"Gege!" Tao greeted as soon as he saw Luhan enter the house. The way the older's face looked like the whole world crashed on him all over again made the young singer-actor hurry to his side. With Tao's support, Luhan made it to the couch where he slumped himself in an exhausted pile of sighs.

"Did you..." Tao lets the question hang in the air. In the last few days, Luhan's emotional condition had improved somehow. Sure, they still find him staring off to a distance more times than not, but at least he didn't look so miserable anymore. But now, Luhan's eyes looked distant again. Like there's a living nightmare in his mind that he couldn't escape. And he looks tired. Just so very tired. And he can only think of one reason why Luhan's condition got worse all of a sudden.

"Yeah... We met again." he said in an almost whisper. Luhan buried his face in his palms and pressed the ends of his fingers on his closed eyes, as if willing the tears away.

"Are you okay?" It was a stupid question but Tao just had to ask.

"I wish I am, Tao. I really want to be okay. But his voice, even his hand. They were all... It's the same. Everything is the same. I can't even tell if I'm just being delusional or not. I might be going crazy, Tao. I hate this. I hate how he reminds me of everything. Everything that I lost. Everything that I would never have again." Luhan's voice sounded so strained, like he's a breath's away from turning into a crying mess all over again. 

Tao couldn't reply. He can't tell Luhan that everything is going to be fine. He can't tell him that it will all pass. He can't because for the past five years, Luhan never became okay. He tried. He did his best to move on. But it was all for naught. Luhan is still living in the past. Still living in misery and regret. And honestly, Tao doesn't know if it will ever be okay for Luhan.

"Do they really look that much alike?" the younger finally asked.

Luhan released a shaky breath. His hands are trembling and he hastily wiped them on his jeans. He looked so wrecked and Tao really pities him.

"It was like they're the same person, Tao. So much that it's scary." Luhan's voice was shaking as well. His eyes glossy with unshed tears. He choked back a sob and tried to focus at one spot on the carpeted floor. "It's scary because I'm still craving that presence. But I shouldn't because they're different people. He's not... They're not the same."

"Just rest for now, Lu-ge. You're tired." Tao urged, reaching for the blanket that they keep near the sofa. He eased the older so he can lie down comfortably before covering him with the thin cloth and walking away to give Luhan some much needed space. Luhan molded onto the pillow immediately, lines of fatigue completely visible on his pretty face. He exhaled another shaky breath before he buried his face further on the softness.

Tao walked away and went straight to the kitchen. It was still relatively early for hot milk and honey but he figures that it will at least relax Luhan's nerves so he went ahead to prepare it. He thinks it's pathetic. How Luhan is breaking down at the moment and all the help he can give is prepare a glass of milk. But it was the only thing he can do. It's the only thing they can do for Luhan.

~*~

To say that Minseok is excited is an understatement. He was fidgeting so much. After staying in China for five days now, he's finally going to attend class the day after tomorrow. All his instruments are already in the dormitory. His guitar sits next to his bed and his keyboard against the wall. Their place have such a calming presence despite the different kind of tunes and music coming out from each room. After all, everyone in there are music students so the place is always full of people playing or singing.

It was still the early part of the night, he decided it's still fine if he will play a song or two. From his position from the bed, Minseok got up and seated himself in front of his keyboard. There's always a song he likes to play. It's a very familiar melody in his mind but he doesn't know where or when he heard the piece.

As his fingers settled on the keys, his hand immediately flew around the black and white tiles. The song sounded so sad and yet, Minseok finds it soothing. Like it's a part of him. He wasn't even halfway through the song when insistent knocking on their door interrupted him. Minseok was honestly nervous. He wondered for a moment if it was the resident from next door. Maybe they find his playing too noisy. But then again, there are still music coming out from the hallway so that means it isn't too late yet to be playing. 

The knocks continued and Minseok picked himself up to answer the door. Jongdae was currently out to rehearse with his old classmates from Vocal Class so it was only Minseok in their shared living space.

As he opened the door, what he saw was a man wearing huge sunglasses and a face mask that covers the rest of his face. The man let out an audible gasp as his eyes fell on Minseok.

"No way!" were the first words that fell from the man's lips. Even behind the sunglasses, Minseok can see that the man was looking at him from head to toe. As if analyzing his entirety and it was honestly unsettling.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

The man gaped for a while more, or Minseok assumes he did, before he started removing the mask and the sunglasses. This time, it was Minseok's turn to gape. Can he really be this lucky? Sure, one of his reasons for coming to China is to see every member of Prinze and maybe get an autograph if he's lucky. But not only did he meet Luhan twice, excluding their weird encounter at the airport, but now he's face to face with Yixing. 

He might've jumped in joy if it wasn't for the distressed look on Yixing's face. Yixing's eyes looked at him with a sort of familiarity and hurt. Miseok recognized these emotions but he didn't know why.

"Can you come with me?" Yixing asked. The question so soft and hesitant.

Minseok searched Yixing's eyes for any hint they might hold but all he read was a plead. He found himself nodding and Yixing gave him a small smile.

~*~

After a half an hour drive in Yixing's car, Minseok found himself standing in front of a huge mansion. Yixing walked in front of him and gestured for him to follow. The inside was even more grand than the outside. Maybe the grand piano at the middle and the various trophies from music shows were what gave the deciding factor about how beautiful Yixing's place is.

"Have a seat." Yixing told him.

"Why did you ask me to come?" Minseok had wanted to ask during their ride here, but Yixing was avoiding eye contact with him the entire time.

The other released an audible sigh before flopping on a nearby chair. "I really can't blame Lu-ge for breaking down. It's too much to process." he whispered. Minseok was quite sure Yixing didn't intend for that to be overheard but he caught every word anyway. "Well, actually, I... I mean we wanted to ask a favor from you." Yixing finally said.

"A favor?" Minseok raised an eyebrow. What would Yixing need from someone like him?

"Yeah, and apologize to you as well." Yixing's face was still downcast and Minseok has a nagging suspicion that Yixing is finding it hard to look at his face.

"...why?" A favor is one thing, but why would he need to apologize, too? He had only been in China for five short days. Yixing couldn't have done anything worth apologizing over. But the way the other wasn't meeting his eyes probably is proof enough that Yixing really do have something to apologize for. But what?

"Because of this..." Yixing handed him his cellphone which has a mail opened. It appears to be a front page of a tabloid, but that wasn't what concerns Minseok. What grabbed his attention was the three photos occupying the entire cover page. The first one was taken at the airport, the second one was in front of the dormitory and the third one was from the cafe earlier today. The faces were blurred, excluding Luhan's face. And in huge bold letters was the title: CHINA'S MALE GOD LUHAN, FINALLY IN A RELATIONSHIP?!

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Akira: Heya my lovelies~ Wow, it took me an entire year to post the next chapter and I apologize greatly for that. 

Back to the story... Oh fate is so cruel, isn't it? Luhan and Minseok keeps on meeting. They can't run away from each other, and I'm sure you guys want them to keep meeting, too. Hahahah :D Give me your comments please~

P.S. I'll be on vacation from now on so I'll be updating my (almost forgotten) other fics~ And this time I'm determined to finish them one by one. Expect updates on other fics too *hugs and kisses*