e^iπ + e^i2π + e^i4π + e^i8π

Their Saturday library meetings eventually continued to spring, and one Saturday after and before a string of tedious tests, Yixing found himself staring out of the window and away from his notebook. Chen had mumbled something about the toilet and left their usual corner for the basement and he was stuck at yet another problem. So instead of staring at it hoping that his text book would turn into flames (or at least something that would make the problem at hand disappear, he found himself rather fond of his textbook thinking about all of its' connections to and memories of Chen) he stared out of the window, staring longingly at the beautiful, green spring grass in the low sun, radiantly glowing and asking for his attention. How nice wouldn't it be to just take a tiny, micro– no nanoscopic break and take a pin wheel on the grass practically yelling for him to touch, something he had a hard time convincing himself wasn't true about Chen's skin… Unable to control himself, he was slipping out of his seat and the building and ran to the grass and landing on it with both hands and feet in the air, taking a series of acrobatic show-offs and just being happy in the spring light. He didn't notice Chen returning from the toilet, and Chen didn't notice him – his mind stuck on Euler and all of his contributions to mathematics – and when he'd walked up the stairs and find their usual spot empty, he was rather puzzled and his eyes wandered to around and passed the window, but there was something there he felt was familiar… Looking back, he let out a laugh and walked out to the funny weirdo doing an aerial and smiling like a dork doing so.

When he got outside he found Yixing midair in a split and let out a rather loud noise in awe, making Yixing jump – well fall – and turn his head. When he realised Chen was standing there, looking at him, his hand wandered to his neck as he stood up, the other hand just simply by his side (and Chen's eyes probably did get bigger) and bowed his head letting out a nervous embarrassed laugh. It took a while before any of them said anything, but Yixing asked if they should return inside. Chen, seeming a little dazzled let Yixing grab his hand and guide him inside. Then he muttered “are you sure? You seemed so happy out there… I don't want to–“ before Yixing cut him off, saying he just got bored because, letting the volume of his voice drop, he got stuck on a problem. Then the sound of Chen's laugh hit his ears and he could feel him pushing himself playfully on him. He could feel the air from Chen's laugh near his neck and he involuntarily shuddered.

The librarian approached them as usual now fifteen minutes before closing time as Chen was almost all over him explaining him something he had a lot of difficulties understanding and following since Chen was leaning so close to him and Yixing dreaded getting up since he had started thinking about how close Chen was to his and that had led to a series of complications. So he sat there quietly for Chen to wrap up and when Chen was busy with his nose in his satchel Yixing got up and went to the toilets. When he got back, Chen was still not done and the librarian was rolling her eyes so he quickly packed up his own things and left with Chen right behind him, smiling to the librarian.

On the way to the subway Chen suddenly broke the silence and asked him for how long he'd danced. Yixing was rather stunned by the question and stopped and looked at him for a second before he caught up again stating he didn't know Chen knew he danced.

“Oh please, it's not exactly a secret…” and Yixing saw how he bit his lip saying it, “the practice rooms are on the way to the school library and you often forget to close the door…”. It was quiet for a time before he seemed to realise that hey “we got some friends in common and they've made me promise to see them perform”. Yixing couldn't help how his cheeks burned and mumbled “my mother was an ice skater so she wanted me to learn it too, but I've tried everything from skating to hip hop, and lately Tao has said he'd learn me wushu if I help him with some techniques”. Chen turned and started rambling about how Tao had promised him the same but he'd said Chen was too hopeless and just stick to singing. Apparently he often had to sing lullabies for his roommate so he'd forget 'the ghosts' and once again, Yixing started to wonder exactly what their relationship was. He had already asked Xiumin, but the other had merely laughed his head off and hit him so hard he didn't really dare asking again when the elder stopped laughing. Xiumin was really strong even though his face decieved many. Xiumin's reaction seemed to tell him it was a meaningless question and that it probably wasn't anything between them, but guys showering together, not at a gym with showers side by side but in one small cubicle seemed very fuzzy for him.

◊

Yixing's morning class was cancelled but he didn't find out before he was already on his way to school so he grudgingly decided to go to a nearby café for a coffee. His eyes barely open he walked in and checked the menu on the board as a familiar voice said “welcome, may I take your order?” as the barista turned to look who was there.

“Oh hello, don't you have math class now?”

“No, it got cancelled.” Still partly wondering if it was all a dream, Yixing enjoyed watching Chen's face so early in the morning instead of his fast talking math teacher, and thinking it was all a dream he found nothing peculiar in the fact that Chen knew when he had math. Their common friend Xiumin was a year older but taking math at the university with Chen and a few others he only knew as Xiumin's friends, and Tao was a year younger and taking math with his peers like normal people – not that Tao was anywhere near 'normal', so if Yixing hadn't been thinking it was a dream he'd probably think a little bit more about it. “I didn't knew you worked here?”

