Inappropriate Winking [2/2]
Title: Inappropriate Winking
Author: Adw1017/annie1017
Genre: romance, highschool au
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Yixing tries his best to deal with the new kid in school who seems set on invading every part of his private life and sexually harassing him with inappropriate winks.
Kris, of course, made the basketball team with little trouble. He was seen around the dorm a little less, as practice started to monopolize more of his time.
Yixing found that he actually kind of missed the big guy being around all the time, mostly just because he had already gotten accustomed to it.
As the date to Kris’ first official game drew closer, a date that he bragged about twice a day, there was a lot of hype around the school. Most of the girls already had giant crushes on the supermodel anyway, and the superstar athlete thing only added to the general appeal.
“Yeollie says that the coach is really impressed with him,” Baekhyun informed the group as they made their way to the gym for the big game. “He might even be starting, even though it’s his first game.”
“There’s a rumor going around with some of the underclassmen that Kris Ge only got on the team because he’s good looking and the coach wants to attract more fans,” Sehun muttered, giving a passing rock a vicious kick to the side of the road.
“That’s a load of bull,” Yixing snapped. “I’ve had my ass kicked by him enough times to know from experience that he’s amazing at basketball.”
“That’s what I told them too,” Sehun replied with a small smile. “Kris asked me to practice with him once when you were busy and I got demolished.”
Through a combination of Chen’s position on the student council and Chanyeol and Kris’ requests, the boys were able to secure the best seats in the house, the first row in the student section.
“Although, you have got to admit, having Kris on the team does increase ticket sales by quite a lot,” Kai observed, glancing around.
The gym was packed almost to the limit, a rare sight for a non-championship game like this one.
“I think kids from other schools even came to see Kris play,” Luhan added, tilting his head towards a little circle of kids who were wearing the uniform of the neighboring school.
Xiumin only shook his head and grumbled, “fame.”
As other members warmed up and practiced layups on the court, Kris and Chanyeol spotted the little group huddled near the railings, and scampered over. Both giants hooked their arms over the lower rail, and everyone leaned down to make their voices heard over the crowd.
“Glad to see you made it, Xingxing,” Kris drawled, winking at Yixing with a suggestive smirk.
“Don’t call me that,” Yixing mumbled back out of habit. None of the others even batted an eye, because they had all gotten used to Kris’ strange ways.
“Coach says Kris is starting today,” Chanyeol announced, clapping Kris on the back proudly. “He is our best long-range shooter on the team right now.”
“I’ll laugh at you if you suck, so you better go out there and kick butt,” Yixing laughed.
Kris stuck out his tongue, then reached a hand up towards Tao, pointing at the bag of chips he was holding. Tao sighed, but gave a handful to his gege.
“Good luck, both of you,” Chen interrupted, bringing sanity back into the conversation.
At that moment, the basketball coach blew his whistle, calling the team back to the bench.
“We’ll go out to eat after, win or lose,” Kris called back as he and Chanyeol started back towards the bench. Then, he turned, looking over his shoulder, and grinned at Yixing. “Don’t forget to cheer for me, Xingxing.”
Yixing felt his lips curl into a begrudging smile, even as his cheeks tinted with a blush. “Honestly…” he muttered, rolling his eyes.
Tao, a little annoyed at Kris for stealing his chips, stood up, offering to get food from the concession stand. Xiumin went with him to help carry the purchases, when basically everyone said they wanted a soda.
Yixing leaned back, enjoying the anticipation in the atmosphere as tip-off time drew close. Kai and Lu Han were whispering to each other as they scoped out girls a few rows over, under the disapproving eyes of Chen and Baekhyun. Suddenly, Yixing felt eyes boring into the back of his head, and turned to see Sehun, studying him intently.
“Something wrong?” Yixing asked, confused.
Sehun shrugged, and shook his head.
Then, the whistle blew and the game started.
The ambiance in the dorm was cheery that night. Kris had been on fire all night, and set a new school record by hitting over 40% of his 3-pointers. Kris was delirious with happiness, and Yixing felt proud as he watched Kris bounce around the room in excitement. Kris had really showed the skeptics tonight that he was not just on the team to increase ticket sales.
“How many autographs did you give tonight, hot shot?” Yixing teased from his spot in the spinney computer chair.
Kris looked up from where he sprawled out on his bed, and grinned at Yixing. “Just three,” he replied truthfully. “They had my last feature spread for W Korea magazine, which I happen to know sold out and never got reprinted. They’re considered limited edition and nearly impossible to get hands on now, so how could I not?”
Yixing paused for a moment, weighing the question that had been on his mind for the past few days in his mind. Finally, he decided to voice it.
“Why are you going to school now when you’re already rich and famous?” he asked, carefully.
Kris sighed, and flopped back onto the bed. “One day, my career as a model will end, Xing,” he replied, softly. “You know, one can’t be the “next big thing” forever. I’m already at the “current big thing” stage now, aren’t I? Eventually, not anytime soon, but eventually, I will be too old, and then I’ll just be “nothing”. I want to go to college, get an education, and have a real career.”
“Modeling is a real career,” Yixing replied, confused.
“Modeling is too unstable to ever be a real career,” Kris answered. “I started modeling when I was barely 12 because it was fun, you know? All the makeup and hair jiejies are really nice, and they give you sweets and snacks and fawn all over you. But then I started getting older, taller, and more and more popular. Once I started making the big money, everyone around me changed. Even my parents changed.”
Yixing had never heard Kris mention his parents before, and straightened up with interest.
“Now, they spend their time in vacation houses all over Europe. I haven’t seen my parents for almost a year, Xingxing, and not because I couldn’t or anything. It’s because they’re too … busy … relaxing on the French Riviera or shopping in London to see visit me, their only son. Isn’t that terrible? And I can’t even remember the last time they called - probably more than two months ago.”
Yixing listened, open mouthed. How could Kris’ parents just abandon their son like that? But then again, money does change people in strange ways.
“Before I became a model, my name was just Wu Yifan, and my family used to own a bakery,” Kris admitted. “It’s my dream to one day open my own little café, and I want to study business and entrepreneurship in college.”
“I think you’d be great at running a café,” Yixing replied, voice soft. He didn’t even have the heart to chide Kris for calling him by his exclusive nickname like he normally would.
“Don’t feel sorry for me,” Kris replied, catching a glimpse of Yixing’s expression. “I’m back in highschool, and I’m already heading towards my dream. I might have to fight my parents and my manager along the way, but I’m ready for it.”
From then on, Kris was no longer the aloof, larger-than-life supermodel Kris Wu who had everything that he wanted and was just slumming it for a year in high school. He was Wu Yifan, the human being with unfulfilled dreams and bright ambitions.
It was after Kris actually had the audacity to sneakily kiss Yixing’s cheek before heading off after lunch when Sehun finally spoke up.
“Ge, can I ask you something?” the boy said, timidly.
Although Sehun had been welcomed and assimilated into the group with ease, he was closest to Yixing and Kai, because they danced together, and Lu Han, just because the boy was always with Yixing and Kai. On this particular day, Kai and Luhan had snuck off somewhere, probably chatting up girls somewhere on campus, and the others were all distracted by watching the student council president making a ruckus about something unintelligible at entrance to the cafeteria.
“Sure, Sehun,” Yixing replied, leaning in to hear him better. “What’s up?”
Sehun shifted uncomfortably, and licked his lips out of habit. “Are you and Kris Ge - I mean…he…why does he always…is he…I mean…are you…”
Yixing blinked a few times, trying to process Sehun’s words. It wasn’t until the boy pointed silently at his cheek, that Yixing finally understood.
“I’m not gay,” he replied, automatically.
“But -”
“-and I don’t think Kris is gay either,” Yixing finished, cutting off Sehun’s argument. “Kris is just an obnoxious douche and he likes annoying me and pushing my buttons. Don’t take it so seriously, okay?”
Sehun bit his lip, and nodded. Even though he dropped the subject, he looked utterly unconvinced by Yixing’s words. He saw the way that Kris and Yixing acted around each other, and “not gay” was definitely not the right explanation.
Two days later, Yixing finally figured out what the student council president was making a fuss about all over campus. The group was just heading back to the dorms after breakfast on a chilly weekend when Kim Joonmyun stopped them in the quad.
The student council president, nicknamed Suho by his fellow students, was holding a stack of pamphlets and shoving them at people who were walking through, along with a clipboard, asking for signatures.
“Chenchen, will you hand me another stack of these?” Suho called to his secretary, pointing to a box in the corner of the quad.
Chen drew his scarf tighter around his neck, and hurried over to get more flyers.
“What’s going on?” Lu Han asked, taking one of the flyers that Suho held out to him.
Kai looked over his shoulder and read, “reduce…reuse…recycle?”
“Actually, do you guys mind signing this petition?” Suho asked, holding out the clipboard as well. “I’m trying to get some recycling cans put on campus, because I swear to god the Earth is dying and we need to start doing something about it.”
“Sure dude,” Chanyeol replied in his low baritone, happily snatching up the clipboard and adding his own name.
“I was told by the principal that I would need signatures from 2/3 of the school for it to pass. Because of the weather lately, I just haven’t been able to really get to everybody. It gets warmer on Wednesday, though, so I’m hoping to be able to reach my goal then.”
Kris, who had been relatively silent up to that point, suddenly stepped up. “I’m Kris Wu,” he said abruptly, holding out a hand.
Suho shook it, a little taken back. “I know who you are,” he replied. “I am the student council president, Kim Joonmyun, but everyone calls me Suho. I hope the school has made you feel welcome for the past few weeks.”
“Yes, they have,” Kris replied, smirking, as if enjoying a private joke with himself. He added his own name to the petition list, and then took the flyers that Chen had brought over. “Can I help you pass these out?”
“Sure, that would be great, actually,” Suho replied, surprised.
“I believe in your cause, Suho,” Kris explained, seeing Suho’s confused look. “I want to help you transition this campus into going green. Let’s plan an event together or something next week and spread the word.”
Yixing and the rest of the guys left Kris with Suho to chat about planning a rally on Wednesday, and escaped to the warmth of the dorms.
“Who knew the giant is so passionate about saving the Earth,” Lu Han muttered, shrugging as they huddled shivering by the radiators. “Seriously that guy is a never-ending box of surprises.”
In a time period of just three days, Kris and Suho became fast friends, bonded together by a common cause. They even talked everyone else into helping out as well.
That was why on the next warm, Wednesday afternoon, Kris was holding a microphone and blasting Suho’s message out on the main quad. The other guys were gathering signatures and passing out candy and goodies, while Kai, Sehun, and Yixing performed improv dance routines to the side.
Just having Kris there was attracting almost all of the female population of the school to the quad. They were happy to listen to him, and signed their names on the dotted lines. The dancers drew their own crowd of admirers, and soon, the clipboard filled up with names.
