One Time Bestseller
From: starlightdust
Title: One Time Bestseller
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 8,100
Prompt: tsundoku: buying books and not reading them; finding an excuse for being with someone
Warning/s: None
“I'm late, I'm late, I'm late,” Luhan swears under his breath as he carefully weaves through other cars. He didn't know the nap he took was going to eat up all his spare time. But here he is, three hours later, disheveled, sleep-induced, and totally unprepared. Curse Kim Jongdae and his stupid ideas. Luhan didn't want to go on some stupid blind date. In fact, he didn't want to go on any goddamn date at all when he's swamped with coursework. But of course, Kim fucking Jongdae had to go and screw up Luhan's schedule by randomly telling him he had to meet somebody he never met before at some restaurant. I could be doing my paper for World History right now, he bitterly thinks as he speeds down an empty street. But Luhan had a weird sense of obligation when he has some sort of commitment (he claims he really doesn't have one, but all his friends, Kim fucking Jongdae especially, know that he's just in denial) which is why he still arrives at the restaurant a minute late, grumpy and moody but still there.
When he storms into the restaurant, the hostess standing at the front clutches her menus closer to her chest. “How can I help you, sir?” she squeaks, eyes roaming over his body. She probably thinks he's crazy but Luhan just wants this stupid date to be over and done with that he couldn't care less what she thinks.
“Reservation under Do Kyungsoo? Unless he's here already?”
The hostess scans the list and shakes her head. “He hasn't come yet. Come this way please, sir.”
She sits him down at a table across from a couple who are practically wolfing down their food and another male sitting to his right who's occupied with his silverware. Luhan sighs. Well, there's nothing better to do now than to wait so he takes out his phone and opens up a game.
-
They brought out the pity dessert. Luhan sighs, taking the offered fork from the sympathetic waiter, who asked for his order multiple times before Luhan finally gave in and ordered lasagna (which tasted wonderful, thank you very much). His date never showed up and Luhan really wants to punch Jongdae now for making him go on this stupid date when he could be doing something much more productive. Luhan laments over his lost study time while he spoons some (quite delicious) tiramisu into his mouth, cursing Jongdae to the fiery depths of hell.
“Um.” Somebody to his right clears their throat.
Luhan looks up (and then some more) at the tall, handsome male standing in front of him. He immediately recognizes him as the guy who was sitting at the table next to his. Luhan didn't know he would stay this long and when he looks past him, there's a pity cheesecake on his table. Huh, even cute guys get stood up apparently.
“I, uh, noticed that your date hasn't showed up and mine hasn't either and I was just wondering if we could share our desserts?” The other male laughs nervously, scratching the back of his neck.
Luhan narrows his eyes. “You just want my tiramisu,” he accuses.
“Uh,” the other male ruffles his hair, fluffing it up. “Maybe? I mean, if you don't want to share, it's fine. I just want you to know I have a perfectly delicious cheesecake-”
Luhan laughs. He's not sure if it's because of the other's adorable stuttering or because of the hair sticking up from his head. Either way, his day feels a lot better than it did before. “No, no. Bring it over. I want to try some too.”
The taller's face lights up and he brings the cake over, plopping himself comfortably in the chair across from Luhan. For some reason, the Chinese male feels like this stranger belongs there, like maybe he's his date actually.
“Is your name Do Kyungsoo?” Luhan blurts out.
The other's eyebrows furrow. “No, my name's Oh Sehun. But Kyungsoo's my friend. How do you know him?”
“I was supposed to be on a blind date with him,” Luhan frowns. “He never showed up.”
“Kyungsoo told me I had a blind date with Kim Jongdae.” When Sehun sees Luhan make a face, he asks, “Your friend?”
“Yeah. Something's weird there. Whatever, they're missing out on some wonderful desserts so sucks to be them.”
And even though this weird connection between Kyungsoo and Jongdae is nagging at the back of Luhan's brain, he doesn't really care because Sehun is everything he wants in a date. He's witty and sometimes makes corny jokes but has the biggest, brightest smile Luhan has ever seen that the Chinese male can't help but forgive him for the terrible puns. They talk about a bunch of things, like their jobs - Sehun works at a local bookstore - and what major they’re in - Sehun’s an English nerd - and where they go to for college.
(“No, you're not a sophomore. That's impossible. You have the resting bitch face of a senior who doesn't give a flying fuck.”
“Same goes to you, baby face. You look like you belong in elementary school and you're a junior. I'm surprised I never saw you around campus because your face stands out.”)
Conversation comes easy to them and Luhan doesn't even realize how much time has passed until a waiter comes by and asks if they want their checks because they may or may not have been loitering for far too long.
Ten minutes later, they leave the restaurant and split ways, new contact information stored in their phones. Like they had promised earlier, they weren't going to look at their phones until they were almost home. Luhan resists for a grand total of two minutes before curiosity gets the best of him and he parks at the side of the road to check his contacts. When he sees what his newest contact is listed as, he snorts and quickly sends a message.
To: Sehunderful
Sehunderful? really??? SO creative
The reply comes almost instantaneously.
From: Sehunderful
says the person who listed himself as Luhandsome. so unoriginal ick and I bet you're not home yet! you broke our promise >:(
To: Sehunderful
I'm changing your name to Sehun the Stupid. and how do you know I'm not home yet? stalker ewwww
From: Cheesecake
damn got caught. it's too late to escape now tho. I already have your number ;)
To: Cheescake
I'm throwing this phone away bye
Luhan takes one final look at his screen before tossing his phone into the seat next to him, smiling like a madman when he turns back onto the road. Maybe this blind date wasn't such a terrible thing after all.
-
Luhan's about 1000000% sure that Kai is related to Jongdae. They both have bad ideas, evil cackles, and some sense of taking advantage of Luhan whenever he has more important things to do. The only reason why they wouldn't be related would be because they're from two completely different places - Kai lived in Hawaii almost all his life and Jongdae came from Korea - but even then, Luhan is secretly sure they were just twins separated at birth (even though they're not the same age either). For some reason, both of them have a built-in 'time to annoy Luhan' sensor that beeps whenever Luhan is actually in a semi-good mood. It's like they just want him to be angry all day.
Which is exactly why Luhan hates Kai so much right now. On the one day Luhan doesn't have classes because his professor canceled last minute and he was busy catching up on some well-deserved rest, he was rudely woken up by his shrill ringtone. Kai sounded out of breath and desperate and just a tad bit nervous over the phone, his tone pleading. Coupled with the fact that he shouted “It's an emergency!” before hanging up had Luhan blundering out of bed to save his friend.
Only to find out that Kai needed no damn saving. He stands unscathed in front of a bookstore with a devious grin on his face. Luhan considers murdering somebody, specifically Kai.
“I thought this was an emergency,” he deadpans, still half-asleep.
“It is. The new volume of Fairy Tail came out! I need to get it!”
“What the hell do you need me for then?”
Kai's grin widens and Luhan already regrets asking. “I might or might not need a couple more bucks.”
“Get a freaking job,” the Chinese male groans, dragging a hand down his face.
But he's there already and he's not leaving without finishing what he was there for (which was, unfortunately, lose money in exchange for a terrible friendship). As he trails after his brat of a friend, he regrets ever trying to make friends in his Gen Ed Psychology class. God had only been cruel to him for placing Kai, the ultimate otaku with no money at all, in the seat next to his. Luhan considers punching his friend but has to remind himself that starting fights in public is frowned upon, no matter how irresistible it is to reach out and smack his idiotic head.
Luhan is so immersed in mentally fighting his friend that he doesn't realize where he's going until he runs smack dab into another person balancing several boxes in his arms. The boxes teeter from the impact and Luhan quickly reaches out to steady them.
“Thanks,” a muffled voice says. The arms shift and a familiar face pops out from behind the stack of boxes. “Luhan?”
“Sehun,” he says, surprised. “I didn't know you worked here.”
“I didn't know you come here,” Sehun laughs in response. Luhan reaches out to help him with a box but he shifts away. “I got it,” he assures him.
“Hey, Luhan! I found it!” Kai finally reappears from the bookshelves, waving a shiny new book. “Hey, Hun.”
“'Sup, Kai,” Sehun nods in greeting. “Let me put these away and I'll help you guys at the register.”
Kai nods and bounds away in the direction of the checkout counter. Luhan considers following him but trails after Sehun instead. If he spends another minute in Kai's presence, he's probably going to end up actually hitting him. At least he won't think about hitting Sehun every time he moves. Which reminds him-
“Hey, how do you know Kai? I didn't think a brat like him would be friends with you,” Luhan comments. He eyes Sehun carefully as he maneuvers past a bookshelf.
“I'm taking that as a compliment,” Sehun laughs. “But we were in the same art class in freshman year.”
“Oh, cool, you can draw?”
“Uh, no.”
“Paint? Sketch? Acrylic? Watercolor? Pastel? Ceramics?”
“No...”
Luhan throws his hands up. “Then how the hell can you be in the same art class? As far as I know, Kai's really good at drawing people and anatomy and- oh. Really?”
“Uh, yeah.”
“Oh my god. You were a model for them?” Luhan laughs.
Sehun blushes. “Shut up. I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time and the teacher seemed to really like me.”
“That's gross. I would've ran.”
“It was oddly flattering.”
“You're weird.” Luhan didn't even realize they were almost at the checkout counter until Kai shouts at them to hurry up.
“It doesn't take that long to put away boxes,” he complains. “I need Luhan to hurry up and pay for me so I can get out of here.”
Sehun raises an eyebrow and then spends the next ten minutes fiddling with the cash register. Luhan is touched by this (maybe he's starting to understand why Sehun accepted that weird form of compliment) but he finds the unamused scowl on Kai's face the most rewarding. Revenge is so, so sweet.
-
The next time Luhan enters that bookstore is a good four days later. One of his professors decided, mid-semester, that he wanted them to get another textbook for the class so Luhan reluctantly drags himself to the closest bookstore, silently lamenting over his disappearing money.
