Day 5

Baekhyun’s gaze wandered to the clock on the opposite wall. It was shortly after midnight.

The silence of the room was only disrupted by the ticking sound, which was getting louder with every second. Tik. Tok. None spoke a word, but Baekhyun’s thoughts were overflowing.

Why did they fight? Was it something serious? His mom was supposed to have an unforgettable honeymoon. But not unforgettable in that kind of way.

When Chanyeol got up from the bed to take away the guitar in his hands, Baekhyun still looked at the clock.

“Baek.” Chanyeol put his palms on Baekhyun’s shoulders, which finally made him meet his eyes. “You know what? We shouldn’t care about their problems.”

“They’re our parents, Chanyeol.” Baekhyun turned his head down again. 

“Yeah, and they are old enough to take care of themselves on their own.” Chanyeol smiled gently. “Let us have fun as long as they’re still away. We should do things we can’t do when they’re back!”

Baekhyun wasn't exactly convinced at first. “Like skipping classes and drinking on school nights? We did that already.” After a short moment he added, “Well I did.”

“Baek... let’s just go out and... I don’t know, let’s try being spontaneous.”

“What?” Baekhyun’s eyes widened a bit, “Right now?”

Chanyeol let out a laugh as an answer, grabbed Baekhyun’s wrist and dragged him out of the room and down the stairs. On their way out, he quickly grabbed both their jackets, as well as the key of his dad’s car. 

Baekhyun was confused, very much so, but he didn’t try to pull away from Chanyeol. He followed him, he hopped into the car, and he was at least glad that Chanyeol was the one driving this time.

As soon as Chanyeol started the motor, he the heater, and backed out of the driveway a second later. A mischievous grin on his face, he turned to look at Baekhyun, who was raising a brow.

“What?” Chanyeol asked.

“Where the heck are we even going in the middle of the night?” There was a hint of excitement and amusement in his voice though. “I’m wearing sweatpants for God’s sake.”

“As if it matters… And I have no idea where we should go, to be honest.” Chanyeol showed his pearly white teeth in an innocent smile.

Finally, Baekhyun laughed too. “You’re an idiot, but you know that already, right?”

Chanyeol glanced at him again. “You’re the one who followed me. Doesn’t that make you an even bigger idiot?”

Baekhyun crossed his arms in front of his chest, as he leaned back in the seat. “I can’t really argue with that.” His lips curled into a suppressed grin again. “But seriously now. Where are you driving?”

“Have you ever taken a night stroll alongside the Han River?”

Baekhyun shook his head. “No?”

“Me neither. And strangely enough I feel like having chicken and beer right now.” The taller boy added. “What do you think?”

“Are you telling me to drive us back home this time? Because if you do, I don’t want to.”

“Nope.” Chanyeol gave a quick reply. “We can walk around until I can drive again. Nobody’s telling us to come home earlier anyway.”

“You’re really stupid,” Baekhyun had to admit that it did sound like fun. “I want soju though.” He agreed.

Chanyeol’s smile grew even bigger.

---

Seoul was a great city to live in. It was never hard to find a good place to eat in that city; no matter what time of day or night. 

When Chanyeol was driving towards Han River as planned, there happened to be quite a few street food tents. He parked the car on some vacant parking lot. Just like Chanyeol wanted, they had some spicy fried chicken. The beer as well as Baekhyun’s soju went perfectly with it, and this time Baekhyun drunk just enough to feel a little tipsy. Both the alcohol and the chicken helped to keep them warm, and the light buzz hitting their head helped them getting loose-tongued.

As time passed, especially Chanyeol started to talk a lot more. Even more than Baekhyun was used to, but he didn’t mind. He liked the tall boy’s smooth voice anyway, and now his tone dropped slightly deeper and it was a bit raspy too, from the cool air. It was even more pleasant to listen to.

They left the crowded tent after they finished munching on their food, but only after Chanyeol bought another canned beer to take it with him.

Walking along the river was nicer than thought. It was in the middle of November, which meant that Christmas was coming up already. That’s why the crowns of the trees all around were blooming with the holiday lights, and the walkway was nicely illuminated with a yellowish-orange light.

