Day 3

There was not a sound heard when Baekhyun opened his eyes. He stared at the ceiling for a long time. It took him some minutes to realize why it surprised him so much to be waking up in his own bed in his own room. He didn’t remember going to sleep there. Right. He had some driving lessons yesterday. Chanyeol took him to some galbi place. And he may had a bit too much Soju.

Baekhyun clicked his tongue. So when, and more importantly how did he go to bed? Trying to think as logical as possible, Baekhyun concluded that there were two possibilities:

1. He got so drunk that Chanyeol had to carry him out of the restaurant and after the drive home tucked him in his bed. And he didn’t remember what he said to Chanyeol. Or did.
2. He got so drunk that he simply didn’t remember crawling in bed himself. And he didn’t remember what he said or did.

In other words, it didn’t matter much; both scenarios led to the same result: Him not being sure if he actually told Chanyeol how handsome he was in Baekhyun’s eyes. And him not knowing if he revealed that he liked men.

Well, worse things could have happened, Baekhyun thought. Telling a friend that he’s handsome was pretty normal. At least not that weird. And Chanyeol was more like a friend than a (step)brother to Baekhyun. So no harm done.

And even though Baekhyun didn’t exactly like the idea of Chanyeol knowing that he’s gay, it would be alright. Chanyeol didn’t seem like a person who judged others for their personal preferences. But it definitely meant that he would treat Baekhyun differently. He would be super aware of Baekhyun, if he knew that he liked men. Straight guys often have the tendency to do that. To treat gays like women. Or even worse.

Baekhyun decided to stop thinking about it even a second longer. Yeah, maybe he embarrassed himself. But at least he had the excuse of being drunk. And until he didn’t know for certain, what or if he said anything to Chanyeol, he would act like nothing happened.

And taking a nice, hot shower would work best to clear his mind he decided.

He was still in his school uniform, he noticed, except his jacket. He stood up and saw the jacket hanging on his chair, neatly folded in half. That was untypical of him. He would’ve just thrown the jacket on the floor, or wherever it may have landed. Well, most probably he would’ve just slept in it. So more likely than not, Chanyeol really did help him into bed. That was one question answered. And Baekhyun felt a blush crawling up his neck.

Not wanting to think about it any longer, Baekhyun went to the bathroom.

---

Chanyeol, even though he wasn’t drunk, didn’t feel that great after waking up. He was more sleepy than before going to bed. 

First there was this awkward drive home. Chanyeol helped his half-sleeping stepbrother into his bed, which wasn’t as easy as it could have been; sleeping Baekhyun tried to cling onto Chanyeol even after dropping him on his bed, and Chanyeol felt almost dizzy from the closeness. It was difficult to shake him off, without waking him up. But he managed it somehow. 

Chanyeol’s mind was still on fire though, that’s why he decided to take a shower. Even the cool water did not help him dismiss any of his inappropriate thoughts, unfortunately. So he still wasn't feeling like sleeping afterwards. Why was he so worked up though? He decided to distract himself with some music. It really did help him with not thinking too much about Baek’s actions. Or his words. Or his scent. Or his lips. . 

When he finally decided to take a rest, the sun was up again and the birds were singing already. It would’ve been time to go to school, not like Chanyeol even spent a thought about going there. Instead he tried to count sheep.

It took him about 452 sheep to fall asleep, but at least his mind was somewhat calm again. He decided to treat his brother as if nothing happened. Not that anything really did happen. (Maybe it did in Chanyeol’s head, but that didn’t count). That’s right. He would simply continue to tease his stepbrother as much as he had in the past, because why not? It was fun, and yesterday was yesterday, and it just (almost) happened because Baekhyun was drunk.

So when he eventually woke up, only a few hours later, he decided to check up on his brother. He’d probably be super hungover, and maybe he should bring him some painkillers and water. It might would be a bit awkward at first, to act like nothing happened, but the faster he got used to Baekhyun again, the better.

At the very moment, when he opened the door, Baekhyun was coming out of the bathroom, as well, which was just opposite Chanyeol’s room.

A bright red towel hung dangerously low around Baekhyun’s waist while he ruffled his long fingers through his dripping wet hair, making small droplets of water run over his shoulders and chest.

Baekhyun gave him a tired smile, “Morning”

Chanyeol’s eyes opened wide, as if he was caught doing something he shouldn’t, when his gaze wandered up to meet his stepbrother’s. “Ah, yeah, morning.”

