#yanjun imagines

Maybe it wasn't meant for you to get along with everyone despite being one of the friendliest Gryffindors. You had numerous friends from all the houses and if you were to be given a muggle award, you would have been referred to as Miss Congeniality.

However, there was one person who you just could not get along with and that was Lin Yanjun. The keeper of the Slytherin Quidditch team. He wasn't a prince of his house though since he was after all, a half-blood just like you.

You two had always butt heads in games. Both one of their respective team's house players. You two were made to be opponents considering how your positions were up against one another.

Not to mention how he would always do something in the classes you two had together that would tick you off. Like how he pulled a mandrake from its pot when you were still just about to put your earmuffs on. You had been the target of teasing by some Slytherins because you fainted that day.

How he added knotgrass to your concotion making it explode and caused you both to lose house points. You just did not understand why he was being such an ass when it came to you. You never even got back at him for it.

"Off to practice?" One of your Gryffindor friends, Junyi, asked as he saw you with his broom.

"Yeah." You said, not so enthusiastic about it when everyone knew you loved Quidditch.

"Anything wrong, dear?" He looked at you with concern and frowned a bit.

"Joint practice with Slytherin. You know what that means~ " You pursed his lips.

"Ah. Yanjun." He nodded, familiar with your constant bickering. "May Merlin's luck be with you both." He said before waving and leaving.

You made your way to the field and straight into your team, not even sparing a glance at the other team. You went straight into the Gryffindor beater, Zhibang who was busy pulling on the chest with the bludger in it.

"Need help?" You offered him who quickly nodded.

"Be careful, Bang. She's going to get your equipment dirty with her filthy muggleblood." Yanjun snickered as he saw the two of you.

"Speak for yourself, aren't you also a half-blood?" You shot back and you saw a few of the Slytherin cheer at the back.

"At least I come from a noble family...you on the other hand, you only live through hand-me-downs. Pity." He smirked triumphantly and left.

It was true. You were not as priviledge as he was but that never dawned on you because you felt contented with life. "At least I ain't being disowned by my own house for that, prince." You did not know why you fought back this time but you just had enough.

But you didn't know how heavy of an impact your words had been. It was something he had hated a lot and coming from you, maybe it just caused him frustration. He was about to pull out his wand and jinx you but the captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team had disarmed him before he could.

"Points will be deducted from both houses if you push through with this, I suggest we just have our practice and forget this ever happened."

So the practice began. It was hard to focus with the frequent banter between you and the slytherin boy but both teams just had to overcome it. Even after practice, you two were shooting glares from across the halls.

When Christmas break came, you cannot help but feel delighted to go home since that meant no Yanjun to bother you. You were also thrilled to see your family again since it's been months since you last did.

You were even more thrilled hearing how you were going to visit one of their friends for a joined celebration. You met only a few of your parents' friends. The Qins, The Jings, The Zhangs are just a few of them.

You have never heard of them mention the Lins before. You just rolled your eyes at the thought that they had the same surname as the boy you hated and you knew it was omen.

An omen, indeed as you saw what seemed to be, a fresh from sleep Yanjun scratching his head behind his parents. To be honest, they had a manor of their own and the way they dressed screamed wealthy apart from their son who looked unkempt.

"What are you doing here?!" He was the first to react upon seeing you.

"WHY ARE YOU HERE-"

"It's my house, genius." He snickered and crossed his arms.

"Seems like they're acquainted?" Your mother laughed nervously to break the foul mood.

"I think so too." Yanjun's mom smiled softly. "Dear, why don't you go get dressed while we entertain our friends."

Yanjun left without another word and vanished into one of the rooms within the manor. The exterior had a Victorian style to it. You almost questioned how your families met because your parents were more simple than the Lins.

As you were led to your respective rooms, you heard the door to your room close and you saw the snarky boy leaning agains the door frame with his arms crossed. "Do you secretly like me and just decided to go straight into my house? Explains that sour attitude of yours~" he hummed in delight

"I don't have interest in snakes." You rolled your eyes at him as you continue to unpack your things. "If I had known you were the son of my parents' friends, I would have stayed at Hogwarts instead."

"But you're still here. Wouldn't everyone at school fuss about you sleeping with me?" He laughed sarcastically.

"First of all. I am sleeping in this room and not with you. Second of all, that's going to be bad for you since they'd think you like a half-blood." You shot him a glare. "Now, leave before I hex you."

"I'd like to see you try. However, I'm here on my mom's favor. She wanted me to tour you around our manor. I assume you've never been to one." His conceited self just had to say something.

Regardless, you just went with it. For someone so obnoxious, he sounded really knowledgeable about history. His lineage in match with the history of magic was well explained to you and you just stayed quiet to listen to him.

You noticed something about his stories. He never seem to be ashamed of how he was a half-blood. From what you understood, he was actually proud of his family's history.

"I hope you don't mind me asking but...who is the muggle between your parents?" You were hesitant on asking him since you two were not the closest after all.

"My mother. But..she has her own magic to her." He smiled as you both stopped in one of her portraits.

You watched as he adored the portrait. He loved his mother a lot and it showed and for once, it felt nice meeting this side of Yanjun.

Over the Christmas break, you two had gotten to know one another better. You found out that he was not such a horrible boy after all. He also found out that you were an enjoyable companion through out your stay but school was about to start again and you two did not know how you should treat one another.

You had both resorted to just staying off one another's paths. It would be less confusing to see both of you ignoring one another than actually being friendly to one another.

You often missed one another but no one had been brave enough to admit it. Were feelings brewing for one another? Possibly but yet again, both of you did not know what to do with the feelings that were beginning to bloom between you both.

It was until that one night when you were heading to potions when you heard two slytherins talking, or so you assumed considering how their dormitory was close to the potions class.

"Should we just hex Yanjun? He does not even deserve to be considered a Slytherin with his muggle parent." They laughed coldly.

"He should have been in that lame house Gryffindor."

Yes, your house was insulted as well but you were more infuriated with how they talked about Yanjun. His mother was his life and these rotten students were talking spat about her.

"Why you--" and you didn't know what came to you but you ended up jinxing the two. You already knew you were putting your house points at risk but you could not care less.

It was just about time Yanjun went out of the common room and saq you with your wand out towards the two.

"Y/N?" He raised an eyebrow as he looked from you to his two house members. "What's going on?"

As the two tried to get up, they spat something else which this time agitated Yanjun. "Students with muggle parents are horrible. Like you, Lin and especially her!"

No surprises there when you both got detention. You for Jinxing the two Slytherins and Yanjun for punching them both in the eye. You two sat next to one another as Filtch watched over both of you.

In secret, you had held onto Yanjun's hand as you inspected him for bruises. He threw quite a hard punch at them and was worried he was harmed too. Yanjun's eyes on the other hand were focused on you. After knowing how you jinxed them because you were trying to stand up for him made him felt something within the depths of his heart.

Maybe he had been a fool for not noticing how beautiful you were upclose. How your nose had this unique curve to it. How your long lashes shaded over your vibrant eyes. He felt his heart thump and he knew right then and there that he liked you more than he resented you in the past.

You turned your head to look up at him and came eye to eye with his intense gaze. You tried to keep that contact hoping that he would break away from him but he didn't. It almost felt too nerve-wrecking the way he stared at you.

As Filtch left, you turned your heard briefly to look towards the door. Only to turn your attention back to Yanjun who still stared at you. "Why...did you even defend me? You got yourself into trouble because of that..."

"They were belittling you and your mother...I couldn't just let them do that..." you mumbled as heat rised to your cheeks. It was a lie to say that his eyes weren't enticing because you just can't look away from them.

He briefly glanced at your lips and took in a deep breathe. "This is the only time I am going to apologize...but I am sorry..."

"What do you m--" before you could complete your question, he already had his lips on yours. Normally, you would have pushed him away but the way he had kissed you so slow and so soft, it only made you want more.

You unconsciously held onto his dress robes and you felt a hand snake around your waist as he pulled you closer towards his body. It laster for a few more minutes before you two had to break apart to grasp back air to your lungs.

"W-what was t-that for?!" You finally questioned as you slapped his arm which made him feign hurt.

"I wouldn't have done that if you did not make me like you!" He sighed and turned away from you with his cheeks all red.

"What do you mean I made you like me!"