It was during this time that Yixing noticed a girl who was also helping out clinging way too close to Kris. The weird thing, however, was that the girl was definitely Suho’s girlfriend, even though she was obviously flirting with the tall model.
Kris, of course, noticed nothing, and thanked the girl for helping out and donating her time.
Yixing felt something like anger in his veins, but he didn’t quite understand why.
"Isn't that Suho's girlfriend," he whispered to Lu Han during one of his dance breaks, pointing discreetly at the girl huddled next to Kris.
"Yep," Lu Han replied, nodding. "I think they've been dating for two or three months. Although...she's kind of standing too close to Kris, don't you think?"
Yixing nodded, frowning. So, he wasn't the only one who had noticed.
"Forget about her," Lu Han interrupted his thoughts, slinging an arm over Yixing shoulders playfully. "She's not even all that cute; don't waste your time there."
"I'm not interested in that girl," Yixing spluttered, letting Lu Han drag him away.
As he turned his back to his roommate, he missed the glare that Kris threw his way.
Three days later, Yixing’s gut feeling proved to be right, as the girl dumped Suho right in front of the whole group, before turning around and asking Kris out on the spot.
“What a bitch,” Kai muttered, frowning.
Chen patted Suho on the arm soothingly, who seemed more apathetic than angry or even heartbroken.
Kris just looked at the girl, face blank. “You don’t know me,” he answered, finally, voice full of pity. “You think you do, but you don’t. You don’t know anything about me.”
“I-”
“You’re stupid for breaking up with a great guy like Suho, who is my friend, and even stupider for doing it for me, or your idealized image of me,” Kris interrupted harshly. “I’m sorry; I cannot and will not accept your feelings.”
Kris turned away from the girl, ending the conversation forever. He approached Suho cautiously and reached out to him.
“Look, bro, I’m so sorry this happened,” he muttered. “I swear, I did nothing to steal her from you or anything.”
“It’s fine, Kris,” Suho replied, clasping Kris’ hand and bringing it in for a manly chest bump. “We weren’t dating for that long, and the fact this happened is probably a sign that she wasn’t right for me anyway.”
Yixing watched the two move toward the dining hall, held still by the emotions running through him. There was sympathy for Suho, pride for Kris, and...relief. He was relieved.
“What’s wrong, Ge?” Sehun had stopped behind the others to wait for Yixing, and snapped Yixing out of his reverie.
Yixing paused for a moment, wondering. Was he relieved because Suho and Kris’s friendship had not been ruined? Or had he been jealous of the girl and is therefore relieved that she was rejected?
“Nothing” Yixing replied, finally.
The look that Sehun gave him showed that the boy didn’t buy any of it. Yixing had the irksome feeling for the rest of the week that Sehun knew or understood something that he, Yixing, did not. But oh, Yixing so wished that he did.
Winter hit the school hard, and it seemed that in the span of just a week, the weather went from warm jackets to thick gloves and fluffy coats.
The week before winter break was a flurry of activities and everyone packed and made last minute plans before leaving campus for a 10 day vacation. Yixing only noticed that Kris had not packed two days before break, when he was frantically looking for the present that he had purchased for his neighbor.
“Are you not taking anything home?” Yixing asked, emptying his desk drawer on the carpet. It made sense, he thought. Kris probably had multiple wardrobes of clothes.
“I don’t have anywhere to go,” Kris replied from where he was perched at the top of the stairs, surveying Yixing’s mess.
“What do you mean? It’s Christmas and New Years!”
“My parents are somewhere in the Caribbean right now,” Kris said. “I have my own apartment but I don’t want to be all alone for the holidays, so I guess I’m saying on campus. Even my manager is going home to visit his family.”
Oh. Well. That was considerably sadder.
“Do you want to come home with me?” The words had escaped Yixing’s mouth before he could even think about it.
“Really?” Kris asked, touched.
“Sure,” Yixing replied. “Nobody should be alone for the holidays.”
At that moment, the door burst open, and Kai catapulted himself in with Lu Han trailing calmly at his heels.
“Guys, I’ve got news,” he announced, excitedly.
“Just tell them already,” Lu Han muttered, rolling his eyes with a big grin on his face.
“Well,” Kai continued, “I know my birthday isn’t until January 14, but my parents just rented out the presidential suite at the Venetian Macao for me as my early birthday present. You guys are all invited to spend New Year’s there.”
“Jesus, what do your parents do?” Kris asked, impressed.
“Kai's grandfather owned oil rigs years ago,” Yixing explained. “Now, his parents own an IT security firm.”
“Anyway, I’ve gotta tell the others.” Kai was already halfway out of the door at this point, dragging poor Lu Han with him. “I’ll send you details later, okay?”
There was only silence as the door slammed shut after the twin tornadoes.
“Well,” Yixing said, finally breaking the silence. “I guess we’ll head to Changsha for Christmas, then to Macao for New Years, then.”
“Wait, wait - Xing, what do your parents do?” Kris asked.
“Humm?”
“I just realized that this is still a private school. I mean…tuition is not a joke, is it?”
“No, it’s definitely not,” Yixing chuckled. “My family is probably the most modest of everyone’s. My dad is a pretty famous surgeon, so that’s where we get our money. Chen’s dad is an influential politician, and Lu Han’s family owns one of the biggest law firms in Beijing. Xiumin’s family own restaurants, Tao’s mom is a designer, and Sehun…I think Sehun said his dad produces music videos.”
“What about Suho?” Kris asked.
“Suho’s parents are divorced, and he lives with his mother here in China, but his dad pays for his schooling. He’s a famous economics professor at Columbia University.”
“Wow,” Kris replied, letting out a low whistle.
“Did the almighty Kris think he was going to school with mere peasants this whole time?” Yixing scoffed. “Puh-lease, diva. You’re rubbing elbows with future world leaders in almost every field.”
“Wow.”
The flight to Changsha was relatively painless, mostly because both boys were exhausted from last minute packing and were asleep for most of the time. Even the cab ride from the airport was almost silent, as Kris struggled to wake up and Yixing blinked sleep from his eyes.
It wasn’t until the cab pulled into the circular driveway to the tall, luxurious apartment complex that both finally showed signs of life. The Zhangs’ place of residence was the perfect example of Chinese wealth. The apartment complex was gated, and surrounded by an immaculate garden, despite being in the middle of a large city. Fluorescent lights lit up the walkways, and the building itself was lit beautifully. A doorman greeted them upon arrival, and hurried to unload their bags from the car.
“Welcome back, Mr. Zhang,” the man said, tipping his hat at Yixing as the elevators doors closed and started to ascend up.
The doors opened again at the top floor, the penthouse flat, with a single door at the end of a small hall. Before Yixing could even ring the doorbell, the door was flung open, and a girl with purple streaks in her hair threw herself into Yixing’s arms.
“Yixing ge is back!” she called, excitedly hugging Yixing.
“Yingying, let go of the poor kid,” another voice behind them commanded.
The girl, Yingying, released Yixing reluctantly, and then finally noticed Kris.
“Is that? - it is!” she exclaimed in wonder, recognizing him immediately.
Kris gave a tight lipped smile back, wondering who the hell the little shortstack was.
“Kris, this is my best friend, Henry, and his sister, Ying. They live two floors down from us. Guys, this is Kris Wu, my roommate.”
“Oh, we know who he is,” Henry replied, reaching out to shake Kris’ hand. “Nice to meet you, man.”
Ying was still silent, staring at the supermodel in front of her.
“Anyway, your parents are in the kitchen, and dying to see you. Come on!”
Kris found that he wasn’t too fond of Ying.
Once she had gotten over her initial shock at Kris’ presence, she had gone back to treating him like a normal person. However, what bothered Kris was how undeniably cool she was.
Although only a year younger than Henry, Yixing, and Kris, she obviously hung out with the guys, and was comfortable all of the time. She cracked jokes, knew all the cool bands and new movies, and just exuded a feeling of confidence and class. Even her purple streaks were mysterious and badass.
It wasn’t quite clear to Kris if Henry was Yixing’s best friend, or if the Laus were a packaged deal and they were both Yixing’s best friends. Ying, on her part, was extra haughty with Kris, a reaction that stumped Yixing, who had expected them to get along.
Although there was no love lost between Kris and Ying, Kris found Henry to be a totally cool guy. The Chinese-Canadian had a top notch comic book collection, and since Kris had also lived in Canada for a period of time, found he had lots in common with Henry.
Yixing’s parents, in addition, were like the parents that Kris wished he had. They were caring, and loving, and the Zhang family actually ate home-cooked meals together at the dining room table, when they had the wealth enough to hire an army of cooks.
“I like cooking for my family,” Yixing’s mom replied when Kris commented on it. Her eyes turned into crescent moons when she smiled, remind him very much of Yixing. “It’s important for me to cook for them.”
“You’re a great cook, mama,” Yixing added, kissing his mom on the cheek. “I always miss your noodles when I’m at school.”
Henry, Ying, and Yixing took Kris out street shopping under the disguise of a hoodie, scarf, and sunglasses. For the first time, Kris went unnoticed, and he was able to enjoy street food and act like a normal teenage boy.
“This is the best,” Henry said, pausing in front of a stinky tofu cart. “This is Changsha style stinky tofu. You’ve gotta try this.”
Henry had said the exact same thing about Changsha style spare ribs, and Changsha style pork buns because to Henry, everything was “the best.” So far, he had been correct; Changsha street food was delicious.
Feeling apprehensive, Kris took the tofu stick.
“Hurry up, you two!” Ying called, turning back from where she had walked ahead with Yixing. Kris noticed that she had her hand curled possessively around his arm, and he frowned, taking a chomp out of his tofu.
“What do you think?” Henry asked, watching him closely.
“I don’t really like it,” Kris replied, talking not only about the food as he watched Yixing and Ying continue on without them. “I don’t like this one bit.”
Kris felt like he was part of the Zhang family on Christmas day. He gave them all presents shyly, thanking them of their hospitality, and was even more surprised when they replied with hugs and presents of their own.
It was on their last day in Changsha, when they were hanging out in the Laus’ living room when Kris found out why Ying acted the way she did. Henry had been gone for some time, promising hot chocolate for the group, when Ying spoke up.
“I feel like Ge’s about to blow up the microwave or something,” she sighed, turning to Yixing. “Can you go check up on him and make sure we don’t end up homeless?”
“Sure,” Yixing agreed, bounding out of the room.
Ying and Kris were left in awkward silence as they just looked at each other.
“Kris,” she suddenly said, addressing him for the first time, “can I tell you a secret?”
“Sure…?” Kris replied, shrugging.
Ying paused for a moment, studying him. “Don’t take this the wrong way if…I mean…if you’re not.”
“Aren’t what?” Kris asked, frowning.
