Chapter 2: Caramel Latte

"Jongdae, please get the out of my car. I am begging you."

Chanyeol refused to pull out of the driveway, eyeing his best friend suspiciously as said person lounged comfortably in the passenger's seat. At the backseat, Minseok happily chewed on his favourite steamed pork buns, watching his friends bicker at the front. Somehow, Kyungsoo was also sitting at the back, right behind Chanyeol. The tallest of the bunch wondered how he had gotten himself into this circus.

"Well, excuse you, Park Chanyeol, don't I have the right to hitch a ride with my best friend anymore?" Jongdae retorted in mock hurt, playing with the car's automatic window.

"That's not the point-- and stop that, don't ruin my car­-- you s, you only hitched a ride because it's Baekhyun's shift." Chanyeol promptly slapped Jongdae's hand away from the button, to which the latter only huffed in response before jabbing Chanyeol in the gut.

"Just shut up and drive, okay. We want to go home." He eyed the giant as he reeled in pain.

"Well, excuse the out of you, but you can always take the bus home with Minseok. Like usual. And Kyungsoo, I don't even know why you're here." Chanyeol muttered through gritted teeth, and Kyungsoo chuckled good-naturedly.

"Oh, well, I'd like to see this Baekhyun guy for myself."

"Me, too." Minseok nodded his head in agreement, and Jongdae let out a loud 'see?' before hastily-- and not so smartly-- releasing the hand brake and changing the gear from neutral to drive. In a panic, Chanyeol grabbed the wheel and jammed his foot on the brakes. Everyone was jolted forward, and Chanyeol glared at Jongdae. He shrugged.

"What? It's on drive now, isn't it? Just drive, you retard." Jongdae stated nonchalantly, leaning back into the seat and ignoring the murderous glares sent his way.

Taking a deep breath, Chanyeol just muttered a ', to hell with it' before driving slowly to the ticketing booth. He knew that he wasn't going to come out of this parking lot in one piece with his dignity still intact. He pulled up beside the ticketing booth, and maybe, just maybe, Jongdae wasn't really out to ruin his life. But then, he thought too soon, because as soon as he opened his window, Jongdae was literally on top of him, leaning out the window and scrutinizing Baekhyun.

"Thank-- uhm, sir, no need to lean out of the window that much. I can reach you fine, sir." Baekhyun said, and Chanyeol, whose face was being smothered by Jongdae's armpit ('dude, I'm glad you use deodorant'), could imagine Baekhyun's eyebrow raising up at Jongdae's weird actions.

"Oh, are you Baekhyun?" Jongdae asked, ignoring Chanyeol's squirming thigh underneath his palms (he was aware he was crushing the poor giant's thigh, but he didn't really give a flying ).

"Uh, yes?" Baekhyun scratched his cheek with a finger, and Jongdae hummed in silent approval.

"Hmm. You're cute."

"...thanks...?" Baekhyun backed away slightly from his window, his eyes darting to the back window which was slowly sliding open.

"...hmm....a certain giant will look good with you, you know." Chanyeol wanted to pull up his leg so that Jongdae would hit his head on the frame of the car door, but then he also valued his life so he remained still, resorting to wishing a long and painful death for Kim Jongdae.

"Excuse me? And-- yah, Do Kyungsoo, what are you doing there? I thought you were at the dorm with Jongin." At this, Jongdae and Chanyeol both perked up, hearing the news for the first time. Kyungsoo and Baekhyun knew each other?

"What's up, ? I was, but I dropped by here to meet a few friends." Kyungsoo replied casually, and Jongdae leaned back to peer at Kyungsoo suspiciously (and finally giving Chanyeol his personal space back and his thigh a much-needed break).

"You're friends with Chanyeol-ssi?" Baekhyun looked genuinely surprised as he finally saw the giant fanning his face (because Jongdae's armpit wasn't exactly the coolest place he'd had the misfortune of experiencing).

"Oh! You know each other?" Kyungsoo piped up, and Chanyeol could hear amusement in his voice. That pretentious little .