He's helped by a girl with a nose piercing, who didn’t even realize he was there since her head was buried in a book about dogs. While she rings him up, he hums and looks around, his gaze eventually landing on a familiar face two counters to the right. Sehun is adjusting his seat, frowning when he pulls the lever and slides downwards. Only his eyes are visible over the tall checkout counter but Luhan can tell the other is pouting.
Luhan unknowingly laughs, finding the whole thing utterly adorable, but when there's a cough to his side, he turns to see the girl eyeing him strangely. He blushes and takes his purchase and debit card, a little ashamed but also giddy because he gets to see Sehun again. He considers saying hi to him and maybe talking a little bit - they've been texting on and off but haven't exactly seen each other face to face in a while - but then his eyes land on the huge clock behind Sehun's head and Luhan realizes with dread that if he doesn't leave soon, he'll be late to his next lecture for sure. Disappointed, Luhan rushes out of the bookstore, stuffing his new textbook into his backpack as he runs to his car. He doesn't notice Sehun spotting him and raising a hand to greet him only to have said hand hang awkwardly in the air, a small frown making its way onto the cashier's face.
-
Baekhyun plops himself down next to Luhan. “I freaking hate college,” he declares, throwing his books on the table.
Luhan looks up for a brief second, humming in disinterest. “Take care of your books at least. They cost a fortune.”
Baekhyun gathers his materials together, stacking them neatly on top of each other. “Speaking of books, remember when Zitao lost his favorite pen?”
Luhan snorts. “You mean, you took it without asking, lent it to other people, and just never bothered to get it back.”
“Details, details,” Baekhyun waves his hand flippantly. “Anyways, I have to pay him back by buying Pride and Prejudice for him.”
“Wow, harsh. But doesn't he already have a copy?”
“Yeah, but he's complaining that he's read it so many times that the words are faded and the book is falling apart. Plus, it's some weird anniversary thing coming up and Zitao insists he gets it. I don't know what's so special about it but if that stops him from throwing pillows at me once I enter our dorm, I'll buy it.”
“Wow, look at you, all grown up and ready to fix friendships. I'm so proud of you, Byun Baekhyun.”
Baekhyun looks like he's about to chuck something at him then decides better of it. “Can you come with me to the store?”
Luhan finally lifts his eyes from the sentence he's been rereading ever since Baekhyun sat down. “What for? I swear to god, if you make me pay for you, I will make you pay me back with pizza for the rest of your life.”
“Please, I'm not Kai,” Baekhyun rolls his eyes and grins. “I just need you there for moral support while I look for an old novel nobody probably cares about anymore.”
Turns out enough people cared about the novel that there was a huge sign outside the store advertising the new edition. Not to mention, there was a table near the entrance filled with copies of it. What Baekhyun had anticipated would take about ten minutes turned out to take only thirty seconds. While they wait in line, Baekhyun sheepishly whispers to Luhan, “Please don't tell Zitao what I said earlier.” Luhan laughs and promises him he won't.
“I can take the next guest in line!” A hand waves in the air from the furthest counter.
Luhan recognizes the voice immediately and bounds over (Baekhyun notes in amusement that his friend quite literally lights up). “Hey, Sehun!” He slips into Sehun's chair behind the counter.
Sehun scowls, taking the book from Baekhyun's hands. “I told you last time, you're not an employee, Luhan. Don't sit in my chair.”
“Fight me,” Luhan challenges. He doesn't expect Sehun to aim the price scanner at him and actually price check him.
“That'll be $7.59, please,” Sehun says to Baekhyun.
“How much am I worth?”
“Nothing,” his two friends snap at the same time.
“I would be offended,” Luhan puts a hand on his chest in mock sadness, “but you know I'm just priceless.”
“Keep telling yourself that,” Baekhyun snorts, exchanging exact change for his purchase. “I'll be leaving first, Lu. I have music theory in about five minutes. Nice meeting you, Sehun,” and with a careless wave of his hand, Baekhyun disappears out the front doors.
Two minutes later, when Sehun attends to another customer after failing to get Luhan out of his chair, Luhan receives a text from Baekhyun.
From: Baecon of Light
I think your friend needs to be fired for PDA. you guys were flirting so much it was disgusting
Luhan scoffs and is about to type a sarcastic reply but he ends up staring at Sehun's back as he moves around his tiny workspace. Almost as if he can sense his stare, Sehun turns around and gives him a small smile between customers. Luhan's heart stutters and then he ducks his head to hide his reddening face, furiously deleting his reply. He closes the message app and pretends his heart isn't about to leap out of his chest whenever Sehun so much as looks in his direction.
-
Luhan drops by the bookstore the next day after his classes. It's because I want to try their coffee. Nothing else, he insists as he enters. Yet, he feels a bit disappointed that Sehun isn't in sight. But he's here for the coffee, not his really cute friend, so he confidently strides to the cafe to order a drink.
He sits down at a table placed near the bookshelves and waits patiently for his order to be called. Two tables in front of him, he sees a woman pull out a book from the shelves and start reading, periodically sipping her coffee. When Luhan looks around and notices almost everybody deep in a book, he starts fiddling with his hands, feeling out of place. Eventually, he gives into the silent peer pressure and plucks a sci-fi novel from the shelf next to him and flips it open.
As far as Luhan remembers, he was never a huge fan of books. It's not that they're boring - he's read quite a few that he really enjoyed - it's just that he could never sit still long enough to become fully immersed in the world. He's a slow reader too, which just added to his desire to do something else instead of curl up in a chair and look at words. Yet, for some reason, he reads an entire chapter in one sitting, completely oblivious to the outside world. It's only when the chair opposite to him screeches against the cafe floor that he looks up, a little dazed.
“Hey,” Sehun greets. “Didn't expect to see you here.”
“Hnnngh,” Luhan hums in reply, unable to form coherent words.
Sehun laughs. “You forgot your coffee at the counter but at least it's still warm. Cold coffee is so gross.”
“Thanks,” Luhan mumbles, bringing the cup to his mouth. It's colder than he would like it but it's better than nothing.
Sehun watches him with a fond smile and Luhan's heart lurches in his chest. This is so not fair, he thinks. He turns back to his book just so he doesn't have to meet the other male's eyes and have his heart do the jumpy thingy again. For the next few minutes, they sit in silence, periodically interrupted by a page flip or the occasional sip of coffee. Luhan's surprised Sehun hasn't left or anything; watching him read is hardly interesting.
But, while Luhan is in the middle of a sentence, he feels something lightly brushing against his calf. He tries to concentrate on the sentence and even though he's physically finished reading the words, they makes no sense to him. Determined, he rereads it and then- another brush. It's more deliberate now and Luhan swears it's Sehun's foot. But when he looks up, Sehun's head is turned to the right, eyes examining the display of pastries. Then, whatever it is presses against his leg and Luhan knows it's Sehun this time, if the dumb smile on his face is evidence enough.
“You're so immature,” Luhan retorts, giving up on the sentence. Despite his words, he retaliates by kicking Sehun's left foot.
“Oh, so we're doing this now, I see,” Sehun narrows his eyes.
“You're the one who started it,” the Chinese male laughs.
Luhan abandons his book in favor of playing a rather childish game of footsies with Sehun. He's sure they've attracted several stares; after all, two twenty-something-year-old men were giggling like crazy and playing with each other's feet (it usually doesn't get weirder than that). Then, Sehun notices the time on his watch and frowns.
“I have class in five minutes. I gotta go.” He gets up from his seat and Luhan hurriedly gathers up his own stuff to leave with Sehun.
They exit the cafe together and Sehun gestures at the book Luhan didn't even realize he was holding. “You should get it. It's a really good book,” and then Sehun bids him goodbye as he dashes off to his next class.
For some reason, Luhan never thought about buying the book. He enjoyed it while he read it but it never occurred to him that he could buy it. His apartment may be filled with textbooks and notebooks but he's never really considered having books just because. But he thinks about Sehun and then Luhan finds himself leaving the bookstore, wallet fifteen dollars lighter and new book stuffed in his backpack.
-
Luhan hates to say it but visiting the bookstore has become a routine. Sometimes, he helps Sehun with errands (even though the other insists it's his job and Luhan doesn't need to help him at all) or he sits behind the cashier counter and chats with his friend in between customers. Whenever Sehun is too busy to humor him, Luhan wanders through the shelves, looking at the multiple books. If Sehun's on reshelving duty, he joins Luhan and offers comments whenever he finds an interesting book. If Sehun's shifts are over, they sit down at the cafe and chatter over steaming cups of coffee. Occasionally, they meet on campus, in between classes, but Luhan finds that he prefers the bookstore a lot more. It's a public place but in a way, it's still their spot.
All Luhan's friends have met Sehun by now and Luhan's met all Sehun's friends too (he holds a slight grudge against Kyungsoo, though, just because of that stupid blind date). The two groups often merge for outings or food trips and although Luhan loves seeing their friends interacting, he prefers the playful, much quieter banter between him and Sehun more. His friends know it too. Whenever the Chinese male smiles down at his phone, Baekhyun nudges him and singsongs, “It's Cheesecake, right?” (Luhan will never forgive himself for showing Baekhyun his messages with Sehun). Whenever he leaves Kai after their shared class, his friend laughs and tell him, “Alright, can't keep you from your date.” And Jongdae - goddamn Jongdae - spends every second of the day annoying Luhan about “lover boy.” Luhan always rolls his eyes at his friends because he and Sehun are so not dating and they should get over it.
Luhan doesn't admit it but he's developed quite a crush on the taller. But he draws the line there. Of course, Sehun's cute and totally Luhan's type but there's no telling how a relationship with Sehun would turn out. He'd rather they maintain their friendship than risk it all to date romantically and potentially break up and ruin their friendship. But then sometimes, at random, almost mundane, moments, Luhan would find his heart practically jumping out of his chest around the other or he notices how good Sehun's side profile looks or he stares at Sehun's lips for far too long or he finds the height difference endearing or he feels so dazzled by Sehun's smile that he can't help but think I would really like to see that every day for the rest of my life. And then he can't help but imagine, maybe, maybe, he could date him. (He pictures it in his dreams already, anyways.)
