"… This speech would probably need a lot of editing and I would most likely erase it all together after. But I'd try again and again and again until I find all the perfect words to say how much I love you…” Chanyeol in the video said.

"Baekhyun-ah," The real Chanyeol whined. "You should really stop replaying that video." The taller boy tried to pry Baekhyun's phone away from him and succeeded getting it out of his reach. Baekhyun was spending that lazy Saturday morning comfortably lying on the sofa with his head nestled on top of Chanyeol's arm, his back against the backrest. He wanted to get his phone but he didn't want to move from his position so he stopped reaching for it. His boyfriend's limbs were longer and he couldn't keep his phone from him forever anyway.

"But why? It was my Valentine's gift from you which means I can replay it as many times as I want." He said with a small pout.

"Because it's embarrassing, really. And stop pouting." Chanyeol leaned down to place a quick kiss on the shorter boy's lips effectively scrambling Baekhyun's thoughts. He had to think for a few seconds before he remembered what they were talking about.

"Yes, embarrassingly sweet." He snuggled closer and tucked his head under Chanyeol's chin. He heard Chanyeol groan. He laughed. "Just kidding."

Baekhyun was enjoying the feel of his boyfriend's chest against his cheek when the taller boy spoke quietly. "Tomorrow's May 6."

He looked up at Chanyeol and saw wariness in his eyes. "I'll be here."

"I know." There was still a note of trepidation in the younger's voice.

"But?"

"Nothing. It's just I can't help feeling... worried? It has been going on for a while now. There has just been so much-" Chanyeol trailed off.

"Everything will be all right, okay? Look at me." Baekhyun cupped the boy's cheek. "We shall be happy because I said so and it's my birthday tomorrow and everything would be great." But Baekhyun can still see some reservations in Chanyeol's expression. "Repeat after me. Tomorrow will be a happy day."

"Tomorrow... will be a happy day."

"Good. Now, Byun Baekhyun loves Park Chanyeol."

"Byun Baekhyun loves Park Chanyeol." Finally, Baekhyun saw Chanyeol's lips twitch into a smile.

"Chanyeol loves Baekhyun." His heart thrummed happily as Chanyeol repeated it with his deep voice.

"Chanyeol loves Baekhyun forever."

"Chanyeol will promise to do all the dishes from now on."

"Chanyeol will promise to... do... No, I won't." The taller boy pinched Baekhyun's nose and laughed as he yelped. But he quickly kissed the spot so Baekhyun didn't complain. "You are impossible."

"That is my line." He said teasingly. Remembering that they can't really lie around much longer, Baekhyun sighed. "As much as I'd rather we just stay here, we have lots to do for my party tomorrow."

"I would gladly do all the shopping and preparing if we stay here for ten minutes more." Chanyeol said persuasively.

"I can't believe you want to stay here for another ten minutes. You can't fit as it is and your neck and legs are probably already cramping." He tsked. "Too tall."

"I can just do this so I'll fit better." His boyfriend proceeded to envelope him in a bear hug, his long arms and legs wrapping Baekhyun effectively in a cocoon of warmth. They fit perfectly, he thought. He felt safe and loved and wanted. "See?" Chanyeol cuddled him tighter. “I get ten minutes”

"Park Chanyeol. What do I do with you?" Baekhyun said as he rolled his eyes at the taller boy.

"You? Just love me."

Chanyeol didn't want for Baekhyun to know it, but he was still nervous about tomorrow. He couldn't completely convince himself that everything will be alright once May 6 comes. He's been used to damp pillows and swollen eyes every time he wakes up on that day for the past four years. So although he tried to be lighthearted while they were doing the groceries, he couldn't fully shake off the heavy feeling in his chest.

It was just so painful. He doesn't doubt that having Baekhyun with him can make it better, it's just he really doesn't want to go through it anymore. How can he fully describe the loneliness and the despair that came with it? The sickeningly empty feeling and waking up to harsh sobs, looking for something he doesn't even know. It breaks him every time and nobody was really there to hold him with each tear that falls.

He didn't notice that his grip on Baekhyun's hand tightened until the shorter boy ran his thumb over his and stopped walking. "Chanyeol?"

