002|

First Impression

Soft, satin sheets, rubbing against bare legs. The smell of cologne, not too strong, and not too little, lingering about. Kyungsoo couldn't ask for nothing more in the world at the moment. 

His bed had never felt this comfortable before. Breathing in deep, he was just about to stretch his arms and expect the smell of breakfast, but stopped when he felt a splitting pain in his head. 

"Wha-" Kyungsoo was yet to open his eyes, and stood up on his palms to try and ease the pain. This only made it worse, causing him to let out a cry of pain as the ache shot through his head and towards his whole body. 

The pain triggered his eyelids to open, and at that moment, he came to realize that he wasn't in his room at all. The room was much more luxurious than his room could ever be. The bed he lay in was enormous, and the furniture surrounding it was minimalistic. The large windows barely brought in any sunlight, and mostly collected snow that was already floating into the sky as the gentle wind traveled them. Kyungsoo stared out the window at the beautiful sight, briefly forgetting his current situation. 

When the young boy was brought back to his senses when the ache in his head welcomed itself back, he cringed and went limp back into the awaiting pile of pillows behind him. 

"Ugh.." Kyungsoo groaned while pinching at his hair with all five fingers. He was bound with mass confusion. A glass of water sounded absolutely godly to him, but he had no idea where he was. Curious, Kyungsoo struggled to get himself out of bed, and when he did, his feet were met with the cold floor beneath. He wasn't very affected by it, but it wasn't pleasing either. 

Staying very quiet, he crept to the nearby doorway that was seemingly his only way out of the room, peeping his little head through to look to the other side. 

The room was definitely larger than his. It was occupied by the same style furniture, but on the bed was a rather large figure, their gender unidentifiable. Whoever it was, they were in a deep sleep, obvious by the loud snoring. Kyungsoo was too afraid to wake them up, but he wasn't sure where he was. He couldn't just kindly wait until whoever the person sleeping was woke up, that could've been hours. 

"E-Excuse me.." Kyungsoo stammered, his feet softly touching the floor, hand partly stretched out to tap the sleeping stranger. As soon as finger came in contact with blanket, the movement of the mysterious person turning from calm and collected to startled and choppy. Along with their jump also came a masculine yelp of surprise, Kyungsoo concluding that the person in bed was a male. His discovery was yet to be acknowledged, as he became equally afraid at the other's reaction and flew back with a cry, stumbling backwards into nothing, causing him to fall backwards onto the cold, unforgiving floor. 

"What..?" The boy in bed mumbled in a raspy voice, using his arms to lift his robust and tanned body up, only to have it fall back down onto the white sheets in exhaustion.

"Who are you?!" Kyungsoo cried, too much in pain to get back onto his feet. The tanned individual swiftly turned his attention from his interrupted sleep to the tiny boy sitting on the floor with a look of desperation. They gazed into each other's eyes for quite a while, until the stranger finally spoke. 

"..I feel like trash right now." His large hand was rubbing his face in weariness.

Kyungsoo narrowed his eyes. 

"Who are you?!" He asked again, on the verge of crying. The other didn't look all too suspicious, but it was too early to judge. 

"Calm down, okay?" The boy gruffly stated, beginning to strain himself from getting out of bed. 

"No! How can I be calm?!"

"J-Just-" He clumsily knocked over a glass of water beside the nightstand, a quiet  following the shards of the material scattering about the wooden surface and water forming a wide puddle. "-God dammit." His voice was raised in frustration of being so oblivious. 

"Get me out of here!" Kyungsoo shouted in high octaves that he didn't know he could reach before. He was about to call for help, but was rudely interrupted. 

"Shh!" The larger male ordered, his eyes wide. "I'm not going to hurt you, for 's sake!"

"Don't come any closer!" Kyungsoo demanded, growing angrier from the others sudden profanity. Unsure of what to do, he helplessly skid back into the other room, and slammed the door hurriedly to make sure that the stranger couldn't intrude. Much to his luck, there was a lock on the door to ensure his safety for the remaining seconds of his life before the other boy came raging in to kill him; as he assumed. 

Panting uncontrollably, Kyungsoo tried to calm down by finding a cozy corner to hide in. This was a life and death situation to him. How did he end up here? He least expected the person in bed to be someone he wasn't familiar with, to full honesty, hence the reason why he became so troubled in seeing him. It was difficult to trust someone you found sleeping in the room beside you, the room that you've never seen before. 