-
Yixing, Luhan's friend from China, comes visit one day in the middle of winter. He claims to be there on a college visit but Luhan knows he won't transfer out of his current university, considering how hard he cried after seeing his Gaokao score that confirmed he could apply for his dream school. As narcissistic as it sounds, Luhan knows Yixing is there for him. After all, Skype could only work so long before you start really missing your best friend of eighteen years.
The day after Yixing arrives, Luhan ends up dragging him to some of his classes. Half the time, Luhan doesn't even take notes, finding his friend's puzzled face at the foreign language much more amusing than the lecture about molecules. After classes, he offers to bring his friend to his favorite restaurant but while they were talking - teasing on Luhan's part because Yixing is still overwhelmed with the new language - they find themselves in front of the bookstore.
Yixing innocently climbs the steps and Luhan hastily follows him, a bit embarrassed at his mistake. When he catches up to his friend, Yixing looks unamused.
“I was unaware that bookstores meant restaurants here. I'm hungry for food, Luhan, not knowledge.”
“That's gross and cliché,” Luhan absentmindedly notes, tugging on Yixing's hoodie to get him to leave the damn place. If he sees a specific someone, he knows he can't possibly leave after.
Speak of the devil, Sehun walks by, pushing a cart of books. He notices Luhan and smiles and waves. “Hey,” he calls.
Luhan hates that even though he was in an already good mood, his day gets even better after seeing the other (Sehun's just a friend, Luhan reminds himself). “Hey, Sehun. How's it going?”
“I'm on reshelving duty again. Boring,” Sehun makes a face. “But at least I don't have to deal with annoying customers.”
Luhan laughs and plucks a book from the cart. “The Science of Birds. Oooooh, interesting.”
“Worthwhile read,” Sehun winks. He looks over Luhan's shoulder and tilts his head. “Is he your friend?”
Luhan suddenly realizes with a jolt that he forgot about Yixing. He drags his friend by the arm towards Sehun. Yixing has a funny look on his face, clearly amused by something (Luhan will ask him about it later).
“Sehun, this is my best friend from China, Yixing. He speaks a little Korean if you want to talk to him.”
“Ah, uh, hi, Yixing. My name is Sehun. I am Luhan's friend from university.”
Yixing still looks highly amused and he doesn't even seem fazed that he's stumbling over his Korean when he introduces himself. Luhan laughs at Sehun's astonished face as he tries to make out the words that left Yixing's mouth but when the Chinese male meets his best friend's gaze, the noise dies in his throat.
Yixing looks uncharacteristically serious when he deadpans in Chinese, “Your boyfriend is very cute. I like him.”
The smile on Luhan's face drops and he chokes on his spit. Sehun looks worried on top of confused but rubs Luhan's back anyways while he coughs (it's not very helpful because Yixing grins widely and Luhan just turns redder than before).
“Are you okay? Do you need water?” Sehun asks.
“Yeah, I'm fine. Uh, I'm going to the cafe with Yixing. Have fun shelving,” Luhan laughs nervously, pulling his friend in the other direction. Sehun stands and waves, obviously still confused.
When they enter the cafe, Yixing looks like he wants to say more but Luhan doesn't let him, forcing him to order before he can speak. But, either way, they would've ended up on that topic. When they take their seats at a table, Yixing leans over the table, eager to speak. Luhan prepares himself to do some heavy-duty denials but what he doesn't expect is for his friend to say-
“This Sehun guy is the reason why you have so many books in your apartment.”
Flabbergasted, Luhan blinks at his best friend for a few seconds. Finally, he makes (what he thinks is) a smooth recovery, “I need those books for my classes. It's not because of Sehun.”
Yixing snorts, easily seeing through him (damn long friendships). “There's still labels on those books. You haven't even touched them since you bought them. And I know you don't need that many books for classes.”
“Okay, fine. I bought them because I wanted to read them on my own time. I just haven't gotten around to them, alright?” Luhan sniffs.
Yixing looks unamused. “Luhan, you don't read. You hate reading. Admit it, you come here so much that you need to find an excuse for being here for other reasons besides Sehun.”
Well shit, Luhan thinks. That's totally not what he did a few days earlier when he forcibly sent a book about beavers to his Canadian pen pal, Kris, because he bought the damn thing while Sehun was working the register just so he could stay longer and talk to him. Luhan internally groans, realizing the truth in Yixing's words.
Yixing rolls his eyes, “Lu, I've known you for a long time. Just tell this guy about your feelings. He obviously likes you back. I swear, how do your friends stand you two making googly eyes at each other?”
Luhan blushes and looks down at his hands. A barista calls out his name and slides two coffee cups onto the counter but neither makes a move to get them. Finally, Luhan says, “I just don't want to ruin our friendship right now.”
Yixing makes a noise of defeat and buries his head in his hands. “Hopeless,” he announces. “Hopeless.”
-
The next day, Luhan wakes up early to go to the grocery store. He doesn't bother waking Yixing since he's probably suffering from severe jet lag and he stalks out of his apartment, still grumpy from the early hour even though he woke up voluntarily. The grocery store is a ten minute walk away and Luhan regrets not taking his car five minutes in. He's shivering in the thin hoodie he threw on and at some point, he starts running, eager to find some shelter from the biting cold. Luhan arrives at the grocery store, both freezing and sweaty. When he reaches for the door, another hand shoots out. It feels nice and warm against his cold skin and when he looks up, all he can see is Sehun's smile.
“The great and almighty king of darkness, Luhan, has arisen from his bed,” Sehun announces, laughing. “I thought you didn't get up this early in the morning.”
“It's an ungodly time.”
“It's nine.”
“Nine hours too early for me to be out of bed. But we ran out of food yesterday because we binge-watched a Chinese drama and the fridge is completely empty.”
“We?” Sehun asks, frowning.
“Yixing's staying with me for winter break.”
“Oh...” Sehun trails off, pushing a shopping cart into the cereal section.
They browse the aisles side by side and Luhan can't shake off how right this feels: going on early morning grocery store trips together, the light catching in Sehun's hair as he examines the expiration dates on two milk cartons, the small banter they make as he decides between the two, the insane urge to kiss the taller senseless right now even if the dairy section isn't the best place to kiss for the first time. Luhan doesn't even realize he's actually leaning closer to Sehun until the other raises his head. The distance between their faces is almost nonexistent and in a panic, Luhan leans past him to grab a packet of cheese. Next to his ear, he can hear Sehun inhale sharply.
“Yixing loves cheese,” Luhan laughs nervously, tossing the packet into the cart. (They're both lactose intolerant.)
“Oh, cool,” Sehun says, voice small.
For the rest of the time, they shop in silence. Luhan is so busy mentally berating himself for thinking about kissing his friend (again) that he doesn't seem to notice how strange his friend is acting. Only when they reach the checkout counter and Luhan offers to pay for their purchases does he notice. The other, who would usually agree on splitting the payment, vehemently refuses and rushes to pay for his own things, taking all of them out of the cart even though they make up the majority of what they're buying.
“Sehun, are you okay?” Luhan asks, slightly bewildered at Sehun's nervous state.
The other bounces a little in place. “Yeah, I'm fine. Just gotta go soon, haha.”
And when the cashier hands over all his purchases, Luhan doesn't even manage a goodbye before Sehun dashes out the store. The Chinese male trudges home with his packet of cheese and a carton of eggs. There are so many thoughts running through his head at the moment like Sehun's strange behavior right before he left and how freaking cold it is and how Sehun still looked good underneath the cheap lights of the grocery store and how domestic they were and how Luhan wanted to go on grocery trips with him every single day if it felt like this.
The realization hits him when he collapses onto his couch, still cradling the cheese to his chest. He's already put the eggs away but for some reason, he can't put down the cheese, remembering how close his face was to Sehun's and how he regrets not leaning forward and pressing his lips onto the younger's parted ones. Yixing walks into the room, obviously just woken up, and squints at Luhan.
“Lu?” he asks in confusion. It doesn't sound the same, Luhan thinks bitterly. For some reason, his name sounds so much better out of Sehun's mouth.
“Xing, I have a problem,” Luhan murmurs, eyes staring blankly into space. He still doesn't want to let go of the cheese.
“And what would that be?” Yixing hums.
“I like Sehun too damn much.”
“You idiot,” Yixing coos, “I already know.”
-
In the aftermath of his realization, Luhan avoids Sehun as much as he can. It's terribly easy especially since he knows Sehun's schedule forwards and backwards so Luhan goes several days without seeing his friend. Then, on the fifth day, after he finally comes to terms with his situation (okay, more like Yixing lectured him for an hour or two about love and how stupid they were and how Luhan needed to get over himself; despite being hurt by several insults Yixing generously threw in, it helped Luhan a lot), he realizes he wasn't the one doing the avoiding. It doesn't hit him until he's on his between-class coffee break. Usually, Sehun would be somewhere in the vicinity and they would hang out for all thirty minutes until Luhan has to run to class two minutes late, always too entranced with Sehun in general to remember that time was actually a factor. And even when Luhan was busy with something, Sehun went out of his way to make sure they saw each other at least once each day.
The lack of Sehun makes Luhan frown down at his coffee cup, the taste becoming bitter in his mouth. He hasn't had alone time in a while and he suddenly doesn't remember what he did before Sehun and his perfect hair and his smiling eyes and his seal laugh and his lame puns and his blindingly beautiful smile.
Luhan arrives at his next class five minutes early.
-
He misses him. He misses him so much that it physically hurts. When Luhan checks the bookstore during Sehun's usual shifts, the other doesn't appear. Instead, nose piercing dog girl, Sehun's coworker he keeps forgetting the name of, looks at him apologetically and shakes her head. When he asks her which shifts he switched to, she doesn't respond, only giving him the same pitiful look. Luhan gives up after the fourth time.
He goes to all his classes and plasters on smiles and exudes happiness but Baekhyun still looks over at him in sympathy and Kai hugs him at random. Even Jongdae stops annoying him, which is extremely weird. He knows they probably know why Sehun is avoiding him or maybe they know where he's gone at least but they only offer wordless shakes of their heads or sad, pitiful eyes. At least Luhan still has Yixing for another week before the other returns to China. He makes amazing comfort food.
