Minseok was standing at the entrance of Purple Rain, staring down the street where Luhan was running 10 minutes ago. Somehow his legs wouldn’t move and his brain wouldn’t cooperate. All that he was doing was touch his cheek and think about how Luhan’s lips felt wet and soft against it. You could say that he was in a state of shock until Heechul walked outside.

“Minseok… earth to Minseok… Hello?” Heechul said whilst waving his hands in front of his employee’s face. Minseok still didn’t respond because his entire being was too preoccupied with thinking about Luhan. Handsome and energetic Luhan. He thought about the smiles the younger threw at him, the magnificent twinkle in his eye when he was happy, how his hand had felt in his. At the time he enjoyed the weight of it, the feel of Luhan’s fingers sliding between his and the warmth between both of them. Suddenly he felt a slap on the back of his head which startled him out of his beautiful daydream.

“What on earth…” he started angrily but once he noticed that his boss was the culprit he quickly shut up. Minseok liked the man and wasn’t particularly keen on disrespecting the elder. Not to mention that he realised he was now very late to get back to work.

“Ah I am sorry” he quickly apologized. Heechul in return just chuckled.

“I take it you had fun with a certain gorgeous young man with a blinding smile?” the elder asked. Minseok instantly went back into daydream land. Truth be told he did have fun with Luhan and he was regretful that it had to end so soon.  And his smile. God his magnificent smile. Minseok couldn’t stop himself from thinking about the straight pearly white teeth and his cute crooked teeth on the bottom row. These little imperfections made him even more beautiful. His mind wandered to the scar that graced Luhan’s bottom lip and he wondered how the younger got it. Or how he got the scar on his right cheek. That one was small and not nearly as visible as the other but he still wanted to know its story. Minseok was eager to know, to learn, everything about Luhan. It was no use to resist what he felt in his heart. He wouldn’t call it love just yet but he would settle on calling it a fondness.

“Call me stupid but I did indeed” Minseok replied. Sometimes he felt like the biggest idiot in the world for liking Luhan. However it does not do well to dwell on the past since it cannot be changed. What he must do is look at the present and the future. He liked the Luhan he saw when they were together and ultimately, if things proceeded the way they would, then he could see himself falling for the boy.

“Why stupid? Because of your rough start?” Heechul inquired. Minseok knew to what he was referring.

“Exactly. According to my brain I am the dumbest person but my heart tells me otherwise” he explained cautiously. It was difficult to align his emotions and his rationality.

“There is a wonderful saying that goes; We are all fools in love. I am afraid you are one of those fools, Minseok” Heechul declared.

“Then I am the biggest fool”

“That may be but Minseok, love is also the greatest feeling in the world. When you experience it grasp onto it with both hands and do not let go. If you do you will most likely regret it for the rest of your life.” Heechul said with a hint of sadness to his voice.

“Something tells me that you have experience with it.” Minseok said sadly. Heechul suddenly looked very grim and he knew that the words he uttered held a deeper meaning than just advice.

“I have yes” Heechul started and then proceeded to tell the story about himself and the love of his life, Anna.

Heechul met Anna in high school where they became best friends in a heartbeat. Both of them had a great love for food and would often go out to try food at different restaurants. Anna always dreamt of being a chef. She would create recipes, some of which were terribly put together or too crazy to pull off. Even though some of them looked and were disgusting Heechul was always there to try everything and to give his unsalted opinion.  They thrived on their honesty and they took every bit of criticism as constructive and due to that they grew closer together and became stronger as people. They were inseparable and Heechul developed feelings for his beautiful best friend. He was scared to meddle with their friendship by confessing to her so he painfully remained her best friend. He always thought that one day she would feel the same way and they would magically end up together. But Heechul was young and naive to think such a thing. Eventually Anna fell in love with another guy and they ended up dating. The friendship between her and Heechul turned out to be not as strong as they initially thought for Anna threw it away for the sake of her boyfriend. Heechul was ignored and their friendship sank quicker than the titanic. Since then he regretted never confessing to her, regretted not fighting for her and to keep her in his life. Now he lost her and he dismissed every other chance of love. He found that no one would smile the way she did. No one would be as passionate about anything as she was about cooking and food. He took comfort in his work and his wonderful employees. He neared 30 but vowed only to marry or fall in love when he found someone who could compete with her.

