Baekhyun glanced at his watch and started. He hadn’t realised how long he had been sat there in the back stage room. He heaved himself out of the chair, regretting having to leave the comfort it afforded him. He slid open the door and fled down the corridor at a light jog. He needed to catch Kyungsoo on his way home and talk to him about his misunderstandings. He sighed heavily as he jogged out of the main school doors. What did Kyungsoo think was going on between him and Kai? He knew that he was helplessly in love with Chanyeol, and no matter how much he wished it, he couldn’t change the way he felt. Besides, Kyungsoo and Suho Knew better than anybody that nobody in the school knew that he was gay, especially not Kai, who as a close friend of Chanyeol’s might tell him.

Making his way across the tarmac to the main gate Baekhyun  noticed that there were now only one or two people milling around and that most people had left the school a little while before. Baekhyun turned left and picked up his pace, nearly at a run, as he made his way to Kyungsoo’s house. Normally being this late out of school he would leave it to the next day but this was too important. He couldn’t stand the idea of Kyungsoo thinking of him in that way, and maybe even Suho as well.

He arrived at Kyungsoo’s house after about five minutes. Kyungsoo lived fairly near to the school anyway and his pace had meant a speedy arrival. Normally he would just walk in but Baekhyun hesitated, his hand hovering above the doorknob. He wasn’t sure if Kyungsoo would be angry if he did that now. Sighing again he raised his hand and rapped his knuckles against the hard wood three times before taking a step back from the door. After a few seconds of waiting he heard some shuffles and bangs from behind the door. The door was flung open and the figure behind it was not Kyungsoo. A short plump woman with wave dark brown hair stood atop the doorstep. He hair was piled into a messy bun but strands of hair were flying around her red tinted face. A warm smile spread across her face as she saw Baekhyun. She wiped her dough covered hands on her flowery apron, spreading the soft, stretchy mixture across the fabric, before beckoning at him to follow her inside. She turned around and made her way back into the house towards the kitchen.

“Come on Baekhyun-ah. Sorry it’s a bit of a shambles; I think I bit off more than I can chew with all of this food.” She laughed as she entered the kitchen. Her laugh turned to a cough as she wrenched the oven door open, thick clouds of smoke billowing out from the cracks around the door.

She pushed a tray of flaming, somethings, Baekhyun couldn’t tell what from all of the fire on top of the oven, beating at the flame with her tea towel. Baekhyun reached behind him and grabbed the fire extinguisher off of the wall whilst simultaneously pulling Mrs Do away from the oven. He aimed the extinguisher and pressed on the small trigger, feeling the pressure on his arms as the foamy, white bubbles were sprayed out of the extinguisher. He was careful to stop as soon as the flames were out, knowing Mrs Do would need the extinguisher again worryingly soon, so it was best to conserve it.  

She looked up at him with a sheepish smile. Her face was even pinker than before and her hair had become wild. Baekhyun raised his eyebrows, trying to look stern, but couldn’t manage it for more than a few seconds before he was smiling back.

“How many times have I told you to read the instructions and set timers?” He chastised her as she frowned slightly.

“I did! It’s just they weren’t quite done, and then I was making the bread and I…forgot.” She smiled again, scratching her chin as she observed the mess. Baekhyun just laughed and ruffled her already manic, fluffy hair before grabbing a cloth and setting to work cleaning up the mess. Kyungsoo’s mum was always like this, she was one of the loveliest people you could ever meet, but she was very bad with special awareness, always knocking things or tripping over. This didn’t help when she tried to cook which she was helpless at anyway. Baekhyun has always felt comfortable around her, she had treated him as a second son and so he had come to see her in a motherly way. He didn’t like to admit it to himself but she was more of a mother to him than his own mother.

Peering at a charred black lump in his hand Baekhyun took a guess at what she had been cooking. “Cupcakes?” He asked with a grin.

She looked up from the floor where she was wiping away the foamy froth, “No, they were meant to be muffins. Close though.” She flushed slightly as she smiled, embarrassed that yet again her cooking adventures had crashed and burned. Literally burned this time. After about 10 minutes of cleaning the two of them managed to have the quaint kitchen spotless again. There were no signs that there had been any culinary catastrophes. Baekhyun smiled as he looked around, this had always been his favourite room in the house, it was so homey. There were hand painted plates hung along one wall and a beautiful painting of a countryside scene on another wall, interspersed with family photos. One photo always made Baekhyun crack up, it was Kyungsoo at the beach, he was almost entirely buried in the sand, save for his head which held the most hilarious expression as the boy struggled to free himself. She plates, mugs and bowls on the counter were an assortment of colours, patterns and sizes and the large wooden table had pen markings and gouges in it from when Kyungsoo was younger. This room had memories. It was in stark contrast to his own kitchen which was never anything but immaculate, all utensils and table wear were white and matching. The walls were bare and crisply painted, the room always felt cold.