-
He's fine.
Luhan misses Sehun but he's fine.
The time between and after classes is a lot more lonelier without his friend but really, he's fine.
Sometimes, he still turns to the side, expecting to see fluffy hair or smiling eyes or a beautiful grin. He's never seen Sehun angry but he'll take that too if that means he gets to see his friend again. Luhan also misses their random texts and late-night calls and spontaneous food outings and friendly banter. But seriously, he's better than ever. He's totally, completely, utterly fine.
...
He's not.
-
Luhan trudges down the street, mind bogged with the dozens of assignments his professors assigned him. Hell week is approaching and Luhan is suddenly swamped with homework as professors scramble to get through more material before midterms start. Yixing also returned to China, leaving him to fend for himself during this shitty time.
He's not exactly focused in front of him. He's staring at his feet, not having the energy to lift his head, and dodges incoming people when he notices the tips of their shoes in his vision. That's why he doesn't see a pair of worn out Converse when he turns the corner until he steps on the grayish tips and runs straight into somebody else.
“Oh, sorry,” he moves away and bows, lifting his head up to properly apologize. But he stops in his tracks, shocked to see a face he hasn't seen in two weeks.
“Se-Sehun,” he stutters.
The other looks just as surprised as he is. His shoulders are tense and he's scrutinizing Luhan from beneath the scarf covering half his face, as if he's only now remembering how he looked like. The Chinese male hates being under this judgement and fidgets with his hands.
“Can we, uh, talk? It's important.”
Sehun stares. Just stares. Finally, after what seems like an eternity, he nods. “Fine. But not here. Someplace warm.”
And despite his better judgement because he hasn't even been on a date with him nor does he know if Sehun even likes him at all now, he says, “Let's go to my apartment. It's nearby.”
Luhan tugs on Sehun's arm before the other can retaliate and hides his reddening face underneath the collar of his jacket. What was he doing, inviting the other male into his apartment before even going out on a date? He mentally smacks himself. You're just friends. Or sorta friends. Acquaintances? He doesn't really know where they stand anymore.
He's so wrapped up in his thoughts that he doesn't realize he's somehow already navigated them to his apartment. As he fumbles for his keys, he can feel Sehun's gaze boring into the back of his head. Luhan misses the keyhole several times out of nervousness before the door finally clicks open and he stumbles into the apartment.
“Uh, I'll go make us some hot chocolate. You can sit on the couch over there,” he splutters, toeing off his shoes.
His hands are shaking as he tears open the hot chocolate packets and he's not sure if it's because he's excited to finally talk to Sehun again after blatantly ignoring each other for weeks or if it's because his crush is sitting on the couch in his living room right at this freaking instant. Luhan leaves the kitchen with both steaming mugs in hand, moving quickly in fear that he will spill the drinks.
It's no luck because right after he's placed the cups on the table, some hot chocolate splashes out onto his hand. Behind the fingers he's holding to his face to suck at the hot chocolate, he sees the first real expression - worry - cross Sehun's eyes as the other reaches out as if to grab his hand. But soon after, Sehun's face closes off again and he's reaching for the mug instead, seemingly indifferent about Luhan's small burn. But that small, fleeting emotion is relief to Luhan. At least Sehun still somewhat cares for him and at least he still knows his friend well enough to read his expression.
Finally, Luhan settles down, cradling his cup to his chest, letting the steam float over his face as he tries to gather his words. He's dreamt of this moment for so long yet he doesn't know what to do now that Sehun is in front of him.
Apparently, the other male does because he sets his cup down on his lap and says, “Won't your boyfriend be mad that I'm here in your apartment alone with you?”
“Boyfriend?” Luhan freezes, cup halfway up to his mouth. “What boyfriend?”
“Come on, Lu. I'm not stupid. You're dating Yixing, aren't you?”
Luhan chokes and practically slams his hot chocolate down, the liquid sloshing around violently in the cup. And for some reason, he finds himself laughing. Hard. There are tears coming to his eyes, he swears. Sehun looks unamused, however, and just a tiny bit bewildered at his reaction.
“Oh my god, you thought that too. I've heard it so many times, it's not even funny anymore.”
“Then why are you laughing?” Sehun deadpans.
“Sorry, sorry,” Luhan hiccups between laughs. “But really, Yixing and I aren't dating. I mean I went through a phase once in middle school thinking that we would be totally cute together,” Luhan can see Sehun's expression physically darkening and quickly says, “But he's straight. Like totally straight. Now that I think about it, I wonder if he finally asked that girl out from the music academy...”
Luhan eyes the other male, who's looking down at his empty cup thoughtfully. With the boyfriend question, Luhan now has an inkling of an idea why Sehun has been avoiding him all this time. But he wants to hear him say it. He doesn't want to assume anymore.
“Why-” Luhan gulps when his voice cracks. “Why did you avoid me for the past two weeks?”
“I didn't avoid you,” Sehun scoffs but his fingers are fidgeting with the cup, a nervous habit of his. “I just... got busy.”
“Wow, so busy that you switched all your shifts at the bookstore and then avoided all the places you knew I was going to look for you. Well, I'm sorry for not bothering to check how busy you were,” Luhan sarcastically says. He's starting to get annoyed with Sehun's round-about way of doing things.
Sehun's gaze drops down to his cup. He opens his mouth, probably to argue, but snaps it shut a moment afterwards. Then, really softly, “I'm sorry. I just didn't know what to do since I liked you so much.”
Luhan's heart leaps to his throat and suddenly, it's really hard to breathe. He suspected as much but now that he's in this situation, he doesn't know what to do.
“I mean you hung out with me every day and whenever I flirted with you, you flirted back and I thought we had something going but,” Sehun gulps for air, his hands going white from how hard he's clutching his cup, “But Yixing came and you acted like you guys were dating and then I started panicking even though I knew you said you guys were friends. And then when I saw you at the supermarket that time, you looked so comfortable around me and I swore you were going to kiss me but like, you said you were living with Yixing and I don't know! I just didn't know anymore. Because what if you just saw me as a friend in the end? What if you didn't like me the way I liked you and I told you and you shut me out?”
Luhan shifts closer, gently prying Sehun's hands away from the cup. “I can't believe you even thought that,” he sighs.
Sehun looks at him in confusion then drops his gaze to their still interlocked hands. Luhan only tightens his grip, afraid that Sehun will run again.
“I mean, I spent so much time with you at the bookstore. Hell, I bought books almost everyday I went to see you.”
“...So?”
“Oh my god, Sehun. I went to see you every single day when I could have been sleeping or something. But I liked being around you more and I'm a broke college student who barely even has money to buy myself a proper dinner and I spent all that money buying books that I don't even read just so I had an excuse to see you!”
Luhan waits for this to sink in while the other male gapes at him. But when Sehun finally speaks, the last thing he expects to come out of his mouth is, “What? You didn't even read the books?”
The Chinese male bursts into laughter. “I know you're an English major and you think that hating books is a crime but did you not realize I really don’t like reading?”
“Uh... no...”
“Oh my god, you're so adorable,” Luhan breathes. And maybe it's just this whole confession thing or maybe it's the innocent look Sehun currently has or maybe it's because he's held in these feelings for too goddamn long, that he cups Sehun's face and kisses him.
Sehun jolts away at the same time Luhan pulls back. Luhan only then realizes that the kiss is not exactly the most appropriate thing to do at this moment.
“Is this your way of telling me you like me too without actually saying it?” Sehun asks, bemused. But Luhan can still see the shock in his eyes as the younger scrutinizes him.
“Uh, kinda? Sorry. I shouldn't have kissed you so quickly. That's reserved for third and fourth dates, right?” Luhan scratches the back of his neck, flustered at his slip-up.
“It's okay. We've already been on like twenty dates at least. I think it's fine,” Sehun finally smiles that beautiful smile Luhan's missed and then he's fitting their lips together, Luhan immediately melting into his embrace. And even though Luhan has read at most ten romance books in his entire life, he's pretty sure this would be considered a fairytale ending.
-
“Hey, Sehun, do you know what Luhan has you saved as on his phone?”
“Baekhyun, shut the fuck up-”
“CHEESECAKE. YOU'RE CHEESECAKE!”
“...”
“SEHUN HAS LUHAN LISTED AS TIRAMISU.”
“Chanyeol, no-”
“OH MY GOD. IT'S FATE.”
Sehun rolls his eyes at the squealing pair and looks at Luhan. “You really have me listed as cheesecake? What a gross name.”
“Hey, you're the cheesy and gross one in this relationship. I think it suits you perfectly.”
Luhan ducks to avoid Sehun's swat at him and smoothly embraces his boyfriend. “I love you,” he murmurs.
“I love you too,” Sehun returns, pressing a kiss to his forehead.
Luhan thinks Jongdae finally did one good thing in his life by bringing him to Sehun.
….
Or not.
“What do you mean you set us up?”
Jongdae raises his arms in defense. “Kyungsoo thought it was a good idea too. You guys were totally each other's types and we were like 'Cool, let's set them up'. Is that so wrong?”
Luhan throws a pillow at his friend - no, his non-friend. “You couldn't introduce us like normal people? I wasted an hour of study time in that stupid restaurant! And what if we both decided to leave before we even saw each other?”
“I see the flaw in this plan now,” Jongdae nods solemnly. Luhan makes a sound of defeat into another pillow. “But you guys are dating now, right? Which is what really matters?”
Luhan stops to consider it for a moment because he really is happy right now but- “I PULLED AN ALL-NIGHTER WRITING AN ESSAY FOR WORLD HISTORY, YOU ASSHOLE,” he yells as he pummels Jongdae.