“You’re home? I thought you’d be in school” Baekhyun mumbled, still sleepy. Was he just imagining it, or was Chanyeol checking him out? Nah, Chanyeol was straight. He was probably just surprised. Just like Baekhyun.

Chanyeol seemed to have found his composure again, as he laughed, “Sure, you stay at home, and I have to go to school?”

“It’s not like I’m complaining about it.” Baekhyun grinned.

Chanyeol nodded, a half smile on his own lips now. He leaned on the door frame. “You’re feeling alright?”

Baekhyun shrugged. “Yeah, I don’t really experience hangovers. I’m just super tired, but that’s it.”

“Lucky you.” Chanyeol nodded slowly. Did Baekhyun remember anything? If so, he didn’t mention it in the slightest. Maybe he had the same idea as Chanyeol himself, and just acted like it never did.

“Yeah, lucky me… But today I’m not only tired, I’m really hungry.” Baekhyun’s palm went to his belly, and he rubbed it a moment. “Seriously now, I’m starving.”

Chanyeol tried not to look anywhere other than Baekhyun’s face. “I’d say I make you a nice breakfast, but I don’t think you’d like that.”

Baekhyun sighed. He had a gleam of hope that Chanyeol actually could cook, and that maybe he would make something nice to eat. Bad luck.

“We share the same talent, I guess.” Baekhyun then shrugged and since Chanyeol apparently had nothing more to say he turned to the side to walk to his room, leaving wet footprints on the floor.

“I mean, it’s almost lunch anyway, so why don’t we go somewhere? Since I decided yesterday where to go, I’ll let you choose today.”

Baekhyun looked at him with wide eyes, “Yeah, sure! Just let me get ready.”

A smile spread on Baekhyun’s lips before Chanyeol nodded.

---

Chanyeol was the one driving today, and Baekhyun was glad about that. “I heard there opened a new Japanese restaurant atthe mall near here. The food must be great.”

“Okay,” Chanyeol smiled. Skipping school, having lunch together, going to the mall. That was just what friends did. That’s what they were. Nothing more, nothing less.

“I hope you like Japanese food. But I really crave it right now.” Baekhyun snuggled back into the black leather seat and his eyes lazily watched Chanyeol as he was driving.

“I still don’t understand how it’s possible for you to feel so great. When I pass out from drinking, I can’t even take a sip of water without throwing it up a minute later.”

Maybe that was the right time to find out what exactly happened, Baekhyun thought.  “I really passed out yesterday? At the restaurant?”

Chanyeol gave him a side glance. So he didn’t remember? Or was he playing dumb? Chanyeol still remembered Baekhyun’s breathe on his ears, his soft kisses on his jaw. The look in Baekhyun’s eyes. He gulped, then his suddenly dry lips in a nervous manner before he opened his mouth. But before a word could leave his throat, Baekhyun’s phone rang.

Baekhyun sighed when he looked at the caller's ID. He really wanted to hear Chanyeol’s answer.

“Your mom?” Chanyeol asked.

“I wish”, Baekhyun said, but picked up nevertheless.

As soon as he put the phone to his ear, an angry voice shouted: “! Who do you think you are, leaving me alone with those ing idiots in school?!”

“Please don’t be so annoyingly loud, Sehun. Calm down.” Baekhyun groaned and rubbed his ear. “I’m not feeling well, okay? What are you talking about anyway?”

“You’re not here and I have to walk around like a creepy loser with no friends because of you?” Sehun said annoyed. “And I should calm down?? You left me alone with my parents yesterday already. Aren’t you too cruel to call yourself my friend?”

“Yah! I’m sorry! I didn’t plan to-“ Baekhyun wasn’t sure if he should tell Sehun or not. But better just tell him the truth, right? “I was drinking yesterday, and I just woke up, okay?”

Sehun laughed sarcastically, “Seems like you had fun in your important study session yesterday.”

“Well, I guess.” Baekhyun glanced at Chanyeol, who tried hard to not look too interested in the conversation. Sehun? Who was that guy?

“So can I come over today?” Sehun asked after a while. “Don’t even think about saying no. I’ll still come.”  

“Uhm…,” Baekhyun coughed awkwardly, still looking at Chanyeol. Spending some more time alone with him would have been nice. But Sehun was his friend for the longest time now, and he couldn’t let him down again. “Yeah, sure.”