He looked down at Baekhyun's anxious eyes and felt guilty that he was causing it. "I'm sorry. I just got distracted." He said as he pecked on Baekhyun's forehead to erase the worried frown there.

They continued on their way but Baekhyun suddenly stopped again and handed him the bags he was carrying. "I forgot something. Wait for me at the bus stop. I'll just be quick!" His boyfriend ran back to the direction of the store even before he could say yes. Confused, he went on his way to the stop and sat at the bench to wait.

Left by himself, he began to think of that fateful February day when he met Baekhyun. That burst of happiness when he heard him sing, when his heart had told him he found the one. It's been more than a year now but those feelings have not waned one bit. He owes it to Baekhyun to make his birthday as special as his boyfriend made his so he resolved to stop worrying and just focus on the celebration tomorrow.

Not a moment too soon, he saw Baekhyun running towards the bus stop, holding a bag on one hand and a big smile lighting up his face. "Let's go." He said once he reached Chanyeol's side.

"What is that?" Chanyeol asked curiously.

"Just something extra I picked up." Baekhyun said with an impish grin but didn't elaborate further. Chanyeol wanted to probe more but he wasn't proof against the smaller boy's smile so he let it pass. The bus came and thankfully there were empty seats since the bags they were carrying were quite heavy. It wasn't long before they reached their dorm where they spent some time arranging the groceries and making sure everything was prepared for tomorrow's party.

"I've just invited a few people and all of them said yes. So there'll be Jongin, Kyungsoo, Sehun and Luhan. Of course my brother and Kris. There's also Joonmyeon-hyung, Yixing and Jongdae, Minseok-hyung plus a handful of others."

"Are you sure the food is enough? With Sehun and Jongin alone-" Chanyeol joked.

"Yeah and you. I know you can demolish a truckload between the three of you but yes, I'm sure the food will be enough." Baekhyun said with a laugh.

"Okay. I'll cook dinner tonight. Don't be too shocked it will just be ramyun." Chanyeol answered in response to Baekhyun's surprised look. "And close your mouth, sheesh, it's not like I haven't cooked for you before."

"Yes, but it's the first time you're volunteering to do it." He was rewarded with a quick hug from the shorter boy. "Call me when you're done. I just have to do something." Then Baekhyun disappeared through their bedroom.

Chanyeol made short work of the cooking and it wasn't long before they had their dinner with Baekhyun teasing him about being domesticated. Just like a puppy. Which then resulted to noodles everywhere (In their hair, shirts and on the floor) and no one winning the food fight since they both collapsed with laughter at how ridiculous they looked.

They quickly cleaned the mess they made and then took turns taking a bath. Chanyeol went out of the shower stall to find Baekhyun already in his pajamas, brushing his teeth. He stood beside him in front of the sink and went to brush his teeth, too. Their eyes met in the mirror and Chanyeol felt himself fall for Baekhyun again, for the hundredth time, for the thousandth time.

He almost forgot about his worries for the next day but when they entered their shared room together, Chanyeol felt a familiar pang in his chest. He hesitantly took a step further into the room but Baekhyun stayed him with a hand on his arm. "Let's go."

He shot his boyfriend a puzzled look. "Where?"

"You are still nervous and worried. I understand that. So come with me."

"How did you know?" Chanyeol asked quietly. He thought he did a good job in hiding it from Baekhyun.

The shorter boy moved in front of him and touched his palm to Chanyeol's chest. "Because I love you and I can feel this. Every beat. And I know you're still scared but I'm here. I'll be with you, Chanyeol. We'll do this together." Then he held out his hand which Chanyeol took. He saw Baekhyun pick up a mat and a small plastic bag from the doorway before they made their way up to the roof top. Baekhyun let go of Chanyeol's hand to spread the mat on the floor before rummaging through the bag he was holding. And then he was ing a pair of sparklers in his hand. "There. Surprise."

Chanyeol looked at the fireworks in confusion. "Don't you want to use this tomorrow?"

