14th January, 1989 - 11:00pm

Luhan wandered the busy streets, shying away from people who came too close.

What am I doing here? he wondered. He lifted his head to stare in awe at the hanging lanterns with Chinese written on it. His heart hurt for some reason. Looking at it gave him pains and he didn't know why. Actually, just standing in the street and watching the festives made him sad. But why would it make him so sad? When he was little he would always brighten up at the sound of a Chinese festival, but now he felt so depressed. He accidently tripped over a rock and slammed into a child, making the kid frown before slowly crumpling.

"I'm sorry," Luhan whispered and quickly evacuated into the giant crowds, leaving the crying chid behind. He didn't want to be caught by the boy's mum. He kept on running until he slammed into someone, who cursed at him in Chinese. Luhan then backed away quickly, but only ended up coming to a stop when he came face to face with an old lady.

"Are you going to buy something?" she asked, when he didn't stop staring.

"I... No, I was just-" Luhan tried to say.

"Two of that please," a familiar voice ordered and a hand reached out to point to a tray off to the side. The lady nodded and went off to bag it. Luhan's eyes widened and he turned towards the voice with a hammering heart.

"You're..."

"Thanks for coming. I knew you would," the person replied. Luhan shook badly.

 

"It's your food," Luhan mumbled as he took the kebab from his new companion.

"Yes, but can't I share it with the person I like?" came the reply. Luhan blushed furiously and turned his head away, not even responding to the corny response.

"So uh...when did you leave?" Luhan asked.

"Right before I saw the dog's family driving into the driveway," Jongin replied with a chuckle. He watched as Luhan nibbled at the end of the stick, amused by the anime kind of look.

"Your parents will notice your disappearance quicker now," Luhan sighed, his face dropping. Jongin frowned and patted Luhan on the back.

"Cheer up, pumpkin," Jongin joked. He pointed towards a game stall not so far away and jumped up and down in excitement. "Look, Lu! A hammer game!" Luhan blushed a bit at the sudden nickname. My nickname, he thought. Then suddenly, he was being dragged by the sleeve over to a large tall stall, where a middle aged man stood, with a hammer lying against the counter.

"Can we try?" Jongin asked, holding out two coins. The man squinted his eyes at Jongin, scratching at his chin like as if he was trying to figure something out. Luhan finally figured out what it was and he kicked Jongin in the side of the foot. Jongin glared at Luhan, but Luhan gave a desperate look and Jongin quickly caught on. When he turned back to the man, he crossed his eyes over a bit, tilted his head and let his mouth drop.

"Uh...sure," the man hesitantly said and took the coins. Jongin grabbed the hammer and pulled Luhan over to the side where he squeezed his shoulder gratefully.

"Thanks for saving me back there," Jongin thanked.

"Be careful, Mr. Kim," Luhan warned. Jongin nodded and then shoved the hammer into Luhan's hands. Jongin expected Luhan to fall to the ground underneath the hammer's weight, since Luhan looked like a lightweight, but Luhan took the impact easily and stared down at the item in confusement. Jongin guessed that maybe working all his life probably improved his strength.

"All you have to do, is just throw the hammer down and hit that red pad," Jongin explained. Luhan nodded his head, but he was still biting his lip in worry. Then he feebly dropped the hammer on the pad, only raising the arrow about a metre high. Jongin laughed and took the hammer from Luhan, giving a demonstration. He almost managed to the hit the top, but fell short. Luhan clapped his hands in awe and excitedly grabbed the hammer back. Then with more confidence, he slammed the hammer hard into the pad. Jongin swore he even saw it crack. The arrow counting the score flew up so fast, that Luhan got a shock and fell over. Jongin couldn't even pick him up because he was standing shocked at the score.

"Well done, young man!" the stall man complimented. "Come over and choose your prize!"

"Prize? What prize?" Luhan mumbled as he got to his feet. Jongin held him up by the elbow and dusted off the dust on his pants.

"You won the game, so you get a prize as a reward," Jongin explained.

"I'm being rewarded?!" Luhan cried. Jongin gave him a weird look and nodded.

"Yeah, haven't you won anything before?" Jongin asked.

"Wait, so this is what I should call a personal achievement?!" Luhan cried, ignoring Jongin's question. Jongin stood still for a second before laughing.

