what if?

/ * it took me a long time to realize that not everything in life is meant to be a beautiful story. not every person we feel something deep and moving with is meant to make a home within us, is meant to be a forever. sometimes, people come into our lives to teach us how to love; and sometimes, people come into our lives to teach us how not to love. how not to settle, how not to shrink ourselves ever again. yes, sometimes people leave-but that's okay, because their lessons always stay, and that is what matters. that is what remains.

[bexiaoli]

hello all! i have been here for two seconds and i already come presenting a second muse! if we haven't had the pleasure of meeting, my name is CHY, and i present to you my angsty pretty son, XIANG XIAOLI! he is 21 YEARS OLD, and currently is attending yonsei university with a major in economics and political science & diplomacy all while working as a waiter at popular lil eatery. he has a complicated backstory, and overall now is just trying to find his way and regain his love for music. he is charismatic and flirty and goofy but also angsty and stubborn. below i a going to throw in some plot idea maybe we can work off. i made a small PLOT page for him that has some basic ideas for bigger plots.. for now, here is a link to his PROFILE and BIOGRAPHY if you want to read that. also his PINTEREST if you like that stuff. please feel free to like this if you want to plot, or just message me at discord C.H.Y. or on here!

friends! while he can be messy, he is a good friend, who enjoys spending time with others and having that found family vibe

he is someone who is afraid of true commitment for a lot of reasons but he enjoys sex, so general reoccurring hook ups, friend’s with benefits, random one night stands, people he makes out with sober or in questionable state of intoxicated

people who come into the restaurant where he works frequently so they maybe build a relationship from there

xiaoli previously trained before so if you have a muse who previously trained, maybe it was the same company

gym buddies! he works out regularly and takes care of his body

fellow yonsei university attendees or people who study similar things. he hates his majors and needs motivation to study or do his assignments, so they can suffer together

he attended an international school in high school but i definitely feel like he was dragged out to social things enough to have outside friends

others who are also from china, he misses home a lot sometimes and wishes for any connection back to that

exes mayhaps

i open to hear any ideas anyone might have!

[jueunbe]

at xiaoil's response, jueun couldn't stop herself from giving him a hard slap on the back. "and yet, you're here, aren't you? so just hurry up and follow me," she said with a huff. there were a couple of other people she could've done this challenge with.

however, as much as she didn't want to admit it, she was pretty sure that she would have the most fun attending waterbomb with xiaoli anyway, which is why she's been pestering him to participate in the challenge video with her. he was tall, handsome, and while she hasn't seen him dance before, she's quite sure he'll be able to follow along. there was a big chance of them winning those free tickets in jueun's opinion.

"okay, okay," she responded before slowly showing him the moves. it was wild to think that a couple of months ago, she was the one learning moves from someone else but now she was the one teaching them. "did you get it?"

[bexiaoli]

"hey!" xiaoli feigned fake offence as he received the smack to his back, doing his best to contort his body away for jueun's incoming hand, but failing to avoid it. "yeah, because it's not like you to leave me the hell alone once you have a bright idea."

waterbomb didn't sound terrible also, and while he spent a lot of time complaining about jueun, he also enjoyed spending time with her. when training, he wouldn't describe himself as a terrible dancer, but it wasn't his forte, or something he was particularly skilled in. the challenge was simple enough however, so xiaoli didn't doubt he'd have issue with it.

xiaoli watched as jueun showed him the dance. that, along with having seen some videos on tiktok, he felt confident. "yeah i think so," he nodded in agreement. "just let me run through it once or twice first before we film it."

[jueunbe]

✦ . ˚ — @bexiaoli

"come on! where else are you going to use your pretty face and body for, huh?"

it had taken a bit of convincing, but jueun had finally gotten xiaoli to agree to take the challenge with her for the chance of winning free tickets to this year's waterbomb. she had always wanted to attend but found herself too busy around the time of the year.

now, however, she had the time and the friends in seoul to accompany her. "the moves aren't even that hard. i'll teach you and if you still suck after like an hour, we'll just have you take your shirt off." truly, she wasn't going to take no for an answer at this point.

"do you want to stretch a bit before your start? don't want any of your long limbs getting hurt now, do you?" with that, she let out a snort before chuckling to herself. it was all said in a teasing manner, and jueun was looking forward to seeing how xiaoli would follow along.

