“Hey.” Kai bit his lower lip, extra shy and self-conscious. Since they were going to the theater, he had made an effort to look good and convincing. He had told himself he was doing it because there would be so many people who would see him, so many people who all needed to believe he was a girl, but his heart didn't care about all those people, it only cared about what Suho would think.

“Wow! Am I the luckiest guy in the world, or what?! Are you sure you're not a princess in disguise?” Suho beamed at him.

“..and if you are, it's not a very good disguise.” Suho added, chuckling dorkily.

Kai could feel his face turning red, the redness slowly spreading to every extremity of his body. He averted his eyes, gluing them to the floor as he awkwardly squished an imaginary bug with his foot, just to do something. He was wearing delicate silver shoes with sparkles, no heals though. He still didn't have the confidence to pull off walking in heals without looking like a guy trying stilts for the first time. Besides, Suho was pretty short, so even in flats he was taller than him. He didn't want to raise suspicion by towering over him. Suho didn't look like he minded the height difference though, looking at him as if he had won the lottery. It made Kai feel special.

Suho had also dressed up, wearing a shiny tuxedo. He looked like James Bond's dorky younger brother. The sensible one. Who needed adventures and dangerous missions when you could be dependable and square instead? Kai still couldn't believe this was the guy his heart wanted. If he could choose, he'd rather go for James Bond himself. But James Bond was a total player, which was his usual type, but he had had enough of players. After his ex's betrayal, he had never trusted anyone with his heart again. Until now. Somehow it felt like it would be safe with Suho.

“Suho sshi.” Kai began, but Suho interrupted him.

“Call me oppa.” he grinned. Ough! Kai got shivers down his spine, green pimples sprouting everywhere from the ickiness of the idea.

“No way.” Kai shook his head, horrified.

“Wasn't it you who was complaining that we were being too formal all the time, that we should be more relaxed around each other...?” Suho reminded him, sending him an annoyingly smug wink. He was right, he had said that. But... but... he hadn't realized what that entailed. Oppa. The word alone gave him the creeps. But he couldn't really explain to Suho why he didn't want to use it, not yet.

“Okay, O... Oh... Oppa.” he forced his lips to form the word against their will. Suho's face turned into the biggest grin of all time. That silly idiot.

Suho escorted him inside the theater, waltzing inside as if they were royalty. It was kind of fun. Kai felt like he was the protagonist in his own fairy tale. He was going to enjoy every second of this amazing dream and he was not going to think about when he had to wake up and face reality. That was later. This was now.

“Suho-ya!!!” a very elegant older lady sent them a dignified wave.

“Oh, it's my aunt, I recommended this to them.” he explained to Kai as they made their way over to the lady and her fancy husband.

“I'm so excited! I told my friends we were going, and apparently the lead dancer is a very big deal. Everyone was so jealous. “ the lady giggled, seeming happily guilty or guiltily happy. “Thanks so much for recommending this to us. If you hadn't, we would've had no idea.”.

“Actually, you should be thanking this lovely lady right here.” Suho beamed as he pulled Kai closer. He had been trying to turn invisible, but Suho made sure he was seen.

“This is Kaya, my girlfriend.”.

Suho looked like he was bursting from pride. Kai felt like he had just been punched in the gut. Girlfriend? Girlfriend!?! Not once had they spoken about labels. This was only their third official date, fourth if he counted the breakfast they had had together. It was way too early to be introducing each other to relatives in an official capacity. He tried to swallow, but his throat was dry. He started sweating, making his dress stick to his skin. It felt like it was closing in on him, restricting his breathing.

“Hooray! Suho! Finally! Bravo!” the lady clapped with joy and turned to Kai. “Oh it's so nice to meet you, dear.” she took his hand, making him worry that it was too coarse, fearing that everything would be exposed right then and there, in front of everyone. He was not sure their relationship would be able to survive a public embarrassment.

“We thought this one would forever be an incurable solo.” she released his hands and chuckled. Kai understood why, Suho was a total dweeb. One had to spend a considerable amount of time with him to start finding it lovable, although he still didn't quite understand why he had developed a crush on him. He was so not his style.

“We've tried and we've tried to set him up, with some very eligible girls mind you, but he's so particular, he always finds something wrong with them.” she smirked, sending Suho a teasing look. Suho looked really embarrassed. Maybe the girls just weren't manly enough, Kai thought, silently giggling to himself.

“But then he just shows up without warning, with this absolutely gorgeous, elegant young woman, who he found all on his own, putting our efforts to shame.” she beamed at Kai. It made him even more nervous about getting caught. He adjusted the neck piece of his dress, making sure it thoroughly covered his Adam's apple and laughed feebly. Taemin's stylist was a genius at finding high neck dresses that hid everything that needed to be hidden.