"I wouldn't call it much of an achievement, but you did very well, Luhan. Not many people can do that," Jongin complimented and patted Luhan's head. Luhan dashed over to the stall and studied all the prizes. At first he was looking at all the home products like blankets and embroidery sheets, but then he dismissed it. He didn't want to spend his first reward on something related to work. He thought about all the stuff toys, but when he looked around, he only saw the little kids holding toys. So he was left with miscellaneous items. There was a scarf, a hat, earmuffs, a CD player and some jewellery. Luhan glanced at the scarf. He always felt cold at night, maybe it would be a good idea. He pointed at the scarf and the man pulled it down and handed it over to Luhan. Luhan liked the feeling of the scarf. It was probably the most expensive and luxury item he had ever had, also, it was a lovely shade of purple. Purple had always been some kind of imperial colour to Luhan. He had often seen Sehun wearing lilac blouses indoors or he would have his notebooks covered with violet velvet. He felt one step closer to Sehun now, but on a dangerous sort of level.

"That's nice," Jongin commented when he came over to check what Luhan had chosen.

"It feels nice," Luhan mumbled and wrapped it around his neck. Immediately, he felt a shiver go down his spine when his skin came in contact with the warm cloth. "Where now?"

"Something to eat- I know we had kebabs, but we should really eat something proper! It's a Chinese festival, let's enjoy the culture," Jongin cried, grabbing Luhan and gently tugging him towards the food market area. Luhan sniffed at the smells, feeling oddly weird, like a feeling of nostalgia. He looked around at the Chinese lanterns hanging off wires wrapped from tree to tree and paused.

Mama, let's look there...

Luhan shook his head when he couldn't manage to pull out his memories. When he snapped back into reality, Jongin was right in front of him, a worried looks etched onto his face. Luhan waved it off, telling Jongin not to mind and Jongin sighed.

"Well, have you seen anything you like?" Jongin asked.

"Maybe," Luhan replied. Jongin rolled his eyes.

"Pick something," Jongin ordered. Luhan then flailed his arm to the left and Jongin looked over. "Hot pot? You like hot pot?"

"Uh...sure," Luhan replied hesitantly, but Jongin couldn't catch it.

"Sure, I'll buy it. wait here for a second," Jongin said. Luhan just stood there, looking at the people walking past him and behind him. Now that he was alone, he was suddenly more aware. He felt Sehun's presence in the area and it made him itchy. Jongin came back moments later, metal containers held closely to his chest. "Come with me. We'll sneak onto the ferris wheel and eat the food up there."

"Are we even allowed?!" Luhan cried.

"You only live once," Jongin smirked. Then the containers into his jacket and pinned his arms to his side, trying to hold them in place. Luhan couldn't help but snicker a bit.

 

"You look familiar," the ticket man commented and Jongin stuck his tongue out and touched his nose with it. "Okay, never mind. I got a bit confused. Enjoy your ride."

"Thanks!" Jongin cried in a high pitched accented voice. Luhan felt his face burst into flames, but he was soon pulled into the carriage. The door was closed on them and Jongin quickly pulled the food out of his jacket and handed one container to Luhan.

"How long will this ride last for?" Luhan asked.

"An hour," Jongin replied. Luhan's eyes bulged.

"Are you serious?!" Luhan cried.

"Half an hour up and half an hour down," Jongin replied. Then he took out some utensils and shared them with Luhan. They opened their containers and the distinct meaty smell lifted into the air. Luhan's stomach growled rather loudly and he coughed in emmbarassment, trying to ignore the fact that Jongin was hiding a smile.

They ate their food comfortably, talking every now and then to fill the silence. It wasn't awkward, rather calming actually. The ride was steady and captivating, the food was delicious and strong, and the view was the best. Luhan had never been so high in his life. Sometimes he would forget to eat altogether, just because his eyes would feast itself on the twinkling lights scattered across a dark plain.

"Do you like it?" Jongin asked, when the ferris wheel paused. They were on their second to last stop before making halfway.

"Like what? The food or the ride?" Luhan inquired.

"Everything," Jongin replied.

"I like it," Luhan answered simply. "First time things are always likable right?"

"First chocolate, first school lesson, first friend, first love, first kiss... Have you had yours, Luhan?" Jongin asked. Luhan gave Jongin a look, like, you sneaky bastard.

