Sehun’s ju-jitsu training kicked in and, without a second thought, he grabbed the guy’s forearm, yanked down, and at the same time threw his own weight forward. The guy stumbled to the side, releasing Sehun to regain his own balance.

Sehun immediately fell into a fighting stance. He remembered all too well what it was like to fight a vampire with superhuman strength. He had to be ready…

‘Dude, chill!’ his opponent cried.

Sehun squinted into the bright sunshine, trying to make out the guy’s face. ‘Baekhyun?’

‘This how you California guys say hello?’ Baekhyun laughed, holding up his hand for a high five.

Sehun laughed in amazement to see his old friend standing there. ‘What are you doing here?’ he demanded, slapping Baekhyun’s hand.

‘Visiting. Duh,’ Baekhyun said cheerfully.

Sehun shook off his surprise, reached out and hugged the guy. He hadn’t seen Baekhyun in months.

‘Someone wanna explain all this male bonding?’ Chanyeol asked.

Sehun stepped back and grinned. ‘Park Chanyeol, Byun Baekhyun.’

Chanyeol held out a hand. ‘First friend in Malibu,’ he said.

Baekhyun shook. ‘First friend in kindergarten,’ he replied.

Chanyeol whistled. ‘You totally win. Although Sehun and I don’t throw down every time we see each other.’

‘Yeah, what was that about?’ Baekhyun asked, rubbing his arm as he turned back to Sehun. ‘You’re pretty twitchy for a mellow California dude.’

‘Sorry,’ Sehun said. ‘I was just thinking… Well, I, uh, got into a fight a while ago and when you grabbed me…’

‘Say no more. I will not try the sneak attack hello on you ever again.’ Baekhyun glanced around, his brown eyes wide. ‘The guy in the 7-11 gave me directions to the school, but I thought he must be wrong. This place is awesome!’

‘You’re not kidding,’ Sehun agreed. ‘The cafeteria has an ocean-view terrace.’

‘You mean you don’t have that in Michigan?’ Chanyeol teased. ‘Do you at least have a glacier-view terrace?’

Baekhyun snorted. ‘It’s cold, but not that col. Can’t compete with this, though.’ He glanced around again, and Sehun took the opportunity to check out Baekhyun’s jeans and well-worn Detroit Pistons T-shirt. He had a dark blue hoodie tied around his waist and his dark hair was longer than Sehun usually see him have. He also had at least three days’ worth of stubble on his chin, which was really weird seeing it on the always hair-free face of Baekhyun.

He looks like crap, Sehun thought with a twinge of concern for his old friend.

Baekhyun turned and caught him staring. ‘Admiring my new tat?’ he asked, lifting his arm to show off a tattoo of Tweety Bird in garnish yellow.

Chanyeol laughed. ‘What’d you do, hit the gumball machine?’

‘You know it,’ Baekhyun said. ‘This was my prize. And there was a little kid watching, so I had to put it on.’ He rubbed at the temporary tattoo with his finger. Tweety’s face didn’t budge. ‘I can’t get the damn thing off.’

Sehun had been friends with Baekhyun long enough to know when he was putting on an act. And right now, he was acting like he was going for an Oscar in ‘funny and normal’. But the stubble and the longish hair and the showing up randomly in California – they definitely weren’t normal.

‘Where’s your gear? Let’s get it in my car. Or did you drive out here?’

Baekhyun held out his thumb.

‘You hitched?’ Chanyeol yelped. ‘All the way from Michigan?’

‘Yep. I caught a ride with this one dude I know who took me through three states – a trucker,’ Baekhyun said. ‘Then I hitched the rest of the way. I’m short on cash, so no first-class flights for me.’

‘You’re here. That’s what matters,’ Sehun answered.

‘I’d figured I’d crash your Thanksgiving. I couldn’t stop thinking of your mom’s pumpkin pie. It’s like I could smell it from home and it just lured me out here. Think your parents will mind?’

‘They’ll probably kick me out of my room and give you my bed!’ Sehun said, slapping Baekhyun on the back. ‘They love your .’ Sehun knew why Baekhyun didn’t want to do the holiday thing in Michigan. His parent had divorced a year or so before, and it had been nasty. Now it was just Baekhyun and his dad in the house, and Sehun knew things weren’t too happy. No pie there. Maybe a turkey TV dinner. ‘There’s plenty of room,’ Sehun added. ‘Our new place is pretty big.’

‘Understatement. His house is ginormous,’ Chanyeol volunteered. ‘He’s just being modest.’

‘That’s my boy,’ Baekhyun replied. ‘Sehun has always been impressively self-deprecating.’

Chanyeol waved his hand dismissively. ‘It’s all an act,’ he joked. ‘What I find impressive is thumbing your way across half the country. That’s a lost art, my man. Very Kerouau of you.’

Baekhyun shot Sehun a questioning look and Sehun laughed. ‘Pay no attention to the Chanyeol-isms. Half the time nobody really knows what he’s talking about.’

‘And that’s the way I like it,’ Chanyeol agreed. ‘It keeps people off-guard. So listen, Sehun and I were heading to my place for a movie-viewing plus pizza-snarfing party. You in?’

‘Sounds good,’ Baekhyun said. He clapped Sehun on the back and headed off with Chanyeol as if they’d been friends for years.

It’s good to see him, Sehun thought, smiling as he watched his old friend. He realized Baekhyun hadn’t said anything about gear. The guy didn’t even seem to have a backpack. Sehun figured he must have left in a hurry.

He hoped it wasn’t because things were bad – well, even worse than usual – at home.