“How nice of you." Sehun muttered, "Well. Later then.”

“I’m always nice. Bye.” Baekhyun groaned when he ended the call.

“I hope you don’t mind if some idiot sleeps over today?” Baekhyun’s voice sounded unsure.  

Chanyeol shook his head. “Not at all.”

So was this Sehun Baekhyun’s boyfriend? They sure did talk like they knew each other good enough. But it was none of Chanyeol’s business anyway. (But maybe he should tell Baekhyun to stop drinking if he wanted to keep that boyfriend.)  

Baekhyun just sighed again. He turned up the volume of the music, and closed his eyes. Baekhyun hasn’t forgotten about the question he asked before the phone call, but he didn’t want to bring it up again. It was too embarrassing.

When they finally reached the mall, they walked by a music store on their way to the new restaurant. There were a lot of different guitars on the display, from classical ones, to western guitars, electric ones. Everything the heart of a guitarist desired. Baekhyun looked at them in awe. Chanyeol stopped too and his eyes wandered over a certain LP model, in the color sunburst. “That’s the one I have.” Chanyeol smiled, showing his pearly teeth.

“I know.” Baekhyun smiled too. “I’m pretty envious of you. I always wanted to learn how to play.” He then just turned and they walked to the restaurant.

What Baekhyun heard about the restaurant was right. It was pretty neat. They went for a more modern concept, but they still put some traditional Japanese elements in the decoration. The place was really bright, thanks to the huge windows and the soft lighting. Soft music played in the background. It helped to make you feel comfortable, without being too loud or catchy. The two of them took a place near one of the large windows. It was raining outside, but Baekhyun liked that because it made him feel calm and relaxed all the more.

They chose a few different dishes which they shared to taste as much as possible. The food was good, and neither of them regretted Baekhyun’s choice.

“I can teach you a bit, if you’d like.” Chanyeol started after some chitchatting about random things. “You have some special talent for music, it won’t be difficult for you. Just learn a few basics like chords and reading music-”

Baekhyun laughed quietly, “I can read music. I actually can play the piano, too.”

“Seriously?” Chanyeol seemed more than surprised, “Can you… just play stuff like Twinkle, Twinkle little Star? That doesn’t count.”

Baekhyun pointed his chopsticks at Chanyeol, a grin still plastered on his face. “Do you want to offend me?”

“You don’t even have a piano at home?” Chanyeol fake gasped, “Or do you play on mine when I’m not home?”

“You’re an idiot!” Baekhyun laughed again. Chanyeol’s lips curled some more too. “But no, we had a grand piano at home.” Baek clicked his tongue, “Well, home before we moved to live at your place.”

“Seriously?” Chanyeol eyes went wide at the thought of such an impressive instrument. “Why didn’t you take it with you? My dad likes stuff like that anyway. At least it’s pretty to look at, he’d say. He wouldn’t have minded to make some room for it.”

“My mom didn’t care much about it.” Baekhyun shrugged, and focused on eating again.

“But you did,” Chanyeol protested. “She should have at least bought you some electric piano or something, if she had to leave it behind already.”

“Well… she didn’t know that I played.” Baekhyun answered.

“How can she not-“ Chanyeol stopped himself from continuing. “It’s the same reason, right?”  he asked instead.

He looked how Baekhyun stopped chewing for a moment. He looked at Chanyeol and asked with a full mouth. “What?”

“You not singing in front of others.” Chanyeol began. “How can your mom forbid you to make music?”

“It’s not like I wasn’t allowed to. Don’t make up things like that.” Baekhyun laughed. “She just doesn’t know that I like music. That’s all. I never played piano or sang when she was around.”

“But why?”

“I don’t know.” Baekhyun said after thinking about it. “She wasn’t much at home anyway. She worked many night shifts. Practically left the house when I came home from school.”

Chanyeol nodded, but that lead to another question “So why did you even have that grand piano in the first place?”

“It belonged my father.” Baekhyun said. “Me playing the piano will stay a secret between us, right?”

That was the first time that Chanyeol heard the words ‘my father’ from Baekhyun.  

“Sure.” Was all that Chanyeol said, before Baekhyun started to talk about some nonchalant things again. Like how he wasn’t sure if he liked that it was getting colder again, because he had a kind of love/hate relationship with winter. How his favorite things in winter was the sweet and spicy smells and food at that time of the year. But that he really hated to feel cold.

