“What are you doing?! Let me out! Let me out of here!”

Jongin heard his brother, Tao, shouting once again. He heard him calling over and over again from the other room. Meanwhile, he could feel the hopeless tears streaming down on his face. He would try running away if he was not tied up to a chair. He had lost his sense of time already. However, he was sure that they had been kept in wherever they were for more than two days already. It had been a while since he had eaten any decent food, and he was starving. He attempted looking at their abductors, and he can see them surround him minding their own business. He was beyond scared as he looked at the guns they were carrying. It took all of his will to suppress a whimper.

“Hey,” one of the men called to the other. “The brat in the other room won’t shut up. It’s starting to get annoying.”

“What do you want me to do?” The other answered. “You know our order. If it was up to me I had already shot that kid’s head hours ago.”

That was enough for Jongin to let out a soft sob, and almost at once, he felt one of the men wrap a hand around his neck. Jongin shivered out of fear. He looked up at the man with tear stained eyes and felt the tip of the gun on his forehead.

“What’s up with you now?!” He growled at the little boy in front of him. “You want to make trouble?”

Jongin shook his head violently.

“Do you want me to show you the videos of your mother around once again?!” He pressed the tip of his gun harder.

This time, Jongin’s whole body shook in fear. He did not want to see it again. He did not want to. He was scared to see them once again.

“What are you doing to him?!” Tao’s voice was heard once again from the other room. “Don’t touch him!”

“If you don’t shut up,” The abductor shouted back. “I will kill your brother!”

Jongin turned his head to the door a few feet from him. He knew his brother was kept in there, and he also knew that there was no light in that room. Jongin shivered at the thought. He heard the abductor pulling the trigger. He wanted to call out his brother’s name, and call for help. He wanted to shout, and to scream, and to cry out loud. His head had been struggling to produce any kind of noise, but it was useless because it seemed like he lost his voice---

“Jongin…” He heard a voice calling him. “Jongin!”

Jongin opened his eyes with a start. Amidst his shallow breaths and cold sweat, he felt a hand touch his forehead.

“What’s up with you?” Tao looked down on him with concern. “Are you alright?”

Jongin sat up abruptly. His hands immediately gripped on his blankets. He could not believe it. It was all a dream. Everything felt so real. He breathed out a low sigh of relief and closed his eyes as if convincing himself that it was all a dream. It was all a dream.

“Jongin,” Tao gripped his arm. “Tell me what’s wrong.”

Jongin was finally aware of his brother kneeling beside his bed and with eyes full of panic.

He shook his head. “Nothing, hyung.”

“What nothing?” Tao insisted. “I heard you making noises while you sleep. You can’t just say it’s nothing.”

Jongin chose not to answer. He was afraid to tell him the dream anyway.

After a few minutes of silence, Tao asked him hesitantly. “Are you… Are you still having your nightmares?”

Jongin thought about it for a few seconds before slowly nodding his head.

“Are you having them often?” Tao asked.

“Not every day like before…” Jongin answered carefully. “It’s just every now and then.”

“Why didn’t you tell me or Baekhyun-hyung?” Tao asked once more.

Jongin shook his head. “It’s okay, hyung. It’s not a big deal.”

Tao stayed quiet for a few seconds before asking once again. “Is it still about that time?”

Jongin turned to his brother, and he knew he understood.

“Hyung?” Jongin said.

His brother hummed in response.

“Can you please not tell anyone about this?” And by anyone, he meant their older brother.

Tao nodded and reached out to pat his younger brother’s head.

“It’s still a few hours till school, Jongin.” Tao said. “Get your sleep. Don’t worry anymore. I’m gonna fix things up soon.”

And with that, Tao went back to his make shift bed and went back to sleep. However, it only left Jongin more confused than ever.

“What do you mean hyung?” Jongin whispered when he heard his brother snoring once again.

Sehun stirred on the bed as he felt a finger poking his cheeks. He snuggled deep in his blankets as he attempted to get back to sleep. However, the poking did not stop, and he grinned happily on his sleep.

“Mmm, stop it Luhan…” He mumbled mindlessly. “Give me five more minutes.”

“The fact that you’re assuming that I was Luhan while smiling like an idiot is very creepy.” Somebody suddenly said, and Sehun felt someone pinching his nose. “Get up, Sehunnie.”

“Ow!” Sehun opened his eyes and sat up only to find Jongdae sitting beside the bed and still holding his nose.

“Let go, hyung.” Sehun said in a very nasal voice as he swatted Jongdae’s hand away.

“That’s cute.” Jongdae said as he patted Sehun’s cheeks lightly.

“Hyung,” Sehun said sleepily and still rubbing his red nose. “How did you get in my room?”

Jongdae chuckled. “Last time I heard, this is Tao’s room.”

Sehun rolled his eyes. “You know what I mean. Why are you here?”

“Well, I’m here to do some charity work.” Jongdae stood up. “You see, a little bird told me that you are overstaying your welcome here.”

“Baekhyun would never say that.” Sehun said defensively.

“No,” Jongdae agreed. “But you’ve got to admit, this thing between had dragged on for so long. The guys and I cannot wait for the ending already. Besides, you don’t want to be cooped up in a teenager’s room forever, do you? Come on man, the kid needs his room.”

“Ugh,” Sehun rubbed his forehead. “My head hurts.”

“You’re such a brat.” Jongdae snorted. “How you managed to get Luhan to fall for you, I’ll never know.”

At the mention of Luhan’s name, Sehun looked miserable and lied down on the bed once more. He covered himself with the blanket.

“Really?” Jongdae sighed exasperatedly. “This is happening? This is happening. Get up, Sehun!”

But Sehun did not move.

“What are you, ten years old?” Jongdae started pulling the blankets away. “You need to go back to your own house! Sehun!”

However, Jongdae was ignored once again.

“Oh Sehun!” Jongdae put his hands on his waist. “Don’t make me drag you to the shower! Ah, honestly this is not what I signed for… I’m not gonna go anywhere unless you get your off that bed. I mean, this is so high school. Why didn’t this happen back then? Ah really, my head is starting to hurt too…”

“Hyung…” Sehun suddenly said right beneath the sheets.

Jongdae stopped his ranting right away. “…What?”

“Do you…” Sehun felt hesitant to voice out this question that had been bothering him for the past few days. “Do you think Luhan would still like me?”

He was surprised to hear Jongdae was laughing from the other side of the sheet.

“Oh, so we are in high school.” Jongdae said in between his laughter.

“Hyung,” Sehun felt embarrassed by this and he sat up once again. “Don’t laugh.”

It took a few seconds for Jongdae to have a straight face once again.

“Hyung,” Sehun repeated. “Answer my question.”

“Aigoo…” Jongdae said. “It’s just that the question is a bit stupid. How could you ever think that Luhan would never like you?”

Sehun could only stare at Jongdae.

“Honestly, Sehun,” Jongdae continued as he smiled kindly. “I think you grew up too early. But anyway, why don’t you get up, go to shower and we’ll continue this talk later.”