[bexiaoli]

once again, xiaoli found himself in a situation he would not have been in if left to his own devices. alas, here he was, with jueun at the center of the chaos. she never seemed to be far from it. "anywhere but here, preferably," xiaoli retorted.

he knew what waterbomb was, had friend who attended, but he'd never dragged himself into the festivities. honestly, xiaoli didn't plan on it this year either. though, he wondered how long it would be until jueun was asking (more like telling, but he'd give her the benefit of the doubt) him to attend with her.

xiaoli feigned offensive at the mention of solving any issue of him not being good at this challenge by taking his top off. "i dance just fine, thank you!" even having been removed from the trainee life for many months, he was in that space for years. like she said, it wasn't challenging, he'd be fine.

he didn't hesitate to repeat the comment to her in a mocking tone, the way a brother would to his sister. "just show me the dance, brat," the teasing never ceased with them. "the faster i learn, the faster this is over with."

[bexiaoli]

xiaoli gets interviewed against his will

if he had seen the interviewer coming, xiaoli would have moved into the crowd to avoid them. but before he knew it, there was a camera pointed at him, and a man requesting to ask him a few questions. no didn't seem to be an acceptable answer as he initially tried to move away. it didn't seem like he had much of a choice but to stand there and listen to whatever questions might be asked of him.

“do you think it’s possible to have physical affection before you date someone?”

"yes?" xiaoli didn't intend for the answer to come out with such a questioning tone, but it did, alas. this wasn't his first time in public with a camera pointed at him, he didn't know why he answered that way. "for example, i hug my friends constantly. some of my friends like kissing cheeks, and stuff like that. it's not always romantic, but it happens. if it feels right, i don't see why someone can't have physical affection before they date."

“what do you consider ‘dating’?”

that question felt stupid. "i consider it dating once you have agreed to be partners. just doing out on dates and getting to know each other isn't dating," he shared his opinion. it felt clear cut. both parties on the same page, someone asked them to be their partner, it's all very clear in his mind.

“how would you ask someone that you’re seeing to be your boyfriend/girlfriend?”

was he allowed to say he didn't know? xiaoli never put this much thought into asking someone out. he just did it. sure, he tried to make it special somehow, but there was nothing elaborate to it. "i try to make sure it's private," he began. that was simple. 'i think something like that is just for the two involved in the potential relationship. i'd probably ask in the middle of a date or us hanging out. simple but special for us."

[bexsua]

if she could go back into time, sua would— make herself not take a step and accidentally collide, avoid confrontation all together and play dumb and go about her day. it’d save her the awkward and guilty feeling in her gut.

sua rubs her arm, shifting in her spot and looking at anywhere other than xiaoli. at least not in the eye, shame holding her hostage.

nodding her head to his explanation, she glances back towards the vendor. “might as well, then.” she comments, mouth quirking up slightly. “it seems to be pretty popular, so maybe it is the place to be?” sua shrugs.

silence settles. someone moves out of their way in front and sua takes another half step forward, watching the small crowd diminish slowly. “been awhile,” she says, stilted and probably not as genuine as she’d like it to sound.

it’s funny, sua can make quips and easy conversation under the influence of a drink and easy vibes. it’s what makes people want to be around her on the first place— and then everything else comes out. the nitty and the gritty; and once you see the aftermath of the supernova that is sua, she can only stand in the wake of her damage and learn to adapt.

“you, uh.” sua clears her throat. she’s never been great at this, always able to respond but never to start. “you look well.”

[bexiaoli]

when it came to dating, xiaoli wouldn't describe his history with it as long. there were a few short-term things here and there, not much major. even if most things weren't super serious, he found that they rarely ended nicely and calmly, and he couldn't say the end with sua was any different. and like all the times before, he chose not to interact afterwards, keep his distance.

it was easier.

he found himself initially only nodding along to the comment made about the popularity of this vendor. small talk wasn't his best asset either after all these years. he really should be a pro at this.

"thank you," he accepted the compliment easily. normal was capable here. "you don't look half bad yourself. what brought you out?"

[beclaudine]

claudine is confident in her acting skills, always has been. sure, she was born into it—but she dedicated a lot of her soul into the stageplays she was a part of ever since she could remember. spending most of her life a part of a theatre troupe, she wouldn't forgive herself if she was just mediocre. even now, as a student in k-arts, she's still putting her all into acting. so it's no surprise than even this strange fake dating thing she's doing with xiaoli, she's putting a lot of effort into.

it all started out because she'd seen how stressed xiaoli looks, pressured by his parents. how they fawned over her as the perfect 'romantic prospect', because of her luxurious demeanour and regal mannerisms. she felt bad, and offered to act like his girlfriend here and there whenever he needs it—she's confident she'll be able to pull off the performance, anyway. and xiaoli isn't someone she dislikes spending time with, which makes it easier too.

