✽ de • mure [dih-myoo r] (adj.)

"a bashful blossom by nature"

4

He nonchalantly browsed through his application papers, a totally uninterested look on his face. Looking out of the window of his two-room apartment, his eyes glanced over the bright Korean signboards hanging over the different establishments in his street. Being back in Korea after staying for five years at his homeland was making him feel nostalgic. Childhood years spent with Baekhyun, Chanyeol, Jongin and Kris came flooding back, and though he was rather hesitant to go back at first, Lu Han now found himself smiling. He was looking forward to the first day of school.

The phone suddenly rang, and Lu Han instantly knew who it was. Groaning in frustration, he pushed himself away from his table, disrupting his papers in the process. Ignoring the mess, he made a beeline for the phone in the kitchen, the ringing sounding even louder and more annoying at such a close proximity. Running a hand through his peach hair, he released another sigh before picking up the phone. He hasn't even taken another breath when a desperate sounding voice came out of the receiver.

"L-Lu? Lu, is that you? Oh my God, Lu Han, love, it's you! I was so worried! Your brother told me you weren't in Beijing anymore and I--

"How the did you get my number?" Lu Han leaned against the kitchen counter, massaging the bridge of his nose as he felt an incoming headache.

"I--...well, I'm your fiancé, I'm supposed to know things like thi--

"We're not getting married, you old geezer! How many times do I have to tell you?! We're over!" He practically half-screamed into the phone, and he had to take deep breaths to calm himself down.

"You don't get to decide that, Lu Han!"

"Yeah, I do, you maniac. It's my life. We're ing over. Stop calling me."

Lu Han slammed the phone down, his hands shaking from anger. He was already warming up to the idea of being back in Korea, living in a new apartment, and going to the same senior high school with his best friends from childhood. Receiving that call from his ex made his night take a turn for the bad. He found himself frowning, tears of hate and regret his eyes as his gaze fell on the fading bruises on his pale slender arms. Pulling his sleeves down, he wiped his eyes as he slowly made his way back to his room, fixing the mess of papers on the floor.

"I shouldn't cry...we're over. It's the past. I'm okay now...I'm okay." He whispered to himself, making sure that his papers were neatly aligned in his Kitahoro High folder. He couldn't afford to make a bad impression on the principal.

~ ✽ ~

Lu Han glanced around him, feeling embarrassed as he stood in the middle of a red district whilst in his uniform. Ignoring the judging glances of the people around him, he kept his head down, mentally scolding himself for refusing Baekhyun's offer of showing him the way to school. He took out his phone as he turned around, planning to just pay for internet so he could search for routes leading to Kitahoro. He didn't really want to ask the people around him since they've been giving him pretty hungry looks. As he turned around swiftly, his head down as he stared at his phone, he didn't see someone in front of him walking towards him. It was all too late as Lu Han bumped into another person. Fortunately for him, years of playing and practicing football gave him enough quick reflexes to balance himself. The stranger he bumped into, however, just collapsed onto the ground in a messy heap.

"Oh my gosh, I'm sorry! I-I wasn't looking!" Lu Han quickly bowed his head, feeling his face heat up in embarrassment.

"Nah, it's okay. I wasn't looking, eith--

The stranger stopped talking in mid-sentence, and Lu Han frowned in confusion. He looked up, and felt his frown go even deeper as he saw the stranger-- a young boy with blonde and black hair-- wearing the same Kitahoro uniform as him, his eyes wide and his cheeks coloured in a deep shade of red. Lu Han tilted his head slightly in question, and the boy scrambled to get up, looking frazzled and suddenly out of breath.

"I-I-I-It'th okay! I-I'm fine!! Are y-you alright?!?"

Lu Han doesn't really know why the boy was almost screaming at him considering that he had a slight lisp, but he just brushed it off as first day jitters. It was the first day of school, anyway. The kid was probably a freshman in Kitahoro's junior high department.

"Yeah, I'm okay. Uhm, hey, kid. Do you know where Kitahoro High is?" Lu Han asked, slipping his phone back into his pocket.

The kid visibly swallowed nervously before nodding his head, even going so far as loosening his necktie and collar. Lu Han smiled in relief at having the prospect of possibly finding himself in another red district gone.