At some point they decided to sit down on one of the benches near the riverbank. The benches had no back, which made it possible to sit down facing each other. Only a few people were still walking around, but not too many.

“The chicken’s was pretty good. We should go there again.” Chanyeol took another sip of the beer and looked extremely relaxed like that.

“It’s so nice here, the lights reflecting on the water surface and all, and you still think about the chicken?” Baekhyun gestured with his hands all around them. “It was tasty though.”

Chanyeol really did look around, and his signature smile appeared. Baekhyun felt happy that he was able to appreciate his face from up close like that, and the faint light helped him to make things out in the dark night.

Baekhyun grinned, which didn’t go unnoticed by the Chanyeol.

“What?” The taller one wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, “Is there something on my face?”

Baekhyun shook his head. “Your ears are turning red from the cold.” Chanyeol’s brows knitted together. “Don’t worry, it looks cute.”

Chanyeol pursed his lips. “Can you please stop staring at my ears? It’s making me uncomfort-”

Baekhyun didn’t even let him finish his sentence. Instead he moved his hands out of the pockets of his jacket and put his warm palms on Chanyeol’s ears. “So what?” Baekhyun cocked his head to the side when Chanyeol looked at him with his big puppy eyes. “You’re making me uncomfortable all the time. It’s my turn now.” Baekhyun whispered more than spoke. 

“I do?” Chanyeol questioned. “I absolutely didn’t know.”

“You liar.” Baekhyun scoffed, “But it’s okay. It’s not like I hate feeling… uncomfortable at times.”

“Me neither.” Chanyeol said with a low voice, just barely audible.

“Good.” That only meant that there was no need to stop making his stepbrother feel a bit weird too. It was only payback, when Baekhyun’s hands carefully and slowly wandered from Chanyeol’s ears to the sides of his handsome face. “Hmm?” Baekhyun hummed mockingly. “Not only your ears are turning red, but your face too? Are you that cold?” 

Baekhyun fought against the urge to brush his thumb over Chanyeol’s soft looking lips. His eyes darted back to meet Chanyeol’s, and the tall boy smiled dangerously.

“Actually, you seem a bit cold too, Baek.” Chanyeol’s teased back.

The alcohol they had probably was a part of it too, but Baekhyun was sure that the warm feeling in his stomach was mainly caused by the way his stepbrother looked at him that very moment. Baekhyun’s hands quickly moved away from Chanyeol and he stood up. “You’re right. I’m cold, let’s move a bit to warm up.”

Chanyeol laughed at the nervousness of his stepbrother, but he too got up from the bench. To Baekhyun’s surprise however, he took his hand once again and even intertwined their fingers. “I know an awesome place somewhere near here. Well, it’s a bit of a walk, but not too bad. Do you want to go there?”

Baekhyun wasn’t sure about which kind of place Chanyeol was talking about, but if that meant that he was holding his hand the whole time, the only thing he was able to do was agreeing. “Sure, lead the way.”

---

It took them longer to get there, than needed, but Chanyeol wasn’t exactly sure about the right way to go. He just knew that they had to go to a certain park, but the park was larger than he remembered, which lead to them walking around for some time.

After all, they found the place. And it was totally worth it. Not only that the walk itself wasn’t that bad to begin with; there were even less people then before on the streets, and the park was pretty even in the night; but the place that Chanyeol was talking about was breathtaking. It was a viewing platform, from which they were able to see over a large part of the city. The Han River was still visible from there, beautifully reflecting the night skyline in front of them. 

“Wow, Seoul looks so nice from up here!” They leaned on the railing, and Chanyeol watched the excited look on Baekhyun’s face with a satisfied smile of his own. “How do you know about this place?”

“It’s pretty nice, huh?” Chanyeol laughed. “I remember coming here with my mom sometimes when I was little. But during the night the view’s even better, now that I see it.”

