moments in a minute (drabble set 3/12)
Title: moments in a minute -- drabble set 3/12
Pairing: Kris/Tao (Taoris).
Rating: PG.
Genre: Romance. Fluff. Miscellaneous.
Summary: (Five drabbles per set.) Tao spent his first night over at Kris' apartment and the two slept at exactly midnight, hopes and wishes drowning them in their sleep, a soft lullaby in the back of their minds that sounded awfully similar to each others' voices.
PREVIOUS <<
● seconds in a minute ●
SET #3
timeframe: training
11 midnight
Kris hated to admit it, but when Tao was around, things were just... better. Sure, they were still tired everyday, and the training seemed to be getting more and more intense as days passed. And yet, with Tao there, collapsed on his couch, waiting for Kris to finish cooking their cheap dinner, it made things a bit more tolerable.
"Shouldn't you be getting back?" Kris asked as they ate. Tao was chewing slowly, taking each bite with care in order to savor the flavors, even for a brief moment.
"Eh," Tao mumbled, waving it off. "It's late. Can't I just stay here?"
"Won't your roommates be looking for you?" Kris asked with a frown, taking a drink of his water. It wasn't that he didn't want Tao to stay, but he didn't want him to get in trouble either.
"Nah," Tao said, moving to add more spices to his ramen. Kris had learnt in a matter of days after meeting Tao that the younger loved to shower his food in spices for some odd reason. "I texted Lu Han earlier, and he told Sehun for me."
"You mean you planned this without telling me?" Kris asked, slightly amused.
"I knew you'd say yes," Tao said, matter-of-factly and so sure of himself that Kris didn't have the heart to say 'no' (not that he would have anyway).
Tao slept on the couch because he was shorter and he wouldn't make Kris do that much for him, but the door between the rooms was open, and they spent an hour simply talking. Tao would ask a question - simple or difficult - and Kris would always answer in one way or another - vague or explained.
"Do you think we'll ever debut?"
"Yes." Kris was sure this time.
"Do you think we'll debut together?" Tao's voice was softer this time, almost wistful.
"... Yes." Kris wasn't sure, but he wouldn't let the other know. No, he stayed hopeful for Tao.
There was a smile in Tao's voice as he murmured a low "good night" that Kris barely caught and returned. The two fell asleep, hopes and dreams drowning them in their sleep, a soft lullaby in the back of their minds that sounded awfully similar to each others' voices.
12 magic
There was something about magic tricks that Kris loved, not that he liked to admit that very often, as he could easily be labeled as dorky for it. But it was ever since his parents took him to a magic shop when he was younger that he had this fondness for magic tricks and illusions. During his free time, he tried learning new tricks off the internet, and he'd go and show them to his family and friends right after.
When Kris became a trainee, he stopped, though. He didn't have as many friends still, and his family was too far for him to even talk to those days. His magic kit, however, was still stored under his bed, and he even took it out when he was bored (which wasn't very often after he met Tao).
One day, Tao found it.
"Ge, what's this?" he asked, a grin making its way onto his face.
Kris wasn't about to play along with this, though. "A magic kit," he replied coolly, not allowing it to affect him. But how he wished he had hid it better...
"You do magic tricks?" Tao cooed, opening the box to reveal a deck of cards and other miscellaneous materials.
Kris walked over and took the box, placing it on his nightstand. "Yeah, so what?" he asked, sounding more defensive than he meant to.
"Aw, don't get all mad," Tao said, pouting as he let his legs swing from the bed's side. "I just want to see some tricks."
Kris blinked. "No," he answered without hesitation.
"But ge-!"
"No," Kris repeated, pulling Tao up and trying to push him out of the room.
"Just once!"
"No."
"Please!"
"I don't think so."
"... for my birthday?"
Kris sent a glance at Tao and sighed. "When is it?" he asked, defeated.
"Next month," Tao replied happily, grinning. "May 2nd."
"Fine. May 2nd, but not anytime earlier."
