Greed vs Temperance

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Suho as Greed

Yixing as Temperance

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Note: This is an even longer chapter than the last, just in case you might not have enough time to read this in one go!

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Yixing woke up with a jolt, blinking the sleep out of his half-lidded eyes.

 He heard faint laughter, and soft piano music.

He got out of bed, confused. Was it night already? There was a tray of food on his table, long gone cold and Yixing winced when he stuffed a mouthful of peas inside his mouth. Yuck, you would think his parents would have better taste seeing that they were rich and all.

Yixing abandoned his dinner and sauntered to the door, shaky hand resting on the doorknob. It clicks open easily, and Yixing’s eyes widen in shock. Just as he was about to follow his instincts and step out, he shook his head, was he... allowed… to leave the room?

 He slipped out after much contemplating and shielded his eyes from the harsh white light, contrasting his dark room, shades drawn to hide the rays of sun.

There weren’t any servants on his floor.

Yixing walks down the staircase slowly, savoring every breath of fresh air and the feeling of being almost free. Clearly there was some kind of party going on. Everyone was holding a drink of some sort in those signature silly, tiny glass bottles that looked too delicate. And the literal ‘star’ of tonight? A gigantic Christmas tree in the centre of the room, topped off with a glowing golden star. Underneath the magnificent tree, presents were all wrapped up nicely underneath it, no doubt containing their products.

So... A Christmas party? Was it Christmas already? The time bled into days, and Yixing slept too little, yet too much. He always lost track of time.

He found his parents and Yiheng wearing shades of dark red, no doubt to accentuate their pale skin. Unfortunately, Yixing was never blessed with naturally pale skin and had to draw his shades all the time just so he'd look pale enough to fit in. He took note of the couple his parents were talking to, and he wondered if it was worth it to ruin their party and possibly ruin his life further.

It must be.

“Mom, dad.” Yixing bowed as he reached the small group, pointedly ignoring Yiheng's presence.

I'm the one who’s supposed to be there, not him.

Yixing decided that the comical shocked expressions on his parents face is worth it, yes.

 “Auntie, uncle.”  Yixing greets the couple with a smile.

“My, is this Yixing? I thought he went abroad! Meiling, what did I say about telling me when Yixing was back?” The lady cooed at Yixing with a smile, hand clasping Yixing’s. “Our Kimberly has been waiting all this while. She's not getting any younger, now.” The lady shot a warning glance at Yixing’s mother, and Yixing had to stifle a laugh.

“I almost sent Kimberly abroad to go find Yixing and marry him there without us being present!” Yixing’s mother let out a protest, but was interrupted by the lady. “Goodness, Yixing! I haven't seen you since you were 5. You look all grown up now, absolutely charming! But is this what you are supposed to wear for the Christmas party?” She tut-tutted and straightened out Yixing’s plain shirt.

“Now, Meredith, you're not implying something are you...?” Yixing's mother laughed nervously before shooting Yixing a look. “Yixing, honey, please go and stay in your room while I entertain our guests. Be a darling, won't you?'

“Yes, brother, go on upstairs. I'll come have a chat with you later.” Yiheng smiled, something dangerous in his eyes as he let out a condescending wave.

Yixing went upstairs, he knew better than to cause a scene. Within five minutes, his father burst inside his room, fuming.

“You disgrace!” Yixing gritted his teeth, closing his eyes as he tried to block out his voice. “Does nothing ever process in that brain of yours? When I say stay in your room, I mean it! Get out of the house this instant, you're not going to mess this up for us!”

“Is Kimberly pretty? Does Yiheng like her?” Yixing nonchalantly asked as he got up from his bed, grabbing his wallet and phone.

“None of your business, she's not interested in you. Stay out of this house and come back when you're ready to face the consequences.”

“When does the party end?”

 “When I say so. Now, take the back door and get out.” Yixing’s father shoved Yixing out of the room.