“So that’s my story. Minseok don’t do what I did. If you like Luhan or see yourself loving him, go after him!! I want to see you happy.” Heechul concluded.

“I - I don’t know” Minseok said distractedly. A lot of things were going through his mind. Whether chasing after Luhan was worth the risk and if he would feel the same way as Heechul did if he didn’t go for Luhan. Minseok knew one thing for sure and that was that he had a lot to figure out but first he had to finish his shift

*****

Minseok was glad that when he entered the restaurant again it was filled with customers. It guaranteed that he would be busy for the remainder of the day and therefore was able to avoid Sehun. He was still mad over what happened earlier when Luhan came round. The younger had acted like such a brat and was way out of line. It wasn’t something he would be able to forgive easily, but a part of him believed that Sehun acted out of love for him. He may be the youngest but he was very protective of his friends, when it should’ve been the other way around. However it wasn’t right of Sehun to behave this way and Minseok was determined to make him feel that before sitting down and have a talk with him.

He was swiftly attending to his assigned tables for the day when Sehun was trying to catch his attention when he went to collect drinks from the bar. The younger was waving and calling his name, inquiring whether he had a moment to spare.

“No Sehun I am busy right now” he said sternly. Sehun immediately looked deflated and muttered an “ok”  before going back to his work again. Minseok felt terrible that he needed to do this but if he would tell the boy that it was forgiven and forgotten then he’d never learn. As someone who’s older he had to set an example no matter how difficult it was.

He delivered the drinks to the right table, took a few more orders, talked to customers and wished the ones leaving a good evening. He was cleaning one of the tables when a little piece of paper was put next to his hand. He looked around and saw that Sehun had just crossed his path on his way to one of his customers. Minseok opened the little piece of white paper and saw 3 words scribbled on there in messy handwriting.

‘I am sorry :(‘

He had to stop himself from cooing at the younger’s cuteness which would’ve been considerable inappropriate with customers still around. They were busy to finish off the last of the orders and no new customers were coming in but still he had to remain professional for at least an hour. He tucked the scrap of paper in his pocket and reminded himself to go talk to Sehun when their shift ends.

The remainder of their evening went by without a hitch. They all tended to their work in complete silence after the restaurant had closed. The only sounds that could be heard was the clinking of plates that were being dried, the moving of chairs and the faint ballad that was playing on the radio. Due to the ballad his mind drifted to Luhan again, pondering which move to make. It was mostly the lyrics of the song that turned his mind onto the younger.

“The only way to go is let your feelings show.
See all your walls come down and just hit play.

Cause that’s the only way, to find out if it’s love.

That we’re falling, we’re falling into.”

Minseok was holding on to the steel of his broom and swaying gently to the song, softly humming along to the melody. The singer did have a point. The only way to see whether Luhan and him were meant to be was to tear down his walls, to go against his doubt and to let his feelings show. This might’ve been the final push he needed to make up his mind and to confess, or at least open his heart to the younger. He was so caught up in love and thought of Luhan that he didn’t see that Sehun had approached him. So when he felt a hand gently being put on his shoulder he screamed, jumped up and swung the broom backwards so it hit Sehun’s leg.

“AH!” Sehun gasped and bending down to clutch his shin with a pain stricken face. Minseok immediately kneeled down to take a look at the leg.

“Sehun I am so sorry I didn’t know it was you.” he apologized whilst rubbing over the sore spot, hoping it would make the younger feel a little bit better. It also was a sign of affection which was picked up by Sehun, so he wasn’t angry.

“It’s alright. It was my fault for startling you out of your thoughts as carelessly as I did. Besides you were armed as well” Sehun chuckled lightly and smiling so that Minseok would know there were no hard feelings. Minseok smiled at him too and for a moment it was like the whole Luhan fiasco was forgotten. However Sehun knew that he wouldn’t get off this lightly.

