exo: little loves

[rustle]

little loves
— Sehun/Lay, Sehun/Suho, Sehun/Xiumin. PG. 1090 words.
— Sehun falls in love twice... and finds himself sharing a plate of tteokbokki with a complete stranger.
— For my beloved xiukisses, on her special day ♥ Also available on AO3.

❀ carnation (sehun/lay; 173 words) Sehun's first encounter with the concept of a 'crush' happens when he's ten, in summer camp. He meets this wide-eyed kid whose Korean he can't quite understand but whose smile speaks more than anybody ever can. It takes five minutes for them to successfully deliver introductions, five minutes for them to tumble into and out of each other's lives. In that small packet of time, Sehun learns these things: that the boy's name is Yixing and that he can either be five years younger or older than Sehun, depending on his mood; that the boy can sing and dance and giggle like one of those cute puppies on television. Sehun's favorite children's show, the type that he can watch multiple episodes of in a day. That the boy makes him feel like bursting into song everytime the boy looks his way to offer him a smile. And the way the boy's soft laughter haunts him even until a week after, tickling his insides and making his cheeks flush an interesting shade of pink. ❀ crimson (sehun/suho; 253 words) Sehun falls in love when he's seventeen. More like it hits him square on the nose with a realization when he sees Joonmyun grimacing in pain after injuring himself in a badminton match. His first thought is oh shit, we're going to lose. Our ace player's down and we are so going to fuck everything up. His second, I can't lose him. I don’t think I can bear to. So he rushes to where Joonmyun is on the court, a towel haphazardly rolled up in a tight ball in one hand and his heart crushed in the other. He can hear the coach calling after him, telling him that nobody but the medical team can touch Joonmyun right now, but to hell with that. Joonmyun's lying on the floor, playing hand shaking even as he guides it closer to his body with the other. Joonmyun's looking up at him with a soft, soft gaze and an even gentler smile. And his heart is aching. His chest feels so tight and he wants nothing but to hold Joonmyun in his arms and tell him that, 'everything will be okay, hyung. Don't worry, we'll be fine,' if it means it will lessen Joonmyun's pain somehow. So he lies to Joonmyun and says, from outside the white lines of the court, "You're going to be alright, hyung. Trust me." Doesn’t say, I'd give everything to make you feel well again. I'd give everything to save you. Now open up your heart so you can be mine. ❀ carmine (sehun/xiumin; 665 words) Love finds Sehun when he's nineteen, while he's stuck in a food stall just two blocks from the train station. It's been raining for close to thirty minutes now and he's been gnawing at the same piece of tteok for the past two minutes, trying to buy time. Making an excuse for his stay in the stall, in his temporary shelter form the storm. His tummy's grumbling again, but then he only has enough money in his wallet for the reload of his train pass. And maybe he should be on his way now because he's been taking up too much space in the stall for too long already, but then a young man with the brightest, brightest eyes walks in. "One order of tteokbokki, please," the man tells the ahjumma, before guiding his gaze to meet Sehun's own. Sehun blinks, gulps hard, takes a deep, deep breath when he sees the slow-forming smile on the man's lips. For a second, he considers looking away, but his stomach gets the better of him and speaks on his behalf, letting out a low groan. The man chuckles. 'Fuck,' Sehun thinks. His stomach lurches again. He can't tell which he wants more of – food, or this man's soft laughter. "And one for him, as well." "For... me?" Sehun asks, pointing his thumbs to himself. The man laughs a little. "But–" "For the cute boy with the grumbling tummy, yes," says the man, humming some more. His smile burns like a thousand suns even at the height of the pouring rain outside. Sehun can't say he doesn't like it. "Unless he wanted something else?" 'Your name,' he's tempted to say. He doesn't. Instead, he counts his money at the back of his mind, licks his lips and says at the back of his mind, well, fuck this. My house is just a station away, anyway. "Can I buy you some odeng, then? As, uh, payment?" The man widens his eyes, lips parted in question. He doesn't say anything, doesn't even utter a word, but he does inch closer to Sehun. Sehun can feel the pressing heat of their limbs, can feel their knuckles brushing each other in the tiny space they're both moving in. Can feel the faint rush of warmth to his cheeks as the man says, "Minseok. Kim Minseok. And you have... gochujang on your lips. Just–there." Minseok reaches out, then runs a thumb along the jut of Sehun's bottom lip. He licks the remnants off his finger as he says, "There. Much better." Sehun feels his heart leap in his chest. He can't say he minds – how humid it is inside with all the steam and body heat sticking to his skin, how hard the rain is pouring down just beyond the plastic curtains. How Minseok is leaving pieces of himself in the tteok he's transferring to Sehun's plate like they've known each other since forever. So Sehun takes a whiff of the dishes, takes a deep breath, and drinks up the pretty smile on Minseok's lips as Minseok says, "So, my odeng?" "Of course," Sehun says, laughing. He takes one of the bigger bundles and splits it between the two of them. He can't erase the image of Minseok's bright smile burning at the back of his eyelids. He doesn't mind it at all. (Later, Minseok teases him, saying, "So you have money to buy a stranger some odeng but you don't have money to buy yourself something to eat?" "Found some extra coins in my pocket," Sehun mumbles as he moves closer to Minseok and holds up the umbrella they're sharing. He doesn't look to his side, but he does catch that cute little smile on Minseok's lips as Minseok shakes his head. There are a lot of puddles on the way home, but at least he won't have to run from the station to his house anymore. Minseok's here to keep him safe from the storm, to keep him warm.)