The back door was a nicer way of saying ‘The Servants’ Entrance’.

-

Hurts.

Maybe it wasn't worth it.

Yixing's feet hurt; he had been walking around for hours trying to find a seat. After asking an old lady who shot him quite a look, he found out it was Christmas Eve which explained the crowd. There wasn't a single place to rest. Yixing wasn't used to such physical exertion either, and he was getting hungry.

Hungry... Yixing hadn't felt that in a long time. 

A particularly sharp pain jolted up his foot and he winced, stopping at the side of mall to sit down. Huh, what would his parents say if they saw him sitting down like a beggar on this cold, germ-infested floor? Whatever it was, he'd probably laugh. He certainly looked like a beggar anyway; he didn’t even brush his hair before leaving.

He opened his wallet and frowned. $10 and a pack of gum. His battery was almost flat, too. And he didn't have the keys to his house, huh.

Yixing sighed, staring at the ceiling of the shopping mall, decorated with gigantic ornaments, fairy lights and fake wreaths. It wasn't anything spectacular when compared to the decorations in his house, but this was the only interesting thing to look at.

That, and he had to blink back his tears too. His heart clenched almost painfully as his vision became clouded, and the pretty red ornaments mashed into one sea of sparkling red.

Yixing blinked some more, rubbing his eyes. He let out a sigh. Crying was pathetic, something a Zhang shouldn't do. Oh, the irony in that statement.

He glanced across the mall and look at the throngs of people. Lovers, families, everybody had somebody. Nobody was alone like him, on this Christmas Eve. He was lonely.

Yixing suddenly heard laughter, and cheery Christmas music. To his left was a mini carousel for children. Since when had that gotten there?

He stared at the kid who had her hair tied in pigtails, tugging at her mom's sleeve as she pointed at the carousel and ran to join in. The children on the carousel were laughing and their parents were staring at their children, an emotion that Yixing couldn’t describe in their eyes. Was it affection? Love? Adoration?

Maybe…  Maybe back then, his parents had once looked at him like that too?

 The carousel ride ended and their parents helped them off, some waving goodbye to the others as they led their children off, while some stayed for another round and other children joined.

It was the same, regardless of child or parent. The same expression on their face. The same laughter. The same happiness.

It wasn't fair. Why couldn't Yixing’s parents have done that? Why were these children so lucky? What had Yixing done to be pushed out of his house, hungry and sleepy, with little money and no idea when to go back? Why was Yixing so... so... unfortunate?

“Yixing?” A hand rested on his shoulder.

Yixing spun around, gasping as he wiped away an escaping tear. “Suho? What... Why are you here? Shouldn't you be with your parents? It’s Christmas Eve…”

“What about you? You were crying just now, weren't you?” Suho frowned as he studied Yixing, watering eyes, hair messy and dressed in what looked like pajamas.

Yixing let out a weak laugh and shook his head. “Hey, you look miserable too. You shouldn't be. You have parents, at least.”

“You do too.” Suho stated with a wry smile on his face.

“Not funny, president. I can't believe you still gel up your hair at home, why can't you just relax and let your hair do whatever it wants?”

Suho brushed the insult masked as a seemingly innocent statement, and gripped Yixing’s shoulders. “You were crying.”

“And you look like you lost someone important to you.” Yixing shot back as he wiped at his teary eyes and tried to comb his hair back with his fingers, as if suddenly realizing how ridiculous he looked. 

“That’s not funny either, but you're the only person I'll allow to make jokes like that this soon. Anyone else and I'd be upset and... and… And punch them.”

Yixing groaned when he realised what had just slipped out of his mouth. “Sorry, I just...”

“Hey, it's okay, I missed your bluntness.” Suho laughed.

I missed your bluntness.

Yixing could've sworn he felt faint warmth spreading across his cheeks.

“And about the gelled hair, I look better than you, at least. You look really sleepy, but look at your bed hair! It looks like a nest that a bird just laid its eggs in, I bet you slept.”

Yixing shook his head, a smile gracing his features as he thought about how funny that statement was.

“No? Then they... Were you practicing all night again?”

“They locked me in my room. I was forbidden to step out, the servants sent me my meals, and my bathroom was checked every day to ensure everything was working fine. They didn't want me stepping foot in there at all.”

“Wait, you've been trapped in your room for a month?” Suho frowned.

Yixing laughed dryly. “Has it really been a month already? Felt like a year, or a week.”

Suho shot a look at Yixing, silent as he wrapped his arms around him.

“Then let’s celebrate your freedom.”

-

Yixing frowned as Suho pointed at an Italian restaurant on their left.

“No.”

“This one?” A Japanese cuisine restaurant.

“Suho, no.”

“This?” A chicken place.

“Suho… That’s a chicken place. You don’t do chicken places.”

“Oh, yeah.” Suho paused as he stared at the chicken shop, silently wondering why he had never eaten in a fried chicken shop before, until another shop caught his eye.

“What about-”

“Suho, I told you already, I don’t want you to spend your money on me. Let’s grab something cheap, under $10.” Yixing sighed, staring at the row of food shops on the level. All of them were probably unreasonably expensive; Yixing would rather cook his own food.

“Yixing, I can’t think of anywhere else to eat. It’s Christmas Eve; let me treat you to something nice?” Suho gave a pleading look as Yixing panicked, hands coming up to cover Suho’s face.

“Hey, don’t do aegyo on me! You’re old.”

Suho sputtered as he tried to remove Yixing’s hands that were clamping down on his nose and covering his eyes. “O-Old?!”

“I’m younger than Yunho-sunbaenim!” Suho protested when he finally slapped Yixing’s hands away from his face, Yixing letting out a mocking cry of pain as he rubbed his hands.

“Sure, keep telling yourself that.” Yixing laughed as he led Suho out of the mall. “It’s Christmas Eve, but I think there might be some roadside stalls still open. Is that okay?”

Suho pulled Yixing to a stop. “R-Roadside stall…? Is that filling?”

Yixing smiled mischievously as he interlinked his fingers with Suho’s, tugging him along. “It’ll be fine!”

-

“1 tteokbokki to go for us please!” Yixing grinned at the lady as he paid, turning around when Suho let out a soft whimper.

“It’s stuffy here… And oily.” Suho choked out as he pulled at his scarf, eyes widening when the lady dumps a plastic container and two sticks into Yixing’s hands. “Yixing… are you doing this on purpose?”

“Hm? I don’t know what you’re talking about! On to the next stall!” Yixing laughed as he stuffed a piece of radish into Suho’s gaping mouth.

-

“Yixing… I can’t eat anymore.” Suho groaned as he patted his belly, struggling to even walk to the cashier where Yixing was.

“I’m full too, but this is your first time doing this, so we should eat more!” Yixing replied before stuffing his mouth with another soondae from the many plastic bags in his hands.

Mung-bean pancakes, soondae, roasted sweet potatoes, hotteok, you name it, Suho was sure he ate it. They must’ve spent at least 3 hours eating already, and Suho had already eaten dinner at home. “I really can’t eat, I’m so full!”

“Fine, grandpa, let’s go for a walk.”

 -

Suho glanced at Yixing, goofy smile on his face as he swung their intertwined hands. The streets were still bustling with people, the street lights illuminating the street with a golden-orange glow. Suho took a deep breath of the crisp night air, and sighed in content. He hadn’t felt this peaceful in a long time.

“Its fun, isn’t it?” Yixing’s smile became even wider as he spun around to grip Suho’s arms, forcing them to a stop.

“… Are you so sleep-deprived that you’re going crazy?” Suho said.

“Oh…” A frown crossed Yixing’s features. “I forgot I was tired.” You make me forget my worries. “But I’m not crazy! The crowd, the fresh air, the food, being out here feels really different. It makes me excited and happy. And you’re here too, so that makes things better.”

Suho smiled abashedly as they resumed walking. Yixing was right; it did feel good spending time out here in the open, trying new things. Refreshing, and peaceful, just like Yixing was.

“Since it’s almost Christmas, do you have any wishes you want granted? Any presents you want?” Suho asked, as he realised that before leaving for winter vacation, they had never agreed on giving each other gifts.

“Wishes?” Yixing laughed. “I’ve already got my wish granted, I have you by my side, and I’m happy right now.”

Suho fought his widening smile and let out a nervous laugh, “You’re too cheesy.”

“Ah, that potato stuffed rice cake was cheesy. It tasted good, too.”

“You’re ruining the moment.”

Yixing shrugged. As Suho stared at Yixing out of the corner of his eye, he noticed something.

“Hey, you’re limping! Are you okay?” Suho gaped as his motherly instincts kicked in, bending down to get a closer look at Yixing’s legs.

“I walked around for 4 hours trying to find a seat just now.”

“How can you be so nonchalant about your pain?” Suho tut-tutted as he dragged Yixing to a bench. “Do you want me to go buy some pain-relieving pads? Ah, I don’t have my first aid kit with me! Yixing, you should’ve told me earlier! I wouldn’t have made you walk so much.”

Pockets of warmth threatened to explode out from Yixing’s body as he grinned, feeling his heart race faster. He wasn’t used to so much care and attention. He wasn’t used to this feeling of overwhelming love from another person, especially someone like Suho. “I’m fine. Let’s just sit here and watch the night sky.”

Suho glanced up. “The sky is clouded tonight, what’s there to watch?”

Yixing was silent, as the pair looked at the sky. He let out a laugh as he shifted closer to Suho, pointing at the sky.

“Even if the sky is clouded, my heart isn’t.”

“So cheesy!” Suho groaned as he mockingly punched Yixing’s arm.

“That reminds me of cheesy rice cakes stuffed with potato… Now I feel hungry. Stop saying cheesy!” Yixing whined as he patted his empty stomach. “Treat me to them!”

“Fine, fine.” Suho couldn’t help but smile as Yixing got up and led him away from the bench.

-

“Hey, how long are you going to take to eat these?” Suho grumbled as he checked his phone again. 11.30 pm.

“Do you need to get home soon?” Yixing asked, face falling as he realised that unlike him, Suho actually had a warm home and welcoming family waiting for him. He didn’t want Suho to leave; he wanted to spend more time with him, as selfish as that was.

“Probably, my mom will get worried.” Suho admitted as he stared at Yixing’s crestfallen face. “But, are you sure you don’t have anything you want? I can buy you a last-minute present!”

Yixing paused, mid-bite, as his heart clenched painfully.

“I wish that this happiness wouldn’t stop, I want it to last forever.”

“Oh.” Suho said as he stared at their intertwined hands under the table. “I wish it could last forever too.”

-

“It’s getting really cold.” Yixing shivered as he rubbed his hands. Why hadn’t he taken a coat before leaving the house? It was silly of him not to, especially since winters in Korea were so harsh and bitter.

“You should have worn a coat.” Suho frowned as he took out his phone again, checking.

Yixing was silent, his hold on Suho’s hand slipping.

After a while, he spoke up. “I don’t want to make you troubled. Go home, I’m okay here.”

“No, you’re still cold. I’m not leaving until I know you’re happy, healthy and warm.” Suho protested as he took off the scarf around his neck, and started wrapping it around Yixing’s.

Yixing smiled as he gripped tightly onto the scarf, the faint scent of something comfortable, and woodsy. “Well, now I’m warm, happy and healthy.”

Suho’s eyes darted around nervously as he finished wrapping the scarf around Yixing’s neck, and mumbled something under his breath as he leaned closer to Yixing, and kissed him.

To say that Yixing is shocked is an understatement.

Yixing gasped, and Suho pulled away quickly, face reddening as he blurts out apologies and covered his face with his hands as he whined a little.

“Huh- What… W-What?” Yixing stumbled over his words as he blushed too, heart racing faster and faster.

“Um, it’s 12.00 am now. I-I was waiting for the perfect, cheesy time just for you. Merry Christmas, I’m sorry for-”

Yixing grinned as he pulled Suho close again and kissed him.

Somewhere in the background, Yixing was certain he heard fireworks exploding, cheers of joy and people yelling ‘bottoms up’. Oh wait, that applies to New Year’s. This was something way more special than that. Yixing reveled in the way Suho blushed even redder as he pulled away and his heart does somersaults.

Then Suho’s phone rings.

“Hello… Yeah, yeah… I’m going… Yeah… I see… Okay. Bye!” Suho mumbled into the phone before hanging up, apologetic look on his face as he stared at Yixing.

Yixing smiles bright, eyes crinkling as he waved at Suho. “I know you need to get going. I’ll see you when school reopens?”

Suho is almost blinded by how perfect Yixing’s smile is, and mentally decides that he never wants to see this smile disappear. “You’re really going to be okay? Are you going home soon, my driver can give you a ride?”

“You said you would leave when I’m happy, healthy and warm. I’m fine now, really.”

Suho nodded, still a little worried as he hugged Yixing goodbye. “I’ll get going now, text me when you’re home safe and sound!”

“I will.”

Suho walked off, ignoring the vibration of the phone in his pants as he turned around again. Yixing’s smile never falters.

-

“Suho, honey, I’m glad you’re back! Why were you gone so long? Your father and I were worried!” His mother exclaimed as Suho hugged her, before bowing to his father.

“I was celebrating with a friend.” Suho’s tell-tale, wide smile gives it all away.

“A friend? Is it that special someone you told me about?” His mother smiles.

Suho doesn’t reply, instead opting to rub his cold neck as a servant serves him warm tea. His mother notices, of course, and asks, “What happened to the specially made Italian designer scarf I gave you?”

“Ah… Well…”

-

Yixing lets out a happy sigh as he collapses on his bed, face first. Their second and third kiss, all in one day, and right before Christmas! He slowly took off the scarf, giggling a little as he inhaled the calming scent again.

As he folds the scarf, he notices Suho’s initials sewn on the back in pretty dark green, and he smiles. His first Christmas with Suho, without even realizing it. He was the first person Suho met on Christmas Day. That somehow felt almost all too magical for Yixing, and he giggled again, head giddy with joy.

-

 Yixing let out a shout before jolting off the floor when the doorbell rang, and the sound of bells echoes all the way up to his floor.

Oh, when had he fallen asleep…? He sighed and went to take a bath, making sure to grab his brush before going in to the bathroom. When was the last time he actually tried to untangle the bird nest called his hair?

20 minutes later, and many pained yelps from almost tugging his hair out, Yixing stepped out of the toilet and carefully put away his towel, and checked his hair again in the mirror before noticing in the reflection that there’s someone on his bed.

Yixing screamed, and jumped up in shock. “A-Auntie? When did you come in?”

The lady from the Christmas Party was seated right there on his bed, grinning widely.

“Yixing, your parents said you weren’t home! Goodness, I was looking for the bathroom but then I stumbled in here and realised it was your room. My, your room is certainly very neat, your parents taught you nicely.”

The bathroom is right there on the first floor, with a golden door and a sign that says ‘bathroom’ in fancy italics. It’s not very hard to miss.

Yixing scoffed as he fought back the sarcastic reply bubbling, and instead settled for a nod and a reserved smile. “Well, you’re free to use my bathroom, if you want. What brings you here, on Christmas Day?”

 “Oh, I brought my Kimberly here to see you! We must talk about your wedding plans; we’ve been waiting for so many years for you to come back to Korea.”

