Chapter 43: A Spark of Chance 1.1

[Introduction to finale]

---

Sehun/Luhan

[Wednesday]

It’s warm, but it’s cold. The drops of sunlight beat the shimmering cold wind. The day seems to be good, beautiful and deceptive. The river flowing and swaying ever so gently, so calm across the dimming sun's warmth. Grass brush against his legs, caressing as if for comforting for his broken soul. Smiling ever so gently, Sehun glances at Han River, so far to reach and seek, yet so close in mind. The wind sways and he accepts it warmly, accepting the generous offer of the comforting breeze, seemingly so alike him. Shifting his gaze towards the sky, the clouds dominated the sky more than usual, the sun being halfway covered until it was off the picture.

A fall of sigh left his lips.

He pulls his legs together, letting his chin rest on his knees; eyes glazed with fatigue, but he held it still, letting his heart cool down in rest. The news didn't crack him as he assumed it would, as if the news was nothing at all, but simple news. Receiving the news about Luhan being here in Korea and is doing well simply made his heart settle down in comfort, a wash of relief showering him—maybe in the back of his mind, he knew that Luhan was here and okay a long time ago.

He was happy, indeed, but he wasn't that happy anymore as he thought he'll be. Seven long painful years waiting for nothing, rips off all the dreams and reality he had. Now, it came to this, Luhan being in Korea, owned a hotel of his own and has been so close to him for so long. Why fate does love to mess with his life?

Luhan had been so close to him for seven long years, yet he doesn't know (or maybe he does), clinging into hope for comfort. Seven years devoting himself to waiting time, comes crashing down to pieces of broken reality and time. Time passes by so quickly, as he thought of it. The lingering memory of being separated with Luhan in the airport seems to be a dream of yesterday—a far away dream that feels so vivid that shame and sorrow crept its way to his skin. Sunrises and sunsets came, day and night prospered in the days and seasons cultivate the year while the calendar marks off the reality of how much time had passed.

In seven years, did Luhan truly look for him? Did the older truly search for him like he said so? Did Luhan do what he promised? Because Sehun thinks it's strange, that in seven years, Luhan didn't find him at all, but he takes the chances that it may also be true, just like what his mother would tell him when he was a kid, telling him that sometimes lovers or not doesn't get a chance to meet each other for a long time.

Luhan could have found him in less than a year, he always believed that, but he didn't. Be that as it may, what does Sehun have? In what authority does he hold to judge the man that he love whether looking for him or not? He knows he has no right to judge his lover, which he has no right to complain at all, because truly he didn't know what happened during the days of Luhan, because simply, he wasn't there to begin with.

He knew he has no right at all, yet why does his heart shouts out in grief, yelling at him to fall and break down and give it all up? To rethink the past and his miseries? Once yearned for the separated love, living in ticking time, Sehun smiles, remembering how Dr. Daehyun told him the news that Luhan is in South Korea and how he is doing well; how his heart settled down in relief. Luhan is here, finally and now, he doesn't have to worry, knowing well where the older boy is, yet he has to let fate continues its game. To let things flow normally and let the game resumes. The search is not yet done unless Luhan finds him and that’s the catch.

Sehun bets everything on it, everything to the final game. Wishing and praying that Luhan would find him soon like he promised; to end his misery and all and let the clock rewind and go back to the stilled past.

A fall of sigh left the tall boy's chapped lips, a sad smile painting his lips; eyes glazed with treasured happiness as the drop of sky blue colors mingles with the crystal viridian-blue river and small specks of dark and light hue of discriminating royalty adding to the crumpled, brisk tune of melody along the crisp of the breeze. The breeze passes by once again, paying its respect to its master, swiftly dancing around him, comforting him with gentle whispers and Sehun gently smiles back, appreciating their care before he close his eyes and let his mind rest.

~

“Please give this to him, Dr. Daehyun, if by chance you see him.”

Though it may be ridiculous to make an assumption that Daehyun would be meeting Luhan today or anytime soon, Sehun thinks that they will. He had intuition that they'll meet, where Luhan would be arriving in this hospital to look for him. Sehun hands the doctor a piece of paper, small yet enough. Daehyun stares at Sehun with sympathy and gets the piece of paper from Sehun’s fingers, taking a brief look at it before giving the nurse a worried look.