Author’s Note: Thanks to my beta who encouraged me and somehow pulled me through this whole process (you even came up with my fic title damn... you might as well have written this yourself lol) while simultaneously fangirling with me over all the comebacks. You're the best ^^
Also fic title comes from Nell's One Time Bestseller because you know...Sehun is the one time bestseller of Luhan's life /gross wink/ (except the song itself is really sad... but we'll ignore that)
Title: One Time Bestseller
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 8,100
Prompt: tsundoku: buying books and not reading them; finding an excuse for being with someone
Warning/s: None
“I'm late, I'm late, I'm late,” Luhan swears under his breath as he carefully weaves through other cars. He didn't know the nap he took was going to eat up all his spare time. But here he is, three hours later, disheveled, sleep-induced, and totally unprepared. Curse Kim Jongdae and his stupid ideas. Luhan didn't want to go on some stupid blind date. In fact, he didn't want to go on any goddamn date at all when he's swamped with coursework. But of course, Kim fucking Jongdae had to go and screw up Luhan's schedule by randomly telling him he had to meet somebody he never met before at some restaurant. I could be doing my paper for World History right now, he bitterly thinks as he speeds down an empty street. But Luhan had a weird sense of obligation when he has some sort of commitment (he claims he really doesn't have one, but all his friends, Kim fucking Jongdae especially, know that he's just in denial) which is why he still arrives at the restaurant a minute late, grumpy and moody but still there.
When he storms into the restaurant, the hostess standing at the front clutches her menus closer to her chest. “How can I help you, sir?” she squeaks, eyes roaming over his body. She probably thinks he's crazy but Luhan just wants this stupid date to be over and done with that he couldn't care less what she thinks.
“Reservation under Do Kyungsoo? Unless he's here already?”
The hostess scans the list and shakes her head. “He hasn't come yet. Come this way please, sir.”
She sits him down at a table across from a couple who are practically wolfing down their food and another male sitting to his right who's occupied with his silverware. Luhan sighs. Well, there's nothing better to do now than to wait so he takes out his phone and opens up a game.
-
They brought out the pity dessert. Luhan sighs, taking the offered fork from the sympathetic waiter, who asked for his order multiple times before Luhan finally gave in and ordered lasagna (which tasted wonderful, thank you very much). His date never showed up and Luhan really wants to punch Jongdae now for making him go on this stupid date when he could be doing something much more productive. Luhan laments over his lost study time while he spoons some (quite delicious) tiramisu into his mouth, cursing Jongdae to the fiery depths of hell.
“Um.” Somebody to his right clears their throat.
Luhan looks up (and then some more) at the tall, handsome male standing in front of him. He immediately recognizes him as the guy who was sitting at the table next to his. Luhan didn't know he would stay this long and when he looks past him, there's a pity cheesecake on his table. Huh, even cute guys get stood up apparently.
“I, uh, noticed that your date hasn't showed up and mine hasn't either and I was just wondering if we could share our desserts?” The other male laughs nervously, scratching the back of his neck.
Luhan narrows his eyes. “You just want my tiramisu,” he accuses.
“Uh,” the other male ruffles his hair, fluffing it up. “Maybe? I mean, if you don't want to share, it's fine. I just want you to know I have a perfectly delicious cheesecake-”
Luhan laughs. He's not sure if it's because of the other's adorable stuttering or because of the hair sticking up from his head. Either way, his day feels a lot better than it did before. “No, no. Bring it over. I want to try some too.”
The taller's face lights up and he brings the cake over, plopping himself comfortably in the chair across from Luhan. For some reason, the Chinese male feels like this stranger belongs there, like maybe he's his date actually.
“Is your name Do Kyungsoo?” Luhan blurts out.
The other's eyebrows furrow. “No, my name's Oh Sehun. But Kyungsoo's my friend. How do you know him?”
“I was supposed to be on a blind date with him,” Luhan frowns. “He never showed up.”
“Kyungsoo told me I had a blind date with Kim Jongdae.” When Sehun sees Luhan make a face, he asks, “Your friend?”
“Yeah. Something's weird there. Whatever, they're missing out on some wonderful desserts so sucks to be them.”
And even though this weird connection between Kyungsoo and Jongdae is nagging at the back of Luhan's brain, he doesn't really care because Sehun is everything he wants in a date. He's witty and sometimes makes corny jokes but has the biggest, brightest smile Luhan has ever seen that the Chinese male can't help but forgive him for the terrible puns. They talk about a bunch of things, like their jobs - Sehun works at a local bookstore - and what major they’re in - Sehun’s an English nerd - and where they go to for college.
(“No, you're not a sophomore. That's impossible. You have the resting bitch face of a senior who doesn't give a flying fuck.”
“Same goes to you, baby face. You look like you belong in elementary school and you're a junior. I'm surprised I never saw you around campus because your face stands out.”)
Conversation comes easy to them and Luhan doesn't even realize how much time has passed until a waiter comes by and asks if they want their checks because they may or may not have been loitering for far too long.
Ten minutes later, they leave the restaurant and split ways, new contact information stored in their phones. Like they had promised earlier, they weren't going to look at their phones until they were almost home. Luhan resists for a grand total of two minutes before curiosity gets the best of him and he parks at the side of the road to check his contacts. When he sees what his newest contact is listed as, he snorts and quickly sends a message.
To: Sehunderful
Sehunderful? really??? SO creative
The reply comes almost instantaneously.
From: Sehunderful
says the person who listed himself as Luhandsome. so unoriginal ick and I bet you're not home yet! you broke our promise >:(
To: Sehunderful
I'm changing your name to Sehun the Stupid. and how do you know I'm not home yet? stalker ewwww
From: Cheesecake
damn got caught. it's too late to escape now tho. I already have your number ;)
To: Cheescake
I'm throwing this phone away bye
Luhan takes one final look at his screen before tossing his phone into the seat next to him, smiling like a madman when he turns back onto the road. Maybe this blind date wasn't such a terrible thing after all.
-
Luhan's about 1000000% sure that Kai is related to Jongdae. They both have bad ideas, evil cackles, and some sense of taking advantage of Luhan whenever he has more important things to do. The only reason why they wouldn't be related would be because they're from two completely different places - Kai lived in Hawaii almost all his life and Jongdae came from Korea - but even then, Luhan is secretly sure they were just twins separated at birth (even though they're not the same age either). For some reason, both of them have a built-in 'time to annoy Luhan' sensor that beeps whenever Luhan is actually in a semi-good mood. It's like they just want him to be angry all day.
Which is exactly why Luhan hates Kai so much right now. On the one day Luhan doesn't have classes because his professor canceled last minute and he was busy catching up on some well-deserved rest, he was rudely woken up by his shrill ringtone. Kai sounded out of breath and desperate and just a tad bit nervous over the phone, his tone pleading. Coupled with the fact that he shouted “It's an emergency!” before hanging up had Luhan blundering out of bed to save his friend.
Only to find out that Kai needed no damn saving. He stands unscathed in front of a bookstore with a devious grin on his face. Luhan considers murdering somebody, specifically Kai.
“I thought this was an emergency,” he deadpans, still half-asleep.
“It is. The new volume of Fairy Tail came out! I need to get it!”
“What the hell do you need me for then?”
Kai's grin widens and Luhan already regrets asking. “I might or might not need a couple more bucks.”
“Get a freaking job,” the Chinese male groans, dragging a hand down his face.
But he's there already and he's not leaving without finishing what he was there for (which was, unfortunately, lose money in exchange for a terrible friendship). As he trails after his brat of a friend, he regrets ever trying to make friends in his Gen Ed Psychology class. God had only been cruel to him for placing Kai, the ultimate otaku with no money at all, in the seat next to his. Luhan considers punching his friend but has to remind himself that starting fights in public is frowned upon, no matter how irresistible it is to reach out and smack his idiotic head.
Luhan is so immersed in mentally fighting his friend that he doesn't realize where he's going until he runs smack dab into another person balancing several boxes in his arms. The boxes teeter from the impact and Luhan quickly reaches out to steady them.
“Thanks,” a muffled voice says. The arms shift and a familiar face pops out from behind the stack of boxes. “Luhan?”
“Sehun,” he says, surprised. “I didn't know you worked here.”
“I didn't know you come here,” Sehun laughs in response. Luhan reaches out to help him with a box but he shifts away. “I got it,” he assures him.
“Hey, Luhan! I found it!” Kai finally reappears from the bookshelves, waving a shiny new book. “Hey, Hun.”
“'Sup, Kai,” Sehun nods in greeting. “Let me put these away and I'll help you guys at the register.”
Kai nods and bounds away in the direction of the checkout counter. Luhan considers following him but trails after Sehun instead. If he spends another minute in Kai's presence, he's probably going to end up actually hitting him. At least he won't think about hitting Sehun every time he moves. Which reminds him-
“Hey, how do you know Kai? I didn't think a brat like him would be friends with you,” Luhan comments. He eyes Sehun carefully as he maneuvers past a bookshelf.
“I'm taking that as a compliment,” Sehun laughs. “But we were in the same art class in freshman year.”
“Oh, cool, you can draw?”
“Uh, no.”
“Paint? Sketch? Acrylic? Watercolor? Pastel? Ceramics?”
“No...”
Luhan throws his hands up. “Then how the hell can you be in the same art class? As far as I know, Kai's really good at drawing people and anatomy and- oh. Really?”
“Uh, yeah.”
“Oh my god. You were a model for them?” Luhan laughs.
Sehun blushes. “Shut up. I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time and the teacher seemed to really like me.”
“That's gross. I would've ran.”
“It was oddly flattering.”
“You're weird.” Luhan didn't even realize they were almost at the checkout counter until Kai shouts at them to hurry up.
“It doesn't take that long to put away boxes,” he complains. “I need Luhan to hurry up and pay for me so I can get out of here.”
Sehun raises an eyebrow and then spends the next ten minutes fiddling with the cash register. Luhan is touched by this (maybe he's starting to understand why Sehun accepted that weird form of compliment) but he finds the unamused scowl on Kai's face the most rewarding. Revenge is so, so sweet.
-
The next time Luhan enters that bookstore is a good four days later. One of his professors decided, mid-semester, that he wanted them to get another textbook for the class so Luhan reluctantly drags himself to the closest bookstore, silently lamenting over his disappearing money.