Sehun obeyed his hyung finally, and took a shower. He thought of what Jongdae had answered. Was it really a stupid question? His mind wandered back to the past few nights. He kept coming back to the staircases where he found Luhan crying for the first time. Some nights, Luhan would be there, and some night he was not. All throughout the whole process, Sehun would just sit there careful not to be seen by Luhan. He had always sat there, and listening to him crying. He never really had the guts to just run up to Luhan, and wrap his arms around him, and to tell him everything was okay. Heaven knew what his heart yearns for yet he was still cowering behind.

After he was finished preparing himself, he and Jongdae went out to get breakfast. Jongdae did not mention anything about Luhan during their meal. This is the first time that just the two of them hang out, so they took the time to catch up things in the past three years. However, once they both ate the last bit of their breakfast, Jongdae turned their conversation into a serious direction.

“So I heard what happened between you and Luhan.” Jongdae suddenly said as he sipped his coffee.

“I’m pretty sure you did already.” Sehun answered looking down.

“What are you planning to do then?” Jongdae asked.

Sehun had thought about it for the longest time, and still this was his answer. “I honestly don’t know.”

“Well, Luhan is just waiting for you.” Jongdae said matter-of-factly.

“I know hyung.” Sehun answered.

However, Jongdae shook his head. “No you don’t, Sehun. No you don’t.”

“What?” Sehun’s eyes widened. “What do you mean?”

“You see,” Jongdae started. “Luhan’s waiting for you for years. Years. If I could just emphasize it enough. You don’t know how he literally changed his whole life, because he wanted for you to see him. Well I guess you did, that first time that he met you. And he did all that because of you.”

“What…?” Sehun was confused. “But… How…?”

Jongdae sighed. “I guess I can’t blame you. I mean, at first I thought it was stupid of Luhan to drop his whole life for a person he had just met once, but he worked hard for every bit of it, and in the end, without even realizing, he did it more for himself.”

“I don’t understand…” Sehun trailed off. “…I’ve met Luhan before?”

“Yeah…” Jongdae nodded. “It was years ago in a club, but I won’t tell you how. You’ve got to rattle your brain for it.”

Sehun sighed gloomily. “How could I not remember?”

Jongdae shrugged. “Maybe it’s not the right time, but call me if you do remember. I swear it’s cute.”

“Hyung,” Sehun said suddenly. “I really miss him.”

Jongdae smiled kindly at Sehun. “Then what are you waiting for? Stop being afraid and do something stupid. Go to him.”

“What happens if…?” But Jongdae interrupted him.

“You know what,” He held up a hand to make Sehun shut up. “Forget those “what if’s”. You just go to him, tell him how you feel, and kiss the life out of him. Maybe after that you’ll get something else… If you know what I mean.”

“Aish, hyung.” Sehun scratched his head. “Stop being so embarrassing.”

“Since when did you start being embarrassed about these kinds of talk?” Jongdae laughed.

“Fine. Fine.” Sehun surrendered. “I’ll do what you told me.”

“Finally, Sehunnie’s growing up, huh?” Jongdae teased.

“Honestly, hyung.” Sehun rolled his eyes. “You’re like a meddling mom.”

“What?” Jongdae pretended to be hurt. “You and Baekhyun like me this way.”

Sehun snorted. “Yeah, right.”

“So anyway, my job here is done.” Jongdae stood up. “I’m pretty sure I’ll get the news if you two had already made up. I need to go to a schedule today. Let’s hang out again sometime.”

“Okay, see you soon, hyung.” Sehun said as he stood up and give Jongdae a hug.

Hours after Jongdae had left, Sehun never left his seat. However, something came to his mind, and he bolted out of the café to finally go to Luhan.

Tao had been standing outside Minseok’s door for more than an hour already. He looked at his watch. As usual, Minseok was on time or rather, Minseok was late again. Tao smiled as he heard the usual loud noise inside the house. He heard the loud footsteps, the sound of utensils clanking as Minseok tried his best to eat breakfast as fast as he could, the loud banging of the doors, and the loud curses that Minseok would shout whenever he felt frustrated. Tao finally stood up from where he was sitting, and waited right outside the door. As sure enough, and right on schedule, Minseok emerged from inside the apartment a few seconds later.

“Took you long enough...” Tao said smiling.

“Shut up,” Minseok said as he tried fixing his hair. “Ugh. I hate it when this happens.”

Tao watched him closely. “When what happens…?”

“My hair…!” Minseok gasped. “There’s this patch of hair that can’t seem to follow my instructions every time.”

“Stop it.” Tao made a grab for Minseok’s wrist. “Don’t worry. You’re perfect.”

“Stop saying weird things.” Minseok said carelessly as he freed his hand to fix his hair some more.

Tao sighed. No matter what he does or say, Minseok just cannot get it. However, even though he found it exasperating at times, he realized that it was too adorable as well. He decided to let this go once again.

“You’re late as usual.” Tao teased Minseok.

“You’re still complaining about that?” Minseok looked at him in shock. “I thought you’ll be used to it by now.”

“Well, it won’t hurt you to change your habits a bit.” Tao replied.

“I like sleeping.” Minseok answered simply. “Don’t you?”

Tao chuckled. “Yeah, I do, but you know what surprises me? They say that sleeping a lot makes you taller. If you really love sleeping, why aren’t you…?

However, he was cut off when Minseok covered his ears and let out a huge gasp. “Please don’t bring up the height topic right now.”

“You’re really cute when you’re mad.” Tao said earning himself a hit from Minseok.

“You’re really mean.” Minseok glared at him.

“Angry bun…” Tao mumbled under his breath.

“What did you say?” Tao could be imagining things when he saw some steam coming out from Minseok’s ears. “Did you just call me an angry bun?”

“What? No!” Tao said in the most sarcastic way that he can. He started running when he noticed that Minseok was out to get him.

Minseok chased after him; however, Tao noticed that the other was a slow runner. He immediately slowed down his pace a bit so that Minseok could catch up to him somehow. When the smaller boy, finally caught his arm, and Tao had finally got a hit on the head, the two of them went back to walking down the road peacefully. Tao did not talk much, but he liked the way that the silence surrounded them. It had never been awkward between the two of them, and he liked how things had always been this way.

Minseok however, turned to look at him. “Is everything okay?”

Tao turned to him curiously. “Yeah, I guess so. Why?”

Minseok shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know. Something’s not right these past few days.”

“Really?” Tao answered while he shrugged as well. “I didn’t notice.”

Minseok furrowed his eyebrows. “I can’t seem to put a finger on it, but it seems like something bad’s gonna happen.”

“That’s crazy.” Tao answered simply, but he could see the worry from Minseok’s expression.

“I know.” Minseok sighed. “Maybe it’s just stress from the upcoming cultural festival.”

“Yeah, maybe that’s it.” Tao said with finality, however, a few steps later, he stopped walking.

Minseok who did not notice it right away, turned back to look at him.

“Minseok,” Tao said with a mischievous smile. “Let’s skip school for today.”

“What?” Minseok gasped. “We can’t! The cultural festival… Everyone’s gonna look for us and---“

“Please?” Tao said. “After this, I won’t ever ask you for anything again.”

The two of them looked at each other. Tao was not sure, but he saw that Minseok looked afraid for a second. Whatever he felt that moment, he did not mention anything to Tao. Instead, he reached for Tao’s hand and the two of them started walking the opposite direction without any further questions.

