He bounces his knee nervously, occasionally hitting himself with the table. He should have foregone his t-shirt because the heat is starting to build up as the hours pass.

 

“Would you stop?” Minseok tells him with no real malice. He smiles as he hands Lu Han a cup of his favorite morning coffee. “You’re making me nervous.”

 

“Sorry,” he answers with a smile.

 

“We’ll be fine, we just need to get through the weekend.”

 

Lu Han nods as he takes another sip from the mug he’s holding. Minseok has outdone himself, it is absolutely delicious. “How many people did you say were attending?”

 

“I’m not sure, my Mom said about a hundred? But she’s known to exaggerate everything.”

 

 “Oh.” Lu Han gulps as he pictures the crowd. It’s not that he has some sort of anxiety issue or anything like that, it’s just that he has never met Minseok’s family aside from short encounters here and there that never lasted more than a few minutes and never included more than two members at a time. Lu Han only has his parents and his grandma, he’s not used to a large family. He’s mildly terrified of the weekend to come.

 

“Hey,” Minseok whispers as he sits on Lu Han’s lap, legs straddling his boyfriend’s hips. “They’ll love you, I’m sure of it.”

 

Lu Han closes the short space between their lips and kisses Minseok softly as he places the mug on the kitchen table. “Promise?” he asks.

 

“Promise.”

 

-

 

The drive to The Hamptons is not long. They’d been staying at a friend’s place in the city for the past few days, taking the chance to walk around Central Park and visit the MET. Minseok had been dying to go back and relive his high school days and had promised Lu Han to show him the best spot to eat hot dogs.

 

“We used to skip class sometimes and come here, sit under the same tree and maybe smoke a cigarette or two,” Minseok had told Lu Han as they walked on the grass.

 

“That’s gross,” he had answered. “But kinda awesome.”

 

When they park outside the house, Lu Han is a bundle of nerves. The ‘Kim Estate’ as it was called in the invitation card they had gotten a month ago, is huge. Lu Han considered his family well off but this is ridiculous.

 

“This is a ing Villa,” Lu Han says as he gets off the car.

 

“It’s not a Villa,” Minseok corrects. “It’s a Dutch Colonial Home.”

 

“Same difference.”

 

“You see, that’s an oxymoron.”

 

“Shut up–“

 

“Minseok, darling!” He hears a woman say from the front door. She’s holding a glass of champagne and wearing a dreadful hat. Her outfit screams money. “I’m so glad you’re here.”

 

Minseok sighs as he takes Lu Han’s hand and leads him through the gravel path and into the front door. “Hi mom,” he greets.

 

Mrs. Kim takes Minseok’s face in her hands, champagne glass gone somehow, and kisses her son on the cheek. “I’ve missed you.”

 

“Me too.” Minseok smiles as he turns to look at Lu Han, taking the man’s arm and pushing him forward. “This is Lu Han.”

 

“Oh, I remember him from the pictures,” she says, waving off her son with a roll of the eyes. “Let’s go in, shall we? Everyone’s waiting for their dearest Seokkie.”

 

“Jesus Christ, I never thought I’d hear that nickname again,” Minseok whispers to himself but Lu Han can see his boyfriend noticed his smirk. “Shut up.”

 

“I didn’t say anything.”

 

When they reach the backyard, Lu Han has to fight the sudden jitter in his stomach. There are waiters and waitresses running around with champagne and hors d’oeuvres, all carefully placed on silver trays. There’s an open bar by the pool and a big tent with tables adorned by beautiful flower arrangements.

 

“Sweetheart, your son is here,” Minseok’s mother tells a man talking to some important looking people.

 

“Minseok, my boy!” The man hugs the life out of his boyfriend. “I’m so glad you’re here. Your cousins have been looking for you.”

 

“Hey, dad.”

 

“They’re by the pool house, darling,” his mother informs them.

 

“Go catch up, son.”

 

Minseok smiles wide before turning around and taking Lu Han’s hand, leading him to a smaller house that looks bigger than his first apartment back west.

 

“Wow, your parents are nothing like I would have expected,” Lu Han tells Minseok as they walk. His boyfriend grabs them a glass of champagne that tastes wonderful in Lu Han’s tongue.

 

“They’re over the top most of the time. It’s why I chose to leave this place and go to L.A.”

 

“I should thank them.”

 

Minseok chuckles, stopping and squishing Lu Han’s hand in his own.

 

“Yo, Hollywood! Where have you been?” A guy, no older than Minseok and himself, shouts.

 

“Jongdae!” Minseok walks towards the man, arms at the ready for a hug. “How are you?”

 

“Good! Never better, man. Wait! I should introduce you to my fiancée, she’s here somewhere–“

 

“Give it a rest, she’s inside with the rest of the girls,” someone adds as he takes a glass of champagne from a tray and leaves and empty one in its place. “You must be the son everyone is talking about but no one ever sees.”

 

“Shut up, Baekhyun, I’ve been busy.”

 

“And who’s this?” Jongdae asks with a smirk.

 

Minseok places his hand on Lu Han’s lower back, a possessive gesture Lu Han loves. “This is my boyfriend, Lu Han. Lu Han, these are my cousins, Baekhyun and Jongdae.”

 

“Hello, Lu Han. You’re quite the mystery around here,” Baekhyun says as he offers his hand for a handshake.

 

“I am?” Lu Han gladly takes the hand and realizes Baekhyun’s grip is strong.

 

“Minseok has kept you hidden for too long, my friend. It’s time you meet the family,” Jongdae informs him as he takes Lu Han’s arm and leads him to the inside of the house. “The cousins are all here. We’re quite a numerous family.”

 

“Mother has three sisters, one of them Minseok’s own mother,” Baekhyun says. He has his arm around Lu Han’s shoulder. Minseok is suddenly nowhere to be seen.

 

“Minseok’s father has three siblings, all of which have shares in their late father’s company,” Jongdae adds as the three men start walking somewhere.

 

They enter a spacious hall inside the house filled with expensive looking paintings. Lu Han’s no art buff but he recognizes some costly pieces here and there.

 

“They have all graciously permitted us to occupy their various residencies throughout our existence. Including the–“

 

“Beach house!” They finish in unison.

 

“What I wouldn’t give to be back in college and relive those days,” Baekhyun adds.

 

“Where’s Minseok?” Lu Han asks when Jongdae opens a door leading to the living room. He can hear women speaking and children running around. The door cracks open a bit and sound starts pouring in louder than before.

 

“I think I saw Junmyeon out there, he’s probably with him,” Jongdae says. “Chanyeol! Over here.”

 

Lu Han sees a tall, lean man looking everywhere to find the source of the voice.

 

“To your left, you asswipe,” adds Baekhyun. “This is Lu Han. Minseok’s boyfriend.”

 

“Oh, the boyfriend,” Chanyeol repeats with a surprisingly low voice. “I’m Chanyeol, Minseok’s cousin.”

 

“Yeah, yeah, he knows.”

 

“What do you do for a living, Lu Han?” Chanyeol inquires. He has this look in his eyes Lu Han doesn’t think he could ever forget. It reminds him of his old art teacher from elementary school. Or a serial killer.

 

“I edit screenplays for a production company.”

 

“And you make money off of that?” Baekhyun scoffs.

 

“You rude son of a ,” Jongdae scolds Baekhyun.

 

“That’s your aunt you’re talking about, you ,” Baekhyun retorts. 

 

He looks around the place looking for Minseok, but he runs out of luck when they’re joined by yet another cousin, this one looking as happy to be there as Lu Han feels.

 

“What are you three idiots doing?” He asks, looking at Lu Han from head to toe. “Who’s this?”

 

“Lu Han,” all three answer at the same time.

 

“Whatever. Seohyun is looking for you.” He directs his eyes to Baekhyun who downs his champagne at the mention of the name. “I’m Kyungsoo, by the way.”

 

“Hey, Kyungsoo,” Lu Han greets. He doesn’t expect Kyungsoo to grab his arm and pull him outside to the backyard again.

 

“You’re welcome,” he says before he disappears through the crowd. Lu Han feels genuinely thankful.

 

“There you are!” Minseok says, sliding his arm around Lu Han’s waist.

 

“Who’s Junmyeon?”

 

“What?”

 

They walk to the gazebo, the only place away from all the people attending. The loud constant noise from all the chattering is creating a slowly growing headache and the last thing Lu Han wants is to ruin this day for Minseok. “Junmyeon? Jongdae said he saw you with a Junmyeon.”

 

“Oh. Yeah, he’s an old friend. Hey! I was thinking we could spend the night here.”

 

He sighs before remembering he left his champagne glass somewhere inside the house. He could really use a drink right now and it hasn’t even been an hour since they arrived. “Minseok–“

 

“C’mon, it’ll be fun.”

 

Unable to break the smile on Minseok’s face, he agrees with an, “Alright.”

 

“Thanks, Lu.” He pecks Lu Han on the lips, lacing his fingers through his hair. Lu Han lets out a breath, enjoying the first quiet moment since arriving.

 

The wind picks up a few minutes later and it blows away some of Lu Han’s worries. That and Minseok lips on his own.

 

“You er, still hiding in the gazebo to make out with his boyfriend,” Baekhyun says from a secluded area behind the construction, another glass of champagne in his hand.

 

“ you, Baek,” Minseok says with a laugh. “Where’s Seohyun by the way? I thought I heard her looking for–“

 

“Shhh, shut the up. She’s out there somewhere.”

 

“What–“

 

“Hey Minseok! Have you seen my brother? He was supposed to help out with the kids but I can’t find him anywhere,” a pretty girl Lu Han assumes is Seohyun asks Minseok.

 

“Sorry, Seohyun, I haven’t.” She juts out her lower lip as she thinks. “Maybe Kyungsoo knows? I saw him with Baekhyun a while ago.”

 

“Thank you!” She scurries off, long black hair blowing in the wind.

 

“I ing hate you,” Baekhyun hisses.

 

“You still owe me one.”

 

When he finally leaves, Lu Han drops his head to his hands, a groan escaping his throat.

 

“Woah, should I come back later?” Jongdae asks, smirking with all he’s got.

 

“It’s fine, we’re not doing anything,” Minseok answers. He takes Lu Han’s hand and pulls him up.

 

“Look it’s Junmyeon! Hey, Junmyeon!” Jongdae walks away, talking animatedly to a man Luhan assumes is said Junmyeon. They seem pretty close.

 

“Let me guess: one of the cousins?” Luhan questions but Minseok laughs condescendingly at his assumption. Luhan frowns.

 

“No, no. He’s, well, an old family friend,” he answers.

 

“Junmyeon, sweetheart! I’ve missed you,” Minseok’s mother calls out from the distance. Junmyeon approaches her and gives her a hug. She didn’t even give Luhan a hug when they saw each other at the front door.

 

“Everyone seems to love Junmyeon,” Lu Han mumbles as they step down from the gazebo and head to the buffet.

 

“He’s been around for a while.”

 

“How long?”

 

“Since…my college days.”

 

When they get to the food, Lu Han grabs a plate from the stack and scans the dishes for something he likes.

 

“He went to college with you?” He eyes the food on the tables around him. Everything looks delicious and he wants to try it all but he feels weird when people are only taking really small bites at a time. He doesn’t want to be the odd one out. Well, more than he already is.

 

“Not exactly.”

 

“Minseok–“

 

“He’s my ex. He’s Jun.”

 

Lu Han nearly chokes on a shrimp. “What? The ex-boyfriend you nearly married ex-boyfriend? The med student– Oh my god.” Minseok had always referred to him as Jun. How did Lu Han not make the connection sooner? He feels so stupid.

 

“Well, he’s a doctor now–“

 

“Jesus Christ. And your whole family loves him.”

 

Minseok drags Lu Han to the nearest table and makes him sit down. “Not my entire family. They just really– I don’t know. I really didn’t know he was going to be here. I didn’t know he still came around so often.”

 

“Your parents love him. Of course they love him, he’s a doctor, and I’m– what, a screenplay editor?”

 

“A screenplay writer, Lu. But you’re really so much more than that.”

 

“Am I?”

 

“Minseok!” A lovely looking girl greets with a big smile. “Is this a bad time? I can come back later–“

 

Minseok shoots a look at Lu Han and he nods. It’s Minseok’s only chance to see his family and Lu Han won’t stop him.

 

“No, it’s fine. Wow, Soojung, it’s been ages,” Minseok says as he hugs her tenderly. “This is Lu Han. Lu Han, this is Soojung.”

 

“Your boyfriend? It’s so nice to meet you. Minseok has told me a lot about you.” She smiles, putting her hair behind her ear. She’s beautiful, Lu Han thinks, like the many girls he has seen going in and out of the audition building at the production company he works. He’s heard about Soojung from Minseok. Minseok had already come out when she came to him one day, mascara running down her face and a red colored cheek. She had come out to her parents that day and they weren’t as understanding as Minseok’s. Minseok made a space in his home for her for years, until her parents came to and accepted her.

 

“Same here. You’re the only other–“

 

“Gay in the family?” She laughs. “That’s me! Minseok helped me so much back in the day. I was a real mess.”

 

“We were messes together, back then.”

 

“Oh, yeah. You had just broken up with you know who. God, I hated him.”

 

Lu Han smiles. “I think we’ll be very good friends, Soojung.”

 

“I like him, Minseok. You should keep him,” Soojung says as she puts her arm around Lu Han’s waist.

 

“I’ll think about it,” Minseok replies with a smirk. “Where’s Amber? I thought you said she’d come.”

 

“Yeah, she ran into Baekhyun and Jongdae and you know how those three get.”

 

“They went to high school together,” Minseok explains to Lu Han. “They were inseparable.”

 

“Still are. Baekhyun still stays over when he gets too drunk and whines about how Yeonie doesn’t like him anymore.”

 

“Baekhyun’s daughter,” Minseok once again clears.

 

“She’s a smart girl, that one. She’s going through a phase where she doesn’t speak to him. I think it’s because he works too much.”

 

“Is he married?” Lu Han asks as they munch on the several things Soojung took from the buffet. Lu Han guesses he found his match.

 

“Baekhyun’s wife died before Yeonie turned two,” Soojung tells him. “So he goes into the city with Jongdae and gets too drunk to go back home. Jongdae usually sleeps at his girlfriend’s, who, by the way, is a gorgeous singer at this club downtown who also happens to outdo Jongdae in the singing department.” Soojung takes a deep breath before she continues, “and you know how his parents get about him dating outside of the circle but he’s so over being set up on dates and Liyin is so amazing; I can already hear the wedding bells. I mean he should pop the question soon because she’s a total keeper.”

 

“Is she talking your ears off? I know Minseok is a good listener but you gotta draw a line at some point, man,” a pretty girl with short hair tells them. She places her hands on Soojung’s shoulders in a way that makes Lu Han think she’s the girlfriend they were talking about.

 

“Well, if it isn’t Ambro,” Minseok says as he stands up and high fives her, followed by a hug. “This is–“

 

“Lu Han, I presume? I’m Amber.” She stretches her hand to greet him and Lu Han takes it without question.

 

They chat for a few minutes until Soojung takes Amber away to show her the forest behind the small lake. They look more comfortable with PDA than Minseok does, that’s for sure.

 

“So about Junmyeon–“

 

“What about me?” Said man says, plate with food in one hand and a big smile on his face. God, he smiles a lot, Lu Han thinks. “Lu Han, right? Heard you were an editor?”

 

“Not exactly–“

 

“Must be fun! I knew this guy who worked as an editor for a magazine until he got fired from his job. He lives in the projects now, poor guy.” Junmyeon takes one of the shrimps and eats it with a smug look.

 

“Lu Han is not a magazine editor, Junmyeon. He’s–“

 

Minseok is interrupted when Chanyeol comes over with three kids in tow. “Junmyeon! The kids are dying for you to tell them more stories. The maids even set up a little spot in the tv room.”

 

“Sure thing,” he answers with a winning smile Lu Han has come to hate. “Let’s go, fellas!”

 

Every single person he walks by smiles at him like he’s the freaking messiah. He thinks that if they were to choose who Minseok dates, Junmyeon would win over him any day of the week.

 

“He’s such a ,” Lu Han hisses. “Why does everyone love him so much?”

 

“He’s charming,” Minseok answers. “Not always in the good sense of the word.”

 

“Minseok, darling, would you mind looking over the kids?” Minseok’s mother asks him when she sees they finished eating.

 

“I thought they’d all gone inside?”

 

“I’m sure he’d appreciate some help.”

 

Minseok sighs as he nods and starts walking, Lu Han by his side.

 

When they enter the room, Lu Han sees Junmyeon telling them a story about some zoo animals or something Lu Han really doesn’t care about. His patience with kids is directly opposite to the amount of noise they make.

 

There’s a little girl sitting on Baekhyun’s lap that he assumes is Yeoni. She smiles like Baekhyun, a charming grin that could win over anyone. She keeps poking Jongdae in the cheek and Baekhyun high fives her when Jongdae eventually gives up and moves away to sit next to Amber.

 

He’s about to sneak out of the room, not in the mood to see everyone wooing over Junmyeon, when a boy comes running and clashes with his belt buckle. He starts crying on the spot.

 

“Mommy!” he wails and he covers his nose with his hands.

 

Junmyeon comes to the rescue (of course, Lu Han thinks) and checks his injuries with medical precision.

 

When the man pulls his hands from the boy’s face, blood starts pouring from his nostrils and runs down the boy’s neck.

 

“Oh ,” Minseok says as he runs to Lu Han’s side.

 

“Is that… blood?” Is the last thing Lu Han says before the whole world fades to black.

 

 

-

 

 

When he comes to, he’s lying on a bed inside one of the many bedrooms, a glass of water and an aspirin on the nightstand. Minseok is nowhere to be seen again.

 

He stands up, making sure the dizziness goes away before leaving the room, but he gets lost between the dozens of doors in the hallway.

 

He ends up opening a door leading to a big library, shelves and shelves of books adorning the walls.

 

“You need to get him in your side again,” he hears someone that sounds like Minseok’s father say. “You were the best thing that ever happened to Minseok, Junmyeon.”

 

“I can assure that I’ll try my best to do what’s best for Minseok.”

 

“And that is to be with you. Your family has an impeccable record. Lu Han’s family is not even on our radar. I’ve spoken to Minseok about it and he’s still stubborn. We all need to do what’s best for ourselves, but most importantly, for the family name.”

 

Lu Han silently exits the room before anyone can hear him and before he can hear anything else. He feels so betrayed. Minseok knew his father was plotting against him, that he prefers Junmyeon over Lu Han.

 

He starts walking aimlessly until he somehow ends up on the room he woke up in and finds his boyfriend entering it.

 

“Why are you so keen on staying away from your family?” Lu Han asks, eyes not lifting from the floor. He doesn’t trust himself not to choke up if he looks into Minseok’s eyes.

 

“It’s a long story. Hey! I’m glad you’re ok! I went out for a minute to get you a bite to eat and you were gone.” He rubs Lu Han’s arms in comfort and fixes his hair, probably messy from the pillow. “Wanna go feed the ducks? I think the old boat is still on the dock somewhere…”

 

Lu Han sighs as he takes Minseok’s hand in his. There’s obviously something keeping Minseok from telling the whole story because he’s never been one to lie to his face.

 

“Son, how about that talk?” Minseok’s father says as he approaches the both of them as they walk out of the maze of a house.

 

“Not now, dad.”

 

“Son–“

 

“I said not now!” Minseok snaps. “Please.” He squeezes Lu Han’s hand and they leave the house in a rush.

