He was in the locker room, alone. Shirtless. His back muscles well defined, enticing, inviting. He turned around and smiled sweetly after spotting him.

"Hi Kris," Tao's smile widened. 

Kris walked towards him, feeling pulled by Tao, and leaned against the lockers.

"Haven't seen you all day," he murmured, as nonchalantly as he could. Tao snickered lowly, looking endeared. 

"Well, here I am. What happened?"

Kris removed himself from the lockers, stepping in front of Tao. He took a step closer, until he could feel the heat radiating from him. Tao didn't seem to care. Kris raised his eyes, taking in his gorgeous features, letting his eyes linger at his mouth. 

"I missed you, Panda," he raised his hand slowly, getting hold of his chin. They locked eyes and Tao blinked up at him, eyes shining, smile widening. He was so perfect. Kris lifted his other hand, slowly  the soft skin of Tao's hip. The boy shivered slightly, making Kris tighten his grip around him, bringing him closer. Tao let out a small chuckle, which ended up being a shaky breath. They were so close that Kris could almost taste him, sweet and warm. He felt himself lean closer, needing more of that taste. Their lips came into contact, sending an electric current through their bodies, making them close their eyes. Slowly, hesitantly, delicately, Kris begun moving his lips against Tao's. He could feel their texture, tender and soft, the one he had longed so many times. The one he had wanted to touch, kiss, own since the moment they met. On the other hand, they were sort of dry, and Kris couldn't leave them that way. His tongue traced his lower lip, and Tao let out a small gasp, kissing him back with eagerness and need. They became one. Kris could feel Tao's body react to every single touch, every single movement. He removed his hand from his hip, making his way towards his abdomen, caressing the soft skin, feeling the firm muscles against his fingertips. It was passionate, intense. Surreal. Really... dreamlike.

Kris felt his stomach drop. Then he was sitting up, trembling from the impact. He untangled himself from the warm sheets, feeling trapped, suffocated. It had all been a dream. The best one he had ever had. He glanced at the clock on his bedside. 3:00 am. Great. He sighted. It had felt so real. And he was... hard. If he didn't take care of it, he would be in pain in the morning. He brought his hands to his lips, feeling them dry and cold, nostalgic from Tao's. It hurt knowing it hadn't been real, it would never be. He would never get to have Tao that way. He hadn't felt so lonely in a long time, his empty house only a reminder that he had no one besides his friends. He ended up falling asleep once again after taking care of his... issue, waking up only when his alarm went off. Kris groaned and stretched, his huge bed cold, making him feel so tiny. He felt a void in his chest. He needed warmth. He needed Tao's warmth. He mentally slapped himself. What the was wrong with him? Why was he being so dramatic? 

He had lived alone for almost six years now. It hadn't been his choice, of course. What 12 year-old boy would want to live all by himself in a foreign country? Well, he hadn't. He had been against the idea of moving away from China in the first place. It wasn't until years later that he kind of understood that his parents were only doing that to keep him safe. His father's business had gotten him many enemies, and he couldn't risk them hurting Kris. They had escaped. He was suddenly drawn away from his house, his school, his friends, his whole life, and placed in this huge, lonely house, in a country where he couldn't understand anything. He was sent to the best elementary school in the country. He always had the best everything. Everything but his parents. They were still working in China, leaving him with a supervisor who later on quitted, when Kris begun to get difficult. That had been the worst year of his life. Well, maybe the second worst. He had an awful time at school, as he didn't understand a word in Korean, but, as he already was pretty smart, he soon leant enough to get by. What he couldn't manage to get were friends. By the end of the year, he had informed his parents that that had been his last year of studies. They weren't happy, of course, but after all, there was nothing they could do, they were never around. And they didn't even care about him that much. 