"Yeah. I've had all of those," Luhan replied. Jongin stiffined in his seat but then leaned forward.

"And how did you manage to do all of that? Even first lesson?" Jongin asked. "You did it with a fellow maid?"

"Don't think I'm cheap," Luhan warned. "It's more simple than you think."

"I know. Don't forget I saw you going at it with the dog last time," Jongin added. Luhan's eyes widened for a bit, forgetting that Jongin was the only witness of Sehun and Luhan's sinful acts. "So let me guess, the dog was your first kiss?"

"Simple yes," Luhan replied calmly. Admitting it didn't seem so bad.

"Did he steal your first time though?"

"My first time?"

"Oh Luhan, catch up with the idiosms," Jongin sighed. "If you want me to put it straightforward for you...has Sehun taken your ity?"

"Oh my God!" Luhan shouted, suddenly heating up.

"Woah! Sit down, you're rocking the carriage!" Jongin cried. Luhan sat down, his face heating up incredibly fast. Him, with Sehun? No. Never.

"I think you're thinking a little too ahead, Mr. Kim," Luhan sighed. "I have been a faithful servant to the Oh's for almost my whole life. But because of Master Sehun's stubborn and active personality, I have been pushed past my limits. What has gone on between Master and I, is already worthy of my resignment. However, I still know my place and there is a certain extent I will go to."

"I understand. I hope you didn't think that I thought you were Sehun's toy," Jongin apologised. Luhan noted that Jongin had used Sehun's name and not 'dog'. Jongin was being sincere.

Luhan turned away and looked out the window, glancing out into the Chinese market. He watched people walking around, chatting to each other, eating food beneath trees. But then all of a sudden, the carriage came to a jolt and Luhan realised that they were now at the top. The view was slightly different and now he could see the Oh's home from there. Then his eyes drifted back down to the crowd, but then he spotted something.

Amongst the moving crowd, was a lone person standing still, staring right up at Luhan's carriage. The person was wearing a long cream coat, buttoned up to the collar, with a purple scarf wrapped around his neck. He also wore long black pants with boots and a red hat on his head. But not even the heavy clothing nor the incredible heights could prevent Luhan from recognising who the person was.

Their stance, their hair, their body portions. It all equaled Oh Sehun.

For a moment, Luhan swore their eyes met. When that moment came, Luhan quickly jolted away from the window, pressing himself up against the other side of the carriage. Jongin gave him a worried look.

"Luhan, what's wrong?" Jongin asked, worry in his tone.

"He's here..." Luhan whispered.

"What?"

"He was looking right at us. Jongin, it's not possible that he knows that I'm in this carriage, right?" Luhan frantically questioned.

"Woah, calm down for a second! The dog's here?!" Jongin cried. "He's supposed to be back at my house. What's going on?"

"I'm sorry, Jongin," Luhan cried, "I knew he was coming but...no, this is impossible. He'd kill me if he saw me with you. God, he was staring right at our carriage, Jongin!"

"As much as I like how you're using my real name right now, I can't really fully enjoy it because you are panicking and you need to calm down because we are fine!" Jongin cried, grabbing hold of Luhan's shoulders and gripping him tight. Luhan shrugged Jongin off and quickly dashed over to the window to look out. Sehun was still there, staring at their carriage. Luhan was more sure of it now, since they were now almost reaching the ground. 

"Jongin! What do we do?!" Luhan cried. Jongin stared at him for a second, before grinning.

"I have an idea. But you can't say anything," Jongin replied.

 

Sehun had arrived at the festival at about 11:30pm. If he was right, Luhan should've been wandering around by then. He fast walked down the pathways, scanning for the familiar dark haired male, but he couldn't find him. Sehun glanced towards the gaming area, staring at two boys going at a hammer game. The taller boy stood behind the other, watching and observing. Sehun nodded in acknowledgement when the boy holding the hammer, slammed it down and managed to get the arrow to reach the top. The boy fell to the ground, probably shocked by the sound or maybe by the weight of the hammer. Then Sehun discarded the gaming area. Luhan didn't know how to play the games, let alone win them. Have you seen that boy? So thin and fragile.

Sehun wandered around a bit more before coming to a stop. He was really tired and just decided to just look out and find out if he could spot Luhan. He sat himself underneath a tree, and shuffled up to lean comfortably against the trunk. He spent a long time sitting there actually. So long, that he even managed to attract a few girls.

