Hi lovely readers *^.^* Another update because my writer's block was thankfully broken by the last chapter, haha... Hope you guys enjoy this super fluffy chapter!! I tried to add in a semi-jealous Jongdae due to a few requests in the comments, and gave Sekai a cute scene because they deserved it ^.~ Anyways, thanks so much for reading, and, as always, please please please comment *Hugs*

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Kris knocks on the door in front of him quickly, nervous, but not too nervous.

    He’s been trying to avoid this all week, but for some reason he can’t get the images out of his mind and after work today, he had finally broke.

    The door in front of him suddenly swings open and Kris takes a deep breath before he comes face-to-face with Kai.

    Ever since being stuck with Chanyeol a little over a week ago, Kris has been having the unbearable urge to see Sparrow even though he had literally just dumped the kitten onto Kai the night he had found him.

    It’s like he needs something to hold, someone, even if the kitten can’t talk back, to listen to him.

    For the first time in a long time, Kris feels lonely, feels regret at knowing he’s the reason he’s lonely because he’s the one who’s turned down countless invitations to go out on the weekends with Kai and Yixing or Ginger or anyone else he knows, because he’s the one who has never once gone into a pet shop, no matter how much he secretly wants to.

    Kai blinks at Kris in surprise, dressed in a t-shirt and sweatpants and barefooted, and Kris mentally smacks himself for not calling Kai beforehand.

    “Ummm, hi?” Kai says hesitantly. “Did I forget something at work again?”

    Kris swallows past the embarrassment in his throat, feeling completely out of his element and he has half the mind to just make up some excuse and turn around and go home, but then he sees a flash of silver and black dart around Kai’s legs from behind the door.

    “Sparrow!” Kai exclaims, reaching forward to keep the kitten from dashing down the hall, but Kris beats him to it, bending down to scoop up the kitten quickly and then holding it to his chest.

    “I actually came to see him,” Kris says quickly, before Kai can hold out his arms to take the kitten back, Sparrow curling up in his arms and then letting out a small meow that makes Kris feel a whole lot better about the situation.

    “Oh,” Kai says, before shrugging. “Come on in then.”

    He steps back from the doorframe, ushering Kris through, and the latter makes his way into an apartment he’s never been inside even though Kai had tried to get him to come over for dinner several times.

    Sehun is lying on the couch, brow furrowed in concentration as he studies a folder full of what looks like pictures, and for a moment, Kris feels like he’s intruding.

    But Sehun glances up to look at him, and then smiles, placing the folder onto the coffee table before getting up.

    “Hi Kris,” he greets him, also dressed in sweatpants and a t-shirt, although it’s a little big on him and looks like one of Kai’s. “I didn't know you were stopping by.”

    “I didn’t either,” Kai laughs from behind Kris, shutting the front door before he walks back into Kris’s line of sight.

    Kris flushes, Sparrow blinking up at him with large eyes, feeling the need to explain himself.

    “I just thought I’d drop by and check to see how Sparrow’s doing,” Kris explains, the back of his neck hot.

    He feels out of place, especially when Kai pulls Sehun to sit down, the two of them looking at Kris from the couch.

    “That’s fine,” Sehun says, beckoning Kris over with a wave of his hand. “Come and sit down. I can make us all coffee.”

    “No, that’s really not-,” Kris starts, but Sehun is already standing up and disappearing into the kitchen.

    “Okay,” Kris sighs, and at Kai’s smile, he walks over and perches on the edge of the couch, the only furniture in the room besides the coffee table, Sparrow curling up in his lap and purring.

    “So,” Kai begins, reclining back into the couch, legs crossed at the ankles, “what brings you to my humble abode today? You know, besides wanting to see Sparrow.”

    Kris gapes at him, thrown off by the question.

    “What do you mean?” he asks, petting Sparrow slowly, gently, almost as if the kitten is made of glass and he’s afraid of breaking him.

    Kai gives him a look.

    “Kris, I think I’ve known you for long enough to tell that something is wrong if you’re willingly coming to my apartment on your own,” he replies, keeping his voice low, which Kris is thankful for.

    Kris breaks eye contact with Kai, suddenly feeling a lot more restless than he had been out in the hallway, and stares down at Sparrow, studying the kitten’s silvery black marks and smoothing his fingers over the soft fur on its ears, trying to come up with words.

    “I talked to Chanyeol,” he finally blurts out, realizing that maybe Kai is right. 

    He had come to Kai’s apartment because he had wanted to see Sparrow, but maybe that hadn’t been the only reason why.

    Kris isn’t sure why he isn’t talking to Ginger about this. After all, she’s the only one who’s in on his plan, although he had mentioned that they were dating to Kai and Sehun because he couldn’t risk the chance that Chanyeol would ask one of them about it.

    By the look Kai had given him that day, Kris could already tell the other didn’t believe him.

    “And?” Kai prods gently when Kris stops talking.