Baekhyun felt that warmness, just like the last time when Chanyeol took him to that galbi place.  He shared those memories with him again. He remained silent for a while. “I’m sorry that you had to lose your mom.” Baekhyun then said, sincere compassion audible in his voice. “It sounds like she was an amazing person.”

“She was,” Chanyeol agreed. “It’s actually my first time here since her death.”

Baekhyun seemed surprised, and Chanyeol continued with a small smile. “When I’m alone I can’t really visit those places that remind me of her. I can’t handle those memories well. I don’t know why, but somehow it’s not so bad when you’re with me. I don’t really want to visit these places with others, but I get the feeling that you don’t really judge me for still missing my mom.” Chanyeol then laughed. “Oh my God, that sounds cheesy.”

Baekhyun gave him a comforting smile.  “You know, I think it’s because I understand how hard it is to get over someone leaving you. You might think that it’s unfair for me to say, because my dad is still alive. But he left when I was 4. And even before that he wasn’t home much. I wasn’t even able to recognize him when I first watched that performance together with my mom.”

Baekhyun turned and leaned on the railing with his back. “But then he just left us. He left me.  I still can’t get over it. I hate him. I really do. But in some way or another…I guess I still miss him. And how hard must it be for you, when you actually loved your mom?”

It was the first time that Baekhyun really opened up and talked about his father that freely. Chanyeol knew that it wasn’t just the alcohol speaking. It had been a few hours already since Baek had something to drink, and he wasn’t really drunk to begin with. No, it was not the soju, but for the first time Baekhyun trusted Chanyeol enough to tell him those things. He then continued. 

“Worst part of it all is, that I’m becoming more and more like him. It must be like hell for my mom to look at me. I know, because sometimes I hate looking at myself too. And it hurts that I love music just as much as he did. I feel bad because I enjoy it so much.” Baekhyun let out a dry laugh. “I’m sorry, you were talking about your mom and now I’m rambling about myself again.”

But it felt good to let it all out. His fears and all those thoughts were bottled up for long already. And they were finally getting all out.

Chanyeol turned then too. He understood what Baekhyun was saying, and how he was feeling. “I can’t tell you to stop missing your dad, since I'm the same as you. I’m not even telling you to stop hating your dad. You have all right to do so. But…” Chanyeol hesitated for a moment. “You shouldn’t stop yourself from doing what you love because of him.”

Silence followed after that. Baekhyun knew that Chanyeol was right. It was the truth. But for now, he didn’t want to think about it any longer. The view up there was beautiful, and the night was fun so far, and this was dragging them both down.

So he changed the topic.

“I actually was awake in the morning.” Baekhyun admitted, the corner of his mouth drew upwards.

Chanyeol chuckled at the confession, not minding that he didn't really answer. “I know.” 

“You did?” Baekhyun looked at him with a slight frown.

“Your whole body went stiff when your friend asked me about it.” Chanyeol remarked. “You need to practice your acting skills.”

“Do you really like teasing me that much?” The half-grin on his face was enough of an answer. “You weren’t surprised about it though. You knew about that too, right?”

“Well, I kinda suspected it, so…” Chanyeol agreed.

Baekhyun laughed again. “I didn’t know that I was being so obvious.”

“Why? Was it supposed to be a secret? Should I act like I don’t know?” Chanyeol’s voice sounded challenging.

The shorter boy shrugged, “Does it make a difference?”

Baekhyun was trying to avoid eye contact, but Chanyeol wouldn’t let him. He moved to grip the railing on the left and right side of the smaller boy’s body, which left Baekhyun caged in between his arms. The tall boy looked down at him, his eyes slightly narrowed.

“It does make a huge difference,” he said, his voice deep and low. “If I pretend like I don’t know, I wouldn’t be doing this.”

And not even a second later, Chanyeol’s lips were touching Baekhyun’s slightly parted ones. Surprise left Baekhyun overwhelmed and unable to react. It was more a peck than anything, but it still made his stomach flip. The way Chanyeol looked at him afterwards didn’t help either.  

“Hmm…” Baekhyun hummed, trying hard to sound calm and unaffected. “I don’t know. If that’s all, it might be better for you to forget it.”

