"Your brother is late."

Chanyeol lifts his head from the tablet on his lap and turns to his side. "No. Your best friend is late." He turns back and glances at his wrist watch. 3.25. His brother is indeed late.

"You said his flight is in the morning. He should have arrive by now. I'm hungry."

Chanyeol rolls his eyes and focuses back his attention to the tablet, typing something on it. "You ate two plates of pasta at lunch, and half of my steak. How can you still be hungry?" He turns and sees a grin on the small face.

"It's almost 4. My stomach is making room for my tea time."

"How can such a small person as you eat so much, I will never know, Luhan." Chanyeol sighs as he leans back to the seat.

Luhan grins even wider. "You don't need to know anyway." He looks around the arriving area, searching for a familiar face but all he sees are strangers. "I'm going to make your brother pay for being late." He takes the tablet off Chanyeol's lap. "Are you done with this?"

Chanyeol shakes his head. "There's a part that doesn't add up but I can't find it." He straightens himself, head turning slightly to look at Luhan. The small male is typing and deleting something and he smiles at that. "Found it?" He gets a nod and sighs contently. Luhan is indeed very good at his job.

"This is done." Luhan saves the work and closes the file. He stares at the folder icons on the main screen. "Hey."

"Hm?"

"I didn't know we have a job with them."

Chanyeol leans closer and directs his eyes at the folder pointed by Luhan. "Ah. That is just a proposal." He watches Luhan opening the said folder. "Dad said they are slowly rising and told me to make it stop." He smiles when Luhan sighed while looking at him. "What?"

"They are nice people." Luhan stares straight at Chanyeol. "I met their president once. He's a good man." He hears a sigh coming from his side. "Can we not..."

"I know." Chanyeol sags into his seat, hand patting Luhan's tight. "Don't worry. I will try stalling it until dad find another target." He throws his gaze to the crowds and smiles when he sees someone walking towards his direction. "Look. Your walking wallet is here."

Luhan whips his head to look in front of him and sees his best friend waving at him. "Minseok!" He slams the tablet to Chanyeol's chest.

Chanyeol shakes his head, hand rubbing his chest as he watches Luhan hugging Minseok tightly, squeezing him while swaying side to side. He raises a hand when his eyes met with Minseok's.

"I miss you!"

"You miss his money."

Luhan turns and sticks out his tongue at Chanyeol before releasing Minseok from his hug. "You are so late! Why are you late? Did something happened?"

Minseok frowns. "What are you talking about? I arrived on time." He takes a look at his wrist watch. "Look. I even arrived earlier then I should."

Luhan peeks at Minseok's watch. "Chanyeol said your flight is in the morning." He turns to Chanyeol. "Right?"

Minseok gets a nod from his younger brother and sighs. "You fell asleep when we're on the phone last night, right?"

"You called last night?" Chanyeol furrows as he doesn't remember talking to Minseok last night. He remembers talking to his desktop and telling it to not act up and suddenly shut down on its own. He fishes out his phone and opens the call history. Minseok's name is right under Luhan's. He looks at his brother. "Are you sure we talked?"

Minseok shrugs. "I think I'm the only one who did." He should have known not to call Chanyeol in the middle of the night to tell about his changed flight time. He stares at his younger brother and accepts it gladly when Chanyeol offered to bring his bag and follows from behind, letting the younger lead the way.

"Minseok."

"Hm?"

"Did you have fun?"

Minseok fixes his gaze at Luhan that is walking alongside with him. There are subtle black marks under the small eyes. Chanyeol must have them too. He forces a smile at Luhan, holding back his sighing as his mind thinking about his father. "I did. Those pandas were adorable."

Luhan pouts. It has been so long since he saw that black and white furry animal and really couldn't help feeling jealous when Minseok sent him the pictures he had taken with the animal on his trip. "We promised to go together."

"We did." Minseok lets Luhan hold his hand and he gives a small squeeze. They have been friends as long as he can remember and Luhan used pout when he brought Chanyeol to their playdate, saying that Chanyeol would just get in the way but he told him he couldn't leave his little brother alone and with more people to play with, it will be much more fun. Who would have thought years later, his best friend and his younger brother would work together. "Maybe you can ask Chanyeol to bring you."

Luhan huffs. "Did you forget your brother's favorite place outside the house is that small place right in front of the door?" He gets a chuckle at his words. "If it isn't for work, he wouldn't step out of his bed, let alone the house."

Minseok nods. Chanyeol has changed so much since he inherited the family business and he couldn't blame the younger.

"You guys wait here. I'll go get ther car."

Minseok watches as Chanyeol puts down his bag on the floor before stretching his arms.

"Why don't we just go together? I'm hungry. I need my tea time."

"Then you carry hyung's bag."