"Do you mind if we go together? I just got back from China and I don't know my way around that much...I'm Lu Han, by the way." Lu Han held his hand out for a handshake, but the boy just stared at his hand. Lu Han cocked an eyebrow in amusement, but pulled his hand back anyway.

"I-I'm...I'm Oh Thehu--Sehun!! O-Oh Sehun..."

Lu Han leaned closer, eyeing Sehun's face in concern. "Are you okay? Your face is unusually red...do you have a fever?"

"I-I'm really fine!! Just...! Just please, don't get too close..."

Lu Han widened his eyes in realization, taking a large step back. "I'm sorry! I didn't realize that you have like, personal space issues..."

"I don't....uhm, let's just go to school? W-we'll be late..."

Lu Han nodded his head, letting Sehun lead the way. They took the bus and the ride took five stops. Throughout this time, Sehun (sitting two seats away from Lu Han) never looked at him. The boy just remained very quiet, his face morphing to that of total indifference-- a large change from his frazzled look a few moments ago. Lu Han found the kid interesting, but respected his wishes to be left alone.

The bus finally stopped at their destination, and Sehun left before him with a quiet and stuttered, "W-we're here".

Lu Han got off the bus, still a little bit freaked out but at the same amused by Oh Sehun. The gates of Kitahoro High was crowded with students, and he squinted hard to try and find any familiar face-- a pair of lined slanted eyes under a mop of tousled jet black hair, a dorky smile on a handsome and y face, or a pair of large ears under cropped black hair. Lu Han couldn't find any, and awkwardly walked into the school territory.

He quickly headed to the bulletin board in the school plaza where almost all of the students were crowding at, their classes and names listed on the large board. Before Lu Han could get on his tiptoes and take a peek at the names, somebody suddenly tackled him, an arm hooking around his neck and almost choking him to death. Had it not been for the warm and contagious (but slightly obnoxious) laughter that followed, Lu Han would have snapped.

"Lu Han!!! I ing missed you, you Chinese dweeb!!!" Leave it to Baekhyun to give such touching words.

Lu Han laughed, freeing himself from Baekhyun's chokehold and taking a good look at his best friend. Five years hadn't done anything drastic to the boy. Maybe he got prettier and the awkwardness of being fourteen-years old five years ago was gone. He didn't look any different from the pictures he sent on email, and Lu Han found himself relaxing. He had been unconsciously afraid about the fact that his friends might have changed totally.

"Why, thank you, you ugly peasant! I sure as hell didn't miss you." Lu Han teased, fixing his blazer and bag.

Baekhyun rolled his eyes before turning his head to the side, squinting at the board. "If I remember correctly, we're in class 1B with Jongin and Chanyeol."

"Sehun's there, too."

A voice spoke behind them, and they both turned to see Jongin and Chanyeol grinning at them. Lu Han pointed at Jongin and Chanyeol's hair, his face splitting as he smiled.

"I'm glad you dropped the Einstein look, Jongin. And the noodle hair, Chanyeol."

Chanyeol laughed, and Jongin mocked a deep sigh. "It was a phase, okay."

Lu Han felt a heavy weight get lifted off his shoulders as he realized that five years didn't really affect his friendship with the three most important people in his life. He realized that five years and yet, they just simply fell back into their old routines as if Lu Han only left for a day-- Baekhyun picking on Jongin, and Chanyeol trying to keep Baekhyun from doing something traumatizing to the fellow. Lu Han followed behind them, just watching his friends until a thought hit him.

"Wait. Jongin, did you say Sehun?"

Jongin looked back at him, nodding his head. Before Lu Han could ask more on the topic, Baekhyun had pulled him into another chokehold, rendering Jongin speechless and breathless with pain. Lu Han just shrugged his shoulders, brushing off the topic. After all, he was in Korea where almost everybody who was perfectly bipedal and had a brain carried the same name. The Sehun in his class couldn't possibly be the Sehun he met. The Sehun he met couldn't have been any older than a third year junior high student, anyway.

~ ✽ ~

Wrong.

Lu Han was so, so wrong. He could feel his eyebrows almost meet from frowning so much in confusion. Because there, in the middle of the classroom, was the Sehun he met currently being harassed by Jongin and Baekhyun for having his hair dyed blond and black during vacation. Chanyeol slightly pushed him forward into the classroom, and Lu Han quickly turned to him, a curious look on his face.