“Are you sure about this? You know the odds are one to two. Luhan may not see you. Are you willing to do this? When you may lose everything that you have?” Daehyun warns him with concern, but Sehun dismissed it with a smile.

“It’s okay. I already bet everything on it. I’ll receive whatever is to come,” Sehun whispers the last words before bowing and takes his leave without sparing another glance to Daehyun. When the door shuts, Daehyun stares at the door where Sehun left and closed his eyes before sighing loudly and ruffled his hair.

“Then everything is settled. The final bet is on this last game,” Daehyun mutters, putting the piece of paper on his desk and leaves his room.

~

Luhan stares at the picture frame on his desk, lost and confused, after visiting the park last morning; their sacred place and was filled with bountiful of memories together with Sehun. For the past few days, he had every hospital looked into, after knowing that Sehun has a part-time job in the hospital from Himchan. He also found out from Kyungsoo that Sehun was also a florist just like him, but merely a part-timer, not a regular and was the guy he saw having a long hair. Kyungsoo never mentioned about which hospital Sehun works for, and Kyungsoo told him that Sehun had oddly taken two weeks off from work, so he doesn’t know where he could be.

[Flashback]

“You know where Sehun is, Himchan?” Luhan asks, frantic and surprised. What was going on?

Himchan smiles at him, a bit sadly, but Luhan doesn’t see it because he’s too busy at the thought of finally meeting Sehun.

“Yes, Sehun. I received information that Sehun is working at a flower shop and has a part-time job in a hospital,” Himchan replies, voice soft and calm.

Luhan stands up from his chair, eyes wide and lips parted in a smile, the news choking him up too much. Then he realized something and looks at Himchan with an expecting look.

“Nothing else? Specifically at what floral shop or hospital?”

Himchan shakes his head and Luhan nods his head, a serious look on his face.

“Okay then. Thank you Himchan. I’ll just tell my men to look at every hospital and hoping I’ll look at Kyungsoo’s flower shop since I had inkling that maybe Sehun works there.”

~

“Sehun works here, Kyungsoo?!” Luhan yells after receiving information too great to take. Kyungsoo nods his head slowly, surprised by Luhan’s outburst.

“Yes, he’s been working here for how many years now. What’s the matter, Luhan?”

But Luhan didn’t answer him instead he asks himself.

“If he had been working here for a long time, why didn’t I see him?”

Kyungsoo blinks and ponders. “Oh, you’re right. Now that I thought of it, you two haven’t met yet. Whenever you are here, Sehun would be either at the hospital still or out in an errand that I give him.”

“Does he work here as a regular?”

“Sehun? No, I’m afraid not. He’s just a part-timer. And now that you mention it, he had taken two weeks off for some reason.”

“Two weeks off?” Luhan echoes his words and Kyungsoo nods his head.

“Yeah, he told me that he is going to be busy and needs some time off.”

Luhan nods his head, understanding that Sehun won’t be here, so that means there is one more thing that he’ll have to ask.

“Hey, Kyungsoo?”

“Yeah?”

“Do you know what hospital Sehun works for?”

Kyungsoo blinks and nods his head as he gathers his notebooks.

“Yeah, it-“he was cut off when soft ballad music happens to ring. Blinking, Kyungsoo takes out his phone from his pocket and sees the Bottle and Locket store owner is calling him.

“Yes? Ah, Mr. Ko. Yes, yes. I see. Now? Okay, I see. Thank you. I’ll see you there.” Kyungsoo sighs and pockets his phone back at his back pocket. He looks at Luhan and gives him an apologetic look.

“Sorry, Luhan. But I’ve got to go. Mr. Ko needs me at his shop.”

Luhan feels down a bit, but nodded his head anyways.

“Oh, I see. I’ll be going then. Thank you, Kyungsoo.”

As he turned away and was about at the door, he looks back again to get his answer, but found out that Kyungsoo had gone inside in one of the rooms. He hadn’t got his answer and it somehow made him down. Sighing he leaves his office and cheers himself up that his men will find him soon.

[End of Flashback]

Luhan’s frustrated. Frustrated by the fact that Sehun has been so close to him all this time and he just didn’t see him. Maybe it was a coincidence that they didn’t meet, but Luhan takes that as a no, because they might have passed each other for so long, yet missed each other because of circumstances that occur. For so long, Sehun was near and was just merely a gap, but Luhan doesn’t see it and was far away from the younger.

