baekhyun always said he would know the love of his life by voice. kyungsoo said that he would simply know by walking next to his soulmate. sehun just hoped that he would ing know at some point in his lifetime.

he thought that he just might have when two guys walked into his part time barista job and his neck hairs ruffled.

there was dimply guy, all long torso and floppy hair falling into eyes. sehun saw a tattoo peeking out of the left sleeve and he wouldn't lie, ink had always intrigued him.

then there was him. so sehun's type. soft eyes, soft hair, soft lips. his eyes wide, curious about everything. his hair dyed into a frizzled and fluffy mess of blonde. lips pale but bright. luscious yet thin, he could drown in them most probably. okay, slow down.

the duo stepped up to the ordering counter about the time sehun had the mind to wipe the stupid off his face. when he looked up into the dream boy's eyes another spark hit his skin like tinker bell pixie dust. he completely forgot about dimples as he arched a knowing eyebrow at sehun and demanded the shiver down his spine to disappear.

'hi! can i get a strawberry creme steamer, please?'

he spoke. he sounded like gargled honey and cinnamon.

'no- i mean- wha- yes!'

sehun face palmed at his own ridiculousness. there went a chance of catching this magnificent creature's eye. if he thought he had embarrassed himself then the startling guffaw that cracked that dream landscape face in half, was mortification. he wasn't going to deny that he was still pretty adorable. kinda.

'excuse him,' dimple boy to the rescue. 'he has this terminal disease called 'dumb-as-'-itis. he can't control his ugly self.'

'shut the up, xingxing,' pouted death sentence patient. okay one name down, and sehun sincerely hoped that xingxing wasn't cursed enough to have actually been branded that name at birth.

'um, is that all,' sehun interrupted the gladiator battle that was unfolding in front of him. each man equipped with straws and sparks as weapons.

'no. i want a whole vanilla caramel double shot chai, no whip.' apparently xingxing was a man that knew what he wanted, down to the last detail.

sehun watched the fluffy guy bounce away to snag an empty corner table. he could add perky to the list of genetic accomplishments as well.

'you are just fueling his ego.'

the squeak that left sehun's mouth was sooo manly, it definitely was. dimples just smirked knowingly at the wide eyed barista as he shoveled money into this hands for both drinks.

'his name is luhan, 23, single, pretty much panual. he likes strawberry anything and won't put out on the first date if he is serious, but most the time he isn't. when you bring our drinks, leave your name on the coffee sleeve with your number.'

'what?!'

sehun stood openmouthed while that dimple shimmered in amusement.

'oh,' xingxing said over his shoulder as he turned away, tattoo flashing black lines on pale skin. 'don't flutter your lashes like that. he thinks it is too prissy.'

sehun willed his eyelashes to freeze. he praised himself when he smoothly placed the cup and number etched napkin on the table without spilling coffee everywhere. xingxing sent him an approving wink and luhan sent him a second glance.

and sehun had to fight the butterflies to lie still his stomach at the prospect of forever.

-.-.-

step one. send him messages.

'you mean like text messages,' sehun asked around a mouthful of lemon chicken.

'no, you dip. he is a romantic. post it hearts and napkin scribbles.'

yixing, as sehun has learned properly after a palm smacked the back of his head when he used luhan's nickname for him, was sitting across from him at some hole-in-the-wall shop at 4 a.m. the older worked the evening bartending slot at a club and the younger had to open the coffee shop. it was their plotting hour, both awake yet tired.

after a bout of excessive bowing and use of honorifics and master, sehun has convinced dimples, what he called yixing in his mind, to tutor him in the ways of seducing luhan. in a more than slightly twisted way, they quickly bonded over the fluffy blonde. then they had found they shared hobbies as well.

they both danced, both read profusely, both liked guys.

sehun has yet to be deemed 'special' enough to be shown the entirety of yixing's apparently sacred tattoo. dimples, in turn, was not allowed to know about sehun's uber secretive navel piercing.

a week after implementing step one, sehun had to admit that yixing was genius. after exactly 17 and 1/2 notes left on neon animal shaped post-its, luhan cornered him with a note of his own. it was a phone number and instructions to call said number anytime.

