“Tao? Tao? Where are you?” I came home and dumped my stuff on the dining table. The kitchen was quiet, and there’s a banana peel in the empty trash can. Tao must be home somehow, but he’s not on the ground floor. I run up the stairs calling his name.

                “Tao? Tao?” I knocked on his bedroom door. After ten knocks I went inside his room. His bed was made and untouched, his training gear on the floor next to his bedside table. He is definitely home. Where the hell is he?

                “Tao? Tao? Huang Zitao?”

                SCREEEEEECH.

                “Yikes!” I jumped out of my skin at the terrible screeching noise. “Who’s there?!”

                There was no answer, just a terrible screech, the kind you make when you scratch nails against a chalkboard. It was piercing and just absolutely suffocating, and it seemed to be coming from…Tao’s closet?

                “Hello? Hello? Oh !!” the noise was getting worse and I flung the door wide open. The noise stopped instantly and someone appeared in the closet. I screamed in horror until I saw a small tuft of blonde hair peeking from the giant sushi roll of sheets.

                “Tao?!?!”

               “You found me, thank god.” Tao panted heavily, his hair was a mess as he tried to entangle himself from the sheets.

                “What happened?! How did you end up in here? Are you hurt?”

                “I’m fine. I was just er…cleaning out my closet and got myself locked up in here.”

                “How could you get yourself locked up? The doors should be open…”I beat the sidewalls of the closet and something tumbled out of the closet. I picked it up before Tao could reach for it.

                “Fifty Shades of Grey?” I looked at Tao quizzically.

                “That’s not mine. I was holding it for a friend.”

                “Then why does it say To Huang Zitao on the inside?” I pointed to the first page. “I thought you only read martial art manuals and health magazines.”

                “Er…would you believe me if I said it was a prank gift?”

                “Hang on, what is that panel on the back of your closet?”

                “I wouldn’t do that…no STOP!!” Too late, I had pushed the panel and it slid open, revealing a waterfall of books that dropped and it hit Tao who was underneath, some fell on his legs and a giant volume of Breaking Dawn hit him on the head. I stared at the piles of books behind the panel and the many more scattered under the sheets in his closet.

                “Oh my goodness, you’re a closet romance reader!!”

                “No I’m not! These aren’t mine!” Tao tried to hide the books by grabbing them and stuffing them back. I picked up another book which had fallen out and Tao stopped me.

                “Hey hey hey be careful with that! That’s a limited edition copy of Gone With The Wind!”

                “Oh my god, Tao, I had no idea you read books like this! Twilight, Fifty Shades of Grey, Valley of the Dolls, I’ve Got Your Number and…the Story of O?!”

                “Hey hey hey! These books are all serious works of literature okay?” Tao said defensively, trying to close his secret panel back. “Someday, when we’re all old and grey, we will thank the wonders and talent that God has given these fantastic writers and who knows, maybe kids will study these books as literature components.”

                “A story about vampires and werewolves as a serious literature component?”

                “Hey, Dracula is a serious work of literature. I bet in the early days, people thought of it as a frivolous teen book.”

                “Well Delta of Venus would definitely not make the cut 20 years from now.” I said, handing him the book. “Seriously Tao, you don’t have to be embarrassed about reading romance and a novels.”

                “You must think I’m some kind of wimp now. I can see all traces of my handsome masculinity drifting away…”

                “Tao…”

                “I’m not a man…my mother was right, I should have just moved to France and lounged in gay bars or something.”

                “Tao, I’m your housemate. You use more hairspray than a salon; trust me, whatever ounce of masculinity you had has long drifted away then.”

                “Metroual is in nowadays you know?” Tao stuck out his tongue at me and unravelled the sheets around him.

                “Come on Tao, come out of the closet.”

                “I already came out a long time ago.”

                “Not that,” I sighed, rubbing my temples. “Like seriously, get out.”

                “Fine,” Tao dumped the sheets in and closed the door.

                “In other news, aside from my recent discovery of your secret romance novels addiction,” I teased. “I’ve got a job proposition for you from my boss.”

                “You mean Kris?”

                “Okay seriously, you have got to stop calling him that.”

                “He who calls his teddy Mr. Winston should not throw stones.” Tao put his hands on his waist, wagging his tongue at me. Seriously, he is such a kid sometimes.

                “Fine, ….I mean Kranky Kris has a job for you. He wants you to come to the office first thing tomorrow morning to discuss the project.”

                “What does it entail? I’d like to know before I say yes.”

                “Let’s go for dinner and I’ll tell you.”

                I don’t even need to look at Tao to know that he’s already said yes.

                                                            ********************

                Kyungsoo could have been somewhere else. He could have been back in his bed, wrapped up in sheets and falling asleep. He could be in the kitchen, trying out a new recipe for fun. He could be on the Internet, catching up on his fanfics and watching reruns of old BxL videos.

                Instead, he’s down here, sitting on the stone steps leading to their dorm while his friends play a little bit of football. His roommate Leo was sick and tired of Kyungsoo being holed up in his room all the time.

                “You’re like a hermit. You never leave your ing shell. Or like some sort of vampire. I bet the light must kill you.”

                “Sunlight does make my skin darker…do you know the amount of UV rays that penetrate the Earth nowadays?”

                “You are coming out with me.”

                “But…”

                “Don’t argue with me!” Leo pulled Kyungsoo out of the dorm before the boy could try to protest. Kyungsoo sulked. It’s stupid and boring. There’s nothing for me to do! I’m sitting here on a hard slab when I could be doing something else in my room!!

                “Jongin! Come join us!!” Leo and Ravi called, motioning for Jongin to join them. Jongin was just lying on the floor, basking in the late spring sun. He got up lazily but decided to join them anyways.

                Kyungsoo and Jongin had gotten to know each other rather well lately. Kyungsoo even calls Jongin by his real name instead of his business name Kai. But occasionally the name ‘Kai’ does pop up every once in a while. Kyungsoo thinks Jongin is lazy and flirty. He just doesn’t seem to have a passion for anything. Well, maybe dancing, but even then he just does it so…effortlessly. Doesn’t matter much anyways, he could be wearing a tutu and mowing the lawn and the girls will still flock to him.

                “Goal!!!” Leo scored one, pumping his fist in the air as the ball travelled past the goalie Kevin. He high-fived Jongin who had assisted him earlier. Jongin put his hands on his waist, panting and wiping the sweat off his brow. He had removed his jacket and was now wearing a very flimsy wifebeater underneath. He had muscular arms and a gorgeous tan skin. The ladies from the next dorm who were watching the boys play from their windows are probably having a heart attack now.

                Still boring. Why does this sport even exist? Kyungsoo complained in his head. He leaned down, putting his head in between his lap. Maybe he could just fall asleep in this awkward position or something…

                “I take it football is not your thing.” Kyungsoo could smell the thick musk of sweat as someone plopped down next to him. His lips curled upwards at the smell but he lifted his head anyways.

                “No it’s not. It’s lame and boring.”

                “How do you know? You haven’t even tried it yet.” Jongin said, wiping his sweat.

                “It’s 11 grown men on a field chasing after a ball in the hot sun. No thanks, I’m happy here on my stone pedestal.”

                “For the record, we don’t have 11 men, we’re playing on the road and the sun is just barely there.” Jongin looked up, checking for signs of the sun and Kyungsoo’s facial expression, who is still bored.

                “You seem to be holed up in your room all the time. What do you do in there?”

                “Edit pictures, run my website, catch up on fanfics…”

                “Anything that doesn’t involve sitting in front of the PC?”

                “Sleep. It’s what I do best.” Kyungsoo shrugged.

                “Good, so we have something in common.” Jongin chuckled. “My nickname was the sleep demon. I can sleep anywhere at any time.”

                “Even here? On the steps where people could trample over you?”

                “Oh yeah, just that I don’t want to. If I did I would miss talking to you.” Jongin smiled. Kyungsoo couldn’t decide if he was flirting or just being plain friendly. The shorter male just shrugged and turned away. Even this conversation was getting boring.

                “How about something outdoorsy?”

                “No way. The outdoor environment hates me.” Kyungsoo shook his head vehemently. “There’s bugs and the sun and all sorts of…”

                “What? People?” Jongin cackled, his laugh coming off like a crazed hyena. “Just get out there. You’re not gonna see the world if you stay in your room, and no, internet does not count.”

                “Just leave me alone.” Kyungsoo pushed him, wanting to just bury himself in a hole somewhere. Then he felt someone grab his arm and jerk him upwards.

                “What the…”

                “Come on, you and I are going somewhere else.”

                “Wait…” no time to protest, Jongin was already pulling the boy away. Kyungsoo hated himself for this. He should really gain some muscle somehow so that he can fight off anyone who keeps doing this.

                “Here,” Jongin had taken them to a kid’s playground just a few blocks from their dorm. He pointed to the swing seat. “Sit.”

                “You can’t be serious.” Kyungsoo stared at him.

                “I’m dead serious. Sit.”

                “I’m not a baby and you can’t make me.”

                “You don’t really want to test that,” Jongin smirked. “Now hurry up, the kids on the slides are staring at you.”

                Kyungsoo sighed and against every bone of his body, he sat down on the swing. He could feel Jongin’s hands pulling the chains of the swing set, his feet being gently lifted off the ground. He could hear the creak the swing set made and he could already imagine the swing set falling down to the ground. Who knows how long it has been since the damn thing was oiled?

                “Just relax,” Jongin said, feeling Kyungsoo’s tense demeanour. “This is safe. You can’t die from a swing set.”

                “How do you know? Are you some kind of…AIEEEEEE!!” Kyungsoo’s first squeal escaped like a whale bumping into another whale. Jongin let his hands free and the swing, holding a rather terrified Kyungsoo swung forward. The set returned to Jongin’s hands and he pushed again, making Kyungsoo fly higher and higher.

                “Can you see the boys playing football across the wall?”

                “I….see….Leo….and Ravi….kicking….”

                “Has anyone scored?”

                “I….can’t….whoa!!” Kyungsoo swung back further and realised that Jongin was no longer there. He was swinging at maximum amplitude and had a steady momentum going on. Jongin set himself on the swing set next to him.