One day, as he had been walking aimlessly around the park, he spotted a couple of guys playing basketball. He had always loved it, and used to play a lot back at home, in China, but since he had left he had been drained from his ambitions and motivations. He approached hesitantly, without wanting to interrupt. One of the boys playing saw him and asked if he wanted to play. He was also Chinese, and Kris felt as if finally something had been set right. Lay became his best friend instantly. They spent the whole summer together, and when school was about to start, Kris demanded his parents change him to his friend's middle school. They weren't in a position to refuse. He felt better. For a few hours a day, everything was right. He had his friend, he had mastered the language, and he was doing great at school. But then he was all alone again. When Lay suggested they entered their current high school, commenting on the awesome basketball team, it had all been perfect. At least for a while. 

After the race, his relationship with Tao had changed drastically. He seemed more comfortable around him, and honestly Kris couldn't be happier. He had accepted Tao's offer, and now both teams sat together at lunch. He could see that they were getting a lot of attention from the rest of the school, which made him feel even more exposed than usual, but it was a small price to pay when he could spend so much time with Tao, just talking to him or watching him eat. God, he was a creep. But the Panda was so adorable and kind it sometimes made him want to hug him and cover him with blankets and never let him go. Not creepy at all. Actually, sometimes he couldn't believe how many things had changed because of him. To begin with, Kris had never had so many mixed emotions in his life. He was usually quite a simple guy, but now one moment he was the happiest person on earth and the next he felt and oppressive loneliness. And the defining factor was Tao. 

There were also the tutoring lessons. Despite the fact that sometimes Kris couldn't help but to get annoyed and yell at him, Tao seemed to have learnt to deal with him, understanding his changing emotions or just being able to ignore them. There were hardly any fights, and now the lessons were a thing he actually enjoyed, and he believed Tao did too. Slowly, they were opening up to each other. Kris loved being able to see inside Tao's mind, to hear him talk about their friends, his team, classes, the crappy movie he had seen on TV the evening before, his mother, everything. Kris himself was still learning to open up, after all, it wasn't easy changing his ways after such a long time, but he trusted him, and slowly became more comfortable with sharing his life. Academically, Tao had improved a lot. Kris had known he was really intelligent since the moment he opened his mouth, and, after all, it wasn't easy to get into the school with a scholarship, even if you were awesome at sports. They worked hard, and their efforts showed. His weakest subject was actually English, as he had admitted languages bothered him, so it was understandable that his Korean still had flaws.

Constantly bathed with warm sunlight from a skylight, and surrounded by tall bookshelves, their table at the library had become their safe place, where they could talk freely and be themselves. Kris treasured every single moment they spent there. But one evening, as the midterm exams were approaching and everyone was doing last minute revision, they came into the library to find it occupied. Last time that had happened, the plague had made it impossible for them to study, and Kris abhorred having curious eyes on him when he was with Tao. It was stupid, and selfish, but their moments were theirs, not for everyone to see. So, he suggested a small coffee shop where he hid from the word when he needed time for himself. Tao accepted and not long after they arrived to the cozy room and begun their work for the upcoming exams. When Kris had suggested taking the evening off and resting a while before the exams, Tao had insisted that he needed to study as much as possible. Although now it didn't seem like it.

"Hey! Wake up,"  Kris snapped after a few minutes of looking at Tao doodling uninterestedly on his English book, "You'll never pass like that. Moreover, you won't be able to answer a single question."

"Sorry, okay? I can't. Hate this," he answered with a groan. 

"Silly Panda," Kris muttered annoyed, resting his head on his hand. Since the day he had accidentally revealed the nickname, it had become one of the things they shared, an habit. Although right now it was more of an insult. Tao frowned, and Kris couldn't fight the warmth that all that cuteness gave him. The weather was finally warmer, meaning that they were both wearing the summer uniform, and Kris had had quite a hard time trying to ignore the sight of Tao's muscles through his lighter shirt. And he had failed miserably. But Tao still needed to study, and they weren't progressing at all like this. Then he had an idea. 

"I know! Let's bet something!" Betting small things had become a thing they did after the race. They were both quite competitive guys, so usually they ended up forgetting about the price and just doing it for the sake of winning. The boy instantly lost his frown and smiled up at Kris across the table. 

