(a/n: not edited 131123)

Kris Wu’s POV

 

I had to leave shortly after learning those 11 things about her. The fear of being discovered out and about by the media was a constant reminder that both other guys and I were not free- and that we couldn’t go back now to the times where things used to be different.

 

Lee Yunji, what was there to say about her? She was a fan of EXO, and more specifically a fan of mine. She was independent and actually successful in obtaining a semblance of her dream. She was thoughtful at times and seemed to take into consideration the feelings of others more so than any other person I had ever met. She had never left her homeland before- meaning she couldn’t know much about the outside world. Her fear rooted to the grudge movies was typical of many girls, which was surprising for me. I guess it never crossed my mind that individuality could only go so far within someone.

 

She didn’t have a favourite colour, an allergy, and to my disappointment had no interest in sport. Her peanut butter obsession was cute, in an odd, sort of demented way. In addition, she got flustered when I questioned her about her appearance- and yet, answered well composed.

 

I had learnt quite a bit about Lee Yunji from just 11 simple questions. In saying that, I didn’t believe for one minute that those things defined her. She was definitely a normal person, and for whatever reason that made her a curiosity of mine. She was swiftly becoming someone I wanted to figure out.

 

I slipped through the front door of the dorm and was met with the soft, distinct sound of a variety show playing in the background. The sound of someone keeping the clean dishes from the dishwasher could be heard from the kitchen area as well.

 

“Where did you go?” Chen’s croaky morning voice sounded from one of the couches.

 

“I went for a walk,” I chucked my keys into the bowl sitting on top of the side table next to the entrance and briefly winced at the clatter that followed as it collided with other miscellaneous items.

 

“Where to?” The sleepy guy pushed himself up from his sprawled out position on the couch, supporting his weight on the backs of his elbows. He looked like he may have possibly fallen asleep there while watching whatever crappy drama was on, with tousled bed hair.

 

“Just around,” I shrugged vaguely. “I ended up buying bubble tea for you guys while I was out though,” I lifted up the plastic bag of sealed cups.

 

“From the same place that you’ve been going to lately?” He rubbed his eyes.

 

“Yeah,” I began walking towards the kitchen. “Want some?” I paused in my tracks.

 

“Did you buy mango?” Chen scuffled up to his feet, the sound of his approaching footsteps noisily announcing his lack of sleep.

 

I dug around in the bag for his request. “Here,” I handed the beige milk tea to him.

 

“Thanks,” He grunted and stabbed the plastic cover with his straw. Immediately indulging in the sweet milk. “The others weren’t kidding,” He muttered to himself.

 

“About what?” I raised a questioning eyebrow.

 

“They said that the new place you were buying this stuff from did it the best,” He gestured to his drink. “I thought they were exaggerating,” He massaged the back of his neck with his free hand. “But apparently not.”

 

I wasn’t too sure on whether to comment or not, but luckily Chen seemed to be done talking to me as his gaze flipped back to his variety show.

 

I hadn’t tried her tea yet. Stupidly, I didn’t have an exact reason as to why. All I knew was that if I did try it, I would then have an opinion of it, and for some unknown reason I didn’t want an opinion. Perhaps it was because it would just be one more thing that would make me think about her, and increase my curiosity.

 

Lay was in the kitchen, sliding the last plastic bowls back into a cupboard. His new haircut was going to take some time to get used to. It was short now, and the stylists had made sure it was thinned out too. There was no remnants of his fluffy, slightly wavy hairstyle to be seen. It looked good either way, but Lay had been pretty vocal about how much he hated it over the past few days- only in the dorm of course. To him, it might as well have been a bowl-cut given to five year olds.

 

“Hey,” I placed the bag down on the countertop. He grabbed the dishtowel he discarded on one of the dishwasher racks and gave me a smile.

 

“Hope you got enough for Sehun, Chanyeol, and Xiumin,” He scuffled over to the bag of tea. Taking out his preferred choice and a straw, “Because I’m not sharing.”

 

I only shook my head and chuckled. “You seem to be in a better mood today,” I pointed out the obvious as he began drinking.

 

“Hmmm?” He hummed, releasing his straw from in between his lips. “I guess I am,” He shrugged.

 

“Any reason why?” I asked while opening my can of coke. The crunch of aluminium breaking crisply replaced by that fizzling sound I knew well.

 

“I had an epiphany when I woke up this morning,” He swallowed. “This haircut of mine…I own this,” He pointed at his hair in a matter of fact tone. “And I am the only one that can make a bowl-cut look this good.”

