The boy looks up at Yixing from under his lashes and asks, “Um, I’m searching for Our Little Paradise. Do you have it?”

“L-Let me check,” Yixing stutters. He has been so distracted by the angelic appearance of this boy who looks about the same age as he is to even think straight.

His knees slightly buckling—as if his weight is suddenly more than what his body could bear, and Yixing could not comprehend why—he moves out of the counter and walks through the narrow aisle separating rows and rows of bookshelves. It should’ve been easy for him to browse a certain book, or any kind of book at that, since he could memorize all the books their bookstore is selling. But, the idea that a handsome boy is standing by the counter, waiting for his return, expecting his requested book to be in his small arms…threatens to crumble his so organized world.

He’s just a customer, Yixing. Just a customer.

He finally makes a sharp left turn and scans through the titles printed on the spines of the neatly piled books in the shelves while running a finger through the air.

Our Little Paradise... Our Little Paradise… Letter “O”…

At last, he finds what he is searching for. The book is resting silently between two hardbound books at the very top of the shelf. He climbs up the ever-present ladder, his feet finding support in the last rung. Yixing groans as he fully extends an arm out to reach up for the said book.

Why the hell do these shelves have to be fifteen feet high?

Eagerly, he flexes his feet, transferring his weight to his toes. He catches a breath when he takes a hold of the book. Taking it out of the shelf consumes too much of his energy but with enough determination, he is able to pluck it out of its hiding place. But Yixing forgets to control the force he’s used to get the object, and his body starts to lean backwards, the ladder following the direction of his weight. Yixing instinctively closes his eyes.

Oh, no! I’m gonna fall!

But the moment of the anticipated fall never arrives. He finds himself clutching tightly on the sides of the ladder, his face firmly pressed on the rung so he could smell the familiar scent of books around him. His eyelids fly open as he catches his breath again.

“I did not fall?” Yixing asks himself pathetically, eyeing at the object he’s kept close to his chest with his other hand.

“You might want to go down there!” the other boy says from beneath. Yixing looks down and realizes that he has been saved by the other boy. “Don’t you think it’s a good thing that I followed you?”

Yixing hastily climbs down the ladder, his body starting to shake violently. As soon as his feet touch the ground, he takes a deep breath and meets the cool stare the other boy is giving him with his own.

Well, he can’t actually do it, being the shy boy that’s he’s always been.

“H-Here’s your book,” Yixing says timidly, looking down at his feet like what he always does when he can’t look a person by the eye. “And…thank you.”

The other boy pats his shoulder, making Yixing look up at him again, and says, “I should be the one thanking you. You can’t even imagine where I’ve come from just to get a hold of this book!”

Yixing does not miss the sparkle in the other boy’s eyes, the rise in the other boy’s voice as he speaks excitedly, and the warmth transmitting from his hand to his shoulder even through his black shirt with a printed unicorn at the front. And in that moment, Yixing feels his heart hammering against his rib cage, suddenly fully aware of the blood flowing through his veins and the warmth enveloping his entire being and the nagging sense of familiarity he feels around this other boy.

“Hey,” the other boy says, waving a hand in front of Yixing’s smaller face, breaking his train of thoughts. “Are you still with me?”

Yixing shakes his head, shooing the unfamiliar thoughts and feelings out of his system. “Y-Yes! Of course. Or am I not?”

The golden-haired boy chuckles in amusement at Yixing's own state of bewilderment. And once again, Yixing could not help but notice the other boy's pearly white teeth and how his smile seems so perfect and genuine and captivating all at the same time.

“You really look like you’ve been lost in your own world,” the other boy remarks. “Come on, I gotta pay this now. My mom’s waiting for me, and she hates waiting for someone.”

Hastily, Yixing and the other boy go back to the counter.

“How come you’re the only one here?” the other boy asks, as he watches Yixing expertly punch buttons and numbers in the machine.

“Sixty yuan,” Yixing says sheepishly, not answering the question as he slides the book into the plastic.

“That much?!” the other boy says, not giving a damn effort to mask his disbelief. “Hey, I only have forty yuan here. Can you just give me a discount?”

“Hell no!” Yixing replies. He narrows his eyes at the other boy and goes on saying, “You should’ve asked me first how much it costs instead of begging me to give you a discount.”

“I was begging you?!” the other boy feigns arrogance, but Yixing knows better. His eyes are playing with mischief somewhere between the thin lines of disappointment there.

“Maybe not, but I’m so not giving you a discount.”

“But I saved you!”

“You won’t be able to save me the second time around.”

“And why is that?”

“My parents are gonna kill me if they find out. Besides, haven’t you come all the way from wherever you came—“

“Guangzhou,” the other boy says indignantly, bushy eyebrows raised and chin held high.

“Yeah, Guangzhou,” says Yixing indifferently. It takes another moment before the truth sinks in. “Guangzhou?! You mean you came from Guangzhou all the way here to Changsha just for this book?”

“It’s not just any book! It’s Our Little Paradise!”

“Yeah, I know that obviously. I’m not stupid.”

“Now you’re implying I am stupid?”

“I never said you're stupid. You assumed.”

“Look,” says the other boy, still feigning annoyance and arrogance. But honestly, he’s just playing with this dark-haired boy. “Just give me a discount, okay? I’ll come back for you tomorrow. I’ll treat you somewhere, or buy you anything you want… I just badly want to get my hands on this book, okay?”

“Anything?” asks Yixing suspiciously.

“Anything!”

“Okay,” Yixing. “Buy me a unicorn then.”

“What?” the other boy’s forehead creases in confusion, as if what Yixing said is the most hilarious and ridiculous thing he’s ever heard in his entire life.

“Unicorn.”

“You’re kidding me.”

“Does this face tell you I’m kidding?”

The other boy leans closer to Yixing’s face, close enough to let them feel the warmth of each other’s breath. Close enough for their noses to touch. They stand there for what seemed like the longest moment to Yixing, looking at each other intensely and studying each other's features shamelessly and determinedly. Yixing feels the heat rising from his neck all the way up to his pale cheeks. He immediately looks away and hides his face by looking down—this time at his small hands. He could only wish the other boy has not noticed the tinge of pink creeping its way to his cheeks. Then, he hears the other boy sigh in defeat.

“So what’s your name?” the other boy asks, a smirk playing across his face.

Yixing’s heart jumps in surprise. “Yixing.”

“Well, Yixing, I’ll definitely come back for Our Little Paradise. Make sure no one else has it but me, understand?”

The other boy walks away towards the door. He swings the door open and the chimes make clinking sounds again. This time Yixing thinks of the chimes as the most beautiful song he’s ever heard, just well enough to match the season of winter. Just well enough to warm his heart with that softly blazing flame. Just well enough for happiness to seep into his core.

“Oh, and make sure you have your day off tomorrow, Yixing. I’ll be borrowing you for a day.”

And the other boy disappears again, out into the cold afternoon. Out into the cold, cold world. Yixing clutches the book closer to his chest, in a failed attempt to calm down his already violently pounding heart. For the first time in his life, he feels restless and excited and nervous. He can’t already wait for the next day to come.

And that reminds him… Why hasn’t he asked for the other boy’s name?

A/N: Hi, guys! Here is the next chapter as promised!!! I have thought of a twelve year time jump after the prologue, but I decided that I'd make it step by step. Ooh..I can't wait for the next chapter myself! Heheheheh...I'll do my best to make Kris and Yixing's first date romantic and memorable. There is one line here that I really love. Can you guess what it is? I'll be updating next week. Thank you for reading! Please continue subscribing and please don't forget to leave your comments! I really appreciate them. Saranghae yo!!! <3<3<3

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