I only know that hugging someone feels so good.

            “Ugly.”

            “Hmm.” Fine, call me ugly, ape, elephant, grasshopper. I don’t care. I’m not affected by that. Yixing’s fantasies stopped when he felt that Sehun is moving away his body from him. He woke up from his fantasizing.

            “Ah…” Even if he is against it, he forced himself to move away from Sehun. Because Sehun might think something else. “What did you say again?” He looked up when he felt a drop of cold liquid on his nose. “Oh! It’s really raining!”

            “Yeah.” Sehun removed his jacket and placed it above Yixing’s head.

            “Why didn’t you tell me that it’s raining?”

            “Let’s get out of the rain, Yixing.”

            Sehun wrapped his arms around him for the second time and helped him look for a nearby shelter. The participants of the parade went to find their own shelter. Yixing bets that he is the only one that enjoys the sudden rain.    

            Especially now. It seems like they are not hurrying to find a shelter. He knew, he could feel it, they were enjoying each other’s company. And he was not about to complain about it.

            “You might get wet, Sehun.” Yixing raised a part of the jacket. “We should share this.”   

            “Don’t worry. A simple rain won’t melt me.”

            “You might get sick. You might blame me.”

            “If ever I get sick, I won’t blame you.” Sehun fixed the jacket on his head. “We can even make a written statement about it.”

            Yixing tapped Sehun’s hand and removed the jacket on his head. “It seems like it’s fun to bathe in the rain tonight.”

            “What are you doing? Put it back on—”

            “A simple rain won’t melt me, too.” And to help him prove his point, the rain poured harder. He returned the jacket to Sehun. “I want to enjoy the evening rain.”

            When he tried to turn away from Sehun, the younger held his arm. Yixing is ready to argue when Sehun pulled him to a nearby waiting shed where other people is staying. Sehun doesn’t even tried to wrap his jacket around him so he didn’t say anything.

            “This isn’t the right time and place to enjoy the evening rain.” Yising heard Sehun say beside him. “You might get sick.”

            “Does that mean you’re concerned to me?”

            Yixing felt that Sehun is removing something on his head. “You’re living alone. Who will take care of you when you get sick?”

            “So, you’re really concerned?”

            “Of course. You’re my cowriter.”

            Well, too bad. Because Sehun’s explanation with everything that he do to him is not that simple. It seems like he’s been finally hit by cupid’s arrow.

            Yixing shivered in the cold. But he could feel his heart warming up to the man he never knew who could make him feel this way. The rain poured heavier so the people tried to go in the waiting shed to avoid getting wet. And for the third time that night, he gave him a reason why he fell for him.

            Because Sehun isn’t just wrapping his arms around him. He was hugging him, protecting him from the other people who pressed themselves in the shed.

            “Feeling better?”

            “Yeah.” Yixing answered, then hugged Sehun. “Do you even have to ask? How about you?”

            “Yeah,” Sehun answered. “Much better now.”

            He felt Sehun drew a deep breath. Yixing took a deep breath too. Because even if the event is terrifying, it is the exact opposite of how he is feeling wrapped in Sehun’s arms.

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

            “Let’s place a bet on who will win in the contest, Sehun.”

            “There are too many cool costumes.” Sehun said.

            “Right. But choose the prettiest one.” Yixing pointed at the ine who’s walking up on the stage. “That’s my bet. The one that looks like a giant wart fish.”

            He heard Sehun chuckle. “Give the poor man a break. You’re insulting someone who is already ugly.”

            “Huh? The uglier a costume is, the most likely who will win.” Yixing waved his hand to emphasize what he meant. “I was actually praising him.”

            Sehun already chose his bet. They were in an open-air amphitheater where the judges will choose for the best Halloween costume. They were just standing because the cemented benches are wet. The heavy rain just stopped which is a good thing because the program might be cancelled if it continued raining. And Yixing’s sure that his moment with Sehun will not be continued.

            Yixing never knew he could be this excited about being with someone. Especially with someone who he considered as a rival once.

            “Good thing that you decided to go out of your house.” Yixing said. “You can’t write?”

            “No. I was just stuck in traffic. So instead of getting mad, I just parked my car to a nearby parking lot and decided to join the celebration.”

            “Wow, you’re really something.” He said then chewed on the fries that Sehun bought him earlier. “If you can’t beat them, join them.”

            “Why? What will you do if ever you’re stuck in traffic because of this parade?”

            “Well, I will throw a grenade at them then I will find you to buy me French fries.”

            Sehun looked at his fries. “Which are forty percent salt and fifty percent ketchup.”

            “It’s delicious. You want some?”

            Sehun shook his head. “You, why are you wandering here? You can’t write too?”

            “I just finished my novel, so I decided to watch the Halloween parade. In this way, I can relax and I can get some ideas that I can use to write in my next novel. I’m always like this. I always look for something to write with the happenings around me.”

            “But you’re writing romance novels. How come this Halloween parade is romantic?”

