Dressing himself up, Baekhyun stared in the mirror as he redid his tie. Tonight was the night, and he didn’t know what to think of that. If Jongdae didn’t host the other party, they would have had this fancy dinner party at his place. But no, he didn’t want to get another warning from the apartment building for having too many people in his apartment again. And so, he managed to slide his wants and needs onto Baekhyun.

Honestly, it was more of a surprise for Yixing after everything he’s been. After Baekhyun and Jongdae slightly sabotaged his chances at a test, they knew they had to make it up to him. He came into the apartment that day with red rimmed eyes, a wet face, and a red nose. While Baekhyun wanted to put the blame on Jongdae, he knew it was partially his fault for doing this to him. Of course, he didn’t want Yixing to feel as though all the drinking wasn’t worth the bad grade. So, Baekhyun and Jongdae brought it upon themselves to try to cheer that boy up, a week after his failure. Knowing Yixing, he wanted something bourgeoise. It was just in his nature because he was always working hard for amazing companies, or working at places where he felt like he had some kind of title, but that was because those engineering majors had connections that he never even thought was possible. With all those factors, Yixing only liked lavish things. Sure, he was okay with a run down frat party, or beer in red solo cups, but most often than not he liked the finer things in life. That meant peach moscatos, mimosas, and conversations about stock. It didn’t truly make sense, but if Yixing was ever in charge of something, it had to be something posh because he only wanted the finest.

Yet, his friends were trash so Baekhyun had no idea why he liked the five course meals when Baekhyun and Jongdae were like McDonald’s burgers in comparison. But, whatever, he didn’t want to judge Yixing’s taste for the next hour. And just like that, Baekhyun was donning his favorite suit while Jongdae was lighting up their dinner table. Of course, they also had to take Jongdae’s favorite wine to this party despite his whining. Baekhyun had to remind him it was his fault that he was so upset over his test, and then remind him once again that it was his fault he got somewhat hungover.

Jongdae was somewhat human, so of course, he felt bad and shut up afterwards.

“Finished!” Baekhyun exclaimed as he poured the rest of the wine into several glasses. Smiling, he turned to Jongdae who was texting their group chat. Ah yes, the group chat, it wasn’t among the three of them anymore, but it was among Baekhyun, Jongdae, Taewoo, Taeyeon, Jiyong, Doojoon, and Suji. They were the guests for Yixing’s party, and they all knew it was formal attire. It wasn’t the biggest crowd, but he appreciated the fact that they were all related to Yixing in some way.

“Cool, thanks Baekhyun,” he replied nonchalantly before Baekhyun gave him a teasing glare.

“Please just give me some kind of love, Jongdae,” he answered and Jongdae then put a thumbs up to show his affections for the boy who truly knew more about fanciness than Jongdae ever could. “I will take that,” replied before kissing the boy on the cheek, and peering over his shoulder. This was how they were. Just a little goofier and a little more affectionate, and Baekhyun loved it about the two of them. With a smile, Jongdae intertwined their fingers together and laughed as Baekhyun tried to send an emoji with his spare fingers.

“Dork,” he replied before Baekhyun hit his shoulder. Silently, he went back to texting the rest of the group. When Suji was the first one to say she was there, Baekhyun looked at Jongdae with a concerned look, and he just laughed before pointing to the door. “Don’t worry about it,” he answered as Baekhyun jogged towards the door. As he opened the door, there she was in a gorgeous silver gown. Before he could even let her in, he whispered a wow before she hid her ruby lips behind her manicured fingers.

“Can I come in?” she asked as he opened the door a little more. With a silent nod, he let the girl in, and if both Jongdae and Yixing were there, they’d again about how beautiful he stared at Suji. Except, he couldn’t help but be amazed by how beautiful the people in his life was. And sure, it might have been love, but he didn’t mind that. It was just an attraction he couldn’t explain. What was he going to do when Taeyeon came into the room with Jiyong? Would it be the same? He wouldn’t know.