Luhan shakes his head and hugs Minseok's arm. "Go, go, go. Please go." He waves his hand as he watches Chanyeol slowly getting away from him.

"Did you have fun?"

 Luhan lifts his face to look at Minseok. "What do you mean?"

"The award ceremony." Minseok hears a sigh. "You went there, right?"

Luhan nods, releasing Minseok's arm and throws his gaze to the distance. "I did but if you call 'being left alone at a corner while smiling at every stranger passing by' is fun, then I guess I did have fun."

Minseok frowns. He knows Luhan isn't very fond of ceremonies and parties and will only go if he or Chanyeol will be there with him. His best friend is shy with strangers but Chanyeol was there. Luhan would have made one or two new friends with the younger by his side.

"We went to get a drink but when I turned, your giant little brother was gone to Heaven knows where." Luhan groans as he remembers the night. He even considered to stand on one of the many tables at the ceremony so that he could find Chanyeol when tiptoeing didn't do him any good. Then after seemed like forever, Chanyeol finally came back to him only to tell him that he found him a perfect someone. "Your brother is crazy."

Minseok chuckles. "You just knew?"

Luhan sighs. To think that award ceremony was his first work-related ceremony he been alone with Chanyeol. And with their relationship, he will have to attend more of those in the future. He smiles weakly when Minseok pat his back. Just hope that Chanyeol won't leave him alone to find him a someone again.

"Did he bought a new car?"

Luhan snaps from his thought as a big sedan stops in front of him. He nods. "Your dad didn't let him buy his own helicopter." He watches as Chanyeol gets out from the driver seat and putting Minseok's bag into the trunk. "Time for tea!"

Chanyeol grabs Luhan's hand that was reaching the door handle to the back seat.

"What?"

"You drive."

"Eh? Why? It's your car."

Chanyeol shakes his head. "I'm not going to be your driver while you sit at the back and order me around to find your 'tea house'."

Minseok smiles, listening to his younger brother and best friend arguing about cake and macaroon and parfait. No one could stop Luhan from having his 'tea time'. He walks to the driver and opens the door.

"Hyung! What are you doing?"

Minseok cranes his neck to look at his little brother. "I will drive. It's getting late and I just want to go home. Let's go eat cake already." He ducks to enter the car but someone pulls him and prevents him to go any further. "Chanyeol?"

"Drive!"

Minseok watches Chanyeol pushes Luhan into the driver seat an slams the door close. He smiles when his eyes met with the younger's. "Me?" His eyes widen when Chanyeol suddenly pulled him forward and hug him. "Chan..."

"I miss you, hyung." Chanyeol lets a long sigh. "Welcome back."

Minseok blinks repeatedly as Chanyeol slowly squeezes his little frame. His little brother is the strongest person he ever known but right now, the tall giant that is hugging him is no more than his little brother that was forced to take over the family business because he as the oldest son was too selfish and only thinks about himself. It has been a few years since Chanyeol inherited the company and he fully knows the reason behind the hug he is receiving. "I'm back." He circles his arms around the younger's torso. "It must have been so hard. I am so proud of you."

Chanyeol takes a deep breath and pulls away. He stares at his older brother. "Welcome back."

Minseok nods, his thumb wipes the tears away from Chanyeol's cheek. "I'm back."

+ + + + +

Joonmyeon grimaces as Jongdae slowly unwraps the bandage on his ankle. "How is it?"

"It is still swelling." Jongdae looks up to his young master. "We should go to the doctor." He sees Joonmyeon bites his lips at the suggestion. "Hyung."

"I'm fine." Joonmyeon lifts his injured leg slowly and stares at it. "I think it need a few more days."

"It has been 'a few more days', hyung. Are you sure it just a sprain?" Jongdae touches the red bump. "What if there's a broken bone or something worse?" He stands up from kneeling. "I'm going to get Yifan hyung."

Joonmyeon's eyes widen at the name and notices Jongdae is already at the door. He grabs hold the armchair and tries to stand up. "Jongdae, wait..."

Jongdae stops his track and turns to see Joonmyeon struggling to balance himself. "Hyung!" He runs toward the older and manages to catch Joonmyeon from stumbling forward. He sighs as he helps his young master to sit back. "Did you guys fight?" He gets a headshake and exhales. "Then, why are you avoiding him?"

"I'm not..."

"Hyung, I'm not blind." Jongdae kneels down in front of Joonmyeon, hands opening the first-aid kit he bought earlier to treat Joonmyeon's wound. He dabs some ointments on the swollen ankle and massages it gently. "I thought you consider him as a family now."

"I am..."