"Hey, Chanyeol, why's there a junior high kid here?"

"Junior? Who?"

"That kid. Sehun, right? He's a ju--

"Senior. He's a senior kid just like us, Lu." Lu Han could see the telltale signs of an amused grin forming on Chanyeol's face.

"But he looks so young!" Lu Han protested, glancing at Sehun once again.

"He's not that young, though. Just a year younger than us. He skipped one year ahead 'cause he's kind of like a genius, and he and Jongin hit it off from there. Best buddies, you could say."

"...ohh..."

"Plus, everyone's definitely going to be younger than you. You're old, and you missed like, two years of high school when you went back to China."

"Ei, shut up, Park." Lu Han playfully punched him on the shoulder, and as they made their way to their seats, he missed the surprised look that Sehun gave when he saw him.

~ ✽ ~

"Oh, it's that creepy kid from junior high!"

"Damn, I don't want to sit next to him. My friend sat next to him during an exam, and he failed."

"His eyes are so...huge."

"Isn't he a 'Do'? Ugh, I'm a 'Cha'. I might be placed next to him if we go alphabetical."

Lu Han looked around in complete wonder, noticing his classmates throwing disapproving and scared looks at the small boy who had just walked into their classroom. His classmates didn't even bother lowering their voices as they threw insults and expressed their disgust left and right. Leaning over to Chanyeol who was sitting beside him in the meantime, Lu Han took some effort to at least whisper.

"Hey, Chanyeol, what's up with everyone and that kid? Are they bullying him?"

"Well, we haven't really heard of anything physical happening to him, but everyone's been like this to him ever since I can remember. They're not very fond of him."

"But he looks like a nice kid..."

Lu Han watched as the shy pale boy made his way to the back of the classroom, standing beside the window and hugging his bag close to his chest. He reminded Lu Han of his young nephew back in China who got bullied for having his hair cut into a Mohawk, and Lu Han had stepped in to prevent further damage by giving his nephew a little pep talk. Lu Han suddenly felt sorry for the kid, and he was about to walk up to him but Kris, their homeroom teacher, suddenly walked in.

"Okay, y'all, be quiet! I said be quiet, and drop the banana milk, Lee Taemin, it's not lunch yet. Now, I'll read all of your names alphabetically and you go sit where I point you."

Everything happened in a blur. It amused Lu Han how Kris could seem authoritative and yet childish at the same time, a complete mirror of how he was back in the days when Lu Han would play tag with Jongin and the others and Kris and Junmyeon, Jongin's brother, would join in just to pass the time.

The class arranging took a while, but everyone was finally seated correctly. Lu Han noticed Kyungsoo still standing at the back, spacing out and not giving Kris any attention.

"Okay, so you losers don't know me, but there are familiar faces here to me-- oh, Lu Han? You're back in town?"

Lu Han grinned at him, and Kris nodded his head in acknowledgement. "The one and only Lu Han, Kris."

"You didn't even change. Still as bratty as ever." Kris smiled slightly, and he cleared his throat before picking up a chalk and writing his name on the board in English, the Hangul equivalent written underneath in a much smaller font. "Okay, so I'm Kris, but my real name's Wu Yifan. I'm Chinese, in case you failed to notice, and I spent half of my life--

"Just five years!" Baekhyun interjected in a teasing tone, and Kris threw him a dirty look.

"--half of my life in Canada studying English. I'll be your teacher in Basic Grammar so it'd do you all well to listen to my lectures, and-- yah, you there. At the back. Why are you standing? And what're you smiling about?"

Lu Han turned his head to see Kyungsoo suddenly looking very embarrassed at having his presence finally noticed. He shook his head nervously, and stared down at his feet.

"Kris-sonsaengnim, he's the creepy kid from junior high, Do Kyungsoo?" One of the students raised her voice, and Kris frowned before nodding his head.

"Oh, that kid...well, creepy kid or not, you're all losers in my eyes so whatever. Do! Sit down on seat number 4. Hurry up!"

Kyungsoo hurried to his seat, and Lu Han found it adorable how he seemed like a little hamster scurrying through the classroom as he clutched his bag dearly. He sat down beside Jongin, and Lu Han noticed how Jongin almost fell out of his seat, his face...red? What's going on here, Lu Han thought to himself, raising an eyebrow for added effect.