“Actually before you ‘attacked’ me I wanted to ask you if you had time for a little talk, you know….” Sehun started but pausing due to nerves. He felt a little uncomfortable to bring his stupid behaviour up again. He knew he had been wrong in attacking Luhan like that but he just wanted the best for Minseok. He thought that his friend was making a grave mistake by associating himself with Luhan, so he expressed it. A little wrong but still, at that time he thought it was right.

“About the whole Luhan thing” Sehun finished.

“Ah….”  Minseok nodded “Let me just put my stuff away and then I’ll meet you” he said before walking into the back to put the broom, and his apron away. He walked out to meet Sehun, who was now sitting at the bar with a beer in front of him, chewing on his bottom lip.

“Stop biting your lip little Hun” Minseok said with a smile. He used to call the younger that when he first started working here. They both had found it funny because Minseok was actually the shorter one. It was a term of affection between the two and it had been a long while since he mentioned it. Sehun smiled slightly at the name and loosened up.

“It’s been awhile since you called me that” the younger said shyly. His slender fingers wrapping around his beer bottle and taking a sip. He offered a bottle to Minseok too but the elder declined. He wanted to visit Luhan after his shift and he didn’t want to be tipsy for that.

“I know it has… too long if you ask me. But what did you wanted to tell me?” Minseok asked. The sooner he would be done with this, the sooner Sehun would apologize, the sooner he would be able to rush to Luhan’s side and tell him that he wanted another date, and maybe more. Although he wasn’t too sure if he should say the maybe more part. A date would suffice for now.

“I wanted to apologize to you for acting the way I did earlier when Luhan came by. I never should’ve hit him, or tried to pick a fight. The guy just really makes me angry and I am frustrated that you hang out with him after the way he treated you. Personally I don’t think he’s worthy of a second chance but I should also recognize that this is your decision and as your friend I should support you in that.” Sehun said thoughtfully. He was picking every word carefully and handled this is a very mature manner. Minseok was proud of him.

“Thank you Sehun, for the apology and it’s alright. You realised you were wrong and I am not mad anymore. But, as my friend, you should know that you’ll be seeing a lot more of Luhan from now on.” he told the younger. Sehun didn’t look surprised.

“You like him don’t you? And you we’re thinking of him earlier when I startled you?” Sehun inquired. The younger was more perceptive than anyone gave him credit for.

“I do yes, and after talking to Heechul I’ve decided to go for it. I trust him Sehun. I cannot help it but I do. He’s not the bully that he was before. It was all an act out of unhappiness and insecurity probably. I like the Luhan I see and I want to learn more about him. That’s not wrong is it?” Minseok asked almost out of desperation. Sehun wasn’t all too keen on the match but it was important to him that he had his friend by his side. Sehun crossed his arms in front of himself and looked at Minseok sternly.

“It’s not wrong.. Foolish yes, but not wrong” the younger said. “If you say that he’s a good guy then I’ll trust your word on it. BUT one wrong move Min and he’s dead meat okay?”

“Fair enough. If he hurts me then you can go hunt his perky little ” Minseok chuckled. Now he mentioned it, it had been awhile since he thought of Luhan’s behind.

“Aaaaaaah Min…. Why??”  Sehun whined and both boys laughed after that. It was nice to have made up and to get frustrations out of the way. It allowed a friendship to grow stronger and prevented fights and misunderstandings.

“Come on little hunnieee~  Don’t tell me you haven’t seen how tight, round and perfect Luhan’s is?” Minseok teased to which Sehun pretended to throw up. He shoved the younger and said he would stop teasing but that he did have a thing for Luhan’s . Minseok felt relieved that he told Sehun what he felt for Luhan so that he had someone to talk to that wasn’t his boss. He knew Heechul meant well but it wasn’t something you wanted your boss to know. Now he could confide in a friend.

“Speaking of Luhan… I’ve got to run Sehun. Can I trust you to lock this place up?” Minseok inquired.

“Yeah yeah you go and be nauseating with the world’s most perfect ” Sehun countered and quickly pushed Minseok out of the establishment.

*****

Minseok knew where Luhan lived but he had never seen the place up close. It was a huge building and Luhan’s apartment, or well, penthouse was situated on the top floor. He felt a little intimidated by it all so he decided to call Luhan and to see whether it was alright that he came over. The doorman was looking at him in a funny way, as if the man knew that he was scared and severely out of place.