Tao didn't mind, because on May 2nd, Kris made a rose appear 'out of thin air' for him when they went out for dinner together, courtesy of the older.
13 earphones
Kris had no idea where Tao always kept his iPod, because whenever the two of them hung out during lunch, the boy never had it on him. Except all trainees have some sort of music on them, for it was just a given thing. All trainees except Tao, apparently.
"What're you listening to?" Tao asked, leaning over to sneak a peek at Kris' iPod's screen. Kris showed him the album cover, and Tao nodded, pretending to know who the artist was even though he had no idea. "Cool..." He turned back to his notebook, not knowing what else to say.
Kris continued humming to his song, tapping his foot according to the beat. Tao kept glancing over in a sort of yearning way that Kris wouldn't have noticed had there not been mirrors in front of them, reflecting Tao's every look. After a couple of minutes, Kris finally asked, "What is it?"
Tao flushed, and Kris was vaguely amused. Honestly, what was this about? "I was just wondering if you'd... let me listen..."
Kris chuckled and pulled out an earphone and handed it to Tao. "You're so cute," he said, grinning at the younger's grateful expression. "Shy about earphones."
"I'm not!" Tao argued, pouting, but his face was red and Kris couldn't help but laugh at the other's despair at how the situation turned out.
"Sure you aren't... cutie." Kris fell over on his side laughing (a rare sight for anyone) at Tao's reaction, and decided that it was completely worth his own humiliation to tease the younger.
14 books
Kris actually quite enjoyed reading, particularly self-improvement and inspirational books*. He kept them all around his already cramped apartment, just in case he ever wanted something to read in his scarce free time.
Eventually, Tao began to pick up on them, and would skim through them since he was there so often. At first, he wasn't very interested in them; too much optimism for Tao to handle in one sitting. Still, he could see that they really affected Kris. The man was always reading them when Tao would see him around, and he always had one in his bag, too.
"Why do you read these so much?" Tao asked one afternoon, gesturing to the book in his hand.
"They're fun," Kris replied calmly, flipping through the TV channels without a specific show in mind. Just something entertaining enough for him to pass an hour with before he had to return training.
Tao snorted. "No, they aren't. Beside, what do you care for self-improvement? Aren't you practically perfect?"
Kris threw Tao a glare without any real malice behind it. "Don't say that. I'm not perfect. Not anywhere near it."
"Oh, right. When the girls pass us by, giggling about how handsome you are, that doesn't imply that you're perfect."
"There's more to life than looks, Tao."
"Easy for you to say, ge."
"I just want to be the best me there can be," Kris said with a sigh. "And the books can be helpful at times."
"And how's that?" Tao asked, crossing his arms in disbelief.
"They just are. Or, at least, they will be," Kris answered, sure of himself even if he was unsure of his future. And for some reason that Tao couldn't quite explain, he knew that Kris was right. It would eventually pay off, and Kris would mature even more. Maybe he'd even be a leader later...
* referring to this under Kris' profile where it says he enjoys reading self-improvement and inspirational books. Kris is quite a character.
15 home
It took Kris a lot of willpower to stay and continue training. He missed home so much after all this time away. He can barely even remember the smell of his mother's hair, full of the fragrance spices and perfumes, or his father's cigars. Things that used to annoy him about his family were becoming the things he missed most.
There came a time where he even began ignoring their phone calls, afraid that he'd miss them too much and he'd give up training just to go back home. He turned off his phone whenever it began to ring, and he would purposely 'forget' it all the time.
And Tao noticed.
"You know, Kris, you're so organized and orderly, but you seem to be forgetting your phone a lot, ge," Tao said, frowning in concern after he let Kris borrow his phone to call the cleaners.
"Oh, yeah. Just been misplacing it often," Kris said with a shrug, trying to act nonchalant about it. He handed Tao back his phone, who took it cautiously.
"That doesn't sound like you..."
"It's fine, Tao. I'll remember it more often if it really worries you."
Tao sighed, taking a bite of his bread. "Fine."
