dad jokes //// sulay

thirty-one.

"have fun, young sirs," mr. juin said. sehun offered him a smile, cameras already on them even though junmyeon hadn't even stepped out of the car. sehun offered him his hand, helping junmyeon out.

"alright, let's do this," junmyeon said, dropping sehun's hand. sehun nodded, the two already used to the routin. smile, smile some more, answer small questions but ignore the big ones, look at literally ever camera and hope you don't go blind by the flashes by the end of the night.

the entire event was a painstaking task, but junmyeon reminded himself that it was for a good cause. he just wanted to go home and watch television with his kid and make cupcakes.

god, i'm such a mom.

eventually the event did end, now leading into the after party, where there was a strict no paparazzi policy. wine, food platters, mingling with other celebrities. sehun and junmyeon normally tried to keep to themselves during such things. but, tonight, for some reason, sehun insisted upon being the life of the party even though junmyeon just wanted to try the food, mentally judge it, and then go home to anson.

"come on, junmyeon, getting to know some other chefs would be good for you," sehun said, pushing junmyeon to the area where all the chefs seemed to have been migrating to. they stared at junmyeon, all of them looking at him in jealousy. junmyeon stuck out like a sore thumb, being far too pretty and young with the elder chefs who were clad in fine dresses and suits. he was actually going to kill sehun for leaving his awkward ass alone with these people.

"so, what're you guys talking about?" junmyeon asked nervously. an older man, maybe around 40 ish years old, spoke up.

"kid, is a pop tart a giant ravioli?" he asked. junmyeon scoffed, shaking his head at the idiotic question.

"no, of course not. is a calzone."

enraged gasps and some cheers followed, calzone and giant ravioli people splitting off into two different groups. junmyeon found that the chefs he was paired with were actually quite pleasant, just a bit boring. he knew them all by name, of course, keeping up with who his competition was, but he had never really met any of them before. the man that asked him the ravioli question quickly became his best friend in the group. turns out his name was park doyun, and he had been in the food game since before junmyeon even knew how to talk. he was actually fifty five, so he looked pretty young for his age. eventually the two broke away from the rest of the group.

"oh, thank god, i thought i was gonna have to drone on and on with the boring people," doyun huffed, junmyeon letting out a little laugh in return. they made their way over the champagne table, speaking quickly about different dishes that they loved to make.

"so, any business plans?" doyun asked junmyeon, the younger grabbing a glass of champagne and handing it to him before going to reach for another. just when he was about to grab it, another hand fell on top of his. he stared for a second at the arm.

i know that bracelet.

junmyeon paled, hand flying away from the champagne flute as if it were suddenly burning, begging god that when he looked up, it wouldn't be who he thought it was. yet it seemed the world was against him as he slowly looked to the person, world stopping around him as he made eye contact with none other than zhang yixing.

"my apologies," yixing said, voice dark as he stared at junmyeon, "i hadn't realized that you were going for this one."

yeah, right.

junmyeon just stared wide-eyed, looking like a deer caught in headlights as he just stood there, not daring to break eye contact. yixing stared at him, eyes somber with none of that happy glint that he used to hold in the hazels of his eyes. junmyeon literally felt like his heart stopped, finally snapped out of his trance as doyun placed a hand on junmyeon's shoulder.

"are you alright, junmyeon?" he asked. junmyeon immediately coerced a smile, letting out a breath he didn't know he was holding.

"yes, i'm fine," junmyeon said, grabbing another champagne flute before quickly turning on his heel, "we were discussing business plans, yes?"

and so junmyeon and doyun walked off, leaving yixing to stand there at the champagne table, staring at junmyeon's retreating figure. he reminded himself to breathe, sucking in a deep breath in the same way he used to when he was nineteen. but he was older now, more mature and not quite as naive. junmyeon was a trap. and he wouldn't fall into it, not again.

he swiftly turned around, only to see sehun. he forced a smile.

"yes, you have my blessing to date luhan. no bridges were burnt between us when junmyeon left me," yixing said, reminding himself that junmyeon left him. the breakup wasn't mutual, it left him with a hole in his heart that wouldn't ever heal. he would not fall in love again. love was a sham, and he knew that now. sehun smiled.

"oh, great. that's all i wanted to talk to you about," sehun said, "but, now that i'm here, how has the company been?"

"successful," yixing said shortly, "you know it has been. look anywhere and you'll see my idol friends on front pages and websites. you knew it. you don't need to pretend not to know. tell me, has he been... happy?"

"without you, you mean?" sehun asked, smile falling off his face as his eyes turned a little sad, "has he been happy now that you're gone?"

the words stung, even if they were just the truth, "yes. has he been happy without me... he's moved on, hasn't he?"

"yixing, we're friends. and since i will be dating your younger brother, i don't want there to be an awkward distance between us," sehun said, "we're still the same people, even if we are richer and more famous. and so i don't want to bullshit with you. with you, he was the happiest i ever saw him. he hasn't moved on, but you know that. you can see it in his eyes. he's happy, but he will always be happier with you."

yixing shook his head, feeling like someone was stabbing him a million times, "not what i needed to hear. couldn't have you just told me he moved on, that he never thinks of me? at least being forgotten would have hurt less than knowing there's a chance you can never take."

"you know, yixing ge," sehun said, sipping from his champagne, "success looks good on you. but you looked better with him. i know you're the same person that you were five years ago deep down. it's a nice facade you put on, but it doesn't fool me."

yixing let out a chuckle, shaking his head.

"you see, sehun, that's where you're wrong. i'm not the same person, you know why?" yixing asked.

"why?" sehun inquired, wanting to see what he said. yixing's eyes hardened, closing off any emotion. sehun noticed the drastic difference, squaring his shoulders in an attempt to seem taller. but yixing towered over him as he did everyone, even those who were taller than he himself.

"because he fucking broke me."