This chapter will be based on everyone else more instead of Xiuchen. I guess you could call them little sidestories then? 

The mains will be Hunhan, Baekyeol, and Sulay.

The last chapter of Red Winter Wine is coming up~ What color shall I choose next? You decide, but it must be different from the colors previously chosen:

Seafoam Green

Periwinkle

Egg-Shell White

Aquamarine

Lemon Chiffon Cake

Red Winter Wine

Be creative as you want~

Enjoy the chapter! /hides under a rock/

Luhan was being untruthful when he told Sehun his reason for leaving was a family emergency; the truth is, and as bad as it sounds, he left to meet someone who had disappeared from his life a long time ago. Fixing his newly dyed hair, a rather generic chestnut brown that had never suited him beforehand, Luhan sighed and began a small pattern of patting his knee with an index finger and sighing. His back continued to hunch over and stiffen the longer he sat waiting, the coffee sitting in front of him turning cold and bland. Why he felt so nervous, Luhan couldn't fathom it, it wasn't like he still felt that way about the other, it's not like he still held him in that special place in his heart anymore, that was Sehun's place now and Sehun's place it would stay. Heaving another sigh, Luhan hung his head, his bangs gently hanging from his head and obstructing his vision if he attempted to sit up and blocking his view completely of the male walking over, slightly chubby cheeks becomming plumper from his vibrant smile.

"Luhan? Is that you?" Luhan gasped softly, his ears boiling red isntantly from the sweet way his name was called, and raised his head. The boy looked the same, besides his hair being a nice, dark shade of red and a bit of eyeliner tracing his eyes. His skin was still pale and he was still rather tall, though not near Luhan or Sehun's height for that matter. Luhan took in a deep breath, exhaled, and attempted to smile, one corner of his lips raising and causing the entire look to become lopsided.

"Henry. It's been a long time!" It was hard, much harder than it should've been, to make contact with Henry, and Luhan soon came to realize that every time the other smiled, his heart would dance to a silent beat within his chest. It didn't make any sense, they hadn't met in years, yet now Luhan found himself acting much like a nervous school girl on her first date. His innards throbbed with guilt, it would hurt Sehun so much to know that he had lied, that he had taken a plane all the way to China to meet up with Henry, his first love.

"I know! How have you been Hannie? I heard from your parents that you stay in Korea now? I never thought you would've left this place. You seemed so attached." Luhan fliched slightly when he heard his nickname leave Henry's mouth, it still caused his stomach to flinch with the light tapping of butterflies. Wrong, you're wrong. I was never attached to this place, to this home, I was attached to you. I stayed for you like you wanted me to, like you asked. Then you left. You left without a word to me and I was forced to take care of myself. Henry, It was always you. Are you that blind? Luhan busied one of his hands with grasping his cold cup of coffee and took a sip to dispel his uncertainty, the cold, sweet taste of oversugared coffee reminding him of the way Sehun tries to make coffee for him at home, his real home. A tear suddenly bubbled to his eyes as he realized what an idiot he had been for agreeing to this, for agreeing to lie and go behind Sehun's back to meet someone he had loved at an earlier time, someone he had been hoping for deep down in the depts of his soul. He set his cup back down and decided that he needed to pull through this meeting so that he could go home. He needed to go back to Sehun before he made anymore stupid mistakes.

"I-I've been okay Henry. School in Korea is much different from here, but I like it. I've met people that I can really call a part of me. It was a good idea to leave." Even if you're te reason for leaving, Sehun is my reason to stay. Henry smiled and laid his hands flat against the table, stealthily reaching one over to take Luhan's slightly trembling hands and gripping them slightly/

"I'm happy to hear that Luhan. I asked you to meet me here because I wanted to talk to you about some things." That unsettling feeling in the pit of stomach grew, but Luhan left it to fester, deciding he needed to hear these things before leaving for the hotel and washing the brown from his hair, then rescheduling the earliest flight back to Korea. 

"What is it? And how has your stay in Canada been?" Henry smiled and Luhan felt his lips spread into a smile all their own; Henry always had that kind of affect on him, since they were kids. The Chinese-Canadian born soothingly ran his thumb over the back of Luhan's hand as his eyes found Luhan's across the table. 