“So where are we going?” Minseok asked all of a sudden. He was a few steps ahead of Tao, and the taller boy could not see his face.

“I don’t know.” Tao answered. “Where do you want to go?”

“Let’s go to the amusement park.” Minseok suggested.

“I don’t think it’s open yet.” Tao answered.

“But still, I want to go.” Minseok insisted.

“Maybe we could go later?” Tao replied.

“Where do you suggest we go to kill time?” Minseok asked.

Tao thought about it for a moment. “We could go on a bus and just go around and around the whole city until the amusement park opens.”

Minseok nodded. “Good idea.”

The two of them waited on the bus stop quietly. When they finally rode the bus, they still had not said anything. It was only then that Tao noticed that Minseok had never let go of his hand the whole time. He was about to say something when he felt Minseok’s hand trembled. Tao looked at the other, but he was not looking at him. Minseok was just staring outside at the passing buildings. For the first time that they met, Tao did not know what to say. He felt his hold on Minseok’s hand getting weaker, but all of a sudden, the smaller boy’s grip became stronger. It made sure that Tao would not be able to let go. Tao looked once again at Minseok, but the latter continued to look outside without saying anything. And finally, Tao understood. Minseok knew. He knew something was going to happen.

He could not count how many times this week this had happened, but for the nth time, Kris saw Joonmyun not that far away from him walking at the opposite direction as soon as he saw the taller guy walking in the same direction. Kris did not expect that things would turn out to be like this. He did not even expect that he was going to tell the other boy his feelings in the first place, but the damage has been done, and Joonmyun was avoiding him for it. However, today was an exception. Kris had had enough and this time, he was not gonna let Joonmyun escape.

“Joonmyun,” Kris called as he ran up to the one who seemed to be walking as fast as he could right now. “Wait please! Wait!”

Kris finally was able to reach his left arm, and turned Joonmyun around. The moment that the other one faced him, Kris immediately noticed the guilt on his face. They were the only ones in the hallway right now and it was pretty obvious that Joonmyun was panicking right now.

“Stop avoiding me.” Kris said at once making Joonmyun turn away. “Please.” There was a note of pleading in his voice.

However, Kris would not let this go. He cannot let this go. He might not have a chance to talk to Joonmyun once again.

“Look,” Kris said after taking a deep breath. “I know it was wrong of me to just suddenly tell all those things to you, but… I’m sorry, okay? Let’s just forget everything and get back to how things were before.”

Joonmyun, on the other hand, looked at him abruptly with a confused look on his face. “… You told me what things?”

Kris blinked for a second while trying to comprehend the situation. Surely Joonmyun remembers, right? “The ones I told you when we were drinking at the beach? Don’t you remember anything I told you?”

Joonmyun could only stare at him. His eyebrows slowly furrowing by the second and shook his head.

Kris let out a sigh of relief. “But why are you avoiding me like a plague then?”

Joonmyun bit his lip. “President, I’m so sorry.” Joonmyun bowed down right away.

Kris raised an eyebrow. “You’re apologizing for what?”

“What happened was really unprofessional.” Joonmyun stayed in his bow. “Please don’t fire me.”

Now Kris was the one who was confused. “What did you do? And please, you can raise your head up once more. Your neck’s gonna hurt a lot if you stayed in that position for a long time.”

Joonmyun stood up and still hung his head low. “I’m really sorry, President. I’m sorry for getting wasted in your presence, and for staying overnight at your place. It’s just that I was in a really bad place at that time. I know it was not an enough excuse. That was really wrong. I apologize for that mistake.”

Kris did not know whether to laugh or to cry. Here he was worrying about the wrong thing all along. He was relieved that Joonmyun was not exactly rejecting him, but it kind of hurt his ego that Joonmyun still did not have any idea about everything.

“Joonmyun,” Kris said to the terrified man in front of him. “Don’t worry about it too much. It’s nothing.”

“What?” Joonmyun asked unbelievably. “I’m not fired?”

Kris shook his head, and he finally saw Joonmyun sighed out of relief.

“I can’t believe you avoided me the whole week just because of that.” Kris almost laughed.

Joonmyun smiled embarrassedly. “I’m sorry, President. It’s just that… I’m afraid you’re gonna fire me once you get a hold of me.”

“So you’re not gonna avoid me anymore?” Kris asked carefully.

Joonmyun smiled as he shook his head. “Thank you so much, President.”

“Well then, off you go.” Kris said finally.

As he watched Joonmyun walking away, he could not help but to shout out one last question to the other boy.

“Joonmyun,” Kris called, and Joonmyun turned around. “Are you sure you don’t remember anything I said when we were drinking?”

Joonmyun shook his head. “I really don’t, President.” And he walked away once more.

Kris sighed dejectedly. That’s a shame.

Yixing held up a pencil in his hand. It did not take long before he wrote something on the music sheet on the table. He looked at the words, but he was completely dissatisfied, and he erased them once again. Feeling frustrated, he rolled up the paper into a ball and threw it away. Well at least I’m making progress in creating a paper ball mountain in here. He thought miserably. Getting another music sheet, he stared at the blank piece of paper in front of him. He chewed the tip of his pencil as he thought of the words in his head, but they just would not come this time. He must write something, because he was starting to run out of time.

Joonmyun’s birthday was coming up, and Yixing had decided to write a song for his friend since this was the first time they had seen each other after many years. The problem right now was that he could not seem to think of anything to write, and it had been driving him nuts these past few days. Scratching his head in frustration, he balled up the music sheet once again even though he did not write a single thing on it (He was pretty sure that Baekhyun was going to scold him later for littering, and being not-environment-friendly, and for making him a maid instead of a manager.). Yixing attempted to kick the table, but he ended up hurting himself in the process.

After rubbing his hurt foot, Yixing went back to square one. He got yet another piece of paper and started to attempt writing once again. If all else fails, he was just going to buy Joonmyun a greeting card and a whole cake. Yixing shook his head. That really sounded so lame and uncool. He never knew that writing a song meant for somebody else would be this hard. But then, it hit him. This was not the first time he wrote a song that was meant for someone. He remembered the first song he ever wrote. It was the one he used for his audition in the company.  Baekhyun wanted to use the song for his album, but Yixing refused. At that time, he told his manager that he wanted that song to be played for the last time to the person that it was dedicated to, and it would not be possible if it was released to the public.

“Yixing-ah…” He immediately knew who it was. Speaking of the devil. “Are you in here?”

“I’m in here, Joonmyun…” Yixing waved a lazily without turning back. “What is it?”

“Baekhyun said that after his meeting, we’re good to go.” Joonmyun said.

“Alright.” Yixing said distractedly. “Where are we going today, anyway?”

“We’re supposed to go to Jongdae-hyung’s company today for a meeting.” Joonmyun answered.

“Oh, I see…” Yixing answered chewing on his pencil once more. He could not write anything if Joonmyun was in the room.

“Are you writing a song, Xing?” Joonmyun approached him. Yixing wanted to hide the paper, but he realized there was nothing written on it anyway, so no harm could be done.

“I was trying to.” Yixing answered. “But it seemed like my mind’s not working right now.”

