rating: PG-15
length: Chapter 2 (3,162 words)
a/n: Mentions of depression and anxiety, ual content, swearing.

“How soon is too soon for a first kiss?”

“Well, you’ve been out on one date already.”

“I know! And usually first dates end with a kiss, right? If they like each other enough, this is.. Does that mean he doesn’t like me? Sehun, am I not likeable?”

Sehun sighs, sitting back against his pillows as he continues to text Jongin about their plans. He’s supposed to meet up with him in an hour, but Zitao’s been ranting about his new love interest for the past thirty minutes, causing Sehun to procrastinate on getting ready. “Maybe he’s one of those people who like to take things slow.”

“But how will I know if he actually likes me?!”

“He asked you out on another date, didn’t he?”

Zitao pauses, taking a seat on his bed as he processes that fact. “He did.”

“Then he obviously has some sort of interest in you.”

“Oh my God— he totally does!” It’s the squeal and kicking of Zitao’s legs that have Sehun rolling his eyes, sitting up from his bed as the other stuffs his face in his pillow.

“I gotta get ready to meet up with Jongin,” Sehun says as he gets up from his bed. He’s moving towards his closet to get dressed, and Zitao’s peeking over at him from his bed.

“Meeting with Jongin?” He grins, emphasis on the teacher’s first name. “A student hanging out with a teacher outside of classes - How scandalous.”

“Student teacher. He’s literally my age.”

Zitao just rolls his eyes, shrugging as he turns over onto his back, arms folded behind his head as he watches Sehun change his shirt. “Still! You’re hanging out with the really hot dance teacher from university. You’re going to get stared down into the depths of Hell.”

“You’re being ridiculous,” Sehun laughs. “Besides, I’ve got a boyfriend that I’m crazy about. Jongin’s got connections and experience! He could really help me out with my future.”

“Of course, of course,” he waves him off with a hand, laughing to himself. “Go.”

With a heavy sigh, Sehun heads for the door once he’s changed his shirt and put on a jacket. “Don’t stay up too late reading your mangas.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. Oh, wait—”

“What?” Sehun turns a bit from the door to glance at his friend.

“Do you think it’d be a long time till I get to Junmyeon’s d—”

“Goodbye, Tao.”

The two had made plans to meet at the dance studio since Jongin had been there all day working on some new choreography. Sehun didn’t expect him to still be practicing when he got there though, the male drenched in sweat as he easily went through the movements, as if he wasn’t even exhausted. Standing at the doorway, Sehun watched as the other danced - It was mesmerizing watching Jongin dance; the boy danced so flawlessly, unlike anyone Sehun’s ever witnessed before. He was truly amazed by his talent, and the determination within him grows more and more each time he witnesses Jongin dance, because Sehun longs to become just as talented as Jongin.

When Jongin catches Sehun’s eye in the mirror, he smiles, stopping his movements to turn around and face him. Sehun’s a little startled, smiling sheepishly at the other as he steps inside completely, closing the door behind him. “Sorry— didn’t mean to intrude on your practice.”

“What’d you think?” He asks with a precious smile, stepping over to grab himself a small towel. Sehun’s eyebrows raise at the sudden question.

“Huh? It was great— amazing, really.”

“Awesome,” he replies, wiping the sweat off his face with the towel. “I’ve been working on it all day. I hope to teach you guys this next.. once it’s perfected.”

“It really.. it’s amazing. You dance so perfectly— I can’t even believe how great you are—”

Jongin just laughs, walking towards the speaker to turn the music off. “You’re too nice, Sehun.. You’re really great too, y’know.”

“Not anything like you though— How do you just.. make something like that?”

“Years of practice.. hours and hours a day. It just comes to me now so naturally.. like how stories come to writers. It’s just the process of putting it all together that’s the hard part.”

Sehun nods as the other explains, smiling widely. His eyes almost sparkle from how much he looks up to Jongin. He just thinks about how much he needs to keep practicing, and how far he can go in life if he ever becomes as great as his teacher. Jongin gestures for Sehun to follow him once he grabs his bag, leading him out of the studio. “I’ve been in here all day, I think I need some fresh air.”

It’s already dark outside, but the city lights of Seoul easily shine over the streets. Sehun and Jongin are walking along the sidewalk, bundled up in their thick jackets – it’s gotten quite cold recently, the winter months quickly approaching. Sehun’s always loved the cold though, and the holidays that come along with the winter. He’s excited to be able to spend them with Luhan.

As they walk, Jongin tells Sehun about how he got into dancing. He learns that Jongin had practiced ballet majority of his life, and eventually shifted over to hip-hop. Apparently, he had been in many contests and even auditioned for a few companies, but in the end, he decided that’s not what he wanted. He realized he’d rather teach others instead of live the idol life style – and Sehun’s grateful to hear that, because if he hadn’t changed his mind, then he would’ve never met him.

“Believe it or not, I still have a long way to go. I’m lucky that I even got a student teacher job in dancing. I’m not even near professional choreographer level yet.”

Even if he isn’t technically deemed ‘professional’ yet, Sehun thinks Jongin’s already one of the best. He can’t even imagine how amazing he’d be if he continued to improve.

“I want to be as good as you. And I want to have opportunities like that.. I feel like I’ve wasted so much time— but I wasn’t able to take classes or go to contests or anything.. because of my parents.”

Jongin frowns at that, placing his hand on the other’s shoulder. “You’ve still got plenty of time. I know it doesn’t seem like it because we’re the same age.. but I’ve just been given an early start. You’re at a good level right now.” He gives him a reassuring smile, squeezing the taller’s shoulder, and it helps Sehun smile back at him.

“..Yeah.. I guess you’re right.”

“And don’t you worry, alright? I’m going to help you as much as I can.. I’ll get you into competitions, and shows too.” Jongin’s smile is the kind that really helps Sehun relax, and it makes him smile in return. The other sends him a playful wink, poking at his side. “There we go. Keep smiling, like that. You’ve got so much going for you. I know it.”

Once a food cart catches Jongin’s eye, he grabs onto Sehun’s wrist, tugging him along. “I’m starving! You want some? It’ll be my treat.” He insists, and the other’s enthusiasm has Sehun accepting his offer. They get an order of ddeokbokki to share, eating the spicy rice cakes together as they continue to walk down the streets of Seoul. The two talk about dancing for a while longer, but the conversation soon shifts over to their other interests and random stories. They decide to visit a small coffee shop, and Sehun insists on buying them hot chocolate in return for Jongin’s ddeokbokki. After enjoying their cups of hot chocolate, they continue to converse at the shop. Sitting together at one of the tables, Sehun stops mid-laughter as a tall man approaches them from behind Jongin’s chair. He looks up at him with furrowed brows, and this makes Jongin pause, turning around to look up. With a heavy sigh and a roll of his eyes, he looks down at the table, crossing his arms as the tall gentleman takes a seat beside Jongin, wrapping his arm around his shoulders. Sehun blinks in confusion, his breath quickening slightly.

“You two having a good time? Why didn’t you tell me you were hanging out with a friend tonight, hm?” The man speaks, and his voice is quite deep. He leans closer to Jongin as if he’s going to kiss his cheek, but Jongin shifts away, shoving his arm away from his shoulders.

“Because it’s none of your business.”

“I’m pretty sure it’s my business. I’m your boyfriend.”

“You are not my boyfriend, Yifan.” Jongin shoots the man a glare, and Sehun feels extremely uncomfortable. The situation feels so tense, and it’s triggering his nerves.

“I told you to leave me the hell alone. Stop following me around.” Jongin is quick to get out of his seat, and Sehun mimics him.

The man rolls his eyes, “Baby, please—”

“I am not your baby!” He shouts, grabbing onto Sehun’s hand and quickly drags him out of the café. Luckily, the man named Yifan isn’t one to chase Jongin after he barges out, but Jongin isn’t slowing down anyway. He continues to run away with Sehun’s hand in his, and Sehun’s never felt so confused before.

“J-Jongin!” He tries to get his attention as they run together, but the dancer doesn’t respond, feeling as if he’d choke if he tried to speak. Before he realizes it, Jongin had led them to Sehun’s apartment. He tries to catch his breath before facing the other, and the usual bright and happy Jongin that Sehun’s grown to admire isn’t there.

“..I’m really sorry about that. Thank you for hanging out with me tonight though.. I wanted to make sure you’d get home safely so..”

This is a side of Jongin that Sehun was never aware existed. He’s almost shy in a sense, but it goes to show him that even the people you look up to have their soft sides.

“It’s okay—really. I just.. I got a little nervous. But you got us out of there before my anxiety could get bad..”

“Yeah.. yeah, you mentioned the anxiety earlier. Sorry about that. I’ll see you in class soon?” He offers a soft smile, and Sehun finds himself smiling back.

“I would never miss your class,” he laughs, and Jongin just pats his cheek.

“Sleep well, Sehun-ah.”

“He seriously just walked up and sat at your table?” Zitao asks, glancing at Sehun with a raised eyebrow. Sehun was packing his overnight bag for when he heads to Luhan’s apartment while telling Zitao about how his night went with Jongin.

“I was so confused, you don’t even know. I was just sitting there like.. ‘Who is this tall Chinese man and why is he being possessive over Jongin?’ I think his name was… Yifan?”

“Wait.. Yifan? Oh, I know him! He’s really tall and blond and kind of hot—he’s in my Chinese class! I hear he’s a ing weirdo though.”

“Really?” Sehun turns to face the other, slinging his bag over his shoulder. “I mean, Jongin seemed very annoyed by him.. Yifan kept making it sound like they were a couple but Jongin kept saying they weren’t.”

“I don’t know— I heard he likes molding candles in the shape of his .”

“Oh God, Tao. I really didn’t need to hear that.”

“Well, you asked! I mean, that’s just a rumor, but I wouldn’t doubt it. Probably does some other sick stuff with those things—”

“--I’m going to Luhan’s.”

“Oh, okay! I was going to call Junmyeon anyway.” He smiles, leaning back against his pillows and looks at his phone screen.

“Awh, how cute.”

“Go away!”

Sehun closed the door behind him before Zitao’s pillow could hit him.

Despite being flooded with classes and upcoming exams, Sehun still manages to make plans with Luhan throughout the week. He feels as though he needs to stay over with Luhan at least once a week, or he won’t be able to focus on his school work completely. It’s come to that point in their relationship where they never want to be separated, but it’s inevitable considering Sehun’s a full-time student and Luhan works more hours than he used to. After taking a relaxing bath together, the two changed into their warm sleepwear and snuggled up in Luhan’s bed. Being able to just lay in bed with arms and legs tangled together is extremely stress relieving for the both of them. It was about two hours before when Sehun arrived, and Luhan asked how his day was, but he was still going on about it. Sehun finds it easy to rant about his teacher, and now new friend Jongin, and how fun he is. At first Luhan found it cute, happy to see that Sehun’s made a new friend who could possibly help him in his future, but after a while…

“I walked in when he was working on new choreography for our class and it looked so amazing! He really is a great dancer.. I hope I can be like him one day.”

“You’re already a great dancer, Sehun.”

“But he’s so much better than me! The way he moves.. it’s mesmerizing! And he’s my age.. he’s so great already and he’s done competitions and stuff!”

Luhan tries his best to hold back a sigh, running his fingers through Sehun’s still damp hair. “When do your exams end?”

“Hm? Oh, they’re all next week and then I’m done until after winter break! And we get to spend Christmas together and stuff..” Sehun offers a small, shy smile, and Luhan can’t help but pull the younger into a more secured hug.

“You’re the cutest, you know that?”

“Am not!” Sehun looks up at Luhan, a bit surprised at how close their faces became. “You’re way cuter than me.”

Luhan rolls his eyes, closing the gap between the two and presses a soft kiss to his lips. Sehun smiles against his lips, feeling small and protected against Luhan’s chest and wrapped up in his arms.

“I love you so much..”

It may have technically only been their second date so far, but the two were constantly communicating. Whenever Zitao was in class and Junmyeon was at work, they’d text back and forth; during their free time, they’d talk on the phone. Zitao seemed to have grown quite fond of the elder, more quickly than he had expected. There was something about him that Zitao loved – he feels it might be how sweet and gentle he is, especially with Zitao, and how he feels safe around him. Usually Zitao is the one doing most of the talking, but he really values people who listen, people who remember the little facts and details he may have slipped out during a random conversation. He was really excited for their second date, having been eagerly waiting outside of his apartment for Junmyeon to pick him up. The kinds of dates Junmyeon takes him on are definitely unlike the kinds he’s been on before – it seems like Junmyeon actually tries to treat Zitao to a nice meal, and not in a way that seems too desperate to impress. Honestly, fancy dates aren’t needed for Zitao to see effort, but he’s not complaining either.

There were a few times where Zitao insisted on paying his half of their meal, but Junmyeon declined the offer each time. Zitao wasn’t wrong when he figured Junmyeon had money, but he still feels a little bad about the expensive meals— (at least he tried to help paying). The dates are more romantic than Junmyeon probably intends, but it’s probably just seen that way in Zitao’s perspective. After dinner, Junmyeon takes them to walk in the park, and Zitao can’t help but blush when the elder takes his hand in his. He smiles to himself, intertwining their fingers together as they walk.  The trees nearby are decorated with Christmas lights, and the scenery makes the whole situation so much more overwhelming— in a good way, of course. They talk as they walk, mostly Zitao, but Junmyeon always finds himself smiling when he listens to the younger speak. He enjoys his lighthearted personality, and how lively he is. He’s unlike anyone he’s ever dated, for sure.

The date feels like it goes by quicker than they’d wanted, and Junmyeon drives Zitao back to his apartment before it gets too late. Like the gentleman he is, he walks Zitao up to his door. The younger still can’t get over how much he towers over Junmyeon, but he finds it adorable. Once they reach the door, Junmyeon can’t find the will in him to let go of Zitao’s hand, and he just gazes up at him with a soft smile.

“I.. had a great time tonight.. honestly,” Zitao admits, glancing away shyly with a small smile.

“Thank you for accepting my second date,” Junmyeon grins, leaning to the side a bit to get a better look at Zitao’s face. “I’m afraid I’m.. growing to like you a lot.”

Zitao swears his heart skips a beat at the other’s words, blush darkening his cheeks as he looks back at the elder. “R-really?”

“Yeah.. I hope we can go out again soon..?”

“Yes! Just—just let me know, okay? Text me, call me—whatever you want!”

Junmyeon just laughs, bringing a hand up and curves his palm along the back of Zitao’s neck, bringing him in closer to press his lips to his. Zitao responds immediately despite being taken aback, his hands grabbing onto Junmyeon’s free hand. He wasn’t sure it was possible, but Zitao’s face is a darker shade of red by the time the elder pulls away, and he finds the other’s reaction to be the cutest thing.

“I’ll talk to you soon. And good luck on your exams!” Junmyeon says, pressing a kiss to the back of Zitao’s hand before waving himself off and getting into his car.

Studying for his exams probably just got twenty times harder.

As much as the towering stacks of paperwork set on Luhan’s desk was distracting, the large bouquet of flowers being sent to Junmyeon’s office certainly catches his attention. He peers over the walls of his cubicle, staring through his boss’s opened door as the receptionist places the vase of flowers on Junmyeon’s desk. Chanyeol and Xiumin are watching from their cubicles as well, glancing at each other with wiggling eyebrows. Junmyeon looks incredibly confused by the delivery, but a smile graces his features once he reads the card it came with.

“Must be from his Starbucks lover,” Chanyeol guesses, and Xiumin just laughs. They all sit back down in their chairs, and Luhan’s shaking his head.

“I’ve never seen the man so happy,” he hears Xiumin say.

“Hey, better for us, right?” Chanyeol responds and they all laugh in unison.

a/n: Hi guys - u - I'm really trying hard to get chapters up quickly, but I was a bit stuck for the past few days > A < I hope you guys like this chapter though! Thank you for all the support and cute comments, by the way! ♥