Luhan looked out the window at the rising sun and then back to his sleeping best friend. “Idiot, you’re going to have a hangover on Christmas. That’s not really the best way to spend a holiday.”

Luhan slowly got up from his seat at Yixing’s desk and walked into the bathroom, grabbing 2 aspirins from the medicine cabinet, before making his way to the kitchen to get a glass of water for Yixing. Making his way back into Yixing’s bedroom, he quietly set the medicine and the water on the living man’s bedside table.

“He should just think that it was from Hao Yi when she brought him home.” Luhan muttered to himself quietly.

Luhan had no choice but to walk around the small apartment as he waited for Yixing to wake up. “I’m so freaking bored!” He yelled at the ceiling. He sighed and fell onto the couch.

It was 11 o’clock when Luhan finally heard noise coming from Yixing’s room. “It’s about time,” he muttered as he got up from his seat on the couch and walked back towards Yixing’s room. He saw the Chinese man sitting on the edge of his bed, his head in his hands. The medicine was gone and the glass empty on his bedside table. Luhan chuckled as he watched his best friend. “Called it.”

Yixing got up unsteadily and made his way around his bedroom, getting ready for the day. Luhan merely sat on Yixing’s bed, watching him move about.

The doorbell rang, startling both men. Luhan followed Yixing to the front door, standing back a bit. Yixing looked through the peek hole of the door and made a sound of surprise when he noticed who was standing outside.

He quickly opened the door.

“Oh, Hao Yi, hello. What are you doing here?”

Hao Yi looked nervously at Yixing, and then towards Luhan, who shook his head ever so slightly.

“Um, well, you see, I was wondering, if you don’t have any plans today, if you would like to spend today together. You don’t have to if you don’t want to, of course. Actually, I’m sorry, this was a bad idea. I’m just going to go back to my apartment. Sorry, have a nice day.”

Yixing chuckled at the Chinese girl’s nervousness. He stepped aside. “Come in, please.”

Hao Yi widened her eyes and blushed, nodding and stepping into the warm apartment.

“Thank you for coming by. It’s very thoughtful of you.” Yixing said as he followed Hao Yi into the living room, Luhan watching closely.

“Oh, it’s no trouble at all. I didn’t have any plans today, and I thought we could spend the day together. We are both a long way from home, of course. Think of me as a little piece of home.” She smiled at Yixing, blushing when she realized what she had said. “Oh my, I mean, not like that, I’m sorry –”

Yixing laughed. “Don’t worry about it. It’s nice being able to finally talk to someone who speaks the same language. Definitely makes me miss China a little less.”

Hao Yi nodded, looking down at her hands.

“Please, have a seat. Can I get you anything to drink?” Yixing asked respectfully.

Hao Yi smiled at him as she took a seat on the couch. “Some water would be nice, please.” Yixing nodded and turned to the kitchen.

Luhan took his absence as an invitation to walk hurriedly to Hao Yi. She opened to ask something, but Luhan placed his finger on , effectively shushing her.

“Don’t speak. When Yixing comes back, you can’t talk to me, alright? He can’t know that I’m here. He may tell you what happened, and if he does, don’t freak out or start asking questions.”

Hao Yi nodded slowly as Luhan pulled his hand away and smiled at her.

Yixing came back in the room a few minutes later carrying two glasses of water, handing one to Hao Yi and placing the other on the coffee table in front of his seat.

“Thank you,” Hao Yi smiled as she took a sip from her glass.

Yixing nodded and leaned back.

“So…” he trailed off awkwardly.

“Do you mind if I have a look around?” Hao Yi asked quietly.

Yixing shot up. “Oh my gosh, of course. How rude of me. Here, let me give you a tour.” He pulled Hao Yi up quickly and let go of her hand once she was standing on her own. He spread his arms and smiled. “This, of course, is the living room.” He pointed to the opening that he had walked through moments ago. “The kitchen.”

He started walking towards the hallway, Hao Yi following closely behind. He pointed in turn to each door they passed, explaining what lay behind it. “Closet, bathroom, and my bedroom.” He smiled at her and pushed his bedroom door open slowly. Hao Yi peered inside, stunned at the neatness of the man’s bedroom. She had expected it to be the stereotypical messy room, belonging to every other boy. She walked in and looked around. Yixing followed, watching her.

She moved towards Yixing’s desk, where he had various pictures and articles scattered on the surface. She peered at the article titles of some of the newspaper clippings she saw.

Tragic Car Accident Kills Young Chinese Boy

Unknown Cause of Recent Car Accident With One Fatality, Police Question Driver and Close Friends

Could Recent Car Accident Be An Act of Spite? Police Speculate On the Death of Young Chinese Boy

Death of Chinese Boy Causes Unrest in Korean-Chinese Population

Hao Yi shivered at the articles and looked away. She had heard of the accident, of course. A Chinese and Korean man had been driving home when the driver had lost control of the car and it had turned, killing the Chinese man. Police reports had stated that the breaks had been cut, causing the small Chinese population in South Korea to become outraged at the supposed crime inflicted upon the Chinese man. Hao Yi did not care to listen to the rumors.

She looked back at the desk and noticed a framed picture. She picked it up and looked at it closely. Luhan and Yixing were smiling with their arms around each other. She smiled at the picture and put it back down next to a deer plushy, which she picked up with a small squeal.

“So cute!” She exclaimed, squeezing it to her chest.

Hao Yi looked up to find Yixing, but was in turn shocked when she felt the plushy being yanked out of her grasp.