“Oh, I started recently, I practically begged for the job because I've been wanting to learn how to be a barista. There is so much cool fluid dynamics and… well, I really like the beauty and simplicity of it as well.”

“Fluid dynamics? As in physics? You have a part time job because you like to study the physics of coffee?” Chen turned rather deep red, a started mumbling “well, this job got everything. It's also a stupid try to get better at practical math.”

“Math?” Yixing said amazed.

“Yes, it's not exactly a secret that I'm awful at practical math.” Yixing might have been rather rude, staring open eyed at him as he made him a coffee, but after that, Chen would ask him (or just out in the air) “what's 37+29” and find ridiculously easy stuff on his Texas CAS, which was really hilarious to watch, and Chen would scream “what!” (with a ever so slight blushing smile) every time Yixing started to laugh at him, and sometimes hide his face in Yixing's arm refusing to look at him. Yixing took his coffee and silently went to sit down at a empty table from where he could inauspiciously watch the other work and read a rather old looking book.

He jumped when Chen said that his shift ended soon, so they could go to next class together, and Yixing nodded avoiding meeting his eyes. Another young male came in from the back and gave Chen a hug and Yixing thought he heard something like “is that the guy…? Go, don't worry I'll take care of it”, but Yixing just guessed he'd heard something wrong. Chen smiled and a growl escaped from Yixing's throat as Chen untied his apron and took it over his head, walking to the back. He reemerged a couple minutes later out of his work uniform and now in his school uniform and let his hands grip the other male's shoulder as the male was taking an order. They walked out of the café and Chen said that the guy he'd seen was Xiumin's boyfriend Han, Lu Han. He started rambling about how Xiumin had first seen him after Chen started working there, and had been following him like a dork to the café, disappointed every time Han wasn't there, but he quickly learned (or apparently forced Chen to tell him) his schedule, and he would come pick Chen up from his shift and using every excuse seeing Chen to meet Han. It wasn't until Xiumin's birthday another of their friends taking math above their peers had arranged a party and made Chen convince Han to go. The said friend, Yifan, had apparently let Xiumin get really drunk and pushed him into Han's arms, and it had almost been a year since. The walk to the school wasn't so long, so Chen laughed when they reached to third floor, saying he should hear the rest of the story too since it was so funny and went for his locker to get his history books. Yixing also made his way to his own locker and got out his history book and the notebook filled with doodles and unicorns (he sadly sat in front of Chen in this class, and thus the notebook was one of the more creative of his). He was locking his locker when he noticed someone was standing near him. As he turned he found out it was Chen, holding a tower of books in his arms.

“Yixing…” Chen called out catching up to him, his voice uncertain and shy, “why do you take physics and advanced mathematics?” Yixing looked up at him and got up, it wasn't really the question he'd expected.

“I want to study architecture”, Yixing let the last word hang in the air. The silence once again settled around them, the busy library rather quiet in the weekend.

“I didn't know that” Chen suddenly broke the silence, "I always thought you'd become a dancer or a choreographer.”

“Well, ever since I was little, I've been confused by it – architecture, geometry and stuff, but curious…” Yixing began as they made their way to their classroom. Their teacher was already there and the bell rang, so their conversation died out as they made it to their seats. The whole lesson, Yixing could feel a pair of eyes watching him, but he was too embarrassed to turn and see if it was true.

Yixing had been practising with Tao for hours, and he felt really tired, but when Tao asked him if he'd like to come to his room to check out his wushu equipment Yixing found it impossible to say no. And he told himself, he was absolutely certain that it was because he wanted to try the swords and sticks and not because he wanted to see what Chen's room looked like. They made their way over campus and Yixing tried to subtly asked Tao if his roommate would be there (because he really felt like he'd needed to be prepared for seeing Chen, what if he'd just come out of the shower with a towel around his neck trying to dry his wet hair and…). Apparently he wasn't subtly enough, because Tao ended his train of thought by reaching an arm around his waist and ruffle his hair, hip to hip. Yixing was for once happy Tao was so tall, if not he might have breathed down his neck which would only have given Tao even more reasons and ways to .

“If he's not there, you're showering with me instead.”

“What?” Yixing couldn't believe his own ears.

“It's late!”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“You made me swetty!”

“Uh, I'm pretty sure you asked for it, you even convinced me into stretching together afterwards…” Yixing grumbled as Tao unlocked the door.

“You stretched without me?” Yixing jumped at the voice suddenly interrupting their conversation, and turned to see Chen walking down the corridors.

“Oh, you're back! How come I don't get any welcome hugs?”

“Ew, hell no, you're sweaty and disgusting!” Chen's comment made Yixing crack up and laughing, he leaned even closer to Tao (who still held around his waist) to not fall down.

“Hey, I'm hugging you right now, and you still want someone else! I can't believe you” Yixing teased, pretending to push Tao away.