“Sir. There’s a lot of Oh Sehun. It is not merely one.”

“Then get on with it! I don’t care how long it takes, but find him. I want you to find him.”

Days passed and still no news of Oh Sehun. He let his men search for each hospital in South Korea and still none of them found Oh Sehun and Luhan was slowly losing his sanity because of it. Tapping his finger on his desk, his phone rang and vibrates on his desk, echoing in his dim room. Picking it up, a telephone appears and Yongguk’s name appeared on the screen. Answering the call, Luhan’s eyes widen at the news.

“I found him, Luhan.”

“Where?”

“He’s in Seoul University Hospital.”

Dropping the call, Luhan took off with his phone, heart pounding and excitement spreading like wildfire throughout his body as he takes the elevator down with a new found hope in his heart.

“Wait for me, Sehun.”

~

Daehyun rests his head on the wall, sighting a cab stop in front of the hospital and a young boy getting off and runs to the hospital. The room drowns with darkness and a mischief of the curl of the lips extracts one last light in every aspect of the four-cornered room.

Getting his phone in the pocket of his lab coat, Daehyun phones the information desk on the ground floor, eyes glazed with sadness and sympathy.

“When someone asks you where Sehun is, tell that person to come to my office.”

~

“Sir! You have a mee-,” Yuan was cut off when Luhan passed her by and was left dumbfounded at her position. Looking at the files and envelopes in her hands and back to where her boss sprinted off, Yuan paled at the ringing of the telephone on her desk.

 It’s going to be a long day.

~

Luhan runs down the stairs and flags down a cab and hurriedly tells the location. Unable to contain his excitement and nervousness, Luhan restlessly browsed his phone and often looked outside the window. With cloudy mind, his thought was only Sehun and when they arrived, Luhan handed the driver a few bills and got off a bit too quickly, almost tripping, but caught himself together. Sprinting to the hospital, Luhan regained a bit of his composure and flashed the lady on the information desk a smile who returned a smile back also.

“What could I do for you, sir?” the lady asks in her high-pitched voice, mesmerized a bit by Luhan’s appearance, but nevertheless, kept her professionalism in a way.

“Do you know where Oh Sehun could be?” Luhan tells a bit in a hurry than usual and sent the lady an awkward smile when he realized what he did. The nurse shakes her head and tells him that it is okay which Luhan breathed out in relief.

“You mean Nurse Sehun?” the nurse asked in confirmation and Luhan nods in response. The nurse smiles a bit, before extending her arm and points to the elevator.

“Use the elevator and go to the 7^th floor and after 5 doors, turn left in the hallway and the third door you see is the one,” the nurse explains and Luhan doesn’t miss a beat and mutters his thanks before running off to the almost closed elevator, but thankfully, got in that send the nurse an amused smile.

Arriving at the seventh floor, Luhan walks this time, counting the door he passed and turns left and walks the hallway. After passing the second door, Luhan stands before the third door, all nervousness and excitement gathered up in his heart as it throbs loudly against his chest. Knocking gently at the door, Luhan opens the door and was greeted by brief darkness that soon turned out to be a dim room. Narrowing his eyes, Luhan steps inside and found a doctor, with his arms crossed on his chest, staring at him and the brunette feels creeped out for a moment.

“Lu Han?” the doctor asks and Luhan raised an eyebrow before he reluctantly nods his head.

“Yes, that’s me. How do you know my name?” Luhan interrogated with curiosity and the surgeon merely laughs at it.

“From  Sehun,” the surgeon replies without missing a beat and Luhan’s eyes widened at the mention of Sehun.

“W-Who are you?”

Daehyun his dry lips before answering, “Jung Daehyun. Head Surgeon of the Operation.”

“A Professor?”

Daehyun shrugged, “You could say that. I specialize in cardiovascular table, but still general.”

“Where is Sehun? Why am I here?” Luhan demands and Daehyun deems Luhan an impatient brat for once. Sighing, he stares at Luhan for awhile before getting the piece of paper from his desk, “Come here.”

“Why?”

“Sehun left something for you.”

Chen/Minseok

[Monday]

Jongdae yawns tiredly, bringing up his hand to his mouth as he yawns again. He had just finished his work—all of it—and he decides to give everyone a break, taking two weeks off before they open up again when the snow starts and thickens and everyone decides to have a nice coffee.