Except it wasn't fine, and Tao knew it. It wasn't until he overheard Kris talking to himself in an empty practice room that he was sure of it.
"You can do this," Kris murmured, his head bowed low and the lights around him were dimmed. "Come on, Wu Fan. Your parents didn't raise a quitter... you'll see them soon." He let out a shaky breath, though, contradicting his strong words. His phone was grasped tightly in his hand, and Tao watched as he turned it off.
That night, Tao dialed Kris' parents and explained to them that Kris was simply busy and that's why he wasn't returning their calls. After the older man entered the room, done with his shower, he was surprised to see a phone being pushed in front of his face. It was his phone with his parents' name written in the front, and Tao placed it in his hands and waved a quiet goodbye.
Kris spoke to his parents for the first time in months that night. He had never felt so rejuvenated, so relieved.
After two hours of catching up with his parents and asking about the family, he finally crawled into bed, exhausted but happier. His parents' words of encouragement rang in his ears, and he thought of their faces when he would finally debut. They would be so proud of him. The last thing Kris remembered before falling asleep was standing on stage, his parents in the crowd, and Tao by his side.
-
a/n: lol I dunno why this summary is more poetic than the other two. My mind works in odd, unwilling ways. But the drabble wasn't even very nicely written until that part OTL I dunno. I'll try again in a oneshot to make things pretty? xD
I wonder if I'm portraying Tao the right way... /pondering. I also wonder if you guys can tell that I'm trying to incorporate EXO moments into this. The whole food thing from the first set relating to Kris' 'ideal girl' being able to cook, etc. I dunno - I'm trying to make this not entirely random and such. And some of these fics are kind of Kris-centric in the beginning... yeah, I didn't mean to do that, but a lot of these are more based off of Kris' views, even though they're in third-person :) fun facts~ (not-so-fun, though)
... oh gosh, is this even romantic yet?
As always, much love to you guys for reading :) This is my favorite set so far, I think. Next set starts with training drabbles and goes on to end with the beginning of the pre-debut drabbles! Woo~ Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed!
Pairing: Kris/Tao (Taoris).
Rating: PG.
Genre: Romance. Fluff. Miscellaneous.
Summary: (Five drabbles per set.) Tao spent his first night over at Kris' apartment and the two slept at exactly midnight, hopes and wishes drowning them in their sleep, a soft lullaby in the back of their minds that sounded awfully similar to each others' voices.
PREVIOUS <<
● seconds in a minute ●
SET #3
timeframe: training
11 midnight
Kris hated to admit it, but when Tao was around, things were just... better. Sure, they were still tired everyday, and the training seemed to be getting more and more intense as days passed. And yet, with Tao there, collapsed on his couch, waiting for Kris to finish cooking their cheap dinner, it made things a bit more tolerable.
"Shouldn't you be getting back?" Kris asked as they ate. Tao was chewing slowly, taking each bite with care in order to savor the flavors, even for a brief moment.
"Eh," Tao mumbled, waving it off. "It's late. Can't I just stay here?"
"Won't your roommates be looking for you?" Kris asked with a frown, taking a drink of his water. It wasn't that he didn't want Tao to stay, but he didn't want him to get in trouble either.
"Nah," Tao said, moving to add more spices to his ramen. Kris had learnt in a matter of days after meeting Tao that the younger loved to shower his food in spices for some odd reason. "I texted Lu Han earlier, and he told Sehun for me."
"You mean you planned this without telling me?" Kris asked, slightly amused.
"I knew you'd say yes," Tao said, matter-of-factly and so sure of himself that Kris didn't have the heart to say 'no' (not that he would have anyway).
Tao slept on the couch because he was shorter and he wouldn't make Kris do that much for him, but the door between the rooms was open, and they spent an hour simply talking. Tao would ask a question - simple or difficult - and Kris would always answer in one way or another - vague or explained.
"Do you think we'll ever debut?"
"Yes." Kris was sure this time.
"Do you think we'll debut together?" Tao's voice was softer this time, almost wistful.
"... Yes." Kris wasn't sure, but he wouldn't let the other know. No, he stayed hopeful for Tao.
There was a smile in Tao's voice as he murmured a low "good night" that Kris barely caught and returned. The two fell asleep, hopes and dreams drowning them in their sleep, a soft lullaby in the back of their minds that sounded awfully similar to each others' voices.
12 magic
There was something about magic tricks that Kris loved, not that he liked to admit that very often, as he could easily be labeled as dorky for it. But it was ever since his parents took him to a magic shop when he was younger that he had this fondness for magic tricks and illusions. During his free time, he tried learning new tricks off the internet, and he'd go and show them to his family and friends right after.
When Kris became a trainee, he stopped, though. He didn't have as many friends still, and his family was too far for him to even talk to those days. His magic kit, however, was still stored under his bed, and he even took it out when he was bored (which wasn't very often after he met Tao).
One day, Tao found it.
"Ge, what's this?" he asked, a grin making its way onto his face.
Kris wasn't about to play along with this, though. "A magic kit," he replied coolly, not allowing it to affect him. But how he wished he had hid it better...
"You do magic tricks?" Tao cooed, opening the box to reveal a deck of cards and other miscellaneous materials.
Kris walked over and took the box, placing it on his nightstand. "Yeah, so what?" he asked, sounding more defensive than he meant to.
"Aw, don't get all mad," Tao said, pouting as he let his legs swing from the bed's side. "I just want to see some tricks."
Kris blinked. "No," he answered without hesitation.
"But ge-!"
"No," Kris repeated, pulling Tao up and trying to push him out of the room.
"Just once!"
"No."
"Please!"
"I don't think so."
"... for my birthday?"
Kris sent a glance at Tao and sighed. "When is it?" he asked, defeated.
"Next month," Tao replied happily, grinning. "May 2nd."
"Fine. May 2nd, but not anytime earlier."
Tao didn't mind, because on May 2nd, Kris made a rose appear 'out of thin air' for him when they went out for dinner together, courtesy of the older.
13 earphones
Kris had no idea where Tao always kept his iPod, because whenever the two of them hung out during lunch, the boy never had it on him. Except all trainees have some sort of music on them, for it was just a given thing. All trainees except Tao, apparently.
"What're you listening to?" Tao asked, leaning over to sneak a peek at Kris' iPod's screen. Kris showed him the album cover, and Tao nodded, pretending to know who the artist was even though he had no idea. "Cool..." He turned back to his notebook, not knowing what else to say.
Kris continued humming to his song, tapping his foot according to the beat. Tao kept glancing over in a sort of yearning way that Kris wouldn't have noticed had there not been mirrors in front of them, reflecting Tao's every look. After a couple of minutes, Kris finally asked, "What is it?"
Tao flushed, and Kris was vaguely amused. Honestly, what was this about? "I was just wondering if you'd... let me listen..."
Kris chuckled and pulled out an earphone and handed it to Tao. "You're so cute," he said, grinning at the younger's grateful expression. "Shy about earphones."
"I'm not!" Tao argued, pouting, but his face was red and Kris couldn't help but laugh at the other's despair at how the situation turned out.
"Sure you aren't... cutie." Kris fell over on his side laughing (a rare sight for anyone) at Tao's reaction, and decided that it was completely worth his own humiliation to tease the younger.
14 books
Kris actually quite enjoyed reading, particularly self-improvement and inspirational books*. He kept them all around his already cramped apartment, just in case he ever wanted something to read in his scarce free time.
Eventually, Tao began to pick up on them, and would skim through them since he was there so often. At first, he wasn't very interested in them; too much optimism for Tao to handle in one sitting. Still, he could see that they really affected Kris. The man was always reading them when Tao would see him around, and he always had one in his bag, too.
"Why do you read these so much?" Tao asked one afternoon, gesturing to the book in his hand.
"They're fun," Kris replied calmly, flipping through the TV channels without a specific show in mind. Just something entertaining enough for him to pass an hour with before he had to return training.