Kimberly…? Oh, that name did sound awfully familiar…

Wait, wedding plans?!

“Auntie, I thought Kimberly was marrying Yiheng.”

“What? Goodness, no, Yiheng is younger isn’t he? You’re the one inheriting the company, and you’re such a well-mannered boy too. I don’t want to say this, but Yiheng simply can’t compare to you. I heard that you were the one who taught him your skills, and I believe you’re far better than him. Our Kimberly deserves only the best!”

Yixing grinned proudly, he couldn’t disagree. It was nice to know someone preferred him to his brother, but…

“Auntie, you’re a nice person, so you deserve to know the truth.” Yixing smiled sadly at her before continuing, “Yiheng is the one inheriting the company, not me. I’m not interested in Kimberly, but she shouldn’t marry Yiheng either, if you dislike him so much.”

The lady let out a gasp, standing up to dig her fingernails into Yixing’s arm. “It doesn’t matter who inherits the company, my company can support both our families. She may be my daughter, but girls like my Kimberly don’t come along often. She can play 10 different instruments, she can dance ballet, she can sing, she has-”

“I’m sure Kimberly is wonderful, but I’m afraid… I have someone I’m interested in.” Yixing winced when the lady finally let go of his arm, and he rubbed the indents.

“Well, I never expected this! Zhang Yixing, you Zhangs really-!”

“I’m sorry, Auntie.”

The lady was quiet for a while, and huffed before leaving the room, the door shutting loudly behind her.

Yixing heard muffled shouting, and doors banging shut and loud footsteps. Soon enough, his door banged open again and his father charged in. “Zhang Yixing, now you’ve done it! You ing disgrace!”

Behind him, Yixing’s mother huffed before saying “Language, now.”

“I don’t give a damn about language! That’s it! Get out of here! We’re sending you back to your school, where you won’t disturb us anymore. Get out of our life!”

Yixing’s heart tore into two.

“B-But… Can’t I go to grandmother’s house? Nobody is in school-”

“I don’t care whether there are ghosts there or bugs! You’re going to stay there, and that’s final! Don’t come back here.”

Forever?

Yixing’s hands trembled as his knees buckled and he collapsed on the bed. After a long silence, he nodded as he stared at the floor, tears slipping out.

“Okay.”

-

A/N: Well, I'm sorry. That was depressing, then really fluffy, then it got dramatic in the end. Tons of foreshadowing in this chapter, which gives way to the chapter that follows this time period. Next chapter may be the crappy Xiuchen one I wrote a few days ago and was afraid to post, or it may be SuLay meeting for the first time. OTL I'm sorry for the wait, the Xiuchen one was really bad and you guys don't deserve to read something as horrible as that. :( I will rewrite it until I'm satisfied! 

The Christmas part was actually inspired by what happened to me on Christmas Eve, except it was more of me running away and my family going: "oh okay. huh, come back soon." :'D Luckily for me I had a Suho who came and joined me until I could go back home, except, y'know, we didn't kiss or do the scarf thing. It's hot here in Singapore, but still slightly chilly. This was slightly more dramatic than what happened to me, but I realised it was an opportunity for SuLay fluff AND I TOOK IT! Yehet, any opportunity for SuLay fluff is a good one~

I wanted to say this was Sulay's first and second kiss, but then realised that's a big no-no. Gonna have to write their first kiss in another chapter! This chapter was 4000+ words long, aish, I even said last chapter that this would be shorter, but it actually got longer... How am I going to top this next chapter? ;; 

Comments are welcome! I hope you enjoyed the chapter, have a good day ahead! <3

Oh, and just in case I can't update tomorrow, an advanced Happy New Year to everyone! :D 

P.S: Don't worry Yixing won't suffer all alone in school~ ;D Unfortunately the foreshadowing in this chapter (if you've noticed) does show that something big will happen within this time period. Aish, it's xxx's fault!

last christmas I gave you my heart

the very next day, you gave it away