"Hello," a tiny voice came. Sehun glanced up and saw a little girl in a blue dress staring down at him.

"Oh...hi," Sehun greeted.

"Are you alone?" she asked.

"Um, yes. What about you?" Sehun asked.

"No. Yes. Maybe," the girl replied with a giggle. Sehun grinned and patted the spot next to him. The little girl sat herself down and straightened out her legs in front of her, comparing her length to Sehun's. "Why do you have longer legs than me? I'm a girl."

"But I'm a big boy," Sehun replied.

"So I'm still a little girl?" she asked. Sehun nodded.

"In the future, maybe ten years, you'll be just as tall as me...maybe," Sehun replied, suddenly remembering his 6ft height

"Why are you alone?" she asked.

"I'm waiting for someone," Sehun replied.

"Waiting for a friend to come?"

"Waiting for someone to accept my heart," Sehun sighed. The little girl tilted her head in confusement.

"Why won't they accept your heart? Is your heart bad? Do you have heart cancer?" Sehun almost laughed, but instead he smiled and ruffled her hair.

"Never grow up," he whispered to her. She nodded, her eyes turning into crescent moons and her lips forming a grin. "You'd better go, I think I can hear your mum calling for you." Then the girl glanced back and saw the familiar tall figure of her mum, calling out to her.

"Aw," she said and stood to her feet. Then she waved at Sehun and began walking away. "Just so you know, I think you have a very good heart. You don't seem sick to me." She put in a little grin before running off to her mum, who whispered, 'You shouldn't speak to strangers' before quietly pulling her away from the area.

Sehun honestly wanted to believe that little girl.

Then Sehun glanced up at the ferris wheel. It was really pretty. Each carriage was a different colour. He looked at all the carriages that had the same colour as the clothes he wore. The white one, the red one, the black one and then lastly the purp-

Luhan?

Sehun stood to his feet and walked forward a bit, trying to get a closer look. There were two people in the carriage, both were dark haired males and both had their faces rubbed out due to the dirty windows. But Sehun could not be even more sure. One of the people in the carriage was Luhan, or at least looked a lot like Luhan. The same styled hair and the distinctive clothes. The only thing that differed was that purple scarf wrapped around the boy's neck. But then Sehun began to grow doubt. Luhan didn't have the money to buy a scarf like that. His father had made sure of it. Maybe the other boy in the carriage had bought it then. But then this led onto the next question, who was the other boy?

"I'm being paranoid," Sehun mumbled to himself. Then he glanced up and suddenly, the suspected-Luhan turned towards the window and looked out. When he glanced down, Sehun and him caught eyes and almost immidietaly, the boy retreated into the back of the carriagge. Sehun felt a rock in his throat as he watched the same boy sneak a glance back out the window. It has to be Luhan. We catch eyes and he hides. No one else but Luhan. Sehun began to walk towards the ferris wheel, his fists clenched by his side as he watched the carriage near the ground. Then the carriage stopped at the bottom on the wheel and Sehun quickly slipped behind the qeue line. He watched as the two boys came out. 

For starters, one of the boy's was Jongin. Sehun gritted his teeth, but then the person who followed afterwards gave him a bit of a shock. The boy who followed had the purple scarf wrapped around his head, giving space for one eye. When the two boys had pushed out of the area, they began to quickly make their way over to a dark area of the fesitival. But Sehun quickly dashed up and held them back.

"Wait!" Sehun shouted.

"I wish you could see what I'm seeing, Ziyu," Sehun heard Jongin say. Ziyu? Not Luhan?

"What do you, uh, see?" Ziyu asked in a heavy French accent.

"I-"

"Bastard!" Sehun shouted out to Jongin. Jongin patted Ziyu on the shoulder.

"Sorry, I have an animal to tame," Jongin sighed and then turned to face Sehun. Ziyu turned too, giving Sehun time to process Ziyu's attire. Then Sehun stomped right up and stood almost an arm's width apart.

"Who's that?" Sehun asked, pointing to Ziyu. Jongin threw an arm around the shorter boy and grinned.

"Oh Sehun, meet Ziyu Thomas. He's from France," Jongin lied, not even knowing anything of what he was saying, but it sure was hell of a good lie. Ziyu held out his hand and Sehun stared at it for a second, not knowing how to respond. But then Ziyu suddennly grabbed Sehun's hand and shook it hard.

