if there's no one beside you when you embark,

i'll follow you into the dark 

•••

baekhyun's lips spread into a too-big smile as chanyeol glanced up at him, eyes shining, mouth wide as the air was filled with the booming of his laughter. the taller's dark hair was messy; the pair hadn't showered in days, and yes, they knew it was gross. chanyeol had been at sehun and baekhyun's apartment for what could be years, although sehun hadn't seen the two for more than ten minutes at a time. they were always there, making some type of noise (he often overheard baekhyun's obnoxiously loud laughter) 

they were in baekhyun's bedroom, playing some type of charades, and chanyeol was being a dog (at least that's what he was intending to be). the taller was on all fours, sticking his tongue out and hiccuping with laughter as baekhyun looked on, occasionally throwing pillows and laughing at chanyeols lame acting. 

"puppy!" the smaller finally exclaimed; to be frank, he had known what chanyeol was the moment he began, but the way the taller was smiling entranced baekhyun in some strange trance that he couldn't shake himself out of, and so he just sat, watched, and laughed with chanyeol. "you're a puppy!" 

chanyeol collapsed onto his back, exhaling a relieved sigh. "took you long enough," 

baekhyun burst into a round of hiccuping giggles. 

he sat up, body at a perfect 90°, as he observed baekhyun smile with his pretty lips and pretty cheeks and pretty eyes. chanyeol leaned back on his hands, head lolling to the side as his mind was intoxicated with baekhyun and his eyes where for one person only. baekhyun. a lazy smile stitched itself onto his lips. 

chanyeol's muse opened his pretty eyes and caught his gaze, smiling bashfully. "why're you looking at me like that?" 

the taller snapped out of his trance, cheeks reddening. "like what, byun?" he couldn't help but smile as he stared down at his lap. 

he heard shuffling and baekhyun was next to him, settling on his knees on the floor and tapping his chin, drawing his eyes upwards. baekhyun's eyes were soft, smiling almost, and boring straight into chanyeol's. 

"like this, yeol," he whispered, fingers lingering on chanyeol's chin before dropping to his chest, gripping onto the taller's radiohead hoodie. they gravitated towards each other, so much that the tips of their noses grazed and their pumping heartbeats mingled and became one. 

white noise intoxicated the room; it was a television box of static. everything was still. 

every word was halted in his throat, by a barricade that was byun baekhyun. instead, a grumble-sputter was mustered, and he soaked in the beauty that was the boy in front of him, smiling at chanyeol's voice box, hair unruly and eyes tired. 

"you're so..." baekhyun began, scanning chanyeol's blushing face, his neck, his broad shoulders, his messy black hair, his own hand on the younger's warm chest. "you're so..." 

chanyeol smiled widely, tentatively reaching his hand to tame a stray hair that was covering baekhyun's eyes. it was unnecessary, really, but chanyeol yearned for any means of touching the masterpiece he so luckily had the chance to know. 

"i'm so what, byun?" he teased, mimicking baekhyun's words from five minutes prior. 

baekhyun snorted, and lamely attempted to push chanyeol, but his efforts were in vain, and it resulted in both hands latched onto the front of chanyeol's hoodie.

"you're so cool. you're so beautiful. you're so..." baekhyun closed his eyes for a brief moment, before opening them and cocking his head. "you're so comforting. you're so funny. you're so smart. you're so interesting. you're so talented. you're so nice. you're driving me crazy, chanyeol," he finished with a whisper. 

chanyeol was in stunned silence for a moment, before bursting into a grin. "aghhh!" he excitedly exclaimed as he threw his lanky arms around baekhyun's shoulders and dragged the smaller into his lap, settling on his back. 

"yeol! what are you doing?" baekhyun questioned, but he giggled nonetheless. "you're so-" 

"in love with you," chanyeol cut in, stunning baekhyun into silence. 

the smaller, still on top of chanyeol, pushed himself up into a straddle position and pressed down on the younger's chest, so that he was pinned to the floor beneath him. 

"what did you say?" 

"i'm... i'm in love, um, with you?" baekhyun watched bashfully, in  complete awe as chanyeol groaned and covered his face with his arms, smothering his bright red cheeks.

the smaller tentatively placed a hand on chanyeol's forearms, lifting them and leaning down so that their chests were parallel, before pinning his arms above his head.  

the taller let out a shaky breath, gaze set on nothing but baekhyun. 

"that's okay," the boy smiled shyly, burying his face into the crook of chanyeol's neck to hide his blush. "i love you, too." 

•••