After pulling an all nighter playing his usual online games, Baekhyun woke up with a headache after consuming multiple bottles of soju throughout the night. He winced, rubbing his palm against his throbbing forehead as he trudged down the hallway. He descended down the staircase, taking his precious time before stepping onto the icy kitchen floor. With his mind focused on relieving the pain, he didn't acknowledge Jongdae and perhaps one of his colleagues sitting at the kitchen table, talking amongst themselves.

"Oh, Sleeping Beauty finally woke up," Jongdae smiled, taking a sip of his coffee, "Did you sleep well?"

Not much of a morning person, Baekhyun grumbled in response as he took out a bottle of water and pills from the cabinet. He briefly glanced at the two as he sprinkled a pill into his hand. "You should've told me we were having company this morning..I could've stayed in my room," He said, popping the pill into his mouth and drunk some water.

"I told you yesterday. Remember?"

Baekhyun thought for a moment, "Oh, yeah...what time did you say that bucked tooth loser was coming by?" Nearly choking on his coffee, Jongdae looked over at his guest embarrassed by his friends' choice of words. "Make sure his stays outside. I don't want his repulsive odor to stink up the house," Baekhyun cringed. 

"I see you haven't changed much," The guest finally spoke. Baekhyun looked his way, still puzzled, "I'm Chanyeol, the bucked tooth loser," he smirked.

Realization finally settled in and Baekhyuns' mouth fell open, token back by Chanyeols' new appearance. His ugly haircut had grew out and was now a platinum shade. He no longer wore those large frames that covered half his face. And he lost a lot of baby fat which made his jawline more prominent.

"Did you get plastic surgery?" 

Jongdae shook his head, getting up. "That's enough, Baekhyun."

Chanyeol turned in his seat, watching as Jongdae pulled Baekhyun towards the hallway. "It's called puberty, Byun. Something I see you still haven't gone through yet," he shot back, taking a sip of his coffee. 

Baekhyun crinkled his eyebrows and tried to brush Jongdae's grip from his arm, ready to retaliate back. Before he could, Jongdae quickly intervened, cupping his hand over Baekhyuns's mouth and dragged him around the corner. 

"Why the hell would you ask him that? Jongdae scolded, lowering his voice to a whisper.

"I didn't know that was him. I thought he was your coworker or something," Baekhyun said, leaning back against the wall and crossing his arms. 

"Even if it wasn't him, why would you say such rude things in front of company? You know that makes people not want to come back, right?"

Baekhyun shrugged, "He doesn't need to come back anyway. He's only here to fix the pool. He's not our friend."

"Maybe not to you, but to me he is. He's going through a hard time right now and the last thing he needs is someone to treat him like . This isn't elementary anymore. You need to grow up and stop acting so childish." 

Baekhyun scoffed, looking off to the side, uninterested in Jongdae's little lecture. "Whatever, you're starting to sound like my parents now," Baekhyun pushed himself off the wall, "I'm gonna go lay down. You're making my headache worse." 

*   *   *

After some time, the medicine had finally kicked in and Baekhyun was out of bed, ready to play more video games. Despite being a homebody, he hardly ever passed up the chance to go to the computer cafe with his friend. If anyone was able to talk him into leaving the house, it was Kyungsoo.

Baekhyun trodded back downstairs, dressed in a pair of beige shorts and a white shirt with a sensual looking anime girl on the front. It was a gift that Kyungsoo had bought for him from an anime convention. Having nothing else clean to wear, he just threw it on. Spotting Jongdae outside talking to Chanyeol by the pool, Baekhyun paid no mind to the giant that towered over both of them as he interrupted their conversation. 

"Hey, I'm gonna go meet up with Kyungsoo. You got a few bucks to spare?" 

Out of habit, Jongdae took out his wallet and handed Baekhyun a large bill. "Bring me back my change, will you?"

"Yeah, yeah," Baekhyun murmured stuffing the money into his pocket. "No promises," he smiled. 

"I'm serious, Baekhyun. I'm a little tight on money right now. All I had on me was that twenty."

"Don't worry about it, Dae. I'll put the money back on your dresser when I get back."

"Do you need a ride?" Chanyeol chimed in. 

Briefly rolling his eyes, Baekhyun looked over his shoulder, "No, thanks. The computer cafe is around the corner. I can walk."

"I don't mind taking you. I was just going over the checklist with Jongdae before I leave."

Baekhyun prepared to turn down Chanyeol's offer until he felt a sharp pain jab against his back. He snapped his head towards Jongdae, cussing him out with his glare. "Be nice," Jongdae mouthed to him. Swallowing his pride, Baekhyun looked back at Chanyeol with a sour taste in his mouth. Guess it's the least he could do for Chanyeol. 

"Fine. I'll wait in the car," Baekhyun said, making sure to nudge Jongdae back as he made his way out the back gate. 

He approached Chanyeol's rusty, beat up looking truck that had to be at least ten years old. It made a painful squeak noise as he opened and closed the door behind him. The interior seemed fairly clean and in tact although there were a few tears within the brown leather seats. Overall, Chanyeol seemed to take pretty good care of it. 

Baekhyun waited for about five minutes until Chanyeol reloaded the truck with his cleaning supplies. Baekhyun occupied himself with a mobile game as Chanyeol finished up. He hopped into the drivers seat, starting the ignition. "Are you gonna direct me to the computer cafe, or are you just gonna stare at your phone and enjoy the ride back to my place?" 

Baekhyun tensed up at Chanyeol's failed attempt at flirting. Not only has Chanyeol's persona become more confident, but his mouth has also gotten more bold. 

"Your house is the last place on earth that I would ever want to go to," Baekhyun said, getting a chuckle from Chanyeol, "Take a right at the stop sign and keep straight," he instructed. 

The ride was short but it felt like forever as if Chanyeol was purposely going five miles per hour. Throughout the ride, Baekhyun was half listening to Chanyeol ramble on about how much he hasn't changed. Of course besides his boyish appearance, he noted how mature Baekhyun's voice had become since elementary. Chanyeol's simping was starting to overwhelm Baekhyun. 

Finally reaching the cafe, Baekhyun immediately swung the door open, not allowing the car to fully stop. "Thanks for the ride," He said, jumping out the passenger seat. 

"Wait, Byun," Chanyeol called out before the smaller could run away. Once Baekhyun allowed himself to make eye contact, he continued, "You want to grab lunch one of these days and catch up? I can rearrange my schedule so that we could—, Baekhyun cut him off.

"Look, Chanyeol. I know it losing your father and all, but I'm not interested in hanging out with you after today, got it?"

It didn't hurt Baekhyun to see Chanyeol's expression drop. He should still know where he stands. Just because he looks like some super hot K-pop star now doesn't mean he has a chance with him. He's still that gross annoying kid from childhood. And nothing is gonna change that. 

"Got it," Chanyeol whispered, loud enough for Baekhyun to hear as he took the car off park. With that, Baekhyun closed the door and watched the truck pull away from the curb before he went to go meet up with his friend.