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“So how was your date with tall, dark, and handsome?” Luhan asked as he sat cross-legged on the sofa facing Yixing. “Jongin,” he clarified in response to the blank look.

“Oh! Yeah, it was fun,” he replied vaguely. “It was really beautiful. We got to gaze at the stars and there was this really cool fountain that lights up at the full moon,” he elaborated.

“I heard that you two spent the night together. I didn’t realise my little Yixing would move so quickly,” the older teased.

“What do you mean? It was just really late so I had no choice but to stay over. His parents are really nice and they didn’t mind my presence at all,” Yixing replied, oblivious to Luhan’s implications.

“You really did it at his parent’s house? What did they say about the noise?” Luhan was actually getting serious about this, assuming the worst in his friend’s ambiguity.

“It was the easiest and closest place,” Yixing replied with a shrug. “We missed the last bus into the city.” He was utterly oblivious to the route Luhan’s mind had taken in his statement. “And we made sure to be quiet so as not to bother his parents, the clueless boy replied, beaming.

“Oh my god Yixing! What did you do about the sheets?! How could you possibly do that? You barely know the kid!” Luhan’s eyes were huge as he thought about what Jongin did to the dimple-cheeked boy, and on their first date at that.

“How did you know about the sheets? We kind of just popped them into the wash,” Yixing replied, not understanding his friend’s panic. “Do what Luhan? He said he was fine with it and insisted that we go to his house.”

“It is not okay to have at someone’s house with their parents there after a first date!” Luhan half exclaimed and half scolded. Yixing’s eyes widened substantially when it finally dawned on him what Luhan thought had happened that night.

The dimple-cheeked boy began to laugh hysterically. “Oh my god Luhan,” he choked out in between fits of laughing. “We didn’t have ! It was just a benign, no--involved sleepover. The most we did was hold hands and there was a quick, goodbye kiss at the train station.”

“You’re the worst Yixing,” Luhan complained, pouting. “Why would you lead me on like that?”

“I didn’t know I was leading you on!” Yixing protested.

“Wait, why did you need to clean the sheets then?” Luhan narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

“I had a nosebleed in the middle of the night and accidentally bled on the sheets,” he admitted, looking extremely guilty despite the fact that it wasn’t really his fault. “That’s why we needed to pop them in the wash, not because we did it!”

“Good,” Luhan replied in a very older brotherly fashion. “If you lost your innocense to that little punk like that, I would have murdered him.”

“Isn’t that a little bit of an overreaction gege?”

“Not at all. You’re my precious little brother and I need to protect you from the evils of the world until you’re ready,” Luhan replied with an adamant finality. Yixing merely laughed it off, not really understanding how serious these words truly were.

“Don’t worry,” Yixing assured his friend. “I’ll always be your precious didi.”

--

“How’s he talking it?”  the red-haired singer asked Minseok as they sat at one of the tables waiting for the place to open.

“I wish I could tell you for sure that he was doing okay but I think he’s conflicted as to whether he’s happy for Xing or whether he’s jealous of everyone for having the courage to actually at least flirt properly,” he replied with a sigh. “I really want him to be happy.”

Baekhyun shook his head. “If you don’t do something soon, you’ll end up heartbroken just like him, regretting the things you didn’t do. Believe that he shares at least some of your feelings. I don’t want to tell you that his feelings for Xing will suddenly disappear but at the same time, I don’t think that Lu would just make you a rebound. It may have been the way it started but I think that things are changing.”

“What do you mean?”

“I think that Lu might be clinging to this out of habit more than true feelings. I’ve seen how much his eyes light up when he sees you,” Baekhyun replied.

“I’m just a substitute for Xing,” Minseok replied not quite bitterly.

“That may be how it started out, but now it’s different. The way he lights up when he acts around you and the way he acts around Yixing are slightly different,” Baekhyun replied with a gentle shake of his head. ”The closer you get to something, the tougher it is to see it,” Baekhyun sang softly. “But as a bystander, I can see everything perfectly,” he finished. “You all are so dense!” Baekhyun sighed in mock exasperation.

“Are you actually going to pursue him? I mean, you’re single and he’s cute,” Minseok asked offhandedly.

“Perhaps, perhaps not. The stinging rejection of my past relationship has left a foul taste in my mouth,” Baekhyun replied.

“Save the prose for your dossier,” the other replied not without humour.

“It’s just easier to convey feelings with careful wording and tasteful metaphors,” the redhead stated simply.

“How are you two dealing with finally accepting your relationship will never be anything more than platonic? You’ll be friends with benefits but that is the extent of your feelings.”

“I don’t know. We’ve probably known this for a while and have been fanning damp air at a dying flame.”

“Good analogy,” Minseok commented.

“Thanks. I’d say that you have a good chance with your precious deer, though. To onlookers, it’s a normal blooming romance, but to you two it will most likely bloom like a surprise lily, unexpected but bringing the same beauty as any other flower.”

“You really think so? I don’t see it,” Minseok sighed dejectedly.

‘Just you wait,” Baekhyun giggled. “On a completely unrelated side-note, Xing will begin working with us next month. He’ll be performing on stage, sometimes working with me and sometimes working with Channie. It will up the competition, but at the same time, it might increase my odds ever so slightly,” he mused.

“You’d better not be too forceful. You have a tendency to do that,” Minseok advised.

“I’ll try my very best, but no promises. The thrill of the chase is surprisingly addicting.” The grin he flashed was just short of devious.

“You treat him like a piece of meat or something.” Baekhyun giggled innocently enough.

“It’s all a ruse, a bluff. It really isn’t a competition but if you make it seem like you have a winning hand, the rest will fold.”

“I wish you luck in your gambling then.”

A/N: Hope you had fun reading and I'll try and get a new chapter out sometime later in October. Thanks for the upvotes, comments, subscriptions, and misc other!