“With Lu”

“Hi Lu it’s Minseok.”

“Oh… Seok…. Hi.”

“Uh I am in front of your apartment. Do you want to come out?”

“Really you are here?” Luhan sounded shocked “Yes absolutely. I’ll come down in a sec.” Minseok heard before the younger hung up. ‘Well that was awkward’ he thought.

It took more than just a second before Luhan walked out those big glass doors. He greeted the doorman with a smile and a polite bow before he walked up to him. There was a slight skip in his step and a big smile on his face, but once he reached Minseok his smile faltered and a certain insecurity kicked in. ‘Must be because of the kiss’ Minseok thought.

“Hi~” he said “Want to go somewhere?” he asked after that. Luhan nodded and suggested to go hang out at the park across from his building. It wasn’t big but very beautiful. The town had hung fairy lights in the trees which we now lit. It was late in the evening so all the stalls were closed but Minseok didn’t mind. He only wanted to be with the younger.

He noticed that Luhan was too quiet. He seemed happy cause he had that twinkle in his eyes but there were little hints of nervousness. He saw that Luhan bit his lip every once in awhile once they walked. He also made fists of his hands every now and then when he wasn’t trying to grab Minseok’s hand. The elder chuckled inwardly at Luhan’s awkwardness. So, thanks to a boost of confidence he decided to help the younger and grabbed his hand lacing their fingers together. Seeing the normally confident Luhan so awkward and insecure gave Minseok the confidence he was sorely lacking at the start of the evening. He felt that he was ready to confess.

“No need to be nervous Lu. I like you so we can hold hands” he said teasingly. His eyes turning into crescents. The other just blushed and nodded.

“I-I like you too.” Luhan shyly admitted.

“I kind of figured when you kissed my cheek the other day and ran for your life” Minseok teased some more. It was just too easy for him. Luhan playfully nudged Minseok’s shoulder with his own and they both laughed. The air around them was light and devoid of any tension. That way they were both able to enjoy each others company. When it became too chilly to walk outside Luhan offered to walk back to his house. They talked happily about everything and nothing on their way back but when Minseok saw the big building come into view he felt uncomfortable again. He couldn’t help but think that he did not fit into Luhan’s world.

Luhan had walked up to the big front door and greeted the doorman again. Minseok remained a few meters away from the building, gazing up to the sky to admire the height and impressiveness of it.

“Are you coming?” Luhan asked. His head was tilted to the side as if he knew that there was something bothering the other.

“Maybe another time. I don’t think I am quite up for this yet and it’s really late already.” Minseok answered not entirely honestly. He didn’t want to upset Luhan by saying he was too afraid to enter that world. Luhan came up to him and took his hands in his.

“I understand. Call or text me when you get home okay? So that I know you arrived safely.” Luhan said. He had a worried look in his eyes, but there was also a lot of warmth in them. Minseok smiled and nodded. They were standing so close to each other now that they could feel each others breath linger on their face. Minseok looked at Luhan’s lips and felt the overwhelming urge to kiss them. Something he had dreamt about for a little while now. However before he could make the move Luhan broke any type of contact and with a smirk he walked back to the building.

“See you later Seokkie” he said cutely, waving at him and that damned smirk didn’t falter. Minseok knew that this was Luhan’s way of payback for teasing him earlier and he put hope out of the fact that there was always a next time in which he could get his kiss.

*****

A/N: Hello hello hellooooo everyone. First of all my sincerest apologies for taking so long! Work has been stressfull, life has been meh and on top of that whenever I wanted to write something the words wouldn't flow. I hope that despite all that you'll love this chapter. Our boys grow together for real now, and it won't be long until I will end the story. It's now in the process of tying lose ends together so that I can work towards the end of the fic as I have already written it once before. 

Thank you all for your kind words, the subscriptions, upvotes and general love towards my baby. I still cannot believe this is receiving so much love from all of you. Never could I dream it so a thousand times thanks! As a reward I will promise not to take this long next time ^^ Enjoy lovelies xx