Chapter 1
Boy Meets BoySehun couldn’t really say that this was what he was expecting.
“Speed-dating? Really, Tao?” he questioned, grimacing at the crowd in front of him before turning to face his friend who had dragged him here. Tao simply shrugged at his friend’s annoyance and disbelief, looking out to the crowd once more.
“Don’t think of it as speed-dating,” Tao started without even looking at Sehun. “Think of it more as… forming connections.” Sehun snorted at that. “Random blind dates take too long to set up, and regular speed-dating focuses too much on the relationship part. Just browse through people, and even if you don’t find a girlfriend, you’ll find something. A girlfriend, a friend, an enemy, a one night stand… maybe all of them? I mean, there’s like, a ton of people here.”
“…I don’t know,” Sehun muttered with a sigh. His last relationship hadn’t ended on a high note, and while Tao said he didn’t have to necessarily look for anything special here, Sehun knew himself. He just knew that he was subconsciously going to be scanning for new girlfriends, and he just wasn’t sure if he was ready for that.
“C’mon, don’t worry so much, you’ll spoil the mood. Have Kris and I ever let you down before? Actually, don’t answer that, I don’t wanna know. If it makes you feel any better, though, I’ll be part of the circle, too.” Sehun raised an eyebrow at that, looking over to his grinning best friend.
“You? How did you not get, like, shot down immediately by Kris hyung?” It was no secret that Kris, full-time matchmaker and over-time boyfriend, was quite the jealous-type of person, his attitude only further bolstered by Tao’s naturally flirty personality. The other just shrugged, though, as he took Sehun’s hand and led them to two side-by-side seats on the long table in the center of the room, where people were slowly starting to sit and settle in for the main event.
“Didn’t tell him I signed up for it until this morning, and he was too busy with last minute preparations to get mad at me,” Tao remarked with a grin, and Sehun could only awe at his best friend’s idiocy.
“He’s gonna kill you later, you know that.”
“Mm, maybe… or he may just punish me. His punishments are always quite enlightening.” The blonde Chinese boy winked, and Sehun groaned, slamming his forehead into the table in front of him.
“TMI, dude, TMI. I do not need to hear about your life.”
“Oh shut up, you . If I was a girl you’d probably find it hot.”
“I would not—” Sehun tried to retort, but before he could finish with his comeback, the sound of the tapping of a microphone test was filling the air, and everyone turned their heads to look up at the front of the room where a tall, good-looking man stood at a podium. Kris hyung.
“Ahem,” Kris cleared his throat to himself, before looking out at the group in front of you. “Welcome! I am Kris Wu, owner and operator of Dragon Dating, as well as the primary coordinator for this event here and now—the Get to Know Dash!” Sehun smirked as he saw a few girls and guys ogling Kris, and outright chuckled when he saw Tao glaring at said oglers. Kris may have been a jealous motherer, but Tao wasn’t that much better himself, really.
Kris continued with his speech, “As many of you have probably read already, the rules are quite simple. We shall start with a 30-minute meal, where you shall all be served lunch and be allowed to socialize as you wish. Then,” he paused to gesture to the doors all around the room, “the dash portion of our event shall begin. You’ll have 5 minutes to speak with the person in front of you, before everyone moves one seat to the left, and this process continues until you’ve all reached your initial seats. Food has already been served, so dig in and remember: enjoy yourself!” With that, the room felt into a massive bundle of controlled chaos, as people immediately dived in to grab food and start socializing.
Sehun himself just lightly picked at his food and stared at his plate for the most part, successfully evading any and all social interaction. Occasionally, he’d glance at Tao, hoping the other boy would be willing to entertain him for a little bit before he got thrown into speed-dating-hell, only to see his best friend happily chatting it up with everyone and anyone even remotely close to them.