He's helped by a girl with a nose piercing, who didn’t even realize he was there since her head was buried in a book about dogs. While she rings him up, he hums and looks around, his gaze eventually landing on a familiar face two counters to the right. Sehun is adjusting his seat, frowning when he pulls the lever and slides downwards. Only his eyes are visible over the tall checkout counter but Luhan can tell the other is pouting.
Luhan unknowingly laughs, finding the whole thing utterly adorable, but when there's a cough to his side, he turns to see the girl eyeing him strangely. He blushes and takes his purchase and debit card, a little ashamed but also giddy because he gets to see Sehun again. He considers saying hi to him and maybe talking a little bit - they've been texting on and off but haven't exactly seen each other face to face in a while - but then his eyes land on the huge clock behind Sehun's head and Luhan realizes with dread that if he doesn't leave soon, he'll be late to his next lecture for sure. Disappointed, Luhan rushes out of the bookstore, stuffing his new textbook into his backpack as he runs to his car. He doesn't notice Sehun spotting him and raising a hand to greet him only to have said hand hang awkwardly in the air, a small frown making its way onto the cashier's face.
-
Baekhyun plops himself down next to Luhan. “I freaking hate college,” he declares, throwing his books on the table.
Luhan looks up for a brief second, humming in disinterest. “Take care of your books at least. They cost a fortune.”
Baekhyun gathers his materials together, stacking them neatly on top of each other. “Speaking of books, remember when Zitao lost his favorite pen?”
Luhan snorts. “You mean, you took it without asking, lent it to other people, and just never bothered to get it back.”
“Details, details,” Baekhyun waves his hand flippantly. “Anyways, I have to pay him back by buying Pride and Prejudice for him.”
“Wow, harsh. But doesn't he already have a copy?”
“Yeah, but he's complaining that he's read it so many times that the words are faded and the book is falling apart. Plus, it's some weird anniversary thing coming up and Zitao insists he gets it. I don't know what's so special about it but if that stops him from throwing pillows at me once I enter our dorm, I'll buy it.”
“Wow, look at you, all grown up and ready to fix friendships. I'm so proud of you, Byun Baekhyun.”
Baekhyun looks like he's about to chuck something at him then decides better of it. “Can you come with me to the store?”
Luhan finally lifts his eyes from the sentence he's been rereading ever since Baekhyun sat down. “What for? I swear to god, if you make me pay for you, I will make you pay me back with pizza for the rest of your life.”
“Please, I'm not Kai,” Baekhyun rolls his eyes and grins. “I just need you there for moral support while I look for an old novel nobody probably cares about anymore.”
Turns out enough people cared about the novel that there was a huge sign outside the store advertising the new edition. Not to mention, there was a table near the entrance filled with copies of it. What Baekhyun had anticipated would take about ten minutes turned out to take only thirty seconds. While they wait in line, Baekhyun sheepishly whispers to Luhan, “Please don't tell Zitao what I said earlier.” Luhan laughs and promises him he won't.
“I can take the next guest in line!” A hand waves in the air from the furthest counter.
Luhan recognizes the voice immediately and bounds over (Baekhyun notes in amusement that his friend quite literally lights up). “Hey, Sehun!” He slips into Sehun's chair behind the counter.
Sehun scowls, taking the book from Baekhyun's hands. “I told you last time, you're not an employee, Luhan. Don't sit in my chair.”
“Fight me,” Luhan challenges. He doesn't expect Sehun to aim the price scanner at him and actually price check him.
“That'll be $7.59, please,” Sehun says to Baekhyun.
“How much am I worth?”
“Nothing,” his two friends snap at the same time.
“I would be offended,” Luhan puts a hand on his chest in mock sadness, “but you know I'm just priceless.”
“Keep telling yourself that,” Baekhyun snorts, exchanging exact change for his purchase. “I'll be leaving first, Lu. I have music theory in about five minutes. Nice meeting you, Sehun,” and with a careless wave of his hand, Baekhyun disappears out the front doors.
Two minutes later, when Sehun attends to another customer after failing to get Luhan out of his chair, Luhan receives a text from Baekhyun.
From: Baecon of Light
I think your friend needs to be fired for PDA. you guys were flirting so much it was disgusting
Luhan scoffs and is about to type a sarcastic reply but he ends up staring at Sehun's back as he moves around his tiny workspace. Almost as if he can sense his stare, Sehun turns around and gives him a small smile between customers. Luhan's heart stutters and then he ducks his head to hide his reddening face, furiously deleting his reply. He closes the message app and pretends his heart isn't about to leap out of his chest whenever Sehun so much as looks in his direction.
-
Luhan drops by the bookstore the next day after his classes. It's because I want to try their coffee. Nothing else, he insists as he enters. Yet, he feels a bit disappointed that Sehun isn't in sight. But he's here for the coffee, not his really cute friend, so he confidently strides to the cafe to order a drink.
He sits down at a table placed near the bookshelves and waits patiently for his order to be called. Two tables in front of him, he sees a woman pull out a book from the shelves and start reading, periodically sipping her coffee. When Luhan looks around and notices almost everybody deep in a book, he starts fiddling with his hands, feeling out of place. Eventually, he gives into the silent peer pressure and plucks a sci-fi novel from the shelf next to him and flips it open.
As far as Luhan remembers, he was never a huge fan of books. It's not that they're boring - he's read quite a few that he really enjoyed - it's just that he could never sit still long enough to become fully immersed in the world. He's a slow reader too, which just added to his desire to do something else instead of curl up in a chair and look at words. Yet, for some reason, he reads an entire chapter in one sitting, completely oblivious to the outside world. It's only when the chair opposite to him screeches against the cafe floor that he looks up, a little dazed.
“Hey,” Sehun greets. “Didn't expect to see you here.”
“Hnnngh,” Luhan hums in reply, unable to form coherent words.
Sehun laughs. “You forgot your coffee at the counter but at least it's still warm. Cold coffee is so gross.”
“Thanks,” Luhan mumbles, bringing the cup to his mouth. It's colder than he would like it but it's better than nothing.
Sehun watches him with a fond smile and Luhan's heart lurches in his chest. This is so not fair, he thinks. He turns back to his book just so he doesn't have to meet the other male's eyes and have his heart do the jumpy thingy again. For the next few minutes, they sit in silence, periodically interrupted by a page flip or the occasional sip of coffee. Luhan's surprised Sehun hasn't left or anything; watching him read is hardly interesting.
But, while Luhan is in the middle of a sentence, he feels something lightly brushing against his calf. He tries to concentrate on the sentence and even though he's physically finished reading the words, they makes no sense to him. Determined, he rereads it and then- another brush. It's more deliberate now and Luhan swears it's Sehun's foot. But when he looks up, Sehun's head is turned to the right, eyes examining the display of pastries. Then, whatever it is presses against his leg and Luhan knows it's Sehun this time, if the dumb smile on his face is evidence enough.
“You're so immature,” Luhan retorts, giving up on the sentence. Despite his words, he retaliates by kicking Sehun's left foot.
“Oh, so we're doing this now, I see,” Sehun narrows his eyes.
“You're the one who started it,” the Chinese male laughs.
Luhan abandons his book in favor of playing a rather childish game of footsies with Sehun. He's sure they've attracted several stares; after all, two twenty-something-year-old men were giggling like crazy and playing with each other's feet (it usually doesn't get weirder than that). Then, Sehun notices the time on his watch and frowns.
“I have class in five minutes. I gotta go.” He gets up from his seat and Luhan hurriedly gathers up his own stuff to leave with Sehun.
They exit the cafe together and Sehun gestures at the book Luhan didn't even realize he was holding. “You should get it. It's a really good book,” and then Sehun bids him goodbye as he dashes off to his next class.
For some reason, Luhan never thought about buying the book. He enjoyed it while he read it but it never occurred to him that he could buy it. His apartment may be filled with textbooks and notebooks but he's never really considered having books just because. But he thinks about Sehun and then Luhan finds himself leaving the bookstore, wallet fifteen dollars lighter and new book stuffed in his backpack.
-
Luhan hates to say it but visiting the bookstore has become a routine. Sometimes, he helps Sehun with errands (even though the other insists it's his job and Luhan doesn't need to help him at all) or he sits behind the cashier counter and chats with his friend in between customers. Whenever Sehun is too busy to humor him, Luhan wanders through the shelves, looking at the multiple books. If Sehun's on reshelving duty, he joins Luhan and offers comments whenever he finds an interesting book. If Sehun's shifts are over, they sit down at the cafe and chatter over steaming cups of coffee. Occasionally, they meet on campus, in between classes, but Luhan finds that he prefers the bookstore a lot more. It's a public place but in a way, it's still their spot.
All Luhan's friends have met Sehun by now and Luhan's met all Sehun's friends too (he holds a slight grudge against Kyungsoo, though, just because of that stupid blind date). The two groups often merge for outings or food trips and although Luhan loves seeing their friends interacting, he prefers the playful, much quieter banter between him and Sehun more. His friends know it too. Whenever the Chinese male smiles down at his phone, Baekhyun nudges him and singsongs, “It's Cheesecake, right?” (Luhan will never forgive himself for showing Baekhyun his messages with Sehun). Whenever he leaves Kai after their shared class, his friend laughs and tell him, “Alright, can't keep you from your date.” And Jongdae - goddamn Jongdae - spends every second of the day annoying Luhan about “lover boy.” Luhan always rolls his eyes at his friends because he and Sehun are so not dating and they should get over it.
Luhan doesn't admit it but he's developed quite a crush on the taller. But he draws the line there. Of course, Sehun's cute and totally Luhan's type but there's no telling how a relationship with Sehun would turn out. He'd rather they maintain their friendship than risk it all to date romantically and potentially break up and ruin their friendship. But then sometimes, at random, almost mundane, moments, Luhan would find his heart practically jumping out of his chest around the other or he notices how good Sehun's side profile looks or he stares at Sehun's lips for far too long or he finds the height difference endearing or he feels so dazzled by Sehun's smile that he can't help but think I would really like to see that every day for the rest of my life. And then he can't help but imagine, maybe, maybe, he could date him. (He pictures it in his dreams already, anyways.)
