Note from the author: To save confusion, everything said in ENGLISH will be in BOLD font.

Note to my readers: I just wanted to thank everyone that leaves me comments.  It honestly makes me so happy to hear that other people enjoy my story.  Sarangaehyo <3

It’s not working, so stop fronting.  I know you want me.  Let’s start talking.

GOT7 wake you up on a freezing morning early in November, and though you love this song, it doesn’t make you any more eager to get out of bed.  As the second chorus comes in, you slowly build up your willpower because you know you have plans.  Holding your breath, you fling your duvet off using your feet and push yourself upright.  After quickly wrapping a blanket around yourself, you slip your feet into your new Rilakkuma slippers and plod into the kitchen for your morning ritual.  Once a fresh, steaming hot cup of coffee is warming your hands, you locate your cigarettes and step outside.  

*I’ve been smoking a lot recently*, you sigh as you look at yet another nearly empty box, *I really should stop…*

In defiance of yourself, you light one and watch as the smoke glides effortlessly through the cold air.  It was just over two weeks ago that Kris kissed you, and yet you’ve heard nothing from him.  If it wasn’t for the rest of EXO, you probably wouldn’t even be seeing him on his birthday.  Taking another toke, you close your eyes and let the scenes of that night replay in your mind for the millionth time.  A lot had happened in those few hours, yet the recollection of Chanyeol’s face haunted you the most.

As you finish your cigarette, you try to think of anything but that night, though all attempts are futile.  The whole scene keeps replaying over and over in your head, causing you to feel like your heart is being ripped out of your chest.  You stub out your cigarette aggressively into a plant pot causing your coffee to slop onto the floor and head back inside.  

After bringing your speaker to life, you turn the volume up to let music flood your mind instead.  The introduction of BTS’s ‘War of Hormone’ makes you feel a little bit more like yourself, and before long you are dancing your way across to your wardrobe.

 “It’s cold”, you murmur to yourself cutely whilst shivering exaggeratedly, “What to wear…”

Dropping your blanket to the floor, you quickly get changed into a pair of fleece lined black leggings and your new favourite cream oversized hoodie with dark grey hem, sleeves, chest pocket and hood.

“That’ll do”, you nod as you roll up the sleeves to your wrists before checking your appearance in the mirror, “Yup, cold wins over fashion today!”

Grabbing your coffee, you slip your feet back into your warm slippers and shimmy energetically into the bathroom as 2PM’s ‘Go Crazy’ fills your apartment.  After brushing your teeth, you pull your hair into a messy topknot and quickly complete a ‘my face but better’ make up look.

“Done!”, you beam whilst shooting your reflection with both hands playfully.

Once you have sashayed flamboyantly back into the main room along to BTOB’s ‘Beep Beep’, you locate your phone and check the time.  *OMO!*, you panic as you see that it is already 10.15A.M., *I’ve got to make this place look more presentable!*

Running to your bed, you quickly smooth out the sheets before retrieving Ace and Rilakkuma from the floor.  You shut the wardrobe doors and position the abandoned blanket across the foot of your bed.  Next, you kick the beanbags against the wall and tidy up your desk a little bit, making sure that all books are placed back on their shelves.  You look across to the kitchen and are pleased when you see that there is nothing to tidy up apart from last nights ramen cup.

“I’m lucky I’m a tidy person”, you giggle to yourself, but it now feels like a large kaleidoscope of butterflies have made home in your stomach, “Why am I so nervous?”

In an attempt to calm yourself, you slide across to your iPod and search for a song.  Within seconds Orange Caramel’s ‘Catallena’ has filled your apartment, and though you try to dance along, it only makes the butterflies more unsettled.

“I can’t win”, you sigh as you stomp your way into the bathroom and grab your mug, “I think I need more caffeine…”

As you wait for the kettle to boil, BEAST’s ‘12.30’ fills your apartment and you find your arms naturally following along to the melancholy song whilst sat on the counter.