“Yixing is gay,” she finally answered. “He doesn’t know it yet, but come on, I grew up with the kid and I know him better than he knows himself. I don’t know if you are or not, and I don’t really want to know, but…if you’re not…don’t let Yixing get too close. If you’re not, you’re just going to break his heart one day.”
Oh. So that was why Ying has been so cold with Kris for the past few days. She was afraid that he would break Yixing’s heart one day?
“I would never hurt him,” Kris replied, lowering his voice.
“You would never hurt him purposefully,” Ying corrected. “I know that. Just…think over what I said, okay? If you let Yixing fall for you, which I know will happen if you guys stay this close, he’s going to fall hard. At that point, if you break his heart, I will break your face, even if you’re some famous-ass supermodel.”
Kris opened his mouth to retort, as if he would let some little girl beat him up, but at that time, the door to the lounge opened again, and Henry and Yixing stepped through, each carrying two cups of hot chocolate.
“The idiot couldn’t decide whether to add milk to powder or powder to milk,” Yixing explained, rolling his eyes.
“Reasonable question!” Henry defended.
“No, Henry,” Ying deadpanned, turning away from Kris to face her brother. “You’re just an idiot.”
Everybody laughed, and Kris felt his heart lift considerably.
Kai’s family was undoubtedly the wealthiest out of the group. Even Kris, with his fortune amassed from modeling, could not compete with the Kims’ old family money. Kris and Yixing’s flight landed in Macao at 7:15 Macao Standard time, and they were the last of the group to arrive at the suite.
“Jesus Christ, this is amazing,” Kris whistled, looking around at the gigantic Presidential suite.
Yixing agreed, glancing around. There were many, many bedrooms, and a sauna, a gym, a Jacuzzi, a massage room, tvs in the bathrooms, floor to ceiling living room windows, and multiple kitchens. The Venetian Macao was famous for its extravagance, with casinos occupying the first floors. Floors 7 to 38 were the rooms, and the presidential suite at the top offered an excellent view of the Macao skyline.
Apart from the usual lunch gang, Kai had also invited Suho, as well as his old roommate, Kyungsoo, who flew all the way from Korea to see him.
The first day was spent shopping, with Tao buying everything Gucci and Luhan and Yixing splurging on MCM backpacks. The second day was rained out by a passing storm, so the guys turned out the lights, lit some candles, and played an uproarious game of glow-in-the-dark Pictionary.
“I call Chen and Yixing,” Lu Han called, as soon as the game was suggested.
“No way,” Xiumin interjected. “It’s not fair to have those two on the same team since they’re the only two that can actually draw.”
So, it was decided that both Chen and Yixing would be team captains, and the others drew tabs to divide into teams. Yixing surveyed his group - Kai, Xiumin, Tao, Chanyeol, and Lu Han - and felt a sense of impending doom.
The best artists, it was quickly decided, where indeed Yixing and Chen, then followed by Lu Han and Joonmyun. The worst were also decided to be Kris and Tao. The game went on for almost two hours, and drew to a stop only after the laughter brought on by Tao’s sketch could not be stopped.
He was only half way through with his drawing when Lu Han’s voice, next to Yixing in the dark, lets out a horrified gasp. “Huang Zitao, what the hell are you drawing? That is inappropriate!”
There was a beat of silence as everyone studied Tao’s artwork, tilting their head to the side and squinting their eyes. Baekhyun figured it out first, and let out a bark of laughter. Then, Kai saw the offensive shape as well, and nudged Sehun, smirking.
Tao stared at his drawing for another minute before letting out a gasp of his own. “It’s a rocketship, you perverts!” he yelled in hysterics. “Look, this is the smoke from the rocket as it’s leaving the launch pad.”
But it was already too late. Yixing laughed so hard until his sides hurt. He tried to stretch out the cramp, but only managed to fall onto his face into the carpet.
“This game is over,” Tao grumbled, snapping on the lights. The others blinked, adjusting to the light, and came face to face with a very annoyed Tao.
“I think it’s time for a snack,” Kyungsoo chimed in quickly before Tao could attack the still laughing Chanyeol to rip his head off. “Come on guys.”
The third day was another one of exploration. They took a tour led by some locals to see more of Macao, and finished the day off with videogames on the giant flatscreen tv and a competitive game of pool.
On their last day of the break, they had a huge birthday lunch, compete with a three tiered chocolate cake for Kai, courtesy of the hotel. The boys then spend some time teaching Sehun to ice skate and watched the 3D winter light show.
“We’re going to go out with a bang,” Kai promised, disappearing down the elevator after dinner, presumably to the lobby. He was back 30 minutes later, accompanied by two bell boys, a cart, and a whole lot of alcohol.
“Dibs on the vodka,” Chanyeol called before the cart even stopped moving. Baekhyun just rolled his eyes, and shoved Chanyeol out of the way in favor of red wine.
“Xing, stay away from the alcohol, okay?” Lu Han said, reaching for his own favorite brand of beer. “I want to get wasted tonight too, so that means I can’t take care of you.”
“You have no alcohol tolerance, ge,” Tao added, gleefully moving past Yixing. “It’s probably best this way.”
Yixing groaned, and moved aside as all of the others grabbed drinks and settled in the giant living room for a rowdy game of “Never have I ever.” He wanted to participate like the others, and was annoyed at having to nurse a cup of coca-cola instead.
“This isn’t fair,” Yixing grumbled, glaring as his soda. “This is a drinking game. How am I supposed to play this without drinking?”
“Just give him some alcohol,” Xiumin finally conceded. “Worse comes to worst, he falls asleep and someone has to carry his sorry ass to bed.”
Yixing decided that he was going to prove them all wrong and drag his own sorry ass to bed, which was exactly what he did, three hours later, when the room got all fuzzy and everything got soft.
Too bad it wasn't his bed.
“Xing, what are you doing?”
“Sleeping, go away,” Yixing muttered, burrowing his face even further into the pillow.
“Your room is next door; I think you miscounted.” With an audible heave, Kris helped Yixing onto his feet and into the next room. “Lu Han wasn’t kidding about you being a lightweight, was he?” Kris chuckled, tucking Yixing under the covers.
He sat down on the edge of the bed and pushed hair out of Yixing’s face, moving the strands behind his ear. He decided right then and that that Yixing was beautiful, with dark hair that contrasted so well with his pale skin.
Ying’s words suddenly came back to him, like a whisper fluttering in his mind. If you’re not, you’re just going to break his heart one day.
Kris sighed, and reached out again to touch Yixing’s cheek. “I would never break your heart,” he muttered.
Yixing’s eyes fluttered open, and Kris started to jerk his hand back, startled that Yixing had not been asleep after all, but Yixing reached out and grabbed it.
“I know, Kris,” he whispered, eyes slightly unfocused. He let out a hazy smile, wrapped one hand around Kris’ shirt collar and yanked, pulling the taller man on top of him.
“Xing, what are you doing?” Kris asked, afraid to open his eyes and look at the boy that was so close to him.
“What I want.”
And then Yixing was kissing him, and Kris felt like he was floating on clouds. He had known for some years that he was probably bisexual, having been attracted to both female and male co-workers before in the modeling business. However, he had just always hooked up with girls in the past because they had been the ones to show interest in him.
He had developed a crush on Yixing since pretty much the first time he had seen the boy in the dorm room, but had never even considered finding out if Yixing was interested in guys either, because that was just not how things worked. His advances, bordering on sexual harassment, were just his own screwed up way of putting off the inevitable.
Maybe the alcohol had made Yixing braver than Kris, because he was the one taking the initiative to wrap an arm around Kris’ neck and pull him even closer. He took advantage of Kris’ momentary surprise and slipped his tongue past Kris’ parted lips
Kris couldn’t breathe. His heart was about to beat out of his chest, and Yixing was making little moaning sounds under him.
It was going too far, too fast.
Using all his willpower, Kris pulled away, resting his forehead on the pillow above Yixing’s shoulder. He took deep breaths and counted to ten, trying to calm his nerves.
When he looked up again, he found that Yixing’s eyes were closed. The boy had actually fallen asleep.
“Shit,” Kris muttered, bolting to his feet. He ran a hand frantically through his hair, eyes darting wildly around the room. While the fact that Yixing had kissed him was a great thing, the fact that Yixing was also drunk beyond oblivion was not. “Shit,” he cursed again, moving towards the door.
“Is something wrong?” Lu Han asked, pausing by the door on his way past to his own room.
“What? No, nothing,” Kris replied, quickly stepping out of the room and closing the door. “He’s going to have a killer hangover tomorrow.”
Lu Han just laughed. “Doesn’t he always?”
Yixing regretted drinking any alcohol the minute he cracked his eyes open. The gang had a flight back to school at 4PM, and nobody had even started packing.
“Please lower your voices,” he croaked, still sensitive even after two cups of strong coffee.
Lu Han took pity on him and, after packing his own clothes and belongings, helped Yixing pack most of his as well.
Kai was also nursing a hangover, and kept quiet, falling asleep again almost as soon as the plane took to the air.
“You look like a douchebag with those on,” Lu Han hissed, yanking at Yixing’s sunglasses.
“Stop it,” he hissed back, batting Lu Han’s hand away. “The light hurts my eyes.”
“Here, use this.” Kris reached over the back of the seat and tossed Yixing a black eye mask.
“Thanks,” Yixing muttered, accepting it. He put it on, took out the blanket that was tucked under his seat, and tried to get some more sleep.
“What happened yesterday?” Lu Han asked, dropping his voice a few octaves so only his best friend could hear him.
“Ummm?”
“Kris came out of your room late night cussing like a sailor.”
For once, Yixing was glad that the blanket, which was cutting off his air supply, was hiding his face. “I don’t want to talk about it,” he muttered back.
Yixing remembered a lot more than he thought he would, considering how drunk he had been the night before. He had pretty much wanted to die of embarrassment when he had woken up, and had since then more or less avoided Kris like the bubonic plague.
Yixing pretended to fall asleep so as to discourage further question from a curious Lu Han, but his mind was running a mile a minute.
Okay, so he had wanted to kiss Kris Wu for a while now, and had been madly jealous of Joonmyun’s ex for showing interest in him. But then, that didn’t really mean anything. Kris was a famous supermodel, known for his alluring charm and handsome features. It would make sense for Yixing to be attracted to him, right? Everybody was probably attracted to him.
After getting back to school, Yixing didn’t even bother to unpack. Still playing the hangover card, he fell directly into bed and pretended to fall asleep almost at once. Through the tiny slit he left open in his eyes, Yixing saw Kris standing frozen in the middle of the room, glaring at him. Then Kris sighed and started to unpack, turning away to his own bed.
Yixing felt like he had just dodged a bullet.
It was Sehun who cornered Yixing in the library the next day.
“Ge, what are you doing?” he asked, glancing around. “And don’t tell me studying, because we just got back from break and there is nothing to study. Lu Han told me that Kris told him you’ve been avoiding him.”
“Lu Han needs to learn to keep his mouth shut,” Yixing grumbled.
“Why are you avoiding Kris?” Sehun asked determined.
“It’s not really - I mean - It’s not really anything.”
Sehun let out an exasperated groan. “You are so obvious, Ge. If you like Kris, you should just tell him because he likes you too.”
“What are you talking about?” Yixing denied, quickly shaking his head. “I don’t - ”
“You don’t fool me,” Sehun interrupted, standing up and slamming his hand on the table. The librarian, shelving books several rows away, shot him a dirty look. “You don’t fool me,” he repeated again, lowering his voice. “And neither does Kris. Please go talk to him; you ignoring him is making him upset.”
Yixing bit his lip, thinking it over. “Do you think I should? But I mean…I’m not gay.”
“There’s always a first time for everything.”
Kris was sitting in bed, playing fruit ninja on his iPad when Yixing entered. He looked up briefly, then away again to swipe a combo of five pineapples.
“Hey,” Yixing said, awkwardly.
Kris made a face, not bothering to look up. “What, you’re finally talking to me again?”
“Yeah, sorry about that…”
Kris just let out a noncommittal noise and continued to swipe away at the game.
“Can we talk?” Yixing asked, sitting down nervously on the edge of the bed.
“We are talking,” Kris replied, eyes still on the game.
“I mean, without -”
“Shit!” Kris interrupted as his finger grazed the side of a bomb. The screen turned into an explosion of colors, and Kris bared his teeth angrily. “Goddammit,” he growled. “I was only 20 points away from beating my high score.”
“Hey, I’m trying to talk to you,” Yixing said impatiently. He took a hold of Kris’ iPad and yanked, moving it successfully out of the taller man’s reach.
“What do you want?” Kris asked, finally looking up and meeting Yixing’s gaze. He saw several emotions in them: annoyance, hurt, confusion.
“I just…I just had a talk with Sehun, and I figured some things out. I’m really sorry about ignoring you yesterday and today, after what happened in Macao.”
“Look, Yixing,” Kris interrupted. “I’m just going to straight out say it. I like you, and I’m interested in you. The ball is in your court now, and you do with this information what you will.”
Yixing was taken back for a moment by Kris’ straightforwardness.
“I don’t like playing mind games,” Kris explained, calmly.
“It’s just that…I’ve never been gay before,” Yixing muttered, suddenly feeling shy. “I’ve never even really considered the possibility because, before you, I’ve never really been interested in a guy. But Sehun says that there’s a first time for everything, and he’s right. I mean, I really like you, as more than just a friend and a roommate.”
“Sehun said that?” Kris repeated.
“He convinced me to tell you how I really feel,” Yixing nodded resolutely. “I don’t really know if I’ll be any good at this boyfriend thing, but I want to give it a try.”
“Really?”
“Yes, I mean, if you also…” Yixing trailed off, suddenly looking panic stricken at the possibility of being rejected.
“I do, of course I do!” Kris quickly said, pulling Yixing into a tight tug. “I want you to be my boyfriend more than anything else in the world.”
“Can we keep it a secret, at least for now?” Yixing asked uncertainly. “I need some time to get used to it, and having a boyfriend can’t be good for your image.”
“I don’t care about my stupid image,” Kris mumbled, lips already moving against Yixing’s. “I want to brag about you to the whole world, but it’s whatever you decide, babe.”
Yixing suspected that Lu Han and Kai both knew after just two weeks, even if Sehun swore on his own life that he had not told the pair anything.
“Well, you guys are pretty obvious,” Sehun added, rolling his eyes. “You and Kris are always staring at each other and holding hands under the table.”
“Key phrase being under the table where others can’t see,” Yixing groaned. “Lu Han keeps smirking at me.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if he could tell, since he is your best friend and all. He knows you pretty well,” Sehun shrugged. “Plus, you can’t act worth crap, and it’s suspicious when you guys are both late to breakfast on the same day or decide to go to the bathroom at the same time and disappear for 10 whole minutes.”
“Stop it,” Yixing complained, whacking Sehun on the arm.
“Hey, I'm just trying to help,” Sehun yelped, jumping out of his reach.
Yixing found it surprisingly easy to adjust to the fact that he was dating a guy, and he didn’t really mind other people knowing, minus the whole “awwwww that’s so cute” part which he hated. He decided that their friends had a right to know, and gathered them around for the announcement three weeks into the relationship.
“That’s it?” Baekhyun asked, rolling his eyes. “Jesus Christ, Yixing, we could have told you that two months ago.”
“Congratulations, though, officially!” Lu Han replied, giving Yixing a one armed hug. “Even though, you know, I kind of already figured it out.”
“How?” Kris asked, brows furrowed.
“Um…I saw you guys making out in that corner near the science wing a week or so after we got back from break,” Lu Han admitted.
Oh.
The only reason that Yixing had decided to continue to hide the relationship from the rest of the school was because no matter what, Kris was still a celebrity and a public figure. It didn’t feel right for him to claim Kris like that when thousands of people looked up to him as his fans.
It turned out that he shouldn’t have worried because a week later, a picture of Kris and Yixing hugging, fingers intertwined together and looking very intimate, appeared on the front page of Celebu Magazine, headline titled: Supermodel Kris Wu’s Secret Relationship.
Yixing was in history class when a horrified Lu Han tapped him with his pencil and slid his laptop over soundlessly, bringing up an electronic copy of the story. Yixing read it quickly with wide-eyes, and then moved to search the story on Baidu, only to have his worst fears confirmed. The story had already gone viral, and had been picked up by almost every print magazine, online blog, and tv entertainment news station in Asia.
This was so not how he had envisioned revealing this relationship.
Although the story did not seem to have gotten around the school yet, Yixing knew that it was bound to in just a matter of hours.
As soon as the bell rang, he took off towards his room.
On the way there, he was bombarded with supportive phone calls from his parents, Henry, and Ying, who all promised to stand by him no matter what. He screeched to a stop in front of the door just in time to hear Kris’ manager’s voice issuing from the phone was on speaker.
“…unacceptable,” the voice was ranting. “I am your manager, your agent, and your press secretary, Wu Yifan. I know I have been working for you for a really long time, but I cannot do my job if you don’t let me. Do you realize how many calls I’ve gotten this morning? The phone has been ringing off the hook. What was I supposed to say? ‘My client refuses to tell me about anything going on in his life, so sorry’? Help me out here, Kris. I need to release an official statement by tomorrow before this blows up even bigger. All I need is - ”
“Wei Ge, my parents are calling,” Kris interrupted, talking right over his manager’s spiel.
“What? They are?” Manager Wei seemed to calm down at that.
“Yeah, I’ll email you a statement for you to clean up and release tonight, okay?”
“Um, that would be great,” Manager Wei replied, offhandedly, surprised by Kris’ lack of fight.
Yixing reached out, about to push the door open, but froze again as another, much shriller voice filled the air.
“Look, Kris, we get it. You made international headlines news with your little stunt here,” a woman, Kris’ mother, yelled from the phone. “If this was just to spite your father and me to seek attention, it’s worked. We’re paying attention to you now, so-”
“This isn’t about you, any of you,” Kris snarled back, interrupting her. “Look mom, I have had enough you. How dare you ignore me, your son, for months upon month without any contact, and then call to accuse me of trying to ‘spite you’? This has nothing to do with you, and frankly, I could care less what you think.”
There was the sound of sputtering as his mother fumbled over her words.
“Do you even know what you just did to your career, silly boy? Your whole future might have just gotten flushed down the toilet.”
“If magazines and shows don’t want to book me anymore because of this, then so be it,” Kris replied, equally heated. “Oh, and I forgot to tell you guys…I’m not going back to full-time modeling even after this year.”
“What do you mean by that? What can you possibly gain by quitting modeling and dating that boy?”
“I’m going to college next fall, do you hear me? College. You guys barely acknowledge me as your son unless you’re using my money. Well, things are going to change next year, because I’m not going to be your goddamn piggybank anymore. If you want to be my parents, then start acting like it.”
Yixing’s mouth dropped open. He had never heard Kris confronting his parents like this, and knew that it took a lot of courage for him to finally do so; Yixing was proud of him for finally telling his parents exactly how he felt.
“Yifan…I don’t know what to say….” his mother whispered, seemingly at a loss for words.
“Then don’t say anything. Nothing is going to change, no matter what you say, because I love ‘that boy’.”
Yixing felt his heart jump to his throat, and he took a step back. He had never heard Kris say those words before, even to him, and now, he was hearing Kris confess them to his mother,
“Look, I have to go,” Kris added, sourly. “Call me when you’re ready to actually be my mother, mom.”
Then, there was the sound of something, probably Kris’ phone, hitting the wall with a loud crash, and the door swung open.
Kris stormed out with wild, angry eyes, and immediately saw Yixing standing by the door.
“Come with me,” he growled, latching onto Yixing’s wrist.
Kris lead the way to the empty basketball court, and wordlessly, Yixing joined him in a game of one-on-one. Kris seemed to be taking out his anger on the ball, in every dribble and every dunk. He played with an intensity that he rarely conjured, even in basketball games, and Yixing stood no chance of challenging him.
Almost an hour later, while going up for a layup, Kris barreled aggressively into Yixing, knocking him onto his back.
Kris blinked for a second, as if snapping out of a trance, before dropping down to his knees next to Yixing, horrified. “I’m so sorry, Xing, are you hurt?” he fumbled, reaching out. “What was I even thinking? I didn’t mean to-”
Yixing pulled his boyfriend down by the collar and shut him up with an effective kiss.
“I heard the whole thing,” he muttered when they finally pulled apart. “I’m sorry for all the trouble that I’m causing.”
Kris shook his head, and flopped down onto his back next to Yixing, taking one of his hands and interlocking their fingers together. “That thing with my parents should have happened a long time ago,” he said. “You just gave me the strength and the courage to finally go through with it.”
They were silent for a moment, wondering what the future had in store for them. Sure, there were going to be a lot of unhappy people, but they had each other as well as the best group of friends in the world to help them through.
Suddenly, Yixing remembered what Kris had said in the dorm, and turned his head slowly to look at him. “I love you, too,” he said, trying out the words carefully. He liked them; the sounded right coming from his mouth and directed at Kris.
“What?” Kris asked, surprised. Then he figured it out, and blushed. “Oh, you heard that part too? There are probably a lot of more romantic ways for you to find out that didn’t involve me yelling at my mother.”
“You were standing up for me, Kris. That means a lot,” Yixing argued.
“I don't think I heard you right, though. Say it again, Xingxing,” Kris fake pouted, winking at the boy next to him.
This time, it was Yixing’s turn to blush under Kris’s scorching gaze.