"Canada has been fine. I've been teaching violin everywhere and even starred in my own shows as conductor. But we can talk about that later," Henry's eyes dazzled in the sun that hit them through the window, his hair resembling a fiery halo, "I came to tell you that I knew how you felt about me before I left." Luhan's heart paused under the flesh and ribs holding it intact and his fingers fell limp in Henry's grasp.

"I knew, but I didn't know what to tell you Luhan. I had loved you for a very long time. . . but I couldn't tell you and have you beg me to stay or say you'll wait. I didn't want to hinder you Hannie, I wanted you to be happy even if it wasn't by my side. I wanted you to find someone who could return your love ten fold, someone who could fix you when I left you broken, keep you warm on nights where the air is just too cold. I wanted you to find someone who could stay with you no matter what and I knew I couldn't do that so I kept my feelings hidden. But Luhan, I'm back for a few months and even though it's not much I'm offering, I was wondering if I could return your love now. I was wondering if, maybe, we could be together?" The air had shriveled up as Henry's words met Luhan's ears, the sound soft as it transmitted to his brain. His heart picked up its pace as his nerves turned furocious. This couldn't be happening. Henry didn't propose, and he was not frozen to answer.

Tell him.

Tell him you don't love him anymore!

Tell him you're over him!

You have Sehun.

Sehun.

Sehun.

Luhan shook his head to arrange his thoughts before looking back to Henry, to the face he had dreamed of on empty nights of solitude, the face he had pictured when he sang, when he played the piano. Henry still looked perfect, his plump cheeks having earned him the nickname "Mochi" when they were younger. And despite how much he could picture himself with Henry, his first love, the first boy to steal his heart and run away with hit, he didn't, because he couldn't. His mind conjoured pictures of another person, stoic, cold expression suddenly lighting up at the sight of him walking through a door, a much younger hand grasping his from across the table, bubble tea instead of coffee sitting in front of him. When he realized who he wished sat in front of him now, Luhan gently tugged his hands from Henry's grasp and shook his head. 

"I'm sorry Henry, but I don't love you anymore. For a time I had wished for you with all my heart, I wanted you to come back for me, but that was a long time ago and I can't picture myself with you anymore when I love someone else. I lied to them about coming here to meet you because deep down, I still had unrequanted feelings, but now that I know that there could have been a possiblity for us, I can let you go and ask you to let me go too. Sehun is waiting for me now, so I have to go. Hopefully, we can meet again some day." Henry's face fell slightly before that same beautiful smile lit up his features.

"I understand. I was too late and for that I apologize. I wish you and Sehun all the happiness in the world Hannie. I'll be here if you ever want to meet again." Luhan smiled, his inner being sighing with relief, and grabbed his cold cup of coffee as he stood and bid Henry farewell, feeling even more relieved when his heart did nothing each step he took away. There was no more ache, no more pain. How wonderful it felt to be less guilty. Luhan walked down the street and away from the coffee shop to the rather elegant looking hotel across the street. His steps were relaxed and full of perfect posture, ignoring all of the stares he recieved as he headed inside and took the elevator to his room on the top floor. Once inside of the small, commodius space, Luhan kicked off his shoes and set his coffee on the counter, tugging his phone from the front of his jeans and setting it down as well before heading to the bathroom to rinse and shampoo the dingy brown from his hair and find the natural honey golden beneathe. He had originally dyed it because. . . it was how Henry had last seen him and he didn't want anything to change.

It was different now, Luhan had no wish to impress him, or anyone else who wasn't Sehun. Sehun was the only person who mattered to him, oh, his friends too.

Sehun sighed, his rigid expression unchanging as he found his seat in the back of the class room. His first class, intro to culinary arts, which he easily hid from the rest of his friends with the cover up that he took weight training for some much needed ab buildup, was always the most laid back and for that he was thankful. His intuition was telling him that something was very wrong with Luhan and that only caused the younger to draw into himself even more, leaving his seatmate Jongup in an arid silence in which he moved, relocating to sit next to another freshman named Zelo. It didn't make any sense as to the cause of Luhan leaving. He left with a vague "It's a family emergency, bye" and hadn't called or texted him with updatees. It just wasn't like him to suddenly turn distant and assume that Sehun was fine with it. Flipping his phone out beneathe the desk while the instructor gave out recipes for each person to work on, Sehun quickly opened up a blank message and began to type away, all of his anger unconsciously riddling the message with bitterness.