After that, everything happened in a blur. Sehun and Jongin got elected as president and vice-president, respectively, and Kyungsoo also became secretary. Kris drawled on about school rules and requirements, and after five years of working as a singer in a bar and going through life independently, school was a nice change for Lu Han.

~ ✽ ~

"Dude, he looked so different when he smiled!"

Lu Han looked up from his seat on the bench as he fanned himself. Jongin, Chanyeol and Sehun were finally back from wherever they came from, and Baekhyun was passed out beside him, damp towel draped on his face as he tried to regain his energy after playing a game of football (and after suffering through a lecture on how he shouldn't leave his best friend alone in a game and a few wrestling moves from Lu Han).

"What took you guys so long?" Lu Han asked, not missing how Sehun tensed up at hearing him.

"Jongin was helping Kyungsoo pick up some papers." Chanyeol flopped down beside Baekhyun, leaning over and peeking under the towel on his face, earning him a punch on the thigh.

"Papers?" Lu Han asked.

"He almost fell off the stairs and the papers he was carrying just kind of...flew around." Jongin shrugged, sitting down beside him and patting the space next to him for Sehun.

"Oh...so who looked different when who smiled?"

"Kyungsoo. My god, he looked like an angel. Seriously." Chanyeol answered, and Baekhyun shot up from his position, his eyes sparkling.

"Really?! I want to see him smile, too!"

"I'm getting motherly vibes from you, Baekhyun." Lu Han noted, and Baekhyun just grinned sheepishly.

"Well, he's so cute! And so squishy, too. I want to be friends with hiiiim. Guys, let's talk to him!" Baekhyun whined, suddenly looking at Chanyeol with puppy eyes.

"I'm pretty sure Jongin won't have any complaints about that." Lu Han glanced at Jongin knowingly, and just as he guessed, the tips of Jongin's ear turned a slight pink at his words.

"W-what are you saying?" Jongin glared at him weakly, and Lu Han laughed.

"Nothing."

All this time, Lu Han noticed that Sehun remained quiet, eyes not making contact with anyone's. Lu Han wondered why Sehun seemed like a wall whenever he was around, but when Sehun was with Jongin and the others, he acted human. Does he hate me?

~ ✽ ~

"Soooo, Knight in Shining Armour. What's gotten into you?"

Lu Han watched in amusement as Baekhyun latched onto Jongin's arm like a slug, eyebrows wiggling in a conspiratorial manner. Jongin could only splutter in embarrassment, and as he looked at Lu Han-- anyone-- for help, Lu Han only imitated Baekhyun, wiggling his eyebrows and grinning smugly. Jongin groaned as he wriggled his arm, trying to free himself.

"N-nothing, guys. Lay off me, Baek!"

"Not gonna hap-- oh?"

Baekhyun suddenly looked behind Jongin, his lips turning up into a smile. Lu Han couldn't see anything with Chanyeol, Sehun and Jongin blocking his view, but the look on Baekhyun's face was enough to tell him that  something amusing just happened.

"Baek?" Lu Han called, and Baekhyun turned back to them, a teasing grin on his face.

"Jonginnie~. Better check your table."

Jongin looked at him in confusion, pulling his arm free as he made his way back to his table. Lu Han followed, and he saw Baekhyun eyeing a little piece of paper under a pile of notebooks. The paper fell in all the commotion that Jongin was making on his table. Lu Han caught Baekhyun's eyes, and they both grinned.

"You missed it, I think."

Jongin bent down to pick the paper up, and everyone huddled around him to look at the paper over his shoulder. The handwriting was tiny and neat, and Baekhyun and Sehun laughed as Jongin's ears turned pink. Lu Han elbowed Jongin in the ribs, earning him an embarrassed scowl.

Thank you :)

~ ✽ ~

"I never got to talk to you again even though we've been hanging out all day."

Sehun was leaning against the school gate waiting for Jongin when Lu Han strode up to him, a friendly smile on his face. Lu Han frowned slightly, though, when Sehun flinched, and the younger male only kept his head down, choosing to stare at Lu Han's bag.

"I-ith-- I mean, is that so?"

"...your lisp shows when you're uncomfortable, I noticed...are you mad at me?"