“I said…I said I love you.”
Author: Adw1017/annie1017
Genre: romance, highschool au
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Yixing tries his best to deal with the new kid in school who seems set on invading every part of his private life and sexually harassing him with inappropriate winks.
Kris, of course, made the basketball team with little trouble. He was seen around the dorm a little less, as practice started to monopolize more of his time.
Yixing found that he actually kind of missed the big guy being around all the time, mostly just because he had already gotten accustomed to it.
As the date to Kris’ first official game drew closer, a date that he bragged about twice a day, there was a lot of hype around the school. Most of the girls already had giant crushes on the supermodel anyway, and the superstar athlete thing only added to the general appeal.
“Yeollie says that the coach is really impressed with him,” Baekhyun informed the group as they made their way to the gym for the big game. “He might even be starting, even though it’s his first game.”
“There’s a rumor going around with some of the underclassmen that Kris Ge only got on the team because he’s good looking and the coach wants to attract more fans,” Sehun muttered, giving a passing rock a vicious kick to the side of the road.
“That’s a load of bull,” Yixing snapped. “I’ve had my ass kicked by him enough times to know from experience that he’s amazing at basketball.”
“That’s what I told them too,” Sehun replied with a small smile. “Kris asked me to practice with him once when you were busy and I got demolished.”
Through a combination of Chen’s position on the student council and Chanyeol and Kris’ requests, the boys were able to secure the best seats in the house, the first row in the student section.
“Although, you have got to admit, having Kris on the team does increase ticket sales by quite a lot,” Kai observed, glancing around.
The gym was packed almost to the limit, a rare sight for a non-championship game like this one.
“I think kids from other schools even came to see Kris play,” Luhan added, tilting his head towards a little circle of kids who were wearing the uniform of the neighboring school.
Xiumin only shook his head and grumbled, “fame.”
As other members warmed up and practiced layups on the court, Kris and Chanyeol spotted the little group huddled near the railings, and scampered over. Both giants hooked their arms over the lower rail, and everyone leaned down to make their voices heard over the crowd.
“Glad to see you made it, Xingxing,” Kris drawled, winking at Yixing with a suggestive smirk.
“Don’t call me that,” Yixing mumbled back out of habit. None of the others even batted an eye, because they had all gotten used to Kris’ strange ways.
“Coach says Kris is starting today,” Chanyeol announced, clapping Kris on the back proudly. “He is our best long-range shooter on the team right now.”
“I’ll laugh at you if you suck, so you better go out there and kick butt,” Yixing laughed.
Kris stuck out his tongue, then reached a hand up towards Tao, pointing at the bag of chips he was holding. Tao sighed, but gave a handful to his gege.
“Good luck, both of you,” Chen interrupted, bringing sanity back into the conversation.
At that moment, the basketball coach blew his whistle, calling the team back to the bench.
“We’ll go out to eat after, win or lose,” Kris called back as he and Chanyeol started back towards the bench. Then, he turned, looking over his shoulder, and grinned at Yixing. “Don’t forget to cheer for me, Xingxing.”
Yixing felt his lips curl into a begrudging smile, even as his cheeks tinted with a blush. “Honestly…” he muttered, rolling his eyes.
Tao, a little annoyed at Kris for stealing his chips, stood up, offering to get food from the concession stand. Xiumin went with him to help carry the purchases, when basically everyone said they wanted a soda.
Yixing leaned back, enjoying the anticipation in the atmosphere as tip-off time drew close. Kai and Lu Han were whispering to each other as they scoped out girls a few rows over, under the disapproving eyes of Chen and Baekhyun. Suddenly, Yixing felt eyes boring into the back of his head, and turned to see Sehun, studying him intently.
“Something wrong?” Yixing asked, confused.
Sehun shrugged, and shook his head.
Then, the whistle blew and the game started.
The ambiance in the dorm was cheery that night. Kris had been on fire all night, and set a new school record by hitting over 40% of his 3-pointers. Kris was delirious with happiness, and Yixing felt proud as he watched Kris bounce around the room in excitement. Kris had really showed the skeptics tonight that he was not just on the team to increase ticket sales.
“How many autographs did you give tonight, hot shot?” Yixing teased from his spot in the spinney computer chair.
Kris looked up from where he sprawled out on his bed, and grinned at Yixing. “Just three,” he replied truthfully. “They had my last feature spread for W Korea magazine, which I happen to know sold out and never got reprinted. They’re considered limited edition and nearly impossible to get hands on now, so how could I not?”
Yixing paused for a moment, weighing the question that had been on his mind for the past few days in his mind. Finally, he decided to voice it.
“Why are you going to school now when you’re already rich and famous?” he asked, carefully.
Kris sighed, and flopped back onto the bed. “One day, my career as a model will end, Xing,” he replied, softly. “You know, one can’t be the “next big thing” forever. I’m already at the “current big thing” stage now, aren’t I? Eventually, not anytime soon, but eventually, I will be too old, and then I’ll just be “nothing”. I want to go to college, get an education, and have a real career.”
“Modeling is a real career,” Yixing replied, confused.
“Modeling is too unstable to ever be a real career,” Kris answered. “I started modeling when I was barely 12 because it was fun, you know? All the makeup and hair jiejies are really nice, and they give you sweets and snacks and fawn all over you. But then I started getting older, taller, and more and more popular. Once I started making the big money, everyone around me changed. Even my parents changed.”
Yixing had never heard Kris mention his parents before, and straightened up with interest.
“Now, they spend their time in vacation houses all over Europe. I haven’t seen my parents for almost a year, Xingxing, and not because I couldn’t or anything. It’s because they’re too … busy … relaxing on the French Riviera or shopping in London to see visit me, their only son. Isn’t that terrible? And I can’t even remember the last time they called - probably more than two months ago.”
Yixing listened, open mouthed. How could Kris’ parents just abandon their son like that? But then again, money does change people in strange ways.
“Before I became a model, my name was just Wu Yifan, and my family used to own a bakery,” Kris admitted. “It’s my dream to one day open my own little café, and I want to study business and entrepreneurship in college.”
“I think you’d be great at running a café,” Yixing replied, voice soft. He didn’t even have the heart to chide Kris for calling him by his exclusive nickname like he normally would.
“Don’t feel sorry for me,” Kris replied, catching a glimpse of Yixing’s expression. “I’m back in highschool, and I’m already heading towards my dream. I might have to fight my parents and my manager along the way, but I’m ready for it.”
From then on, Kris was no longer the aloof, larger-than-life supermodel Kris Wu who had everything that he wanted and was just slumming it for a year in high school. He was Wu Yifan, the human being with unfulfilled dreams and bright ambitions.
It was after Kris actually had the audacity to sneakily kiss Yixing’s cheek before heading off after lunch when Sehun finally spoke up.
“Ge, can I ask you something?” the boy said, timidly.
Although Sehun had been welcomed and assimilated into the group with ease, he was closest to Yixing and Kai, because they danced together, and Lu Han, just because the boy was always with Yixing and Kai. On this particular day, Kai and Luhan had snuck off somewhere, probably chatting up girls somewhere on campus, and the others were all distracted by watching the student council president making a ruckus about something unintelligible at entrance to the cafeteria.
“Sure, Sehun,” Yixing replied, leaning in to hear him better. “What’s up?”
Sehun shifted uncomfortably, and licked his lips out of habit. “Are you and Kris Ge - I mean…he…why does he always…is he…I mean…are you…”
Yixing blinked a few times, trying to process Sehun’s words. It wasn’t until the boy pointed silently at his cheek, that Yixing finally understood.
“I’m not gay,” he replied, automatically.
“But -”
“-and I don’t think Kris is gay either,” Yixing finished, cutting off Sehun’s argument. “Kris is just an obnoxious douche and he likes annoying me and pushing my buttons. Don’t take it so seriously, okay?”
Sehun bit his lip, and nodded. Even though he dropped the subject, he looked utterly unconvinced by Yixing’s words. He saw the way that Kris and Yixing acted around each other, and “not gay” was definitely not the right explanation.
Two days later, Yixing finally figured out what the student council president was making a fuss about all over campus. The group was just heading back to the dorms after breakfast on a chilly weekend when Kim Joonmyun stopped them in the quad.
The student council president, nicknamed Suho by his fellow students, was holding a stack of pamphlets and shoving them at people who were walking through, along with a clipboard, asking for signatures.
“Chenchen, will you hand me another stack of these?” Suho called to his secretary, pointing to a box in the corner of the quad.
Chen drew his scarf tighter around his neck, and hurried over to get more flyers.
“What’s going on?” Lu Han asked, taking one of the flyers that Suho held out to him.
Kai looked over his shoulder and read, “reduce…reuse…recycle?”
“Actually, do you guys mind signing this petition?” Suho asked, holding out the clipboard as well. “I’m trying to get some recycling cans put on campus, because I swear to god the Earth is dying and we need to start doing something about it.”
“Sure dude,” Chanyeol replied in his low baritone, happily snatching up the clipboard and adding his own name.
“I was told by the principal that I would need signatures from 2/3 of the school for it to pass. Because of the weather lately, I just haven’t been able to really get to everybody. It gets warmer on Wednesday, though, so I’m hoping to be able to reach my goal then.”
Kris, who had been relatively silent up to that point, suddenly stepped up. “I’m Kris Wu,” he said abruptly, holding out a hand.
Suho shook it, a little taken back. “I know who you are,” he replied. “I am the student council president, Kim Joonmyun, but everyone calls me Suho. I hope the school has made you feel welcome for the past few weeks.”
“Yes, they have,” Kris replied, smirking, as if enjoying a private joke with himself. He added his own name to the petition list, and then took the flyers that Chen had brought over. “Can I help you pass these out?”
“Sure, that would be great, actually,” Suho replied, surprised.
“I believe in your cause, Suho,” Kris explained, seeing Suho’s confused look. “I want to help you transition this campus into going green. Let’s plan an event together or something next week and spread the word.”
Yixing and the rest of the guys left Kris with Suho to chat about planning a rally on Wednesday, and escaped to the warmth of the dorms.
“Who knew the giant is so passionate about saving the Earth,” Lu Han muttered, shrugging as they huddled shivering by the radiators. “Seriously that guy is a never-ending box of surprises.”
In a time period of just three days, Kris and Suho became fast friends, bonded together by a common cause. They even talked everyone else into helping out as well.
That was why on the next warm, Wednesday afternoon, Kris was holding a microphone and blasting Suho’s message out on the main quad. The other guys were gathering signatures and passing out candy and goodies, while Kai, Sehun, and Yixing performed improv dance routines to the side.
Just having Kris there was attracting almost all of the female population of the school to the quad. They were happy to listen to him, and signed their names on the dotted lines. The dancers drew their own crowd of admirers, and soon, the clipboard filled up with names.