Tao snorted. "No, they aren't. Beside, what do you care for self-improvement? Aren't you practically perfect?"
Kris threw Tao a glare without any real malice behind it. "Don't say that. I'm not perfect. Not anywhere near it."
"Oh, right. When the girls pass us by, giggling about how handsome you are, that doesn't imply that you're perfect."
"There's more to life than looks, Tao."
"Easy for you to say, ge."
"I just want to be the best me there can be," Kris said with a sigh. "And the books can be helpful at times."
"And how's that?" Tao asked, crossing his arms in disbelief.
"They just are. Or, at least, they will be," Kris answered, sure of himself even if he was unsure of his future. And for some reason that Tao couldn't quite explain, he knew that Kris was right. It would eventually pay off, and Kris would mature even more. Maybe he'd even be a leader later...
* referring to this under Kris' profile where it says he enjoys reading self-improvement and inspirational books. Kris is quite a character.
15 home
It took Kris a lot of willpower to stay and continue training. He missed home so much after all this time away. He can barely even remember the smell of his mother's hair, full of the fragrance spices and perfumes, or his father's cigars. Things that used to annoy him about his family were becoming the things he missed most.
There came a time where he even began ignoring their phone calls, afraid that he'd miss them too much and he'd give up training just to go back home. He turned off his phone whenever it began to ring, and he would purposely 'forget' it all the time.
And Tao noticed.
"You know, Kris, you're so organized and orderly, but you seem to be forgetting your phone a lot, ge," Tao said, frowning in concern after he let Kris borrow his phone to call the cleaners.
"Oh, yeah. Just been misplacing it often," Kris said with a shrug, trying to act nonchalant about it. He handed Tao back his phone, who took it cautiously.
"That doesn't sound like you..."
"It's fine, Tao. I'll remember it more often if it really worries you."
Tao sighed, taking a bite of his bread. "Fine."
Except it wasn't fine, and Tao knew it. It wasn't until he overheard Kris talking to himself in an empty practice room that he was sure of it.
"You can do this," Kris murmured, his head bowed low and the lights around him were dimmed. "Come on, Wu Fan. Your parents didn't raise a quitter... you'll see them soon." He let out a shaky breath, though, contradicting his strong words. His phone was grasped tightly in his hand, and Tao watched as he turned it off.
That night, Tao dialed Kris' parents and explained to them that Kris was simply busy and that's why he wasn't returning their calls. After the older man entered the room, done with his shower, he was surprised to see a phone being pushed in front of his face. It was his phone with his parents' name written in the front, and Tao placed it in his hands and waved a quiet goodbye.
Kris spoke to his parents for the first time in months that night. He had never felt so rejuvenated, so relieved.
After two hours of catching up with his parents and asking about the family, he finally crawled into bed, exhausted but happier. His parents' words of encouragement rang in his ears, and he thought of their faces when he would finally debut. They would be so proud of him. The last thing Kris remembered before falling asleep was standing on stage, his parents in the crowd, and Tao by his side.
-
a/n: lol I dunno why this summary is more poetic than the other two. My mind works in odd, unwilling ways. But the drabble wasn't even very nicely written until that part OTL I dunno. I'll try again in a oneshot to make things pretty? xD
I wonder if I'm portraying Tao the right way... /pondering. I also wonder if you guys can tell that I'm trying to incorporate EXO moments into this. The whole food thing from the first set relating to Kris' 'ideal girl' being able to cook, etc. I dunno - I'm trying to make this not entirely random and such. And some of these fics are kind of Kris-centric in the beginning... yeah, I didn't mean to do that, but a lot of these are more based off of Kris' views, even though they're in third-person :) fun facts~ (not-so-fun, though)
... oh gosh, is this even romantic yet?
As always, much love to you guys for reading :) This is my favorite set so far, I think. Next set starts with training drabbles and goes on to end with the beginning of the pre-debut drabbles! Woo~ Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed!