ii.

(wenhan joked once while tossing little fireballs in his palm, calling the older ‘the one that goes’. something that's never caught, never kept, never stops.)

*

yibo is tall (but not taller than sungjoo) and has black hair when sungjoo first stumbles into him. when yibo bends over to check if the older is alright, sungjoo can’t help but think that, from this angle, the winter sunlight hits the midnight strands nicely.

sungjoo just laughs as he always does, dusting snow off his jeans and the remnants of smoke clinging to his skin, but accepts the pale hand that's offered. in the quick tug that's much stronger than he expects, he hears a winter wind in his ears and a touch that's so cold it burns.

but it's gone as fast as it happens and, when he doesn’t see a change in the younger’s expression, he smiles it off. he's about to walk away when yibo asks, off-handedly, "want to get some coffee?"

the with me goes unsaid but it touches sungjoo's lips like a breeze and he's agreeing without a further thought.

while he watches the younger start to stride down the street and tugging his own jacket close, he tells himself that he's just got here, he’s got time, not in any rush in exploring this city. so he sighs a small cloud and follows, pretending that he hadn't been more convinced by yibo's bright beam than the prospect of free coffee.

~~

despite it being winter, luoyang is barely coated in snow that dusts their sneakers and yibo only wears a t-shirt splattered with gray over his dark pants. he chuckles in the close space in line for their drinks when he sees sungjoo eyeing him.

'I don't mind,' he says simply, turning to pick up their matching mugs.

smiling, sungjoo replies with a thanks and a 'the cold never bothered you anyway?'

yibo takes a large gulp of coffee at that moment and only the slight twitch of the corner of his lips gives him away.

the silence - broken only by the clatter and chatter of the other customers - is easy and sungjoo admires everything from the arabesque steam trails to the crystals forming on the glass outside.

'so how long have you known about your power?'