It was during this time that Yixing noticed a girl who was also helping out clinging way too close to Kris. The weird thing, however, was that the girl was definitely Suho’s girlfriend, even though she was obviously flirting with the tall model.
Kris, of course, noticed nothing, and thanked the girl for helping out and donating her time.
Yixing felt something like anger in his veins, but he didn’t quite understand why.
"Isn't that Suho's girlfriend," he whispered to Lu Han during one of his dance breaks, pointing discreetly at the girl huddled next to Kris.
"Yep," Lu Han replied, nodding. "I think they've been dating for two or three months. Although...she's kind of standing too close to Kris, don't you think?"
Yixing nodded, frowning. So, he wasn't the only one who had noticed.
"Forget about her," Lu Han interrupted his thoughts, slinging an arm over Yixing shoulders playfully. "She's not even all that cute; don't waste your time there."
"I'm not interested in that girl," Yixing spluttered, letting Lu Han drag him away.
As he turned his back to his roommate, he missed the glare that Kris threw his way.
Three days later, Yixing’s gut feeling proved to be right, as the girl dumped Suho right in front of the whole group, before turning around and asking Kris out on the spot.
“What a bitch,” Kai muttered, frowning.
Chen patted Suho on the arm soothingly, who seemed more apathetic than angry or even heartbroken.
Kris just looked at the girl, face blank. “You don’t know me,” he answered, finally, voice full of pity. “You think you do, but you don’t. You don’t know anything about me.”
“I-”
“You’re stupid for breaking up with a great guy like Suho, who is my friend, and even stupider for doing it for me, or your idealized image of me,” Kris interrupted harshly. “I’m sorry; I cannot and will not accept your feelings.”
Kris turned away from the girl, ending the conversation forever. He approached Suho cautiously and reached out to him.
“Look, bro, I’m so sorry this happened,” he muttered. “I swear, I did nothing to steal her from you or anything.”
“It’s fine, Kris,” Suho replied, clasping Kris’ hand and bringing it in for a manly chest bump. “We weren’t dating for that long, and the fact this happened is probably a sign that she wasn’t right for me anyway.”
Yixing watched the two move toward the dining hall, held still by the emotions running through him. There was sympathy for Suho, pride for Kris, and...relief. He was relieved.
“What’s wrong, Ge?” Sehun had stopped behind the others to wait for Yixing, and snapped Yixing out of his reverie.
Yixing paused for a moment, wondering. Was he relieved because Suho and Kris’s friendship had not been ruined? Or had he been jealous of the girl and is therefore relieved that she was rejected?
“Nothing” Yixing replied, finally.
The look that Sehun gave him showed that the boy didn’t buy any of it. Yixing had the irksome feeling for the rest of the week that Sehun knew or understood something that he, Yixing, did not. But oh, Yixing so wished that he did.
Winter hit the school hard, and it seemed that in the span of just a week, the weather went from warm jackets to thick gloves and fluffy coats.
The week before winter break was a flurry of activities and everyone packed and made last minute plans before leaving campus for a 10 day vacation. Yixing only noticed that Kris had not packed two days before break, when he was frantically looking for the present that he had purchased for his neighbor.
“Are you not taking anything home?” Yixing asked, emptying his desk drawer on the carpet. It made sense, he thought. Kris probably had multiple wardrobes of clothes.
“I don’t have anywhere to go,” Kris replied from where he was perched at the top of the stairs, surveying Yixing’s mess.
“What do you mean? It’s Christmas and New Years!”
“My parents are somewhere in the Caribbean right now,” Kris said. “I have my own apartment but I don’t want to be all alone for the holidays, so I guess I’m saying on campus. Even my manager is going home to visit his family.”
Oh. Well. That was considerably sadder.
“Do you want to come home with me?” The words had escaped Yixing’s mouth before he could even think about it.
“Really?” Kris asked, touched.
“Sure,” Yixing replied. “Nobody should be alone for the holidays.”
At that moment, the door burst open, and Kai catapulted himself in with Lu Han trailing calmly at his heels.
“Guys, I’ve got news,” he announced, excitedly.
“Just tell them already,” Lu Han muttered, rolling his eyes with a big grin on his face.
“Well,” Kai continued, “I know my birthday isn’t until January 14, but my parents just rented out the presidential suite at the Venetian Macao for me as my early birthday present. You guys are all invited to spend New Year’s there.”
“Jesus, what do your parents do?” Kris asked, impressed.
“Kai's grandfather owned oil rigs years ago,” Yixing explained. “Now, his parents own an IT security firm.”
“Anyway, I’ve gotta tell the others.” Kai was already halfway out of the door at this point, dragging poor Lu Han with him. “I’ll send you details later, okay?”
There was only silence as the door slammed shut after the twin tornadoes.
“Well,” Yixing said, finally breaking the silence. “I guess we’ll head to Changsha for Christmas, then to Macao for New Years, then.”
“Wait, wait - Xing, what do your parents do?” Kris asked.
“Humm?”
“I just realized that this is still a private school. I mean…tuition is not a joke, is it?”
“No, it’s definitely not,” Yixing chuckled. “My family is probably the most modest of everyone’s. My dad is a pretty famous surgeon, so that’s where we get our money. Chen’s dad is an influential politician, and Lu Han’s family owns one of the biggest law firms in Beijing. Xiumin’s family own restaurants, Tao’s mom is a designer, and Sehun…I think Sehun said his dad produces music videos.”
“What about Suho?” Kris asked.
“Suho’s parents are divorced, and he lives with his mother here in China, but his dad pays for his schooling. He’s a famous economics professor at Columbia University.”
“Wow,” Kris replied, letting out a low whistle.
“Did the almighty Kris think he was going to school with mere peasants this whole time?” Yixing scoffed. “Puh-lease, diva. You’re rubbing elbows with future world leaders in almost every field.”
“Wow.”
The flight to Changsha was relatively painless, mostly because both boys were exhausted from last minute packing and were asleep for most of the time. Even the cab ride from the airport was almost silent, as Kris struggled to wake up and Yixing blinked sleep from his eyes.
It wasn’t until the cab pulled into the circular driveway to the tall, luxurious apartment complex that both finally showed signs of life. The Zhangs’ place of residence was the perfect example of Chinese wealth. The apartment complex was gated, and surrounded by an immaculate garden, despite being in the middle of a large city. Fluorescent lights lit up the walkways, and the building itself was lit beautifully. A doorman greeted them upon arrival, and hurried to unload their bags from the car.
“Welcome back, Mr. Zhang,” the man said, tipping his hat at Yixing as the elevators doors closed and started to ascend up.
The doors opened again at the top floor, the penthouse flat, with a single door at the end of a small hall. Before Yixing could even ring the doorbell, the door was flung open, and a girl with purple streaks in her hair threw herself into Yixing’s arms.
“Yixing ge is back!” she called, excitedly hugging Yixing.
“Yingying, let go of the poor kid,” another voice behind them commanded.
The girl, Yingying, released Yixing reluctantly, and then finally noticed Kris.
“Is that? - it is!” she exclaimed in wonder, recognizing him immediately.
Kris gave a tight lipped smile back, wondering who the hell the little shortstack was.
“Kris, this is my best friend, Henry, and his sister, Ying. They live two floors down from us. Guys, this is Kris Wu, my roommate.”
“Oh, we know who he is,” Henry replied, reaching out to shake Kris’ hand. “Nice to meet you, man.”
Ying was still silent, staring at the supermodel in front of her.
“Anyway, your parents are in the kitchen, and dying to see you. Come on!”
Kris found that he wasn’t too fond of Ying.
Once she had gotten over her initial shock at Kris’ presence, she had gone back to treating him like a normal person. However, what bothered Kris was how undeniably cool she was.
Although only a year younger than Henry, Yixing, and Kris, she obviously hung out with the guys, and was comfortable all of the time. She cracked jokes, knew all the cool bands and new movies, and just exuded a feeling of confidence and class. Even her purple streaks were mysterious and badass.
It wasn’t quite clear to Kris if Henry was Yixing’s best friend, or if the Laus were a packaged deal and they were both Yixing’s best friends. Ying, on her part, was extra haughty with Kris, a reaction that stumped Yixing, who had expected them to get along.
Although there was no love lost between Kris and Ying, Kris found Henry to be a totally cool guy. The Chinese-Canadian had a top notch comic book collection, and since Kris had also lived in Canada for a period of time, found he had lots in common with Henry.
Yixing’s parents, in addition, were like the parents that Kris wished he had. They were caring, and loving, and the Zhang family actually ate home-cooked meals together at the dining room table, when they had the wealth enough to hire an army of cooks.
“I like cooking for my family,” Yixing’s mom replied when Kris commented on it. Her eyes turned into crescent moons when she smiled, remind him very much of Yixing. “It’s important for me to cook for them.”
“You’re a great cook, mama,” Yixing added, kissing his mom on the cheek. “I always miss your noodles when I’m at school.”
Henry, Ying, and Yixing took Kris out street shopping under the disguise of a hoodie, scarf, and sunglasses. For the first time, Kris went unnoticed, and he was able to enjoy street food and act like a normal teenage boy.
“This is the best,” Henry said, pausing in front of a stinky tofu cart. “This is Changsha style stinky tofu. You’ve gotta try this.”
Henry had said the exact same thing about Changsha style spare ribs, and Changsha style pork buns because to Henry, everything was “the best.” So far, he had been correct; Changsha street food was delicious.
Feeling apprehensive, Kris took the tofu stick.
“Hurry up, you two!” Ying called, turning back from where she had walked ahead with Yixing. Kris noticed that she had her hand curled possessively around his arm, and he frowned, taking a chomp out of his tofu.
“What do you think?” Henry asked, watching him closely.
“I don’t really like it,” Kris replied, talking not only about the food as he watched Yixing and Ying continue on without them. “I don’t like this one bit.”
Kris felt like he was part of the Zhang family on Christmas day. He gave them all presents shyly, thanking them of their hospitality, and was even more surprised when they replied with hugs and presents of their own.
It was on their last day in Changsha, when they were hanging out in the Laus’ living room when Kris found out why Ying acted the way she did. Henry had been gone for some time, promising hot chocolate for the group, when Ying spoke up.
“I feel like Ge’s about to blow up the microwave or something,” she sighed, turning to Yixing. “Can you go check up on him and make sure we don’t end up homeless?”
“Sure,” Yixing agreed, bounding out of the room.
Ying and Kris were left in awkward silence as they just looked at each other.
“Kris,” she suddenly said, addressing him for the first time, “can I tell you a secret?”
“Sure…?” Kris replied, shrugging.
Ying paused for a moment, studying him. “Don’t take this the wrong way if…I mean…if you’re not.”
“Aren’t what?” Kris asked, frowning.