That was all Chanyeol needed. He finally allowed himself to run his fingers through the hair on the back of Baekhyun’s head. He pulled Baekhyun’s face closer, and kissed - really kissed - him this time. Their hot breathes mingled together, which made them both feel warm despite of the cool air around them.

Chanyeol gently tucked on the soft, brown strands, and Baekhyun responded to it by letting his tongue brush over Chanyeol’s bottom lip. The taller boy’s own pink muscle met Baekhyun’s and the faint sweet taste of soju mixed with the bitterness of the beer.

Baekhyun’s started to smile in the kiss and when they moved away from each other, just enough to look at each other, he let out a whispered laugh. “What are we even doing?” A warm shudder was running down his spine, because Chanyeol continued to caress the sensitive skin on the nape of his neck with his cold fingertips. Baekhyun himself was gripping Chanyeol’s jacket, but his hands moved up to intertwine behind Chanyeol’s head. “Is this one of the fun things you had in mind when you dragged me to the car?”

Chanyeol’s mouth stretched into a wide smile. “Maybe?”

Baekhyun rolled his eyes, but he drew Chanyeol in for one last kiss that left them both breathless for some time.

Chanyeol broke the silence first. “Do you still want me to pretend that I don’t know about that secret of yours?”

Baekhyun looked at him, he was smiling so much his eyes turned into crescent shapes. “Aren’t you a part of it now?”

---

On their way back, they decided to stop at a Starbucks to warm themselves up and Chanyeol wanted to sober up some more before driving. It was already dawn then, and the streets started to get busy with people rushing to wherever they had to be.

Baekhyun wasn’t sure if this whole thing was okay; just a few hours before, he had told Sehun about how wrong this all could go, and now thishappened? But it made him feel good, and a happy and bubbly feeling was filling up his stomach, while he watched Chanyeol drinking his coffee.

“This is nice.” The taller boy said, as if he was capable of reading Baekhyun’s mind. “Just sitting around, having coffee with you. It’s simple, but I like it.”

Baekhyun rested his head on his palm and thought about it. Maybe Sehun was right. Maybe he was a too pessimistic. Maybe this could work after all. Whatever ‘this’ was.

Yeah. This. They weren’t a couple. But they weren’t just stepsiblings either. It was a mix of both, and in the end did it really matter what this relationship was called?

“I like this too.” Baekhyun agreed.

Silence took over once again, but it wasn’t awkward. They listened to the quiet music in the background, and Baekhyun tapped his fingers on his cup to the beat of it. They watched the busy people that picked up some coffee before work, in order to fight the tiredness. They heard the soft noise of the person that typed something down on his laptop in a frantic manner on the neighboring table... 

The two of them both seemed to be deep in thoughts as they did so. After some while Baekhyun spoke up. “You know, maybe you’re right.”

Chanyeol raised a brow, giving Baekhyun a slightly confused look. “About what?”

“About doing the things I like without caring about anything else. I mean… Isn’t this.” He gestured towards Chanyeol, then pointed at himself. “Isn’t this something that our parents won’t accept, too? But why should that stop me? I enjoy it.”

Chanyeol’s expression got softer at those words. “Exactly.”

"Still..."  Baekhyun started. "Let’s see where this goes first, before we tell our parents?” Because yes; Baekhyun was afraid. If this was really going to work somehow… His mother would never accept it. Chanyeol’s dad wouldn’t either. It was twisted after all. Her son was not only gay, but he was in a relationship with her stepson?

And then there was that fight she was having with her newlywed husband already … Baekhyun hoped and wished for his mom to be happy. So at least he had to wait until she made up with Chanyeol’s dad until he was able to drop his secrets to her one by one. Being gay. The music. Chanyeol. Missing his dad.

Baekhyun felt bad about it, but Chanyeol’s soft smile diminished that uneasy feeling at least a little.

Chanyeol nodded in agreement, “Sure. Let’s do that.”