"What are we betting?"

Kris scanned the place, smiling after he found what he was looking for, "I bet you one of those tasty and chocolaty cakes," he pointed to said cakes, that actually did look very tempting, "That you can't answer every single question from that page without a mistake."

"Of course," Tao yelped excitedly, grabbing his pencil and focusing intently on the book. 

Only a few minutes later, he passed the book back to Kris. To his surprise, everything was perfect. Not even one tiny error. 

"Now, the cake," Tao smiled smugly. 

"Fine. It was a fair victory," rolling his eyes, he got up to buy the cake.

 He just didn't see the appeal of those things. As a kid, he had never been allowed to eat them, and after a while he had lost interest. Besides, he enjoyed sports, and sweets only made you slower and fatter. But when he placed the small piece in front of Tao, his whole face lit up. He looked incredibly hot and endearing at the same time, enjoying that piece of diabetes, that it made Kris want to try it. If possible, from Tao's lips. He looked away and fumbled for his fork, stealing a bite of cake and tasting it. He supposed it was alright, overly sweet and cloying, nothing special. He was sure it would have been way better from the Panda's lips. 

"Hey! What the was that!?" he growled, glaring daggers at Kris, "That is my piece of cake! You said it yourself, I won fairly!"

"I bought it. I have the right," he replied smiling innocently. 

"Idiot," Tao was now staring at the cake mournfully. Come on! Kris had only taken a tiny little bite, he still had the rest of the piece for himself. 

Kris took his fork and snatched another bit of the cake. Then it all happened too fast. He felt Tao's hand grab his wrist, preventing him from eating his cake, and took the fork in his mouth. What basically left Kris feeding him cake without even knowing. He was about to have something. Tao turned scarlet upon noticing, and Kris dropped the fork, feeling his face heat up. Tao resumed eating his precious piece of calories, sneaking glances at Kris from the corner of his eye. He looked ten times more adorable, if that was even possible, and Kris felt his chest constrict with the sudden, unavoidable urge to kiss him. 

"You know, if you had asked me I would have given you some," his small voice interrupted his thoughts. 

Kris looked up at him. He was so honest, so innocent, his eyes filled with so many emotions. He had to answer, say something, anything, but he didn't find his voice. 

"I'm not particularly fond of sweet things. I just did it to bother you."

Great. He should have stayed quiet. Tao frowned deeply and muttered something that sounded quite similar to an insult. Kris hated himself. Why did he have to do that? Being so insincere and acting like an idiot every time they were getting closer to each other? Well, he wasn't completely angry. After all, he got to see Tao eating cake angrily, and that was priceless. 

"You are really well prepared for those exams. Why did you want to study today?" 

Tao choked on his cake, "Hmm. You know what they say," he laughed awkwardly, "you never know what you know until you revise it, right?" 

Kris frowned. It wasn't usual for Tao to behave like that. 

"Isn't it 'You don't know what you have until you lose it'?" 

"Yeah, right. Anyway, are we leaving?"

Kris rested his elbows on the table, bored, "Believe me. I have no rush to get home."

"Isn't your family waiting for you?" Tao blinked at him innocently. 

"Nope."

Tao looked both troubled and sympathetic, "You could come to my house..." he whispered without realizing it, opening his eyes wide and turning impossibly red once the words left his mouth. 

"What? Did you say something?" of course he had. Kris had heard him perfectly. But he seemed so caught off guard he ignored the joy the offer had given him and pretended not to hear. 

"No. Nothing, nothing!" the boy shouted, earning their table more than a few glances from the other customers. Tao hid his face in his arms, and Kris surprised himself giggling softly at the sight. Tao's head bolted back up, and he smiled shyly. Hesitantly, Kris got up from the table. 

"I believe we should leave. We have already caused quite a commotion." 

Tao got up, his smile still faintly there, and they left the place. That night, Kris didn't feel so lonely anymore.