“Don’t touch that.” He said quietly, placing the deer back on his desk and collecting all the loose articles and pictures and shoving them in a door unceremoniously. Hao Yi stepped back, fear evident in her eyes.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know,” Hao Yi stuttered.

Yixing looked at her and sighed. “Let’s go back to the living room. I’ll see if we have anything for lunch.”

Yixing grabbed Hao Yi’s arm softly and pulled her lightly out of his bedroom.

Hao Yi walked past Luhan and sat back on the couch. Luhan looked at her with expectation in his eyes. “Do you understand yet?” He asked hopefully.

Hao Yi wrinkled her eyebrows at him and shook her head. “Understand what? I don’t –”

She quickly closed as she saw Yixing walk back into the living room. “It won’t be a big lunch, but I have enough to make some ramen and sandwiches, if that’s okay with you. Most places are probably closed right now, what with it being Christmas.”

Hao Yi nodded and smiled. “That’s perfect.”

Yixing blushed and walked quickly back into the kitchen. Luhan noticed the change in his best friend’s demeanor and smirked.

Once the Chinese man was gone, Hao Yi turned back to the blonde man standing to the side. “What do you mean do I understand yet? Understand what?”

“Did you see the articles on Yixing’s desk?” Hao Yi nodded. “Did you happen to look at any of the names or pictures?”

She shook her head and spoke quietly. “No, I didn’t bother. I’ve heard about the accident, but only vaguely. Never in any detail.”

Luhan nodded and got lost in his thoughts. “Ask Yixing about it, and the closed door you passed. I know you noticed it.”

Hao Yi blushed and looked away, but nodded slowly.

After a few more moments of silence, Yixing walked into the living room carrying a tray of food. There were two bowls of ramen, a plate stacked with simple sandwiches, and two cans of coke. “Sorry, it’s not much, especially for Christmas.” Yixing apologized shyly.

Hao Yi shook her head and looked Yixing straight in the eye. “It’s perfect, don’t worry.”

The two sat quietly as they began eating, both enjoying the comfortable silence that enveloped them. Luhan cleared his throat, catching Hao Yi’s attention. He nodded towards Yixing and mouthed the words ask him. Hao Yi squinted and shook her head quickly. Luhan nodded fervently. “Do it, you need to know.”

Hao Yi shook her head even harder.

“Hao Yi, please. If you don’t ask him, he’ll never tell you.” Luhan pleaded a look of worry evident in his eyes.

Hao Yi sighed in exasperation. “No, I’m not going to!” She yelled, forgetting she wasn’t supposed to speak with Luhan in front of Yixing.

She glanced at Yixing, who looked at her strangely, his head cocked to the side. “Um, you’re not going to what?”

Hao Yi gulped and looked away. “Nothing, just talking to myself.”

Yixing set his bowl down and grabbed Hao Yi’s shoulder’s, resting his hand against her forehead. “Are you okay? You’re not running a fever or anything.”

Hao Yi sighed and removed Yixing’s hand from her forehead. “I’m fine, Yixing. Trust me. Actually, I had a question.” She asked quietly.

Yixing nodded and looked at her expectantly.

“Um, when you were giving me a tour of your apartment, we passed a door. You didn’t say what it was.”

Yixing looked away. “Oh.”

Hao Yi seemed confused at Yixing’s sudden change of attitude. She look at Luhan, who nodded and motioned for her to continue.

“That is the bedroom for my roommate and best friend. His name was Luhan.” He said quietly.

“Was?” Hao Yi asked, clearly confused.

Yixing nodded. “Luhan was my roommate. We met at the airport when we both arrived in Korea at the same time. Neither of us had anywhere to go, so we decided to room with each other. I never realized that the man I coincidentally met in the middle of an airport would become my best friend. We stayed in a hotel for the first week, but then Luhan found this apartment and we moved in together. I didn’t speak much Korean, but Luhan was pretty proficient in it. He had all these friends, and I stayed at home because I couldn’t really talk to anyone besides him. Because Luhan was so outgoing, he definitely had plenty of friends he always went out with. I was always the worrywart who wanted him home by 11. I didn’t realize that I would be the one who killed him.”

Hao Yi took a deep breath of air and looked confusedly at Yixing, who was now looking down at his hands in his lap.

“It was one of the nights when he was out with some of his friends. He had gotten a ride with his friend Xiumin, and had met another group at a restaurant. I told him I wanted him home by 11, and I guess he didn’t realize the time. The police said that they had been speeding and that Xiumin had missed the exit. He had apparently gone for the break, but it seemed that someone had cut the wires. Their car turned multiple times and landed on its roof. Xiumin got out alright, but Luhan, he –”

Yixing choked on a sob, clutching at his chest. Hao Yi looked on with horror, her eyes darting back and forth between the two men in the room.

“He died. My best friend is dead.” Yixing cried. Hao Yi slowly got up and walked towards Yixing, sitting back down directly beside him. She took him into her arms and looked at Luhan, who now had tears in his eyes.

“Tell him that it wasn’t his fault. He needs to know not to blame himself anymore.” Luhan spoke quietly, looking sadly at his best friend.

“It’s okay, Yixing. It wasn’t your fault.” Hao Yi said quietly, Yixing’s head softly.

Yixing continued to cry into Hao Yi’s body as he held onto her arms and she held him in return.

“I’m so sorry, Luhan. I’m so sorry. It’s all my fault. I killed you, Luhan.”

Hao Yi and Luhan could only look on crying as the Chinese man slowly tore himself down.

A/N: Wow, this is a long chapter, didn't even know I had it in me! Don't forget to comment, subscribe, and upvote. It makes a happy author. Or not. I guess that's okay too. Maybe...