Sehun rubbed his hands together, blowing into them to keep them warm. He checked his phone, the time reading 5:45pm. Luhan was supposed to meet him at 5:30, but he had not even texted him to tell him he was late. Fixing his hair with his phone camera, he hunkered down to wait for his friend in the cold.

At exactly 6:00pm, Luhan appeared, out of breath. His hair was dishevelled under his toque, which had slid sideways. “Ah, I’m so tired.” Luhan sighed and adjusted his hat and smiled at Sehun, his nose and cheeks rosy. “Sorry, I was trying to ditch my chauffer. Did you wait long?” 

Sehun shook his head. “I didn’t.” He paused for a moment. “Where shall we go?” 

Luhan checked the time on his phone. “Since its 6:00, how about we go for dinner? There are a bunch of nice places over there.” The shorter boy pointed down a brightly lit street with shop and restaurant signs as far as they could see. 

The blonde furrowed his brows in thought. He didn’t really know the area well, as it was where the wealthier people would mill about. In his mind, there was a certain air about wealthy people and the way they act that Sehun disliked. However, if that was where Luhan wanted to go, that was where Sehun would go too. “Do you know any good places?” 

“There’s a nice Italian place a little farther down,” Luhan replied. “I go there a lot with Yixing, so the manager knows us well.” 

“Lead the way,” Sehun said with a nod. 

The pair walked down the sidewalk, busy with people bustling about trying to get home from work, or simply shopping and enjoying the winter nights. Luhan would stop every few stores and point at the displays, commenting on the marketing techniques and the sale signs. Sehun would also slow down when they passed any type of confectionery, as he would stare and drool over the sparkling candies and sweet pastries. 

“You sure you don’t want any?” Luhan asked. He found Sehun’s child-like mannerisms that existed under the air of intimidation endearing, cute even. 

Sehun jumped slightly as his face turned red. “N-no, I’m okay.” He turned away, embarrassed. 

Luhan laughed and bumped Sehun good naturedly. “Maybe next time then?” He smiled at the taller boy, who blushed even harder. 

Sehun nodded. “O-Okay.” 

They arrived at the restaurant, and luckily there weren't that many people. Sehun visibly relaxed, relieved as he disliked it being in places with many people. People always made him uncomfortable, but he did not know that he made others more uncomfortable than he made them. 

The restaurant was a nice place, albeit a little small. It was cozy, with warm lighting and the smell of Italian spices and quiet chatter of the customers. The seats were set up in booths, not tables and chairs. 

"Table for two." Luhan held up two fingers as he spoke to the hostess. The hostess was a young girl, probably close to their age. Sehun guessed they had known each other for a long time, since they were speaking in what he could only assume was Chinese. Little did Sehun know they were actually talking about him.

The girl led the two to their table, and left after giving them menus. "That's the restaurant owner's daughter. He’s Italian, but his wife’s Chinese.” Luhan opened the menu and smiled. “Everything here is authentic; a lot of the dishes here have been passed down from his family. Do you usually eat Italian cuisine?”

Sehun hesitated before shaking his head. “I don’t.”

A tall white male with a large brown mustache approached their table. “My, my, if it isn’t Luhan,” he said with a smile. The chef turned to Sehun, and spoke in fluent Korean. “And who might this be?”

“I’m Sehun. Oh Sehun.”

“He’s my friend from school,” Luhan explained. “We’re in the same year.”

The chef chuckled and proceeded to ask Luhan how his dad’s business was doing, and made small talk. Luhan answered and replied with ease, asking questions when necessary and smiling at the right times. Sehun watched as Luhan spoke like a businessman, just like all the other adults in the world. Sehun noticed the small details, like how the corner of his left eye would crinkle when he laughed or smiled, and how his hair was about 5 different shades of brown.

After the chef walked away, they chatted about school until their food arrived. Luhan had ordered a seafood linguini while Sehun ordered three cheese lasagna. “Dig in, that’s their specialty.”

Sehun took a large forkful of lasagna and placed it into his mouth. The flavours of Italy exploded in his mouth, the sauce oozing over his tongue as the chewy noodles and cheese fused together. “I-Its really good.”

Luhan laughed. “Its one of my favourite dishes as well.”

The two ate in silence before Luhan started conversation. “So the other day, my father was telling me about expansion, how he might want to have stores in Japan as well. I told him that it might not be such a good idea considering the stores here still need more support, like faster restock and more staff. He’s arguing that closing some of the smaller branches and using that money to open more stores would be more profitable but I don’t think so. What do you think?”

Sehun blinked in confusion. “U-umm… I think that’s a great idea.” He continued to stare at Luhan blankly. Even though he was listening, he didn’t quite understand much about business.

“Which idea?” Luhan asked.

“Uh…”

Luhan laughed. “That’s okay. Business is tough to understand. Even though I grew up with it, I still have trouble navigating my way through the world of corporate-ness.” Luhan took a sip from his iced tea. “What about you? What do your parents do?”

Sehun flinched visibly and suddenly stabbed his lasagna, causing the dishes and cutlery to clatter on the tabletop. Luhan was taken aback, his eyes filling with worry. “Hey, are you alright? I-I’m sorry, you don’t have to answer.” Luhan rubbed the back of his hair in embarrassment.

The blonde boy removed his fork from the lasagna. “I live with Kai,” Sehun replied, his voice calm, as if nothing had happened. “Just me and him.”

That didn’t really answer Luhan’s question, but he understood that Sehun was uncomfortable talking about his past. Luhan was of course curious, but he would not pry unless his friend was ready to talk. “What do you like to do?” I wasn’t a very subtle change of topic, but it was better than nothing.

“I dance.” Sehun chewed on his meal thoughtfully. “Kai is better than me, but we compete. For the school.”