Traitor, Sehun grumbled in his mind, poking at his food with his chopsticks as he looked around the room. His eyes halted at the front of the room, where Kris was seated at the head of the table, having a little meal of his own as he tried to encourage some conversation between the event-goers. Somehow, he managed to catch the older man’s eye, and the Chinese Canadian frowned when he saw how silent he was being. Gesturing lightly, Kris tried to urge Sehun to talk and eat a little more, and the younger boy just huffed and looked away at the actions.
He appreciated what his friends were trying to do for him, really. Despite his attitude, Sehun knew they were just trying their best, out of the kindness of their own hearts. The problem was… Sehun didn’t really want their help. Unlike the impression he gave off, he was actually quite the romantic, and these types of events were just silly to him. Sure, Tao and Kris had both said that he didn’t have to look for a girlfriend here, he knew their hidden intentions— a date, a girlfriend, a hook-up, just something.
Still, Sehun knew how to appreciate good food, so he focused completely on the array of dishes in front him, savoring and appreciating each bite of the feast before Kris announced that it was time for the “dash round” to begin. Workers came by to clear the tables in preparation, and event-goers were given a little time to relax after their meal, before, quicker than Sehun would’ve liked, the timer was set off and they were starting.
The conversations went exactly as how Sehun expected them to. Simple “how are you”s and “what do you like to do”s filled the time, and the boy didn’t have to do much to avoid speaking for a while. Just a few of the right questions, and he could get the other person talking for ages, nonstop until the timer rang and it was time for them to move on. He could practically feel Tao’s glare burn into the side of his skull, but he couldn’t find it in himself to care. He’d let his best friend rattle his ear off later, but for now, he’d rather just space out to the sounds and visuals of rambling young adults trying to find friends and hookups and lovers and God knows what else.
He sighed as he sat down at the 14th chair, close to the end, and, not even bothering to wait until he or the other person was entirely settled, tried to kickstart the conversation.
“Hello, how are you?” he asked, trying to make his voice as chipper as possible, as he plastered on a smile to look up at his new partner. Only, that smile didn’t stay for long, as his jaw fell slack at the sight of the person in front of him.
A beautiful woman, who barely looked Sehun’s age, sat there with a single raised eyebrow, her arms crossed as she sat and stared at the boy with judging eyes. From what Sehun could tell, she was dressed casually, wearing a pair of jeans, a t-shirt, and a thin sweater over the top. She wore no jewelry, except for some simple, barely noticeable weaved bracelets on her right wrist. Her dirty blonde hair was cut short, with poofy bangs spreading out in all directions and covering her forehead, as well as parts of her eyebrows. It was mostly messy, yet somehow, that only seemed to add more to her attractiveness.
“Well, don’t you seem enthusiastic?” the woman said sarcastically, and Sehun blinked in surprise, not at her words, but at her voice. Something just… didn’t seem right about it. He couldn’t tell exactly what, but there was just something slightly off about her tone, at her pitch, at her voice in general. He quickly shook off the thought though, accounting the strangeness of her voice to the loudness of the room. “Keep it up and I may actually believe you. A little.”
“Oh c’mon, don’t be like that, I’m totally excited,” Sehun tried to bring it back, pulling up his smile once more. His partner didn’t seem convinced.
“Yeah, and I’m a donkey. Nice try, Captain Obvious.” Sehun frowned. Even if she was being so blunt and harsh about it, he couldn’t help but admit that she was right. With a sigh, he raised his hands in mock-surrender.
“Alright, alright, sorry,” he muttered in defeat, before looking back at her. She actually seemed slightly interesting, compared to the dull sprawl of people in the room that he had met so far in this little speed-dating escapade. Still, it didn’t seem like he gave her a pretty bad impression of himself, so she was out, probably.
Or, so he thought, but just a few seconds later, the girl was laughing— giggling— right in Sehun’s face.
“Cheer up, kid, you don’t need to look so down,” she said, still laughing into her hand as she spoke. “You look like some sort of kicked puppy; what, are you the type to never get shot down, or something?” Sehun blushed at her words, looking away in slight embarrassment.