"Well, yeah, sort of..." Baekhyun grinned sheepishly at Chanyeol, and Chanyeol could only rub the back of his neck in embarrassment.

"Guys, can we just, uh, get a move on? Baekhyun has a job to do. We're holding up his time." Chanyeol didn't look at Baekhyun, feeling embarrassed because of Jongdae.

"Such a party pooper." Jongdae muttered, and as Chanyeol paid his fees, Baekhyun smiled at him shyly. Oh, there goes the butterflies in his stomach.

The next time Chanyeol sees Baekhyun is during the latter's next shift (of course). In view of the recent events, Chanyeol still felt embarrassed about his friends. He made Jongdae give him a free tall cup of caramel latte with extra everything because he had been extremely weird to Baekhyun. Placing the drink in his car's cup holder, he was glad that the parking lot wasn't that crowded. As he drove to the booth, no car was in sight, and he could slightly see the top of Baekhyun's head from where he was. Pulling up, he remained still in his car as he realized that Baekhyun was singing along to something.

"Aha, listen boy, my first love story~ ooh woaaah, ooh woaaah, yeah~"

Of course. It was Gee.

Chanyeol didn't know how to catch Baekhyun's attention without startling him or coming off as someone who felt too right at home. So he just waited, trying not to smile. Baekhyun was being very adorable. His back was slightly turned to Chanyeol, and he had his eyes closed as he bobbed his head up and down. He fixed the earphones on his ears, and opened his eyes to peek out the window (probably remembering that he had a job to do) only to get the shock of his life at seeing Chanyeol comfortably sitting in his car, fiddling with his phone and looking very much like he had been enjoying the free show. The shorter male only let out a rather unmanly shriek.

"Oh, h-hey, Baekhyun." Chanyeol grinned sheepishly before reaching for the drink and handing it out to Baekhyun.

Still frozen in shock and unadulterated embarrassment, he took the drink shyly, feeling his face heat up.

"...I see you're a Girl's Generation fan." Chanyeol bit his lip to stop smiling, and Baekhyun chuckled nervously in response as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"Y-yeah...a SONE."

"...what?"

"We're called SONEs....yeah. A-anyway, thanks for the drink. I, uh, really needed it." Baekhyun pulled the earphones out of his ears before getting back to his job.

Chanyeol wordlessly paid his fees, and as Baekhyun busied himself with printing Chanyeol's receipt, the taller of the two couldn't refrain from speaking, or rather, letting his fanboy self take the lead.

"You have a pretty voice, you know? Don't be shy about it."

Baekhyun visibly tensed, and as he turned back to give Chanyeol his change and receipt, Chanyeol noticed the furious blush dusting the smaller boy's cheeks, and the way he had a frown on his face as he turned to sip his caramel latte with a sense of urgency and desperation. Chanyeol heard a quiet 'drive safely, Chanyeol-ssi' before he drove off, noting how Baekhyun looked really adorable while he blushed.

The following weekend, Chanyeol found himself being dragged off by Kyungsoo to God knows where. He actually had work, but Minseok, being the traitorous friend that he was, let the short doe-eyed boy drag his giant of a friend elsewhere, calling out a reassuring 'I'll cover for you, Yeol! Have fun!' after them. Had it been any other person dragging him, Chanyeol would have worshipped Minseok, but this was Kyungsoo, and he was friends with Baekhyun and is that my car with Jongdae driving WHO THE FUC--

"Alright, es, hurry up and get your asses in the car now. The guard's going to flip if I stay here a second longer." Jongdae chided at them, and Kyungsoo hurriedly pushed Chanyeol into the backseat.

It took Chanyeol ten seconds to process what was happening. He had just gotten unceremoniously pushed into his own car's backseat, and Jongdae, the spawn of Satan and the grandchild of all things evil, was the one steering the wheels. Kyungsoo sat in the passenger's seat, bouncing up and down happily with a grin on his face that made him look like an elementary kid about to receive a load of Christmas presents. It also took him another five seconds to realize that he was, technically, getting kidnapped by his best friend and the best friend of his crush. He blinked before kicking the back of Jongdae's chair. The latter cussed sharply before throwing a dirty look at Chanyeol, totally turning away from the road.