"i was thinking of getting something... rockstar related, for my brother. maybe a vintage t-shirt, with one of those bands he might like." admittedly, she doesn't know a lot about rock bands in the first place, but she can ask around. "help me keep an eye out for that, please?" she sighs, slinging an arm around xiaoli's casually. what she's doing isn't out of place, seeing as how there are a lot of other couples surrounding them too.

"we should probably take a selfie together, your parents would get off your back for a while if we post a few couple photos and upload them to your instagram." it's an off-handed suggestion, but it isn't necessary. "we don't have to, but if you do, we can do that later. right now, we should actually enjoy ourselves!" she offers the other a smile. "what about you, anything you're looking for?"

[bexiaoli]

xiaoli had long since found some sort of common ground with his parents where he did many of the things they wanted him to do, but he went about it in his own manner. he attended the required events as requested, but frequently dipped early from them or only interacted with his friends and didn't pay any mind to others around him. it worked out nicely, this weird compromise.

it didn't stop their demands.

when his parents at met claudine, he wasn't shocked to viewed her as a nice potential match for him, she was a nice girl. xiaoli wasn't interested in her, but she was cool. that didn't stop his parents bringing it up whenever she happened to be around. they had worked out something nice, to keep his mom and dad off his back at lest a little bit. she showed up every once in a while on his arm, they thought they were dating, and then he only sometimes got hounded about marriage. it worked, and he could continue on peacefully.

"vintage t-shirts...i can look for those," he nodded in agreement, easily able to see over the crowds at the stalls around them at least. pictures...his hunt was distracted by the mention of pictures. "yeah...we can take some to send them later. they asked about you the other night at dinner," he mentioned. they asked about her every time they spoke.

"nothing in particular, really? just looking and seeing if anything jumps out."

[eunbinbe]

"no, i just wanted to see what kind of discounts they were holding. it is a pretty big sale, though," she admits with a chuckle before picking up some sort of stationary set. eunbin's not entirely sure what it is, but it's cute. that's how she would describe a good number of these stores.

letting out a hum, she looked up at xiaoli, wondering how she could make this slight awkwardness go away. "how about this? do you want to pick something out for one another? it could be like the most random thing ever! for example, i was eyeing one of those wooden pens over there that i think would look really cute. you can use them for when you take notes during class!"

it was a random suggestion, yes, but she thinks it'd be more fun than just walking around with nothing specific to talk about. plus, it didn't seem like xiaoli was much of a talker anyway. perhaps this way, they wouldn't be standing here in complete silence.

[bexiaoli]

xiaoli would be crazy not to recognize the privilege in life he had with his family's bank accounts. they were set for life. he had no reason to need discounts, but they were always nice to receive. he would never say no to saving some money. he nodded in agreement, looking at the set in eunbin's hands to assess it for himself. was there anything he needed?

he perked up some when he heard eunbin begin to suggest something, even if he gave her a curious look as she explained. buy each other a random gift, essentially? it sounded interesting. "i do like a good pen for my notes," he joked softly, even if it was lame. "i'm into it," xiaoli agreed with her.

no harm in fun shopping for a new friend, especially when he liked to shower his closest friend's with nice things.

[eunbinbe]

˙ ˖ ✧ — @bexiaoli

"what are you looking for anyway?"

frankly, xiaoli was one of the last people eunbin expected to be doing some shopping with, but she happened to catch her schoolmate amongst the crowd and couldn't let him be alone. plus, shopping was always a little more fun with some company, right?

the most they've ever done is have a few conversations here and there on campus and with some mutual friends between them. eunbin thinks this is the first time they're hanging out with just the two of them, but it's a great opportunity to make a new friend.

"almost everything is on sale though, so i guess whatever you're looking for, today would be a good chance to buy it," she says with a shrug. she wasn't interested in the web variety show whatsoever, but the discounts that came along with it were sweet.