"Then, why are you keeping this from him?" Jongdae looks up, meeting with Joonmyeon's eyes. He noticed the slight limp when Joonmyeon came back from his day out with Zitao. The older told him that it's just a small sprain and that everything will be fine in the morning. But it never been fine even after a few days and it started getting worse yesterday. "He asked about you at dinner earlier."

Joonmyeon purses his lips, trying to hold the pain as Jongdae massages his leg. "He did?" He takes a deep breath when he saw Jongdae nod at his question. "What did you tell him?"

Jongdae stands up and wipes his hands. "That you have tons of work to finish and doesn't have the time to eat and other cliche lies." He sees Joonmyeon flinches at the last word. He knows he shouldn't said that to his young master but the older leave him with no choice. It was several days after the funeral when he noticed the small and subtle interactions Joonmyeon tried to initiate whenever Yifan is around and it got him to smile at the view because it's a sign that Joonmyeon is finally accepting Yifan as a part of his life. But the way his young master treated Yifan for the last few days really disappoint him. He saw the way Joonmyeon tried to avoid eye contact with Yifan while having their meals and there was only silence filled the dining room instead of the small talks his young master used to do. "Hyung."

"Hm?

"Are you sleeping here again?"

Joonmyeon looks up, staring at Jongdae before looking at the sofa near his drawing table. The pillow and blanket he used yesterday night are still there and with his ankle that isn't getting any better, it looks like he is going to sleep in his study again. He nods and earns a faint sigh from Jongdae. He watches the younger walks toward the sofa, taking the folded blanket and spreads it over, preparing his place to sleep.

"Won't you tell me?"

Joonmyeon blinks as Jongdae has his eyes on him.

"The reason you pushed Yifan hyung away."

Joonmyeon swallows, eyes fix at his injured leg. It wasn't like that. He didn't pushed Yifan away. It's just, he needs some time for himself to sort out all these thought that has been lingering inside his mind and he can't do that if Yifan is around.

Jongdae exhales as he walks back to Joonmyeon. He takes Joonmyeon by the arm, helping the older to stand up and head toward the sofa. He can't do anything if Joonmyeon won't tell him but that doesn't mean he just going to let it slide. He stares down at his young master that is now sitting on the sofa. "If it still like this tomorrow, I'm going to tell Yifan hyung."

"Tell me what?"

Joonmyeon whips his head at the voice and his eyes widen when he saw Yifan standing at the door frame.

"Yifan hyung." Jongdae watches as the Chinese male walks toward him and Joonmyeon before stopping right in front of them. "You are still awake?" He gets no answer and sees Yifan scanning Joonmyeon up and down.

"Tell me what?"

Joonmyeon keeps his head down, eyes lock at his swollen ankle as he listens to Jongdae telling Yifan about his injury. He glances up when the conversation ended and sees Yifan staring straight at him with serious eyes. Yifan must be mad at him.

"Did you finish treating?"

"No, not yet. There's no new bandage in the kit so I haven't wrap the ankle yet. I'll go get it now."

"Then, please bring it upstairs."

"Up..." Joonmyeon pauses when Yifan hunched down over him and gasps when Yifan put an arm under his knees and another one on his back, lifting him off the sofa. "Yi... Yifan!"

Jongdae watches his younger master wriggle his legs in Yifan's hold, wanting to be let down but the Chinese male tightens his arms around Joonmyeon instead. "Hyung?" He meets with Yifan's eyes.

"Please bring some ice pack too." Yifan gets a nod from the younger for his request and exits the study room, heading straight toward the stairs. He feels Joonmyeon's arms hugging his neck as he starts climbing the steps and he holds the male closer to his chest.

Joonmyeon fixes his eyes on his lap, trying not to notice Yifan's breathe on his face everytime the male exhale. He can feel Yifan being extra careful while climbing the stairs as the male's grip on his shoulder and legs are firm. He closes his eyes when they finally arrived in front of his bedroom and opens them back when Yifan put him down on his bed. He watches Yifan kneeling on one knee in front of him before taking his bruised leg. He's taken aback when Yifan suddenly looking up to meet his eyes. He purses his lips as Yifan keeps staring at him with a disappointed expression etched on his face and breathes out when Yifan broke the gaze to look down at his foot.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

Joonmyeon's breath hitches at the question.

"Am I not needed unless to accompany you to your events?"

Joonmyeon freezes. Yifan's words hit him straight at his chest and he gnaws his lower lip. He never thought as Yifan like that but perhaps his behavior lately toward the male made Yifan think that way. He hears a sigh and tries not to let a sound as Yifan rubbing circles around his sprained ankle.

"I thought you have accepted me as a friend." Yifan exhales. "Looks like it was just me."

"No!"

Yifan lifts his chin to look at Joonmyeon. The male has pressed his lips into a thin line as he shakes his head slowly.

"I... I do..." Joonmyeon stares straight into Yifan's eyes. "It... it just... I..."