“I’m not! I just… I don’t know…” he stammered out, and the other just kept chuckling at his mess-ups.
“Alright, how about this?” the girl started, and Sehun raised an eyebrow at the complete change in attitude. “Let’s play a game.”
“A game?” he asked hesitantly, slightly worried about what the other had in mind.
“We have about,” the woman paused to look at the timer in front, “four minutes left. Let’s have ourselves a little game of rapid-fire questions. Back and forth, no hesitation, just question, and answer. Whoever pauses for too long or can’t answer loses. You down?”
There was a certain ring to her voice, the sound of a challenge, and without even realizing it, Sehun found himself smiling.
“Sounds good to me.”
“Then let the games begin.”
----
4:00
“Favorite color?”
“Original, really. Anyway, the answer’s white. Age?”
“Whatever, it’s better to get the simple questions out of the way first in my opinion. 22, and you?”
“Hm, looks like I’m older. I’m 25—”
“What, no way! You look way too young!”
“—I’ll take that as a compliment. Anyway, favorite food?”
“Now who’s being unoriginal?”
“Just answer the damn question.”
“Sheesh, pushy. I dunno, sushi, I guess? I’m not picky. Hometown?”
3:30
“Beijing, and yours?”
“Wait, you’re from China?”
“Been here for like five years.”
“Oh. Well, I’m local to Seoul. So, why’d you move here?”
“Well, I came for a study abroad year while I was in university and liked the country, so I graduated early and got a job here. You in university?”
“Yeah, graduating this year. Where do you work?”
“At a corporate office; just a desk job, nothing interesting. So, what brings you to an event like this?”
3:00
“The same thing that brought everyone here: to meet new people and make my friends and family stop worrying about my social life. What else could it be?”
“Really? Because it seems like a lot more for you.”
Sehun stared.
“…”
“Well, don’t slow down, or you’ll lose. Timer’s still going, you know.”
“R-right, well, u-uhm… why are you here?”
“I’m friends with the guy running this, Kris, and he dragged me into this.”
“Wait, you’re friends with Kris hyung? Wow, small world; his boyfriend Tao’s my best friend.”
“Oh god, I’m so sorry for you.”
“So am I. So. Am. I.”
“I’ve talked with him all of twice, and I swear to God, he probably spoke more in those few minutes than I have in my whole life! He can talk.”
“Now imagine dealing with that, every day, except most of the topics for conversation are either how he looks, how Kris looks, or their life together.”
“How are you even still alive?”
“To be completely honest, I have no ing clue.”
2:00
“Well, enough bagging on Tao, back to the questions. What type of movies do you like to watch?”
“Mostly action films.”
“Ugh, you’re one of those people.”
“Hey! There’s nothing wrong with some good ol’ fashioned action!”
“Pretty much all action films are just a mix of over-the-top fight scenes, ridiculous explosions, and mediocre editing.”
“I’m taking that as a personal offense.”
“Well, that for you. So, are you gonna ask a question, or do I win?”
“. Well, uhm, uh—any hobbies?”
“Well, I like to play soccer a lot, and I enjoy singing too. I’d ask what yours are, but from first impressions alone I have a feeling you don’t even know.”
“Hey!”
1:00
“Mooooving on. Got any pets?”
“One, a dog named Vivi. He’s a one-year-old bichon, and I swear he’s the most precious thing in the world. Oh, I have my phone with me, do you wanna see—”
“No, I don’t wanna see a picture. Save that for the third date or something dude, okay?”
“Wait, what do you mean by thi—”
“I’m getting bored of the basic questions. Come up with something cool this time, okay?”
“Wow, no pressure at all.”
“Better think quick, Oh Sehun. Time’s running out.”
0:30
“Uh, okay, I think I got one.”
“Shoot.”
“What is the one thing you want to be, more than anything else in the world? It can be a quality, a job position, anything.”
0:15
She’d gone completely still, as though she’d just been paralyzed, and Sehun couldn’t help but wonder if that was actually the case. The clock was running out of time, but she was silent, eyes downcast and shoulders tense. Sehun almost waved his hand in front of her, just to make sure she was still alive.
“Tough question?”
“…Yeah.”
Well, that was a response, at least.
“We can move on, if you want—”
“A man.”
“What?”
“That’s what I want to be.”
“What do you—?”
0:00
A buzzer rang loudly throughout the room as Kris announced the end of the round, and asked everyone to move onto the next seat and continue the “Dash,” but Sehun was hardly listening. His eyes were locked on the woman before him, who was now rushing out of her seat with her head down, ready to move on. He himself was frozen in place, wanting to call out to her, wanting to know more, wanting to stay for longer. Yet at the same time, he couldn’t force the words out of his mouth, or even the air out of his lungs.
Is this what it felt to have a miracle pass you by?
“Oi, kid, hold onto this for me, will you?”
Sehun jumped—actually jumped—at the words, scrambling to catch a piece of paper that came flying at him. Once he caught it, he looked up, only to see the girl had left and some other guy had replaced her. On his own side, another guy was nudging at him to move on already, which he stumbled to do immediately while staring down at the paper.
Luhan. +82 XX XXX XXXX
Despite himself, Sehun smiled, keeping the paper in his pocket, clenched in his fist for the rest of the night.
----
Texting Luhan was somehow both easier and harder than talking to her in real life.
While on one hand, it gave Sehun time to think out his responses and to actually seem like a normal, possibly interesting human being, Luhan certainly gave him things to think about. So many of her messages were off-handed, cryptic, or downright confusing. Half the time he wasn’t even sure she liked him all that much, only for her to send cute, happy emoticons to him half a second later.
God, girls were so confusing.
“I really don’t see why you don’t just ask her out,” Tao said from where he was on Sehun’s bed. Sehun wasn’t really sure how he’d gotten into his apartment, but one second he was calmly ignoring his homework and playing some Starcraft II, and the next his best friend was belly flopping onto his bed and showing off his new manicure.
“It’s not that simple,” he argued, huffing when Tao just rolled his eyes.
“Gimme that.” Before he could think, Sehun found his phone snatched out of his hands.
“Wh—hey! Give that ba—how do you already know my passcode I changed it yeste—what are you—stop textin—”
“Done,” Tao hummed triumphantly, tossing the phone onto Sehun’s bed unceremoniously. “You have a date for tomorrow, noon, at the pizza place down the street. And you literally only switch between the same three passcodes, it’s not that hard to guess.”
“How the did you do that so fast,” Sehun deadpanned, almost scared to check his messages.
“She asked first, I just responded.”
Wait, what the .
Sehun was practically speeding to grab hold of his phone, so frantic he messed up his passcode nearly enough times to lock his phone down. He’d eventually gotten it in though, and he ignored Tao’s babbling about ‘how pathetic he looked’ in favor of gaping at the messages in disbelief.
Luhan: Hey, do you wanna go out and do something tomorrow?
You: Sure! There’s a pretty nice Italian place near me, wanna check it out?
You sent a pinned location.
Luhan: Ooh, it looks good! I’m down. Noon sound good?
You: Yep! See you then~
“…You got me a date,” Sehun finally said, gaping in awe.
“Wouldn’t be the first time,” Tao said offhandedly, before looking over at Sehun with a thoughtful look in his eyes. “Wear the plaid pants, they show off your more.”
God, Sehun hated when he was right.
First chapter is up! The story overall's not supposed to be too long, probably a threeshot max, though I'm awful at limiting myself so we'll have to see how that works out haha
hope y'all are still alive from the kokobop teasers the next update will probs come after the mv releases so enjoy dying w me lol
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