[bexiaoli]

xiaoli found himself shrugging in response as his eyes scanned over the stalls. he really wasn't entirely sure why he was here to begin with. especially when he didn't need anything. the entire situation seemed like fun though, so here he was.

the last thing he expected was to suddenly have eunbin along fo the ride. she was nice, the mutual fiends they shared spoke kindly of her. xiaoli had no issues with her. he was just, admittedly, not great at making new friends.

"i'll see if anything jumps out," he answered before turning to her. "are you looking for anything specific?"

[bexiaoli]

xiaoli and @beclaudine are a couple?

xiaoli had no reason to love discounts as much as he did. his bank account was....comfortably filled, and always had been. he was known to spend his money on those he cared about most, particularly his friends.

but now he was at this event (festival? he wasn't sure), and vendors were offering discounts to couples. it wouldn't have been the first time claudine and he had feigned a relationship for (mostly his) benefit. what was doing so now going to hurt?

"anything standing out to you?" he asked her, looking around at all the stalls set up, trying to see if there was anything that was jumping out to him as well.

[bexsua]

exes. feat. @bexiaoli

sua isn't really paying all that much attention to her surroundings, too focused on reading the board of what the vendor has to offer, frowning in consideration. it doesn't take her long to make a decision, going to step up and right into line-- but she sidesteps, almost knocking into another person with her suddenn hurry to get in line.

"i'm so sorry," sua rushes out, immediately darting back, eyes settling on their face before actual recognition settles. and once it does, sua stares, unblinking. because what are the chances of her running into xiaoli. it feels silly, almost. like she's being pranked. all this talk about relationships and love in the area, and sua's faced with her own failed relationship of sorts. it feels cosmic, like someone is laughing at her somewhere in the universe.

"um." sua blinks back into focus, a strained smile on her face-- awkwardly scratching at her cheek as she shifts in her spot. "hi." she says, because her mind blanks and what the hell is she supposed to say? she hasn't seen him in quite a while, and she knows the ending hadn't been great. it never is, when sua has to have the last word and she's always seething with something. "you were getting in line too?" she asks, adjusting the strap of her bag over her shoulder as she glances around them. "what a. uh. small world, huh."

[bexiaoli]

how he managed to lose his friends so quickly, xiaoli didn't know.

in the endless flood of people visiting vendors, he'd managed to get separated from the few boys he'd come with. xiaoli wasn't too worried, stopping to send a quick text to find out their location so he could reunite with them. in the mean time, he'd look around himself too. it was how he ended up at this particular vendor, moving towards the line while reading their signage.

he expected even less that he'd literally bump into someone he knew. "no, no, i wasn't paying attention," xiaoli quickly got out, hand reaching out in instinct to grab hold of the other's arm to ensure they didn't fall. he didn't think it would be sua staring back at him.

"oh....hey," xiaoli returned, removing his hand from her arm. relationships weren't his strong suite. his parents had a long list of expectations and it wasn't often that xiaoli would himself wanting romantic relationships. the two made for a bad combination. no one needed to be a part of his messy life. "yeah, yeah," he nodded, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his black jeans, trying to figure out the move. should he just leave? they hadn't spoken since they separated, and that wasn't exactly a smooth ending.

"very small. i, uh, lost my friends in the crowd and they haven't texted me back, but this vendor looked cool," he tried to have normal conversation.

[noelxbe]

bexiaoli

it hadn't a difficult adjustment when xiaoli began working at the restaurant. he had been an idol trainee prior to this, use to long hours and hard work. being a server wasn't anymore difficult in his opinion. people were probably nicer to him out here. xiaoli usually found himself working the night shifts due to his school schedule, the dinner hours were easiest for him and his schedule, and he didn't mind it too much honestly. not like he slept at night anyway. there weren't many individuals left as they neared closing time slowly. xiaoli was working on cleaning up after a table had left, getting it wiped down and set up nicely again for whoever happened to sit there next when he heard a question. were they talking to him? xiaoli turned his head to see noel looking at him, seeming to wait for an answer. "me?" he asked, clarifying. he knew the young man as a guest, someone who was always nice to him. quickly xiaoli glanced at his watched. "in like 30 minutes, why?"

noel has always found himself enjoying making new friends, and though becoming a trainee has given him a lot of fellow trainee friends, he hasn’t been making many friends outside of lime entertainment lately. he misses his friend making a bit, and it’s clear to see that, his mouth working faster than his brain, and suddenly he’s decided to ask xiaoli to hang out.

he gives a nod “yeah i’m asking you”, “thirty minutes?” he finds his phone and looks at the clock. “ah i hope this isn’t a too weird question xiaoli” he fiddles with the end of his sleeves “would you wanna hang out when you’re done here?” and then the question has finally been asked, worst case scenario, noel just won’t return to this restaurant, best case scenario, xiaoli will gladly say yes.