"Nice to meet you!" Ziyu cried, letting out that heavy accent once again.

"Your name is Chinese," Sehun commented.

"My mother...Chinese," Ziyu paused after mother, not knowing how to complete his sentence. Sehun nodded his head.

"What part of France are you from?" Sehun asked. Ziyu's eyes seemed to flicker.

"New Caledonia," Ziyu replied.

"Never been there," Sehun said.

"I haven't either, you should invite me over one day," Jongin grinned. 

"What are you doing out here anyway?" Sehun asked Jongin now. "Isn't it your birthday?"

"And what better way than to spend it with someone special," Jongin replied and looking lovingly at Ziyu.

"Are you guys...close?" Sehun asked.

"Well, the mayor just arrived two days ago, so Ziyu and I are hanging out a lot more often to get to know each other. I think we're getting along just fine," Jongin replied. "What about you? Weren't you supposed to be at my birthday?"

"Snuck out. I'm supposed to meet Luhan here. You don't happen to know where Luhan is?" Sehun asked, sending a shady look towards Ziyu.

"Luhan's out? Oh, I should go on a deer hunt," Jongin teased, his lips. Sehun snarled and felt like shoving his fist into Jongin's stomach.

"Don't you dare touch him," Sehun warned.

"He isn't property," Jongin replied with a roll of his eyes.

"Yes! This Luhan is not box!" Ziyu cried. Sehun face palmed himself at Ziyu's reply.

"Whatever," Sehun replied and then he glanced at Ziyu. Suddenly, he reached out with his hand and grabbed the edge of the scarf wrapped around Ziyu's head. But at the sudden action, Ziyu suddenly began screaming and threw a fit. Jongin's eyes widened and he quickly tried to grab hold of Ziyu, trying to pull him into a tight embrace. Sehun backed away a bit in fright.

"What the hell are you trying to pull?! Ziyu has a massive face burn scarring and he wanted to go out without people laughing at him, so he wore thhis scarf. God dammit, you scared him! Ziyu, stay calm. Breathe," Jongin cried. He rubbed Ziyu's shoulders, trying to calm down Ziyu's heavy breathing.

"I'm going to go..." Sehun mumbled.

"Get lost," Jongin mumbled and pulled Ziyu into a hug. Sehun turned his back on them and quickly dashed off.

 

"That was close," Luhan whispered into Jongin's shoulder.

"Shh, he's still not gone yet," Jongin replied. Then when he was sure that Sehun was gone, Jongin released Luhan and pulled the scarf back down onto Luhan's neck.

"Good acting," Luhan commented.

"I'd say the same for you," Jongin replied.

"Having to grow up with Master Sehun really taught me how to lie," Luhan replied with a victorious grin.

"Come on, I want to show you something," Jongin grinned and grabbed Luhan's elbow, dragging him towards the woods. The food containers dropped to the ground and Luhan turned back around to pick them up, but Jongin tugged harder. "Just leave them!"

"But-"

"Hurry!" Luhan loosened up his scarf a bit and then turned to nod at Jongin. Then they both burst out into a run, dashing into the trees.

 

"Wait hold on a second," Sehun mumbled to himself. He turned around and started to walk back to where he had met Jongin and Ziyu. "New Caledonia isn't part of France..." He turned back around, but when he went back to the spot, he only saw two containers, spilt on the ground. Sehun bent down to examine them and when he looked carefully, he saw that someone had stepped in the food by accident. He looked around and finally saw a path that had bits of meat sprawled across it.

"Bingo," Sehun grinned and quickly followed. 

 

"Hold on! You're going too fast!" Luhan cried. Jongin had suddenly turned off the path and into some weird area. As they ventured further, Luhan's fears deepened. "Jongin, you're scaring me!"

"I'm sorry," Jongin cried from up front. "But trust me!" Luhan beared it for the rest of the way. He kept on running, trying to ignore the branches whipping at his face and twigs tugging at his clothes. Eventually, Jongin tripped over a ditch into the ground and came falling down, dragging Luhan with him. Luhan almost choked when a branch hooked onto his scarf, tugging him back, but the scarf eventually came loose and Luhan fell to the floor, grabbing his neck. 