“Ah”, you breathe as you watch the steam rise, “This fits my mood perfectly”.

A sudden loud knock at the door scares you, causing you to almost fall to the floor.

“JAEEE!”

The butterflies in your stomach go into utter chaos, making you feel sick.

“HELLLOOOOO?”

“Door’s open”, you manage to squeak as you grab the edge of the counter firmly.

“Gooood morning!”, Baekhyun chimes as the door is swung open.

“Music’s a bit loud isn’t it?”, Chen teases as he kicks off his shoes, “Though I do love this song”.

Your blood has been pounding so loudly in your ears that you’d completely forgotten about the music.  Throwing yourself off the counter, you run to your speaker and turn it down.

“Hahaha”, you awkwardly chuckle, “My bad”.

“So we finally get to see your place”, Baekhyun grins as he looks around your apartment, “Not bad”.

“Thanks?”, you reply as your eyes search for the third guest, “Where’s Yeollie?”

“We sent him to get the supplies”, Chen smiles triumphantly, “He lost the bet”.

“What bet?”, you question as the butterflies calm down a little bit for the time being.

Baekhyun looks at Chen before replying: “Ah, it’s nothing.  Don’t worry about it”.

“Araso”, you giggle, who knows what twelve guys get up to when unattended, “Anyone want a drink?”

“I’ll have what you’re having”, Chen affirms as you head back into the kitchen.

“Coke, please”, Baekhyun calls as he continues to snoop around your apartment, “So many books!”

Looking around you see that Baekhyun is kneeling in front of the three large stacks of books next to your bedside table.  He picks one up and turns it over in his hands.

“Bed - Bedla”, he attempts to read an English title, “What does this say?”

“Bedlam”, you correct as you retrieve a can of coke from the fridge and pass it to him, “It’s about the insane in London during the eighteenth century.  I love anything to do with that”.

Baekhyun looks up at you with a frown: “You’re pretty smart, huh?”

His comment makes you turn a beautiful shade of autumn and you have no idea how to reply, so you simply say: “I guess?”

“Where are the mugs?”, Chen’s voice saves you from the kitchen, “Ah, found them!”

As you retrieve the milk from the fridge, there is another knock at the door.

“It’s open!”, Baekhyun calls loudly, “Come on in!”

The door swings open for a second time and Chanyeol steps inside.  You try to act natural, but the butterflies are back with a vengeance.

“I think I got everything”, Chanyeol asserts as he places three shopping bags on the floor before taking off his cap and ruffling his hair ily, “Hey Chopstick Girl”.

            *    *    *

Half an hour later you still feel like the butterflies are trying to beat their way out of your stomach.  You’ve had two more cups of coffee, but they haven’t helped calm you down at all. 

“You were so cute when you were a child!”, Baekhyun bellows from across the room.

He has made himself at home in your apartment and is now wrapped up in your blanket with Ace tucked snuggly under her arm.  His comment confuses you, so you plod towards him whilst still stirring the cake batter.  Glancing at your notice board, you can’t help but chuckle to yourself.

“That’s Minhye”, you smile nostalgically, “She likes to leave me little things like that so I won’t forget her.  I hadn’t even notice she’d put that there”.

“Oh”, he replies as he leans closer to the picture, “It’s a shame I didn’t get to meet her this summer”.

*More than you know*, you inwardly sigh as you become aware of the small audience that now surrounds the notice board.

“Is this her?”, Chen asks as he points to a photograph of Minhye trying her first bubble tea in Seoul, “She’s pretty”.

“She is”, you smile, “I can’t wait for her to move here”.

“Why is she covered in bandages?”, Baekhyun queries as he points to another photograph.

Following the line of his finger, you chuckle to yourself before replying: “That’s when I first met her at a comic convention.  She ended up having to spend most of her time being pushed around in a wheelchair because of bad circulation”.