"No. I bought them earlier just for tonight. Because I knew you still feel uneasy and I figured we can use this to welcome May 6. We will wait here together. And we will be happy, Chanyeol." Baekhyun said it with so much confidence that Chanyeol was starting to believe it.

"Have I told you that I love you?" He asked.

The shorter boy chuckled. "Of course. Many times. Last was this morning, in fact."

He leaned down to touch his forehead to Baekhyun's. "Because I really, really do."

Baekhyun stood on his tiptoe to brush his lips against Chanyeol's. "I really, really love you, too."

They stood in each other's embrace for sometime before Baekhyun pulled back. "Come on, there's still an hour before midnight. Let's light these up!" Chanyeol started to forget about his misgivings while he was watching Baekhyun run around with the lit sparklers, laughing and drawing circles in the air. "What are you doing? Don't just stand there. Come on!"

He couldn't resist the promise of joy in Baekhyun's smile and not long after he joined him, they became a pair of kids, running, jumping and cheering for all they were worth. They fell tiredly on the mat after they ran out of sparklers. Chanyeol's heart was beating fast but it wasn't because of worry. It was because of Baekhyun and their linked hands. They lay side by side, watching the stars.

"Five minutes to midnight." Baekhyun whispered beside him.

"I think it won't hurt anymore," And Chanyeol was now sure it wouldn't. How would it when he's this happy?

"I'm just really wondering though. You told me it started four years ago?"

"Yes. It started as a normal day. It was the date of my final auditions. I was actually happy during that time because I qualified and I would begin my training soon. But when I arrived back here... I was sort of hesitant to come in. When I entered and saw a calendar I just felt this burn in my eyes and the next thing I know I was on the floor crying. It... The pain wouldn't stop." Chanyeol felt Baekhyun move closer to wrap an arm around him.

"I felt I lost something. I wanted to run after it, but I don't know what I was looking for." He remembered his helplessness, his hopelessness. "It was so sad, Baekhyun. I was so sad."

"I'm sorry." Baekhyun hugged him tighter.

"The next day, I was myself again but at the same time, not. I tried to forget what happened and as the days went on, I did. But I think my friends noticed that I wasn't as cheerful as before. I couldn't really tell them what happened because even I don't know."

"They love you so much, Chanyeol. If you told them, even if they wouldn't understand, they'd at least be there for you." Baekhyun said against his chest.

"I didn't want them to worry. And I didn't know that it would happen again. The next three years, just as I told you before, I wake up with the same feeling." He kissed the top of the older boy's head. "But now you're here."

"Yes, I'm here." Baekhyun answered his boyfriend. He wanted to cry for all the years he wasn't beside Chanyeol to wipe and kiss away those tears. He promised himself that won't happen again.

After a few moments of peaceful silence, he spoke. He felt it was the right moment of confessions. "I've dreamt of you." He felt Chanyeol's eyes on him. "Or maybe I wished for you. Because when we met, you were stranger I knew."

"There were moments of us together that I could swear have happened before but that's impossible. Sometimes, you would do or say something that will remind me of my dreams or visions... I really don't know what to call them. It only happens with you."

"There are full episodes, other times just a fragment of a conversation. But all of them give me feelings of déjà vu. Like we already did some things that we really haven't. It's strange, too, come to think of it." He said almost absently.

"What is?"

"It's strange that sometimes I feel that I lost something, too. And also... after those dreams, I feel so afraid of losing you." Baekhyun shook his head. "I'm not even making any sense."

"You are."

"We are weird people, huh?" He laughed lightly. "Maybe, that's why we ended up together."

"Not weird." Chanyeol placed another kiss on his forehead. "Baek, what if it's true? What if we really did know each other before?"

"What do you mean?"

"I just can't help but think... Cause you said those dreams of yours were so real. What if we already met in different lifetimes? What if there were already dozens of Chanyeol's who fell in love with dozens of Baekhyuns?"

He smiled at the thought. "You mean like soul mates?"

"Yes." Chanyeol looked down at him. "Because, you know, this kind of love? This is the kind that can't be contained in just one lifetime."

"You are cheesy, stop it."