            “Don’t underestimate the power of my brain, mate. You’re talking to the one of the most talented writers in the universe.” Yixing the tip of his fingers. “I can make any scary moments into romantic stories.”

            “That’s creepy.”

            “That’s talent.”

            “I guess you’re right.”

            Yixing stilled for a moment, then looked at Sehun. “You agree with me.”

            “Why not? You just made a point.”

            He has a point. Yixing just smiled. “I’m not used of you agreeing with me.”

            “I couldn’t blame you. I must have been a real jerk to you in the past.”

            “And you even admitted it!” Yixing looked up in the sky. “There’s really a miracle!”

            Sehun just smiled. As the time passes, all of his bad impressions of Sehun is vanishing one by one. Sehun was turning into the most charming and adorable man he had ever met, a man perfect enough in his eyes—and in his heart.

            “Why are you looking at me like that?” Sehun asked. “I don’t have a million won with me.”

            “It’s just that you have rally beautiful eyes. I can’t explain it.” Yixing even looked intently at Sehun’s handsome face now he found an excuse to do so.    

            “The way you look at me now, you are saying like I got an extra face or something.”

            “Why not? This freakin’ world needs handsome faces such as yours, that’s for sure. I won’t complain if there’s two of you.” Yixing offered Sehun his food. “You want?”

            This time, Sehun finally took some French fries with forty percent salt and fifty percent ketchup.

            “Is it safe to believe you found me attractive?” Sehun asked after chewing the fries.

            Instead of answering, Yixing just watched the awarding on the stage. He can’t believe he outright praised Sehun. Well it’s up to the younger to sum up the remaining puzzle pieces. He just admitted to himself that he liked Sehun. It’s too much if he will admit it to the other man. He still has some shame left.

            “Ugly.”

            He looked at Sehun. “Yes?”

            Sehun’s eyebrows knotted. But he can see the smile on his lips and the glow in his eyes. “Nothing. Who won?”

            “The winner is not yet announced. Yixing saw a familiar woman who walked in front of them. “Sehun, that’s your ex-girlfriend, right? Eunjung?”

            “Eunbin.”

            “Yeah, I said Eunbin.” He saw that the woman with another man. “Woah, she sure moves on fast. Wow.”

            He noticed Sehun fell silent so he looked at the younger. He wasn’t looking at his ex. But his mind seemed to have gone somewhere else. Yixing became worried. Why did Sehun react like that when he said that he doesn’t love his ex-girlfriend? Why is he emoting like that? Does that mean that Sehun regrets letting go of the woman because he still loved her?

            Think positive, Yixing! Sehun didn’t love that woman.

            He heard the people’s applause. The winner of the contest will be announced. Yixing thought of a way for Sehun to focus on another thing.

            “Let’s do it this way, Sehun. If your bet won, you can ask me anything. Even a million won.”

            Yixing succeeded in getting Sehun’s attention. He looked at him. “And if you win, what will you ask for a prize?”

            He tapped Sehun’s arm. “It’s a secret.”

            Sehun doesn’t insist of knowing it. Which is better if he did. Because the man became silent again beside him. Good thing that the winner was announced.

            “Yeah!” Yixing turned to Sehun and gave him a quick kiss on his cheek. “I won! Woohoo!”

            His heart wants to leap out of his chest because of what he just did. For the twenty five years of his life, it’s the only time that he possessed a great confidence and shamelessness like that. So he immediately wished that the ground would swallow him up because Sehun was just looking at him without any emotion on his handsome face.

            “You didn’t win.”

            And that is the reason why his humiliation doubled. Sehun is right. His bet didn’t win.

            Oh well.

            “Really?” Yixing cleared his throat and glanced at the stage where the winner is awarded. “You’re right. I thought he’s my bet. They are both look like a giant wart fish, right? It’s obvious from where we are standing.”

            “No.”

            Of course, Sehun was right. He just smiled at the younger. “Sorry…”

            “It’s alright. What now? I won.”

            “Yeah—” Yixing wasn’t able to say anything when he felt Sehun’s lips on his cheek.

            Sehun kissed him!

            “I have to get going, ugly. I still have a meeting to attend to.” Sehun wrapped his jacked around Yixing. “Enjoy the rest of the night and…thank you.”

            Yixing just followed Sehun with his gaze while the latte is walking away. He felt that his whole body is getting numb. His hand automatically touched his cheek where Sehun kissed him.

            “He…kissed me…” A smile slowly crept on his face, especially when he saw the jacket on his shoulders. It is a proof that what just happened was not a dream. “Sehun really kissed me.” 

            Damn.

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2.6k words omfg. Hey guys! I apologize if the update is a little bit overdue. I promised to post this last week but I got to post this chapter just now. :( Anyway, is the rain scene familiar? Yeah, it's like the scene in one of the episodes in 7 First Kisses where our precious Jongin is in :) 

Oh, have you watched the SBS Gayo Daejun earlier? The maknaes are smoldering hot oh my goodness. Let's all appreciate Sehun's chocolate abs here. I honestly want to remove his freaking tie and his shirt omfg: