Sehun leaned against the tree, thankful for the shade. It was hot, unbearably so. California was hot too but the heat there was dry, humidity hung in the air here making the same temperature that much worse.

“How was your first day?” Baekhyun ran over to Sehun, almost tripping a few times as he sprinted across the grassy square that sat almost smack dab in the middle of all of the academic buildings. Baekhyun had asked Sehun to meet him there after school for a debriefing of his first day (as Baekhyun described it).

“Good, I think.” Sehun kept his answer vague, short, not wanting to commit to being overly positive.

“Ready for dinner?” Baekhyun linked his arm through Sehun’s, pulling Sehun out of the shade and towards the dining hall.

“Already?” Sehun wasn’t used to eating so early. The last time he had looked at the time it was a quarter to five o’clock.

“Yeah. First dinner. Second dinner will be in a few hours.” Baekhyun explained. “You mean you only eat one dinner?!”

“I…well, yeah.”

“That’s okay.” Baekhyun patted Sehun’s arm. “Most of the students here do too; probably because they are too foolish to realize that they can go back twice and no one is going to say anything about it. I mean, after how much we pay to go here – I have to get every bit of my money’s worth. Plus I am a growing boy.” Baekhyun detached his arm from Sehun’s, patting his belly as he laughed.

Sehun rolled his eyes, Baekhyun didn’t notice or if he did he didn’t say anything. “So tell me everything about California. What is it like? Are there cute girls and boys and dogs? How about the food? Is there a subway line? I bet you go to the beach every day, right? Are there topless beaches? Like have you been to one? If I went could I go to one?”

“Whoa, slow down.” Sehun felt dizzy with all of the questions.

“Sorry, just curious.”

“So am I.” Sehun admitted as they neared the cafeteria. “Who adopted you?”

Sehun, Tao, and Baekhyun had forged their friendship as children in the Home of Light Orphanage. All three had lived there from birth, surrendered to the home by their parents. Baekhyun was the first of the three to be adopted. Sehun had left when his maternal Aunt had offered to adopt him, moving him to California. Tao…Sehun wasn’t sure about Tao.

“Oh, the Byuns. They are nice.” Baekhyun dragged Sehun through the cafeteria doors, “Make sure you take two desserts.”

“What do they do?” Sehun guessed they were wealthy, the tuition for a semester at the academy was more than most colleges charged for a year of classes.

“My dad is a marketing exec. My mom stays at home.” Baekhyun handed Sehun a tray. “Make sure you skip the vegetables, they only take up space.”

“Tao wasn’t…” Sehun didn’t know how to say it… Tao was never picked. Tao was never chosen by the starry eyed foreign couples of hopeful domestic pairings that filtered into the orphanage every now and then looking for a bright eyed bundle of joy.

“No. He wasn’t. But he did leave shortly after you did. Someone sponsored his education. Charity case and all that.” Baekhyun winked at the serving woman as she heaped an extra portion of gourmet potatoes on his plate.

Sehun considered what Tao’s past meant... Sehun didn’t consider his own time after the orphanage to be anything to brag about. His aunt wasn’t the most loving person in the world. Sehun was convinced she had only taken him from the orphanage because her husband had guilt tripped her into it after discovering his wife’s late sister had given him up. His aunt was quick to send him away to school, complaining when he was home on holidays. Tao, on the other hand, apparently didn’t have a home to go to. Should he feel bad for him? No, Sehun decided. It was their fate. No sense in be their mutual lack of parental affection, nothing good could come from it.  Not to mention the fact Tao was not exactly someone he wanted to commiserate over at the moment.

Sehun skipped the second dessert, turning around to face the wide expanse of tables. The cafeteria was decorated in a modern leaning theme, sleek edges and bold splashes of color. It resembled a posh restaurant more than a high school dining area. Sehun had been there earlier in the day for breakfast. At the time Baekhyun had seemed to wait for Sehun to utter words of awe or appreciation. It never happened. Sehun might have been impressed if his old school hadn’t been as try hard, boasting a cafeteria to at least rival this one aesthetically.

“We always sit here for dinner.” Baekhyun pointed towards a table in the corner of the cafeteria, a different place than they had sat that morning.

“We?” Sehun asked.

“Nice that MY friend is abandoning me during first dinner.” Tao narrowed his eyes, glaring at Baekhyun. He was standing near the entrance of the cafeteria, hands on his hips.

“Stop being a drama queen, get your food and sit down.” Baekhyun leaned into Sehun as they walked to the table, whispering; “Same as he was when he was little. So dramatic.”

Sehun nodded in agreement.

Tao was quick to get his food, stalking over to the table with an angry expression. He sat down next to Baekhyun, nearly slamming his tray down on the table.

“How was your first day back?” Baekhyun asked innocently, shoveling potatoes in his mouth.

Tao shot a suspicious look at Sehun before answering the question. “Good. I don’t feel as far behind as I thought I would.”

“Yeah!” Baekhyun clapped. “See, everything is going to be fine. We are all together again,” Baekhyun gestured to Sehun and Tao, “Tao’s first day back went well and Sehun now knows about first dinner. Win, win if I do say so myself.”

“How was your first day?” Tao asked hesitantly, spurred on by Junmyeon’s please of forty minutes ago. Be nice, give him a chance…Tao hated how much Junmyeon’s words could sway him sometimes.

“Good. I only saw you once so that was a plus.” Sehun answered quickly.

“Hey! What happened to our happy times?” Baekhyun interjected immediately, Tao ignored him.

“You think you are special, don’t you?”

“Maybe. At least I can remember my best friend.” Sehun took a bite of his chicken, apparently unperturbed by Tao’s mean spirited questio