This is so wrong. 

The small boy swallowed and ran his fingers through his dark hair to think of a plan as mere seconds passed. The only door in the room led to the other room the mysterious man occupied, so that wasn't an option. 

The window. 

Kyungsoo darted up as quietly as possible, and bolted to the large window. Though it was snowing, it was still clear enough to see a good twenty feet in front of you. Unfortunately, looking down, they seemed to be miles up from the ground, Kyungsoo's only way of escape. 

"Open the door please." A low, yet young voice came from the other side of the door, the voice belonging to none other than the tan individual. Kyungsoo frantically searched through the floor in process of producing another plan. 

"Go away!" He cried. A of luck barely brushed him when the doe-eyed boy discovered his cell phone in the pockets of his pants that were resting on the wooden tile floor. Pressing the button on the side, the screen lighted up, but only so dimly that it was almost impossible to see. 

On the top right corner of the device was a nearly empty bar that read '2%' beside it, a millimeter of a red line occupying the pixelated battery container. Kyungsoo felt himself breaking down inside, as he went through his contacts to find the one he could trust most with his life- Byun Baekhyun. 

"Kid, I'm not a bad person! If I was so bad, then why would I buy you a room at an expensive hotel?"

His complaints were ignored easily, and after a few moments of suspension, Kyungsoo heard the beloved voice of his best friend on the other line. 

"Kyungsoo!"

"Baekhyun! I really need your help right now! I think-"

"Where have you been?! I spent all night looking for you!"

"B-Baekhyun, my phone is going to die, so please-"

"Do you have any idea how worried your parents were? I had to lie to them."

"I'm sorry, just please help me. I woke up in a random room and another guy is here, I don't know who he is but he might be trying to-"

Then the call cut off. 

Kyungsoo listened in horror as his phone played the haunting ring everytime it was fully drained of its power, and watched the phone logo animate across the screen before going completely black. He has just lost his only sure way out of this dilemma. 

"A-Are you calling someone?!" The stranger asked, terrified. "Don't tell me you called the police!"

The police would've been a much better option. They could've tracked down my phone, and got you where you belong. 

"G-get away from me.." Kyungsoo whimpered while pushing himself away from the door to find support of the bed. He hoped that the information he gave Baekhyun was enough to disclose his location, leading him to safety. 

"Just open the door. I'm not going to hurt you."

"Liar! I'm not stupid!" 

"Open the door, God dammit! How hard is it for you?"

"I want to go home!!"

There was a brief silence. 

"You need to open the door first." The stranger sternly said, letting his grip loose from the doorknob. "That's your only way home."

He was right. Kyungsoo's room wasn't a magical room that could fly anywhere he wanted. 

"W-What are you going to do to me?"

The scoff heard from the other side almost made him embarrassed.

"Okay. I'm going to go to the other end of the room. I'll yell for you to come out, and you'll know I'm far when I yell. Then you can unlock the door."

Kyungsoo couldn't agree anymore with the plan. After a few seconds of no talking, he heard the okay to go back and unlock the door. It took a few hesitant moments, but when the tan boy's voice was clearly distant, he found the courage to unlock it slowly, keeping close to his original room. His head only stuck out to see that the stranger kept his promise, and was standing against the wall with his arms held behind his back. 

"H-Hello." The smaller greeted, almost too quietly. 

"You're a handful, you know that?"

All of a sudden, Kyungsoo managed to take advantage of this moment and make a run for the door that was seemingly his exit, not even realizing how stupid his initial decision was. It was so close to his door, that it only took a few hard steps to have his shaking hand grab the doorknob like it was only his life source, twisting it open and greeting the elegant hallway. The heavy door slammed behind him before he heard a confused shout from the other, only scaring him more. 

Kyungsoo mentally cursed himself for his idiot choice, thinking over the many reasons why he did so. One; he wasn't familiar with his surroundings, especially the fact that whatever building he was in was absolutely enormous and had only so many hallways to go through. Any of them could've led to a dead end. Two; he was lacking his everyday resources. He had left his phone inside the room, like an idiot, and the only clothes covering him were boxer shorts and a dress shirt. Shoes weren't even on, and Kyungsoo knew the weather outside all too well. 

Whatever. It's way too late to go back. 