You know you shouldn’t laugh, but you can’t help it.  It really was hilarious.

“And this?”, Chanyeol questions as he points to yet another photograph of you two.

“Hm?  Oh”, you giggle to yourself yet again before continuing, “We were drunk at another comic convention… Ten of us were dressed up as humanised Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, so a lot of shenanigans were had”.

All three of them look at you in confusion.

“You’re a bit weird, aren’t you?”, Baekhyun affirms playfully before looking back at the board, “So, who’s this?”

“Um… That’s still us…”

He is pointing at a picture of you and Minhye dressed up as men.  Both of you are wearing short black wigs and the Hats On caps that she had bought you.  To match Stinko, you had worn a white t-shirt and red checkered shirt, whereas to match Maki, Minhye had worn a black t-shirt and turquoise checkered shirt.  There’s no denying that you two could be very strange when left together for too long.  That night hadn’t even involved any alcohol, just boredom and a new camera.

“Yup, very weird”, Baekhyun asserts whilst Ace’s head gently, “Though you both make very attractive men”.

“Thanks”, you giggle, “I’ll take that as a compliment”.

“So then”, Chen points to yet another photo, “Who’s this?”

“That’s Haeyeon.  She’s our cute little deongsang”.

“Why do they look so scared?”, Chanyeol questions as he takes a closer look at the photo.

“We were playing a scary video game on Halloween, well, at least I was… Those two chickened out, so I took that selfie”.

“Will she be moving out too?”, Baekhyun asks innocently.

“Hopefully”, you nod, “But she’s a few years younger than me and Minhye”.

For some reason, having a trip down memory lane has calmed the butterflies in your stomach completely.

“Right!”, you suddenly pass the bowl of batter to Chen before waving your finger in the air, “We must get this cake in the oven or we won’t be ready in time!”

            *    *    *

“Have they cooled enough yet?”, Baekhyun calls from your bed over two hours later.

Whilst waiting for the cakes to cook and cool, the four of you had watched ‘The Avengers’ on your small laptop, resulting in everyone practically lying on top of each other on the floor.

“Nearly”, you reply from the kitchen, “I think we could make the icing now”.

“SHOTGUN NOT DOING IT!”, Baekhyun and Chen bark in unison.

“YA!”, you playfully yell at their unmoving bodies 

Chanyeol pushes himself from the floor and kicks Chen lightly: “You two have just volunteered to go buy lunch then!”

Instead of replying, loud moans emit from them.

“I know you’re hungry”, he taunts as he pulls Baekhyun into a seated postition, “Something warm, please”.

“This isn’t any way to treat your hyungs”, Baekhyun puffs out his face, “Right, Chen?”

“It’s only fair”, Chen murmurs as he pushes himself to his feet, “Plus, we did make him get the shopping this morning”.

Baekhyun kicks his feet childishly in protest but gives in: “Arasooo”.

As you watch the two of them pull on their shoes, the butterflies in your stomach make a rude reappearance.  You hadn’t thought about how that would leave you and Chanyeol alone in the apartment.  So far today you’ve done a pretty good job of steering clear from him, but you won’t have any excuses much longer.

“We won’t be long”, Chen waves as they pull their caps on and head out into the cold afternoon air, leaving the door to shut loudly behind them.

When Chanyeol turns to face you, you freeze completely with your hand still held mid air.

“R- Right, icing!”, you crack as you dash towards the counter and retrieve the large bowl from the drying rack.

“You’ve been avoiding me all day”, Chanyeol accuses as he silently appears beside you, his body only centimetres from yours.

*Why does he have to be wearing all black today?*, you swoon as you try not to let your weak knees win, *I don’t know what to do!*

“Jae…”

His warm breath sends a shiver down your spine.

“Talk to me”, he pleas as you grab the box of icing sugar and slice it open, “Why won’t you look at me?”

