Lay was just five when it all changed.

Things had been quite simple before then. Difficult, yes, but then again his family had never been such a cakewalk. They were conservative and old-money-old-fashioned, and they had Lay learn how to write calligraphy and play piano and such since he could barely talk. Actually, he could play Beethoven before he knew how to spell it, or what it was (in fact, up until age nine, he swore on his grave it was a type of vegetable).

But then it all changed.

It had been drizzling outside, so Lay was throwing a tea party with his sister inside. She made sure all the dolls and stuffed animals were seated comfortably while Lay poured the tea, humming softly to himself and being careful not to spill on any of the guests. Then his parents walked in.

“What are you two up to?” his father asked, his voice was quite loud and booming and Lay had to concentrate very hard to not wince and break his undefeatable streak of not spilling hot tea on himself.

“It’s a tea party!” Lay sang, smiling smugly to himself, not even spilling a drop as he rounded the corner to finish filling the last few cups. But then he froze, dimples disappearing as he faced his parents with wide, worried eyes, realizing his mistake. “Oh…I am so sorry that I didn’t invite you guys. You guys are welcome to join us…I just have to set some new places. There isn’t a lot of room but we can just kick out Barbie.” His voice dropped to a whisper, “Nobody likes her anyway, believe me she will not be missed.”

His mother laughed, “That’s quite alright sweetie, but why are you pouring the tea? That’s the woman’s job.”

Lay raised an eyebrow, “Woman’s job?”

“Yes, dear. A woman’s job is to cook and clean.”

“Then why do you make me clean all the time?”

His mother’s eyes darted around the room, “Well uh, you see uh…here dear let me help you!” she anxiously took the tea pot from his hands, knocking a battered hamster plush to the ground, and poured drinks for all of them, drinking her own like a shot.

Lay giggled “And I want to learn how to cook anyway!”

His mother chuckled confusedly, “But why would you cook when your wife will do all that for you?”

Lay blushed furiously, burying his dimples into the fallen hamster he was holding tightly. “Well, you see…I don’t want a wife.”

His mother laughed again, louder “But, but what do you…what do you mean you don’t want a wife? Every great man needs a great woman.”

“But…” he mumbled into the hamster’s neck.

“Excuse me?”

Lay looked up hesitantly, still blushing furiously and tufts of hair all messy. “But I want a great man!” He declared, before dissolving into a fit of giggles.

“YOU WANT A WHAT?” his mother demanded. Lay sobered and looked at her nervously. “HONEY, HONEY OUR SON WANTS ANOTHER MAN. OH LAWD MY HEART CAN’T TAKE IT MY SON IS A HOMOU-“ she collapsed then, hands laid over her heart.

“Oh now look what you’ve done! She’s fainted! Yoo-hoo! Honey!” his father snapped his fingers in front of his lover’s face a few times, giving her a few good slaps before surrendering and returning to the pressing matter at hand. “What did you say?” he asked his son, his tone menacing and making Lay cower behind the chubby hamster.

“I, I-“ Lay stammered, shaking and clutching the hamster tighter.

“Say no more. You are an abomination. You are not my son.”

It was decided that Lay would be shipped off to some distant relative in Korea. But get this: the relative didn’t exist. When Lay was sitting on his luggage at the airport, legs swinging with excitement, the woman who took him wasn’t related to him at all.

She was the owner of an orphanage.

When Lay first arrived to meet the other orphans, he was absolutely overjoyed. He had never had many playmates his own age before, but now he was surrounded with dozens. He even got to sleep with them! It was like a slumber party every night!

But then Lay got a bit sad as he slowly began to realize where exactly he was. He was in Korea. These kids were all Korean.

In other words: nobody spoke Chinese.

In other words: Lay had no one to talk to.

In other words: Lay was alll alone.

In other words: this friggin tapioca balls.

A few months later, a new boy arrived at the orphanage.

He had big, comforting eyes, and thin lips that showcased his easy smile all the more. Lay could remember the day he first arrived. There was a big fuss over him. When the car pulled into the driveway, some kid screamed “HE’S HERE!” and muffled “oh my god it’s really happening” s and “do I look good tell me I look good” s  and “HE’S CUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUTE” s were heard throughout the play room. But Lay was in the corner taking advantage of the abandoned toy kitchen to finally get the dishes done, now that the rugrats could leave him in peace for a moment.

When the boy came in, he was shown to his room and given a basic tour before being handed over to the other children to play.

After everyone had their turn, the new kid wandered over to Lay. He sat beside him gingerly and smiled shyly. He waved and spoke rapidly, his voice gentle and smooth. Lay’s eyebrows knitted together and he shook his head slowly in sad confusion. The new boy stopped speaking and gulped.

“I don’t understand.” Lay said as clearly as he could, but he still winced at how thick his accent is. Wow, no wonder nobody talks to me.

At first the new kid doesn’t seem to get it, and Lay watches the floor, waiting for him to give up on Lay and leave. They always do. But then he hears a soft laugh and he looks up to see the new boy, not mocking him, but smiling in understanding.

The new kid tries again. He waves. “Hello” he states, enunciating carefully but not obnoxiously. He places a small pudgy hand to his chest. “Chen” he says. Then he points at Lay curiously, a question in his eyes.

Lay’s dimples light up his face as he thumps a finger on his chest, “Lay” he says softly.

“Hello, Lay” Chen says proudly.

“Hello, Chen!” Lay says, excited to make such a kind new friend.

It was difficult for them to communicate at first, despite how Lay had been working his potty-trained off to learn the new words. But they made it work, teaching each other their native tongue. And slowly, a friendship grew between the two.

Author's note: We all need some Lay giggles in our life, thus the gif. Also (L)ayyyyyyyyyyy, this isn't going so bad (right?!?). I know, I know, there isn't any romance yet-BUT MARK MY WORDS, THERE WILL BE SO. MUCH. PREPARE THYSELF! I'll update as soon as possible, but I need to plan my next move very carefully cause I need to overlap the couples just right. They're not going to be adorable pudgy five year olds for the whole fic (I know, I'm just as dissapointed as you are, but otherwise this would move along wayy too slowly). Any criticisms, feedback, comments, concerns, questions, rants about whatever chaos is going on at sm rn, thoughts on sehbooty, or whatever else you wanna chat about, can be left in the comments (or message me I guess-I still don't quite get how this site works heh). Thanks for reading <3