                “First one to stop swinging loses!!” he yelled on the top of his lungs.

                “Deal!!” Kyungsoo smiled, using his feet to propel him further. He laughed with glee, feeling the warm sun on his skin and occasionally peeking just above the wall to spot the boys playing football a few blocks away. He would look next to him and see Jongin’s silver hair shaking in the wind, the sun kissing his skin and lathering it in a beautiful colour that just made him even more gorgeous. Kyungsoo could only smile and laugh, using his legs to propel him. He doesn’t want it to end. He’s actually having fun.

                “Fine, I lose.” Jongin panted, stopping the swing and massaging his cheeks. “I’m getting hungry. Let’s go get something to eat.”

                “Wheeee!!!!” Kyungsoo said. “Okay, I’m coming.”

                This is where he realised stopping is not as easy as it seems.

                “Uh oh…help!!! I can’t seem to stop!!!”

                “Hang on!!” Jongin rushed to his side and grabbed the chains, slowing it down bit by bit, until the swing set came to a complete stop, but Jongin wasn’t done. He twirled the set, making the chains interlock with each other in a twisty pattern.

                “Hey!! Stop that!!” there’s no real threat in Kyungsoo’s voice as he spun under Jongin. Jongin released his hold and the set unfurled, spinning Kyungsoo with it. The boy was dizzy like an old man on an express roller coaster. Kyungsoo tried to step out but his legs were terribly numb. Jongin caught the dizzy male before tipping over a little.

                “Hahahahahahahaha!!! That was fun!!”

                “Was it? Did you enjoy yourself?”

                “Totally!! Well, I did think I was going to die for about 30 seconds there,” Kyungsoo leaned against Jongin, standing back up again. “But it was fun!”

                “See, the outdoors isn’t so bad.” The taller male said, walking out of the playground. “You won the swing match. What do you want to do?”

                “Have dinner. You’re paying.”

                “Come on.” Jongin pouted. “Really?”

                “Yes! You dragged me out by force, put me on a swing and made me fly so high that I could perpetually drop dead and die. You owe me a meal.”

                “Granted, you did have fun didn’t you?”

                “Shut up.” Kyungsoo pushed him and they walked out of the playground. He didn’t even get back to the dorm until the curfew time, and his roommate Leo had already fallen asleep, snoring away. Kyungsoo shut his laptop, washed up, put on his Pororo pajamas and fell asleep.

                He had fun. Lots of it.

                                                                *********************

                Chanyeol stared at the ceiling of his bedroom, lying down on the same bed he has been sleeping in since he was 13 years old. He was counting stars in his head. Just how many stars would it take to see Baekhyun again?

                After an infinity of bright lights and twinkling stars, Chanyeol sat back up again. He opened his closet and pulled out a duffel bag. He opened the bag and dumped some of his caps in, his sweaters neatly folded, T-shirts, jeans, socks…let’s see what else was he forgetting?

                “Mom!!” He called from his room. “Where are my underwear?!”

                “It’s in the laundry room darling!” his mother answered. Chanyeol got off the bed and went to the room, picking out his underwear from the basket of clean laundry.

                “Mom!! Why did you clean Yoora’s pink bra with my underwear? Now they are stained!”

                “I told you a thousand times to not dump them together! You know I won’t sort them!” his mother simply replied. Chanyeol pouted, underwear in hand as he left the room and bumped into his sister.

                “The pink makes a nice colour eh?” she teased and Chanyeol threw one  of his underwear at her. Yoora laughed and threw it back. Chanyeol dodged a few more hits and slaps as he went back to his room. He shook his head and sighed. And to think she’s 26 years old. Tsk tsk, so childish. (Er, look who’s talking Chanyeol.)

                Chanyeol packed his underwear (they look oddly look like some pink-spotted creatures you’d find in alien movies) and closed his duffel bag. He packed his guitar, checked his wallet and his phone…

                Oh yes.

                The ring.

                Chanyeol opened his drawer and took out a velvet box inside. He picked out the silver ring inside, traced its edges and smiled. He put it on his finger and held his hand out, admiring how it shines in the light.

                He went to bed with that ring. It was too pretty to put back in the box, too precious to be anywhere other than close to his heart, and too special to not be shared (or in this case, given) with someone even more special than the ring.

A/N: I'm at a loss for words recently just because KRIS UPDATED HIS INSTAGRAM!!!! AND HE IS IN MILAN!!!! HE RELEASED A SONG!!!! HE'S ALIVE AND KICKING!!!!!!

I feel so relieved, yet at the same time I miss him even more. His song was lovely, and he may not be Chen, Baekhyun, Kyungsoo or Luhan for that matter, but I think he did a lovely job nonetheless. I'm so proud of him you don't even know...

And speaking of proud, D.O's drama is coming out soon, with my fave female actress Gong Hyojin!!!! And Lee Kwangsoo, the funniest guy from Running Man!! I can't wait and I just know it's going to be awesome!!

Urgh, all these proud mama feels lately...

As usual, comments, subbies and upvotes are loved! Have a great day guys!