The lost boy helplessly searched throughout the halls as fast as he could, in fear of the stranger catching up to him. He slowed down when he knew that turning different corners could make him invisible to the mysterious man if he went searching for him. Much to his luck, Kyungsoo was met with an array of elevators, shining a metaphorical light on him like he had just struck gold. Mentally smiling to himself (mainly because physically smiling triggered his hangover to a painful extent), Kyungsoo instantly hit the glossy 'down' button. The metal doors slid open surprisingly early, with no occupants inside, and the doe-eyed boy took this chance to slide inside and shut the doors immediately upon entering. The button that read the letter 'L' for lobby was pushed harshly, telling the elevator to move down. 

He probably looked so strange; hair disheveled, dark circles on his translucent skin, and barely clothed, obvious with his white legs literally exposed for the world to see along with small patches of hair that he occasionally missed when shaving for unknown reasons. Of course Kyungsoo was embarrassed, but he couldn't even imagine going back to the room just to get back into his clothes. To him, this was a matter of life and death to him as said before, and like most people, he was desperate to survive. 

His only hope at this point was Baekhyun. Telling him that he woke up in a random room with someone else was enough information, right? Baekhyun had to suspect that he was still at the hotel. 

Ding. 

Kyungsoo whipped his head upwards from looking at his bare feet and saw the nostalgic hotel lobby lay out before him as the doors opened. He cautiously stepped out, trying to avoid anyone seeing him and reporting him for public , and began to think of his next plan.

If the people at the reception desk see me, they'll keep me under watch until someone is able to take me back. The only person compatible is that stranger from earlier. 

I can't take any chances with him. I should just hide. 

Hide where, you idiot? This is a hotel, not home. I don't see a random hamper for me to climb into. 

The bathroom. I can hide in there. 

Kyungsoo lightly tip-toed out of the elevator and searched around. Good thing it was morning- the place wasn't crowded enough for him to be seen by a lot of people. 

And there it was-

The loo. The John. The porcelain throne. Whatever most people addressed it as, Kyungsoo saw it as heaven. He had never been so happy upon seeing the restrooms and their gender labels displayed on the oh-so beautiful doors that hid his safety behind them. 

Jackpot. 

Kyungsoo was honestly quite surprised. He had gotten so far already, from the hotel room to the lobby restrooms, locked in a stall to shield himself from the terrifying future that waited outside for him. He would only be exposed to them if he stepped out, which he couldn't think of doing so at this point. He was a sitting duck. 

Heart seconds away from pounding out of his chest and running off, the young boy huddled up onto the toilet seat so that his feet weren't against the floor, visible to anyone who walked in. How long did he have to wait now? 

That stranger couldn't just search for him everywhere. He had to give up eventually, especially the fact that they didn't know each other's names, to say the least. Kyungsoo had no significance in the other's life, and it was the same way around. 

I swear, if Baekhyun doesn't do something about this right now, I'm going to rid him off all his favorite stuffed animals. I'm going to burn them and stomp around in their ashes like there's no tomorrow. 

Kyungsoo was in the stall for quite some time. Every now and then, someone would walk in making the boy jump, but it was never the tan stranger, and unfortunately it was never Baekhyun. Until he realized something very important. 

If Baekhyun were to arrive back at the hotel, he wouldn't go looking for him in the bathroom. He's not weird enough for that. After searching and coming back unsuccessful, Baekhyun would probably just leave and make a police report. That would be both wasteful and embarrassing. 

After thinking it through, Kyungsoo knew he couldn't stay inside forever. Sighing heavily and hitting himself on the head multiple times for getting himself into such a mess, he unlocked the stall door as quietly as possible. No one was inside, and he took this advantage to step out if the restrooms and scanned his surroundings. It was still empty because of the early hours, but there was nowhere to stay without being seen. 

He wasn't stark , holding a neon sign that said 'kick me' on it, but he still couldn't accept the risk. Discovering a large-leafed plant just behind one of the thick pillars lining the lobby symmetrically, he stealthily (or so he thought) slid behind it, hidden from anyone who was present in the lobby. Only if one were to inspect the plant carefully they would notice him, but the possibility of that happening was very unlikely. 

5 minutes. 10 minutes. 20 minutes. Kyungsoo was beginning to feel dizzy from dehydration, until his day got suddenly better. 

Looking at the glass entrance of the hotel, the golden-haired bundle of joy came rushing on with the most bothered expression on his usually cheery face. His hair was undone but his outfit made up for it, and Kyungsoo watched him approach the reception desk with hopeful eyes. 

