For the second time that night, Tao felt like he had taken a roundhouse kick straight to the chest. If the circumstances weren’t what they were at that moment, he would have pinched himself to make sure that he wasn’t dreaming again. Again, his ears had to be deceiving him because there was no way that those words were really coming out of his mouth.

Sehun was in love with him?

Before he could even open his mouth to speak, he was pushed away. “Sehun, wait--”

“Just shut up, okay? I didn’t even want to tell you any of this, but you were being so damn pushy. But I guess it’s my fault for being an idiot and falling for my best friend in the first place. Anyways, I can set you up to work for a different artist. SNSD has cute members that you might like. And I understand if you don’t want to be friends anymore….this is all my fa--”

Tao silenced his words, pulling the singer close and capturing his lips in a kiss. He could feel Sehun stiffening against him in surprise until he relaxed and eventually kissed back. His arms wrapped around Sehun’s slim waist as he deepened the contact, reveling in the taste of the lips he had yearned for after so long. When they finally pulled away, both of their faces were flushed.

“You know, you really talk too much sometimes.” Tao grinned at his confused expression.

The rest of the night had passed in a warm blur. The two had spent their “sleepover” huddled together on the couch, a tangle of limbs under a hastily thrown blanket.  The movie was completely ignored, and they had talked for hours on end. After the truth had unexpectedly come out, there had been many questions such as,

“When did you know that you liked me?”

“When you beat up that guy on the playground for making fun of my haircut.”

and

“If you liked me back then, why did you kiss that Minah girl in fifth grade?”

“Because you made me! You kept calling me a baby.”

When they had finally fallen asleep, they were wrapped up in each other completely. After a long night of talking and embracing and disbelief, it was well into the afternoon before either of them stirred.

Sehun’s face was buried in the other’s neck, while his arm hung loosely over his waist. He could feel Tao’s hand pressed lightly into the small of his back, and the warmth emanating from him was soothing. His eyes opened slowly, and he froze quickly. It took a second for his mind to process just what was going on. After a few seconds, a recount of last night played in his mind like an old movie. Just thinking about it brought a coy smile to his lips. Sehun had never expected things to end up how they had.

The blonde had been in denial of his feelings for Tao since high school. He remembered not being able to forget about the cute little boy that he’d left behind in China. Not a day had gone by without him thinking about Tao and worrying about how he was doing. It had taken him a while, but eventually Sehun had realized his thoughts were the source of something more than just friendliness. He’d tried to dismiss the idea, but no matter what he did, or what girl he tried to distract himself with, he would always drift back to thoughts of Tao. And when he started to gain popularity and his career began growing, one of the first things Sehun planned to do was to travel back to China to visit Tao. But it seemed that fate had different ideas, and he not long after, he found himself face to face with his best friend in the lobby of SM Entertainment.

A smile tugged at his lips as he pulled back slightly to look at Tao. It seemed like forever ago that they had been reunited. And he also felt as if he knew more about his best friend than he ever had. Like the fact that he hated the busy city life and prefered living somewhere quieter. Or that he enjoyed street vendor food more than was healthy. And that he had been in love with the same person since he’d even been able to understand what love was. Sehun felt very lucky to be that person. He brought his hand up to touch lightly along Tao’s jawline as he slept peacefully. His curious fingers trailed down and played along the collarbone that were exposed by the low collared shirt. His eyes glanced back up at Tao, and he wondered how much he could bother him before the other woke up and he got caught. Sehun had just started to lift up the edge of Tao’s shirt when he heard and felt a deep voice.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Tao grumbled, his words gravelly and heavy with sleep.

Sehun didn’t flinch at getting caught red handed, simply playing it off by resting his hand against Tao’s hip. “Nothing, nothing.” he responded slyly.

“Mhm, you’re always up to something….” Tao stretched lightly. He soon relaxed, his hand against Sehun’s back pressing to push him in closer. After limiting himself for so long, he was glad that he finally had the opportunity to touch him as he pleased, to revel in the warmth of his embrace. And he was eager to make up for lost time.

Looking back at him, Sehun noticed how the other was staring at him intensely. What was he thinking about so seriously? Before he could ask, he saw Tao leaning in slowly. Last night, their kiss had been in the heat of the moment and quick. Now, with nothing but calm silence, they took their time. There was slight hesitation before their lips met, but the contact was much sweeter. It was as if they were finally getting what they had pined over for so long, but both of them were tentative to make that next step.

They both knew that taking that step from friendship to a real relationship would be irreversible. They were aware that there was no turning back after they had gone forward. But neither of them dared to think of “what if” in that moment, instead focusing on only each other as they moved in closer, desperate to diminish any space between them. They had finally gotten what they’d wanted, and neither of them would allow it to slip away.