-
Yixing, Luhan's friend from China, comes visit one day in the middle of winter. He claims to be there on a college visit but Luhan knows he won't transfer out of his current university, considering how hard he cried after seeing his Gaokao score that confirmed he could apply for his dream school. As narcissistic as it sounds, Luhan knows Yixing is there for him. After all, Skype could only work so long before you start really missing your best friend of eighteen years.
The day after Yixing arrives, Luhan ends up dragging him to some of his classes. Half the time, Luhan doesn't even take notes, finding his friend's puzzled face at the foreign language much more amusing than the lecture about molecules. After classes, he offers to bring his friend to his favorite restaurant but while they were talking - teasing on Luhan's part because Yixing is still overwhelmed with the new language - they find themselves in front of the bookstore.
Yixing innocently climbs the steps and Luhan hastily follows him, a bit embarrassed at his mistake. When he catches up to his friend, Yixing looks unamused.
“I was unaware that bookstores meant restaurants here. I'm hungry for food, Luhan, not knowledge.”
“That's gross and cliché,” Luhan absentmindedly notes, tugging on Yixing's hoodie to get him to leave the damn place. If he sees a specific someone, he knows he can't possibly leave after.
Speak of the devil, Sehun walks by, pushing a cart of books. He notices Luhan and smiles and waves. “Hey,” he calls.
Luhan hates that even though he was in an already good mood, his day gets even better after seeing the other (Sehun's just a friend, Luhan reminds himself). “Hey, Sehun. How's it going?”
“I'm on reshelving duty again. Boring,” Sehun makes a face. “But at least I don't have to deal with annoying customers.”
Luhan laughs and plucks a book from the cart. “The Science of Birds. Oooooh, interesting.”
“Worthwhile read,” Sehun winks. He looks over Luhan's shoulder and tilts his head. “Is he your friend?”
Luhan suddenly realizes with a jolt that he forgot about Yixing. He drags his friend by the arm towards Sehun. Yixing has a funny look on his face, clearly amused by something (Luhan will ask him about it later).
“Sehun, this is my best friend from China, Yixing. He speaks a little Korean if you want to talk to him.”
“Ah, uh, hi, Yixing. My name is Sehun. I am Luhan's friend from university.”
Yixing still looks highly amused and he doesn't even seem fazed that he's stumbling over his Korean when he introduces himself. Luhan laughs at Sehun's astonished face as he tries to make out the words that left Yixing's mouth but when the Chinese male meets his best friend's gaze, the noise dies in his throat.
Yixing looks uncharacteristically serious when he deadpans in Chinese, “Your boyfriend is very cute. I like him.”
The smile on Luhan's face drops and he chokes on his spit. Sehun looks worried on top of confused but rubs Luhan's back anyways while he coughs (it's not very helpful because Yixing grins widely and Luhan just turns redder than before).
“Are you okay? Do you need water?” Sehun asks.
“Yeah, I'm fine. Uh, I'm going to the cafe with Yixing. Have fun shelving,” Luhan laughs nervously, pulling his friend in the other direction. Sehun stands and waves, obviously still confused.
When they enter the cafe, Yixing looks like he wants to say more but Luhan doesn't let him, forcing him to order before he can speak. But, either way, they would've ended up on that topic. When they take their seats at a table, Yixing leans over the table, eager to speak. Luhan prepares himself to do some heavy-duty denials but what he doesn't expect is for his friend to say-
“This Sehun guy is the reason why you have so many books in your apartment.”
Flabbergasted, Luhan blinks at his best friend for a few seconds. Finally, he makes (what he thinks is) a smooth recovery, “I need those books for my classes. It's not because of Sehun.”
Yixing snorts, easily seeing through him (damn long friendships). “There's still labels on those books. You haven't even touched them since you bought them. And I know you don't need that many books for classes.”
“Okay, fine. I bought them because I wanted to read them on my own time. I just haven't gotten around to them, alright?” Luhan sniffs.
Yixing looks unamused. “Luhan, you don't read. You hate reading. Admit it, you come here so much that you need to find an excuse for being here for other reasons besides Sehun.”
Well shit, Luhan thinks. That's totally not what he did a few days earlier when he forcibly sent a book about beavers to his Canadian pen pal, Kris, because he bought the damn thing while Sehun was working the register just so he could stay longer and talk to him. Luhan internally groans, realizing the truth in Yixing's words.
Yixing rolls his eyes, “Lu, I've known you for a long time. Just tell this guy about your feelings. He obviously likes you back. I swear, how do your friends stand you two making googly eyes at each other?”
Luhan blushes and looks down at his hands. A barista calls out his name and slides two coffee cups onto the counter but neither makes a move to get them. Finally, Luhan says, “I just don't want to ruin our friendship right now.”
Yixing makes a noise of defeat and buries his head in his hands. “Hopeless,” he announces. “Hopeless.”
-
The next day, Luhan wakes up early to go to the grocery store. He doesn't bother waking Yixing since he's probably suffering from severe jet lag and he stalks out of his apartment, still grumpy from the early hour even though he woke up voluntarily. The grocery store is a ten minute walk away and Luhan regrets not taking his car five minutes in. He's shivering in the thin hoodie he threw on and at some point, he starts running, eager to find some shelter from the biting cold. Luhan arrives at the grocery store, both freezing and sweaty. When he reaches for the door, another hand shoots out. It feels nice and warm against his cold skin and when he looks up, all he can see is Sehun's smile.
“The great and almighty king of darkness, Luhan, has arisen from his bed,” Sehun announces, laughing. “I thought you didn't get up this early in the morning.”
“It's an ungodly time.”
“It's nine.”
“Nine hours too early for me to be out of bed. But we ran out of food yesterday because we binge-watched a Chinese drama and the fridge is completely empty.”
“We?” Sehun asks, frowning.
“Yixing's staying with me for winter break.”
“Oh...” Sehun trails off, pushing a shopping cart into the cereal section.
They browse the aisles side by side and Luhan can't shake off how right this feels: going on early morning grocery store trips together, the light catching in Sehun's hair as he examines the expiration dates on two milk cartons, the small banter they make as he decides between the two, the insane urge to kiss the taller senseless right now even if the dairy section isn't the best place to kiss for the first time. Luhan doesn't even realize he's actually leaning closer to Sehun until the other raises his head. The distance between their faces is almost nonexistent and in a panic, Luhan leans past him to grab a packet of cheese. Next to his ear, he can hear Sehun inhale sharply.
“Yixing loves cheese,” Luhan laughs nervously, tossing the packet into the cart. (They're both lactose intolerant.)
“Oh, cool,” Sehun says, voice small.
For the rest of the time, they shop in silence. Luhan is so busy mentally berating himself for thinking about kissing his friend (again) that he doesn't seem to notice how strange his friend is acting. Only when they reach the checkout counter and Luhan offers to pay for their purchases does he notice. The other, who would usually agree on splitting the payment, vehemently refuses and rushes to pay for his own things, taking all of them out of the cart even though they make up the majority of what they're buying.
“Sehun, are you okay?” Luhan asks, slightly bewildered at Sehun's nervous state.
The other bounces a little in place. “Yeah, I'm fine. Just gotta go soon, haha.”
And when the cashier hands over all his purchases, Luhan doesn't even manage a goodbye before Sehun dashes out the store. The Chinese male trudges home with his packet of cheese and a carton of eggs. There are so many thoughts running through his head at the moment like Sehun's strange behavior right before he left and how freaking cold it is and how Sehun still looked good underneath the cheap lights of the grocery store and how domestic they were and how Luhan wanted to go on grocery trips with him every single day if it felt like this.
The realization hits him when he collapses onto his couch, still cradling the cheese to his chest. He's already put the eggs away but for some reason, he can't put down the cheese, remembering how close his face was to Sehun's and how he regrets not leaning forward and pressing his lips onto the younger's parted ones. Yixing walks into the room, obviously just woken up, and squints at Luhan.
“Lu?” he asks in confusion. It doesn't sound the same, Luhan thinks bitterly. For some reason, his name sounds so much better out of Sehun's mouth.
“Xing, I have a problem,” Luhan murmurs, eyes staring blankly into space. He still doesn't want to let go of the cheese.
“And what would that be?” Yixing hums.
“I like Sehun too damn much.”
“You idiot,” Yixing coos, “I already know.”
-
In the aftermath of his realization, Luhan avoids Sehun as much as he can. It's terribly easy especially since he knows Sehun's schedule forwards and backwards so Luhan goes several days without seeing his friend. Then, on the fifth day, after he finally comes to terms with his situation (okay, more like Yixing lectured him for an hour or two about love and how stupid they were and how Luhan needed to get over himself; despite being hurt by several insults Yixing generously threw in, it helped Luhan a lot), he realizes he wasn't the one doing the avoiding. It doesn't hit him until he's on his between-class coffee break. Usually, Sehun would be somewhere in the vicinity and they would hang out for all thirty minutes until Luhan has to run to class two minutes late, always too entranced with Sehun in general to remember that time was actually a factor. And even when Luhan was busy with something, Sehun went out of his way to make sure they saw each other at least once each day.
The lack of Sehun makes Luhan frown down at his coffee cup, the taste becoming bitter in his mouth. He hasn't had alone time in a while and he suddenly doesn't remember what he did before Sehun and his perfect hair and his smiling eyes and his seal laugh and his lame puns and his blindingly beautiful smile.
Luhan arrives at his next class five minutes early.
-
He misses him. He misses him so much that it physically hurts. When Luhan checks the bookstore during Sehun's usual shifts, the other doesn't appear. Instead, nose piercing dog girl, Sehun's coworker he keeps forgetting the name of, looks at him apologetically and shakes her head. When he asks her which shifts he switched to, she doesn't respond, only giving him the same pitiful look. Luhan gives up after the fourth time.
He goes to all his classes and plasters on smiles and exudes happiness but Baekhyun still looks over at him in sympathy and Kai hugs him at random. Even Jongdae stops annoying him, which is extremely weird. He knows they probably know why Sehun is avoiding him or maybe they know where he's gone at least but they only offer wordless shakes of their heads or sad, pitiful eyes. At least Luhan still has Yixing for another week before the other returns to China. He makes amazing comfort food.