It was difficult to make it what they were saying, but Baekhyun clearly wasn't happy and the woman he was speaking to was equally irritated, probably by his presence. Now all Kyungsoo needed was a way to get his attention. 

"Baekhyun!" He called out, stretching his neck from behind the plant to try and get a better view of the one person that can get him out safely. His first attempt went dry. 

"Baekhyun!!" Kyungsoo strained his voice slightly so that he could be heard more easily. It worked like a charm. His friend turned in that direction, pausing his bickering with the woman, his eyes growing wide. Pure overjoy was filling up inside him as he approached the plant, arms stretched outward. 

"Do Kyungsoo, I seriously thought someone killed you!" He cried, pulling Kyungsoo in for a hug. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Just get me home and I'll explain everything." Kyungsoo sighed in relief for being able to communicate with someone he could trust. Baekhyun nodded instantly, and began to shed out of his jacket. 

"Here, wear this. I don't know what to do about those." He pointed at the bare feet Kyungsoo wore with shame and held in a laugh. "You look like you have a lot of explaining to do."

"Shut up! Let's go, time is running out."

"Time for what? You're not being chased by some deranged killer."

Kyungsoo bit his lip at the irony of that statement, but shook it off. He was too exhausted to explain to his friend why he was nearly unclothed and had nothing resourceful with him. But he was at least happy that Baekhyun didn't flip out and demand answers. 

The two then walked from behind the plant, earning a few strange looks from the employees. Kyungsoo was huddled comfortably into the warmth of Baekhyun's parka until the strangest yet most familiar voice echoed throughout the high ceilings of the building. 

"Hey! Kid!!"

Kyungsoo recognized the voice as the one that had been tormenting him all morning. He clutched onto the parka and just before Baekhyun was about to turn his head to search for the source of the commotion, Kyungsoo stopped him. 

"D-Don't look back. Walk faster!" The smaller grabbed Baekhyun's arm and bolted out the doors with sweat beading along his hairline, despite how cold it was both inside the building and out. He caught the sight of Baekhyun's car just beside the sidewalk and was grateful for it being parked so close. 

"Is that the guy??" The older asked in confusion as he climbed into the driver's seat as Kyungsoo climbed into the passenger. They looked back at the double doors and saw that the tan boy had slowed down, an anxious look ridden on his face as he gazed at the car. In his arms were Kyungsoo's clothes from the night before and his cell phone. Kyungsoo came to notice that he was limping, but he didn't show any sign of struggle before stopping to strain.

"Baekhyun, go!!" Kyungsoo cried out, becoming more nervous after seeing the stranger's face. 

"B-But isn't that your stuff? You should-"

"Go!!!"

All words spoken were put at a halt as the car revved into the start of a sudden jolt, pushing the two young boys back into the seats with extreme force before subsiding. 

"Kyungsoo, you are in so much trouble." Baekhyun stated, shaking his head and panting from the run he wasn't prepared for. "What are you going to tell your parents?"

"Didn't you say you lied to them!?"

"I told them that you ran into an old friend and decided to catch up overnight. Now tell me, who the hell was that?"

Kyungsoo pressed his back against the car seat and tried to regain his focus. His eyes were closed and his breath was steady. 

"I-I just woke up, and he was in the room beside mine. He startled me, so I ran back into my room to find way out. He said that he'll walk to the other side of his room so it's safe for me to come out and clear confusion, but I guess I just couldn't handle it."

The older friend worringly turned to him and frowned. 

"How did you get out then?"

"I ran. I ran out the door when I knew he was too far too grab me. The room was big." Kyungsoo felt like he was being interrogated. 

"Do you.." Baekhyun paused himself for a brief moment before continuing. "Do you think he-"

"Don't say that!" Kyungsoo instantly knew where the direction of his question was going, and stopped it before he could break down like an idiot at the thought. He kept his eyes glued to the white winter outside to filter his mind. 

"But what if he did?! You have to do something about it!"

"I don't know if he did or not."

Baekhyun sighed. That was true. They had no proof and they didn't even know the stranger's whereabouts, any less his own name. Trying to convict him was downright useless. 

"What are you going to say to your parents wearing nothing but a shirt and boxers?"

Kyungsoo turned to face the driver, and rolled his eyes. 

"Take me to the store."

~

Word count: 3631

Revised