Other parts of Korea are already snowing, not yet in Seoul though, but Jongdae could feel the cold air already since December is coming up soon. It feels too surreal, fast and blurry. Many years had passed since then, blurry pictures of his high school years and the disappointed face of his brother when he said that he won’t go to college. It’s all blurry, yet Jongdae feels the small signs of past creeping up his skin, slowly and intimidating.

Jongdae sighs, thinking of how things will end up for him if he will pursue his college. He had already thought of it and it ended up with many possibilities—both good and bad. Wrapping his arms around himself, Jongdae tries to shake off the cold feeling that his body is starting to feel. He blames his closet for being messy and that he couldn’t find his knitted scarf in it, making him cold in this time of day.

Trying to warm himself up, a sudden heavy weight was pressed on his back and he looks at his side and saw Minseok with a red nose. Smiling at him, the older took a sit beside him and adjusted the coat on the younger’s back to make him more comfortable and warm.

“Warm now?”

Jongdae blinks for a moment before smiling. “Yeah. Thank you.”

After that, they didn’t speak nor look at each other, but rather made themselves comfortable with each other presence, warm and calm. They had been rather good friends for awhile, though Minseok’s sly actions are getting on Jongdae’s nerve, it rather gave him a warm fuzzy feeling on his chest instead.

“Why are you out here in the cold?” Minseok asks, tilting his head a bit to the side to check on Jongdae’s face, who had his face a bit flushed. “Are you sick?”

Jongdae glanced at him, raising an eyebrow before shaking his head. Adjusting the coat on his shoulder from Minseok, he decides to wear it instead, missing the brief smile from Minseok’s face when he wore it.

“How about you? Your nose is red already.” Jongdae points out and Minseok just chuckles and grins at him lazily.

“I’m not sick. Just cold though and no. I don’t need the coat, Jongdae. I’m fine,” Minseok replies, smiling softly at Jongdae who had a pout when he rejected Jongdae’s attempt to take off the coat and give it back to him. Minseok already feels happy and warm when he sees Jongdae accepting his little gestures and kindness. It gives him happiness that is beyond the normal joy.

“So what were you thinking about? You seem to be in a deep thought.” Minseok watches Jongdae sighs and smiled bitterly at him.

“Just college.”

“College?”

“Yeah. But I don’t think I’ll go for next year also. I still have a lot of things to do,” Jongdae explains, a bit thoughtful and sad and Minseok couldn’t look at him anymore. He knows the reason why Jongdae didn’t pursue college, why the younger disappeared all of a sudden after the graduation.

It was all because of him and his stupid actions back then, hurting the younger deeply that Jongdae didn’t pursue college anymore—too hurt and in pain to even continue. Minseok feels heavy all of a sudden, guilty and apologetic to Jongdae after all what he had done to the younger.

Jongdae saw his expression and sighed, smiling a bit when he readjusted Minseok’s scarf, causing the older to look at him with a bewildered look, yet the guilty and pained expression still plastered on his face.

“Erase that expression. It doesn’t look good on you.” Jongdae flicks the latter at the head, grinning to himself when he saw the red blush slowly forming on the spot he flicked on. Minseok winced at the pain when he rubs it, glaring a bit at Jongdae for the action. Jongdae chuckles and Minseok’s face softened, a small smile plastered on his face and forgetting the past.

“Coffee at my café?” Minseok offered and Jongdae beams him a smile, delighted and nodded his head.

“Sure.”

Minseok was the first one to stand up and Jongdae followed, feeling his legs numb a bit and he fears that he’ll lose his balance. When they had taken their few steps, Jongdae’s legs gave out, and Jongdae prepared himself to fall face at the soft ground.

Jongdae yelps when he was suddenly pulled back, his body turned and face too close to Minseok’s. His heart races, loud and clear, while he stares at Minseok’s face. Those black orbs, the cute nose, plump cheeks and lips and given with a beauty of white expanse of skin, Minseok is truly breathtakingly beautiful, just like before. He recalls that it was one of the reasons why he liked Minseok, because the boy is beautiful, a being that surpasses the definition of beautiful.