"I can't breathe," Luhan cried, gasping. Jongin didn't know what to do, but rub Luhan's arm, trying to calm him down and slow down their breathing. They sat their, catching their breaths, and recollecting their thoughts, when Jongin's laugh broke the silence.

"Woo, that was fun," Jongin grinned. Luhan wanted to punch him for saying that, but then he saw the look on Jongin's face. It looked like a child's look when they win something. It was a look Luhan never really got a see a lot. So he let it go just this once. 

"Where...are we...going?" Luhan panted. Then Jongin steadily got to his feet and pulled Luhan up to. When Luhan refused to stand, Jongin chucked Luhan's arm around his neck and helped him walk. 

"You'll see," Jongin said. 

 

Eventually, the two boys broke out into a wide grassy place. Jongin laid Luhan against a tree carefully and then took the spot next to him. 

"What are we here for?" Luhan asked. 

"I want to show you something. What's the time?" Jongin asked.  Luhan pulled out a little pocket watch and glanced at it. 

"Just turned eleven fifty-nine," Luhan whispered. 

"One more minute before my birthday ends," Jongin stated. "Do you know I haven't even made a wish yet?"

"Now that won't do," Luhan scolded. 

"Would you like to hear my wish?" Jongin asked.

"You're supposed to keep it to yourself," Luhan sighed. 

"Haha, ok. Did you have fun tonight?" Jongin asked. 

"It was surely adventureous," Luhan replied curtly. 

"No, but seriously. Did you have fun, with me?" Jongin asked. 

"I feel like this is a trick question," Luhan said, his eyebrows raising. 

"It's not a hard question! Yes or no?"

"Yes, I admit." Luhan rubbed his forehead. "But this is not how I planned to spend tonight."

"What were you planning?" Jongin asked. 

"For none of this to happen. For you not to have seen Master and I, for me succumbing to your request. I- If I was given the chance to do this all again, I would've done things differently," Luhan said. Jongin stared at Luhan for a long time before swallowing the lump in his throat. 

"What's the time?" Jongin asked. 

"Almost midnight," Luhan replied. "Fifteen seconds."

"I really want to tell you my wish then," Jongin said.

"Go on then. Enlighten me," Luhan replied, bowing his head. There was silence on Jongin's side for a while. But then a hand suddenly covered his own and Luhan glanced down to see Jongin's warm hand gently holding his. Luhan's mind went blank for the next ten seconds. when he snapped back into reality, he realized that Jongin was counting.

"Five...four...three...two..." Jongin then quickly leaned over and- oh. "One." It was a soft word, but Luhan could feel it being breathed upon his lips, before Jongin had leaned in and captured them with his own lips.

 

Fireworks.

Literal fireworks. Luhan could see behind Jongin's head, the bright lights speeding through the sky, before bursting into shapes and styles. The colours kept him thinking. They kept him thinking properly and not losing himself, because Luhan felt himself slowly slipping whenever the sky began to dim before the next firework was shot.

"Oppa...what are you doing here? Did you see an animal?" a little voice suddenly asked. 

The fireworks kept him thinking.

Oh Sehun restricted that.

Luhan could make out a dark silhouette in the distance. When a new firework would burst in the sky, the lights would flash and for a moment, that silhouette would turn black, hiding all features. But then the lights would fade and the silhouette would gain detail.

Flash and fade. A little girl's silhouette hiding behind a taller one.

Flash and fade. That sharp nose.

Flash and fade. The thin lips.

Flash and fade. The red hat.

Flash and fade. The wide eyes.

Flash and fade. The tear-streaked cheeks.

Flash and fade. Gone.

 

Luhan pushed Jongin away with as much force as he could and quickly stood to his feet. He scanned around frantically, looing for Sehun's retreating figure, but Sehun had seemed to have disappeared. Tears gathered and a sob whimpered past his lips. He brought his hands up to face and screamed into them, not even caring about Jongin's presence behind him. Sehun looked so broken. He looked like a trampled plant that was kicked to the side of the road. Luhan hated that look. He hated it so much because he was the cause of it. He shouldn't have let Jongin- no, he couldn't blame Jongin. Jongin had Sehun on the edge, but Luhan was the one that had pushed him off. In the end, it all just came back to him. It was all Luhan's fault.

"Sehun!"