"Luhan, why would you just go and turn into smoke around me? I can't see, I can't hear, I can barely breathe knowing you're not here. What happened to your family, are they alright? Why did you leave without telling me what happened? Am I still not important enough to you for that? No, I'm sorry for saying that... I just miss you and I don't care that it hasn't even been a full 24 hours yet. I'm ing worried about you and my stomach hurts which always means something is bad. Hurry back okay? I'm sick of waiting." Satisfied with his message, Sehun scrolled through his contacts until he reached "Little Deer" and pressed send just as his teacher pressed a recipe for apple pie on his desk. Sehun sighed at the sight, Luhan liked apple pie. Sehun slipped his phone into his pocket and stood, easily pulling the apron wrapped snuggly around his chair from the plastic material and easing it on, rolling the sleeves of his collared shirt up and pushing his bangs from his eyes so he could see each ingredient on the lsit perfectly. After studying what he would need, Sehun journeyed towards the front of the class where all the ingredients lay, and gathered the necessary parts for his apple pie; nearly everyone moved out of his way and allowed him first choice. Oh, the perks of being beautiful.

Cooking, despite imagining Kai's instant distates for it if the tanned male knew, was Sehun's secret release, just like how Xiumin had soccer, Lay had dancing, Chen and Luhan had singing, Chanyeol and his love for photography. It didn't matter what recipe or level of difficulty for the dish, if Sehun saw it, just once, he could recreate it and it would be just as good if not better. His favorite part about cooking though, was how it took him away from everything, he could vent as he whipped batter, he could angrily crack eggs over a pan and heatedly pour out the batter into a container, much like he was now. Everyone steered clear of him and his distructive workmanship, finding it odd that he was cooking so well while so upset. Sehun ignored the stares and flipped his hair from his face, concentrating next on perfecting his vanilla icing that would go on top. Just as he began mixing together the core ingredients for his icing, his phone vibrated in his pocket, mostly likely a message from one of his friends or his mom. The tall, rather lanky male set his small container of unmixed cream and sugar down and tugged his phone from his pocket, touching the large screen to unlock it and reading the message quickly.

"I'm really sorry Sehunnie (Sehun felt his face flush at the sweet nickname), for everything. I didn't really tell you why I left and the reason I gave you wasn't the truth either, but trust me, you are the most important person in my world and I love you with every single fiber of my being. I have a lot of explaining and groveling to do when I get back, and I promise I'll do absolutely anything you want  because I know you'll be even madder at me when I tell you why I left in the first place. I'll be back in a day, I promise. Just keep waiting for me neh? Like you did all those years ago. I promise the wait will never be as long as that." Sehun sighed and locked his phone screen again before resuming the mixing of his vanilla icing. He could already feel the tell tale signs of anger flitting through him by how hard he found himself gripping the spoon, Luhan had lied to him, but merely knowing the elder would soon return to explain himself made the young Korean male feel so much better.

He could wait. It was Luhan after all.

_________________________

(This takes place just before Xiumin was with Myungsoo. If you haven't noticed, I usually try to get my timing right~)

Having taken a nice hot shower in the locker room, Lay dressed quickly and opted for shoving all of his things in his locker over taking them with him to his meeting, or rather, date with Suho. Smiling giddily to himself, Lay bid everyone goodbye on his way out and into the cool hours just before night. Through the soft hues of the sinking horizon, Lay could still make out distant figures, people, walking and idling around before withrawing to their dorms or for a secret night out, much like himself. It had been a long while since Lay ever found himself in such a predicament, going with someone he truly cared about and being completely open. Fear had still found a home in his heart, fear of the unknown, of the future; he was scared that this time around Suho would see him for what he was. 

Lay was a unicorn coward. 

Gently humming to himself to fill up the silent void around him, Lay walked towards the entrance of the school and once there, he turned and began to walk down the street, just enough light revealing the bench nearby, half of the old wood occupied by a smaller figure. It was instantaneous, the smile that flashed across his dazzling features, his pace picking up into a run before he could bother to stop the happiness coursing through his veins. Lay all but pounced on the unsuspecting boy, wrapping his arms around his neck and pressing soft kisses to his cheek. The older male laugh and gently wrapped an arm around Lay's waist, turning his head and quickly catching one of Lay's kisses with his lips.