-.-.-

step two. take him dancing.

sehun would never admit it, but he loved the deafening throb of bass pulsing the entire club into one sweaty enity. he loved the press of clothing and skin that swayed intoxicated bodies into a primal dance. he loved how magical the lights flashed, and he didn't even mind the harsh reality of the fact that people just wanted him for his body.

so when yixing gave him the second step he need to overcome, he ended up grinning like a full out idiot.

'stop that. you're freaking me out,' yixing had shuddered.

sehun tried in vain to stop the twitch of his left hand as he ushered himself toward the club's bar where his love trainer was shaking out colorful after colorful cocktail. he saw yixing spot him out of the corner of his eye as he sat on one of the transparent stools. the older called over someone to take his spot so he could lean over the bar and flick a stray lock of sehun's hair back into place.

'you look yummy.'

sehun started to raise a brow but a shiver racked his spine. spinning in place he spotted luhan wading thick into the crowd already. he was all swiveling hips and dry lips.

'he has already took four shots,' yixing explains as he lazily stirs a straw into a cup of elixir for his trainee. 'he only drinks like that when he is wound up.'

sehun interprets that fact as he pleases. he stands to leave for the dance floor but comes to a halt with yixing's finger hooked into his belt loop.

'whatever you do, don't go home with him. he has a bad habit of pulling a wham-bam-thank-you-man after he has been drinking.'

'yes mother,' sehun rolled his eyes but files the comment away into his luhan folder in his memory bank.

he can barely make it through half the sweaty human pretzel of dancers but that was fine because luhan met him there. if he can remember proper club etiquette because buzzed and sweaty luhan hooks his knee on sehun's hip and dips back until his spine should have cracked. jesus.

five minutes passes and that is all he can take because the older boy is purring in his ear 'let's go back to mine' and sehun briefly recalls yixing's advice. so it takes all his strength to shake his head and walk away from a pouting luhan. he pretends it doesn't break his spirit when luhan has already found another companion by the time he makes it back to the bar.

'maybe i forgot to mention he can be a complete dickwad.'

sehun nods and accepts the fizzy blue concoction his mentor slides to him. it is the first of six. he ends up sticking around until dimples' shift ends and stumbles together with him to their chinese restaurant hangout. he ends up following yixing to his apartment, bigger than sehun had imagined it would be.

he is half asleep on the plum colored futon when yixing pulls a blanket over him. a hand ruffles his hair and he would have fought the childish gesture if step two hadn't been such a fail.

if he didn't actually feel like a kid playing an adult's game.

-.-.-

step three. make yourself irresistable.

'absolutely no ing way in hell.'

yixing ignored sehun's protests and proceeded to shove him into the salon chair regardless.

'but it is his favorite color,' mentor explained while signalling the stylist to begin. 'just trust me.'

'i trust you about as far as i can throw you,' sehun mumbles.

two hours later, yixing tugs sehun through the crowded shopping district while everyone around points and stares. not that sehun really blames them. they end up in the mainstream clothing shop that luhan works in on weekends for extra spending money, sehun had been thoroughly surprised when he had learned the blonde worked as an interpreter at a hospital full time.

'hey, lulu! look who i saw wandering around,' yixing forcibly shoves a blushing sehun in front of him.

he watches as luhan takes in the outfit dimples insisted was his favorite style. the gaze rising higher until his eyes pop open wide and he maybe kinda drops his mouth open in a silent gasp. sehun fights not to cover his head with his hands and is thankful that yixing is still gripping onto his wrist loosely.

'pink,' finally tumbles out of luhan's mouth that slowly but surely starts to pull into a smile.

'it's not weird, right,' sehun questions while stubbing his right toes into the ground.

'i like it,' luhan reassures before he gets called away to help a customer. the whole time he helps the lady, he keeps sending sideways glances sehun's way.

'told you so,' yixing leans in to whisper in sehun's red ear.

a tingle runs under the skin on the back of his neck and sehun turns to see his dream boy sending him another look.

-.-.-

step four: make him jealous

...to be continued.

___________
a/n: wow. don't hate me. it has been since forever when i put this up and just now am i posting. mianhe. oh and don't shoot me for the ...to be continued. but sm totally pissed me off trying to out tease me with that drama mv so here is my retribution. es. smh.