Chanyeol listened to all of it; he nodded and asked some things here and there. He talked about himself. But the thing with Baekhyun’s father never left his mind completely. Baekhyun’s eyes when he mentioned him were cold and no trace of affection was seen. Chanyeol wanted to know more about him, but he knew he would overstep some invisible boundary if he did ask.

---

When Chanyeol was parking the car in the driveway of their home, Baekhyun suddenly just got out of the car, before Chanyeol even stopped the motor. Chanyeol couldn’t ask about what it was, because Baekhyun was already at the door. He was then noticing that guy there. He had blonde hair and wore the same school uniform as Baek’s. So this had to be Sehun, huh?

“Oh my god, why are sitting on the doorstep? It’s raining for God’s sake!” Baek quickly helped Sehun up, and Chanyeol noticed that Sehun was a lot taller than his stepbrother too. (Which wasn’t that unusual, for guys being taller than Baek, really) But he was still shorter than Chanyeol at least.

“I was waiting at least an hour.” Sehun complained, and tried to warm himself up, by rubbing his palms over his upper arms. “I couldn’t call because my phone died.”

“Why didn’t you just come over after school?” Baekhyun rolled his eyes. “As I thought you would do?”

“Well, and I thought you’d be home anyway!” he said, and just then his eyes flickered over Baekhyun’s shoulder to Chanyeol, who walked towards them. “Oh my god, who’s that?” Sehun whispered excitedly.

Baekhyun turned and looked at Chanyeol, then back to Sehun. Chanyeol greeted the boy with his typical smile. “Hi, I’m Park Chanyeol, Baekhyun’s stepbrother.”

“Chanyeol?” Sehun looked even more surprised now. “You’re his…” Then a knowing grin spread on his lips. “…stepbrother.”

Baekhyun sighed. “Sehun, can’t you at least introduce yourself?” He unlocked the door, and they all walked in. “He’s my stupid friend Oh Sehun, the one who sleeps over.”

Chanyeol nodded slowly. His friend? Was that true? Not that he really cared, though. No. “I guessed so.” Chanyeol just said. “Well, nice to meet you”

“I was going to, if you wouldn’t ing interrupt me all the time.” Sehun then turned to Chanyeol and smiled at him, as he cocked his head to the side. “Nice to meet you too.” Indeed it was a pleasure to meet Chanyeol. Sehun didn’t think he would find out about him so fast, but at least he was able to understand Baekhyun now. Why he preferred hanging out with this guy more than spending time with him. Sehun knew that Chanyeol was exactly Baekhyun’s style. Tall, innocent looking, puppy eyes. That guy was just disgustingly cute.

Chanyeol noticed that smug grin on Sehun’s face, but wasn’t sure why it was there. That’s why he excused himself and went to his room leaving the two of them alone. Baekhyun dragged Sehun to his room, and since Sehun was freezing because he was all wet from the rain, Baek gave him some of his clothes (even though they were pretty tight on Sehun). Sehun changed and after he put the shirt over his head, Baekhyun finally gave in and sighed. “Okay, say it. You obviously want to say something since before.”

“Since I’ve seen Chanyeol, to be precise.”

Baekhyun raised a brow. “Yeah?” He asked a bit unsure about the meaning of his words. “And what would that be?”

“He’s cute.” Sehun said. Baekhyun’s face went blank, and he didn’t have any words at first.

Sehun laughed, “Don’t worry, he’s all yours.”

Baekhyun his lips, then he sat down on the chair. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Aww, Baekhyunnie~” Sehun lazily slumped down on Baekhyun’s bed. “Don’t play dumb. You were drinking with him yesterday. You even went out for lunch today. I know you.”

“What of it? I’m having lunch with you every day.” Baekhyun said, as a matter of fact. They did at school. 

“Yeah, but you don’t get all excited when you get a text from me.” Sehun stated.

“Don’t be so childish. When did I act like that?” Baekhyun bashfully asked.

An amused sigh left Sehun’s mouth. “Just the way you reacted when I said he was cute just now.”

“Don’t be a , Sehun.” Baekhyun whined, “He’s my stepbrother.”

“So?” Sehun shrugged, “That means you two aren’t blood-related at all. And even if you were…” he trailed off.