*How can I tell him that my heart broke when I saw his face the other night?  How am I supposed to apologise for that?*

“I’m not avoiding you, I just want to get this done in time”, you lie as you start to tip the sugar into the bowl, “Offt!”

Rather than coming out delicately, the icing sugar has fallen with a thud, covering the kitchen in a sweet fog.

“Sorry”, you cry in panic, “What a mess!”

Turning to face Chanyeol, you burst out laughing.  His once y black attire is now a pale grey, his face dusted like a Geisha’s. 

“I think you got the brunt of that”, you chuckle before quickly wetting a tea towel and handing it to him, “Here”.

“Thanks”, he beams as his wipes his face clean, “What next?  Do we need more sugar?”

Looking up, you smile at him lovingly as he cleans the powder from his eyes and breathe deeply.  The butterflies are completely gone now.  *I don’t know what I was so worried about*, you inwardly sigh, *It’s Yeollie*.

            *    *    *

“YA!”, you chortle half an hour later as Chanyeol wipes leftover vanilla icing on the tip of your nose, “What are you doing?”

“It’s cute”, he smiles before adding three whiskers to each cheek, “Now it’s really cute”.

To hide the fact that you are turning a deep shade of burgundy, you quickly scoop some icing into your hand: “Come here, you!”

“I said it was cute!”, Chanyeol protests as he backs away slowly.

“Don’t you want to be cute too?”

“Men never want to be cute!”

“That’s a lie!”, you argue as he tries to seek refuge in your bathroom, “Come back here!”

Before he has a chance to shut the door, you pounce towards him and rub the icing over his cheek.

“There, now you’re cute too”, you smile angelically and stick out your tongue, “Mehrong!”

He grabs your hand and steals the remaining icing before attesting: “Now you’ve asked for it!”

As soon as he lets go, you run away into the kitchen to locate more ammo.  Turning around, you quickly duck to dodge his attack before jumping onto his back and smearing icing on the other cheek.

Whilst clinging on for dear life, Chanyeol sways playfully from side to side, but you refuse to let go.  Instead, you wrap your legs tighter around his hips and use your now free hand to smudge the icing over his entire face.

“YA!”, he chuckles as he begins to sway more violently, making it feel like you are on a rollercoaster.

Being unable to hold on any longer, you fall to the floor with a thud.  You try to scurry away, but it is too late.  Within seconds Chanyeol has covered your entire face with icing as well.  

“Now we’re even”, he chortles before offering you his hand, “Truce?”

“Truce”, you nod as you wipe a lump of icing away from your eye, “You can use the kitchen sink to clean up”.

Once inside the bathroom, you lean against the door and try to catch your breath.  After washing all evidence off of your face, you quickly reapply your makeup and head back to the kitchen.  Pulling yourself onto the counter, you happily swing your legs and switch the kettle on.

“You really are a caffeine addict”, Chanyeol smiles once he has finished wiping away all traces of war.

“I know…”

“Oh, you missed a bit”, he affirms as he approaches you with the damp tea towel, “Stay still”.

You begin to panic inwardly as Chanyeol gently wipes a chunk of dried icing out of your hair.  Your face in resting against his chest, and you swear you can hear his heart beating rapidly.  His smell is just as intoxicating as it was the other night, even though it is now mixed with the overly sweet scent of icing sugar.  His hand stops moving and he brings the tea towel down to his side, but he doesn’t back away.  You lift your head, leaving barely any distance between the two of you.

“LUNCH TIME!”, Chen declares at the top of his lungs as he runs up the stairwell, “LUUUNCH TIME!”

The two of you barely have time to move before Chen comes bounding through the door.

“Ddeokbokki and fish cakes”, he smiles energetically as he holds the two shopping bags above his head, “Why do you look so flustered, Jae?”

You don’t answer, but instead grab the damp tea towel from Chanyeol and launch it at Chen’s head.  He easily dodges it, causing it to wrap round Baekhyun’s unsuspecting face instead.