"I have a crush on your half-blood ass, idiot." He mumbled so fast due to embarrassment.

"You...do?"

"I mean..why would I kiss you for no reason..." he glanced at you and felt his body getting warm from embarrassment as it was now your turn to stare intensely at him. "But why did you kiss back, huh?" He shot back and crossed his arms.

"Maybe I like you half-blood ass self as well." You huffed and were about to hop off you stool and leave when you felt your hand being tugged back. You forgot how you had been holding on to his hand the whole time.

As he tugged your hand back, you went straight back into kissing him. Truth is, it felt great but something should not be said to prevent Yanjun's head from getting bigger with narcissism than it already was.

"S-stop...Filtch will give us detention if he catches us.." you tried to push his shoulder away but he only leaned his forehead against yours.

"Let him then...I'll always have you to myself then." He smirked at you and you swore you wanted to slap it off his face. "Be my girlfriend." He said more of a dictation than a question.

"No way. Ask properly." You crossed your arms at him

"Will you please be my girlfriend? There. This is the lowest I can go...don't push it."

Yanjun might have had such a high pride but it was nothing you felt bad towards. You grew to like both his good sides and his flaws. You two dating ended up being the biggest issue during your batch. How could these two enemies end up with one another?

However, over the years of working at this company as the executive assistant to the CEO and driving him to meetings throughout the week, I’ve established my favorite cars to drive. There was the Kia Stinger, which was very luxurious so it could fit the CEO’s taste but it could also go from 0 to 60mph within 5 seconds (which was enjoyable for me even though I’ve only got to try it out once).

Then there was the Audi R8, which was a beautiful car. The CEO owned one in black but the one I drove to his meetings was white. Both were amazing finishes. The navigation in this car was amazing though which was the seller for me. If I had enough for this car, I would’ve bought it ages ago.

And lastly, there was the Jaguar XJ 3.0. This car was absolutely beautiful. If I could, I’d marry it but sadly that would just be weird. This car handled curves so well, it made me tear up every time. Driving down even a pebbled road with this car was a smooth ride. It was enjoyable for me and the CEO could finish up some work without being tossed around in the back.

Although this company had lots of amazing cars, they also had more than a handful of bad ones. For instance, the Pontiac G6. This car was ugly. I’m not even going to lie and say that it had some nice points in terms of appearance because it did not. The whole entire interior was plastic and it wasn’t even well designed! The buttons were way too small as well. It’s like a baby designed this car. The drive was okay but I’ve had way better drives. Sometimes the CEO would even complain about how bumpy it would be.

Also, for some reason they had a PT Cruiser? One of the worst, if not the worst car I’ve ever driven. When I would take it to gas stations alone while the CEO was in meetings that I couldn’t go in, it would just stop randomly. I would be at a stoplight and it wouldn’t turn back on. I would be pulling into the gas station and it would just shut off and I would almost get into an accident because of it. And sometimes when I’m on the highway, the car would just randomly honk! I wouldn’t even be anywhere near touching the horn!

Every meeting we went to was always a mystery for me because I didn’t know which car I would get. Today, though, I knew it wouldn’t be good. As soon as I unlocked the car, I knew.

The keys that the doorman gave me belonged to the PT Cruiser.

I groaned, losing my professionalism for a moment before realizing that the CEO was watching. I straightened up, “Sorry, I just don’t like this car.”

“You have favorite cars?”

“Yes. And this one is not on that list. But I will try to make this an easy ride for you so don’t worry.” I said with a small smile, opening the back door for him. He nodded, getting in and closing the door. 

While walking over to the drivers side, I let out a whine. I absolutely hated this car! Would it stop on us for no reason today? Would we die?

I started the car and already could feel the engine giving out. Maybe I could just ask the doorman for a different key. But as I reached for the door handle, I caught a glance of the clock, telling me that I didn’t have time to get a different car. If we didn’t leave now we would be late.

I sighed, changing the gear shift into reverse and pulling out of the parking space.

So far, the ride was nice. It was quiet, as always, and not as bumpy as usual. Of course, there were a few times where my heart jumped out of its cage because I thought we would die, but we didn’t and so I could rest easily.

A stop light occurred and I started to slow down, preparing to stop. As I stopped, I looked in the rear view mirror, “What is the topic of the meeting today?”

“Stocks,” CEO Lin said without even looking up from his tablet. I nodded, looking ahead of us at the light. It was always awkward when I would drive him, which was all the time because it was my job. I would never have anything to say and so I would usually bring up the oncoming meeting because it would be the only thing I could think of. But his answers would always be vague and I would never know how to respond.

I sighed as the light turned green, pressing on the gas pedal. But, like I thought, the time came. The car inched forward, pretending to not be defective, and then the engine sputtered out and the car turned off.

My heart started racing as I tried to press the gas pedal again. The car didn’t move. I quickly turned on my hazard lights, my movements rushed and panicky.

The CEO must’ve picked up that something was wrong, so he asked what was going on. I brushed it off, “Nothing, the car is just acting up.”

“Why is it off?” he asked. I saw his curious expression glancing at me from the rear view mirror.

If I knew, then it wouldn’t be off! “I don’t know but I’ll figure it out.”

His expression faltered for a bit as he sat back in the seat. I took this time to call the administrative staff and tell them what was going on.

“Hey, Y/N!” One of the staff, named Ziyi, greeted me. We were close because his job was the closest to being my assistant. Just without the title.

“Hey Ziyi! Can you call the member of the staff in charge of the cars and tell them that the PT Cruiser broke down?”

“Yeah sure no pro- wait what?!” He exclaimed, “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, it’s fine but the car is a piece of trash—“ I glanced up into the rear view mirror, seeing the CEO curiously gazing at me. I cleared my throat, “— The car is defective so we are going to see if we can get a new one or find some other way to get to the meeting.”

“Okay. I’ll tell them to send a driver down to go get you,” he said before I hung up the phone.

There was a moment of silence which consisted of me fully accepting this situation and the CEO figuring out what to do with this knowledge.

“So the car broke down?” He asked.

I let out a sigh, “Yes, sadly this was out of my control. This car is really old and not very good at its job.”

A pause, “...Which is driving?”

“Yes. Its job is to drive us safely to where we need to go and back. But it failed.” It was quiet after that. I called the stockholders and told them the inevitable news and they told me that we could always reschedule and that it was no problem. Then I thanked them and told them I would send the email for the reschedule when we get back. And then I hung up and took a breath.

It was so quiet, it was making me anxious. I never had to be in this position with the CEO before. All I did was drive him to meetings and show him schedules and stuff. I never had to be stuck in a car with him for more than thirty minutes. What was I supposed to say?!

Maybe five whole, silent minutes passed before something popped into my head.

“Have you eaten yet?” I almost pat myself on the back for this one!

“Yes.” 

Annnd my confidence shattered. I nodded awkwardly, glancing at him from the rear view mirror. He was looking down at his tablet, like always, and wasn’t paying my awkward mood any mind.

I sighed, looking forward again, but before I could finish the sigh, CEO Lin spoke up, “Have you?”

I was so shocked that he made an attempt to keep the conversation going that it took me a few seconds before his words registered. I made eye contact with him through the mirror and shook my head to get back on track, “Uh, no. I haven’t yet. But I usually eat when you go to the meetings.”

“That’s a shame then, since I won’t be able to make it to the meeting. There’s a cafe down the street though, not that far,” he said, looking back down, “If you’re hungry then I suggest going there. You could probably get there in five or so minutes. I’ll pay for it.”

“I- uh-“ I was speechless, “Thank you. I guess I’ll be back in a few minutes then.” He nodded, handing me his card, “Do you want anything?”

He looked up at me, and for the first time in my whole entire life, I saw him smile. A real one. At me. And holy moly, he had dimples, oh my god-

“I’m fine. I’ve had my fair share of sweets today.”

I walked back to the car with the bag in hand. Despite him saying he had enough sweets, I still bought him something. A coffee, not sweet though because he didn’t like his coffee sweet.

I opened the door, setting the things in the passengers seat and looking back to check and see if he was okay.

I was met with his brown eyes staring back at mine.

He flashed a small smile, but quickly went back to normal as his eyes looked down to my hands, “You’re back so soon. What did you buy?”