He remembers his love for the older, after seeing Minseok’s face close after a long time. It made him flustered and the older’s hot breath trickling his cheeks don’t help at all. Heat rose up to his cheeks as he looks away, embarrassed. Trying his best to calm his heart down.

Meanwhile, Minseok felt petrified on his position. It’s been a long time since he saw Jongdae’s face up close. He sees the younger’s onyx eyes, the button nose, defined and sharp jaws and the soft kissable lips together with the smooth cream skin—Jongdae is definitely stunning. Nothing changed over the years, Jongdae is still the same as he is; everything is still the same—a person who eradicates the meaning of perfection, because Jongdae is beyond that.

When he sees Jongdae’s flustered face, something triggered inside him, waves of countless things crashes down on him and he resists the urge to kiss the young boy right there and then, but failed miserably when Jongdae shyly glanced at him with cheeks bright red like ruby.

Carefully and slowly, he leans his face and captures the soft lips of Jongdae, gentle and sweet. He felt Jongdae stiffened, but he didn’t pay much attention to it, instead he tightens his grip on the younger’s waist and continues to kiss the younger. When Jongdae felt that Minseok isn’t going to let go soon, he resigns, closing his eyes and let himself fall in the kiss, something his heart yearns for since a long time ago.

Both of them felt the tingling sensation, a sensation that they both long lost before. It feels new, warm and electrifying. Their heart beats for each other, racing and it feels complete, so right.

“Hey, man. You’ve got to break up with Minseok.”

“But why? Our relationship is fi-“

“Bull. He’s ing cheating on you, Jongdae.”

“He’s not! He already tol-“

“He had with the senior girl. He told me, Jongdae.”

“I-“

“I’m sorry.”

Jongdae’s eyes snaps open, alarmed and shocked. Weakly, he pushed Minseok away, losing the tingling feeling from before. He pulls away from Minseok, taking a few good steps away from him; eyes welled up with tears of pain.

“We shouldn’t see each other anymore, hyung. We can’t do this. I’m hurting, you’re hurting. This is not going work. The past haunts me every time, remembering the pain that you have inflicted to me. I’m sorry. I can’t do this.” Jongdae breaks down, falling to the soft ground as he sobs. The last piece of his painful past. It’s sickening when he recalls it and he would just laugh it out, but not this time.

Minseok broke nearly most of his walls with his little gestures and act of kindness. The kiss almost broke it all, but when he remembered the last painful piece of his past; he crumbles down again just like back then, his walls up high in defenses again.

Minseok kneels beside him and pulls him into a hug, Jongdae struggling in his hold, but was futile when Minseok doesn’t budge at all. He resorts to punching the older’s chest, venting out his pain and anger. All of it. The bottled emotions he kept for a long time.

He slaps Minseok across the face, anger evident in his face, yet with tears continues to fall down. Minseok didn’t let him go, no matter how Jongdae punched him and struggled in his hold. He won’t let the younger go until Jongdae calms down. Jongdae needs someone to hold him, needs someone to understand his pain and everything and needs someone who is by his side for a shoulder to cry on; a thing he remembers back then.

Soon, Jongdae’s punches slowly weaken and finally stopping, his sobs still evident and his wails of agony, but Minseok still doesn’t let go. After a few minutes, Jongdae stops crying and Minseok takes it as a cue to let go and moves a bit backward. Jongdae wipes off the tears from his face, eyes puffy and red and face flushed from all the crying.

“Let’s end it, hyung. Let’s separate ways for good,” Jongdae whispers hoarsely and Minseok finds himself panicking. No. It shouldn’t be like this. He couldn’t lose the chance.

“Jongdae, I know. I know that I’m asking too much from you when I’m the one at fault. But, couldn’t you give me a chance? One last chance to get your heart back? Couldn’t you?” Minseok pleads, desperation fills his voice. He knew he messed his chances back then, but he wants to try. For one last time. If Jongdae won’t take him back, he’ll accept it, but until he hears Jongdae’s answer, he will hope that the younger would take him back.

Minseok watches Jongdae’s face turn blank, an expression that he had long forgotten in the past; the expression that the younger used when he told them to break up. It made his heart race because of it, frantically and scared.

“I love you, Jongdae. I really do. I vow to do whatever you want. If you want me to change my attitude, I’ll do it. If you want me to go away, I’ll go and I’ll repent for the rest of my life, Jongdae. Just give me one more chance, Jongdae. Please.” Minseok cries. His resolve crumbling to pieces just like his heart. He couldn’t bear the guilt of destroying someone’s life. He couldn’t bear to live without Jongdae after realizing how much he loves the younger. If Jongdae would tell him to die, he would. He’ll do anything just to get Jongdae back, to get the younger love him all over again. He wants Jongdae back. He needs him.

Jongdae watches Minseok breaks down, begging him to give him one more chance. A chance to restore it all, a chance where everything will change the future and a chance that will bury the past forever. He forces himself not to give in, but as time pass by, his walls starts cracking.

“I’m so sorry, Jongdae. I truly love you even in the past. It wasn’t a fling nor a play; it was true,” Minseok chokes out, his voice trembling and pained, yet filled with sincerity above it all. And that’s where Jongdae’s walls broke down completely, the present Jongdae vanishes and the old Jongdae resurfaces again.

“Hyung,” he gently says. His eyebrows furrows in worry and concern, and tries to wipe away the tears from his face, but Minseok continued to cry more. Jongdae bit his bottom lip, pondering for a moment before he awkwardly pulls Minseok into a hug, shifting a bit and carefully rested his head on Minseok’s shoulder, patting his back with comfort and care.

“Fine. I’ll give you one more chance, hyung. If it doesn’t work, it’s over between us, okay?”

He feels Minseok grips his shirt, nodding on his chest and Jongdae smiles genuinely this time.

Kris/Tao

[Thursday]

“What’s wrong Tao?”

His head jerks up quickly and he sees Kris’s concerned look on him. He blinks for a moment before shaking his head.

“It’s nothing. I’ve been thinking of something.”

Though it’s a lie, he wished that Kris would buy it somehow. And thankfully, the older did buy it, but not before sparing him another worried glance that caught his heart in a loop because the older is worried about him and resumes his eating.

They were at the café, taking a break from their exhausting trip to the museum. They were eating, but then suddenly he lost his touch with reality, blankly in daze and not really thinking about anything. Tao doesn’t know why, but he suddenly spaced out all of a sudden.

Then it came. A sudden twist in his stomach that it hurts. He doesn’t know why, but it definitely hurts and he wants to ask for help, but when he is about to do that, the pain quickly vanishes. It rendered him speechless on how it came to that, bewildered and definitely lost. What did just happen?

“Is there something wrong, Tao?” Kris asks for the second time and Tao gave him an awkward smile. Kris couldn’t let it go, though, not especially when he could sense that the younger is troubled by something.

“Tao, if there is anything that is bothering you, just tell me. I’ll help you, okay?”

Tao glanced at him in surprise before looking away and nodded his head. Kris sighed when he saw that the younger wouldn’t tell him at all and just resumed his eating. Meanwhile, Tao is troubled about what he is feeling. The pain. What was it? What could it mean? Did it served as a sign of something bad is going to happen soon? What is it?

‘What does it mean?’

~

“Take care, okay?”

Tao waved back, a wide grin plastered on his face as Kris left. They had a great time together (setting aside what he felt the café) and the younger couldn’t forget the small affectionate kiss that Kris had given on his forehead; friendly and gentle. Though it doesn’t suggest anything, Tao feels contented by the kiss and he feels his heart is going to explode from the fast and loud race because of it.

‘I’m really in love with him.’

Nodding his head, Tao turns around and sets off to the hotel. After a few steps on the staircase, he halts when someone called him out.

“Young master Tao,” a soft, gentle voice called him and Tao already knows who he is. Turning around, he sees Mun in casual clothes rather than in his usual butler clothes, making him surprised. Mun approaches him with careful steps, showing his respect for the young master subtly though in casual clothes. When they’re face to face, Mun tilts his head down a bit, locking his gaze at the marble case, showing his respect for the young master in front of him.

“Lord Huang wants to see you, young master,” Mun softly says to him, hushed so that no one could hear them as they pass by, but only both of them. At the mention of his parents, Tao feels uneasy all of a sudden; a warning as he takes it. Hesitation fills him, shaking his head unsurely at Mun, though the butler couldn’t see him.

“Young master, Lord Huang said that this is important, crucial and that if you don’t go home at once, he’ll pull out the stocks from your friend’s hotel,” Mun echoes his father’s words, looking up to him in the process and Tao felt scared by the threat. Knowing that he is defeated, Tao sulkily nods his head, agreeing to come because he doesn’t want Luhan to have any more trouble since the older already have a lot on his shoulders.

Mun smiles a bit. “Thank you, young master.”

~

On their way there, Tao blankly looks outside, wishing that whatever they had to talk about will be fast so that he could go home and rest because he’s already tired from his trip with Kris and possibly help Luhan out in the hotel. But knowing his father, it’ll take some time (1-2 hours approximate) in order to finish it and Tao sighs heavily, feeling glum all of a sudden as he predicted what would happen in the future conversation between his father and him.

“Young master, pardon me for my impudent behavior, but do you love the young man who is making you smile?”

Tao jolts his head towards him, eyes wide and mouth slightly parted in surprise. Mun glanced at him from the mirror, questioning and Tao looks away, biting his lip for a moment, but nodded nonetheless. Internally, Tao was screaming at himself for giving himself away so easily like that. And questions fill up his mind on how Mun got a register on what’s happening on his life. He had countless of questions, but he settled down on one almost factual fact that maybe Mun saw him smiling and all when Kris dropped him off in front of the hotel.

‘Yes. That must be it. There’s no way he would spy on me like that. He’s the only friend I have in my family and he won’t let me down. Yes, that’s right.’

Tao feels glum by thinking like that, almost lying to himself. He feels he wanted to drown himself on the water and never resurface again. Just then, he heard a soft tinkle of laughter and he glared at the man who was driving. He saw Mun stifling his laughter and angrily he jabbed the young man on his ribs, earning himself laughter instead of a yelp.

“Lovely, really.”

Huffing out in annoyance, he lied back down and stared outside, quite annoyed, yet feeling a bit happy. He doesn’t know why he feels this way, but he thinks it’s because he had someone to tell off his feelings for Kris. He had already told Luhan about it, but Luhan wasn’t quite supportive about it, but had given him his approval for it.

Mun is someone he could trust without hesitation. Though Mun still works under his father and mother, the butler had it different with him. Mun was hired solely for him, when his father and mother weren’t around due to overseas business and the young Tao was left behind; Mun served as his parent.

When things got overhand and was too complicated to handle, Mun was given a role to serve under his parents, dividing his body for Tao and his parents. Looking down, Tao felt bad for Mun, because the young man was shredded bits by bits by his family, worn out and pressured to meet every expectations that shouldn’t be expected. In other words, Mun was made as a puppet.

Glancing at the smiling Mun who had his eyes trained on the road, made Tao’s heart a bit in ease, because it’s rare to see the butler smile and it’s been a long time since he had seen the butler. Seeing him smile, makes Tao assured that this is still the Mun that he had trusted back then, a fatherly figure that he grown to love even though he’s still young.

Closing his eyes in assurance, Tao gets rid of his doubt about Mun spying on him and maybe spilling everything to his father. Because even though Mun may be spying on him and told his father about it, his father had no particular business with his life anyways.

Sighing softly, Tao lets his mind rest because the ride is still long and saving energy would do a great job when he meets his father, missing the concern look that Mun gave through the rear-view mirror before focusing his attention back to the road.

~

Arriving at his once so called home, he was greeted by fellow maids and other butlers who he didn’t paid attention to and heads straight to the living room, leaving Mun to close the main door and leaves to attend to some business that he is supposed to do.

Stepping in the living room, Tao sees his father at the master’s chair, a leg crossed at the other and leisurely drinking his coffee. His mother isn’t present and he could guess that she’s at the company.

‘Sickening,’ Tao thinks firstly when he saw his father. He scowled when his father greeted him with a mocking smile. He didn’t have to put up a smile anymore, since acting isn’t really used in this kind of places; feelings are much more used than acting.

“It’s been awhile hasn’t it, Zitao?” his father asks, voice soft yet veiled with different meaning to it. Tao didn’t respond to it instead he took a sit on the couch beside the master’s chair and gave him a waiting look. He doesn’t have time for this. And going on all soft and based drama script, he might as well go home if it’s going to be that way.

Sensing his impatience, Mr. Huang chuckled at his son’s urgency to get this done over with. Smirking, he agrees to his terms and says what he wants directly, wishing that he won’t be surprised when he announces his future.

“I’ve got some news,” he utters with an ominous smile. “And you’ve got two choices, my son.”