"No, really. What if I was once a Pharaoh? You could have been-"

"The priestess' son who melted the heart of the cruel ruler and changed him for the better." Baekhyun laughed, getting into the spirit of the game. "I could have been a wartime nurse-"

"And I could have been the doctor who saved hundreds of lives or the hero who-"

"Was injured and fell in love with his nurse at first sight."

"Now who's being cheesy?" The taller boy teased.

"For that, you were a cockroach in one of our lifetimes, and I was a butterfly that you could only admire from a far. We almost didn't end up together then because you smell."

"Good one. Oh, next I was a prince and you were my betrothed's lowly servant and the world was against us. But we were in love."

"And you gave up your kingdom just for me. Awww." Baekhyun wanted to roll in laughter. "It's gets cheesier by the minute."

"And whose fault is that?" Chanyeol asked while he buried his nose against Baekhyun's hair, also laughing convulsively.

"Then there was a lifetime I was an angel who fell for the clumsy boy I was supposed to be guarding." His boyfriend suddenly quieted. Chanyeol tipped Baekhyun's face up towards him and he saw the taller boy's expression turn serious.

"I don't like that." Chanyeol said with a slight frown.

"But why? Am I not fit to become an angel?"

"If you were an angel then we would never have ended up together because you're world would've been different from mine."

Baekhyun cupped Chanyeol's jaw. "That's not true. If I were an angel, I would give up everything just to be with you. You would be my world."

"I would laugh but..." Chanyeol stopped and captured Baekhyun's lips in a kiss. A kiss they may have already shared through hundreds of lifetimes. Mouths pause to separate just to be joined again closer than before. Baekhyun moaned Chanyeol's name against his lips and tugged him closer.

After a few more kisses, they part and Baekhyun placed his head back over Chanyeol's heart that was beating as wildly as his own. He caught a glimpse of his watch. It was twenty past twelve. "It's May 6."

Chanyeol cupped the back of his head and pressed him closer. "Happy Birthday."

Baekhyun felt himself being lifted over Chanyeol's back. They fell asleep on the rooftop after talking about yesterdays and tomorrows and fate. He sleepily pressed his face against the back of Chanyeol's neck as he was being carried towards their room. "What time is it?" He mumbled sleepily.

"Shhh. It's nearly 4am. Just sleep." Chanyeol answered. Not long after Baekhyun felt the comfortable softness of the sheets against his cheek and the warmth of Chanyeol gathering him in his arms. With a smile, he succumbed to slumber again.

His heart was going on at a hundred miles an hour. He couldn't breathe. Something was going to happen.

He had to get out. He had to go somewhere. He doesn't know what's happening but he has to go to Chanyeol.

11:24 am.

The main street. There were people everywhere. There were the sounds of police and ambulance sirens. Everybody was talking at the same time. Noise. So much noise.

His heartbeat was thundering in his ears.

"Poor boy."

"You're right. He was so young." Another woman said.

"It was a close range shot through the chest." said a man.

“Please, I have to get to him. I know him. Please, officer... You don't understand." Baekhyun pleaded some more. "Please, sir. He needs me... I need him... I need him, please."

He let his fingers touch Chanyeol's lifeless lips. He really couldn't see clearly past the tears clouding his vision. "Chanyeollie," he said brokenly. "My Chanyeol..."

"Child, there are some things that has to happen. Things we didn't expect and things we don't want."

"Please, I'll do anything. I'll give anything. Me, take me instead. I'll give up everything all over again. You don't even have to give him to me anymore... Just give him his life back."

"When he returns, he'll have no memory of you. He wouldn't know who you are; the time you spent together will be erased. It's as if you never existed."

"No. Please, no." He woke up with a cry. He was shaking and he was drenched in sweat. The dream felt so real. So damn real.

He reached out for Chanyeol at his side but his hand encountered cool sheets. He sat up quickly and saw a scrawled note on the pillow beside his.

I can't believe we forgot to buy cooking oil!

Will be back soon ^^

Happy birthday. <3

"No." He said hoarsely. He glanced at the clock on the bedside table. 11:24.

"No." He got up. "No." He went to the door. "No. No!"

Baekhyun got outside and ran.