Baekhyun kicked his shin. This time he was really annoyed. Yeah, okay, maybe he liked spending time with Chanyeol. But did that mean it was in a romantic way? Just because Baekhyun liked to have Sehun around didn't mean that he was crushing on Sehun either.

And yeah, maybe Baekhyun was attracted to Chanyeol’s appearance, but that's that. Nothing more. “You’re disgusting, you know that?” Baekhyun finally said. “But whatever, I don’t like Chanyeol that way. He’s cute yeah. And I like him. He’s fun. We have some things in common. But I don’t like like him.”

“Alright.” Sehun laughed, and rubbed his hurting leg. “But let’s be honest. If, and I say if, you come to like Chanyeol, would you go for it? Or wouldn’t you even try, just because he’s your stepbrother?”

Baekhyun shook his head. “I don’t answer dumb questions.”

And that was answer enough for Sehun.

---

Chanyeol was up later than he intended. Again. But night was the time of the day where all his creativity kicked in. Time seemed to flow much faster then, especially when he worked on a new song.

And even if he was exhausted, feeling like he can’t keep his eyes open even another second, he just had to push himself that little more to stay awake just a bit longer and when he crossed that certain point, the fatigue transformed into energy that kept him running all night.

He liked to think that nighttime was his own personal drug, and he couldn’t get enough of it.

But he still needed a break from the song. When he opened the door of his room he heard soft snoring coming from Baek’s room. They seemed to be fast asleep. Chanyeol still wasn’t sure about Baek’s relationship with that Sehun guy.

Baekhyun probably didn’t want Chanyeol to know that he was gay, he supposed. At least Baek never mentioned anything about it. Well, it would be kinda awkward to just randomly say “Hey, I’m gay, just so you know.” But Chanyeol was pretty sure that Baek’s mom didn’t know about it either. Chanyeol however already sensed it as soon as Baekhyun first looked at him. (More like stare at him.)

Chanyeol was certain of it at least since watching Baekhyun turning red or speechless whenever Chanyeol decided to . That made it clear to him.

Not that it was any of Chanyeol’s business.

As soon as he walked down the stairs, trying to be as quiet as possible, he picked up some soft music coming from the living room. Entering the room, he saw Baekhyun sitting cross legged on the couch. The only light source was the TV and that wasn’t much. Baekhyun’s whole attention was focused on the TV, with a strange expression on his face. Chanyeol has never seen Baekhyun’s face so serious before.

“You like jazz?” Chanyeol asked, a smile in his voice.  

“Oh my God!” Baekhyun jerked and put his hands on his chest, “You scared the hell out of me.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to.” Chanyeol apologized. He then saw the bottled water in Baekhyun’s lap, and he grabbed it as he walked by and sat down beside the shorter boy. Chanyeol opened the bottle and took a few gulps. Baek didn’t say anything about it, but he watched him for a few seconds, before his attention went back to the screen.

Baekhyun felt Chanyeol’s gaze on him, but still took his time answering Chanyeol’s question. “I don’t really like it. Jazz I mean.”

Chanyeol raised a brow. “Why do you watch that old video then?” The quality of the video was pretty poor, but maybe it added some charm to the jazz, making it feel a bit nostalgic.

Baekhyun his lips, he seemed nervous all of a sudden. Because no, Baekhyun wasn’t able to leave the VHS cassette in the trashcan, when he found it someday. He knew why his mother threw it out. It hurt her to watch that man looking so happy, doing what he loved, which was music. And it hurt Baekhyun too. But part of him always felt curious about that father of him too. He hated that he felt like that, but sometimes he still found himself watching that stupid jazz performance of his father. And today was one of those days, since he was on his mind ever since he talked with Chanyeol during lunch. “It’s my father.”

Chanyeol’s mouth opened involuntary, as he quickly fastened his gaze on the TV.

“The one who’s singing.” Baekhyun mentioned.  

‘Dream a little Dream of Me’ started playing. Baekhyun scoffed, but it sounded like he had a hard time holding back his tears. “That probably ed the woman who’s singing with him too.”

Then it clicked. Chanyeol suddenly felt like he figured Baekhyun out. Well, at least why he didn’t want to do music for others to hear. Especially why he kept his talent from his mother. Why he didn’t like to talk about his dad.

Chanyeol didn’t say a word. But he moved a bit closer to Baekhyun and patted his knee in a manner that was saying: It’s okay, I’m here. I won’t leave you alone now.