Luhan smiled. “I’ve seen you dance before. Both of you are very good. I try to dance along to music videos but I’m not too great.” He laughed, recalling the numerous times he’s stared confused at dance tutorial videos.

“Maybe,” Sehun paused. “I can teach you.”

The shorter boy’s eyes widened in surprise, his cheeks flushing pink. “Oh um, y-you don’t have to. I-I’m a total klutz.” He rubbed the back of his head again, embarrassed. Sehun noticed this and filed the thought away. Luhan rubs the back of his head when he’s embarrassed.

They finished their meal and left the restaurant, saying goodbye to the owner. The sky was dark, but clear. The temperature had also dropped a few degrees. “It is still quite early,” Luhan noted. “Is there anywhere you would like to go?”

Sehun was staring off in to the distance, but he shook his head. “Not really.”

Luhan thought for a moment, before having an ‘ah-ha!’ moment. “Take me to your neighbourhood. I want to see more of Seoul.”

Sehun blinked, taken aback. “You would not want to go there. It is dangerous.”

Luhan pouted. “Please? I never get to go anywhere interesting because my chauffeur is so protective of me. I want to see other parts of Seoul.”

Sehun hesitated, pressing his brows together. With a sigh his face went back to his usual neutral expression. “Okay.”

As the two of them walked toward the run down part of Seoul, the buildings decreased in quality, and became more tattered. The lights dimmed, and the shadows grew darker. There was also a sense of eeriness, like something, or someone was always watching you from the shadows. Luhan shivered, but looked around in awe. He seemed intrigued rather than scared. Sehun watched him carefully, before stepping closer to him slightly, just so that Luhan would not notice his movement.

“Well, well, if it isn’t Sehun.”

Suddenly, four dark figures appeared out of the shadows. They all had their hoods on, and dressed in all black. Each had a white bandana tied to their right arm, just below the shoulder. Their faces were not visible, but Sehun knew who they were.

“What do you want?” Sehun’s face darkened, his mouth curling into a snarl. He pushed Luhan behind him.

One of the dark figures stepped forward, removing his hood. His hair was shaved on both sides and pushed upwards, platinum blonde platinum blonde glowing under the street light. He blinked, tilting his head slighting before his gaze fell upon Luhan. “Luhan, son of the supermarket CEO. Unlikely that you would be with this homeless rat.”

Sehun growled but did not answer. The blonde male waited for Sehun to talk back, but when no reply came, he continued. “A dog will never forget his master, but a master can forget his dog.” He glanced to his minions and they began advancing towards them. “Perhaps if we take the mutt’s new toy, we can get some money for it, no?” The knives in their hands glinted under the lamplight.

Luhan’s head moved back and forth as he followed the conversation. “Sehun, what’s going on?” He whispered frantically.

Sehun took a step back, and grabbed Luhan’s hand. “Run.”  

With lightning speed, the two took off into the night, the hooded males hot in pursuit. The sprinted down the dark streets, weaving through alleyways under Sehun’s direction. “Where are we going?” Luhan shouted. Sehun made a ‘shh’ motion with his hand and kept running.

While they ran, Luhan’s heart beat fast in his chest, not only from the strenuous physical activity, but also from the fact that he was holding hands with Sehun. Luhan accepted the fact was slowly falling for the taller boy. Yes he was gorgeous, but he was mysterious and innocent like a child. Luhan wanted to know more about him, but how does he go about doing that without chasing him away? He could tell that Sehun did not like to talk about himself, yet Luhan could also feel that he might just want someone to love him. Something broke him before, and the wound has not yet healed.

They reached an intersection and they realized if they kept going they would be trapped. Somehow more people appeared, and there were two groups of the blonde male’s followers flanking them on each side.

“This way,” The two ducked into an alleyway and ran through its twists and turns before reaching a fence with barbed wire on top.

“Now what?” Luhan looked behind him, expecting the hooded figures to pop out at any moment.

Sehun stayed silent and pulled a file and a thin dagger out of his jacket pocket. There was a small lock on the fence and he proceeded to stick the instruments into the keyhole.

“Are you picking the lock?” Luhan exclaimed.

Sehun nodded, expertly moving the dagger up and down. The lock fell open after about 30 seconds, and they were able to escape through the door. Sehun then stuck his hand through the fence and locked the lock again before running down the alley again.

After 5 minutes of sprinting, they finally reached the park where they met earlier. Both boys were out of breath, and could barely stand straight. Luhan was coughing and trying his hardest not to pass out.

“I’m so sorry,” Sehun said, flustered. “I-I didn’t mean for that to happen. That man, his name is Jaehyo. Kai and I used to be a part of his gang, but we left, and-----”

The taller boy was suddenly cut off when Luhan wrapped his arms around his midsection. “It must have been hard for you.”

Sehun was taken aback, standing stock still. He couldn’t remember the last time anyone gave him hug, it was probably when Kai and him were very young. Luhan didn’t seem to be mad either. Sehun was sure that Luhan would be angry he made him run across the downtown area away from gang members, but he wasn’t . The hug, Luhan’s presence, everything right, like all his worries could be melted away.

He felt safe.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/N: Its like 2am right now lol 

I really wanted to post this before I went to sleep though, so here it is!! Its really long chapter and I know you guys have been asking for some other couples so here you go! And its a bit fluffy I guess, getting away from the angst a little haha

THE ANGST BEGINS AGAIN NEXT CHAPTER THOUGH SO PREPARE THYSELVES

I get weird when I'm tired. 

Thank you so much for all the lovely comments, they truly mean a lot to me, and thank you all so much for subscribing and staying with me even though I don't update that often. I love all of you and I'll try to get the next chapter up soon!!