“Yixing is gay,” she finally answered. “He doesn’t know it yet, but come on, I grew up with the kid and I know him better than he knows himself. I don’t know if you are or not, and I don’t really want to know, but…if you’re not…don’t let Yixing get too close. If you’re not, you’re just going to break his heart one day.”
Oh. So that was why Ying has been so cold with Kris for the past few days. She was afraid that he would break Yixing’s heart one day?
“I would never hurt him,” Kris replied, lowering his voice.
“You would never hurt him purposefully,” Ying corrected. “I know that. Just…think over what I said, okay? If you let Yixing fall for you, which I know will happen if you guys stay this close, he’s going to fall hard. At that point, if you break his heart, I will break your face, even if you’re some famous-ass supermodel.”
Kris opened his mouth to retort, as if he would let some little girl beat him up, but at that time, the door to the lounge opened again, and Henry and Yixing stepped through, each carrying two cups of hot chocolate.
“The idiot couldn’t decide whether to add milk to powder or powder to milk,” Yixing explained, rolling his eyes.
“Reasonable question!” Henry defended.
“No, Henry,” Ying deadpanned, turning away from Kris to face her brother. “You’re just an idiot.”
Everybody laughed, and Kris felt his heart lift considerably.
Kai’s family was undoubtedly the wealthiest out of the group. Even Kris, with his fortune amassed from modeling, could not compete with the Kims’ old family money. Kris and Yixing’s flight landed in Macao at 7:15 Macao Standard time, and they were the last of the group to arrive at the suite.
“Jesus Christ, this is amazing,” Kris whistled, looking around at the gigantic Presidential suite.
Yixing agreed, glancing around. There were many, many bedrooms, and a sauna, a gym, a Jacuzzi, a massage room, tvs in the bathrooms, floor to ceiling living room windows, and multiple kitchens. The Venetian Macao was famous for its extravagance, with casinos occupying the first floors. Floors 7 to 38 were the rooms, and the presidential suite at the top offered an excellent view of the Macao skyline.
Apart from the usual lunch gang, Kai had also invited Suho, as well as his old roommate, Kyungsoo, who flew all the way from Korea to see him.
The first day was spent shopping, with Tao buying everything Gucci and Luhan and Yixing splurging on MCM backpacks. The second day was rained out by a passing storm, so the guys turned out the lights, lit some candles, and played an uproarious game of glow-in-the-dark Pictionary.
“I call Chen and Yixing,” Lu Han called, as soon as the game was suggested.
“No way,” Xiumin interjected. “It’s not fair to have those two on the same team since they’re the only two that can actually draw.”
So, it was decided that both Chen and Yixing would be team captains, and the others drew tabs to divide into teams. Yixing surveyed his group - Kai, Xiumin, Tao, Chanyeol, and Lu Han - and felt a sense of impending doom.
The best artists, it was quickly decided, where indeed Yixing and Chen, then followed by Lu Han and Joonmyun. The worst were also decided to be Kris and Tao. The game went on for almost two hours, and drew to a stop only after the laughter brought on by Tao’s sketch could not be stopped.
He was only half way through with his drawing when Lu Han’s voice, next to Yixing in the dark, lets out a horrified gasp. “Huang Zitao, what the hell are you drawing? That is inappropriate!”
There was a beat of silence as everyone studied Tao’s artwork, tilting their head to the side and squinting their eyes. Baekhyun figured it out first, and let out a bark of laughter. Then, Kai saw the offensive shape as well, and nudged Sehun, smirking.
Tao stared at his drawing for another minute before letting out a gasp of his own. “It’s a rocketship, you perverts!” he yelled in hysterics. “Look, this is the smoke from the rocket as it’s leaving the launch pad.”
But it was already too late. Yixing laughed so hard until his sides hurt. He tried to stretch out the cramp, but only managed to fall onto his face into the carpet.
“This game is over,” Tao grumbled, snapping on the lights. The others blinked, adjusting to the light, and came face to face with a very annoyed Tao.
“I think it’s time for a snack,” Kyungsoo chimed in quickly before Tao could attack the still laughing Chanyeol to rip his head off. “Come on guys.”
The third day was another one of exploration. They took a tour led by some locals to see more of Macao, and finished the day off with videogames on the giant flatscreen tv and a competitive game of pool.
On their last day of the break, they had a huge birthday lunch, compete with a three tiered chocolate cake for Kai, courtesy of the hotel. The boys then spend some time teaching Sehun to ice skate and watched the 3D winter light show.
“We’re going to go out with a bang,” Kai promised, disappearing down the elevator after dinner, presumably to the lobby. He was back 30 minutes later, accompanied by two bell boys, a cart, and a whole lot of alcohol.
“Dibs on the vodka,” Chanyeol called before the cart even stopped moving. Baekhyun just rolled his eyes, and shoved Chanyeol out of the way in favor of red wine.
“Xing, stay away from the alcohol, okay?” Lu Han said, reaching for his own favorite brand of beer. “I want to get wasted tonight too, so that means I can’t take care of you.”
“You have no alcohol tolerance, ge,” Tao added, gleefully moving past Yixing. “It’s probably best this way.”
Yixing groaned, and moved aside as all of the others grabbed drinks and settled in the giant living room for a rowdy game of “Never have I ever.” He wanted to participate like the others, and was annoyed at having to nurse a cup of coca-cola instead.
“This isn’t fair,” Yixing grumbled, glaring as his soda. “This is a drinking game. How am I supposed to play this without drinking?”
“Just give him some alcohol,” Xiumin finally conceded. “Worse comes to worst, he falls asleep and someone has to carry his sorry ass to bed.”
Yixing decided that he was going to prove them all wrong and drag his own sorry ass to bed, which was exactly what he did, three hours later, when the room got all fuzzy and everything got soft.
Too bad it wasn't his bed.
“Xing, what are you doing?”
“Sleeping, go away,” Yixing muttered, burrowing his face even further into the pillow.
“Your room is next door; I think you miscounted.” With an audible heave, Kris helped Yixing onto his feet and into the next room. “Lu Han wasn’t kidding about you being a lightweight, was he?” Kris chuckled, tucking Yixing under the covers.
He sat down on the edge of the bed and pushed hair out of Yixing’s face, moving the strands behind his ear. He decided right then and that that Yixing was beautiful, with dark hair that contrasted so well with his pale skin.
Ying’s words suddenly came back to him, like a whisper fluttering in his mind. If you’re not, you’re just going to break his heart one day.
Kris sighed, and reached out again to touch Yixing’s cheek. “I would never break your heart,” he muttered.
Yixing’s eyes fluttered open, and Kris started to jerk his hand back, startled that Yixing had not been asleep after all, but Yixing reached out and grabbed it.
“I know, Kris,” he whispered, eyes slightly unfocused. He let out a hazy smile, wrapped one hand around Kris’ shirt collar and yanked, pulling the taller man on top of him.
“Xing, what are you doing?” Kris asked, afraid to open his eyes and look at the boy that was so close to him.
“What I want.”
And then Yixing was kissing him, and Kris felt like he was floating on clouds. He had known for some years that he was probably bisexual, having been attracted to both female and male co-workers before in the modeling business. However, he had just always hooked up with girls in the past because they had been the ones to show interest in him.
He had developed a crush on Yixing since pretty much the first time he had seen the boy in the dorm room, but had never even considered finding out if Yixing was interested in guys either, because that was just not how things worked. His advances, bordering on sexual harassment, were just his own screwed up way of putting off the inevitable.
Maybe the alcohol had made Yixing braver than Kris, because he was the one taking the initiative to wrap an arm around Kris’ neck and pull him even closer. He took advantage of Kris’ momentary surprise and slipped his tongue past Kris’ parted lips
Kris couldn’t breathe. His heart was about to beat out of his chest, and Yixing was making little moaning sounds under him.
It was going too far, too fast.
Using all his willpower, Kris pulled away, resting his forehead on the pillow above Yixing’s shoulder. He took deep breaths and counted to ten, trying to calm his nerves.
When he looked up again, he found that Yixing’s eyes were closed. The boy had actually fallen asleep.
“Shit,” Kris muttered, bolting to his feet. He ran a hand frantically through his hair, eyes darting wildly around the room. While the fact that Yixing had kissed him was a great thing, the fact that Yixing was also drunk beyond oblivion was not. “Shit,” he cursed again, moving towards the door.
“Is something wrong?” Lu Han asked, pausing by the door on his way past to his own room.
“What? No, nothing,” Kris replied, quickly stepping out of the room and closing the door. “He’s going to have a killer hangover tomorrow.”
Lu Han just laughed. “Doesn’t he always?”
Yixing regretted drinking any alcohol the minute he cracked his eyes open. The gang had a flight back to school at 4PM, and nobody had even started packing.
“Please lower your voices,” he croaked, still sensitive even after two cups of strong coffee.
Lu Han took pity on him and, after packing his own clothes and belongings, helped Yixing pack most of his as well.
Kai was also nursing a hangover, and kept quiet, falling asleep again almost as soon as the plane took to the air.
“You look like a douchebag with those on,” Lu Han hissed, yanking at Yixing’s sunglasses.
“Stop it,” he hissed back, batting Lu Han’s hand away. “The light hurts my eyes.”
“Here, use this.” Kris reached over the back of the seat and tossed Yixing a black eye mask.
“Thanks,” Yixing muttered, accepting it. He put it on, took out the blanket that was tucked under his seat, and tried to get some more sleep.
“What happened yesterday?” Lu Han asked, dropping his voice a few octaves so only his best friend could hear him.
“Ummm?”
“Kris came out of your room late night cussing like a sailor.”
For once, Yixing was glad that the blanket, which was cutting off his air supply, was hiding his face. “I don’t want to talk about it,” he muttered back.
Yixing remembered a lot more than he thought he would, considering how drunk he had been the night before. He had pretty much wanted to die of embarrassment when he had woken up, and had since then more or less avoided Kris like the bubonic plague.
Yixing pretended to fall asleep so as to discourage further question from a curious Lu Han, but his mind was running a mile a minute.
Okay, so he had wanted to kiss Kris Wu for a while now, and had been madly jealous of Joonmyun’s ex for showing interest in him. But then, that didn’t really mean anything. Kris was a famous supermodel, known for his alluring charm and handsome features. It would make sense for Yixing to be attracted to him, right? Everybody was probably attracted to him.
After getting back to school, Yixing didn’t even bother to unpack. Still playing the hangover card, he fell directly into bed and pretended to fall asleep almost at once. Through the tiny slit he left open in his eyes, Yixing saw Kris standing frozen in the middle of the room, glaring at him. Then Kris sighed and started to unpack, turning away to his own bed.
Yixing felt like he had just dodged a bullet.
It was Sehun who cornered Yixing in the library the next day.
“Ge, what are you doing?” he asked, glancing around. “And don’t tell me studying, because we just got back from break and there is nothing to study. Lu Han told me that Kris told him you’ve been avoiding him.”