[bexiaoli]

xiaoli didn't know how to describe his life nowadays. he wasn't a trainee anymore, which was good. however, he felt so behind others now that he'd went on this side quest that amounted to nothing. he just worked and went to school all day, every day. there was little variation in his day-to-day activities. not that his time before joining an entertainment company was riveting either.

curiously, he listened to noel. "hang out?" xiaoli asked, clarifying he heard the question correctly. he wasn't sure anyone had so boldly and suddenly asked for his presence. this was kind a cool. "yeah, i'm down to hang out if you're okay waiting," he agreed without much thought. it wasn't like he was doing anything. and noel seemed cool.

[jueunbe]

"you say that as if you didn't enjoy it," jueun barks back with a slight roll of her eyes. she recalls the first time she asked xiaoli to take photos of her and how they weren't the best. however, as time passed, it seems he's improved and now he was responsible for a good number of the photos on her instagram.

she shrugs at his question before letting out a chuckle. "i was bored," she says. though she wouldn't admit it out loud, jueun actually didn't have too many friends. it's only been a year since she moved to seoul, and while she made some friends at college, she didn't feel as comfortable around them as xiaoli. it's why she spends so much her time at his place. plus, teasing him is always too much fun.

"it's not like you had anything better to do today anyway, right?" if he did, she thinks he wouldn't be at home right now. and he didn't have anybody over either, so it seems he didn't spend the night out yesterday. "be honest, weren't you bored while i was participating on next gen?"

[bexiaoli]

"i didn't!" while xiaoli wouldn't classify himself as a budding photographer by any means, he could take a damn good photo and wasn't half bad at it. jueun took good photos of him in return and curated his instagram feed. he couldn't be too upset. not that he'd let her know that any time soon.

admittedly, he wouldn't be doing anything with himself that day if jueun wasn't around. most of his days were school or work, and neither of those things were filling his time presently. xiaoli had all the time in the world.

"anything would be better than this," he quipped back easily. their banter never ceased. it was a rare time one of them was simply nice to the other. "no, my life was actually nice and peaceful for the first time in a year. it was fabulous."

[jueunbe]

✦ . ˚ — @bexiaoli

"all those photos you took of me came in handy! i knew how to present myself in front of the cameras for next gen. aren't you proud that you indirectly had something to do with my journey?"

with a chuckle, she jokingly flipped her hair before going back to scrolling through a few comments she's received on her instagram since next gen has aired. she had restrained from posting on her account during the show, and she was still hesitant on posting anything, which meant she's been spending a good portion of her day just hanging out with friends.

xiaoli didn't have much of a choice with her knowing the passcode to his house and all, so he was the poor soul who would have to deal with her today. "oh yeah, i think one of the lights in your kitchen is out. you might want to take a look at that," she said with a shrug before leaning further back into her seat on his couch.

[bexiaoli]

xiaoli couldn't look more unimpressed at jueun's initial comment. "you mean the photos i was forced to take of you?" he asked. even if he was acting like he didn't care, he was very happy for jueun. that was one of his good friends and she was competing on television. it was kinda cool. while he wouldn't hesitate to tease her, xiaoli was voting diligently for her every week.

a downside (or maybe an upside) or the show was that he hadn't gotten to see jueun in a while. she wasn't barging into his home at all hours of the day or night. sadly, it seemed like that had somewhat returned as suddenly the beeping of his door code was heard and jueun no later appeared.

"did you just come here to be a menace to my existence and bring sorrow to my life?" he asked her. the light in his kitchen was fine. at least he thought so. he'd look into that later when she wasn't there.

[jindallaebe]

the second that xiaoli calls his pecs 'flat and unimpressive', jindallae scoffs at him; the glare he dons purposely overdramatic. "if you think these are 'flat and unimpressive', then..." he pauses, then flexes the muscles in question; the tautness of his compression tank accentuating them rather beautifully. what's killing him is the gym's horrible lighting. "you're bullshitting and you know it, dude. you'd totally motorboat me." then, when his backside is brought into question, his glare only intensifies. "so, you're telling me that i'm putting all this work into my body and i have nothing to show for it? i don't skip leg day... unlike you. you're the definition of chicken legs."

this is how they are. most of their conversations devolve into petty arguments and half-baked insults, but for some reason, it never, ever gets boring. it's a language that both of them understand; one that they both speak so fluently that it's textbook to them. jindallae's just glad that their senses of humor are so harmonious. it's refreshing to not have to feel afraid to be your unadulterated, unapologetic self around someone.