 

Lu Han thought he knew Minseok like the back of his hand before today, but he’s starting to realize that maybe he doesn’t know Minseok very well at all.

 

They walk down to the small dock, Minseok’s mother looking over with a concerned look in her face that makes Lu Han’s stomach twist in knots.

 

When they reach the water, Minseok looks for the boat but fails to find it. He starts mumbling things Lu Han doesn’t catch under his breath as he walks back and forward on the wooden surface. He gives up after a few minutes and sits, defeated, on the edge overlooking the lake.

 

“Minseok, you’re freaking me out,” Lu Han says as he carefully sits by his boyfriend’s side.

 

“Me and Junmyeon… We weren’t good for each other. My dad doesn’t understand, he can’t see past Junmyeon’s family’s business and how good it would look if the families joined.”

 

“Has he been trying to convince you to dump me for him?”

 

Minseok sighs, looking into Lu Han’s eyes with a definite sadness on his features. “Yeah. For a while now.”

 

Lu Han sits closer and Minseok leans his head on Lu Han’s shoulder. “Is that why you haven’t come home in years?”

 

“I didn’t want you to see how this family works. I didn’t want you to feel like you were some sort of replaceable piece in my dad’s game.”

 

“Thanks for telling me.”

 

“Everyone really likes you, you know?”

 

Lu Han can’t help the smile that escapes him. It’s nice to hear Minseok say that. “They do?”

 

“Yeah. Especially Yeoni. That boy that bumped into you had been picking on her for weeks.” Minseok chuckles, lifting his head and looking into Lu Han’s eyes. “They all love you. I love you. I would never…”

 

“I know.”

 

It’s Minseok who brings their lips together for a soft kiss. He caresses Lu Han’s cheek and, when he pulls his lips away, joins their foreheads.

 

“I like your family, too,” Lu Han adds. “Minus your dad.”

 

Minseok chuckles, taking Lu Han’s hands and lacing their fingers.

 

The moment is interrupted by his cellphone ringing in his pocket. Lu Han sighs before he slides the screen to pick up. “Hello?”

 

“Lu Han? Yixing here. Sehun and I just ran into Jongin and he totally confirmed the studio picked up your script! The green lit the movie!”

 

“What!” Lu Han shouts into the device.

 

“What? Who is it?” Minseok looks like he’s trying to read Lu Han’s mind to find out what’s going on.

 

“The studio liked my script. They’re gonna use it.”

 

“What!” His boyfriend stands up from the dusty floor and Lu Han follows suit.

 

“They’re emailing you all the details but they’ll be a meeting on Monday to finalize the whole thing. Congratulations, Lu!”

 

“Also,” Sehun adds when he takes Yixing’s phone. “Tell Minseok I’m having a fitting on Tuesday and I need my best man there. No flimsy excuses like flying across the country this time.”

 

“I’ll tell him,” Luhan assures him. “Thanks for calling guys. We’ll see you on Sunday!”

 

“This is amazing, Lu! Your own movie!” Minseok hugs him tight, and Lu Han feels all the anxiety from the past couple of hours fade away as he laughs along with his boyfriend.

 

“By the way, Sehun wants you to go to a fitting on Tuesday.”

 

“This wedding is going to be a pain in my , isn’t it?”

 

“Yes, it will, and he knows it so he’ll take advantage of it.”

 

“I should have never set him up with Zitao. Those two together are a menace.”

 

“But they’re so in love, it’s so cute.”

 

Minseok grows quiet as they walk back to the crowd, the sun already weaker as the hours go by.

 

“I always thought I’d get married before I was thirty-five.”

 

“We’re still over a year away, you still have time.”

 

“Are you putting this on me? You know I at planning things.”

 

“Maybe you won’t have to.” Minseok smirks at him before scurrying of to chat with a happy looking Soojung.

 

“Wait! Will it be a surprise? You know I hate surprises! Minseok!”

 

--

a/n: i butchered my original plot but yeah.