When Suji passed Jongdae, he smiled at her and began to ask her about her quarter. It was odd to see Jongdae naturally get into conversation with her. A year ago, he was trying to avoid her at all costs. Sure, they never talked about it, and sure, he never wanted to talk about the Suji incident with him, but he was always so curious what happened. He always wanted to ask, but there was nothing he could do to make him pry open. He seemed so immersed in their conversation that Jongdae didn’t even notice when his phone started vibrating, or hear that the door was ringing once again.

It was Baekhyun’s job then. Opening the door, he didn’t expect a fairy to be staring back at him in her pastel green floral dress, a flower crown still on her head, and with her fingers intertwined with Jiyong. A dragon and a fairy together, it seemed right. As his eyes glanced from the blonde beauty to the thin boy besides her in a cotton candy suit, he only smiled. This was what was beautiful between them all.

“Evening gorgeous,” Jiyong stated with a toothy grin on his face. He pressed a kiss on Taeyeon’s forehead before she giggled and kissed Baekhyun’s hand. He never interacted with Jiyong before, but this was not what he expected. A flirty young man with a girl who was so enamoured by her boo was something he strived to have with someone. It seemed as though they were used to it though, and they walked into the room without even realizing that he was stopped in his tracks. In an instant, he heard Jiyong exclaiming and hugging Jongdae as though they were best friends while Taeyeon tried to have a conversation with Suji.

It was weird to see them all connect like this. But before he could go back and snatch Taeyeon for a conversation, the bell rung once more, and when he opened the doors, there were the two gentlemen in Yixing’s life, laughing and casually talking about different parties and concoctions that even he didn’t know about. Then again, he wasn’t really about that drinking life so there was that. But staring at them, and seeing how Yixing’s old crush could just get along with his new crush so easily was weird. They had no idea what the relationship was between the two of them, but he was happy to see it in person. To know tthe two of them could get along so well meant that Yixing had good taste in men.

“This guy is really cool. Why haven’t you guys introduced me to him yet?” Doojoon asked with a teasing grin on his face while Taewoo only ruffled the boy’s hair before he headed inside. Baekhyun was awkwardly left with Doojoon. Sure, he saw him all the time at the coffee shop when he was buying a tea latte, or on campus, but the two of them didn’t really have a relationship. And yeah, Doojoon looked really good in his suit, but he had no idea what to talk to him about.

What was he supposed to say to a dude who probably wasn’t interested in Super Smash Brothers, or Pokemon, or really cool indie games? Every time Jongdae and Yixing talked about him, Doojoon sounded like it was impossible for him to friend. He worked out, he had his head on his shoulders, a life to live, parties to go, and he was a business major. How was it actually possible? He stood there awkwardly with the most opposite person ever.

“So…”

There was that awkward pause he was looking for. While Baekhyun adjusted his scarlet tie, he looked back down at his oxfords that looked so measly next to Doojoon’s dark shoes. There it was, the insecurity he was trying so hard to hide.

“I heard you play League. Do you wanna rally together sometime?” he asked. Eyes widening and looking up to see Doojoon’s easygoing smile again, Baekhyun didn’t know how to respond other than stumble on his own two feet. Was it possible that Doojoon wasn’t as cool as everyone made him out to be? He played League?! How was it actually possible?

“I mean, yeah! I’m a mid,” Baekhyun started, the nerdiness coming out of him the moment he saw that there was a possibility to befriend him. It was as if nothing else mattered. Their conversation about video gaming continued in those ten minutes he was with Doojoon. It was so good that he almost forgot about the guest of honor while they were standing near the door.

Too engrossed with his conversation, Jongdae was the one who opened the door to see Yixing in a scarlet suit, with a box of chocolates, and a few roses in his hands.

“What the , Jongdae?” he asked. Jongdae stared at the guy as he ran a finger through his dark hair, and just smiled. Honestly, Yixing didn’t own a damn suit in his life, and Baekhyun had no idea how Jongdae got a custom fitted suit for the boy, but it was also Jongdae who had all kinds of dirt on them so he wasn’t too surprised. “This is how you make up my B on that test? Sure, I look real good, but,” Yixing started, without noticing everyone was staring at him. When Jongdae moved to the side, he realized he should have taken back those words because standing in his living room were six important people in his life.