Mrs Do placed two glasses of homemade lemonade and a plate of (shop bought) biscuits onto the table before sitting down. Baekhyun joined her and took a sip of his lemonade.

“Thanks.” He grinned, needing the refreshment having run there. “Do you know where Kyungsoo is? I assume he isn’t here?” He asked after another sip of lemonade and a bite of biscuit.

“He dropped by quickly, but he went out somewhere with Suho.” She leaned her elbows onto the table and rested her head in her hands. “Did you two fight about something Baekhyun-ah? Normally you’re with them.” She asked him with a gentle smile.

“He’s just angry at me, it’s all a misunderstanding.” He sighed; he never kept anything from Mrs Do. Mainly because he trusted her with everything and anything, but also because somehow she always knew what was the best thing to do. She nodded in understanding and pushed the plate of biscuit closer to him.

“That son of mine doesn’t know what’s good for him, so I think you’re going to have to be the bigger man and go tell him what’s what.” She said to him with warm, love filled eyes. “Now finish up your lemonade, have another biscuit, give me a hug and be on your way. The best you set him straight the better, no matter what this misunderstanding is, and don’t worry I’m not asking. You know him better than anybody so I am sure you’ll find him in no time.” Baekhyun smiled at her and shoved another biscuit into his mouth before draining his lemonade.

He walked around the table and wrapped his arms around her, her usual smell of burnt food and lemons comforting him. “Thank you.” He said, squeezing her tightly before letting go. He started back down the hall to the door and she followed him. “Make sure not to do anymore cooking until I give you another lesson.” He said over his shoulder, he laughed a little, “Maybe this time it will actually stick.”

She chuckled in return, “As long as you tell me all about how your performance went, I now you don’t have time now.”

“Of course I will.” He grinned and gave her another quick hug before loping away down the garden path, waving behind him at the soot dusted woman.

He walked down the idyllic street, taking long strides in his hurry, yet still wanting to appreciate the sights around him. He had walked down this street too many times to count, both alone and in company, but it never ceased to amaze him how beautiful it was. Tall oak trees lined the street between the road and the pavements. Row after row of gardens could be seen, each more green and flowery than the last. At the end of each garden was an old fashioned semi-detached house, decking wrapped around the unattached side. Most of the houses were painted white, but each had varying shades and colours used for the doors and the cute wooden shutters over the windows. There was the odd porch swing and some even had paddling pools and slides for the little children. It was a family street and even though to any other person it was normal, to Baekhyun t was the epitome of perfection and warmth.

Once the street had ended he picked up his pace and began a light jog. He had decide to try their usual café first, that was the most likely place that Kyungsoo and Suho would go to together. If they weren’t there then he would try the park the next street over. And if they weren’t there, well he would think where next to look if that happened. After a few minutes the café came into view, he slowed to a walk to allow time for his breathing to return to normal after the running and jogging he had been doing. He approached the café from the left, knowing that their usual table was in the back right hand corner of the picturesque café, hoping that he would be able to spot them through the window. Sure enough he saw the two of them sat opposite each other chatting as they sipped at their drinks. Baekhyun knew that as it was hot today Suho would have a raspberry smoothie and despite the heat Kyungsoo would still be drinking his usual mocha with extra whipped cream.

He pushed the door open and smiled out of habit when he heard the light, tinkling chime of the bell. He walked over to their table, not bothering to buy his beverage. He hated his friend being angry at him, especially since it was for no good reason, and he wanted to get this resolved as soon as possible. He slid into the chair beside Suho, facing Kyungsoo. Suho had a guilty expression on his face, most likely due to the fact that the two of them were there without even inviting Baekhyun. But it wasn’t Suho who Baekhyun was looking at, it was Kyungsoo/ His eyebrows had risen near to his hairline as his already orb like eyes widened even more at the sudden appearance of his friend.

“We need to talk.” Baekhyun said as he looked his best friend in the eyes.