All Minseok knew when his first thought of the day entered his mind was that he was warm.  It was, quite honestly, refreshing.  For the first time in what felt like forever, Minseok didn't have to cut through a dense fog of sleep in order to will himself awake.  He felt well rested.

He groaned contentedly, shifting onto his side and taking a deep breath.  He blinked his eyes open slowly.  The first image he saw that morning was his best friend, laying right beside him with drool staining his pillow case.

Byun Baekhyun had his mouth hanging wide open with crooked glasses.  He looked like he'd fallen onto the bed in that position and couldn't be bothered to move in order to conserve space or even to make himself more comfortable.  He had apparently slept on top of the covers and in an apron.  Whatever kept him up last night had left Baekhyun too tired to change or even get warm.

Minseok glanced at the clock and, upon realizing the time, shoved his covers off, effectively covering Baekhyun with his comforter.  He would let Baekhyun sleep for a few more minutes.  He had to give him ample time to prepare.  Baekhyun would never forgive him if he went out into the world without perfecting his face.  While Minseok really didn't see a difference, he wasn't one to bother if it made Baekhyun happy.

Minseok let the pads of his feet touch the ground.  Minseok hunched over, gripping the edgee of his bed with one hand and running the other through his hair, which had no doubt been affected by his sleep.  Minseok forced himself to his feet as he begrudgingly moved forward, leaving the warmth of his bedroom.  He padded downstairs, catching a whiff of freshly brewed coffee.  Coffee sounded like perfection if Minseok was being honest.

He made his way into the kitchen where his mother, Jongin, and Chanyeol were all gathered around the island.  He made a beeline for the coffee pot, automatically opening the cupboard above it to reveal a wide array of mugs.  He chose the closest one, not caring about the design.

"Good morning." His mother said as Minseok grabbed the pot's handle.

"Morning." He muttered, pouring the dark liquid into his cup as the scent wafted towards him.  He finished pouring his cup, turning to the group of people in the kitchen.  He approached the island where the sugar was located, spooning to lumps of sugar into his cup.

After stirring it, he brought the cup to his lips, letting the warm drink slide past his lips and down his throat.  He smiled to himself; he had forgotten that their coffee was the best.  He finally opened his eyes all the way to fully look at everyone.

"What?" He asked after assessing everyone's incredulous looks.

Jongin cleared his throat, "We're leaving in half an hour."

Minseok squinted at Jongin, "We are?"

"Yes, we are helping them set up.  You need to get a move on and wake up Baekhyun." Chanyeol answered Minseok's question.

Minseok groaned, setting his cup down.    The idea of waking Baekhyun up to tell him to rush through his morning routine was terrifying.  The first "event" was a brunch set to begin at 10:30.  He walked out of the kitchen, retracing his steps back to his room.

Baekhyun was in the exact same position.  Minseok grimaced as he approached the bed, sitting next to Baekhyun, causing the bed to dip from his weight.  He ran his fingers through Baekhyun's hair, "Baekhyun." He said at his normal volume.

Baekhyun shifted his body slightly as he groaned, forcing his face even deeper into the pillow.  Minseok sighed, "Baekhyun, if you keep being like this you'll only have ten minutes to get ready."

Baekhyun forced an eye to squint at Minseok, "Ten minutes?" His groggy voice laced with concern.

"If you get up now, you have twenty five." Minseok offered a small smile, knowing that it still wasn't what Baekhyun was used to doing.

Baekhyun let the most dramatic sigh he could muster before extending his body to its fullest.  Minseok patted Baekhyun's cheek before walking over to his suitcase.  There was the crisp sound of the metal zipper pulling apart plastic teeth to reveal the contents of Minseok's suitcase.

Minseok heard Baekhyun roll to the floor with a loud thud as he chose a dress shirt.  Baekhyun quickly made his exit to the bathroom, muttering to himself about forewarning and morning breath.  Minseok yanked off the old shirt that he slept in, leaving him in his boxers.

He slipped into an undershirt then tugged on his button up shirt, nimble fingers pushing small buttons through narrow slots punched out of the fabric.  Baekhyun came back in while Minseok was putting pants on.  His hair was brushed and well-styled considering the short amount of time that he'd spent in the bathroom.

Minseok was basically finished, aside from actually putting shoes on.  "Baekhyun, I'll wait for you downstairs." 

Baekhyun merely waved a hand at him as Minseok slipped his phone into his pocket.  Minseok quietly made his way back to the kitchen to finish his cup of coffee.  Chanyeol stared at him, "What about Baekhyun?"

"He'll be here." Minseok brushed it off, savoring the aroma of his coffee with the cup right below his nose.

Baekhyun scampered down the stairs with two minutes to spare.  His outfit was well-coordinated, and his eyeliner was slightly less bold than usual.  He straightened up his shirt, puffing his chest out and gently touching his hair to make sure that nothing was out of place.  He flashed the crowd in the kitchen a trademark smile before joining Minseok's side.

Minseok offered Baekhyun some of his coffee, but Baekhyun's face said everything that he wasn't willing to say out loud.

"Time to go." Jongin announced after checking his watch.

The entire group headed out as one unit, but Minseok and Baekhyun opted to ride separately from the people that were actually enlisted to arrive early.

As soon as the car started moving, Baekhyun had fallen asleep again, mouth wide open, snoring deeply. It caused Minseok to wonder exactly what had kept him up late enough to drain the life out of his obnoxiously energetic friend.  The quiet, Baekhyun's snoring aside, made Minseok process his own actions.

He was attending Kim Junmyeon's wedding.  Kim Junmyeon. His acceptance of the invitation was just as bizarre as Junmyeon's choice to send it.  What would they even say to each other?  It was impossible for Junmyeon to be unaware of the way that he and Jongdae had ended.  Jongdae was their major point of contention, and with the way that Minseok left, Junmyeon should want to beat Minseok's face in.  Extending an invitation to his wedding, an event that Jongdae would probably attend, had to mean something.

Maybe Jongdae was married now.  Minseok didn't know how to handle that thought.  It never crossed his mind until that very second that Jongdae might fall in love after Minseok, that Jongdae might share a secret smile with anyone else.  Minseok's heart clenched at this hypothetical scenario.  He wasn't allowed to say anything, feel anything, because he was the one to leave everything unresolved.

After taking a deep breath, Minseok decided that he was here to bury the hatchet with Junmyeon and congratulate him on his wedding.  He would not do anything about Jongdae unless the situation necessitated it.  He would not rehash anything feelings regarding Jongdae; he was just someone Minseok used to know.  Their past was going to stay in the past.

As they pulled into the parking lot of the country club, Minseok screamed in order to wake Baekhyun up.  It worked, startling Baekhyun into a scream of his own as he jumped in his seat.  "What?"

"We're here."

Junmyeon checked his phone, grimacing at the message that Chanyeol sent.

Minseok is coming.

His face must have looked really bad because it prompted a question from his wedding planner.

"Did you eat something?" Kyungsoo asked, raising a thick eyebrow while maintaining an apathetic expression.  (It struck Junmyeon as odd that Kyungsoo didn't show very much enthusiasm.  Before choosing him as their planner, he and Yixing had met with a few other planners, all of whom could barely contain their excitement nuptials.  Kyungsoo came highly recommended since he worked with machine-like efficiency while accommodating as much of the couple's demands as possible.)

"No but more people are coming to help than initially planned." Junmyeon sighed, pocketing his phone. He still hadn't told Jongdae about Minseok attending the wedding and everything around it.  He did not look forward to that conversation.

Kyungsoo squinted in confusion. "Although I don't see how it is a problem, do I need to distract someone for you?"

Junmyeon cracked a smile, gripping the planner's shoulder in thanks, "I'll let you know if that's necessary."

"I'm all about making you happy." Kyungsoo replied, "When they get here, we need to set up the placards and Mr. Park can take photos of anything that you want to document.  The crowd for this event is smaller since it's the first event, but if you need to fine tune the seating once you gauge the interactions your guests.  I will be helping the caterer coordinate the food and make sure that stick to you and Yixing to the schedule." 

Kyungsoo paused, examining his clipboard.

Yixing scurried over, grabbing Junmyeon's hand, excitedly squealing, "They're here.  Come, come." 

Junmyeon allowed himself to be dragged out of the ballroom and into the foyer area of the club. Kyungsoo followed them in order to assign jobs the people who arrived early.

Jongin and Chanyeol entered first, followed by Mrs. Kim, and finally Minseok and his guest.  Unsurprisingly, Junmyeon was correct in assuming that Baekhyun was Minseok's date.  It was weird to see Minseok; he looked more mature.  Junmyeon fought the urge to panic and punch Minseok because his fiance was bouncing on his toes right next to him.

Jongin didn't even greet the couple; he went straight to Kyungsoo with love-struck eyes.  (As usual, Kyungsoo remained unimpressed with the specimen that was Kim Jongin.) Before Jongin could actually try (and fail) to flirt with Kyungsoo, Baekhyun screamed and ran up to Kyungsoo to envelop him in a hug.

"Baekhyun?" Kyungsoo asked, and for the first time, perhaps ever, Junmyeon saw emotion on Kyungsoo's face.

"What are you doing here?" Baekhyun shrieked, holding Kyungsoo away at arm's length and assessing his condition as though he were Kyungsoo's grandmother.

"I'm the wedding planner; why are you here?" Kyungsoo cracked a smile.

Baekhyun pointed back, "My date, Kim Minseok."

Yixing gasped, abandoning Junmyeon's hand and his side.  He got uncomfortably close to Minseok, looking at him with eyes of wonder. "You're Minseok?" 

Junmyeon had to pull his fiance away from Minseok, immediately apologizing, "Yixing is just excited to meet someone that knew me in high school.  Someone who can tell stories of the good old times." Junmyeon chuckled awkwardly, praying to any higher power that was listening that Minseok would pick on his hint and cooperate.

Minseok stalled for a moment before offering a strained smile, "Oh, oh, yes. The good old times.  Oh the stories that I could tell about Junmyeon."

Junmyeon let out a sigh of relief.  Minseok was cooperating, at least for now.  Junmyeon turned to Yixing, "You can ask him about war stories later, okay?  We need to start setting up."

Baekhyun clung to Kyungsoo, trying to fit a personal conversation in before Kyungsoo started to order people around.  As the group followed Kyungsoo's lead, Minseok came up next to Junmyeon to whisper, "War stories?"

Junmyeon gritted his teeth, speaking through an unmoving smile, "He doesn't know anything about you and me or you and Jongdae.  Keep it that way."

Minseok opened his mouth to respond, but his words got cut off.

"Am I late?" A breathless Jongdae asked from behind the party. Junmyeon whipped around to see his cousin and his girlfriend rushing toward.

Jongdae stopped in his tracks when he saw who Junmyeon was with.  Junmyeon didn't know exactly how he expected it to go, but it definitely wasn't this.

a/n:
i do not have words.
i am sorry that it's been over a year since i updated. i lost inspiration mid-chapter (if you look at the initial publication date, you can tell.)
me and my xiuchen heart need to finish this.
i understand if you need to scream at me.
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