"N-no! No, I'm not!" Sehun suddenly looked at him, a guilty look on his face. Lu Han could only blink at him.

"Then...then can we do this like normal human beings? Can we be friends?"

"Uhm..."

Lu Han didn't hear the rest of Sehun's answer. They heard Jongin running up to them, and Sehun bowed his head slightly as he moved to the side and waved at Jongin. Baekhyun wasn't far behind. Lu Han watched as Jongin and Sehun started walking away, Jongin waving and grinning at him in a form of goodbye. Lu Han suddenly felt down in the dumps. Sehun seemed like a really good kid, and he really wanted to get to know him, but somehow, Sehun seemed to hate him.

His phone suddenly rang, and when he saw the caller ID, all of the remaining happy vibes he had went down the drain. He pressed the ear to his phone just as Baekhyun sidled up to him, waiting for Chanyeol so they could go home together. The voice on the other line broke through, and Lu Han rolled his eyes.

"What." He hissed through clenched teeth, and Lu Han felt like he was listening to a tape-recording of his ex begging for him to come back.

Lu Han suddenly cursed in Chinese, and Baekhyun jumped in surprise. "Stop calling me!" Lu Han half-whispered, half-screamed, and he punched the end button so hard, he thought he might break his phone.

"Sorry if I made you guys wait! Kris held me up."

Lu Han turned to Chanyeol, not even aware that he was finally there. They started walking, and Baekhyun glanced at him in worry but he waved it off with a smile. Baekhyun nodded his head, and for a while, they walked in silence.

"Hey, don't you think Kyungsoo's really cute?" Baekhyun suddenly asked, twirling around and walking backwards as he looked at Chanyeol seriously.

Lu Han smiled slightly in agreement, but he saw Chanyeol frown slightly, quickly reaching a hand out to steady Baekhyun. "Do Kyungsoo? He's okay, I guess...kind of creepy, but-- Byun Baekhyun, watch your step."

Lu Han stifled a laugh as Baekhyun almost tripped, and Chanyeol steadied him. Some things never changed, and though Lu Han was in a continuously dropping mood, he couldn't help but smile at how Chanyeol was still the one looking after Baekhyun.

"I'm okay 'cause you're here, Park. Calm your boxers."

Lu Han rolled his eyes as Baekhyun winked, skipping ahead and leaving him and Chanyeol behind. Catching up to the taller male's pace, Lu Han poked him on the shoulder, earning him a curious glance from Chanyeol.

"So hey, how's the unrequited love going?" Lu Han asked, and Chanyeol could only sigh in defeat.

"Still unrequited, unfortunately."

"Have you tried telling him? Baekhyun's a goddamned wall, if you haven't noticed."

"I don't want to risk our friendship, Lu Han. I'm fine with being best friends...besides, he's still in love with him. Didn't he tell you?"

Lu Han felt sorry for Chanyeol as his usual easiness got replaced by an undeniable sadness and longing. Lu Han smiled in apology, nodding his head. "Baekhyun's emails are 80% composed of his inner feelings for him."

"So, you see? Why should I confess when I know that I'm just going to get rejected?"

"At least try...maybe all Baekhyun needs to see is that there's somebody else out there who loves him."

"Easy for you to say...but thanks, Lu Han. By the way, we really did miss you. We're glad you're back." Chanyeol grinned at him, reaching out to ruffle his hair and sling an arm around his shoulder.

"Hmm...it's good to be back, I guess."

"...what's up with you and Sehun? He's avoiding you like the plague." Chanyeol suddenly asked, and Lu Han laughed without humour.

"You noticed? I really don't know."

"He's a good kid naturally. I don't know why he's being so cold towards you..."

"Tell me about it. I want to be friends with him, too, but he just won't let me..."

Chanyeol and Lu Han looked at each other, before sighing simultaneously, both feeling bad for their own problems. Lu Han wasn't sure how to describe his first day at school, but it was definitely unforgettable. Somehow, he can't seem to get himself excited for the next day.

A/N: Another update! After being down in the dumps because of the issues that EXO has been facing lately, I'm finally back up into my usual mood!!! ....well, no, not really, but this is my way of coping! Plus, it's the least that I can do for EXO. Gotta keep on smiling because I don't want to make them worry. So, hey, let's all keep smiling and just hope for the best ^^ _{얘들아, 사랑하자!}

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