Tao raised an eyebrow, ridiculed by what he is trying to say. Choice? What choice is he saying? He’s been always free ever since he was kicked out of this despicable house to begin with. And now he’s trying to say that there is a choice? Tao feels like laughing at it.

Mr. Huang expected his reaction, a ridiculed expression of what he had said, but it is something that is worth bringing out especially when his expression is going to change soon enough.

“Do you remember your wish, Zitao? Your wish of having your voice back when you lost it when you were 5 back then?” he pauses and sees Tao’s eyes widen slightly, hooking on what he had said. He smirks a bit and continues, “Recently, your mom and I had received and email regarding that they have found a way to get your voice back, a bit risky, but they could get it back.”

Tao’s eyes had widened and mouth slightly parted in shock and surprise. He looks at his father with doubt as if this is a trap, but when he doesn’t see any single flaw that’ll break this overwhelming reality, it caused his heart to race at the mere thought of getting his voice back.

‘They found a way? They really found a way? No way. That can’t be true. After all these years, they couldn’t have, but…father said that they found a way. Surely, he won’t be lying to me. This is my wish, my dream. He won’t crush it because he still has a single ounce of love for me.’

Tao could feel himself shake, his hands shaking from the news. It was all too overwhelming and so great that it rendered him amazed and happy about it.

“And here comes the choices. The first choice is that you’ll leave everything behind including that Kris of yours and go to America to get that surgery and handle the company when you get your voice back,” he pauses and sees Tao looks at him with a horrified face, realization dawning on him and questions building up and he smiles wickedly at him, “and the second choice is that if you won’t accept the first choice, you get to stay here, yes, but I’ll disown you and take back all my shares to your friend’s hotel.”

Tao feels that a piano had crashed on him, realization too far bearable to grasp and hold onto. What did his father just said? He’ll leave everything behind? Including Kris? How come he knows that? Tao looks up and glanced at the entrance to the hallway and saw Mun holding papers on his hands and it dawned on him that his trusted butler had been telling his father what had been happening in his life.

Tao feels choked up for a bit by what he had realized, but he shakes it off, accepted it, but a bit shaken still by it. Setting aside that Mun told his father about his life and about Kris, the choices were mad. Did his father said that it were choices? Hell no, it wasn’t. It was far from being a choice since the choices came out as threat rather than choices.

It’s a lose-lose situation. Everything he had lived for—will be gone in an instant because of one choice. What is more important? His life or of others? If he’ll choose the first one, he would be leaving everything behind including Luhan and especially Kris. He doesn’t want that. If he’ll choose the second choice, he’ll be ruining Luhan’s hard work for all these years just because he didn’t choose the first choice.

Mad. This is mad. This isn’t right to begin with, but he was given two choices that he couldn’t just leave it at be, because he has a choice and he needs to pick one of them.

What is more important anyway? His life or of the others?

His father looks at him with a sly smile, glad that finally everything will back to the way it was. It’s after all, some simple choices. Choices that he could pick that will determine his future. He knew it was mad, sick and twisted, but it is the future that he’s talking about here and he knows that Tao will choose either one of them and wouldn’t say no. Because if the younger wouldn’t take one of them, he would make sure that everything will be in disaster.

‘I’m so sick, but that’s okay.’

Smiling in triumph, he asks, “So what do you say? The first or the second choice?”

'What is more important?'

---

Hi! So here's the first three couples. The other three would be at the next chapter because if I'll combine them, it's going to be too long. yes, I know it's a cliffhanger for Hunhan, but I have a good reason, okay?

So here's my first post-gift for you guys! See Hunhan and Xiuchen? Yeah :D About Tao, I'll explain it soon, so better see it through! Anyways, getting the great vibe from the three couples? XD It's going to be great!

Oh, and take note that the each couple has a different day in this chapter and not like my previous chapters, okay? Like Hunhan on Monday and Xiuchen on Tuesday or so. This applies on this chapter and the next chapter for the other three. Bear that in mind, so that you won't be confused, okay? ^^

And hello to my new subbies! Hope you'll have a great time and see this story through the end! Thank you for subbing and love ya all~

Comment on how this chapter is would be great!

Oh, also did you notice the poster and the background? It's great isn't it? I love it <3

Well, got to go. Bye~

xoxo