---

They came home around ten in the morning. On their drive back home (and it took them some time to remember where they parked the car) Chanyeol suggested to watch some TV, and spend the majority of the day on the couch. Fatigue was starting to wash over them after all, since they stayed up all night. Baekhyun was going to take a shower first, to warm him up. He was freezing, and Chanyeol said that he was picking a movie in the meantime.

When Baekhyun went to his room to pick up some fresh clothes, he noticed that he didn’t even have his phone with him the whole night. It was still in the pocket of his school uniform’s pants. He unlocked the screen and there were two missed calls form Sehun and some unimportant Facebook notifications.

Baekhyun rolled his eyes with a grin. Sehun was probably just moping again, because he was left alone at school. That’s why Baekhyun ignored the calls for now. He would call him back later. He just wanted to take that shower and rest on the couch. His eyelids felt heavy and he had to yawn at minute intervals.

Later on, when he was showered, Chanyeol decided for a quick shower too, and when he came back to the living room, Baekhyun smiled at him. “I just remembered that I have my theory test tomorrow.” He told the tall boy, when he sat down as close as possible to Baekhyun. He wrapped one arm around the smaller boy and enjoyed the warmth they shared.  

“Tomorrow? Already?” There was slight concern in his voice.

“Yeah. I should look over some topics again tomorrow morning, but I think I’ll pass this time.” Baekhyun liked the way Chanyeol played with his still damp hair.

“That’s good then. Even though I’m kinda disappointed that we can’t spend much time tomorrow.” Chanyeol laughed. “I’ll take you there and wait until you’re finished.”  

“I’d like that.” Baekhyun sheepishly said.

The two of them spent the whole day on the couch just as planned. For lunch Baekhyun made them some ramen. He was far from being a good cook, but at least he could make some decent noodles.

In the afternoon they fell asleep, and when they woke up again, they talked about all kind of things; their favorite subjects, favorite TV shows and addictions, their friends and stuff like that.

“Speaking of which, I should call back that idiotic friend of mine.” Baekhyun remembered.

Chanyeol raised a corner of his lips, “Sehun?”

Baekhyun nodded, picked up the phone from the coffee table and sat back down, cross-legged.

“How long have you been friends?” Chanyeol wanted to know, while Baekhyun was scrolling through his contacts.

“About fourteen years? I really didn’t like him at first. He was rude and making fun of me, because I was always shorter than him since we were little. He took away my things in school. My favorite pencils and stuff like that.”

Chanyeol grinned. Sehun still looked like a trouble maker, whose hobby was to annoy the hell out of Baekhyun. “So how did you become friends?”

Baekhyun looked up from his phone, “We both often had to stay at school longer than the others. Our mothers weren’t able to pick us up right away. I remember that we started our friendship by playing Pokémon together. We still kinda disliked each other at first. He was more the Charmander type of boy, while I always loved Squirtle.” Baekhyun laughed as he wallowed in those memories. “But after all, water type Pokémon beat fire types. He always said that he would train his Charmander until he beats my Squirtle. He never did, but we developed a great friendship nevertheless, since we started to spend so much time together.” Baekhyun still grinned. “Later on, we started to hang out a lot at my place, since my mom was working most part of the day. He was practically living at my place. But his parents started to nag him about his grades and stuff like that later on, so we can’t spend that much time together anymore.”

Baekhyun then finally pressed the call button. It rang and rang until the voice mail started. “That’s strange. He should be home from school by now. Why isn’t he picking up?”

“Maybe he’s busy doing something. Or he just didn’t hear it.” Chanyeol said.

Baekhyun tried it again after a few minutes. “The person you have called is temporarily not available.”

Baekhyun shook his head. “Did he turn off his phone now? Is he really mad because I didn’t go to school again?”

“Maybe his phone just died on him?”

Even though that was pretty typical for Sehun - the blond boy spent so much time with his phone he was practically in a relationship with it - he still wasn't convinced. “Maybe you’re right. If he doesn’t call me back, I’ll try later again.”

He should have phoned him in the morning as soon as he had seen the missed calls. Now he felt guilty about ignoring them. “I just hope he’s not mad at me...”