 

Behind me, the unmistakable laughter of Kai erupted throughout the kitchen.

 

“Oh my God you did not just say that!” The younger member cackled, clutching at his stomach as he opened the fridge.

 

Lay narrowed his eyes and muttered something about the brat underneath his breath.

 

I snickered and took another sip from my coke, “Good morning Kkamjong.”

 

“Hi to you too hyung,” He grinned before opening the milk carton.

 

“How’s paradise going with Kyungsoo?”

 

Kai sighed and gave me a look. “He’s not pissed off about the whole underwear thing anymore, thankfully,” He started. “But he’s still being a pain in the .”

 

“How so?” I mused.

 

“He said that I can’t leave food out in the room because apparently ants will start living with us,” He ran a hand through his hair. “Seriously, I thought the nagging would stop when I left my mom’s side.”

 

“He has a point though,” I frowned. “Just listen to him, it will make your life easier,” I said.

 

“Yes. Just listen to me Kkamjong,” Kyungsoo waltzed into the conversation. He was all bright and cherry, with a green t-shirt and pair of jeans on. One of the few people who managed to dress themselves before leaving their rooms today. He slung an arm over Kai’s shoulder and gave him a cheeky grin.

 

“Shut up you domestic goddess,” Kai pushed away the said pain in the .

 

“Awww. Why so cold bro?”

 

“No fighting first thing in the morning you two,” Suho walked in. He looked more like a dad than an idol with his striped slippers and fluffy robe. His hair messed up from sleeping.

 

“Nice get up,” I smirked.

 

The tension between Kai, Kyungsoo, and Lay instantly dissolved as the three started laughing together over Suho’s appearance. Huddled together in a trio, bonding over their own takes on what their leader looked like today.

 

“Yah. You’re meant to have my back, not turn me into a joke,” He hissed playfully to me.

 

“I always have your back,” I winked at him.

 

We knew a lot more about what the fans said about us than what they probably thought we did. We knew about the ships, from Kaisoo to Hunhan. We knew about the fanfiction that they wrote- especially the dirty ones.

 

We found it absolutely hilarious how we all seemed to have the same personalities in every story written. We were cold, smart, and playboys. We were jerks, but had soft inners. And we were always experienced- at everything.

 

Things like this made me wonder if Yunji read those types of stories or better yet, if she wrote them. Was she that type of fan? I didn’t know what kind of category I would put her in.

 

“Yah. Why is the leader spacing out?” Suho waved a hand in front of my face.

 

I blinked flustered and turned to look down at him, “No reason.”

 

Lee Yunji’s POV

 

“I don’t feel like going out tonight Sora,” I yawned over the phone, rolling over onto my side. I was in my apartment, all dressed and ready for bed when my phone rung. I answered it knowing my darling of a best friend would want to go clubbing.

 

I answered her call to tell her ‘no’.

 

“But we haven’t gone out in ages!” She groaned with frustration over the line. I could picture her now, making faces at her reflection in the mirror while doing her makeup.

 

“I’m tired. I want to sleep soon,” I replied with a scowl. The main guy in the drama I was watching on my laptop was getting side tracked by the queen of the drama. He was meant to be meeting up with the shy main girl, emphasis on the word meant.

 

“Sleep my . I can hear that drama playing in the background. I bet you even have a jar of peanut butter with you right now.”

 

I was about to tell her that she was crazy, when cool glass brushed against my arm.

 

Damn it.

 

Sora was right. Surely enough there was a jar of peanut butter in my arms and a small spoon in my hand. I hadn’t started eating yet, but I had definitely been planning to.

 

“I still don’t feel like going out,” I muttered into my phone. I heard a triumphant chorus of laughter come from her as I confirmed her accusation true. Sora knew me too well- which was a problem since we both knew it.

 

“What kind of maknae are you? You’re no fun Lee Yunji! Entertain your unnie,” She childishly whined. Something that she only ever used to try and coax her close friends and boyfriend with. Surprisingly, it actually worked quite often.

 

Just not tonight.

 

“Goodnight Unnie,” I rasped, sinking back into my bed.

 

“Yah if you hang up on me-”

 

My best friend didn’t get to finish her sentence, because I did exactly that. I hung up on her. She was right, I wouldn’t be going to sleep soon. But I knew that if I went out with her the chances of me being able to stay awake tomorrow were slim- really slim. I’d say sorry later, and everything would be fine. We were close enough that whenever one of us decided to leave the other hanging, it was okay.

 

I unscrewed the lid of my peanut butter and scooped up a hefty amount to snack on. Sticky, salty, and with a crunch. I watched contently as the characters on my screen fell over themselves while trying to prove their love for one another. The male lead, always getting caught in awkward situations accompanied by awful timing. Innocent, but repeatedly mistaken for guilty.

 

“No! No! No!” I screamed with a mouthful of peanut butter, my words incoherent to anyone but me. The queen was right up in his face with her body all pressed up against his, and the girl he was meant to end up with had just walked in. It was a disaster.

 

My life is over.

What the hell is wrong with the screen writers? Do they like crushing the dreams of all their female viewers? Seriously what is up with this?!

 

“What?” I snapped into my phone that had decided to start ringing. I thought it was Sora trying to lure me out of my apartment again.

 

“Did I wake you?”

 

But it wasn’t Sora.

 

I felt the immature drama fanatic retreat into the dark forest of my subconscious as I heard his voice. I felt the blood from my face drain and my throat dry up faster than anything I had ever experienced before.

 

“Kris?” I said in a barely audible voice.

 

“I’m sorry if I woke you…I didn’t think that you would be sleeping yet and-” He started apologizing.

 

“No! No! No!” I hurriedly protested. “You didn’t wake me up Kris. It’s fine,” I insisted. Hurriedly I paused my drama and sighed, “I’m sorry for snapping at you. I thought you were someone else...”

 

God, I’m an awful person.

 

I was met with a long period of silence before he spoke again, “Oh.”

 

I bit my lip, suddenly feeling uneasy. I wasn’t mentally prepared to talk to Kris again. I had already made things so awkward by answering the phone the way I did, and to top it all off he sounded like he didn’t know what to do either.

 

“So, ummm…why are you calling me?” I asked, deciding to be the brave one and speak up first.

 

“I was just bored,” He replied with his usual bluntness. He made me wonder if it would kill him to try and at least come up with a nice excuse for calling, instead of his usual ‘I was just bored.’ Was I just a pastime for him?

 

Admittedly it did bother me, but not enough to come to the conclusion that even if I was turning into just that, a pastime, I would willingly continue to let him do as he pleased with me.

 

“I see,” I put the peanut butter down on my bedside table. Scooting around in bed, I carefully manoeuvred my laptop off of my lap and slid out of bed with my phone still attached to my ear.

 

“Uhhh….what are you doing right now?”

 

“Watching dramas,” I answered, collecting up my snacks so that I could put them away in the kitchen. As I tripped my way out of my room and into the kitchen I asked him the same question.

 

“Hiding out by the fire escape,” Kris said.  

 

“The fire escape?” I checked. I didn’t think he would be somewhere outside where he could be spotted. I thought that he, along with all the other members, would be too worried about stalker sasaeng fans to do something so risky.

 

“It’s nice out here. I get to clear my head,” A slight smile could be heard laced within his words. I could imagine him leaning against a stone wall, cold bars of metal underneath him, the wind of the night brushing past him, with the lights of the city keeping him company.

 

I put away the snacks and rested against the counter, staring out of the window above the sink.

 

“Have you thought about your questions?” He asked me.

 

“Not really…” I trailed off honestly. “I didn’t think I’d get to ask them so soon,” I added on.

 

“Just ask whatever comes to mind.”

 

“That’s a little bit unfair don’t you think?” I pouted.

 

I seemed to have caught his attention as he questioned, “How so?”

 

“You asked your questions in person, but I’ll be asking mine over the phone.”

 

“So you want to see me Lee Yunji?”

 

He was teasing me again. My cheeks flamed up not a moment later and I wriggled around on the spot. “That’s not what I meant,” I murmured in defence.

 

“It’s not unfair Yunji,” He started in a gentle tone. “I’m doing this for your sake.”

 

“Huh?” I hiccupped. Kris never used an honorific when he spoke to me, which always messed me up. I wasn’t used to his casual tone when we hadn’t known each other for long.

 

“Have you ever noticed how shy you get when you first see me in person?” He asked.

 

Yes, but that’s because you’re an alien who’s invaded my world. Fans aren’t meant to know their idols.

 

“But on the phone, when we text, where you can’t see my face, you change. You become confident. I like that,” He continued. I gulped and looked down at the ground. “I want you to be like that when I really see you. Confident. I want you to be comfortable with me, if that makes any sense at all,” He awkwardly chuckled.

 

That awkward chuckle was adorable to me because it was just so…him- just so Kris.

 

“O-o-okay,” I stuttered. “That makes sense, I suppose.”

 

“Cool. So ask away.”

 

I bit my lip and struggled to think up of something to ask him. What did I want to know about him? What was there to know about him? What would be appropriate to ask him?

 

“What was the last book you read?” I lamely questioned.

 

He laughed before answering, “A book about how to cook anything perfectly.”

 

“And how’s that working out for you?”

 

“Ummm…” He hesitated.

 

“Haha, it’s okay. You don’t have to answer that,” I dismissed him.

 

“Let’s just say I’m working on it,” He joked. “Next question.”

 

“What was your favourite subject at school?”

 

“In Canada or China?” He replied.

 

I tapped my chin with a hum, “Canada.”

 

“Gym,” He instantly answered.

 

“How scholarly of you,” I pursed my lips.

 

“In my defence, my favourite subject while studying in China was English,” He feebly offered.

 

“It doesn’t count if you’re already fluent,” I huffed playfully.

 

“So I don’t get any points from you for my excellent English marks in school?” He faked hurt.

 

“No sorry,” I shook my head.

 

“You’re hard to impress. Next question.”

 

“Why gym over all the other classes?”

 

“Basketball,” He said the single word as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

 

“Is that why you’ve broken so many bones?”

 

“I’m going to count this as your fourth question. Every time I broke one of my arms was during a practice session. But I broke my fingers when I got into a fight with this guy at school.”

 

“You picked fights at school? What were you? A delinquent?” I gasped.

 

“No. I just got into a fight which ended up with me carelessly launching my fist into another guy’s face. I was a completely normal teenage boy,” He explained it as if it wasn’t a big deal.

 

“I can imagine how thrilled your parents were to hear that you broke two fingers,” I dryly said.

 

“I was lucky I didn’t break my hand. The guy I hit had a hard head- literally.”

 

“Uh huh…tell me something I’m bound to not know about you.” I requested.

 

“That gives me a lot to choose from,” He mused. “Okay, believe it or not, when we first started training as a group, none of us guys in EXO liked each other.”

 

“Really?” I felt my eyes pop out of my skull.

 

“Well, yeah. We were just twelve trainees, none of us really made an effort to make real friends when we hadn’t been grouped up together, and when we first met each other we were strangers who had been told to work together for several years.” He elaborated on the situation. It was so weird to imagine EXO like that. Unfriendly, unfamiliar. Practically cold. “It’s kind of like when you’re a kid and you’re dragged along to some party your parents have been invited to. You get placed with a whole bunch of other people’s kids and are told to play with each other simply because you’re the same age.”

 

“Wow,” I breathed.

 

“You sound so surprised,” He commented.

 

“I am,” I nodded, though he couldn’t see me.

 

“If it makes you feel better, we’re like brothers now. We even bicker like siblings.”

 

I smiled and ran a hand through my hair. “Why did you come so early this morning?”

 

“We were lucky enough to be given a day off today. So I thought that would be the best time to talk to you,” He said.

 

“Ahhh, I see. Was the bubble tea okay?”

 

“You know you’re wasting your questions on really random things right? You only have four more left,” He clucked his tongue. “I think so. The guys kept on raving on about how good it was.”

 

“The guys?” I raised my eyebrows.

 

I heard him curse under his breath like he had said something he wasn’t supposed to have said. “Yeah, a few of the guys besides Sehun have been drinking your stuff.”

 

“Really? What about you?”

 

“I don’t drink bubble tea,” He lied.

 

“Oh really now?” I murmured, hanging my head. “Is there a reason why you didn’t have any today?”

 

“I didn’t feel like drinking something so sweet so early in the day.”

 

“You bought coke from me too,” I nearly hissed.

 

“Okay, I just didn’t feel like bubble tea today. Or any of the other times before that,”

 

“Ouch,” I cringed.

 

“It’s nothing personal Yunji. Don’t think anything of it,” He insisted.

 

I frowned, but gave in and let the subject slide.

 

“Tell me something funny,”

 

“We were having a little competition in the dorm after a heavy lunch today, it was to see who could do the most push ups on an overly full stomach. We were doing pretty well until it came to Baekhyun’s turn. Guess how many he did before dropping out.”

 

“How many?” I quirked an eyebrow.

 

“Guess,” Kris coaxed.

 

“Errr…25?”

 

“Not even close,” He snickered.

 

“How many did he manage then?” Curiosity was getting the best of me.

 

“13.”

 

For some people, this wouldn’t have sounded so bad. But for me it did. I always thought of my male idols as these godlike beings who were extremely handsome, talented, and strong. Absolutely perfect in every way. Fanfiction was probably at fault for this stereotyped mind set of mine- overdosing on the dreams of too many hermit fangirls.  

 

“Really?” I whispered.

 

“It was pretty funny. He said something about ramyeon being his kryptonite too,” Kris continued to chortle along.

 

“And here I thought it was bacon,” I sighed.

 

“That’s every guy’s weakness. But don’t worry, I did 40 before I gave out.”

 

“Someone sounds like they’re smirking.”

 

“I am,” He shamelessly admitted, making me laugh.

 

“What’s your favourite thing to eat?”

 

“My mom’s cooking,” His tone grew warmer as he mentioned his mother.

 

“You miss her a lot don’t you?” I smiled sympathetically.

 

“I miss a lot of people every day,” He yawned. “My mom used to make lots of soups for me whenever I had to stay up late to do assignments or study for exams. I kind of wish she was here, making those for the others and me while we do our stuff.”

 

“Do you get to speak to her often?” I frowned.

 

“I haven’t been able to lately...” He trailed off, no longer willing to discuss the topic. “Anyway, you only have two more questions left,” He reminded me.

 

“Oh right,” I popped.

 

“What do you want to know Yunji?” His velvety voice trailed through the line.

 

Maybe it was sleep slowly taking over my body or the fact that his voice was just really alluring to listen to, but whatever it was, it made me go all tingly deliciously. I wrestled with my hazy mind to find something to ask him quickly. What were you supposed to ask your second idol-husband?

 

“Why did you end up coming to my café that day?” I asked, referring to the day we met.

 

“Ahhh, because Sehun blackmailed me into sneaking out to buy him bubble tea that day. So I looked for the least crowded place to buy from.”

 

“He blackmailed you? Sehun?” My jaw dropped.

 

“Don’t be fooled, the kid isn’t as innocent as he looks.”

 

“I’m learning something new every day,” I muttered to myself.

 

“That’s the whole point of this thing,” He pointed out, amused. “Last question.”

 

“What is the weirdest encounter you’ve ever had with a fan?”

 

“I met this girl once, who didn’t believe I was good-looking enough to be her second idol-husband even though I was.”

 

My whole body flushed red with heat as I knew exactly what he was talking about.

 

“Y-y-yah!” I stumbled over my words.

 

“What? It’s true,” I swear that stupidly beautiful grin of his could travel through the phone.

 

I decided to just keep quiet at that and accept the fact that I had made a giant fool of myself that day.

 

After a while, he spoke up again. “Are you still there?”

 

“Yeah,” I replied.

 

“You’re not mad right?” He checked.

 

“No. You just make me blush a lot more than I would like you to,” I looked up at the ceiling.

 

That melodious chuckle I was growing accustomed to made an appearance again, “Good to know.”

 

I rolled my neck and caught sight of the clock on the wall while I was at it.

 

“It’s late,” I stated the obvious.

 

“Haha, yeah, you’re right. We’ve been talking for a while haven’t we?”

 

“Mmmm,” I nodded. “You need to go to sleep.”

 

“So do you Miss Bubble Tea,” He retorted.

 

“I guess this is where we hang up then?” I ran a hand through my hair, starting to pad my way back to my room.

 

“Yep.”

 

“Goodnight…Kris.”

 

“Goodnight,” He replied. “Oh, and Yunji?”

 

“Yeah?” I blinked, stopping myself from ungracefully flopping into bed.

 

“Thanks for tonight.”

 

I didn’t know at the time, that the long conversation I had just had with Kris would not be the first of its kind. I didn’t know that Kris would call again and again.

 

But he would, and he did.

 

And that’s probably why I ended up where I did. 

 

 

---

Writer's Notes:

Hey everyone! Who watched MAMA? Haha, don't tell me anything- I haven't caught up on the awards yet ><
Anyway, I apologize for my very, very, very, extremely, overly long absence. It started off as a one week thing and then kind of just built up along with my assignment load. 
I hope this chapter kind of makes up for it all.
Thanks for not murdering me by spamming me with comments to update during my dry spill. 
Thanks for reading/subscribing/commenting/upvoting/supporting/being awesome~~~
I do appreciate you all, so please bear with me.

Lots of love,
xoxoxo,
HEARTACHES <3