Joonmyun smiled encouragingly. “I’m sure you’ll do great as always.”

Yixing turned to Joonmyun. “Ah, you praise me too… What the… Joonmyun, are you all right?!”

He stood up right away when he saw a pale Joonmyun in front of him. He immediately put a hand on the other’s forehead. The temperature was the same, but Yixing needed to be sure.

“Why did you come today?” Yixing’s voice was panicky. “You’re sick!”

“I am?” Joonmyun answered. “I think you’re exaggerating things, Yixing-ah. I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?” Yixing asked skeptically. “Look at how pale you are. Are you hurting somewhere?”

Joonmyun shook his head, and let out a small laugh. “I’ve always been pale.”

“Don’t joke right now. It’s not funny.” Yixing said.

“I told you,” Joonmyun answered. “I’m fine. I ran into a lot of people since, and nobody told me I looked pale. You’re the first one.”

“Of course, I’ll notice it.” Yixing insisted. “It’s you. I’ll always know when something’s wrong with you.”

As soon as those words left Yixing’s mouth, he heard them loud and clear. Yixing realized how it must have sounded. Joonmyun must have realized it as well because he was staring at Yixing in surprise.

“Uhh…” Yixing said blankly. “That’s not… It’s not… I… just…”

Joonmyun on the other hand, smiled back at him. “It is okay, Yixing-ah. Don’t panic.”

Yixing found it difficult to meet Joonmyun’s eyes right now. He was too preoccupied with his embarrassment that he did not realize that Joonmyun was already dismissing himself from the room.

“I guess I’ll just see you later, Yixing-ah.” That was all Yixing heard, and he only was able to hold up a hand as a wave of goodbye.

When he was sure that Joonmyun was out of the room, Yixing rested his right cheeks on the table. He had the urge to bang his head on the surface repeatedly, but he might have to explain to the others if he got any bruises. He let out a long sigh. He began tapping his fingers on the table. Why is it so hard? He stared at the blank piece of paper once again as he attempted to write once more. As desperate thoughts came to his head.

You’re just writing for Joonmyun once more. You wrote that first song for him. This should’ve been a piece of cake for you.

Baekhyun was heading to his office once more. He was walking a bit faster now. His watch already told him that he still have a half an hour to spare, but Baekhyun was very strict with his time especially when he was working. If it was possible, he would be there thirty minutes before schedule. Everybody knew of this habit of his, and people stopped complaining when they got used to it. He got on the elevator. However, he heard somebody running towards his direction, and shouting to hold the elevator. Baekhyun cringed automatically as he recognized the familiarity of the voice. Nevertheless, Baekhyun held the elevator for him.

“Wait!” The person shouted. “Hold that elevator! I’m getting on!”

Baekhyun rolled his eyes as he eyed Chanyeol getting on the lift. The taller one did not seem to notice the other, since it was obvious that he had been running. He had both of his hands on his knees as he tried to catch up his breath. Baekhyun decided not to say anything. The elevator was already going up, when Chanyeol finally decided to look up.

“Thanks man, for holding the…” Chanyeol finally realized who the person beside him was. “Oh, it’s just you.”

“What do you mean, ‘oh-it’s-just-you’?” Baekhyun looked at him unbelievably. “Just because it’s me, you’re not gonna say thank you?”

“Now that I thought about it…” Chanyeol looked like he was in deep thought. “It’s a bit surprising that you did something good for me even if it’s just holding the elevator for a few seconds.”

“Ugh…” Baekhyun groaned. “Why are you even here, Chanyeol?”

“Oh, right.” Chanyeol said. “Joonmyun forgot to bring his medicines earlier, so I brought them.”

“Joonmyun’s sick?” Baekhyun gaped.

“Yeah, since last night.” Chanyeol nodded. “I kept telling him to stay at home but he insisted on not being a burden. Aish, he is gonna be more than a burden if he does not take care of himself more.”

Baekhyun frowned. “Damn it, why didn’t I notice it earlier? I must send him home immediately.”

“Good luck with that.” Chanyeol said.

“What does that mean?” Baekhyun asked at Chanyeol.

“It would be impossible to make Joonmyun come home if he’s already here.” Chanyeol explained. “You’ll see.”

Baekhyun was about to say his retort when the elevator finally opened. Chanyeol trailed behind him as he headed to his office. Baekhyun was rather surprised when he found that his door was not locked. Carefully, he opened the door, only to find someone already sitting in one of the lounge chairs inside. As soon as Baekhyun saw his visitor, he immediately froze on the spot.

“Father…” Baekhyun said in a firm voice. “How did you get in here?”

His father clicked his tongue disapprovingly. “It’s nice to be always welcomed this warmly, Baekhyun.”

“This saggy, old man’s your father?” Baekhyun heard Chanyeol mumbled behind him. “What an elitist…”

“Why are you here?” Baekhyun was starting to tremble.

“Ah,” His father said in a mocking tone. “I’m just here to check if you got the flowers I sent to you a few weeks ago?”

“Get out…” Baekhyun’s voice was starting to shake as well.

“Well, it looks like you did.” His father let out a laugh. “Did you like it? It’s your mother’s favorite.”

Baekhyun was about to answer when Chanyeol stepped up in front of him shielding him from his father’s point of view.

“Look man, I don’t mean to be rude.” Chanyeol said to Baekhyun’s father. “Well, I guess I want to be rude, and you need to get out this instant or I swear I’m going to throw you to the exit.”

Baekhyun heard his father laugh, and he heard him walking towards the two of them. His father however stopped when he was just beside Chanyeol.

“Baekhyun,” His father said in a low voice that was only meant for him and Chanyeol. “You do seem to have a type, don’t you? Doesn’t this boy remind you of your mother’s lover?”

Baekhyun’s eyes widened in shock as he heard the door close behind them. Chanyeol turned to face him right away. Baekhyun stared up at him in a daze. His father’s words haunted him as he stared at the man in front of him. Baekhyun tried opening his mouth, but he could only produce a soft cry. He felt his whole body trembling, and his knees getting weaker. His body was about to give out when he felt Chanyeol wrap his arms around him, and holding him tightly. Baekhyun could not control his emotions anymore, and he started crying.

“Shh…” Chanyeol rubbed his back gently. “Baekhyun, don’t cry. He’s gone. Everything’s okay now.”

Baekhyun grabbed a fistful of Chanyeol’s clothes as if his life depended on it. He was afraid to look at Chanyeol. His father’s parting words kept on repeating over and over in his mind. And it scared Baekhyun so much.

“I’m not him.” Chanyeol said as if reading Baekhyun’s mind. He tilted Baekhyun’s chin and looked at him with much intent. “Look at me, Baekhyun. Whomever your father was talking about, I’m not him. I’m not him.”

Baekhyun nodded weakly. He wanted to believe Chanyeol’s words. He wanted to. At this moment, he decided to only believe in Chanyeol.

It was lunch time when Kyungsoo decided to return some of the books he borrowed from the library. Since it looked like Minseok and Tao were not coming to his classroom, for lunch, he decided to just go and do something productive for the day. However, going to the library meant that he had to go past the cafeteria, and there was no other way around. The books are due to be returned today, and he had no other choice, since he had to deal with club activities later. By the time he would be done for the day, the library would be closed already.

