“ Luhan! “ Lay knocked on Luhan’s door but there was no reply.
“ Luhan? “ Lay tried again.
“ YAH! LUHAN! ARE YOU OKAY? ARE YOU IN THERE? YOU! “ Yelling, Lay banged on the door for fear that something might have happened to Luhan.
“ Hi. “ Luhan waved lightly, opening the door with a small crack.
“ Wha.. what were you doing? I knocked the door so many times and… “ Lay saw the black marks on Luhan’s face and froze. “ What on earth happened to you? “

“ I promised to cook for you…  But I didn’t really know how to cook so… “ Luhan pouted slightly. He took eons to find the perfect recipe to cook for Lay, but he realized that he did not know how to operate the stove in the kitchen and got himself into a load of trouble and mess instead.
“ You don’t cook at home? “ Lay tried to contain his laughter, which came off as a smirk Luhan blushed at.
“ I do! But I usually eat at EXO or use the sandwich bar, so I haven’t really gotten around to using my kitchen… “ Luhan sighed. The perfect date ruined.

“ I’ll cook for you. Lemme see the ingredients you have. “ Lay grabbed the ladle from Luhan’s hands and went into the kitchen, shutting Luhan out.
“ I can help you! “ Luhan yelled out. “ This is my house! “
“ You’ll probably burn down the entire house if I let you in, “ Lay yelled back with equal force. “ Enjoy yourself on the couch and wait for the master’s cooking! “

“ Oh… haha… “ Luhan stared at the spread in front of him and was secretly glad Lay decided to cook so that he wouldn’t be embarrassed by his chicken sandwiches he intended to make. The food in front of him looked too good to resist.
“ Tuck in! I hope it tastes nice… “ Lay scratched his head lightly. He was confident of his abilities, but still hoped that Luhan could affirm it.

“ Awesome. “ Smiling widely, Luhan munched on the chicken dish cooked by Yixing. “ Reminds me of our hometown again. “
“ Glad you like my cooking! “ Yixing laughed. He breathed a sigh of relief at Luhan’a approval as he the necklace in his pocket. Picking out all the bones in the fish for Luhan, Lay looked on indulgently as he took food for himself as well, listening to all the compliments Luhan had for his food.

“ This is a change, I guess. “ Luhan proclaimed after devouring the last of the scraps on the dining table.
“ From? “
“ This is the first time I invited someone over to my house. “ Luhan admitted shyly. “ It’s a change for me. And I guess after I met you, too many things around me changed. “
“ And you’re uncomfortable with it… ? “ Yixing probed lightly. He hoped Luhan’s answer wouldn’t be negative.
“ I’m surprisingly fine, actually, “ Luhan smiled happily at Yixing. “ I think my life took a better turn, and I’m glad to have met you. “ Luahn reached out to pat Yixing lightly on the hand as they walked over to the couch to chill out.

“ I’m glad to have met you too. “ Yixing pronounced slowly yet surely.
“ I’ve always had this interest in singing, but my parents never did allow me to pursue it. I’m really thankful for you guys to have given me this chance to perform again, and to rekindle my passion for performing. “
“ Can I ask you a question? “ Yixing asked out of the blue as Luhan nodded, startled at his sudden question.
“ Like… “ Yixing deliberated but ploughed on determinedly. “ Whydoyoucometoexosooften .”
“ What? Oh! Oh! “ Luhan took a moment to process Lay’s gibberish and giggled.

“ Well, the food there’s really nice. “ Luhan grinned as Lay mock-punched him.
“ But… I guess I really like EXO nowadays because of your company. “ Luhan confessed as Lay smiled to himself, with a tinge of pink in his cheeks. Leaning in slightly, he looked out for any negative vibes coming from Luhan and thankfully, there weren’t any. He pressed their lips together lightly, and felt butterflies in his stomach when Luhan started to kiss him back.

“ Will you date me? “ Breathless, Lay asked as Luhan laughed.
“ What do you think my answer is? But hey, you’re really altering my life by a huge mark. “ Luhan pointed accusatively while Lay just laughed.
“ I’m sure the others will be glad to hear of this. I can just imagine Tao flipping. “ Lay smirked.

In Kris’ apartment, Tao sneezed as Kris passed him some tissue.
“ Wear some clothes, please, you’ll get chills and I’ll be the one taking care of you again! “