"Lunch?"

Seungcheol looked up from where he was scribbling the last of his notes and nodded, gathering his stuff from the table and shoving them into his bag. The class has just ended yet everyone seemed to be in a rush to leave the lecture hall. 

"Your bodyguard isn't here yet though. " 

Seungcheol huffed at that, standing up. "Joshua will be here soon. " he said confidently. "As for you, Mr Jihoon, you shouldn't let your bodyguard wait too long. I bet he's eager to feed you those food he cooked. " he teased yet there's truth in the teasing. 

Jihoon turned to look at where Seungcheol's eyes are focused and true enough, there, standing  by the door in his 187cm glory was his bodyguard, a small smile on his face as he waved with his right hand, his left one holding a stack of bento boxes. 

"Sometimes he feels more like a nanny than a bodyguard." Jihoon grumbled and Seungcheol laughed, not even trying to deny the truth behind those words. 

Having bodyguards of some sort are normal to them, considering they're students of the most elite university in the country  where the students are children of the country's important figures.  Seungcheol himself being the son of one of the most successful businessman while Jihoon was the only son of a politician. But that aside, Mingyu, Jihoon's bodyguard, really is an odd one. Other than being overly tall, comically way taller than Jihoon, Mingyu also loves to cook and more often than not, he'll try to feed not only Jihoon but also their circle of friends. Seungcheol doesn't really mind though, the food are good. 

He was about to respond when he spots someone else appearing behind Mingyu, giving the taller boy an acknowledging nod as he walked past him and towards Seungcheol. Right at that moment, colors once again enter his vision and he let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. 

"Joshua. " he muttered aimlessly. 

The boy, his bodyguard, his probe, looked at him and blinked wordlessly as he moves to his usual spot, standing slightly behind Seungcheol. As usual, he would hardly say anything in the presence of people other than Seungcheol. But it's not like he talks much with Seungcheol anyway. 

"Mingyu said he's gonna try cooking those western burger Hansol told him about so I sure hope it's burgers today. " Jihoon chatters, leading the way out of the lecture hall. 

Upon hearing Hansol's name, Seungcheol is immediately reminded of the day he met Joshua. Or more like, the day he stole Joshua. Legally, of course. 

It was just a normal day of highschool, the class rowdy until the teacher came in with a foreign-looking student in tow. The student, which they later confirmed as being mixed-blood, introduced himself as Chwe Hansol, the son of an American ambassador who just recently moved to Korea. And Seungcheol being the friendly, social butterfly that he was, immediately bonded with him. 

Everything was going on just fine until school ended for the day. As they left the school building and some of them 'reunite' with their bodyguards, Hansol had introduced them to his. To Joshua. To the person that made Seungcheol see colors for the first time. 

He was so overwhelmed with the colors he never saw, colors he didn't know the name of and his head had hurt so bad he ended up passing out right there and then. 

When he woke up, in his own bed, with his classmates around him, he saw the different colors adorning his room, how ugly the color combination were. He saw the color of their uniform, of their bags and he was so entranced with them that it took Hansol shaking his shoulder for him to snap out of it. 

"Can you still see it? The colors? " he had asked urgently, in which Seungcheol dumbly nodded. Hansol was a probe, so of course he saw the colors in Seungcheol's eyes during the color rush. 

"Is it Joshua? You were looking at him when you fainted. "

Seungcheol didn't answer then, instead he turned to look at the boy standing beside Hansol, the boy whose face was neutral except for the slight confusion in his grey eyes. 

"I'm a mono. " Joshua had muttered in which Hansol repeated, louder, for everyone in the room to hear.

"But he's a mono. He can't be your probe? That's impossible." 

Seungcheol felt as confused as Hansol sounded. He knew it should be impossible but who can explain the fact that he could see colors upon seeing Joshua's face then? 

"Can you... See them? The colors? When you see me? " Seungcheol had asked, hopeful but he deflated when Joshua only shook his head. 

Later, when it was agreed upon that Joshua was indeed Seungcheol's probe despite being a mono, Seungcheol's parents had offered him to be Seungcheol's bodyguard instead, with a pay 3 times the amount the Chwe was paying him. They also offered to compensate Hansol as well as finding him a new bodyguard to replace Joshua. 

Hansol had refused both the compensation and the offer for a new bodyguard. He merely let Joshua choose, he told him that it was up to him who he wanted to work for and whatever his decision was, Hansol would agree to it and wouldn't hold it against him. 

Joshua looked conflicted back then but he agreed to the new offer afterwards, he became Seungcheol's bodyguard. 

Seungcheol was happy, ecstatic even, to have his probe with him, to be with his soulmate, to be able to see colors. 

But it was clear Joshua didn't feel the same. Even today, it still is clear to Seungcheol that Joshua stayed because he feels obligated to, not because he wants to. 

After all, Joshua is his soulmate, yes. But he isn't Joshua's.