"You-" Jongin caught himself in the sentence. You called him by his name, he wanted to say. He held back. 

"I'm going to leave," Luhan mumbled. Jongin let him, because he knew that nothing he could do would keep Luhan back.

He had lost.

 

"Yo, Sehun- woah! Where are you going?!" Hyoyeon cried when Sehun pushed past Eunhyuk and her. She turned to glance at Eunhyuk, but Eunhyu shrugged at her.

"I don't know. Just let the guy go. He's been a bit on a rollercoaster since the whole surprise tree thing a while ago," Eunhyuk told Hyoyeon.

"I guess," Hyoyeon shrugged. Then she linked arms with Eunhyuk and started to drag him towards the hammer game.

"Wait a minute! I can't play that game! I'm not strong enough!" Eunhyuk cried.

"I know, but I am, so I'm playing! I just need a cheerleader," Hyoyeon laughed. Eunhyuk sighed loudly before letting Hyoyeon drag him off.

They were approaching the stall when Eunhyuk turned around and saw Luhan running through the market. He tugged on Hyoyeon's sleeve and pointe towards him.

"He's...running," Hyoyeon stated.

"What's up with Sehun and Luhan? Did something happen?" Eunhyuk asked. "We missed something, I know it."

"I have a gut feeling that it wasn't a good thing either," Hyoyeon added, biting her lip.

"Step right up, young madam!" the man called from the stall and just like that, Hyoyeon was back to business.

 

Sehun entered his house, only to be welcomed by an empty silence. Majority of the servants would probably be in the servants quarters and his parents were still are Jongin's birthday dinner. He chucked his coat onto the ground before walking over to the fireplace and sitting on a chair that faced it and was turned away from the front door.

He sat there for a few minutes, feeling awfully dull. It was a horrible feeling, being so high in your emotions that once you reach the peak of it all, you feel dull and you don't know how to explain what you're feeling inside. Sehun wanted to remember, he wanted to remember why he came to be like this. So he began to retrace everything. From Luhan staring at him with those wide eyes that Sehun loved to look at. From when Luhan shook his hand while pretending to be Ziyu. From when Luhan and Sehun had caught each other's eyes on the ferris wheel. From when Sehun had asked Luhan to meet him at the festival.

From when Sehun had asked Luhan to make his decision that one night.

The door was suddenly thrown open and Sehun didn't even bother to look. He knew who it was, judging by the silence. He just sat there, rubbing his hand against the lining of his shirt.

Luhan stared at the chair that faced the fireplace, knowing fully well that Sehun was there. On the way home, Luhan was thinking of different scenarios that could happen; Sehun hitting him, Sehun getting angry, Sehun forcing himself on Luhan, Sehun crying- but he never thought about Sehun staying quiet. In fact, he didn't even acknowledge that Luhan was even there. A sudden fear grew on Luhan. He couldn't afford to lose his best friend, his master, his- He just couldn't. The fact that Sehun was ignoring him now made Luhan panic about when Sehun will eventually talk to him. Luhan wanted to get it over with. He even decided that he would take whatever that would come, whether it'd be fists or tears.

But instead of speaking up, he shakily knelt onto the ground, picked up Sehun's coat and hung it up on the coathanger. He let his hands linger on it, running over the pockets and collar. It smelt like spice, rain and Sehun, a weird combination.

"Luhan," Sehun spoke. Luhan shook with fright at the sound of his name. He turned and quickly bowed.

"I'm home," Luhan announced, even though it was perfectly clear. He noticed that his voice was slightly shaky.

"Luhan...you're dismissed," Sehun eventually said. There was a sting in Luhan's nose and still in the bowing position, Luhan watched as a tear fell and hit the ground. He quickly stepped on it to wipe it away.

"Yes, Master Sehun," Luhan replied, his voice nasal now. He sobbed once before sprinting away to his room and closing himself in. He pressed himself up against the wall and slid down, letting soft tears cascade. There was the sound of a light shower outside. Luhan felt it was going to be a restless night.

 

Sehun stared at the fireplace, watching the tongues flicker and cackle. His hands suddenly over something soft and he instantly froze. Then he took a deep breath and slowly pulled it out. It was a purple scarf. Sehun had found it hanging off a tree branch, not too far away from where Jongin and Luhan were. He let it wrap around his hands, before unwrapping it and then wrapping it again. He carried on like this for five minutes before pausing. His eyes glanced between the scarf and the fire, his mind focused on one thought.