"Hyung, I got the bandage."

Joonmyeon turns to his bedroom door and sees Jongdae walking toward him and Yifan, hands holding a tray full with various things to treat his ankle. He watches the younger place the tray beside Yifan before kneeling beside him.

Jongdae's eyes follow Yifan as the older takes the cloth he brought and wets it the cold water in the tray. He watches as Yifan wipes Joonmyeon's leg and notices how his young master try not to make a sound. It must be painful and he regrets he didn't force Joonmyeon to go to the doctor much earlier. He turns to Yifan. Maybe the Chinese male can convice Joonmyeon to go. "Hyung, I..."

"Were you planning to hide it from me forever?"

Jongdae closes his mouth and fixes his gaze at Yifan. The older has his eyes trained at Joonmyeon's injured foot but he can see the stoic face the Chinese male has on. Tonight is the first time he sees that kind of face on Yifan and couldn't help feeling guilty for listening to Joonmyeon to keep his injury a secret from Yifan. He glances up to look at his young master and sees Joonmyeon biting his lips at the question.

Joonmyeon shuts his eyes and holds his breath, doesn't know how to answer. To be honest, he planned to do just that because he thought his leg would heal in no time and Yifan would never know about it but he was wrong. The idea would never work in the first place as Yifan and him live under one roof and he should have realize it sooner.

"Did I do something wrong to make you hate me?"

Jongdae catches how Joonmyeon's eyes widen at Yifan's words before denying everything. He listens to his young master stuttering while trying to find the right words to explain why he does what he did.

"I..." Joonmyeon pauses. He should tell Yifan the truth, shouldn't he? He watches as Yifan presses an ice pack against his ankle. "Yifan, I..."

"No, it's fine. It wasn't my place to know in the first place and..."

Jongdae shifts a bit when Joonmyeon suddenly pulled his leg from Yifan's hold, making the ice pack fall on the carpeted floor. He stares at his young master's face and sees Joonmyeon trying to hold back his anger by biting his lip. He watches Yifan picking up the ice pack and put it back on the tray, not looking at Joonmyeon at all. He exhales as he can feel the tension between the two is getting thicker and he stands up. He will apologize to Yifan later but now, his young master need to fix the misunderstanding Yifan has towards him.

Joonmyeon turns his head, eyes fix at Jongdae's back as the younger slowly getting farther from him and steps out of his room, closing the bedroom door with a faint thud. It seems like the younger had noticed what's going on and decided to leave him alone with Yifan. He looks down when Yifan took hold of his leg back and start to wrap the new bandage around his sprained ankle. He takes a deep breath, eyes watching Yifan's hands circling his ankle. How is he suppose to start? Should he apologize first for ignoring the taller for the past few days or should he tell him the reason why he did that in the first place?

Yifan hears a sigh coming from above him and he purses his lips. Ever since they got back from the award ceremony, Joonmyeon has been avoiding him. He doesn't know why but the small talk during their meal has stopped and the male would ignore him instead of greeting him with the warm smile he usually get when they see each other. If he did unintentionally offended him in any way, Joonmyeon should tell him so that he could apologize properly. But several days had passed without him knowing the reason and he couldn't hold it anymore when Jongdae told him that Joonmyeon is too busy to eat dinner with him. He went to the male's study room to find the answer but he found out about something else instead.

"Yifan, I..."

Yifan looks up, meeting with the small eyes. He waits for the next word but it never come as Joonmyeon keeps wetting his lips while his eyes looking everywhere but him. He inhales. He knows their marriage is just a business but that doesn't mean they can't be friends, and he really thought that they have become one when Joonmyeon started to tell him about his day at the office a few days after the funeral. It feels like the male finally opening up to him and he is glad to be someone that others can depend on but it turns out that all just in his head.

Joonmyeon watches as Yifan smoothes the cease on his wrapped ankle. His mind replaying the scene on the night of the award ceremony. The words that came from Jongin's friends, it's not like he never heard it before. They weren't that harsh either. He had heard a lot worst than that, about what people said about him and he took it with a straight face. But that night, he cried. He cried his heart out and Yifan was there witnessing everything. The male saw him in his weakest state and he doesn't know how to act in front of Yifan anymore.

"You should rest."

Joonmyeon snaps from his thought and sees Yifan already standing on his feet, hands holding the tray Jongdae brought earlier. He watches as Yifan takes a step back before meeting with his eyes.

Yifan inhales deeply. If Joonmyeon doesn't want to tell why he is being avoided like a plague, then he won't ask. He turns and heads for the door. Maybe it's the male's way saying he should know his place, that he is here in the house is to accompany Joonmyeon to his event and nothing more. He closes the door behind him. Then, he will do just that.