“Why are you two ganging up on me! It's unfair! And you're both showering with me!” “What?” Yixing's eyes nearly fell out their sockets and if he'd caught a glimpse of Chen he'd seen pretty much the same reaction.

“Tao, there won't be any ghosts! I showered before I left and there were none there–”

“You showered without me? How could you! You promised you'd always wait! Come, let's shower” Tao mutted as he dragged Yixing away.

“What? Why would we shower together?”

“To save water, now shut up.” Yixing felt utterly manhandled. He'd never showered with another guy in a single cubicle before. Tao let him go and threw him a towel, and he was about to freak out, wondering if Tao would undress him if he didn't manage to escape. He felt a hand grabbing his arm before he heard Chen yelling at Tao saying he couldn't just force people into their shower.

“But you already washed.”

“Tao, you need to ask, if they say no, you can't force them,” Yixing never felt happier to see Chen, and he inched closer to him as if to hide from the scary shower monster. But then, much to Yixing's surprise Chen turned to him, their faces only a few inches away and Yixing felt lost staring into those beautiful feline eyes. “But could you shower with him though? I really don't want to shower again.” Before he knew it and understood what he'd agreed to, he'd started nodding.

“Yay” and the scary predidator was over him again. Crap, crap, crap. Why did he have to nod right then he asked himself.

“Wait, I don't have anything clean to shift into.” He tried to come up with anything that would've saved him from this.

“Oh, Chen, can Yixing borrow your clothes? He's more your size than mine.” Tao turned to looked at Yixing with his mouth open, gaping at him. “What? It's true. I'm tall.” Tao said with the biggest most scary grin Yixing had ever seen creeping up on his face.

“Of course, here” Chen said coming back into the bathroom with a small stack of neatly folded clothes on his arm. Okay, if he got to touch Chen's clothes and smell them it probably wouldn't be so bad. At least he hoped, because Tao was undressing right beside him, and he was desperately looking in any other direction.

“Thank you…”

“No problem. You can stay here too? Tao probably want let you go tonight anyway.” “Excuse me?” Chen chuckled and Tao closed the door, removing Yixing's clothes and pushing him into the shower.

Thankfully, it was apparently enough for Tao that he stood there, and they cleaned as Yixing tried his best to not think of that he was actually showering together with a male, his very good and absolutely insane friend, and rather imagine it was Chen. Which was a bad idea, so he sped up and jumped out, Tao coming out a few seconds after shrieking like a girl about waiting for him. Yixing was already slipping on Chen's clothes, and they were just so soft, they felt just like Chen's other clothes he'd felt as he leaned toward him while studying, and almost as soft as Chen's skin, and Yixing really needed to stop thinking about it. They walked out of the bathroom and found Chen sitting by his desk scribbling.

“Done already? Wow, I've never gotten Tao to shower that fast, did you have to skip –”

“Yes,” Tao growled, obviously unhappy.

“Aw, poor Taozi,” Chen got up and hugged Tao and ruffled his head, a view that if it wasn't for the fire of jealousy in Yixing's tummy – he'd laughed at the silly tall baby.

Luckily, or at least he hoped so, Yixing managed to escape from Tao with the help of Chen promising the very big boy that he'd sing for him until he fell asleep. The promise almost made Yixing stay, but somehow he managed to ignore the magnetic powers or something that seemed to be pulling him closer to Chen. Still dressed in Chen's pyjamas he walked over to his dorm, to the room he shared with the Korean exchange student Junmyeon. Junmyeon gave him a strange look when he came in with wet hair, carrying his gymclothes and dressed in pyjamas he'd never seen before. Yixing mumbled something about Tao, but Jun didn't seem to let it go, so he went over to the other where he was working with some homework. When he reached him he saw it was his Chinese homework from his extra classes. “How is the Chinese going?” he asked quietly, hoping Jun would let it drop. Jun gave him a look that said that he knew what Yixing was doing, but he lifted his hand and pushed his bangs back as he leaned back on the chair and complained how difficult it was to understand everything.

“Can I help you?”

“Would you?” Jun made those puppy eyes and Yixing laughed and ruffled his hair making Jun growl silently, but Yixing knew the other wasn't actually mad and quite enjoyed to affection after such a long, tiresome day. Yixing grabbed his chair and sat down beside him, and eventually they moved on from Chinese to the Chinese in their mutual subjects like math and stuff. Helping Jun was never really hard, Jun was so hardworking and patient, so they finished and went to bed before it got too late.

Yixing's senses was all overloaded, and he woke up feeling very lightheaded and smelling Chen everywhere. Which got him to remember he was wearing his pyjamas (which did explain the very pleasant dream, where they were sweaty after dancing and Chen sat down on his lap, face to face–) and notice that he would have to clean the pyjamas before returning it. Luckily for him, Jun seemed to not notice and be sleeping quietly, so he grabbed his uniform and went to the bathroom.