“You got a ing B on the test, dude, that isn’t even close to failing!” Jiyong shouted, and just like that Yixing walked into the room, putting the gifts to the side, and picking up a wine glass from Doojoon, who dazzled in his black suit while Taewoo raised his glass in his honor.

“To Yixing’s failures!” Jiyong exclaimed while everyone started to laugh. And Baekhyun had never seen Yixing elicit some kind of happiness and wistfulness together. But when he walked into the living room, there was a soft smile on his face while everyone was cheering and laughing with Yixing. For as long as he knew Yixing for his college career, he never saw him happier than this night. While his smiles were soft and kind, Baekhyun saw Yixing's eyes light up in a way that was so different when it was just among the three of them.

For once, he wasn’t roasting everyone for being sentimental, instead, he was the one being sentimental, and sipping away on his red wine as they patted his back, told stories, and shared their lives with each other. As he watched from the kitchen, he couldn’t help be proud and content for his best friend. He watched as they all raised their glasses to him, as he continued to be amazed how everyone was celebrating what was his failure. This was the first time he ever got a B. This was the first time that he didn’t worry about his test, but he still did a wonderful job.

While Baekhyun knew he wanted to blame it on Jongdae, while it really was Jongdae’s fault that they had to celebrate that failure, he didn’t think the response to it would be this positive. Yixing was always so harsh on himself, but there was no way to kick him off that pedestal. He was laughing at everything, smiling at Suji’s jokes, getting tipsy from all the wine people were giving him, and clinging onto Taewoo as though his life depended on it.

“Takeout’s here,” Jongdae nodded to Baekhyun. Everyone had fancy glasses of wine, formal clothes on, and a box of Chinese take out in front of them. Yixing was going to throw glares at Jongdae, but the moment everyone sat down, wooden chopsticks ready, and no one cared that this was so inappropriate for the clothes they were wearing, and the drinks they were drinking. Baekhyun watched as his glares turned into grins because Chinese takeout was Yixing's favorite. It didn’t make any sense, but Jongdae and Baekhyun were hopeless at cooking. And Yixing’s guilty pleasure was always going to be Chinese take out. It was that simple.

Everyone was talking, laughing, and becoming friends. It was Yixing’s failure that got them to this point. Somehow, a B was the reason to why there were new friendships, and new relationships to discuss. As their fingers greased up, as the girls spilled chow mein on their dresses, and the boys had crumbs from fortune cookies on their pants, it just seemed kind of perfect.

“Yo, we have eight players. Let’s play some Smash!” Doojoon shouted, and just like that, Baekhyun was jumping up and down from his spot, grabbing his favorite eight Gamecube controllers, hooking up the Wii U, and getting ready to kick some . Everyone started to clean up, and it seemed like this was supposed to happen. The girls sat on the couch while the boys found empty spots on the ground to play.

Laughter ensued as Jiyong drunkenly exclaimed that Doojoon, his teammate stole one of his lives, or that Pikachu wouldn’t stop grabbing Suji, and as Bakehyun's fingers messed with all the buttons on the yellow controller, he looked at Yixing once again who was smiling next to him. Jongdae was on the other side grumbling that he was always going to be terrible at video games, and he knew that Yixing was happy. Maybe, not as happy and content with the fact that he got his first B, and his grade in the test category was going to be lower, but he was happy to see that wine stained smile on his face. He was happy to hear the exclamations that he wouldn’t have heard if it wasn’t for this party, and seeing him be sure everything was going to be okay.

Yixing was slowly accepting he wasn’t going to be perfect, and that was something Baekhyun found amazing to see.

“You ing used your side B on me!” Yixing shouted as he pushed Baekhyun with his elbow. Laughing again, Baekhyun killed Yixing, and watched as he lost his last life. Yes, he was happy that Yixing was accepting himself, but he also just wanted to beat him with Zero Suit Samus.