"Kim ing Jongdae keep your eyes on the road OH MY GOD." Chanyeol pointed at the road in panic, and Jongdae did as he was told, swerving in time and nearly driving into a gutter.

"Then don't be a ing and kick my seat!" Jongdae hissed through gritted teeth.

"Guys, I still want to arrive safely at that place! I love my boyfriend PLEASE." Kyungsoo muttered in between his silent praying that was initiated because of Jongdae's driving skills.

"Your boyfriend?! Then why the am I here?! And my car, too!" Chanyeol retorted, confused and scared for his life as Jongdae s through the traffic.

"Because you're going on a date, you tard! You can thank us later for this." One of Jongdae's hands let go of the wheel (causing Kyungsoo to mumble more prayers under his breath and Chanyeol to shut his eyes tightly, bracing himself for impact) and reached into the compartment.

He threw something wrapped in paper back at Chanyeol. The bundle dropped with a thud onto Chanyeol's lap, and the latter threw a questioning look at Jongdae. Jongdae floored the gas and beat the red light before speaking to Chanyeol (and ignoring a whimpering Kyungsoo beside him asking him to please slow the down).

"Change into that. You don't go on a date with a ing nametag and in dirty ripped jeans, Chanyeol."

"...but you guys are here." Chanyeol already gave up fighting for whatever he had been defending earlier, and just focused on the problem at hand.

"We're happily committed men, you tard. We don't want your schlong." Jongdae finally pulled into a driveway, and Kyungsoo was thanking all the deities and gods that he knew for letting them arrive in one piece.

It was that annual fair that Chanyeol had kept reading about. Posters were strewn up all over the mall where he, Baekhyun and Jongdae worked at, and it was supposed to give people the old school carnival feel, guaranteeing rides, games, and magic shows. Chanyeol hadn't taken much note of the posters, but now, he found himself parked in the fair's provided parking lot.

"Dude, hurry up. Kyungsoo's boyfriend and Baekhyun's probably growing roots already."

Chanyeol snapped out of his thoughts at the mention of Baekhyun.

"Did you say Baekhyun?"

"No, man, I said Junmyeon, my boss." Jongdae rolled his eyes, and Chanyeol nodded.

"Oh, I thought you said Baek--

"I did, you idiot. Now hurry up and change."

Jongdae pushed Kyungsoo out of the door and he also slid out, giving Chanyeol some privacy to change. Shrugging and not exactly processing what was happening, he just did as Jongdae told him (he valued his life, yes). Soon enough, he got out of the car as well and Jongdae looked at him from head to toe before nodding his head in approval.

"Well, my help managed to make your ugly face look hot."

"...I don't know if I should thank you, or throttle you." Chanyeol muttered, and before Jongdae could say anything, Kyungsoo was pulling Chanyeol by the arm.

"Come ooon." Kyungsoo whined, and Jongdae waved at them.

"Wait, where are we going?" Chanyeol was seriously lost.

"You guys go and enjoy your date. I have a business to run, as usual. I'll be borrowing your car!" Jongdae piped up from inside the car.

Chanyeol watched as Jongdae drove off with his precious car, and he turned to Kyungsoo who was pulling him through the fair's entrance (he already had tickets for them). The shorter boy stopped before looking around, and Chanyeol took the chance to pull his arm away.

"Kyungsoo, uh, what's happening?"

"Well, we're going on a date!"

"....us?" Chanyeol frowned, and Kyungsoo threw him a scandalized look before shaking his head furiously.

"ing no. I'm going with my-- oh! Jongin! Jonginnie!" Kyungsoo ran off, leaving Chanyeol by himself.

Chanyeol followed Kyungsoo with his eyes, and he watched as the shorter boy melted into the arms of a taller, tanned boy, pecking him on the cheek and leading him away. Kyungsoo looked back to wave at him and smile before forgetting about him altogether, focusing on his boyfriend.

"H-hey."