"i'll take your advice, though. i'll keep where i'm at. mindeulle's gonna look even more like a flagpole when he stands next to me now. i feel like i should apologize to him, or something." a devilish laugh escapes him, then he turns back to xiaoli. "did you wanna do some lifting? i can spot you. it'll give me a chance to properly check out your chest." his remark is biting, teasing, and emphasized with a wink.

he won't lie, he's always thought of xiaoli as beautiful. sure, they're both rather tall, broad, and masculine, and that's not normally the type of person jindallae chases after, but there's a specific prettiness to his comrade's face that he's taken note of. he tries not to let his mind linger in the gutter for too long though. he'd never want to make things weird. "you should work on your arms a little more. you're starting to be kind of shoulder-heavy, which isn't a bad look, but."

[bexiaoli]

xiaoli couldn't help the immediate and playful eyeroll that followed jindallae's comments. his friend was a menace. "i wouldn't motorboat you we were the last two people on earth." it never seemed to stop with the two of them. "maybe my legs are skinny, yet, how many times have i caught you staring at my ass?"

the banter was refreshing. even if they never let up on one another, it was still light and not serious. if the other had a problem with what was being said, they could address it with ease.

while they didn't visit the gym together all the time, sometimes going long periods without a trip together, they were never boring. the two spent a majority of the time teasing, but also pushing the other to do better, more. it was beneficial in many ways. "i think mindeulle has accepted his status as the flag pole twin," xiaoli teased. he had his own history with the other twin as well, and considered him a good friend as well.

"you're just scarred my shoulders look better than yours," xiaoli teased as he went about getting the weight adjusted on the bar for his own reps, before laying down on the bench and getting a good grip on the bar, proceeding to begin his repetitions. he was at serious risk for a taste of his own medicine in this position.

[undrthewllcw]

@bexiaoli

quanzhe was hardly expecting to link up with one of his old friends when he first moved to south korea. he'd been more prepared to know no one and struggle making friends around the language barrier. but fate had a funny way of bringing the people that quanzhe needed back into his life at the right time.

so it hadn't taken him very long after moving to south korea to run into xiaoli again. and quanzhe had of course immediately clung on to him being that he was the first familiar person that quanzhe had seen. it had also helped that xiaoli spoke the same language as quanzhe during a time when quanzhe didn't know much korean.

so even though quanzhe was more fluent in korean and had more friends now he would always make time for xiaoli. first because xiaoli was his friend from childhood and second because xiaoli had been there for him during a time when quanzhe had struggled immensely.

they were on one of their regular coffee dates, or rather quanzhe had called up xiaoli and begged him to come try out this new cafe that had opened up as he did rather regularly. so quanzhe liked to think of it as their standing coffee date.

"so what's been happening with you, lili gege?" quanzhe asked in mandarin as he sat down with the two drinks that he'd just gotten from the barista. "i feel like i've been talking non-stop about me me me. i want to hear about you too." quanzhe had been rattling on earlier about rude customers at his job who had gotten angry with him for having an accent. a very animated little rant as quanzhe was wont to do. even now he couldn't quite leave it at one question. "aren't you glad i made you come out? this little cafe is so cute."

[bexiaoli]

the thing about being having parents who were so well connected with other politicians and diplomats of the world was that xiaoli saw some familiar faces when he arrived to south korea. the international school he had attended had many who spoke either mandarin or english, so even if he was learning korean, there was no issue with communication. his move was easy in comparison to many others.

even then, it was nice to suddenly see more familiar faces, people who knew your home and understood your childhood experiences. quanzhe was that. there was a familiarness of home that came alone with the other male, one xiaoli didn't get to experience often.

xiaoli took a small sip from his coffee, testing it out, pleased to find out it was perfectly made and well balanced as he listened to quanzhe. it was usually this way, him listening to the younger. he wasn't much of a talker himself, but he was very good at listening to others and absorbing the information. it was what he preferred. his one talent was being a hermit.