“Not only is she the most beautiful girl in Seoul, she's also the best ballerina.” Suho bragged, his tiny mouth barely handling his wider than wide smile. Kai waved the compliment away, embarrassed. Okay, it was kind of cute how highly Suho thought of him. He was a dork, but he had good taste.

Thankfully the warning bell sounded, reminding the guests that the performance was about to start. They said their goodbyes, but as they turned to leave, Kai felt Suho's warm hand take hold of his, confidently entwining their fingers together. It lit an electric fire inside his palm, a tingly feeling crawling up along his arm. 'Stop it, body. You're wrong. This is not it. You've got your signals crossed. It can't be him. It just can't.', he tried to reason with his body, but it wasn't listening. All it could feel was the warm touch of Suho's hand, his firm grip, and the gentle of his thumb, which started waves of goosebumps that spread all over his body.

“Are you excited?” Suho asked after they had settled in their seats, squeezing his hand of which he still hadn't let go. Kai nodded. It was so distracting, that he wished Suho would let go of his hand immediately, but at the same time he hoped he would never let it go.

“I can feel you trembling.” Suho giggled, beaming at him. Ugh. Why did he have to mention it, like a total idiot? How could he not realize it might be embarrassing for him to point that out? Agh, he was so annoying. Thankfully, he seemed to attribute it all to anticipation for the show.

The lights dimmed and the performance started.

“That was AMAZING!!” Kai was still clapping even though everyone had stopped. Suho looked pleased.

“Did you see the 20-fold pirouette he did in the second act, it was like he had reached an eternal movement that would continue forevermore, technically perfect and aesthetically pleasing in all aspects. Wow!” Kai turned full fanboy on Suho, doing an excited play by play of the entire performance on their way out. Suho chuckled at how intense he was being, but he didn't even mind. He was flying, high on the genius of it all, vowing to one day become as accomplished as this incredible dancer.

“Oh! I forgot my phone.” Kai grinned sheepishly. They were already at the car.

“Again? Maybe you need to be more alert of where you put your stuff.” Suho annoyingly advised him. It was not like he lost things on purpose, he couldn't help it.

“I can't even own a backpack or a bag, I lose them right away and everything that's in them.” Kai shrugged in a slightly aggressive manner. Suho looked a bit irritated, like it irked him that he wasn't prepared to take his advice and become more responsible with his stuff.

“Come on, let's get your phone then. Where did you lose it? In the theater?” Suho sighed, closing the car door again.

“If I knew where I lost it, it wouldn't be lost, would it?” Kai gave him a sassy wink. He had found a weak spot of Suho's and he just had to poke it. Repeatedly.

“Where did you have it last?” Suho asked, his voice stern.

“I don't remember.” he answered honestly.

“Let's retrace your steps then...” Suho sighed again and shook his head hopelessly.

Suho talked an usher into letting them into the now empty theater. The phone was lying under his seat, it had probably fallen through the gap when the retractable seat closed as he jumped up to give a standing ovation to his lifelong idol. When his phone was safe in Suho's pocket, since his dress didn't have pockets and Suho didn't seem to trust him not to lose it again, they both realized how completely alone they were in the dimly lit theater. Kai could feel the energy of the ghosts of past performances flying around them, enveloping them in an enchanted atmosphere. It felt like they had left reality behind, entering this magical world just the two of them.

He was feeling kind of giddy after the performance, all the inhibitions that imprisoned him every day floating away, freeing him. It made him forget all about the complicated circumstances they were in, focusing only on Suho and how he felt about him. He took a step closer to him, admiring his handsome face. He really wanted to kiss him. He semi-unconsciously wet his lips in anticipation.

“Do you know what?” Suho whispered, the softness of his voice stirring something inside of Kai.

Suho crossed the short distance between them, leaning in. This was it. He was going to kiss him. Kai held his breath, closing his eyes.

“I want to see you dance. Will you dance for me?” Suho whispered in his ear. Kai got goosebumps. He was disappointed that he didn't kiss him, but he couldn't be mad since he was showing interest in his dancing.

“Uh... this dress is kind of... revealing...” he frowned awkwardly. “I'm kind of... muscly.” he added, embarrassed. He hated that he cared so much about what Suho thought of him.

“I like it.” Suho said, gently his upper arm. Kai's heart did a double flip. So he had noticed.

“You're my tomboy.” he added proudly.

But would he like him without the 'tom'? Kai wasn't sure.