“Lu Han needs to learn to keep his mouth shut,” Yixing grumbled.
“Why are you avoiding Kris?” Sehun asked determined.
“It’s not really - I mean - It’s not really anything.”
Sehun let out an exasperated groan. “You are so obvious, Ge. If you like Kris, you should just tell him because he likes you too.”
“What are you talking about?” Yixing denied, quickly shaking his head. “I don’t - ”
“You don’t fool me,” Sehun interrupted, standing up and slamming his hand on the table. The librarian, shelving books several rows away, shot him a dirty look. “You don’t fool me,” he repeated again, lowering his voice. “And neither does Kris. Please go talk to him; you ignoring him is making him upset.”
Yixing bit his lip, thinking it over. “Do you think I should? But I mean…I’m not gay.”
“There’s always a first time for everything.”
Kris was sitting in bed, playing fruit ninja on his iPad when Yixing entered. He looked up briefly, then away again to swipe a combo of five pineapples.
“Hey,” Yixing said, awkwardly.
Kris made a face, not bothering to look up. “What, you’re finally talking to me again?”
“Yeah, sorry about that…”
Kris just let out a noncommittal noise and continued to swipe away at the game.
“Can we talk?” Yixing asked, sitting down nervously on the edge of the bed.
“We are talking,” Kris replied, eyes still on the game.
“I mean, without -”
“Shit!” Kris interrupted as his finger grazed the side of a bomb. The screen turned into an explosion of colors, and Kris bared his teeth angrily. “Goddammit,” he growled. “I was only 20 points away from beating my high score.”
“Hey, I’m trying to talk to you,” Yixing said impatiently. He took a hold of Kris’ iPad and yanked, moving it successfully out of the taller man’s reach.
“What do you want?” Kris asked, finally looking up and meeting Yixing’s gaze. He saw several emotions in them: annoyance, hurt, confusion.
“I just…I just had a talk with Sehun, and I figured some things out. I’m really sorry about ignoring you yesterday and today, after what happened in Macao.”
“Look, Yixing,” Kris interrupted. “I’m just going to straight out say it. I like you, and I’m interested in you. The ball is in your court now, and you do with this information what you will.”
Yixing was taken back for a moment by Kris’ straightforwardness.
“I don’t like playing mind games,” Kris explained, calmly.
“It’s just that…I’ve never been gay before,” Yixing muttered, suddenly feeling shy. “I’ve never even really considered the possibility because, before you, I’ve never really been interested in a guy. But Sehun says that there’s a first time for everything, and he’s right. I mean, I really like you, as more than just a friend and a roommate.”
“Sehun said that?” Kris repeated.
“He convinced me to tell you how I really feel,” Yixing nodded resolutely. “I don’t really know if I’ll be any good at this boyfriend thing, but I want to give it a try.”
“Really?”
“Yes, I mean, if you also…” Yixing trailed off, suddenly looking panic stricken at the possibility of being rejected.
“I do, of course I do!” Kris quickly said, pulling Yixing into a tight tug. “I want you to be my boyfriend more than anything else in the world.”
“Can we keep it a secret, at least for now?” Yixing asked uncertainly. “I need some time to get used to it, and having a boyfriend can’t be good for your image.”
“I don’t care about my stupid image,” Kris mumbled, lips already moving against Yixing’s. “I want to brag about you to the whole world, but it’s whatever you decide, babe.”
Yixing suspected that Lu Han and Kai both knew after just two weeks, even if Sehun swore on his own life that he had not told the pair anything.
“Well, you guys are pretty obvious,” Sehun added, rolling his eyes. “You and Kris are always staring at each other and holding hands under the table.”
“Key phrase being under the table where others can’t see,” Yixing groaned. “Lu Han keeps smirking at me.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if he could tell, since he is your best friend and all. He knows you pretty well,” Sehun shrugged. “Plus, you can’t act worth crap, and it’s suspicious when you guys are both late to breakfast on the same day or decide to go to the bathroom at the same time and disappear for 10 whole minutes.”
“Stop it,” Yixing complained, whacking Sehun on the arm.
“Hey, I'm just trying to help,” Sehun yelped, jumping out of his reach.
Yixing found it surprisingly easy to adjust to the fact that he was dating a guy, and he didn’t really mind other people knowing, minus the whole “awwwww that’s so cute” part which he hated. He decided that their friends had a right to know, and gathered them around for the announcement three weeks into the relationship.
“That’s it?” Baekhyun asked, rolling his eyes. “Jesus Christ, Yixing, we could have told you that two months ago.”
“Congratulations, though, officially!” Lu Han replied, giving Yixing a one armed hug. “Even though, you know, I kind of already figured it out.”
“How?” Kris asked, brows furrowed.
“Um…I saw you guys making out in that corner near the science wing a week or so after we got back from break,” Lu Han admitted.
Oh.
The only reason that Yixing had decided to continue to hide the relationship from the rest of the school was because no matter what, Kris was still a celebrity and a public figure. It didn’t feel right for him to claim Kris like that when thousands of people looked up to him as his fans.
It turned out that he shouldn’t have worried because a week later, a picture of Kris and Yixing hugging, fingers intertwined together and looking very intimate, appeared on the front page of Celebu Magazine, headline titled: Supermodel Kris Wu’s Secret Relationship.
Yixing was in history class when a horrified Lu Han tapped him with his pencil and slid his laptop over soundlessly, bringing up an electronic copy of the story. Yixing read it quickly with wide-eyes, and then moved to search the story on Baidu, only to have his worst fears confirmed. The story had already gone viral, and had been picked up by almost every print magazine, online blog, and tv entertainment news station in Asia.
This was so not how he had envisioned revealing this relationship.
Although the story did not seem to have gotten around the school yet, Yixing knew that it was bound to in just a matter of hours.
As soon as the bell rang, he took off towards his room.
On the way there, he was bombarded with supportive phone calls from his parents, Henry, and Ying, who all promised to stand by him no matter what. He screeched to a stop in front of the door just in time to hear Kris’ manager’s voice issuing from the phone was on speaker.
“…unacceptable,” the voice was ranting. “I am your manager, your agent, and your press secretary, Wu Yifan. I know I have been working for you for a really long time, but I cannot do my job if you don’t let me. Do you realize how many calls I’ve gotten this morning? The phone has been ringing off the hook. What was I supposed to say? ‘My client refuses to tell me about anything going on in his life, so sorry’? Help me out here, Kris. I need to release an official statement by tomorrow before this blows up even bigger. All I need is - ”
“Wei Ge, my parents are calling,” Kris interrupted, talking right over his manager’s spiel.
“What? They are?” Manager Wei seemed to calm down at that.
“Yeah, I’ll email you a statement for you to clean up and release tonight, okay?”
“Um, that would be great,” Manager Wei replied, offhandedly, surprised by Kris’ lack of fight.
Yixing reached out, about to push the door open, but froze again as another, much shriller voice filled the air.
“Look, Kris, we get it. You made international headlines news with your little stunt here,” a woman, Kris’ mother, yelled from the phone. “If this was just to spite your father and me to seek attention, it’s worked. We’re paying attention to you now, so-”
“This isn’t about you, any of you,” Kris snarled back, interrupting her. “Look mom, I have had enough you. How dare you ignore me, your son, for months upon month without any contact, and then call to accuse me of trying to ‘spite you’? This has nothing to do with you, and frankly, I could care less what you think.”
There was the sound of sputtering as his mother fumbled over her words.
“Do you even know what you just did to your career, silly boy? Your whole future might have just gotten flushed down the toilet.”
“If magazines and shows don’t want to book me anymore because of this, then so be it,” Kris replied, equally heated. “Oh, and I forgot to tell you guys…I’m not going back to full-time modeling even after this year.”
“What do you mean by that? What can you possibly gain by quitting modeling and dating that boy?”
“I’m going to college next fall, do you hear me? College. You guys barely acknowledge me as your son unless you’re using my money. Well, things are going to change next year, because I’m not going to be your goddamn piggybank anymore. If you want to be my parents, then start acting like it.”
Yixing’s mouth dropped open. He had never heard Kris confronting his parents like this, and knew that it took a lot of courage for him to finally do so; Yixing was proud of him for finally telling his parents exactly how he felt.
“Yifan…I don’t know what to say….” his mother whispered, seemingly at a loss for words.
“Then don’t say anything. Nothing is going to change, no matter what you say, because I love ‘that boy’.”
Yixing felt his heart jump to his throat, and he took a step back. He had never heard Kris say those words before, even to him, and now, he was hearing Kris confess them to his mother,
“Look, I have to go,” Kris added, sourly. “Call me when you’re ready to actually be my mother, mom.”
Then, there was the sound of something, probably Kris’ phone, hitting the wall with a loud crash, and the door swung open.
Kris stormed out with wild, angry eyes, and immediately saw Yixing standing by the door.
“Come with me,” he growled, latching onto Yixing’s wrist.
Kris lead the way to the empty basketball court, and wordlessly, Yixing joined him in a game of one-on-one. Kris seemed to be taking out his anger on the ball, in every dribble and every dunk. He played with an intensity that he rarely conjured, even in basketball games, and Yixing stood no chance of challenging him.
Almost an hour later, while going up for a layup, Kris barreled aggressively into Yixing, knocking him onto his back.
Kris blinked for a second, as if snapping out of a trance, before dropping down to his knees next to Yixing, horrified. “I’m so sorry, Xing, are you hurt?” he fumbled, reaching out. “What was I even thinking? I didn’t mean to-”
Yixing pulled his boyfriend down by the collar and shut him up with an effective kiss.
“I heard the whole thing,” he muttered when they finally pulled apart. “I’m sorry for all the trouble that I’m causing.”
Kris shook his head, and flopped down onto his back next to Yixing, taking one of his hands and interlocking their fingers together. “That thing with my parents should have happened a long time ago,” he said. “You just gave me the strength and the courage to finally go through with it.”
They were silent for a moment, wondering what the future had in store for them. Sure, there were going to be a lot of unhappy people, but they had each other as well as the best group of friends in the world to help them through.
Suddenly, Yixing remembered what Kris had said in the dorm, and turned his head slowly to look at him. “I love you, too,” he said, trying out the words carefully. He liked them; the sounded right coming from his mouth and directed at Kris.
“What?” Kris asked, surprised. Then he figured it out, and blushed. “Oh, you heard that part too? There are probably a lot of more romantic ways for you to find out that didn’t involve me yelling at my mother.”
“You were standing up for me, Kris. That means a lot,” Yixing argued.
“I don't think I heard you right, though. Say it again, Xingxing,” Kris fake pouted, winking at the boy next to him.
This time, it was Yixing’s turn to blush under Kris’s scorching gaze.
“I said…I said I love you.”