All of the best love stories have one thing in common, you have to go against the odds to get there.

“Baekhyun, could you help me?” Dara asks hesitantly.

Baekhyun’s eyes lit up, “Hm?”

“I want to make my own project, too.” It was not to win his heart, but to figure out his' and hers'. 

“I’m sorry what? Dara noona, could you repeat what you said? I think the sound from this bar had gone through my ears.. I couldn’t hear properly.” Baekhyun asks.

“I said, I want to do my own project Chanyeol.” Dara repeats, this time, her face closer to Baekhyun’s. Baekhyun did hear right, then. The first time Dara had uttered the words, Baekhyun thought he was just hallucinating. Baekhyun couldn’t believe how things are turning upside down all of the sudden. Ironic, he chuckles.

“But could you tell me about this first?” Dara holds the paper up, and Baekhyun immediately puts the paper down, shoving it to Dara. He silently tells her to keep it hidden from the public’s eye.

Baekhyun whispers, “If Chanyeol finds out you know about that project, he would kill me. Although I have no fault in you seeing that letter anyway.” Baekhyun shrugs casually.

Dara immediately keeps the note in her wallet, safely in the other receipts she keeps.

Baekhyun starts, the sounds in the bar don’t dare subside, so Baekhyun moves closer to Dara. “That note, he started writing it the first time you met. Do you remember our debut days? Chanyeol would explain you the other details but he, at that time, I suddenly saw him that day writing a list with your name written on it. Every member knew his admiration towards you, Chanyeol was very vocal with it, but we never knew he was going to make a move.”

“And although I warned him a couple of times, and even Kris did, but he still continued the plan. I guess that’s how Chanyeol got to know Seungri-sunbae too.”

Dara only listened to Baekhyun as he recalled the time when Chanyeol had done a lot of effort to “win” her heart, and yet, she hadn’t realized all the things he did until the last minute. Until she saw the note he had wanted to keep from her. Both Dara and Baekhyun were now walking to a much-secluded place to talk; they walk to the balcony of the bar where no one else was currently staying.

“Chanyeol had done a ton of things for me, he had pulled oceans for me, yet I was too blind to see his actions.” Dara mutters, but Baekhyun hears what she says, the sounds from the party inside was not muffled down.

“It’s not your fault, Chanyeol wasn’t vocal with his feelings. You could say that he was late.” Baekhyun says, followed by a sigh.

“But he never stopped after the project, Chanyeol never stopped wanting to protect you, wanting to get close to you; and I don’t mean to barge, Dara noona, but I think you had done it again, unintentionally. I hope you stop pushing Chanyeol away this time, I know it’s too much to ask, but he’s gone through a lot already. This time, Chanyeol isn’t vocal with his feelings because he’s scared.” Baekhyun ends.

“Scared?” Dara asks. She already knows it’s unfair in Chanyeol’s side.

“Chanyeol’s scared that you’d reject him again.” Baekhyun explains. Chanyeol isn’t that hard to decipher, his transparency radiates towards Baekhyun, maybe because he had known the giant since a few years ago.

“I don’t want to push him away anymore, Baekhyun.” Dara suddenly blurts out, followed by a sigh.

“I want to give back, actually.” Dara says sincerely.

Baekhyun’s eyes drop, he half expected such answer from Dara, it would only take a few more years (exaggeratingly of course) for her to realize her feelings, “But could you promise something noona? Don’t love Chanyeol just because you pity him.” He asks of her.

“You know what, Baek? Now that I think about it, I think I already like him.” Dara says back.

Baekhyun’s eyes widen from Dara’s unexpected retort, he questions again. “Is it only now that you realize your feelings, noona?” He bravely asks, Baekhyun has the tendency of asking straight questions, and his tongue doesn’t leave an exception.

Dara doesn’t answer immediately, she gets a few seconds before she answers back, “I- No. It’s only now that I’m actually accepting them.” She unsurely says.

Baekhyun’s eyebrows curl to the middle in confusion, “How are you going to do it, noona?” He asks, his gaze transferring to the dark sky that was ignited by a few small stars.

“Since you already pushed Chanyeol to Krystal-ssi, doing this thing would only complicate things between the three of you. It may ruin what you had tried to build up.” He doesn’t mean to be rude, Baekhyun was pertaining to Dara’s insisting way of building KrysYeol and now the suddenly pull back may make things more difficult than they are now.

Dara notices that Baekhyun is an analyzer. With all his questions and hesitancy, she knows that he’s doing his job, as Chanyeol’s best friend and his guardian angel. Baekhyun does everything to protect people dear to him the most, and this time, Baekhyun is hesitant in letting Dara continue with her newly found plan.

“I know you’d probably wouldn’t want me to do anything to Chanyeol that could hurt him, and trust me, Baekhyun, I don’t want that as well. We both made mistakes before but I’m willing to try and fix things, to get to know these so-called feelings.” Dara points at her heart.

“I don’t know what’s with the sudden appearance of the letter, but I think I have to take that as a sign.”

“And as you said, Chanyeol, he doesn’t want to do the chasing anymore. But I couldn’t lose such friendship with him, not when he has been part of my new life.” Dara ends her monologue; she still has a trouble with words after all this time. She couldn’t even defend herself in front of Chanyeol’s best friend, but she hoped that her words were enough to persuade Baekhyun in helping her with her plan, since Baekhyun knew Chanyeol inside and out.

“What about Krystal? Aren’t you worried of how she would feel in the situation?” Baekhyun worries, no matter how much he ships the couple of Chanyeol and Dara, Krystal is another issue.

“I honestly don’t know, and it’s not like I’m accepting these ratcheted feelings nor I’m saying that Chanyeol would accept these feelings, too. I just need to know, Baekhyun. I know I’m being selfish right now but, I.. I’m sorry.”

Baekhyun sighs in defeat, he couldn’t stop Dara, and he is in no position to anyway, after the whirlwind of events, He still roots for their couple. “I’m going to call on Chanyeol, and he’s probably with Krystal. I’d distract her for a while and you could talk?” Baekhyun suggests.

Dara smiles at the proposal, and she nods in agreement. Baekhyun grabs his phone out of his back pocket as soon as Dara agrees. He presses on speed dial 2 (#1 is his mother), and it rings.

It takes four rings before the phone gets answered on the other line.


“Yellow?” A deep voice resonates through the handset; Baekhyun pressed it onto speaker mode for Dara to hear.

“Odi? Where are you right now?” Baekhyun doesn’t spare a greeting as he asks as soon as Chanyeol picks up on the other side.

“At the party, obviously. Kris is dancing to the tune of Fire, you should see this!” Chanyeol shouts when the screams of the crowd overpower his voice. Dara could hear the faint beat of their group’s song on the background. She couldn’t personally see Kris dance their song, and she didn’t know if she wanted to see it.

“I know Luhan hyung is going to record it all for blackmail anyway so I’m just going to ask him to send me a copy. Could you come here for a second? I’m at the balcony.” Baekhyun says on the line. Chanyeol walks out the crowded area, with Krystal trailing by his side.

“Alone, maybe?” Baekhyun suddenly adds, which makes Chanyeol stop in his tracks. He faces to his side, to Krystal who was talking to one of the people from the crowd.

 “Alone?” Chanyeol asks, his voice sounds differently.

“Yea, I just need something important to ask you, and it would be uncomfortable if others would know about it.” Baekhyun reasons out.


Chanyeol lau