Minseok coughed a little, leaning away from the toilet bowl and wiping an arm across his mouth. He stared at the clear liquids swimming in the water, wondering if they were actually important-- which he hoped not since that's what he had been managing to throw up for the last couple of hours. He was going to have to ask Junmyeon about that. Sighing, he stood up, flushing the toilet, before turning to the sink and turning the faucet on, washing his hands. He avoided looking into the mirror, afraid of what he would see and kept his head bowed. He proceeded to brush his teeth right afterwawrds, ignoring the way his stomach seemed to be eating itself. Soon enough, he was finished, and he spared a glance into the mirror, grimacing at what he saw.

His cheeks.

"Ew..."

Heaving another sigh, he turned away, alredy forming a plan on how to get out breakfast, since Kyungsoo and Zitao had been trying to force food down his throat-- especially Zitao. He rolled his eyes, thinking of the his taller dongsaeng, before glancing into the mirror again, smoothing over his hair and trying to avoid looking at anything else, hoping that he looked presentable, just in case any of his roommates were still awake.

Finally making himself look almost normal, he flashed a practiced smile, before looking away and swinging the door open only to freeze at the sight.

Luhan was standing there, eyes wide and shining with unshed tears, his hand over his mouth.

"L-Luhan..."

Luhan didn't say anything, instead, slowly he took his hand away from his face, and reached forward, pulling the older male into a bone-crushing hug, making Minseok wonder what he had heard.

"Stop, Minseokkie. Your'e hurting people around you," Minseok heard Luhan whisper. He could feel the warm spots where the other's tears were being soaked up by his shirt, and he felt something inside him snap, making him bite his lip harshly. "Can't you see, Seok? Everyone has noticed your changes. Me, Yifan, the rest of our dongsaengs."

Minseok stood stiff, lowering his head slightly. At the end of the hallways that lead to the living room, he caught a glimpse of a pair of eyes watching, before they disappeared. He could only guess that it was Junmyeon, and that the shorter male had decided to give them some privacy.

"What happened to our strong Seokkie? Where did he go?"

Luhan's questions were answered by silence, which the younger took as a permission to keep talking.

"Minnie, you're so nice and sweet, and you're the cutest person that I have ever met, but why don't you see that?"

"How do I know you're not just saying that?" Minseok finally said, making Luhan pull away. He felt somewhat of a loss, but he ignored it, instead blinking slowly as he stared at Luhan with dead eyes. "How do I know you're not just saying that because you feel bad? Because if anyone else other than EXO found out we would be screwed?"

Luhan's eyes flashed with a look of hurt, and Minseok felt guilty for a second-- just a second-- but that second was enough for his walls to crumble. His hands curled up into fists, and he suddenly dropped on the ground, his legs giving way as the onslaught of tears began. His thin shoulder shook violently, and he brought his fists to his face, rubbing at his eyes vigourously. He felt warm arms around him, and he let them hold him. He let himself be held, be comforted.

"I'll show you, Minseokkie," Luhan whispered, as Minseok began to calm down, sleep drawing his eyes closed. "I'll show you how much you mean to us. To EXO. To me."

and finally the romance kinda begins because wow. the lack of xiuhan in a xiuhan fic is just eye-opening (i feel like i used this line somewhere e u e). sorry its a teaser, but hey. romance. i lead up to romance. please count that on your list of "reasons why we shouldn't kill mir yet". c: thanks for reading. you guys are too awesome. <3 imma go sleep now c: good night-- or whatever! <3

-- mireu