Then he steadily stood up and with an empty mind, threw the scarf into the fire. The fire roared, finding a new source to burn. Sehun watched with dark eyes as the purple scarf began to curl and blacken as the minutes went past. After ten minutes, the purple scarf no longer existed. 

Then Sehun walked over to his coat hanging on the coat hanger and pulled out from inside it his own purple scarf.

 

Luhan heard a knock on his door. Four times, a pause and then one more. Luhan sat there for the next twenty seconds, listening to the sounds of Sehun's familiar footsteps walking away. Then when he had counted all the way, he stood up and opened the door a bit. He could see Sehun's shadow disappearing around the corridor. Luhan was about to shut the door, but he saw something pinned to the wall. He closed his bedroom door behind him and cautiously approached it. 

It was a purple scarf with a note on it.

I care about you, so I'm going to try.

Luhan's hands felt weak, like as if he couldn't even bear the weight of the note itself. He tucked it into his pocket and then he pulled the scarf off of the wall. He wrapped it mindlessly around his neck and then stood there, sniffing from his crying. But he noticed something, the scarf did not smell like the one he was wearing before. This was a different scarf.

Luhan stared towards the exit of the corridor and rested his eyes on the fireplace. He rubbbed his fingers against the note tucked away in his pockets. Then ever so slowly, he sunk to the ground and laid down, like as if he was going to sleep there. He might as well have.

 

"I care about you, so I'm going to try," Luhan said, his voice a little shaky, but he didn't stutter. Sehun's face glowed even brighter than the candles and he gently pulled Luhan towards his chest. He held him close and ran his fingers through Luhan's soft locks.

"I care about you too," Sehun whispered. "I'm going to take your answer as a yes."

"I guess you can say it is," Luhan mumbled, but Sehun could feel Luhan's lips curving into a smile. 

"I'll treat you well," Sehun told him. Luhan then gripped at the back of Sehun's clothes, enjoying the shared warmth.

"I know you will, because you always have," Luhan replied. 

 

---

 

 Hi guys, wow! My hands hurt after writing that. Also, I told an ate of mine that I was going to update in two days, but a stupid thing called school started holding this thing called tests so I had to go do this student thing called 'study'. So yeah. 

THE WINNER OF THE QUESTION, 'What was Luhan's answer? Did he say that he would accept Sehun or did he say that he didn't want Sehun?' IS..............

 

c-wonp-qa & nightStar!!!!!

C-wonp-qa answer was, 'I think he accepted~~'

And nightStar's answer was, 'I think Luhan accepts Sehun, but they keep their relationship as a secret.'  

There is a prize so I'll be in touch with you soooon. 

It was the closest to the real answer. I know that lots of other people had said that Luhan had accepted, but then you guys had also added on further answers like, 'I think he accepted Sehun, but he had conditions'. Unfortunately, I count the full answer as the answer to the question, not half the question.

 

onto the comments:

babypeach: hahaha! Well you got your wish. They met again!

Bright5: I was hoping that sentence would catch someone's eye.

ItsXinYi: Oh Baby Don't Cry~ Tonight~

EXO_SHINee: Darn it,  forgot to add Xiumin. 

Xianthese2320: Actually, Im not very skilled at . Though I find it easier to write than kissing scenes -_- t's really weird.

Breadesu: You don't know how badly I wanted to reply to you when I saw your comment. I greatly appreciate the fact that you reread my story! I'm like those kind of authors that can't really understand why subscribers reread their story. Like, an author will never be satisfied with their own story, at least that's what I believe, because an author always tries to see improvement. Thank you and sorry for keeping you waiting.

baeZicaekeu: NO BREATHE. I NEED YOU.

louise_sone: aw shucks, you flatter me. Nahh, my fic isnt like the bomb diggity. Well, at least to me it isnt, maybe because I can see my own flaws? Thank you for the compliment anyways!

myLove91: HOW IN THE WORLD DID YOU FIND MY FIC. I HAVENT UPDATED IN A MONTH. Anyways, really? You really read it three times? Wow...I mean, people have been telling me that my story is good, but I dont exactly believe them much since I could be one of those people who think their writing is excellent but its just B grade or something. Thank you so much though for appreciating. Really and honestly!