Nervous, Kai went up on stage. Suho sat in the first row, watching him. He wasn't sure he could do this, dancing without music or any sort of plan, in front of the guy with whom he was smitten. But the moment his toes touched the stage, he was filled with confidence and a sense of belonging. This was his home. This was the only place where he felt fully like himself. This was what he was born to do. And he did it. Well. He forgot all about his worries of getting caught and with a song playing silently in his veins, he danced his heart out.

“Wow!!! Marvelous!! Incredible!! Wonderful!!” Suho stood up and clapped harder than any human being had ever clapped, beaming at him.

Kai descended the stage stairs, feeling more and more self conscious with every step he took. He grinned awkwardly when he reached Suho.

“Amazing.” Suho said softly with stars in his eyes. He reached for his hand and lifted it up, making him turn in a circle. Which he did very elegantly, of course. And they both giggled when he ended up in his arms. His strong arms. The closeness made him feel extremely shy, but his lips burned for a kiss. Suho placed one hand on his back and the other in his hand, and they danced.

It would have been intensely romantic if Suho didn't have two left feet. The man could not dance. Kai deliberately slowed them down, putting both hands around Suho's neck. He had a nice, manly neck, but his skin was surprisingly soft. Kai could feel Suho's hands on his back. The fabric of his dress was very thin, so it almost felt like there was nothing separating Suho's hands from his skin. There was something between them, the air was palpable as they did the slowest of slow dances.

Suho smelled really good. It made him want to kiss him even more. He realized that since his hands were around his neck, he could join their lips together with one simple pull. But he resisted the urge. Even though he wanted a kiss so badly it hurt, he wanted Suho to initiate it. It wasn't just that he didn't want to deceive him any further, but he had convinced himself that if Suho initiated a kiss, then it couldn't be that he only liked Kaya, the girl. If he was physically attracted to him, Kai, the boy, he had to be at least a little bit gay. After all, underneath it all, there was only him. It was his body he was touching, and his voice he was enchanted by. Maybe he was grasping at straws, but they were his straws to grasp at.

He looked into Suho's eyes, even though it was difficult to maintain eye contact, since their faces were so close to each other. His pet butterfly had made new friends, a flock of them flying around in his gut, tickling everything they touched. He tried to will Suho to kiss him. He tried to communicate with his eyes how desperately he wanted to feel his lips on his, but Suho just continued to stare into his eyes, clueless. Kai's efforts were completely lost in translation. He was so frustrated, he had to break free. He couldn't stand another moment of this intense tension cutting through his bones.

“It's late. I've got to be getting home.” he said. Like Cinderella, except he would morph into a guy when he got home.

The car stopped in front of his apartment building, but Kai didn't get out. He looked at Suho, determined to finally tell him, but as Suho returned his gaze, he could feel an invisible hand crushing his wind pipes, preventing him from breathing, let alone making a sound.

They had a moment, where they just looked at each other in silence. Kai's heartbeat was so loud, he was afraid Suho would hear it. He could feel that Suho wanted him too, or he was 99% sure, but why didn't he do anything about it? He bit his lower lip, trying to use Jedi mind tricks to get Suho to kiss him.

“You are so beautiful.” Suho said in a low voice.

Kai was so focused on the spell he was trying to put Suho under, that he jumped when Suho's hand sequestered his and brought it up to his face. What was he going to do with it? Was he going to bite it? Was he into stuff? It was always the quiet ones that were into something weird.

“I hope you sleep well tonight.” Suho whispered and placed a gentle kiss on the back of his hand. “...and dream about me.” he chuckled awkwardly, blushing.

Say what? Was he from the 1850s? Never had he ever gotten a kiss on the hand before. He didn't even realize it was a thing, or it definitely wasn't a thing, it was just Suho being the biggest dork that ever lived. How had he gotten stuck with the world's greatest dweeb? Like a moth to a flame, he had attracted Suho with his smooth, mesmerizing movements, and now that he was getting too close, he was going to get burned.

Even though he couldn't get over how lame Suho's farewell had been, his heart listened to none of his reasoning, melting into a puddle of cheesy goo. He felt all fluttery and light, like gravity had lost some of its pull. He could still feel Suho's lips on the back of his hand. His soft, soft, warm lips.

As he snuck under the covers, closing his eyes, he could see Suho's sweet smile and beaming eyes looking right at him. Kai could pretty much get any guy he wanted and he usually dated only the hottest, coolest guys around. But those guys saw nothing but their own reflection. When Suho looked at him, he seemed to really see him, and he wasn't afraid to express that he liked what he saw. It felt kind of nice to be the center of somebody's world. Kai felt like he was the brightest star on a dark, cloudy night and Suho was always looking up, looking at him and only him. It felt good to be taken care of and it was nice knowing he would never cheat on him. It gave his restless, broken heart hope. There was only this tiny little flaw. He thought he was a girl.