"Moonie," He cooed childishly, revealing the Yixing inside of him, the side of himself that only Joonmyeon had the priviledge to see. Joonmyeon's lips spread into one of his many breathtaking smiles as he easily lifted the younger with him, curving his hand around Yixing's waist fully before beginning to lead him towards their destination. Every since deciding to get back together, Joonmyeon had been undeniably happy. Who wouldn't, when they finally had the one person perfect for them in their arms, how could they not when they were finally recieving all that they could ever want? Joonmyeon had easily accepted Yixing back into his arms because he believed in second chances, he believed in forgiving, but mainly, there was no way to turn down Yixing even if he had a heart to. Slipping his hand a fraction lower to catch the brunette's hand, Joonmyeon looked ahead and to the bakery across the street.

"Xingie," Joonmyeon murmured after a few moments, finding it nice to be able to call him by their petnames for one another. Yixing grinned at the call and instantly turned to look at his boyfriend, Student Council President, singer, performer, such perfection in his countenance.

"Yes Moonie?" Joonmyeon smiled at the expectant tone Yixing used, and gripped his hand tighter. Their idle walk was slow paced and full of warmth, love gently draping around them in a thin cloak. it seemed as if nothing could ruin the moment, their moment, when the shuffling of feet behind them caught Joonmyeon's attention. The elder thought nothing of it, there were plenty of students who had snuck out late just as they did and other pedestrians on their way home from a long day at work. He saw nothing wrong with it, when the shuffling turned into a small booming of more feet, more people, moving faster and coming towards them. His nerves began to feel uneasy, and he turned his head back slightly to look. 

Woohyun had never been one to hide. Standing in the center of a few members of his school and soccer team, the captain smiled the moment he locked eyes with the Student Council President. Joonmyeon stopped walking, holding Yixing firmly to him, and stood his ground. He refused to feel pressured under the odds that Woohyun was looking for a fight. He was usually all bark and no bite.

"Lovely night, isn't it Suho?" Woohyun's voice reached his ears as a taunting drawl, the different array of males surrouding him all spouting the same ammused expressions. Something was amiss; his stomach was growing weaker by the second. 

"What do you want Woohyun?"

"That boy holding onto your arm. If I hurt him, my team wins the soccer match and I win a prize. Now hand him over before things get physical." Suho never took kindly to threats, but he was positive that Woohyun would really hurt the boy he loved. The smaller male, fiery red locks combed back to reveal his perfect face, turned his head slightly, eyeing Yixing with urgency written in the countours of his face.

"Yixing," Joonmyeon's voice came out strained, his muscles burning with the reflex to lash out at the group now striding towards them, Woohyun leading the pack with his hands nonchalantly placed in the the pocket of his jeans, "When I say go, run as fast as you can. Go to Xiumin's and stay there." Yixing froze at the order, fear shriveling his form and causing him to quickly grasp his lovers hand, shaking his head as the air withered from his throat. He couldn't, no he wouldn't, leave Joonmyeon to fend for himself when Woohyun had come for him. He couldn't let his sweet guardian angel be hurt; that would kill him.

"Yixing, are you listening-"

"Joon-myeon," Yixing sputtered softly, panting from fright, his legs shifting to press himself against his shorter lover, "Let's go t-together. I can't leave you behind." Joonmyeon shook his head, instinctively backing them away a few inches, his eyes scanning across the faces and internally sizing them up. No matter what took place, he had to protect Yixing no matter the price. He had lost him once, he swore never to do it again. Woohyun paused in his tracks and Joonmyeon felt dread spread through each of his nerves, bringing them to life with pedaling adrenaline.

"Just give me Lay and you'll go unharmed Suho. I'm one who always keeps their promises." Joonmyeon spared a glare in Woohyun's general direction, tugging his fingers from Yixing's grasp and standing in front of him, his feet set firm in the ground.

"Why don't you find someone else to bother, Woohyun? We don't have time for you and your dogs." Woohyun feigned a surprised expression before his expression slipped and he began to laugh. Joonmyeon released his grasp on the younger in his arms and took a deep breath to reign in his anger. He had never hurt anyone or anything before, but he was fully prepared to kick Woolim High all over the dark pavement if he needed to.

"Everyone. Go get them. Be sure to break the vital bone and nothing more. We wouldn't want someone to die again." Again? That single word caused Yixing to squeak uncharacteristically as the pack of dogs lurked forward, and his instincts led him to ignore the safety factor of saving himself and urged him to snatch Joonmyeon's warm hand between his fingers and take off. 