Chanyeol turned around when he felt someone tugging at his sleeve. His eyes widened as he saw Baekhyun smiling sheepishly at him, fingers still latched onto his sleeve.

"B-Baekhyun?"

"...Kyungsoo dragged me here. He, uhh, said that you wanted to go on a date with me...?" Baekhyun's cheeks flushed red, and Chanyeol wanted to faint. Those ers, Kyungsoo and Jongdae, are going to die and he was going to make sure of it.

"I, uhh, no! That's not...that's not true..."

Baekhyun looked up at him, his features marred by a frown. Something flitted across his face, and Chanyeol couldn't figure it out.

"Oh...oh, I see. I, uh, that's what I told Kyungsoo, actually. I mean, why would you want to go on a...date, with me. Sorry. I'll just, uh, go home." Baekhyun chuckled nervously, turning away.

Chanyeol watched as Baekhyun walked away, his shoulders slumped and Chanyeol felt like a jerk. Baekhyun totally misunderstood him, and Chanyeol didn't even bother clarifying what he meant. Running a hand through his hair, he chased after Baekhyun who was already at the gates, standing at the exit line.

"Baekhyun!"

Baekhyun looked up at his voice, and Chanyeol jogged over to him, pulling him out of the line by his wrist and trying to catch his breath. Maybe he should've taken Minseok up on that free gym subscription offer.

"Chanyeol-ssi?"

"You're wrong, Baekhyun." Chanyeol straightened up, still heaving.

"I'm...you're not Chanyeol-ssi...?" Baekhyun raised an eyebrow, and Chanyeol shook his head.

"No! I mean, yes, I am, but...you're wrong. What I meant was, I didn't tell Kyungsoo that I wanted to go on a date with you. We never had any talks like that." Chanyeol could feel his face heating up, and Baekhyun finally looked like he was understanding his rambling.

"Ah..."

"What I only meant was, yeah, I never told Kyungsoo that I wanted to go on a date with you, but that doesn't mean that I don't...want to...uh..." Chanyeol let go of Baekhyun's hand and fanned his face with his hand, and Baekhyun just kept on staring at him.

"So...so it's okay if we enjoy the fair today?" Baekhyun asked quietly, looking up at Chanyeol from under his lashes.

"I-I guess so, yeah?"

"I mean...together?" Baekhyun clarified, and this time, Chanyeol wasn't the only one blushing.

"S-sure."

Finally, finally, Baekhyun smiled. The smile that Chanyeol loved. The smile that made Baekhyun's eyes turn into little crescents, his upper teeth pressing down lightly on his lower lip to stop himself from grinning like a maniac. Tentatively, he took Chanyeol by the elbow and swerved him towards the merriment in the fair.

"Then...can we go play that game? I...I really want the stuffed dog with the large ears and large eyes...but I at shooting games...." Baekhyun pointed at a booth, and Chanyeol found himself leading the way.

"I'll try and win that for you."

Baekhyun smiled up at him, and Chanyeol looked away, focusing on the game he needed to win. His eyes landed on the stuffed dog that Baekhyun wanted, and somehow, he couldn't help but see himself in the stuffed toy. Large ears, large eyes, and a large grin. He couldn't help but imagine Jongdae making a very inappropriat joke at the thought. Shaking his head and fully aware of Baekhyun still holding on to his sleeve, Chanyeol waved at the booth's vendor, and he grinned.

"Excuse me, ahjussi, we'd like to try the game, please!"

A/N: This....I swear, I never planned for this to become more than two chapters. Oh well. ALSO, WHAT IS WRONG WITH AFF, IT KEEPS MARKING THE FIRST CHAPTER AS RATED (M). DAFUQ YO HOW ARE NACHOS AND CAKES RATED (M).

Anyway, thank you for the subscriptions! This is just turning really random but I'm glad you guys are enjoying lelz. Next chapter will be Baekyeol's date yo~

this gif tho im like WOAH CHANYEOL CAN YOU NOT WAIT UNTIL YOU'RE IN THE BEDROOM he's just there backing baekkie into a corner for some quickie lol