Everyone was happy. As to be expected from the holly jolly season.

There was one person though, one person that was everything but jolly. He was tired, tired of the stereotypical holidays where people got gifts and spent time with perfect, happy families. Everything was too pristine, too flawless.

This begrudging man was Luhan, who was currently strolling the streets of the bare city while everyone else sat in their cozy homes with hot chocolate and mountains of new things to entertain themselves with. While staring spitefully at it all, an overzealous couple passes him by and he frowns at them. Too happy, he decides. They won’t last very long. Slapping himself on the hand for the inappropriate thoughts, he finally gives into the desire to rest.

He seats himself down onto a lone bench and ruffles his hair angrily. Placing his head into his hands, he lets the anger radiate from him, even scaring off someone who had wanted to sit down next to him by giving them the scariest glare he could muster. It wasn’t as though he meant to be a total jerk to complete strangers. Usually he was energetic and a big ball of joy himself and would get more energy from the happiness of others, but not this time. This time nothing could make him happy.

Except maybe a dog.

Without even realizing what was happening, a little brown poodle hopped onto Luhan’s lap and began to his face. In  the circumstances he maybe should have been mad, but instead he let out a soft chuckle while trying to push the animal away from him. The puppy was persistent though, and every time it was moved back, there would be ten more to the face as payment.

Having enough of the saliva shower, Luhan grabbed the dog lightly and lifted him onto his hind legs. Sending a fake glare, the dog wags his tail furiously and barks in excitement. Laughing briefly, he looks up from the dog as someone yells from down the street.

“Monggu!” the voice yells laced in fear.

Suddenly, a thin man with a round face stops in front of the bench and leans over himself, placing his hands on his knees. Huffing and puffing trying to catch his breath, the stranger glances up and gives a small smile to Luhan. Finally able to breathe properly, the man plops down onto the bench. The other stiffens, still holding the dog, and peers curiously at the person who had just approached him.

“Bad Monggu,” the man scolds the dog who, instead of cowering away, just wags his tail happily at hearing his name.

“Thank you for catching him,” he continues with a smile. “I’m watching this little rascal for a friend and he got away from me, it would have been really bad if you hadn’t stopped him, I would probably still be running. I’m Minseok by the way.”

The man, Minseok, grins widely and reaches his hand out to shake Luhan’s. Not wanting to be rude to this random person, Luhan shakes the cold hand and tries to give a small smile as well.

“Luhan,” he replies shortly.

“Tell me Luhan, what are you doing out in the cold on Christmas?” Minseok asks in a friendly manner. “Don’t you have friends you need to meet or something?”

“No,” comes the somewhat snappy reply.

Catching the harsh tone, the other gives him a questioning look. “Why not?”

Heaving a sigh, Luhan hands the dog back to its part-time owner, and stuffs his hands in his pockets. With a frown he stares at the ground in front of him rather than at the curious stranger. Why was is suddenly this random guy’s business whether or not he had somewhere to be? Couldn’t he see he was sitting on a bench alone? If he had somewhere to be, he would have already been there, it was that simple.

“Because I’m an exchange student and my friends are all back in China.”

Somehow the words flowed out of the deer’s mouth without his consent,  as if they were itching to tell someone. But they weren’t. The sympathetic look he got made him somewhat angry, although the words from the dumpling faced man made him reconsider the fellow.

“Oh, I see,” he says petting the dog with an unconscious pout. “All my friends went to see their families and I got stuck here for the holidays. I’m alone too, it’s just me and Monggu.”

Nodding at the statement, the two sit in silence for a long while before Minseok perks up once again and turns to the other. “What about your family? Couldn’t you have gone to visit them?”

“Uh…” Shifting uncomfortably, Luhan shakes his head and stares at his hands. “My dad passed away when I was a kid.”

“I’m sorry,” he says immediately as an innate reaction. “What about your mom?”

“She was going to come to Korea and visit me, but she had been really sick for a while.” As he speaks he could feel himself chocking up, and eventually stops all together.

“I didn’t mean to bring up something bad,” Minseok replies sadly as he mumbles a quick apology once again.

“No, it’s fine, you didn’t do anything wrong.”

As he continues to talk with the man, Luhan feels the anger and loneliness that had been consuming him slowly dissipate. Something about the way the man, who he had found out was older than him despite the cute face,  smiled and made him feel at ease. The deer talked easily with him and could relate in several ways to the other.

The topic somehow turned back to Luhan’s mother and he sighed in a sudden tiredness. Petting Monggu who had at some point lain down between them, he smiles sadly as he thinks of the woman trapped in China all alone.

“My mom is out of it most of the time,” Luhan explains with a laugh. “She really wanted to come here to see me, but probably not as much as she wanted it to snow.”

Minseok stares at him with a look of shock before a grin breaks out on his face. “You mean she wanted to see snow more than you?”

“Pretty much!” The two laugh at the sudden confession and Luhan tsks lowly. “It’s just too bad because I really wanted to tell her it had snowed, but it looks like that won’t happen.”

The elder looks up at the sky with a happy look on his face. “I think it will snow.”

Rolling his eyes at the prediction, Luhan sighs. “It isn’t supposed to get cold enough to.”

“You never know,” Minseok whispers cheerfully with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

Quickly standing up, the bun startles both Luhan and Monggu by the sudden action. He motions for the other to stand and when he does, he grabs the leash latched around the dog and pulls the poodle up.

“You’re coming with me,” Minseok says decisively as he takes Luhan’s hand in his own. “We can go to my apartment and warm up, it isn’t too far away.”

Somehow trusting the man he had just met, the deer nods and starts walking with him. He watches carefully as the elder fixes a snowflake pin on his jacket before grasping his hand once again. As they walked, Luhan felt something wet on his skin. Looking up curiously to the sky, he smiles and squeezes the hand he was holding a little tighter, making Minseok look up as well.

“You like hot cocoa?” Minseok asks as they round a corner.

Unable to answer because of the swelling happiness, he just nods, still watching the glistening flakes fall from the sky.