“I bought a croissant and some coffee. I actually bought the coffee for you. I figured you’d need it.”

“Thank you.” He said as I handed him the coffee. He took a sip, nodding, “It tastes amazing.”

I smiled softly before turning back around and starting on my croissant. As I was eating, I started to think.

‘I’ve had my fair share of sweets’ but I haven’t seen him get any sort of sweets. And my desk is right outside of his office.

So he either has a secret stash that I don’t know about or he’s covering up the fact that he has diabetes and he can’t eat sweets.

I furrowed my brows as my teeth sunk into the treat. I’ve never seen him eat sweets for that matter. Every time I would make his coffee, it was always bitter. He even sent it back once when someone made it sweet.

He doesn’t like sweets.

So what was he talking about?

“By the way,” he started. I directed my attention to his face in the mirror. He was looking at his coffee cup, “You look really pretty today.”

The croissant I was chewing nearly found its way down my throat on its own. I choked and he looked up.

“Are you okay?”

I nodded, quicker than I ever have before which probably would’ve broke my neck if I continued, “Um, thank you. For the compliment. I don’t really know what to say because you always look good so—“

Wait. Did I just—?

“Thank you,” he responded, confirming the fact that I did, indeed, say that. Wow, where was my brain? “I didn’t mean it to say you don’t always look good though. Today you are just extra beautiful.”

I was so glad I wasn’t eating at that moment because I probably would’ve choked to death. He thought I was pretty? No— not just pretty— beautiful.

“Thank you, CEO Lin.” I said in the calmest way I could. On the inside though, my heart was racing. CEO Lin was, by far, the cutest person at the company. But cute is even an understatement. So to hear him say that I was beautiful was very... nice, to say the least.

I heard him sigh, “Well, since the meeting is now canceled and we are basically stranded until administration gets here, would you like to go somewhere with me?”

“Like where?”

“Maybe the park down the street,” He smiled at me through the rear view mirror, “As a date? And please, call me Yanjun.”

Walking side by side with the CEO— I mean Yanjun— wasn’t very new for me. But doing this as a date was. Unlike I thought, he actually had a lot to say. He was asking me a lot of questions about my life and how I like the job, hobbies, things I like to do at home. Basically, normal questions for getting to know someone. But it wasn’t boring like I would’ve thought, It was nice.

And then I remembered. And I stopped.

He stopped and looked back at me, “You okay?”

“Yeah, I just remembered something.”

He smiled, “What did you remember?”

“Earlier today you said that you had your fair share of sweets today. What did you mean?” I asked, my eyebrow raising a bit. He looked at me with a curious gaze before it went away. Now was the time where I would figure out if he had diabetes or not.

But what I wasn’t expecting was that he would start laughing, “Oh that! You want to know what that was about?”

“Yeah, I’m pretty curious because I never see you eating sweets.”

He smiled, walking up to me, “Just being around you is sweet enough for me.”

All Yanjun could do was scroll through your phone, which he luckily was able to have, and scrolled through your old conservations with him. All he could do was to scroll and cry himself to sleep. He just missed you. It was nearing the day of your funeral and Yanjun cried more than ever. However, he took the time to finally clean himself up and take care of his needs. He wanted to be a better version of himself for your funeral. He wanted you to know that he was doing fine, even if he really wasn’t. For the first time in weeks, he stepped out of the house. He had rung up a few of his friends, thanking them for taking care of him despite mourning over you as well. He was more than grateful when Ansheng had offered to help him clean up. She told him she would be over soon so he took a quick shower, which was rare for him, and he cleaned up all his tissues. A knock was heard and Yanjun hesitantly shuffles towards the door. He squinted his eyes at the brightness of the outdoors when he opened the door. Finally adjusting to the light, he looks down to see Ansheng, offering a supportive smile. “H-hey...come in. Sorry, it’s messy,” Yanjun sighs, welcoming her in, kicking away a few stray tissues he had missed earlier. “My goodness. Let’s start with opening all your blinds and windows,” Ansheng shakes her head, marching towards the window. Soon enough, all the curtains were pushed aside and the windows were wide open, letting in the fresh summer breeze. Yanjun was already beginning to feel better. Finally, for the first time since your death, Yanjun smiles. It wasn’t one of those fake smiles he gave his friends when they dropped food off for him, it was a genuine smile. “Look, I know you’re still mourning and all and you have every right to, but think about it this way. Y/n wouldn’t want you to be like this. I know it. Even if I only met her that one time, I know she wouldn’t want you to stay like this,” Ansheng reasons. “You’re right,” Yanjun quietly nods. “Alright, go get dressed because I’m taking you out,” Ansheng smiles, patting him on the back. --- “Eat up. You need to eat,” Ansheng encourages. “I know...this burger just reminds me of all the midnight snack runs I had with y/n,” Yanjun sadly stares at his cooling burger. “Think about it this way. Y/n wants you to cherish all the good times you had with her. She wouldn’t want you to make it all sad and gloomy,” Ansheng takes a sip of her drink. “You’re right. I’m sorry,” Yanjun groans, lowering his head. “There’s nothing to be sorry about. Eat up because we’re going to get you a nice suit for the funeral,” Ansheng smiles kindly, causing a small blush to rise on Yanjun’s sunken cheeks. After eating, as Ansheng promised, she took Yanjun to get a new suit. Although it was a quick trip since Yanjun was literally about to cry as soon as he chose the suit, he really had to admit that getting out of his house made him feel a lot happier. With the positive coaching of Ansheng, he learned to keep the happy memories happy rather than twisting them and making them darker than they really are. “Hey, thank you so much for today. Thank you for taking care of me,” Yanjun smiles at the younger girl, bowing deeply as a thank you. “No problem. I’m always here for you, you know?” Ansheng chuckles. “Seriously though. I don’t think I would have gotten out of this hell hole if it weren’t for you,” Yanjun comedically points to his house. The dark night and sparkling stars filled the sky. The cool summer breeze blew gently around the two. Now that Yanjun had gone out, he really didn’t want to go back into his house. However, Ansheng needed to go home and they both needed to sleep after a long day. “I’ll come by tomorrow, yeah? We can revamp your house. Get rid of some old things,” the shorter girl shyly brushes a strand of her hair behind her ear. “That would be nice,” Yanjun nods, twisting the doorknob, opening the door, “Goodnight. Get home safely.” “Thanks. See you tomorrow,” Ansheng happily waves, making her way back to her car. When Yanjun sees that she has driven away, he closes the door and flips on the light switch. He had to admit that he had a good day today, especially since his crush came by and dragged him out. “Y/n, I hope I didn’t disappoint you,” he whispers to himself, glancing over at a picture frame of the two of you from a couple summers ago. Despite that picture being only a couple years old, the two of you looked a lot younger. The picture was taken at the same beach he had taken you the day you passed. Both him and you were clad in your swimsuits and you were on his back. You were on his back, holding up a peace sign, smiling so brightly. Your legs were wrapped around his torso and he supported you with one arm, his other was holding a peace sign, matching yours. Looking at the photo always made him cry, but tonight, it made him smile. He was grateful for the time he had with you. Despite knowing that he was the one that pretty much killed you, he also knew that you would never want him to blame himself. “See you soon,” he sadly whispered to the photo before cleaning up and heading to bed. --- A loud knock woke Yanjun from his deep slumber. Groaning quietly, he tosses his blankets off and trudging towards the door. Opening it, he suddenly felt a little embarrassed. He was way underdressed, hair a mess, and there was probably drool on his face. “Looks like you just woke up, huh,” Ansheng’s cute giggle made Yanjun blush. “Yeah, your knocking woke me up,” he huffs, hiding his pink face behind his hands. “I’m sorry,” she chuckles, letting herself in. “It’s fine. I just wasn’t expecting you this early. Let me go get cleaned up,” he closes the door behind her. “Yanjun, it’s almost afternoon,” Ansheng laughs, pointing at the clock. Yanjun’s eyebrows shot up and he whipped around to look at the clock. She was right, it was almost the afternoon. He was sleeping so soundly. It was the best sleep he has had in weeks. Shyly, he laughs along before heading to the bathroom to clean up. “Do you want to go out for lunch?” Ansheng asks when Yanjun steps out the bathroom. “Sure,” Yanjun shrugs, picking up the jacket that he found laying on the couch. “We can buy some new things for your house on the way back...Yanjun?” Ansheng pauses when she notices Yanjun had frozen in place. Yanjun hadn’t even realized that he had one of your jackets in your house. He picked it up, thinking it was his, but it wasn’t. He bit his lip, not wanting to cry. He desperately tried to blink the tears away, but now he couldn’t get your face out of his head. A gentle touch brought him back from his thoughts. “We should probably get her things out of your house,” Ansheng’s quiet voice soothes him. “Sorry,” he sniffs, dropping the jacket back down onto the couch. Ansheng simply slides her small hands into his bigger one, giving it a comforting squeeze. Hand in hand, they exit Yanjun’s dark house and into Ansheng’s car. Yanjun leans against the window as they drove in comfortable silence, quiet music playing in the background. Closing his eyes, Yanjun thought back to the last day he spent with you. He was the one driving while you sat next to him, music playing softly in the background. Taking a deep breath, Yanjun opened his eyes again. The car stops and he notices that they’ve arrived at his favorite cafe...well it was your favorite so he decided that it would be his favorite as well. “This was y/n’s favorite cafe…”Yanjun sadly stares at the strangers piling in and out. “Oh, I’m sorry, you told me it was your favorite so I thought it would cheer you up a little. I didn’t know. Do you want to go somewhere else?” Ansheng apologizes, starting the car again. “No, it’s okay. It was my favorite too,” Yanjun smiles weakly, shaking his head. Ansheng nods, giving his shoulder a light squeeze. The two of them exited the car and entered the cafe. It was just as warm and cozy as Yanjun remembered, but it felt empty without you next to him. One of the baristas recognized him and waved at Yanjun. He shyly waves back and leads Ansheng to the front. The barista seemed to look confused when he sees that you weren’t there with him. “Hey, I haven’t seen you and y/n in a while. How’re you doing?” Zhengting, the barista, asks innocently. Yanjun chuckles sadly, “Y/n passed away a few weeks ago. That’s why we haven’t been here in a while.” “Oh, I’m so sorry,” Zhengting looks down sadly, “I didn’t know.” “It’s fine,” Yanjun offers a smile, “Can I get my regular?” “Of course, and for the lady?” Zhengting looks up again, smiling. Ansheng hesitates a little and Yanjun orders for her instead, “Get her y/n’s regular.” “Gotcha. It’ll be on the house. Please tell y/n I said goodbye,” Zhengting pats Yanjun on the shoulder before typing in their order. “Thank you,” Yanjun smiles before leading Ansheng to yours and his corner of the cafe. “You guys are pretty close, huh? That Zhengting guy seems nice,” Ansheng offers a cute smile. “Yeah. Y/n and I come here pretty often. Everything is so good here so I really hope you like it,” Yanjun hopefully looks at the girl in front of him. He couldn’t help but see a glimpse of you in Ansheng’s face and he quickly shakes it off, boldly reaching for her hand. Ansheng notices and takes his hand in hers, rubbing her thumbs comfortingly over the back of his hands. The food and drinks came quickly and Yanjun and Ansheng chatted away happily. Before they knew it, both of them had finished their food. Deciding it was time to head back, they waved goodbye to Zhengting and left the cafe. “Did you like it?” Yanjun asks excitedly. “Yeah, it was really good. Although y/n and I seem to have different tastes in drinks,” Ansheng chuckles. “Oh, yeah. Y/n really likes sweet things. I forgot you don’t have much of a sweet tooth,” Yanjun sheepishly laughs. “It’s okay. I enjoyed it nonetheless,” Ansheng shakes her head, opening the car door. The two of them made short stops to a couple stores, purchasing some new home decor before finally heading back to Yanjun’s house. --- “Alright, before we start decorating, we should probably get rid of the old stuff,” Ansheng suggests. “I agree,” Yanjun nods, setting the bags down. “Do you have any boxes? We can donate some things too,” Ansheng looks around the house. “I think I have a couple from when I first moved in still. Y/n and I wanted to make a fort at some point,” Yanjun makes his way to find the boxes, “I guess that didn’t happen.” There was a moment of silence. Yanjun came back with the box and unfolds them, placing them in the middle of the living room. Ansheng takes a deep breath before making a bold decision. “I think you should throw away anything you have that belongs to y/n,” she boldly states. “What?” Yanjun looks up shocked. “This way you won’t have a constant reminder,” Ansheng picks up your jacket from this morning, carefully folding it and placing it in one of the boxes. Yanjun watches as Ansheng reaches for a nearby marker and writing your name in bold font on the box before hesitantly replying, “Y-you’re right.” “Let’s get started?” Ansheng smiles, putting the marker back. Yanjun nods and decides to start in his bedroom as Ansheng continues cleaning his living room. Throughout the cleaning, Yanjun finally realizes just how many of your things are at his place. It saddens him that Ansheng had suggested that he threw it all away, but he knew she was just trying to help him. Finally finishing his bedroom, he carries all of your clothes that you had left here by accident and dumps it into the box with your jacket. “Hey, that was pretty quick,” Ansheng walks out of the kitchen with one of your mugs. “Oh, that’s actually my cup. Y/n gave it to me,” Yanjun points at the mug in her hands. “Sorry, I’ll put it back,” Ansheng quickly places it back on the shelf. Both Yanjun and Ansheng continue cleaning until all the rooms were finally free of trash and free of your things. Neither of them had noticed that the time had passed so quickly and it was nearly nine at night already. Ordering takeout, the pair sat on the couch, chatting quietly. “Oh yeah. I think this is y/n’s phone?” Ansheng pulls out your phone from her pocket, “I found it in the guest room.” “C-can I keep that?” Yanjun hesitantly asks, reaching for the phone. “You don’t have to ask me,” Ansheng chuckles, handing him the phone. Yanjun slips it into his pocket, patting it a couple of times. That would be the one thing he had to keep if he were to throw away everything else that was yours. There were a lot of memories in your phone that he couldn’t bear to toss. “By the way, it’s pretty late. Do you want to just stay the night?” Yanjun shyly suggests. Anshen seemed a little shocked, blushing a little even, “O-oh. If you don’t mind.” “I offered. Besides, I wouldn’t be a very nice...friend...if I let you go back home this late by yourself,” Yanjun chokes over the word ‘friend’. “Thank you,” Ansheng pulls Yanjun into a tight hug. He prays that she couldn’t hear his heart pounding. Oh, how he wished she liked him instead of Maotong. This must have been what it felt like for you and he immediately pulls away from the hug. Guilt began settling in and he stands up, quickly excusing himself to the bathroom. “Damn it, Yanjun. What are you getting yourself into,” he mutters to himself, splashing some cold water on his face. He blankly stares at his reflection for a few seconds. He swore he briefly saw your reflection next to his own, smiling brightly with a toothbrush in your hand and toothpaste all over your lips. He quietly chuckles to himself before stepping out. The smell of the take out made his stomach grumble and he quickly makes his way to the kitchen where he sees that Ansheng had set up the meal for the both of them. He