Which is exactly what he did, date forgotten, the only thought on his mind, I have to keep the one I love safe. 

"Get them!" Woohyun lost his composure and hollared, but with the combined speed of a fellow soccer player and someone used to running back and forth between buildings on campus, by the time Woohyun had successfully gathered his men in order, Yixing and Suho were out of sight, turning the nearest corner and dashing down the partially empty strip of sidewalk, adreneline pumping them forward. In the silence of the night, with small smiles decorating their lips as sweat drizzling down a neck and forehead, Yixing and Joonmyeon met eyes and eventually laughter ensued. It wasn't the best date either had experienced. . . but it would definitely be memorable.

___________________________

Baekhyun smiled to himself as he watched the male sharing his much too small bed slumber away, his long limbs curled up in the cramped space and all but eating him alive. He didn't mind being squished between Chanyeol's legs or the arms currently wrapped around his torso in a vice like grip. If anything, Baekhyun secretly loved how close Chanyeol held him at night, relished in the feeling of knowing that there was at least one person who would never let him go, that there would always be someone who cared about him. It was still a new feeling, he mused, being loved when love had never come easy.

Having grown up into a family who had too many kids to count, Baekhyun had never truly been shown the beauty of love. The love, or rather, central affection his parents held was always showered onto his older sisters and brothers. He was just another number to them, another mouth to feed, another waste of money they could be using elsewhere. Even with the government benefits and a few of his elder siblings working, he was never valued as much as he could've been. If anything, Baekhyun suffered the blunt end of his father's venom and his mothers constrictions. His younger siblings, two sisters and as of now a baby brother, were all treated so wonderfully, but when it came to him, there would always be this massive dispute.

The abuse came much later, when Baekhyun was transitioning into middle school and had picked up singing as his pastime. His father hated his voice, despised hearing him talk and even more when he would sing quietly in the shower. He hated being in the same room with him and he hated it when Baekhyun smiled at him. The hits never hurt because over time Baekhyun became too empty to feel any of it. The slaps never bothered him, only the bruising left behind. Kyungsoo, one of the few friends he had managed to retain with his lack of emotion and rather venomous attitude, always wondered, asked, worried over whether he was alright.  

He was never okay, but no one needed to know. He felt better to suffer in silence, to wallow in his own emptiness then to drag someone into the depths of his life. He didn't need pity, ridicule. 

"That bastard isn't even my kid, and you ing expect me to stay around and treat him like he is?" Ah, it made sense then. His mother had cheated and he had been the product of that with another man. Baekhyun hid away beneath his bed that night, finding it much more comfortable than he did his own.  

"We need you to come back home to take care of the baby Baekhyun. We don't have time and you've been through enough school to get by. We'll be pulling you from that place next week." Baekhyun lost sight of the things in front of him, of Chanyeol bounding toward him with a vibrant smile on his lips that rivaled the sun, of the birds chirping as they flitted through the air, of the students milling passed him nonchalantly, smiling, laughing, talking without a care in the world. Time came to a standstill of nonexistent motions and a flux of emotion ripping through his insides.

Why, when things seemed to be going to well, on such a perfect day, did something so awful have to take place? Baekhyun couldn't comprehend the changing of tides, of good to bad, of gain to loss. All he could see now was the innards of that damned house he had managed to escape, of the children, old and young, pushing him around because they knew just as much as he did that he was the smudge amongst them, he was the one who did not belong. Before Chanyeol could reach him, Baekhyun dropped his phone and his heel into a sprint, wishing nothing more than to disappear.

"BAEKHYUN! BAEKHYUN!" With eyes to see and ears to hear, Baekhyun was blind and deaf, leaving Chanyeol behind to find somewhere safe to hide. 

The underside of his bed brought back fresh memories and hidden beneath the messy, undersized frame, the small male began to quietly sob.

"I don't want to go back."

I FINALLY got to post this. I swear I had it sitting on my phone for the longest time and I was cramming for so many things that I didn't get a chance to come and edit at all. I hope you guys forgive me and like this chapter even though it has no Xiuchen in it~ All of these problems will be resolved during the tournament which is fast approaching~ Ohohoho~ Next chapter, I'll tell you which color I chose out of all the fantastic choices you guys gave me, okay! Stay tuned my lovelies~ /blows kisses to you all/ I love you guys so much!

Hehehe, and tell me your thoughts on these little side stories. Mwuahahahaha~