-
He's fine.
Luhan misses Sehun but he's fine.
The time between and after classes is a lot more lonelier without his friend but really, he's fine.
Sometimes, he still turns to the side, expecting to see fluffy hair or smiling eyes or a beautiful grin. He's never seen Sehun angry but he'll take that too if that means he gets to see his friend again. Luhan also misses their random texts and late-night calls and spontaneous food outings and friendly banter. But seriously, he's better than ever. He's totally, completely, utterly fine.
...
He's not.
-
Luhan trudges down the street, mind bogged with the dozens of assignments his professors assigned him. Hell week is approaching and Luhan is suddenly swamped with homework as professors scramble to get through more material before midterms start. Yixing also returned to China, leaving him to fend for himself during this shitty time.
He's not exactly focused in front of him. He's staring at his feet, not having the energy to lift his head, and dodges incoming people when he notices the tips of their shoes in his vision. That's why he doesn't see a pair of worn out Converse when he turns the corner until he steps on the grayish tips and runs straight into somebody else.
“Oh, sorry,” he moves away and bows, lifting his head up to properly apologize. But he stops in his tracks, shocked to see a face he hasn't seen in two weeks.
“Se-Sehun,” he stutters.
The other looks just as surprised as he is. His shoulders are tense and he's scrutinizing Luhan from beneath the scarf covering half his face, as if he's only now remembering how he looked like. The Chinese male hates being under this judgement and fidgets with his hands.
“Can we, uh, talk? It's important.”
Sehun stares. Just stares. Finally, after what seems like an eternity, he nods. “Fine. But not here. Someplace warm.”
And despite his better judgement because he hasn't even been on a date with him nor does he know if Sehun even likes him at all now, he says, “Let's go to my apartment. It's nearby.”
Luhan tugs on Sehun's arm before the other can retaliate and hides his reddening face underneath the collar of his jacket. What was he doing, inviting the other male into his apartment before even going out on a date? He mentally smacks himself. You're just friends. Or sorta friends. Acquaintances? He doesn't really know where they stand anymore.
He's so wrapped up in his thoughts that he doesn't realize he's somehow already navigated them to his apartment. As he fumbles for his keys, he can feel Sehun's gaze boring into the back of his head. Luhan misses the keyhole several times out of nervousness before the door finally clicks open and he stumbles into the apartment.
“Uh, I'll go make us some hot chocolate. You can sit on the couch over there,” he splutters, toeing off his shoes.
His hands are shaking as he tears open the hot chocolate packets and he's not sure if it's because he's excited to finally talk to Sehun again after blatantly ignoring each other for weeks or if it's because his crush is sitting on the couch in his living room right at this freaking instant. Luhan leaves the kitchen with both steaming mugs in hand, moving quickly in fear that he will spill the drinks.
It's no luck because right after he's placed the cups on the table, some hot chocolate splashes out onto his hand. Behind the fingers he's holding to his face to suck at the hot chocolate, he sees the first real expression - worry - cross Sehun's eyes as the other reaches out as if to grab his hand. But soon after, Sehun's face closes off again and he's reaching for the mug instead, seemingly indifferent about Luhan's small burn. But that small, fleeting emotion is relief to Luhan. At least Sehun still somewhat cares for him and at least he still knows his friend well enough to read his expression.
Finally, Luhan settles down, cradling his cup to his chest, letting the steam float over his face as he tries to gather his words. He's dreamt of this moment for so long yet he doesn't know what to do now that Sehun is in front of him.
Apparently, the other male does because he sets his cup down on his lap and says, “Won't your boyfriend be mad that I'm here in your apartment alone with you?”
“Boyfriend?” Luhan freezes, cup halfway up to his mouth. “What boyfriend?”
“Come on, Lu. I'm not stupid. You're dating Yixing, aren't you?”
Luhan chokes and practically slams his hot chocolate down, the liquid sloshing around violently in the cup. And for some reason, he finds himself laughing. Hard. There are tears coming to his eyes, he swears. Sehun looks unamused, however, and just a tiny bit bewildered at his reaction.
“Oh my god, you thought that too. I've heard it so many times, it's not even funny anymore.”
“Then why are you laughing?” Sehun deadpans.
“Sorry, sorry,” Luhan hiccups between laughs. “But really, Yixing and I aren't dating. I mean I went through a phase once in middle school thinking that we would be totally cute together,” Luhan can see Sehun's expression physically darkening and quickly says, “But he's straight. Like totally straight. Now that I think about it, I wonder if he finally asked that girl out from the music academy...”
Luhan eyes the other male, who's looking down at his empty cup thoughtfully. With the boyfriend question, Luhan now has an inkling of an idea why Sehun has been avoiding him all this time. But he wants to hear him say it. He doesn't want to assume anymore.
“Why-” Luhan gulps when his voice cracks. “Why did you avoid me for the past two weeks?”
“I didn't avoid you,” Sehun scoffs but his fingers are fidgeting with the cup, a nervous habit of his. “I just... got busy.”
“Wow, so busy that you switched all your shifts at the bookstore and then avoided all the places you knew I was going to look for you. Well, I'm sorry for not bothering to check how busy you were,” Luhan sarcastically says. He's starting to get annoyed with Sehun's round-about way of doing things.
Sehun's gaze drops down to his cup. He opens his mouth, probably to argue, but snaps it shut a moment afterwards. Then, really softly, “I'm sorry. I just didn't know what to do since I liked you so much.”
Luhan's heart leaps to his throat and suddenly, it's really hard to breathe. He suspected as much but now that he's in this situation, he doesn't know what to do.
“I mean you hung out with me every day and whenever I flirted with you, you flirted back and I thought we had something going but,” Sehun gulps for air, his hands going white from how hard he's clutching his cup, “But Yixing came and you acted like you guys were dating and then I started panicking even though I knew you said you guys were friends. And then when I saw you at the supermarket that time, you looked so comfortable around me and I swore you were going to kiss me but like, you said you were living with Yixing and I don't know! I just didn't know anymore. Because what if you just saw me as a friend in the end? What if you didn't like me the way I liked you and I told you and you shut me out?”
Luhan shifts closer, gently prying Sehun's hands away from the cup. “I can't believe you even thought that,” he sighs.
Sehun looks at him in confusion then drops his gaze to their still interlocked hands. Luhan only tightens his grip, afraid that Sehun will run again.
“I mean, I spent so much time with you at the bookstore. Hell, I bought books almost everyday I went to see you.”
“...So?”
“Oh my god, Sehun. I went to see you every single day when I could have been sleeping or something. But I liked being around you more and I'm a broke college student who barely even has money to buy myself a proper dinner and I spent all that money buying books that I don't even read just so I had an excuse to see you!”
Luhan waits for this to sink in while the other male gapes at him. But when Sehun finally speaks, the last thing he expects to come out of his mouth is, “What? You didn't even read the books?”
The Chinese male bursts into laughter. “I know you're an English major and you think that hating books is a crime but did you not realize I really don’t like reading?”
“Uh... no...”
“Oh my god, you're so adorable,” Luhan breathes. And maybe it's just this whole confession thing or maybe it's the innocent look Sehun currently has or maybe it's because he's held in these feelings for too goddamn long, that he cups Sehun's face and kisses him.
Sehun jolts away at the same time Luhan pulls back. Luhan only then realizes that the kiss is not exactly the most appropriate thing to do at this moment.
“Is this your way of telling me you like me too without actually saying it?” Sehun asks, bemused. But Luhan can still see the shock in his eyes as the younger scrutinizes him.
“Uh, kinda? Sorry. I shouldn't have kissed you so quickly. That's reserved for third and fourth dates, right?” Luhan scratches the back of his neck, flustered at his slip-up.
“It's okay. We've already been on like twenty dates at least. I think it's fine,” Sehun finally smiles that beautiful smile Luhan's missed and then he's fitting their lips together, Luhan immediately melting into his embrace. And even though Luhan has read at most ten romance books in his entire life, he's pretty sure this would be considered a fairytale ending.
-
“Hey, Sehun, do you know what Luhan has you saved as on his phone?”
“Baekhyun, shut the fuck up-”
“CHEESECAKE. YOU'RE CHEESECAKE!”
“...”
“SEHUN HAS LUHAN LISTED AS TIRAMISU.”
“Chanyeol, no-”
“OH MY GOD. IT'S FATE.”
Sehun rolls his eyes at the squealing pair and looks at Luhan. “You really have me listed as cheesecake? What a gross name.”
“Hey, you're the cheesy and gross one in this relationship. I think it suits you perfectly.”
Luhan ducks to avoid Sehun's swat at him and smoothly embraces his boyfriend. “I love you,” he murmurs.
“I love you too,” Sehun returns, pressing a kiss to his forehead.
Luhan thinks Jongdae finally did one good thing in his life by bringing him to Sehun.
….
Or not.
“What do you mean you set us up?”
Jongdae raises his arms in defense. “Kyungsoo thought it was a good idea too. You guys were totally each other's types and we were like 'Cool, let's set them up'. Is that so wrong?”
Luhan throws a pillow at his friend - no, his non-friend. “You couldn't introduce us like normal people? I wasted an hour of study time in that stupid restaurant! And what if we both decided to leave before we even saw each other?”
“I see the flaw in this plan now,” Jongdae nods solemnly. Luhan makes a sound of defeat into another pillow. “But you guys are dating now, right? Which is what really matters?”
Luhan stops to consider it for a moment because he really is happy right now but- “I PULLED AN ALL-NIGHTER WRITING AN ESSAY FOR WORLD HISTORY, YOU ASSHOLE,” he yells as he pummels Jongdae.
Author’s Note: Thanks to my beta who encouraged me and somehow pulled me through this whole process (you even came up with my fic title damn... you might as well have written this yourself lol) while simultaneously fangirling with me over all the comebacks. You're the best ^^
Also fic title comes from Nell's One Time Bestseller because you know...Sehun is the one time bestseller of Luhan's life /gross wink/ (except the song itself is really sad... but we'll ignore that)