gladly sits in the seat next to hers and they began eating, at first silently, but soon followed by old stories, terrible jokes, and laughing until they nearly toppled over. --- Yanjun gave one last look at your contents in that box before sealing it shut with some tape. Taking a deep breath, he carefully dropped the box in. He really wanted to keep your things, but he knew it was for the better if he tossed them out. Waving wearily, he left the box and left, shutting the door behind him.It will be a new beginning, Yanjun decided. Ansheng and Yanjun spent their days together, Ansheng cheering Yanjun up and Yanjun keeping her company. Yanjun was delighted at the fact that he could get so close to his crush. He was even able to convince her to cuddle with him despite still being slightly sick. Before they knew it, the day of your funeral had arrived. Rather than feeling all depressed and hopeless like he had expected, he was happy and at peace. Ansheng had helped him realize that you wouldn’t want to see him in the state he was in before. He wanted to be happy for you and now he finally was. However, there was another reason behind his happiness. The night before, the two were huddled together on the couch, watching a movie when Ansheng had unexpectedly confessed her budding feelings to Yanjun. He was more than ecstatic, but Ansheng asked if they could take it slow since she didn’t want either of them to get their feelings mixed up because of the recent event of your death. It was one step forward enough for Yanjun and the two of them drifted off to sleep, cuddling on the couch. “Ready?” Ansheng gently knocks on the bathroom door, waiting for Yanjun’s reply. “Just finished,” he opened the door, his smirk of a smile on his handsome face. “Let’s go. For closure,” Ansheng offers a charming smile of her own. Ansheng drove them both to the funeral. They had gotten there a little early so they decided to just wait in the car. Windows rolled down, soft music playing, summer breeze flowing through their hair, Ansheng and Yanjun sat in comfortable silence. Bravely, Yanjun slowly crept his hand closer and closer to Ansheng’s. He stiffened a little when he finally touched her pinky. He was about to pull away when he felt her hand slip into his and gave his hand a tight squeeze. He smiled, blood rushing to his cheeks. Unfortunately, a sudden cough from the boy shattered the mood and they both awkwardly pulled their hands away. “You’re still sick, huh?” Ansheng asks worriedly. “Yeah...it’s just a mild cough now though,” Yanjun sighs, ruffling his hair. “Hopefully it’ll get better soon,” Ansheng nods, then pointing outside, “I think they’re coming now. Let’s go.” Hand-in-hand, Yanjun and Ansheng made their way to the cemetery. Yanjun felt his throat tighten his breathing becoming uneven. Maybe he wasn’t ready to face you again after all. However, with a light squeeze from Ansheng, he was able to calm himself down. The ceremony passed quickly and Yanjun was barely able to finish his eulogy before breaking down in tears. He could feel your presence around him and it tugged at his heart. He wished he could have given you what Ansheng had given him. Unfortunately, it was too late. “Thank you for everything, y/n. I wish I could’ve given more to you...I love you,” Yanjun whispers as your casket slowly descends into the massive hole on the ground. Closing his eyes, a small smile appeared on his face when he thought back to all the good memories you and he shared. He felt Ansheng lean into him and he opened his eyes. Looking down, he notices that she had been looking at him. The two of them share a quiet giggle, before saying their last goodbyes. --- Soon, summer was over and Yanjun and Ansheng had begun their new relationship. Yanjun couldn’t have been happier and he knew that you were happy as well. The couple would often visit your grave for a chat or to pay their respects. Today, they were going to tell you about their relationship. “Hey, y/n. How are you?” Yanjun asks, taking a seat on the grassy floor. Ansheng sits down next to him after brushing away a couple of fallen leaves, “I hope you’re doing well.” “We have some news for you...even though I think you already know what it is,” Yanjun chuckles, “Well, Ansheng and I are dating now. Don’t you dare say ‘I told you so’...okay?” A cool breeze brushed past the couple, causing them to laugh. They knew it was you and they were glad that you approved. After chatting for a good hour, the couple decided that it was time to head back. The sun was setting earlier and earlier, the cool, fall breeze got colder. The months passed quickly and the couple’s relationship had never been better. It was spring and the two of them laid in bed, cuddling face-to-face. Ansheng suddenly buries her face into the crook of Yanjun’s neck. He could feel her warm breath tickling him and he pulled her closer. “I...I love you, Yanjun,” Ansheng mumbles. He could feel her cheeks heating up against his skin and he tensed up, despite being drunk with sleepiness. His tongue felt heavy in his mouth and his eyes drooped. He hoped she knew that she felt the same way. Finally, after a good few minutes, half asleep, Yanjun finally speaks up. “I love you too,” he whispers, drifting off to sleep. --- Yanjun woke up feeling sick to his stomach and deep, aching pain in his chest. Gasping desperately, he peeled himself away from Ansheng, waking her up in the process. He could barely hear her concerned voice as he stumbles his way to the bathroom. Dropping to his knees, he grips the bowl of the toilet, feeling as if he were about to throw up. Instead, he dropped to the ground, unconscious. A soft beeping woke Yanjun up. There was a deep pain throughout his whole body. Groaning, he forced his eyes to open and to his surprise, was greeted by an unfamiliar face. “It’s good to see that you’re fully conscious now. I’ll give you some time to fully wake while I debrief what’s going on with Ansheng. Just press that button with the nurse on it when you feel like you’re ready,” the doctor informed, pointing vaguely to the right of Yanjun. The doctor left and he sat up on his bed. Ansheng rushed over to give him a quick kiss on the cheek before leaving, muttering about how he should have told her he was still sick earlier. Sighing, Yanjun’s eyes lazily rolled to the right of him. He reached for the cup and took a sip of water, but nearly spitting it out. There you were, sitting on the uncomfortable looking couch right next to his bed. You looked over and smiled at him. He missed that bright smile of yours. Blinking a couple of times, your figure disappears and he regrets ever blinking. He has had a few hallucinations after your death. He saw you everywhere and it brought him comfort. After he chugged the whole cup of water down, Yanjun pressed the little button to his right as instructed by the doctor. As soon as he pressed it, the doctor came in, Ansheng slowly trailing behind him looking upset and crying. “What’s wrong with me?” Yanjun swallows harshly. The doctor sighs, “You have hanahaki, Mr. Lin. Several actions may be taken from this point. You can either get the person you love to love you back or you can surgically remove the flowers. However, if you get them surgically removed, your feelings for that person will disappear along with the flowers–” “Wait. I have what?” Yanjun interrupts, standing up, “Hanahaki? I haven’t coughed up any flowers yet! Besides, Ansheng and I love each other...I think you’ve got it wrong, doctor.” “Mr. Lin, please calm down,” the doctor replies calmly, but coldly, “I’ll answer your questions one by one. Would you like for Ansheng to stay?” “Yeah, I don’t see why not,” Yanjun sits back down, eyeing his girlfriend who had her arms folded and head down. “Okay, what would you like to know first?” the doctor asked, slipping his pen back into his chest pocket. “If I have hanahaki, then why haven’t I been coughing up any flowers?” Yanjun asks, suspicious. “That is a good question. Well, one doesn’t start coughing up flowers until they are aware of the feelings they have for the other person,” the glares. “Aware…?” Yanjun furrows his brow, rapidly blinking. “I’ll leave you two to discuss. Press that button when you’re done,” the doctor sighs, leaving the couple alone. “You don’t even know, Yanjun?” Ansheng asks, coldly, barely lifting her head. “Ansheng, what’s going on?” Yanjun stands up to pull her closer. She pushes him away. “Yesterday night. You confirmed it yourself,” she glares at him, tears streaming down her face. “Last n-night?” he slowly backs away as she shoves him back onto the bed. “Every night I would wake up to you mumbling ‘I love you’ and I thought it was directed at me so I confessed last night. You said ‘I love you too...y/n’. Y/n...it’s always been her. I should’ve known. Y/n this, y/n that. Everything is about her! You never did love me–or even like me at all!” Ansheng screams, hitting Yanjun’s chest in between each word. Everything hit Yanjun at once. His true feelings, the flowers, the regret. He couldn’t even hear Ansheng screaming at him and he barely felt her fists pounding against him. He felt a tickle in his throat and he coughed. Flowers, gorgeous assorted flowers, flew straight out of his mouth, shocking both him and Ansheng. She backed away, a hand over her gaping mouth. Yanjun felt as if all his limbs were frozen. “A-Ansheng...I’m so...sorry,” he barely chokes out after a silent few minutes. He reaches out, but she shoves him away again, “Don’t even start. I’m heading home. Tell the doctor yourself,” she spits. Ansheng angrily storms out of the room, slamming the door behind her. Yanjun collapses back onto the bed. He slowly sat up, only to start coughing again. He manages to calm himself, but there was already a sea of flowers and flower petals lying around him. He didn’t know when, but he had started to cry. Picking up the flowers, he slowly examined them one by one after wiping his tears away. Anemones, pink carnations, and the flower that he could never wash from his mind, forget me nots, laid around him, decorating the boring, white hospital floor and bed. He weakly reached for his phone, barely grasping hit. Fingers shaking, he searches for each flower. Anemones - forsaken Pink Carnations - “I’ll never forget you” Forget Me Nots - true and undying love Sobbing, Yanjun tossed his phone aside. He knew exactly why he had coughed up those flowers. He coughed up anemones because you had abandoned him on this earth after your death. He coughed up pink carnations because he knows he won’t ever be able to forget you. He coughed up forget me nots because his love for you was true and undying. --- “I’ll get the surgery for you, Ansheng. Please, have faith in me...in us again,” Yanjun gently holds the girl’s delicate hands. After their new discovery of Yanjun’s terminal “disease”, the two had stayed clear from each other for a little while. Ansheng couldn’t bear the sight nor sound of him coughing up the flowers. She had to get away and Yanjun understood. However, she came around a few days later and the two talked about it. Ansheng had urged Yanjun to get the surgery. She didn’t want to see her love suffering over someone who was long dead. Summer was nearing and Yanjun could feel his body deteriorating slowly and painfully. Every day, he would cough up more and more petals and the flowers would just come up more intact than the last. Thankfully, the two agreed on surgically removing the nasty, yet beautiful flowers. So, Yanjun took himself to the hospital and tried to relax. Ansheng was the first person he saw after waking up. He smiled and she returned it, pulling him into a deep kiss. Finally, it was peace at last. --- “Y/n, I’m here by myself today. You’re doing fine I hope?” Yanjun sadly kneels in front of your headstone. A gentle breeze brushed past him and he smiled, “Well, it’s officially been a year without you.” Yanjun pauses, swallowing harshly. The hot, summer sun beat down through the trees, but he couldn’t help but shiver. “I still miss you, you know. I miss you a lot,” Yanjun sniffs, wiping a stray tear. Taking a deep breath, Yanjun shuts his eyes tightly for a few seconds before opening them again. There you were, sitting peacefully in front of him on your grave. You smiled at him and he smiled back. “I...I have a secret to tell you,” he leans in, desperate for your touch. Your ghostly form cutely tilted your head to one side, signaling for him to continue. Yanjun felt himself burning up inside. He chuckles, reconsidering his words. He bit his lips, trying to prevent himself from spilling anything out, but it was too late. He burst. A plethora of colorful flowers flew out through his plump lips. He couldn’t stop them anymore. He couldn’t hold in the secret anymore. He never got the surgery. Yanjun felt himself weakening. He reached out, but your ghostly form had disappeared long ago. Collapsing, his vision was blurred with tears. Yanjun tried to prop himself up with his shaking arms. He felt warm liquid dribble from his mouth, dotting the flowers on the ground with his red blood. Yanjun couldn’t help but smile. Smirking one last time he collapsed and with his last breath, he whispered only words you could hear. “I never stopped loving you.” --- There he lay, right next to your grave, his sparkling eyes shut closed, a serene look on his face, his signature smirk now permanent on his fresh corpse. An assortment of anemones, pink carnations, and forget me nots scattered all around him. Some of the flowers had been whisked over on top of your grave from the cool summer breeze. The shiny, red droplets of blood shone under the bright summer sun. It was a peaceful summer.

“You know mornings aren’t my thing,” you groan, taking your notebook and pencil case out of your backpack.

“Cheer up, I got you a cup of coffee on the way here,” Yanjun smiles before setting a cup of your favorite coffee in front of you.

“Thanks, you always know how to cheer me up,” you wipe away a fake tear, picking up the cup for a sip.

“No problem, babe,” Yanjun chuckles.

“Alright, shut up kids. Class is going to start now,” your professor walks in, announcing to the class.

You giggle slightly at Yanjun when he rolls his eyes before turning to the professor. You scrawl down notes as your professor drones on and on. You feel a pair of eyes watching you and you momentarily pause your writing to look over at Yanjun. He quickly turns away, pretending to write when you look over.

“Hey, your notebook is blank. You got questions? Is that why you were staring at me?” you whisper.

“Uh...yeah?” Yanjun whispers back, sounding a little uncertain.

“Don’t worry, I’ll lend you my notes after class...again,” you let out a small giggle.

“Thanks, babe,” Yanjun ruffles your hair.

—-

Finally, after a whole day of lectures, you quickly buy some food before rushing off to the studio as usual. Yanjun and both of your guys’ friends are usually at the studio practicing after school.

You unwrap a cookie and silently munch on it as you make your way to their usual practice room. Before you can even open the door, the door is shoved right open for you. You jump back a little as Zhangjing practically attacks you.

“Y/n!!! Hey, you have cookies!” Zhangjing loudly greets you.

“Yeah. Here, take this bag,” you hand Zhangjing the bag of cookies, chuckling at his behavior.

“Thanks! You’re the best!” Zhangjing squeals and runs off.

You roll your eyes before entering the room where Hongling and Dinghao greet you with a hug. Chaoze waves over at you while trying to take the bag of cookies away from Zhangjing. You giggle at the sight, but your eyes scan the room for your best friend.

“Oh, where’s Yanjun?” you ask when you don’t see him.

“He went to the bathroom. He’ll be right back, but should we start our dance first?” Chaoze asks as you set your things down.

“Oh, of course!” you nod, tying your hair up.

You and Chaoze share the same dance class and luckily the two of you are close friends since there are many partner dance projects and such. The two of you always pair up. Both of you are also the best dancers of the class so the teacher usually doesn’t mind the fact that the two of you pair up so often.

As the two of you are in the middle of your dance, you see the door open and Yanjun walks in. You yell out a quick “hello” to Yanjun as Chaoze dips you.

Yanjun gives a quick nod and goes on to try to steal a cookie from Zhangjing. As you and Chaoze progress in the dance, you feel Yanjun’s gaze getting more and more intense. He usually watches you dance so it was nothing new, but this time, you feel as if he is drilling holes into you.

Both you and Chaoze had come up with a quick routine while in class for the new project. Your teacher had chosen songs for each group and you had ended up with a very sensual song. Luckily, you and Chaoze are close enough to avoid the awkwardness. In fact, the two of you had a laughing fit when you had drawn the song.

Finally, the song finishes and Chaoze pulls you in close, his hand supporting your waist while you stare up at him, arms wrapped around him as well. You feel his breath on your face and you can’t help but grin a little. The two of you stay in the position for a while, panting slightly from the intensive routine before breaking out into giggles.

“I think that’s good. That’s the feeling,” Chaoze nods as he pulls away.

“I agree. We just need to clean up a few moves,” you hold your hand up for a high-five.

Before Chaoze can return your high-five, you feel arms wrap around you, picking you up. You let out a small squeal before slapping Yanjun after he set you back down. He lets out a laugh and ruffles your hair.

“Hey, that was amazing...as usual,” Yanjun pats you lightly on the head.

“Give me some credit! I came up with it too,” Chaoze pouts.

“Haha, I guess I’m just cooler than you,” you laugh, nudging Chaoze lightly.

“Wow, I’m never pairing up with you again,” Chaoze feigns offense.

“Sure, I’ll just go find Zhengting or Zeren. They’re much better dancers,” you jokingly stick your tongue out.

“Oof, roasted. Need some ice for that burn, Chaoze?” Yanjun cackles from behind.

“Ahh! You guys are so mean!” Chaoze screeches, running off.

“Sorry, buddy!” you giggle, shouting after him.

You watch as Chaoze pouts in the corner. You laugh at the sight before deciding to take a short break. You turn around to face Yanjun who is still laughing at Chaoze.

“Need anything?” you ask.

“Your notes, please,” Yanjun whines a little.

“Ah, right. What’re you gonna pay me with this time?” you playfully roll your eyes.

“Aren’t I enough for the payment?” Yanjun follows you as you make your way to your backpack.

“Only because you’re my best friend. If you said that to anyone else, you’ll get slapped for sure,” you snort, handing Yanjun your notebook.

“Um, a lot of people would fall for that,” Yanjun mumbles, flipping through your neat notebook, “not you though, apparently.”

“You’re so greasy! Get yourself together,” you laugh, slapping Yanjun lightly.

“Whatever, thanks for the notes,” Yanjun chuckles.

—-

“That was good practice today. See you in class tomorrow,” Chaoze waves as he heads out the door with the others.

“See ya!” you wave back, picking up your backpack.

You shuffle towards the door and wait for Yanjun who is still packing his things. The two of you always walk home together since you guys live in the same apartment complex, just different floors. Yanjun lives just two floors above you and you always wait for him to go to class together.

“Come on, I don’t have all night,” you pout.

“Coming, coming!” Yanjun laughs, zipping up his backpack.

You roll your eyes and open the door, slipping out of the room. Yanjun follows suit and the two of you make your way out of the studio. On the way back, you and Yanjun chat about your day and laugh at your friends.

“You know, I saw Ruotian raising his hand in class today and when the professor picked on him, he suddenly forgot his answer and just stood there in silence. It got so awkward, I couldn’t help but to laugh,” Yanjun chuckles at the memory.

“That’s such a Ruotian thing to do,” you giggle.

“I know right. He truly is in charge of being awkward,” Yanjun rolls his eyes playfully.

“Oh, today, Maotong was trying to eat in class, but he bit his tongue and let out the most high-pitched scream ever. Zhangjing would’ve been jealous,” you laugh, suddenly remembering just how loud he had really screamed.

“Wow, that must’ve been so embarrassing. Got caught red-handed,” Yanjun snorts.

“Ugh, why do we know them? Why are we friends with them?” you chuckle, pressing the up button on the elevator.

“Who knows,” Yanjun shrugs, “maybe it’s fate?”

“Well, fate sucks then,” you shake your head slightly, stepping into the elevator.

Yanjun shuffles behind you and you press the 2 button. Yanjun leans over and presses the 4 button. His breath tickles your neck and you flinch a little. You feel yourself blushing a little from the sudden closeness, feeling a little flustered.

“I could’ve pressed it for you,” you complain.

Yanjun simply chuckles and shrugs. The two of you stand silently as the elevator goes up. Finally, the door opens and you step out the elevator. You wave to Yanjun, mumbling a ‘goodbye’ before heading to your room.

You pat your pockets but didn’t find your keys. You then slip off your backpack to look for your keys, but you can’t seem to find them. You groan when you suddenly remember that you had given them to your best friend. She promised to come back earlier from the party she is at to give you your keys back, but she seems to have forgotten.

You try calling her, but she must have put her phone on silent. You feel tears prick your eyes and you sniffle a little, resting your head on the locked door. You quickly dial Yanjun’s number, trying hard not to cry. You know you are overreacting, but this is the first time something like this has ever happened to you and you began to panic a little.

“Hey, y/n?” Yanjun immediately picks up.

“Yanjun...c-can I stay over at your place tonight?” you sniff.

“Of course, you’re always welcome. What happened though?” Yanjun asks.

“I gave my keys to my friend. She promised to be back earlier, but I think she forgot. She’s not picking up either,” your voice begins to shake as you scurry back into the elevator, pressing the 4 button repeatedly.

“Hey, hey, don’t cry, baby. I’m sure she’ll come tomorrow,” Yanjun comforts you over the phone.

“Sorry, I know I’m overreacting, but this has never happened before,” you sigh, wiping away a few tears.

“It’s okay. See you in a few minutes, okay?” Yanjun replies, his tone softening.

“Mhm, bye,” you mumble, hanging up.

As the door opens, you sniff and wipe away your remaining tears before making your way towards Yanjun’s room. You knock on his door, thankful that the two of you live so close. Yanjun immediately opens the door and invites you in with open arms. You give him a quick hug, thanking him again.

“Why don’t you go take a shower first? I have clean clothes in there, you can just wear them, okay?” Yanjun takes your jacket and ushers you into the bathroom.

You barely let out a ‘thank you’ before Yanjun shoves you into the room and close the door behind him. You chuckle a little before locking the door and taking off your clothes. You see a pair of his cozy sweatpants and a white t-shirt neatly folded and placed on a small stool Yanjun keeps in his bathroom.

You quickly strip your clothes off and turn on the water. You get into the shower and close your eyes, enjoying the warmth of your water. Then, you remember that it was Yanjun who would be paying the water bills and you decide to hurry up a little.

You glance over at the shampoo bottle and quickly pump a few pumps into your hand before massaging it into your hair. You chuckle at the thought of smelling like Yanjun. His shampoo smells really different from yours. His smells a little minty while yours smell more fruity.

Humming quietly, you quickly finish up your shower and grab the extra towel Yanjun never uses. He always kept an extra just in case someone comes over. You pat yourself dry before stepping out. Luckily, you always keep a clean pair of underwear in your backpack so you slip it on before putting on Yanjun’s clothes.

You giggle at the sight of your own reflection. His shirt hangs loosely on you, close to slipping off. You had also tightened the strings on his pants so they wouldn’t fall off. You plug in his hairdryer and relax a little as you dry your hair.

Once your hair has gone from drenched to damp, you pick up your backpack and step out the bathroom. You step into the living room and leave your backpack by the table where Yanjun has left his. You look around for Yanjun and find him in the kitchen.

“Yanjun,” you call out softly.

“Oh, y/n, you’re done already? That was quick,” Yanjun turns around, scanning you up and down.

“You just take too long,” you chuckle, rolling your eyes.

“Ugh, whatever. Here, I made hot chocolate,” Yanjun shrugs, handing you a mug.

You let out a small ‘thanks’ before taking a sip. You smile, swirling the warm, creamy drink in your mouth. You giggle when you see Yanjun’s specs have fogged up. He laughs a little before chugging some more of his own drink.

“I’m going to go shower now. We can study together after,” Yanjun places his cup in the sink, rinsing it.

“You’d better hurry then. I’m tired,” you pat Yanjun’s back as he makes his way out the kitchen.

“No promises!” you hear Yanjun yell as he disappears into the bathroom.

You chuckle and make your way to the table where you had left your backpack. You place the mug down and pull out your books, looking through the chapters. You hear the water running and take a few more sips of your warm drink.

Luckily, Yanjun is a little faster than usual. He comes out, ruffling his wet hair with a towel. He plops down on the couch next to you, tossing the towel to the side. The scent of his minty shampoo drifts to your nose.

“Hey, you came out a lot quicker today,” you tease.

“Yeah, because you asked me to,” Yanjun winks at you, pulling his own books out.

“Gross…” you snicker, “Let’s start.”

Yanjun nods in agreement and the two of you begin doing your own studying. You thankfully completed quite a few things without being interrupted. You’re really in the zone and suddenly feel your arm being poked. You jolt out of your thoughts and look over at Yanjun.

“Hey, how are you done so quickly? I’m still stuck on this one,” Yanjun grumbles, looking over at your paper.

“Which one? I can help,” you giggle, leaning over to look at his paper.

“Uh...that one, yeah,” Yanjun mumbles.

“Ah, that one took me a while too,” you nod as Yanjun pushes his glasses higher up on his face.

You scoot a little closer to Yanjun, your legs touching. You take your pencil and begin writing a few notes down on his paper. After you finish, you look up at Yanjun who has a strange expression on his face. You can’t tell what kind of expression it is.

“What?” you ask curiously.

“Nothing, I just never noticed that your hands are so small and cute,” Yanjun shrugs.

“What? Focus, Yanjun! I’m trying to explain the problem here,” you whine, blushing a little.

“Okay, okay. So how do you do it?” Yanjun laughs at your expression.

You grumble a little before turning back to explain the problem. Yanjun listens closely as you point to the note you have written down, nodding every here and there. After you finish, you look back up at Yanjun, an expectant expression on your face.

“Ah, I see. I got it now. Thanks, babe,” Yanjun grins, patting your head lightly.

You watch happily as Yanjun sets to work, scribbling down his own notes and answer. You quickly finish up your remaining work before dumping your books back into your backpack. You watch as Yanjun finishes his own work.

“Hey, you can take the bed,” Yanjun says as he slides his books into his own backpack.

“No, it’s okay. I can just sleep on the couch. It’s only one night anyway,” you shake your head.

“I’m not letting you sleep on the couch,” Yanjun looks over at you, a stern expression on his face.

“Really, it’s okay,” you pout.

“Nope, you’re sleeping with me,” Yanjun smirks, picking you up.

You yelp as he slides his arm under your knees and back. You cling to him, in fear of falling off and Yanjun lets out a laugh. You slap his chest a few times, whining a little. Yanjun kicks open his bedroom door and drops you onto his bed.

You fall into his blankets and you roll around a bit before sitting back up. Yanjun slides into the space next to you, pulling the blankets so that it covered the both of you. He scoots a little closer to you and pulls out his phone.

“Scoot over, I’m almost falling off,” Yanjun tells you as he scrolls through his phone.

You let out a small huff before scooting over and pulling out your own phone. You scroll through Instagram for a bit before receiving a message from Chaoze. You quickly reply and start a conversation with him, discussing about how to refine your dance routine.