"i like to hear you talk about yourself," xiaoli shared as he set the cup down on the table, comfortably falling into his native language. it never felt like there was much to say about himself, so xiaoli preferred to hear the interesting stories of others. "the cafe is lovely, though. thank you for inviting me," he offered a smile towards his friend. "there really isn't much to say though....i go to work, i go to school, i hang out at home with my cat. it's all boring, really."

[kouxbe]

"i cleared my schedule for you," kou said, walking over to his friend and patting his back in greeting. "it was pretty tight, but i decided to forgo laying in bed, to come hang out with you." it had been a pretty long time since he'd seen xiaoli after all – and there had always been something about xiaoli that kou found interesting.

he paused, and took a good look at his friend. it must've been because of xiaoli's close resemblance to a cat. which reminded him. "ah right, there's a new cat they adopted into the cat cafe," pulling out his phone, he scrolled through his gallery before clicking on an album specifically titled "CATS ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و ♡". "it looks a lot like you hahaha. i almost named it xiaoli, but my manager didn't let me," he said, voice a little lighter as he zoomed into the image of the cat.

placing the phone beside xiaoli's face, kou hummed. "you guys have the same eyebrows. like you're constantly tired. hahaha, that's so cute," clearly, he found amusement in this. "hey, can you make the same expression as this cat here? i want to take a photo, please."

[bexiaoli]

"all for little ol' me?" xiaoli teased the other male with an amused smile on his face. it was nice when friends came to see him at work, gave him something to look forward to. it was hard being the eye candy of the restaurant. maybe he'd regret that feeling after he knew what kou was about to get up to. "i'm so honored."

the resemblance to cats wasn't a new thing for kou to bring up. he wasn't the first but foxes tended to be the more readily made animal comparison that xiaoli heard. of course kou would think the new cat looked exactly like him and he attempted to name said lookalike after him. bless the manager.

xiaoli didn't even get a look at the cat on screen before the screen was next to his face. he craned his neck to get a look at his apparent feline twin. he didn't see it. "constantly tired? i think all that honor from earlier is gone," xiaoli joked, endeared and amusede by his friend's antics nevertheless. "i will not be mimicking a cat, no," xiaoli said, moving to continue cleaning the table he was at. though he had a feeling kou wasn't going to just let it go.

[rihabe]

♥ — NEVER PICK FIGHTS WITH A BIKER GANG

riha likes staying busy. she hasn't ever thought about it long enough to unpack why that is. probably so she doesn't have enough time to think about things for too long.

she's known to say yes to most plans people ask her to be part of, and frequently reach out to random people whose numbers she got somewhere equally random and strike up a conversation, or figure out something fun to do.

xiaoli isn't a random person at this point, having been subject to multiple meet-ups with riha and the original bonding point of both having motorcycles. sometimes they take their bikes out together and have fun driving around seoul, and tonight was a similar instance, now marked with a spontaneous stop to get ice cream.

seoul nights are warming up as summer approaches, but the inside of the ice cream shop is, understandably, a little chilly. riha stares up at the menu. thankfully, there's no one in line behind them, because she knows herself well enough to know deciding on an ice cream flavor may take a while.

she at least decides on a standard cone. when they get up to the counter, though, she takes in the sight of all the varying colored ice creams and feels incredibly torn. "do you know what you're getting?" she asks xiaoli. maybe he can help her decide. she doesn't necessarily want to get the same thing as him, but...at least asking gives her a little more time to deliberate.

♥ — @bexiaoli

[bexiaoli]

the combination of people xiaoli got to call his friends nowadays was interesting. his whole life had been the kids who were just like him: children of politicians or socialites. then they moved to south korea and he decided to train, and his world was expanded so broadly to people from all sorts of backgrounds. it'd been that way since he'd moved on from the unattainable goal.

riha was another one of the people he met somewhat out of nowhere, and had stuck around her. not many people he knew also drove a motorcycle, so it was fun to have the shared interest. it was also nice to have someone to ride with and just have a good time.

surprise ice cream was always a good time.

"hmmm..." xiaoli hummed as he looked over the expansive case filled with every flavor he could think of. did he want something new? fruity? rich? it was difficult to decide. finally his eyes landed on something that intrigued him. " i think i'm gonna get this white chocolate raspberry one," he gestured to the white and red mixture. "sweet and fruity sounds good." now he had to figure out if he wanted a bowl or cone.