    “I don’t know,” Kris says, struggling to keep the helplessness out of his voice. 

    He keeps his eyes trained on Sparrow, who’s already fallen asleep.

    “You’re not really dating Ginger, are you?” Kai asks quietly after a moment of silence in which Kris fidgets.

    Kris’s eyes dart up to meet Kai’s, unexplainably worried about what the other thinks about the whole thing, but Kai is only offering him a kind smile, sitting up straight now and leaning forward so that they can talk quietly.

    The smile seems to open something up within Kris, and he shakes his head, feeling a little bit of the weight on his shoulders disappear.

    Kai laughs quietly.

    “I figured you weren’t,” he jokes. “I don’t think Ginger would date you if you were the last man on Earth.”

    Kris would usually have taken that as an insult, but he knows Kai’s only teasing him, and, more importantly, he knows that it’s true.

    Kris smiles a little before looking back down at his lap.

    “So, what happened with Chanyeol?” Kai asks, and Kris is debating on what to tell him when Sehun walks back in, two cups of coffee in his hands.

    “I didn’t know if you wanted milk or sugar,” he tells Kris, “but I can bring some in here if you want.”

    “It’s okay,” Kris says, thanking Sehun when he hands him the cup. “I take my coffee black.”

    “Like his soul,” Kai mutters under his breath, Sehun laughing quickly, and Kris shoots Kai a mock sharp look, Kai grinning back unapologetically.

    And this, Kris thinks in surprise, feels comfortable.

    He smiles into his coffee.

Yixing sighs and closes his eyes, letting the bass pound through the floor and up through the bottoms of his shoes, vibrating across his skin and through his bones and settling deep in his heart.

    This is what he needs, a night by himself, drowning himself in loud music and bright lights, dancing until he’s exhausted and can’t think about anything else but sleeping.

    It’s a Friday, which means there were no dance lessons with Jongdae today.

    Actually, he hasn’t had a dance lesson with Jongdae ever since the snowstorm last week, hasn’t had a dance lesson with Jongdae ever since the other had kissed him.

    Yixing feels momentarily guilty thinking about how he had made up excuses to throw Jongdae off, telling him that he was sick, or that he had an unexpected dance lesson with a student who needed one-on-one help.

    Jongdae had probably figured that Yixing was avoiding him, but he hadn’t said anything even if he had.

    But Yixing refuses to think about any of that right now.

    He’s going to enjoy himself and forget all about Jongdae, at least for tonight.

    Yixing opens his eyes, taking in the dance floor before him, the same dance floor where Kai had come to him with a worried frown on his face the night Yixing had brought Kai and Sehun out, the night Sehun had run out and forgotten his camera back at Yixing’s apartment.

    Yixing thinks about Kai and Sehun, thinks about how long they had orbited around each other, so obvious about their feelings for each other that Yixing had wanted to lock them in a room until they stopped pining and finally confessed to each other.

    Yixing thinks about how he can see blatant love in Kai’s eyes whenever he watches Sehun, when he thinks that no one else is looking, thinks about how he sees the same love mirrored in Sehun’s eyes, and feels his heart tighten painfully, feels a rush of nostalgia and hurt so strong it almost bowls him over.

    Yixing takes a deep breath, squeezes his eyes shut, tries not to see pink hair and bracelets and large eyes, and nearly feels his knees buckle when he sees dark hair and long eyelashes and a kitten-lipped grin, the two images intermingling until Yixing isn’t sure who he’s seeing behind his eyelids.

    Yixing’s eyes fly open and he pushes out into the dance floor, shoving everything down so hard he feels like he can momentarily breathe despite the pack of people he’s winding through.

    He pushes and ducks past people until he’s almost in the center of the dance floor, the music blaring deafeningly loud from the speakers, neon-colored lights flashing and making teeth glow pink and green and blue, the floor sticky with spilled drinks, surrounded by girls with bright red lipstick and guys wearing skinny jeans, and lets himself disappear into the noise and the crowd, letting his body move almost subconsciously in time with the beat, closing his eyes and letting every last thought disappear.

    Yixing’s been dancing for approximately ten minutes, doing pretty well at doing nothing but focusing on the music, before he feels hands rest on his hips and he turns, immediately smirking at the guy behind him, who’s not really Yixing’s type with his blonde hair and light eyes, but who’s good-looking nevertheless.

    Yixing never takes anyone home, and never lets anyone else take him home, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t enjoy dancing with guys and girls who find him attractive and are obviously interested.

    So Yixing turns so that he’s facing him, craning his neck to peer at his new dance partner, who’s at least a foot taller than him, and lets the music take over again, this time adjusting his moves to accommodate another person.

    The guy is touchy, Yixing learns after a few minutes, pulling Yixing forward so that they’re pressed against each other, hands pressed to his lower back, fingers sometimes brushing against bare skin just under the hem of Y