You chuckle as Chaoze tells you about a silly move he had randomly thought of. Then, he proceeds to send you a video of him doing it with Zhangjing who was dancing with no passion at all and a dead expression on his face. You squeal at the sight, doubling over from laughing so hard. You wipe a few tears away as the video comes to an end.

“What’re you looking at that’s got you so worked up?” Yanjun peeks over at your phone.

“Oh, Chaoze just texted me,” you let out between chuckles, “He said he wanted to add this move and sent me a video of him doing it with Zhangjing, but Zhangjing looks like he wants to die.”

“Really now? Let me see,” Yanjun plucks the phone out of your hand and clicks on the video.

You let out another burst of laughter as the video begins and Yanjun joins you. He throws his head back, cackling. You slap your leg a few times and the two of you begin to calm down a little as the video ends.

“Wow, that’s really stupid,” Yanjun snorts.

“I know, right? But it’s also so creative,” you giggle, “That’s what I really like about Chaoze.”

“Oh?” Yanjun sits up a little more, his expression becomes a little more serious.

“Yeah, I love dancing with him since he always comes up with such detailed and fun dances,” you nod, looking over.

“Hmm...that’s nice. Uh, I’m gonna sleep now,” Yanjun nods, sliding down into the blankets, turning away from you.

“O-oh...okay. Goodnight, Yanjun,” you whisper as Yanjun turns off the lights.

You sigh at Yanjun’s sudden change in demeanor and tuck yourself in, turning away from Yanjun as well. You cuddle into the blanket, curling up a little out of habit. Soon, you fall into peaceful sleep, forgetting about the way Yanjun had just acted.

—-

You wake up to the sound of alarms and you groan when you feel a heavy weight on you. Groaning a little, you try to shift into a more comfortable position, but it seems that you have been trapped. The arm on you pulls you closer and your eyes snap open. You gasp a little when you notice just how close you are to kissing Yanjun. Biting your lips a little, you try to pull away, but Yanjun’s grip on you just tightens. You sigh, patting his arm lightly.

“Yanjun, wake up. We have to get to class,” you whisper.

You feel him sigh, the warm air hitting your neck. Yanjun opens his eyes and bops his head lightly into yours. He gives you a small smirk before sitting up. You also sit up, brushing your hair with your hands.

“Good morning, babe,” Yanjun nods, stretching.

“Good morning,” you yawn.

“Sleep well?” Yanjun asks, running his hand through his hair.

“Your arm was heavy,” you pout, blushing a little after remembering how close the two of your faces were.

“Really? My arms are just solid muscle though, so that might explain why,” Yanjun laughs, flexing.

“Ugh, it’s too early for this. I’m going to go get ready before you hog the bathroom again,” you roll your eyes, crawling over Yanjun and off the bed.

“I don’t take that long in the morning,” Yanjun calls after you.

“Yes, you do!” you yell back, locking yourself in the bathroom.

You brush your teeth and quickly toss off Yanjun’s clothes before stepping into the shower. You quickly wash but keep your hair dry. You dry yourself with the towel you used yesterday and pulled on your clean underwear. As you reached for your clothes, you realize that you don’t have any clean clothes. Your clothes from yesterday had been drenched with sweat from dancing.

You wrap yourself in the towel and open the door cautiously, looking around for Yanjun. You shyly call out his name and he appears by the door in a second. He seems a little surprised that you’re only in a towel and you look down, feeling the heat rush to your face.

“Uh, I don’t have any clean clothes on me,” you mumble.

Yanjun doesn’t reply right away and you look up, confused. You notice that he seems a little shy and you softly call out his name again, bringing him out of his thoughts.

“O-oh. Right. Uh, I’ll get you some clothes. Just wait right here,” Yanjun looks around, a little flustered, before heading back into his bedroom.

He comes back after a while, handing you a pile of clothes. You take them thankfully, a blush clear on your face. You look down, nodding your head in thanks.

“Um, I found a pair of leggings you left here from last time. I don’t know why they’re here...and you can just wear that shirt. If you’re cold, I have a jacket,” Yanjun points to the pile of clothing.

“Okay, thanks,” you nod before slamming the door in Yanjun’s face.

---

After the slightly awkward incident, Yanjun seems to have recovered. He walks with you to your class as usual. The two of you are greeted by Chaoze, who has a suspicious look on his face. He sniffs the air a little bit before pointing at you.

“You smell like Yanjun,” Chaoze sniffs the air once again.

“Uh…” you aren’t quite sure where to begin.

“You’re also wearing his clothes! Ooh, what happened last night?” Chaoze wiggles his brows.

You contort your face, showing displeasure, but Yanjun just laughs and drapes an arm around you. Chaoze just stares at the two of you suspiciously when Yanjun informs him that nothing has happened.

“Okay, bye Yanjun! Don’t you have class?” you practically shriek as you shove Yanjun out the room.

“Wow, where’s my goodbye kiss, babe?” Yanjun teases.

“No! Bye!” you shut the classroom door.

“Don’t be so rude to your boyfriend,” Chaoze laughs, hitting your arm lightly a couple of times.

“Shut up, Chaoze! He’s not my boyfriend,” you pout, hitting him back.

“But you wish though,” Chaoze snorts.

You simply roll your eyes but don’t deny it. You’ve grown to like your best friend over the years, but you didn’t want to ruin what you have. You sigh, beginning to practice with Chaoze who continues to tease you throughout class.

Shaking your head, you immerse yourself in the music. You and Chaoze dance away, making adjustments here and there. Soon, class ends and Chaoze leaves first, saying that he has to find Zhangjing for something. You nod and head out the door. You spot Yanjun standing nearby and wave to him. He happily waves back and makes his way to your side.

“Hey, how was class?” he asks.

“It was alright. Chaoze and I still have some things to work out, but I think we’re basically done with the choreography,” you nod.

“Oh, sweet. You look really cute in my clothes, by the way,” Yanjun says, out of the blue.

“What? Thanks...I guess?” you look at him, feeling your face heat up.

“Maybe I should lend you my clothes more often,” Yanjun looks at you, chuckling at your expression.

“Ugh, why are you like this?” you groan, turning away.

“But you still love me,” Yanjun tosses his head back in laughter.

“Unfortunately I do,” you mumble.

Yanjun stops laughing immediately and you gasp. You were hoping that he hadn’t heard it, but he probably did. You gulp, feeling the blood rush up to your face. You continue to look down as you walk, avoiding eye contact.

You hadn’t noticed that Yanjun had stopped walking until you feel his hand grab your wrist and spin you back around. He pulls you close and you gasp at the distance. It was just like this morning. You were surely close enough to kiss him.

“Do you really?” Yanjun asks quietly, pulling you to a quieter corner.

“Um...yeah?” you squeak, looking down, embarrassed.

You hear Yanjun chuckle and you bite your lips. You feel yourself tear up and you sniff a little. Suddenly, Yanjun pulls you into a warm hug and you gasp, breathing in his minty scent.

“Silly, I’ve been trying to flirt with you for the longest time. I was trying so hard to get you to like me back and I thought you liked Chaoze or something,” Yanjun chuckles, patting your head lightly.

“Really? You’re just so naturally flirty...I didn’t know,” you pout, hugging Yanjun back.

“Ugh, you’re so dense. I literally don’t flirt with anyone else. Chaoze and the others already know,” Yanjun sighs.

“I’m not dense! Just ask me to be your girlfriend already,” you whine.

“Okay, okay~ Will you be my girlfriend, y/n?” Yanjun asks, pulling away from the hug.

“Yes,” you groan, pulling Yanjun back into a hug.

“Love you, babe,” Yanjun laughs.

“You flirt,” you mumble into his chest, closing your eyes.

“But I’m your flirt,” Yanjun snorts.

You immediately pull away from the hug and smack his chest. You groan, shoving him away as he laughs at you.

“Yanjun!” you shriek.

“Alright, sorry, sorry!” Yanjun snickers, grabbing your hands.

“Ugh, it’s break, let’s go,” you pout, intertwining your fingers with Yanjun’s.

You hear Yanjun mumble an okay as the two of you strolled down the hall hand-in-hand. You look down, feeling the blush on your face and you smile a little. Little did you know, Yanjun also has a small smile and flushed cheeks.