It was not supposed to be a huge deal anyway, but Kyungsoo knew that Jongin’s going to be in there… with his other friends. At one point or another, Kyungsoo did not like when Jongin hang out with the cool people. It seemed like he turned to a completely different person, and it seemed like he had to act cool every time. But Kyungsoo knew that Jongin was already cool with the real him. High school was really full of drama.

After debating with his thoughts, Kyungsoo decided to just go for it. Who cares anyway? He was pretty much invisible to the school anyway, and he was sure that the only students who knew of his existence were his classmates, Minseok-hyung and Tao-hyung. When he went inside the cafeteria, it was pure pandemonium. Kyungsoo had never been to the cafeteria during lunch time ever, and it seemed like every student of their school are in there. There were so much noise, and there were a lot of students playing around, eating, talking, singing, dancing, playing instruments… Everything.

Kyungsoo looked around, and sure enough, he did saw the “cool” crowd. It was pretty easy to spot them since most of the students were surrounding them. Kyungsoo looked for Jongin, and there he was, right in the middle of the circle laughing his off at some joke. Kyungsoo let out an exasperated sigh, and he kept on his mind that he should keep the farthest away from that table. Thankfully, he made out of the cafeteria alive, and he proceeded to the library right away to return the books. He felt a lot more confident when he was on his way back to his classroom. He was pretty sure that nothing could go wrong when he was walking past the cafeteria… Or so he thought.

Just then, two students who were pretending to do a wrestling match bumped into him, and it caused Kyungsoo to lose his balance. He felt himself crashing onto someone. The next thing he knew, he was covered with what he could only assume as strawberry juice, pasta sauce and some remnants of pudding. If only the ground could swallow him, this moment would be perfect. Kyungsoo was just rubbing the food that was covering his face when he heard a loud whining.

“Look at what you did!” A senior female student shouted at him as she held a sweater on her hands. “Do you know how expensive this is?!”

Silence covered the whole area. Everyone’s eyes were on the two of them right now. Of all the person that Kyungsoo would run into, it had to be the most popular girl in school.

“Hey!” She shouted once more. “Are you going to pay for this?”

“Yah!” He heard one of the students saying and Kyungsoo realized that it was one of his classmates. “That’s not fair. Some of the juice only stained your sweater a bit while Kyungsoo’s covered in goo!”

Just then, two of his classmates sat beside Kyungsoo, and helped him clean up. They were asking him if he was alright, yet Kyungsoo could only nod in response. He was too much in shock right now. He tried his best not to seek Jongin right this moment of humiliation.

“So what?!” The girl snapped back. “I’m pretty sure my clothes have more worth than he could ever have!”

“Ugh,” Tao said dizzily as they got off the roller coaster. “I swear I am never going on that thing again.”

“Come on!” Minseok was already pulling him to ride another one. “Stop being such a wimp.”

“I’m sorry,” Tao shook his head. “I can’t hear you right now. Can we just go sit somewhere for once? We had been riding the whole day.”

“Hey,” Minseok crossed his arms. “You were the one who asked me to skip school with you. I’m just making everything worth it.”

“But still,” Tao rubbed his forehead. “I didn’t know you were this crazy about amusement parks!”

“I don’t have that much free time, so I don’t get out a lot!” Minseok said defensively. “Don’t judge me.”

“That reminds me,” Tao said. “Don’t you have a job tonight?”

“Nope!” Minseok cheered. “I’m really free!”

Of course that one was a lie. He does have work tonight, yet Minseok had called in sick for today. In fact, for the past few days, he had been worried about Tao a lot. There were times that he would just space out on their conversations or when Minseok would just find him looking all too serious as if he had been contemplating about something. It was scaring Minseok a lot. He knew it started when Tao missed their meeting at the cultural festival. Minseok knew something was up, and there were times when Tao looked like he wanted to say something, but he always ended up not saying anything.

That was why today, he agreed when Tao asked him to skip school with him. Minseok thought that maybe this time, Tao would be able to say something to him. They spent the whole day together, and in all honesty, Minseok had fun, however, Tao still had not said anything, and it was scaring him more. Maybe I’m just overthinking. He convinced himself with this phrase one too many times. He was starting to wonder if he would ever believe it.

“I know!” Minseok gasped. “Let’s go eat!”

“What?!” Tao looked at him in disbelief. “You just ate three bowls of ramen a couple of hours ago!”

“Well,” Minseok stared at him reproachfully. “You said you wanted to sit somewhere!”

Tao groaned. “Let’s just go to the Ferris wheel then, we haven’t ridden that one yet, right?”

 Minseok nodded as Tao held his hand. The line was not that long and the two of them waited still holding each other’s hands. If it was any other day, Minseok would have let go of Tao’s hands right away, but he made so many exceptions today that maybe he could include hand-holding in that. Besides, Minseok felt safe when he held his hands, and he was afraid to let go. He felt that if he did not look close enough, Tao would disappear somewhere.

They did not wait for long to ride their own cabin. It was beautiful. The lights of the city looked like stars on the earth, and Minseok was fascinated by all of it. If he could make a wish to each and every one of them, he would beg to not let this day end. They were close to the top when they hear a huge sound; the two of them turned and saw a huge fireworks display. Minseok and Tao both screamed out of joy whenever they would hear a large boom. Deep in his heart, Minseok wished that this would be the perfect moment for time to stop. They were both admiring the light display when Tao suddenly talked.

“Do you know why I love you?”

Minseok turned to him in shock. He must have heard wrong, since the fireworks were too noisy. “...What did you say?”

“I asked,” Tao smiled. “If do you know why I love you?”

Minseok stared at Tao. He must have heard wrong… right? “Did you just say you love me?”

“Yeah,” Tao was laughing now. “And I asked you if you know why I love you. Are we gonna repeat ourselves the whole night?”

“I… Uhh...” Minseok stuttered. “I don’t know why.”

“Honestly, Minseok.” Tao rolled his eyes. “I don’t know why you’re so dense. I had been dropping hints all along.”

Minseok felt stupid. He did not know what to say. This was the first time that anyone had confessed to him, and his heart was beating really fast. He was pretty sure his face was all red now.

“See?” Tao reached out a hand to touch his cheek. “That’s why. You’re honest in everything you do. You don’t care what everybody says. You do everything in your own accord. You were the first person who looked at me beyond what anyone sees outside. And besides, whenever you smile, you could brighten up anybody’s day.”

“That’s …” Minseok tried to say. “That’s a bit too much.”

Tao shook his head. “I could say a lot more, but we need to go out of the ride right now.”

Tao held his hand once more, and Minseok took it. He was getting fidgety while they walked back home. He wanted to give his answer to Tao, but at that moment, his heart was a raging mess. When they reached Minseok’s apartment, Minseok thought that he should at least say anything.

“Tao… I…” Minseok started talking when Tao held up his hand.

“No,” Tao shook his head. “You don’t have to answer me yet.”

“Then why…?” Minseok asked.

“I just wanted you to remember.” Tao said. “I don’t want you to forget that I love you in any instances that you might doubt me.”

“What instances?” Minseok asked worriedly.

Tao decided to ignore the question. “Promise me you’ll remember.”

Minseok looked at Tao who as eyeing him determinedly, and then he nodded. “Okay. I promise.”

“Great.” Tao looked relieved.

Minseok felt like crying. He was getting more scared by Tao’s words right now.

“Hey,” Tao said casually. “Before I leave, can I just do something selfish?”

“Wha-?”

Minseok had barely said anything when Tao leaned down and pressed their lips together. It caught Minseok by surprise, since it was his first, but it did not take long before he closed his eyes, and melted along with it. The kiss was soft and sweet, and nothing too intrusive. It was if telling him that everything was going to be okay, and he should not be worried. Tao had a hold on him. One arm was wrapped around his waist, and his other hand gently Minseok’s already flushed cheeks. Tao pulled away a few seconds later, but Minseok maintained a firm grip on his collar, never wanting to let go.

“I love you, okay?” Tao breathed. “I love you.”

Minseok nodded. As he watched Tao walking away he felt an unfamiliar ache in his heart. Despite everything that happened tonight. Why did it feel like they were both saying goodbye?

Joonmyun felt worse than he was that morning. He tried washing his face once again. He was wiping his face on the mirror. It was now more obvious that something was wrong with him. Yixing was wrong. Joonmyun did not look pale; in fact, he was looking a bit more green right now. Baekhyun had insisted that he go home right away, but he refused profusely. Baekhyun only agreed that he can come along when Joonmyun told him that he already drank the medicine that Chanyeol brought to him that morning. However, if he thought Baekhyun was a tough opponent, he did not have any idea how a tag team of Baekhyun and Chanyeol could do. In the end, Chanyeol ended up tagging along with them as well.

Just then, the door of the washroom opened up.

“Joonmyun?” Yixing’s voice echoed. “Are you in here?”

“I’m here!” Joonmyun said in the most cheerful voice he could muster.

“Baekhyun told me that we’re going to go back to the company in a bit.” Yixing was approaching him.

“Okay.” Joonmyun answered.

“Joonmyun…?” Yixing made a move to reach for his forehead, but Joonmyun managed to evade his touch.

“I’m… I’m fine.” Joonmyun managed to say. “Let’s go back now. We don’t want to keep them waiting.”

Joonmyun tried walking as best as he could despite the throbbing that he felt on his head. He was about to turn around the corner when somebody bumped into him. Feeling absolutely helpless anymore, Joonmyun just let himself thrown on the floor. Joonmyun was just enjoying the good feeling of finally lying down; when he remembered that he collided into somebody else. He struggled a little bit as he was standing up. That was when he saw a familiar figure in front of him, getting up as well. Joonmyun shuffled on his feet as he tried to help the other man.

“Jongdae-hyung, I’m so sorry.” Joonmyun apologized as he helped Jongdae to stand up. “I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

“It’s okay, Joonmyun.” Jongdae said.

It took a few moments for something to click on Joonmyun’s mind. Jongdae looked like he had just cried.

“Jongdae-hyung, is everything okay?” Joonmyun searched frantically his pockets to get his handkerchief. “Here, hyung. I swear I did not use that.”

Jongdae looked at him for a second before taking the handkerchief from Joonmyun’s hands.

“Joonmyun,” Jongdae said as he wiped his tears. “Stop being so nice to me.”

Joonmyun looked at Jongdae curiously.

Jongdae snorted. “If you’re being nice like that, it makes it even harder for me to hate you.”

“…Hate me?” Joonmyun felt a sting from those words.

“Joonmyun-ah…” Jongdae started talking once more. “I’m a bad person. You should hate me.”

“I don’t hate you, hyung.” Joonmyun shook his head insistently.

Jongdae chuckled. “Well, you should.”

“Why?” Joonmyun wanted to know.

“See?” Jongdae said. “It’s things like this… You have no idea.”

“What are you saying, hyung?” Joonmyun asked.

“Do you know how many times I kept on stealing Yixing away from you?” Jongdae nearly shouted at him.

Joonmyun’s eyes widened, but he closed them once again, and he shook his head. He did not want to believe.

“Please don’t say that, hyung.” Joonmyun pleaded. “Please, hyung.”

“How could you just let me do that to you?” Jongdae said desperately. “How could you just stand there and just smile and take everything in? Maybe you’re better than me that’s why he chose you rather than me.”

Joonmyun was a little confused now, but he just let Jongdae talk. When he was finally sure that Jongdae was done, Joonmyun waited for a few moments before decideing to speak up.

“No matter who Yixing chose in the end, I’ll be fine with that.”

Jongdae let out a sniff from that statement. “Good. Because I’m not going to lose that easily to you.”

And with that, Jongdae left Joonmyun alone in the hallway.

Joonmyun suddenly remembered that Baekhyun and the others are waiting. As fast as his body would allow him, Joonmyun tried to run back to the parking lot. He did manage to get out of the building. He had managed to see Baekhyun and Chanyeol waiting outside the van. Just a bit more. He thought as he walked towards them. He was just a few yards from them when his body showed some signs of giving up. His vision was starting to blur, and his balance was getting useless. The last thing that he saw before he lost his consciousness was Baekhyun and Chanyeol running towards him as Joonmyun felt an arm wrapped around his waist.

“Stupid, careless, irresponsible, reckless…”

“Chanyeol,” Baekhyun tried to calm his down. “You need to calm down.”

“Calm down?” Chanyeol gasped. “CALM DOWN?!”

“Okay, okay!” Baekhyun raised his hands. “I know you’re really worried at Joonmyun right now, but could you please tone down your voice? Everyone’s looking at us right now.”

“He should’ve told us when he was feeling worse!” Chanyeol shouted. “And now he’s fainted!”

“I know, okay? I know!” Baekhyun raised his voice as well.

“And by the way,” Chanyeol snarled. “Why does Joonmyun had to stay at that Yixing’s house? Why can’t he go home to our house?”

“Yixing’s place is the nearest.” Baekhyun explained. “Besides, Yixing insisted on taking care of him.”

Chanyeol clicked his tongue. “Is he implying that I can’t take care of Joonmyun?”

“Chanyeol,” Baekhyun rolled his eyes. “Stop assuming things. Nobody is implying anything. Just leave them be and let’s just do our task.”

“Humph,” Chanyeol scoffed. “Why are we buying ingredients by the way? Aren’t houses supposed to have at least these basic ingredients?”

“I swear, Chanyeol,” Baekhyun threatened. “If you don’t stop complaining, I swear I’ll let you pay for all these.”         

“Fine~” Chanyeol whined and pushed the shopping cart a bit roughly.

After they managed to pay for the groceries, the two of them made their way back to Yixing’s apartment. They made casual conversations every now and then, but Chanyeol was careful in every word that he said to Baekhyun. He hated it when Baekhyun cried, and that was the second time that he saw the other pour out his heart to him. It was not right. Baekhyun was only meant to smile. The way how vulnerable and fragile Baekhyun looked as he held on to him that morning, Chanyeol hated it. He did not care if it was Baekhyun’s father, but he seriously hated the man. The man deserved to be hated by the way he treated his children. However, Chanyeol decided to not ask anything about it to Baekhyun. He felt like it was not right to meddle onto someone else’s business. He would just wait if Baekhyun wanted to open up as usual.

They were just midway along the road when Baekhyun tugged at his sleeve and stopped walking.

“Aren’t… Aren’t you going to ask anything about this morning?” Baekhyun lowered his head, avoiding Chanyeol’s gaze.

“Nope,” Chanyeol shrugged. “But honestly, I hate your dad.”

Baekhyun snorted at this. “Don’t worry, not a lot of people are fan of his.”

“The next time he bothers you,” Chanyeol made his hands into a fist. “Call me, and I will punch him on the face.”

Baekhyun laughed at this. “Okay, I’ll call you.”

Chanyeol laughed as well. “This is nice.”

“What’s nice?” Baekhyun frowned.

“This side of you,” Chanyeol answered casually. “You know, I would always laughing Baekhyun or grumpy Baekhyun or obnoxious Baekhyun any time of the day.”

“Uhh, what?” Baekhyun’s eyebrows are creased.

“I mean,” Chanyeol cleared his throat. “I hate crying Baekhyun. My favorite is happy Baekhyun, though.”

“Can you just stop referring to me as a third person?” Baekhyun laughed once again.

“But I’m serious!” Chanyeol yelled. “I hate seeing you crying.”

Baekhyun suddenly stopped laughing, and looked at Chanyeol seriously.

“Do you know what version of Chanyeol I like?” Baekhyun said in a very solemn voice.

Chanyeol could only scratch his nose in anticipation.

“I like the surprising Chanyeol the best.” Baekhyun said playfully.

“Surprising Chanyeol?” Chanyeol asked.

“Yeah,” Baekhyun nodded. “It’s the Chanyeol who teaches me how to ride the bike or the one who throws playful insults at me or the one who just sits beside me to just drink with me silently or the one who comforts me whenever I cry or just plainly the one who makes me laugh with his stupid jokes… Yeah, that one’s my favorite.”

Chanyeol coughed to hide his smile. “Did you just praise me?”

“Yeah,” Baekhyun snapped at him playfully. “And remember those words, because I don’t plan on repeating them.”

“You know what,” Chanyeol smiled. “Kind Baekhyun is weird."

“Hey~” Baekhyun pouted. “That’s mean.”

The two of them shared a moment of silence. However, Chanyeol remembered something he was curious about. Maybe, he could make an exception with this question.

“Baekhyun?”

“Hmm?”

“The guy your father was talking about?” Chanyeol said carefully. “The one that I reminded him of?”

“Yeah?” Chanyeol was debating whether he should ask the question. “Ask me, Chanyeol.” Baekhyun said firmly.

“He hurt you, didn’t he?” Chanyeol asked quickly.

Baekhyun took a few moments before nodding his head.

Chanyeol frowned. “What an .”

Baekhyun gave a small gasp.

“No, listen.” Chanyeol said. “I don’t know what he did to hurt you, but the fact that he caused you pain, that’s unforgivable.”

Baekhyun did not say anything, but he gave Chanyeol a genuine smile.

They stayed at Yixing’s place for a bit. Chanyeol had to give Yixing some credit though, since he had not left Joonmyun’s side ever. He and Baekhyun decided to cook some porridge so that Joonmyun would have something to eat when he woke up. It took a couple of hours for his fever to go down, although Joonmyun was still sleeping. Baekhyun decided that he and Chanyeol must leave now since Yixing seemed to manage things by himself. Chanyeol was about to protest when he received a whack on the head from Baekhyun. However, he did not leave the apartment without leaving a warning glare at Yixing.

Despite Baekhyun’s insistence, Chanyeol declined his offer for a ride home. He opted to ride the bus instead since he knew that Baekhyun’s apartment was on the other side of the city away from them. Chanyeol slept on the way back home. Somehow, he felt drained today. As he made his way to his apartment, he saw a middle aged man in an expensive suit standing in front of his door.

“Excuse me, sir?” Chanyeol asked when he neared the man. “Do you need help with anything?”

“Good evening, young man.” The man turned to him with a kind smile on his face. “I was wondering, is there anyone by the name of Park Chanyeol living in this apartment?”

Chanyeol observed him for a moment before answering. “I am him.”

“Ah,” Chanyeol watched in awe as the man gave him a deep bow. “I see you are all grown up now. It is an honor to finally meet you, Master Chanyeol.”

Luhan heard the click of his car. After making sure that the doors of his vehicles were locked, he proceeded to enter his apartment building. He looked at the time on the wall clock at the lobby. He could not believe that he stayed in the company this late just going through the whole set of wardrobes that came the other day. Right at that moment, the only thing that Luhan was looking forward to was his microwavable meal in his fridge, and the soft bed. Luhan sighed. It would be his day off the next day. He might just stay the whole time in his apartment watching some romance comedies he rented that week while binging on a pint of cookies and cream ice cream he bought last night.

Great, all I need now are a bunch of cats and I could die alone. Luhan thought miserably. At times like this, he would think about Sehun, and how the hell he was just going on with his life without doing anything. He would always wonder what Sehun would be doing at the time. Had he already eaten his dinner? Did Luhan ever cross his mind for even just once today? Whenever he thought of things like that, Luhan would be even more depressed.

Luhan was just on his way to the staircases like what he did in the past few days, but he decided against it. He felt like using the elevator today. As he hopped in on the lift, some of his neighbors went in as well. Luhan noticed a couple just adjacent to him, who was whispering sweet nothings to each other’s ears. He somehow felt jealous of them, and he made a mental note never to ride an elevator with a couple. He was more than eager to step out of the elevator, and headed towards his place. As soon as he ate his plate of microwavable lasagna, he would be satisfied for the night.

He the hallway, and Luhan was surprised to see someone just sitting in front of his doorstep. He recognized him immediately. Sehun was sitting in his doorstep, with his knees up to his chest; his head was tilted sideways as he slept peacefully. Luhan felt his heart racing as he approached Sehun. His hands trembled in disbelief. He tried pinching himself to check if all of this was just a dream, but it was not. Sehun was waiting for him. Luhan kneeled down to the Sehun’s level. He reached up to touch Sehun’s cheeks, and fix the strands of hair that were lazily covering his eyes. Luhan felt him shivered in his touch, and he wondered how long had Sehun been waiting out here. Luhan’s warmth was in contrast of the other’s cold skin. He saw Sehun’s eyebrows creased as he finally started waking up. Luhan Sehun’s cheeks with the back of his hands. He saw Sehun’s eyelashes fluttering slowly.

Sehun looked at him with a smile. He reached out a hand to trace Luhan’s face, his jaws, and his lips. It was as if he was making sure that it was finally the real Luhan. His thumb was gently Luhan’s face. Luhan tilted his head to lean on to Sehun’s delicate hands. He closed his eyes and breathed out. He felt Sehun’s hands pulling him closer to him. Luhan opened his eyes once more, and he locked his gaze with Sehun. As the two of them stared at each other’s eyes, Luhan was sure that they both reflected something that was beyond their past, their present, and their future; it was forever.

“Hi.” Sehun said in a soft whisper.

Luhan his lips started to tremble, and he let out a choked sob. All those times he had waited, and hoped, and wished… All those times… Sehun was finally here, and he was not going anywhere. He was here to stay, and be by his side.

A few tears escaped from Luhan’s eyes, and he felt Sehun kissing them away. Both of his hands held onto Luhan’s face, as he smiled endearingly at him.

“I can’t remember exactly when.” Sehun whispered. “But, it was at a club a few years back. I was with this girl, and you spilled your drink on her dress intentionally. At that time I thought you were really interesting, so I decided to follow you outside. We rode the cab together. I remember.”

Luhan looked at Sehun. This was more than what he was expecting. “Sehun…” He whispered. “Sehun-ah…”

“I can’t believe it’s you all along.” Sehun said smiling. “I was really stupid aren’t I? How could I just let go of you that time?”

Luhan smiled in return. “Sehunnie,” he whimpered.

Sehun pulled Luhan into a hug. Luhan felt goose bumps all over as he felt Sehun’s breath beside his ear.

“I’m scared.” Luhan heard the fear in Sehun’s voice. “I’m scared of what I’m feeling right now. I’m scared how my heart beats so fast whenever it’s about you, whenever I hear your name, whenever I saw you, whenever I think about you. It felt so strangely good, because it’s because of you, Luhan.”

Luhan buried his nose onto Sehun’s neck, and breathing in his scent as the other continues. “The days when I can’t see you was too unbearable. I wanted to see you. I wanted to hear you voice. I wanted to hold your hand. But I’m too much of a coward to face my feelings. I’m sorry, Luhan... For making you wait for so long.”

Luhan shook his head. “No,” he said hopelessly. “I would wait forever if it’s you, Sehun.”

Sehun pulled back from the hug and stared at Luhan lovingly for a few moments before pulling him for a kiss. It was a connection that only the two of them were familiar with. This time, it had more meaning than the past. They passed the unspoken messages that they had been yearning to tell each other. It was slow and patient and loving. There were not hurries because at this moment there were only the two of them in this world.

“Luhan” Sehun breathed out in between their kisses. “I really, really love you, Luhan.”

And Luhan would answer him with the same kind of intensity. “I love you too, Sehun… More than you could ever imagine.”

Luhan’s brain was only filled of thoughts of Sehun right at the moment. He had no idea how they got inside his apartment with Sehun pressing him against the wall. Their bodies connected in a way that was only meant for just the two of them. Every kiss they share was turning more passionate than the previous ones. Their touches are becoming more heated as every second passes. Luhan instinctively grabbed a fistful of Sehun’s hair as he felt his lips touching the expanse of his neck.

“Sehun,” Luhan breathed out his name repeatedly like it was his oxygen. “Sehun, Sehun…”

He felt Sehun’s teeth grazed over the space between his neck and his shoulders. Luhan could not suppress the gasp that escaped from his lips. He pulled Sehun for a kiss, and the latter was more than obliged to do so. He felt his feet being lifted off of the ground, and Luhan automatically wrapped his legs around Sehun’s waist. Sehun kept a firm hold of him, making sure that Luhan would not fall off. The both of them made their way to the bedroom.

It did not take long for their clothes to be scattered all over the room. Luhan lied down the bed as Sehun hovered above him. He reached up a hand to pull Sehun for a kiss as the two of them continued the ritual that the two of them were making. Luhan was pleading silently in his thoughts. His heart was beating really fast as he felt Sehun’s touch. This was the man he loved, the man he loved so much it hurt. Luhan looked at Sehun, it was dark and only the light coming from the moon was the only source of illumination in the room.

“You look beautiful like this.” Sehun whispered.

Luhan could only let out a sigh. He wanted Sehun right now. “Sehun, make love to me.”

It started out hesitantly. By the careful and uncertain touches that the two of them were making, it seemed like it was their first time once again. The both of them looked into each other’s eyes as if to reassure that everything will be alright. Sehun made the first move, and Luhan nodded when to let the other know that he was ready. His eyes fluttered close as he felt the pain accompanied with pleasure when Sehun became one with him. He felt Sehun pressing his lips onto his as he started rocking his hips back and forth. Luhan writhed underneath, and Sehun was quick enough to soothe him. He whispered loving things to Luhan as the both of them became lost in the same speed and rhythm.

Several minutes later, Sehun finally hit the certain spot which caused Luhan to arch his back and cry out in pleasure. Sehun reached down to wrap his hands around Luhan’s member. It only took a few tugs when Luhan finally felt like he was so close to the edge.

“Sehun…” Luhan said breathlessly. “I’m so close…”

“Together, Luhan,” Sehun answered as he pushed some of the sweat stained hair from Luhan’s eyes. “Let’s do it together.”

Luhan nodded in agreement and a couple of moments later, the two of them finally found their release. Luhan felt Sehun wrapping his arms around him as the two of them rode their s. Luhan’s eyes fluttered slightly as Sehun kissed his temple.

The two of them lied sideways and looked at each other with a smile on each other’s faces. Their legs were tangled perfectly between the sheets. Their intertwined fingers were moving playfully with one another. Luhan leaned over slightly towards Sehun to kiss the other’s shoulder earning a breathy sigh from the latter. He rested his head underneath Sehun’s chin. Sehun reached out his other hand to run his fingers into Luhan’s hair.

“I love you.” Sehun said in his adorable voice that Luhan likes so much. “I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of saying that.””

Luhan pulled back to look at Sehun properly, and pressed a quick peck on Sehun’s lips. “Me too, I love you.”

“We should go to sleep now.” Luhan suggested.

Sehun shook his head. “I don’t want to.”

“Why?” Luhan smiled. “Aren’t you tired?”

“I just want to look at your face all day long.” Sehun said shyly. “I missed you so much.”

“We’re a bunch of idiots, aren’t we?” Luhan laughed. “I missed you too.”

Sehun wrapped his arm on Luhan’s waist and pulled him closer, while Luhan snuggled up to him. The both of them did not say anything after that. They just laid there comfortably as they listened to their synchronized breathing. When Luhan finally felt the signs of sleepiness creeping up at him, he called to Sehun.

“Sehunnie?” Luhan said softly.

“Hmm?” Sehun hummed in response. Luhan assumed that he must be sleepy too.

“You will always be my first.” Luhan said finally as he closed his eyes.

He smiled contentedly as he felt Sehun tighten his hold on him.

 That’s all for this Chapter! I was supposed to start writing this last Friday night, but I got distracted by 12 perfect boys last time. OMFG. They’re so AWESOME! OT12 forever! <3

Guysss… I can’t believe I wrote so many moments in this. (I think I wrote Hunhan’s part the longest. It took four hours if I’m not mistaken. @-@ Sorry, this is my first fic and I apologize if it , but guys I love Hunhan so, so much, so please bear with me. Okay?)

And yes… A lot of stuff is going to go down from here on… Please look forward to it.

*GOES TO HIDE UNDERNEATH A HUGE ROCK*

It might’ve been a result of caffeine overload. Tell me what you think!

Thanks for subscribing and for the comments! I love reading them!

If you have any questions or you felt confused about anything… Feel free to ask me! ^^

And as always, thank you so much for reading!

Till next update! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!!!

Jaa~~ <3 <3 <3